Recitals and Concerts
Alan and I enjoyed singing again in our spring chorale concert. We found ourselves on the back row this time which has its challenges since no one is singing behind us to help us with our parts. However, during the rehearsals and the concerts I think we were a bit cooler than the rest of them since we enjoyed a bit of air flow on our backsides! Now we take a break over the summer and then start up again in the fall to work on our Christmas concert.
It was so fun to go hear Clark's and Elliot's percussion recital. Waterford has developed quite a percussion group and fabulous array of cool instruments. Their teacher Dan Chamberland is very dedicated to his students and they are like a little family that has a great time playing together. Elliot worked particularly hard at the duet he performed with his teacher. It's a really long video, but we'll see if we can upload it for you to watch.
Madeleine was able to perform this past month in both a Chamber Orchestra concert and an Upper School String Orchestra concert. It was a great concert and showcased the graduating Seniors, many of whom are Madeleine's good friends that she will really miss next year. Many members of the Chamber Orchestra (including Madeleine) are going to Italy in June to perform four concerts together. It should be a great trip!
I always love Mothers Day, but it was especially fun because this year because my good friend Melora and her family were here from New Hampshire to see their kids sealed in the Salt Lake temple that weekend and we were able to having Mothers Day breakfast together Sunday morning. We saw them off and then were able to call Phillip in Spain and chat with him for an hour or so before heading off to church. It is so wonderful to be able to talk with our missionaries! He sounded so great and happy and told us so much about Spain and the wonderful people there. It is our first time talking to him in person since he arrived in Spain and it was comforting to hear in his voice that he is doing well. After church we had dinner at Pat and Wally's, celebrating Mothers day and birthdays for both Alan and Madeleine. Aunt Shirley was able to come. It was a great day.
On Saturday we did yard work in the morning and then Alan's Mom, Pat and I drove down to Provo to a Berrett family bridal shower. It was a fun opportunity to visit with the Berrett cousins that I don't get to see very often. Sunday we went to hear our cousin Bronson Duerden report on his mission to Argentina and get together with family afterwards to visit. Monday we took the kids to see the new Narnia movie and then picked up Loren from the airport (he had spent the weekend in Texas visiting friends and families from his mission and attending a wedding.) Then, while we had everyone with us (Tess came home Sunday night) we visited cemeteries and dropped by the nursing home to see Aunt Shirley. When we got home, Pat and Wally came over and we celebrated Loren's and Tess's birthdays. So the weekend (while cold and rainy) was filled with family and I especially love being with and thinking about family on Memorial Day weekend!
Just as Phillip was glad to have Tess to celebrate his birthday with while Loren was gone, so Loren was happy to have her celebrate with him while Phillip is gone. It worked out well, because their birthdays are only 6 days apart and they are both down at BYU having to go to school on their actual birthdays, so a Memorial Day Birthday celebration worked great. Grandma brought a scrumptious homemade cheesecake drenched in raspberries with a candle for each of them. I can't believe that we now have three children in their twenties! Can you hear soft strains of Sunrise, Sunset playing in the background?
Phillip continues to do well on his mission. He is enjoying his new area and a new companion, Elder Fairbanks from Arizona. It was a fun day when we received the CD he sent with new pictures. Recently the King of Spain, the Prince and his wife and the President and his wife all visited Móstoles to see a brand new museum that was opening. The missionaries couldn't get anyone to visit with them because of all the excitement, so they joined the crowd to watch and Phillip (being taller than most Spaniards) got a few fun pictures. He also received his birthday package with no problem and wrote that he had a happy birthday. So, while we miss him being here, we are so grateful he is having this wonderful opportunity.
School comes to a close
Amazingly enough, another school year is over. After 17 years of attending Waterford's lower school music programs every spring, we have now attended our last one. Clark has finished fifth grade and will move on to middle school next fall. This last program was especially special (can I say that?) because Clark was given the opportunity to accompany several hundred children on the piano as they sang the school song which was composed by Mack Wilberg. He did an amazing job and I regret that I didn't take my camera, but the school did record it for your listening pleasure.
Elliot finished up middle school this year and next year will be in the 9th grade and Madeleine will be at the top of the ladder as a Senior. We are already having to think about Senior photos for the yearbook. I know how fast the time will go — scary and exciting for all of us at the same time!
We have been busy trying to get our yard under control. One of my favorite things to do when it is finally warm enough, is to hose off the deck and bring the summer wicker furniture out of storage. We love spending summer mornings on the deck and on weekends when the sun goes down, we enjoy watching movies out there — kind of like a drive- in, only more comfy! There are a couple of fun pictures marking the occasion this year if you check out the slide shows.
Last, but not least, Clark was being chased by girls at school one afternoon during recess and apparently tripped and fell down, knocking heads with his good friend, Hunter. Hunter was fine, but the school sent Clark home with a goose egg that later ripened into a good looking black eye. Maybe he should he have let the girls catch him? Hmmmm......