Some stuff we've been up to....

We have been busy busy busy, but I guess that is par for the course this time of year. Here are a few pics of some of the happenings of late.

Thanksgiving time was FUN FUN FUN! My sister Dixie and her family came down from Colorado and we did lots of fun stuff. I am not as good as I used to be about taking pics, but I snapped a few. During thier stay, we had Brooklyn and Macey over for a slumber party with Sadie. I love it when these girls get together!! They are such FUN.

First we went out for pedicures...then we bought pizza to taken home and eat while we watched Tinkerbell and the Lost Treasure! At bedtime there was giggling...oh so much giggling. Just as it should have been!!!

During their stay, we had a football day at the park....didn't get any pics of the football game, butI did snap one of Jon after he climbed up this backstop just because he could.....

and one of Lenard playing with Brigger....

The kids had crazy hair day at school (always a hit at our house)

A couple of days ago, we found out that my brother (who will soon be going to Law School) was looking for a home for his dogs. We happily adopted one of them (my parents have the other). This way, the dogs stay in the family, our Grizzly Bear has a new friend, and my kids couldn't be happier to have another dog to love! Her name is Marlee, she is 18 months old, and is such a sweetheart! Here's a pic of the doggies soaking up some sun in the backyard.

and a pic of the kids just chillin'

Lennie is finishing up finals this week....and then finishing up Pharmacy school applications. We hope to know soon where we will be heading next fall (or sooner). I am working, and trying to keep up with my kids' activities, etc.

We have had SEVERAL choir concerts (and one more yet to go)....but I am going to make a seperate posts with the videos from those (once I get them all uploaded from the camera).

HAPPY HOLIDAYS to you and yours!!!!

Love, the Starks

Lenard's First Jr. High Concert....

Again, this concert was a while back, but I am just now able to upload the videos.

I love to hear Lenard sing!! He is also going to have a holiday concert soon....on Dec. 10th at 7pm at the Fremont auditorium. All are welcome to come and hear!!!

Come Travel with Me

Who Will Be a Witness

My Girl His glasses fell out of his pocket before he went on stage. He was very worried about it at the time, but he pulled it off nicely!!

He also had another concert early in November at Red Mountain high school. It was called young lions, and the choirs from Fremont and Shepherd (and some of the elementary schools too) sang with Red Mountains Choir. It was AWESOME! Wish I had recorded some of it, but the video camera was at home.

Sadie's First Choir Concert....

This concert was quite some time ago, but the USB cable to upload to the computer was lost, so I couldn't upload it. I am happy to have found it so that we can share!!

Sadies first concert - Somewhere Over the Rainbow

Sadies first concdert - Rock n Roll

Way to go, Sadie....we love to hear you sing.

She is now it TWO children's choirs...the one who put this concert on, and another brand new one in our stake. She has several concerts coming up.

Wednesday Dec. 2nd (YES, in TWO DAYS!!) I just found out about this concert TONIGHT....how did I miss it?? It is at Gilbert High School at 7pm (I have to work....not sure if I am going to make that one.

Friday Dec. 11th at Desert View Baptist Church on Greenfield Rd. (the usual place for the concerts) at 7pm

Saturday Dec 19th at 5pm at Heritage Academy in downtown Mesa. (this is the new choir)

We'd love to see you there!!

Jon's wrestling again.....

and loving (almost) every minute of it!! This is the Jr. High season (5th-8th grade), and he is the youngest of the bunch. This season the kids are divided only by weight...not age, so he could be wrestling kids quite a bit older (and more experienced)than he is, but we figure it will be great experience for him....also, it is Folkstyle.

His first tournament was in Cottonwood a couple weekends ago. I was unable to go, so we have no video. Lennie and grandpa were there to support him. He lost his first two matches, and was pretty bummed. Lennie said he looked good and tried hard, so I was happy with that!!

