Band Concert and Finals
Clark and Elliot both performed percussion in the first band concert this year. Elliot also was asked to play in the Strings Concert so he had back-to-back concerts. Waterford has a brand new band teacher this year, so we were interested to see how things would go (the band program has been suffering for awhile). I was actually fairly impressed and thought the teacher and the kids all did a good job. My favorite part of the program is listening to the middle and upper school jazz bands. Clark plays the piano in the MS jazz ensemble — he really enjoys his jazz!
Phillip's return from Madrid Spain
So the day finally came. We got to go to the airport and pick up Phillip from his mission. Elliot had made a paper chain with 100 days on it and it was so fun to see fewer and fewer links on the chain as the day got closer and closer. On Tuesday November 17th, armed with a Spanish Flag and a welcome back poster, we stood at the bottom of the escalators and watched 6 elders come down to meet their families (watch the video). It was so wonderful to see him again! And so amazing to see how fast it felt normal to have him with us! Time is so crazy...did he really go to Spain? He fits easily right back into our family and the boys are especially thrilled to have another sibling living at home even if it is only until January.
He spent the first week doing odds and ends like unpacking all of his pre-mission life, visiting the dentist, doing a little shopping and spending the night down in Provo with his BYU siblings. He also did a FHE for us, complete with making a Spanish tortilla for dinner and a Flan for dessert. The second week everyone was back home for Thanksgiving including his girlfriend Nichole who came to visit from Oregon. It was fun to see everyone get reacquainted with him. That Sunday he reported on his mission in Sacrament Meeting and the whole family came to our house afterwards for lunch. It sure is wonderful to feel so loved and supported by family.
We are looking forward to having him home with us for the coming holidays and then he is headed back to BYU to begin his graphic design program. With the boys in school, he and I will have the opportunity to go to the temple together and maybe work on a project or two (might as well get the help when I can right?)
Here are pictures from Phillip's last two areas, Parla and Alcalá.
This year we were invited to the Browns for Thanksgiving. Pat and Wally always put on a really nice dinner and I feel a bit guilty only bringing pies and rolls. We tried to help when we are there, so hopefully they weren't too exhausted when we left! We had a really nice afternoon spending time together as a family, sharing what we were feeling grateful for, eating a yummy dinner, playing a game and finally enjoying a piece of pumpkin pie.
Of course we missed Tess during the Thanksgiving holiday, but hopefully she was able to do a little Thanksgiving of some sort with her companion. They don't celebrate Thanksgiving in Poland, so it probably didn't feel too much like a holiday. She did ask us to eat a roll for her because she loves homemade rolls so much, so of course we did...but I did write and promise her that we would have rolls waiting for her when she gets home!
She is doing great and is now in Poznan for her second area with Sister Free as her new companion. Apparently Sister Free has only been in Poland one transfer (nine weeks) longer than Tess, so they do have a few challenges with the language to say the least. But those cute girls are committed to trying hard and giving their best effort and we know they will be blessed. Tess just sent us some photos, so everyone can get a little glimpse of Poland. She also included this fun video of her on a Polish elevator.