March 2003

I can't believe March is over. The time seems to be passing by so quickly. The beginning of March saw the end of Finals at Waterford. All the kids did great and were really ready for a vacation from school and homework. We didn't plan a trip for Spring Break this year because in April we are headed to Las Vegas for Easter weekend. So, we just "hung around" and relaxed. We slept in, read books, and watched movies. And we celebrated Elliot's birthday.

Elliot's 9th Birthday
Elliot turned nine years old on March 12th. We spent the afternoon with Aunt Shirley at the dollar movie (which only costs fifty cents on Wednesdays, which this was!). We saw Tuck Everlasting, which some of the kids liked and some thought was so-so. I quite liked it. Aunt Shirley couldn't remember the last time she was in a movie theater, so she thought it was great and of course we took popcorn and treats!

Afterwards we got home only to find out that Elizabeth Smart had been found just a few hours earlier. How exciting was that! Alan's parents came over and we had a birthday dinner of European Wraps (Alan's new speciality -- stolen idea from a restaurant called the European Connection) and fresh strawberry and banana milkshakes. Then we opened presents. Elliot got Lego Basketball which he was very excited about! He sort of likes Legos! We then did the candle thing with brownies instead of cake because we were planning a "Lego" birthday cake to serve at his party later that week. It was a fun evening!

Elliot's Birthday Party
For his birthday party, Elliot decided to have a Lego Race Car theme. We made our own invitations by taking a picture of Elliot to put on the front. It think they turned out pretty cute if I say so myself. The party turned out great; the kids went on a treasure hunt with the treasure being Lego race car kits. They spent some fun time putting them together and then we let them race each other -- with all of them receiving little gold trophies. After the presents (yes, he got more Legos!) we served the "Lego" cake and ice cream. Well, two birthdays down, four to go!

Soccer
Spring soccer has started for Madeleine and Clark and so far the weather has been cooperating. Who knows about this Saturday, however...

School
The kids are back into school for the final term of the year -- the final term of High School for Loren and Phillip! We are fast approaching Graduation. They are both working hard to finish strong -- spending many hours in Mr. Ong's art studio finishing the last few pieces required for AP Art.

The Boston Trio came to town and performed for the Waterford students. As a part of that, Loren had the opportunity to perform in a master class with Allison Eldredge in front of many students. He says it was a difficult, but rewarding experience.

Piano Recital
Elliot and Madeleine had their Spring Piano Recital. They both did well and enjoyed taking a week off from practicing afterwards!

Young Women Meeting
And finally, Tess, Madeleine and I had the opportunity to attend the Young Women General Meeting downtown at the Conference Center. Madeleine won't actually be twelve for another month, but there were extra tickets and I was glad for her to have the opportunity to attend something in the Conference Center. Needless to say, she is very excited about leaving Primary and attending Young Women! We car pooled with two other sets of moms and daughters and we went out to dinner beforehand. It was great to hear from the new General Young Women Presidency and from President Faust. President Hinckley didn't speak, but he was there. It was a very nice evening.

Well, not too many pictures this month -- but notice the cute one of Elliot and Clark dressed up as News Reporters with Lego microphones. They spent a whole evening and involved the other kids in making a short video which was very fun to watch afterwards.

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