He had anoter meet this past weekend. It was not the Jr. High thing....it was put on by Grand Canyon State Games. Being the Sat. after Thanksgiving, it was a smaller meet, but sometimes that is really nice for a change. Anyhow, Jon basically ROCKED THE HOUSE!! There was no one else in his weight class, so he wrestled up every time....and WON....every time!! I usually arrive at the meets after weigh in (so it is not as much hurry up and wait for Lenard/Sadie and Me)....well, this meet went so fast, that I actually MISSED the whole thing. Luckily, the boys and the refs were happy to stick around and wrestle for practice and mat time, and I got some of those matches on video. I have not seen Jon wrestle since last summer, and I am surprised at how far it seems he has come since then. We are really proud of him! Here are some videos (thanks to Lenard who helped me find the USB cable for the camera...YAY)

Jon's first Gold
Because he got this gold, he gets in to the Grand Canyon State Games in June for free...YAY!!

Practice Match 1
Practice Match 1a

Practice Match 2 (against the head coaches son - he outweighs jon by 15lbs)
Practice Match 2a
Practice Match 2b

The rest of the season should be interesting....the meets seem to be at FAR away places...but here is the lineup - if anyone wants to go, let us know so we can carpool!!

2009-10 Remaining Tournament Schedule

-Dec 5, 2009 – Deer Valley Invitational, Deer Valley HS

-Dec 19, 2009 - Buckeye Dual Classic, Younker HS

-Jan 1st & 2nd 2010 – Sunkids Classic, Tempe HS

-Jan 9, 2010 – Safford Invitational, Safford Middle School

-Jan 22-23rd 2010 – Jr. High State Tournament, Marcos De Niza HS

Oh, Happy Day...

Last week it was exactly 3 years since Lennie's last cancer surgery.Thursday, Lennie had a PET/CT scan.he has them once or twice a year to keep an eye on things and make sure it stays gone.Today we got the official word...100% CANCER FREE!!! YES!!! We are truly grateful for all the help we have received and the prayers that have gone up (and continue to go up) in our behalf. We are also grateful for a loving Father in Heaven who has answered those prayers and was ever mindful of us...especially during the hardest times.

Don't drop that egg......no, wait.....go ahead....DROP IT!!

to be continued.....

drumroll please............it did not work. The egg broke. But it was a GREAT effort!! Lenard said about 4 of the eggs in his class survived the drop. We have made some good notes in case he ever has to do it again.

Pics of our trip....

We spent 2 days in Disney/California Adventures, and the next day was divided between the Los Angeles Museum of Natural History and Redondo Beach. The Disney days were hot and humid...we kept as wet as possible on the water rides to compensate. The beach day was GORGEOUS! A little foggy at first, but then cleared up beautifully. Our kids havent been to the beach since May 2004 - Sadie didnt remember it at all, and they boys not so much....they LOVED every minute of it. They could have stayed much much much longer!!

Home again, home again....jiggety jig!

Home from Disney/Cali/the Beach.....and back to normal life. We had a WONDERFUL time! I must say THANK YOU to my little sis Shannon and her hubby Donald for watching our dog while we were gone. Finding someplace for him to go when we go on vacation is a HUGE stress, and they happily had him over for FIVE days!! He was happy and well cared for when we got back THANKS AGAIN GUYS!!!! Will post some pics of our trip soon!!

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

Sing, Sing a song...

Sadie is singing with the East Valley Children's Choir this year (the same choir Lenard sang with last year)....and her first concert is FRIDAY!!

We hope you can join us!!

Friday October 9, 2009
7:00PM
Desert View Auditorium
950 N. Greenfield, Gilbert AZ

Refreshments will be served!

It's been a LONG time....

Guess what I did yesterday. I made a birthday card for a friend....and it was AMAZING! I am not talking about the card, LOL...I mean it was cute too, but I am talking about the creative process!! For many years, making crafty things out of paper and ink was a weekly, if not daily, part of my life. When I went back to work full time last year, that stuff got put on hold. I was so busy learning how to be a full time working mother that I had to shut my craft room door (so to speak). Well just that 30 minutes that I spent in there yesterday making a card was so relaxing...I very much enjoyed it. There is just something about it that made me feel happy. I think I need to work scrapbooking/cards/papercrafts back into my schedule - even in small amounts.

My only regret about yesterday's card....I did not take the time to scan it in before I gave it to my friend. :0)

Lost another tooth!....

This is the 3rd tooth this year for Sadie, and her first top tooth. She was SOOOOOO excited to come home from school and tell me, "Mom, it is time for you to pull my tooth!". It has been loose for MONTHS! We think her new smile is just beautiful!!!

Daddy/Daughter Dinner Date....

Last weekend our stake held a Daddy/Daughter dinner that was a "luau". Sadie was beside herself excited to go. Thanks to Uncle Jaba for the accessories, Lennie and Sadie looked perfect for the occasion!!

Gotta go back....back....back to school again......

Well, the kids have been back in school for one whole week!! So far so good with only a couple of minor issues and stresses. YAY!!

Sadie - 1st Grade

Lenard - 7th Grade....yeah, Jr. High!!!

Jon - 5th Grade

I just love these kids, and I am so proud of them!!!

Jon and Sadie put on a puppet show....

Lenard was gone to scout camp for a week, so Jon and Sadie played a LOT together just the two of them. One day they called me in for a puppet show.....☺

PUPPET SHOW BY JON AND SADIE

Christi

Yellowstone....in just one day....

Yep, that is all the time we had at Yellowstone. Not ideal, but we saw A TON in that one day there.

Here are some videos of our adventures.
Yellowstone 1
Yellowstone 2
Yellowstone 3
Yellowstone 4
Yellowstone 5
Yellowstone 6
Yellowstone 7
Yellowstone 8

It was a Sunny 68 degrees with a light breeze.....PERFECT....and we all got sunburned. Who puts on sunscreen when it is 68 degrees out?? LOL!!

Wrestling on our vacation....

Well, the reason we first planned our vacation was because Jonny qualified to wrestle at Western Reigonals in Pocatello Idaho. This was his first year wrestling, ever, and we are very proud of him. He ended up wrestling at both Regionals in Pocatello and Nationals in Orem the next week. I have never seen anything like these tournaments!! The kids (and more-so, thier PARENTS) are CRAZY.....CRA-ZY about wrestling....they live it, eat it, breath it. I learned a lot, and I think Jonny did to. Everyone he wrestled was VERY VERY tough. In fact, he lost every match....he just does not have the experience or mat time these kids did. But he gave it his all, and in the end....he even got a medal at Nationals. Here are the videos of his matches....

Regional Freestyle Intermediate 75 - there were 25 wrestlers total in his weight class.
Match 1 The kid Jon is wrestling here, took 2nd.
Match 2
Jon was out after that.....it was a double elimination

Nationals - Greco Intermediate 80 - Jon put on a couple of pounds so he could wrestle up for Nationals (there were only 9 kids in the 80lb weight class, and we knew it would mean a better chance at a medal for him....even if he lost.)
Match 1
Match 2
Match 3
He did take 8th....
On the Medal Blocks

Nationals - Freestyle Intermediate 80
Match 1 - He NEARLY had it!!! He wrestled his HEART out on this one!!!
Match 2

This is a slide show of some pics I took at Regionals.

WE ARE PROUD OF YOU JONNY!!!
and Sadie and Lenard too.....it was some LONG days in the arenas waiting for Jon to wrestle once or twice.

This will put a smile on your face!.....hee hee.....

10 days....6 states.....almost 3000 miles....thousands of memories!!

That is what our vacation was!! I am in the process of uploading pictures and videos to get onto the blog so we can share some of our travels with ya. It is definately a trip that wont be forgotten. We had a wonderful time (although we had plenty of the cliche "are we there yet"s and "I'm squished", "He's touching me", "How much longer", etc, etc.) we are so glad we got to go....and we are also glad to be HOME!!! Pictures and Video....coming soon.

Funeral Information....

Funeral for James Lenard Starks
Friday, June 19, 2009
9:00am Viewing
10:00am Service

held at the LDS Church - Tempe Evergreen building
750 N. Evergreen
Tempe, AZ
It is between Dobson and Price, off of University

Lennie's Dad passed away this morning...

I am sure he had a wonderful, long, and pain free embrace from Lennie's mom and his parents when he passed. We are sad only for ourselves, and so happy for him. The funeral is most likely going to be Friday, we'll post more details when we get them finalized. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers.

Sadly.....

Lennie's dad is not doing well. He has been in and out of the hospital for a few months, his heart and his kidneys are not functioning like they should, and now he is having difficulty swallowing and keeping food down. Medications are keeping his blood pressure up and dialysis is keeping fluid from building up in his body and causing extreme swelling. He coded last Sunday and they had to shock his heart to get it going again. As of yesterday, he has made the decision to stop all treatments and go to hospice where he can be kept comfortable until the Lord decides it is time for him to be reuinted with his sweetheart who passed away almost exactly a year ago. He is so lonely for her. We are not exactly sure how the next days/weeks will go, but they are sure to be very emotional. We love our families so much and are grateful for the Plan of Salvation, the Plan of Happiness.

You know it's summer when.....

You spend the day swimming at the city pool with your cousins....!!

We used our family summer swim pass for the first time today...it was great! The water was perfect, it wasnt too hot out and we had lots of good company. Hannah and Anthony, and The Aumua's joined us for some watery fun. I had the camera put away by the time the Aumua's got there, but they WERE there, and I think they all had fun...(even Jaba who was splashing the guard with his MEGA-splasy leaps off the high dive).

Leanrd was doing cannonballs off the high dive, and Sadie braved the "tunnel" slide!! I dont even think anyone got sunburned.

Jonny is at cub scout day camp, and that is why he wasn't there today. He is having fun doing archery, swimming, bb guns and much more at the "Pirates of the Pueblo" camp. Today is his second day, he still has one more day to go!!

Great news...

YES!!! Lennie just got the results of his PET/CT scan from last week....absolutely NO UPTAKE!! Which means he is still totally and completely CANCER FREE!! I am grateful that Heavenly Father continues to bless us as he has throughout this entire process. This month marks 3 years since his original diagnosis...I cannot believe how far we have come. Thank you all for your support and prayers on our behalf.

Two medals for Jonny this weekend!....

This past weekend was Jons first ever Greco Roman meet.....it also happened to be the STATE Greco meet....kinda funny. Well there were only 2 kids in his weight class wrestling Greco and only one kid in a weight class above them, so they combined those 3 kids. Well........he lost both his matches, but still got 3rd place. The first match I missed, but he lost by points in 3 periods. The second match I got on video....it was against the kid who was 5-10 lbs over Jons weight.

Greco Match -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1O1x6MfDKNc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07niG4g-P2o
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1MHSkolfr8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z30xI1Vm2Is
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8FWs1q1qKw

He also wrestled Freestyle in the same tournament (which can make for one tired kiddo), and he did VERY well!! He took BRONZE, and we were very proud of him. Pretty much the only ones who are showing up to tournaments these days are the BEST kids, so each match is challenging.

His first match was against his buddy Laine. He beat Laine at his very first meet, and hasn't been able to beat him since.....until Saturday!! They are a good couple of boys, and we are excited that Laine is also going to Pocatello this summer!!

Jon vs. Laine
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnGcXbCcADg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KK7dhsQr_4Q
the ref and the other "judges" had to discuss some scoring or something....it took forever....then they finally came back....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_mH57uICrA

Match #2 was against a kid we dont know....it was short.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ClT6aeI7RY

Match #3 was against Anthony....a kid we see regularly....he is good, and Jon has never been able to beat him....but we are working on it. Anthony took 2nd overall at this meet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EurVdpH0qdg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEcij-eiBXo

Match #4 was against Sammy. He is from Tucson, and we have only seen him twice, but every time, he takes 1st. He is really good, but we were so impressed with how much better Jon wrestled against him this time, compared to last time. He is making great progress!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZeJzljee8M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lNk1NoDIrE

Jon has only one regular season tournament and that is this SATURDAY at Desert Vista High School. It is the State Freestyle Tournament, so it should be a good one!

Video of Sadie and her Cousins while in Kentucky...

This was Saturday morning as they were heading out to the hot air balloon races (which were cancelled because of too much wind).

Sadie and Christi in Indy/Kentcky....

Sadie and I had a FABULOUS time visiting with the Moores!! James is going to make one AWESOME dentist. I was SO happy I could help out by being his board patient. It was a once in a lifetime experience that I am honored to have been a part of. I really enjoyed it (REALLY).

We at at some fabulous places, and had some WONDERFUL laughs. Because I was in boards much of the time, I did not get as many pictures as I usually do, but I didnt leave completely empty handed. These are some pics of us at the Falls of the Ohio State park. The kids had a BALL! They searched for fossils on the banks of the river and then explored the lush green wooded areas around there too. We all got a little sunburned that day, it was GORGEOUS!! I have a little video of the kids too....I'll have to get that uploaded as well.

I'll be a little jealous when much of the family is there for graduation next week, but I am SOOOOOOOOOO glad Sadie and I were able to visit them in Indy before they head out for thier next adventure.....who knows where that will be????!!!

Stuff Happening in May....

Lenard will be having his next choir convcert on May 16th at 7:00pm at the Desert View Baptist Church950 N Greenfield RdGilbert, AZ 85234. This will be his last concert with East Valley Childrens Choir as he will not be participating in the summer, and next fall he'll be in 7th grade, and too old for this choir. They are doing a medly of Rogers and Hammerstein songs. Should be a lot of fun!

Jons regular wrestling season is also drawing to a close. He has 3 tournaments left. They are....

May 2 - Moutain View H.S. (Freestyle) 2700 E Brown Rd. Mesa 85213

May 9 -Basha H.S. 5990 S. Val Vista Rd. Chandler 85249

May 16 - (Freestyle State Championships) Desert Vista H.S. 16440 S. 32nd St. Phoenix AZ 85048

As always, we love to have cheerleaders in the stands, if you'd like to come to watch, arriving at 11am is about right.

Jonny gets 2nd

Of course the one week that just Jon, his dad, and his brother are the only ones to watch, and he places the highest yet. He got a 2nd place yesterday. I'll let Christi write more about it.

Jon is qualified for Western Reigonals in POCATELLO!!.....

He did it! He placed 5th today out of 12 wrestlers...and he got a medal. WAY TO GO JONNY!! I missed the first two matches...he pinned both opponents!! The 3rd he lost by points...and the 4th he was pinned. He was quite devastated about the last two matches, but he really did GREAT (and we told him so)!!

So, it looks like we'll be vacationing in Pocatello this June. As long as we'll be up that way, we are thinking of hitting Yellowstone and some of the sights in Salt Lake City on our way home. The kids have never been to Temple square, etc. and I havent been there in AGES. Looks like it could be a very fun trip!!

Brrrrrrr......

This is another scout campout weekend for Lenard. (Man, they go alot....but it is GREAT for him!) This time they went up near Strawberry....I just checked the weather up there....it is 38 degrees, and it is only 10pm!!! Good thing he got an awesome 20 degree mummy bag in February....looks like it will come in handy tonight. I think even with the cold he'll have a blast! He usually does. By the time we go to Greespeak this summer, it'll be like nothing to him. LOL!

Gearing up for this weekend...

It is the Western Regional Qualifiers. If Jon places in the top 6 this weekend, he can go to the Western Regional Tournament in Pocatello, ID in June. He's gonna have to be in top form, and he has been practicing hard this week!! The tournament is at Highland High School, 4301 E. Guadalupe Rd. Gilbert 85220. If you are coming to watch, I'd say getting there around 11am is the best idea. I have to work the night before and the night after, so I am not going to be able to be there the whole time.....hopefully, I can get a little sleep and make it there for most of it. Wish him luck!---and lots of PINS!!!

Sadie and Mom go to the Stuffington Bear Factory

Yesterday was Sadie's last Kindergarten field trip. They were going to the Stuffington Bear Factory. Sadie REALLY wanted me to come on the field trip, so I arranged my schedule so I could (although I did have to work the night before, so by the end of the field trip...I'd been up for 24 hours, and I had worked over 12 of them----->pardon my YAWN). We learned all about the origin of the teddy bear, how the first bears were made and what they were stuffed with. Then we toured the factory and got to see the whole process. After that, each child and parent chaparone got to make a bear! So fun!! Sadie's bear is Pink, and she named her "BubbleGum".....my bear is brown, and I named her "ButterScotch".

At the end of the day, I was a little sad knowing that this will be the LAST Kindergarten field trip I go on!!

Jon fought hard this weekend and got a MEDAL!!...

Jonny took 3rd (BRONZE!!) out of 9 wrestlers this weekend at Mesa High. It was a great tournament. He is also making some good friends (the wrestlers from the other clubs)

Sadie, Lenard and I cheered from the stands, and Lennie was down on the mat with him. Lenard even got to do some of the video taping this week....he LOVED that!

1st Match - Jon won on points.
Match 1 - a
Match 1 - b

2nd Match - Jon won by pinning (we think?....this ref was not very good)
Match 2

3rd Match - Jon lost on points
Match 3 - a
Match 3 - b

4th Match - Jon Lost on points
Match 4 - a
Match 4 - b

This week is a short school week....FRIDAY OFF, YAY!! I am thinking of taking the kids to see Monsters VS. Aliens (maybe I can bribe them to clean the back yard first??)

Stuff that happened last weekend....

Lenard went on a Deacon's quorum campout. They went fishing at Roosevelt Lake. Only one kid and one leader caught anything, but they all had a great time. Lenard came home sunburned, but happy.

While Lenard was gone, Jon had another wrestling tournament. He had 5 matches....he pinned two opponents (his first two pins...he was THRILLED), lost one match on points (it was very close), got pinned in one match (again, his first time...he was BUMMED), and won by default on the 5th match (the opponenet didnt show). All in all, he placed 5th out of 12 in his age/weight class. We think he did great! It was fun to watch with Grandma, Grandpa, Nancy and the Aumuas! Here are the videos if you wanna see....

Match one - Jon won by pinning.
Match 1 - a
Match 1 - b

Match two - Jon lost by points. This kid was one Jon beat in the very first tournament (he wore yellow).
Match 2 - a
Match 2 - b
Match 2 - c

Match three - Jon won by pinning (in like 5 seconds.....and yes, his opponent was a girl)
Match 3

Match four - Jon was pinned.
Match 4 - a
Match 4 - b

(as usual, please turn the sound off or just try to ignore the crazy lady running the video, she can't keep her mouth shut...she tried, LOL!)

Later that night, Lennie and I went to an Elders Quorum Pinewood Derby. We made a minivan for our car, LOL....looked just like our old Chevy Lumina van. The kids got a real kick out of it. We won about half and lost about half of our races....LOL, it was fun, and we already are working on some big ideas for next year.

Wrestling Tournament this Weekend....

this weekends wrestling tournament is ON! Jon's been practicing hard, and learning some great moves and having a great time with it.

The tournament is at Desert Vista H.S. 16440 S. 32nd St. Phoenix 85048. That is basically Frye and 32nd St in Ahwatukee. If you're coming to watch, I'd recommend getting there about 11am.

No wrestling this weekend....

The tournament at Maryvale this weekend has been cancelled. Jon gets the weekend off.

Suddenly SNOWING...

On our way home from ShowLow on Saturday, all of a sudden it was snowing!! Not really hard, and it wasn't leaving much on the ground, but the kids have never been snowed on, so we stopped at the side of the road and let them stand in it for a short time.

More wrestling fun!

Saturday morning we woke up REALLY early and headed to ShowLow for this weeks wrestling tournament. It was a long day, but we had a blast! Jon did well! He placed 4th out of 6, and we were so proud of him. Now that I have a new video camera, I took lots of video....in the interest of space and downloading time, I'll link to them individually so you can see them one at a time if you want to. :0)

Match #1...Jon won this match. It was very close, but in the end it went Jon's way, YAY!!

Match #1 - a
Match #1 - b
Match #1 - c
Match #1 - d
Match #1 - e (this is where they show that he wins!!)

Match #2...Jon lost this match. The kid he is wrestling took 1st place. He has been wrestling for 5 years, and his dad is the coach. He pinned ALL of his opponents....BUT NOT JONNY! I thought that was pretty cool!!

Match #2 - a
Match #2 - b

Match #3...Jon lost this match too. This is the one that was most upsetting to Jonny. At the end, he pins this kid, and time runs out before he can keep him down.

Match #3 - a
Match #3 - b

We saw Raine and her family there, and I talked with her a little. It was nice to see them. We may see them at future tournaments. Fun!

Magnificent Melodies.....

Friday night, was Lenard's choir concert. He did a FABULOUS job!! We were so proud of him. Nancy, Suzi, Isaiah, Halia and Grandma were able to attend as well, and it was fun to have them there. I took video of each song, the videos are kind of long and large files, so I am not going to post the actual videos on the blog to save space. I loaded them onto youtube, and I'll link them here. Please go watch them....they are great!!

Sunset In My Mind

Just Another Ordinary Miracle

Dona Nobis Pachem

After being in this choir, Lenard decided to sign up for choir as an elective in Jr. High....YAY!!

In a couple of months, he'll have another concert. We'll be sure to let you know when it will be!!

Brrrrrrrrrrr.....Ice, anyone?

My kids went to an ice skating birthday party in Feb. It was the first time any of them had been ice skating. It was rather amusing to watch. At first of course all of them were CLINGING to the wall, but eventualy, and with some coaxing (some more than others) they all came off the wall and did quite well for first timers!!

Wrestle-mania....

WOW, Saturday was a long and FUN day!! We had an AWESOME showing of support for Jon! Aunt Nancy, Uncle Rob, and Grandma and Grandpa all came out to watch!

Jons first tournament of the season was at Red Mountain High School. Lennie took him down at 8am to weigh in, and then it was a whole lot of hurry up and WAIT! He did not wrestle until close to 11am I think. Nancy was there the WHOLE time waiting. I got there with the other kids close to 10am and Grandma/Grandpa and Rob came shortly after that. Once the wrestling got underway, it was a whole lot of fun and adrenaline.....for Jon AND us up in the stands.....HOLY COW. Jon did FABULOUS!! He put his WHOLE self into it. He was exhausted at the end of the day. Lennie and Uncle Rob were down on the mat with him. He wrestled 3 matches (he was supposed to wrestle 4, but the 4th kid puked before the match and went home). He got a bronze MEDAL!! He is so proud of it! I took pictures of the first match (which he lost, but his coach said was scored incorrectly and he should have won), and video of the 2nd (which he won).

I used Grant's digital camera to shoot the footage, and I am not that great of a videographer while I am trying to watch the match as well....so I didn't get some of the "good stuff", LOL!!





I was trying to take a picture of this, but it was still set to video, but this is both boys at the end of the match....exhausted.

The parents of the kid Jon was wrestling in this video came up to us afterwards and congratulated Jon and told him he was really good (the dad was a coach). Then Jon and Lane (the kid) talked a bit. It was pretty cool.

Saturday morning is wrestling in ShowLow. My cousin Raine has a son who will be wrestling in that tournament as well, and we look forward to seeing them there!!

Don't forget that Friday night Lenard has a concert, we are really looking forward to that!! He has been working really hard for the last couple of months!!


PS - if you are ever at a match and have trouble locating Jon....just look for the WHITEST kid there, LOL!! ;0)

Coming Events....

Wrestling Matches for Jonny
On Saturday's
$3 Adults, $1 Kids

March 7th - 8:30am - Red Mountain HS
March 14th - 8:30am - ShowLow HS
March 21st - 8:30am - Maryvale HS
March 28th - 8:30am - Desert Vista HS
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Lenard's Choir Concert

Friday, March 13th at 7:00pm. It is FREE. Refreshments will be served.
Desert View Baptist Church Auditorium
950 N Greenfield Rd. (Greenfield between Baseline and Guadalupe)

PS-East Valley Childrens Community Choir is now enrolling for the Spring Session. It is 8 weeks, and will be a musical theater production - "Go West!" There will also be Cowboy poetry and melodramas, etc. So much FUN!! If you are interested in the details, let me know.

Check it out....

At wrestling practice on Thursday, they had a special guest coach. His name is Anthony Robles, he is 20, and wrestling at ASU. He went to Mesa High, and was wrestling the same time as Kevin. He was born with only one leg. He took 2 High School State Championships, and 1 National High School Championship. He is currently ranked 10th in the nation in Freestyle, and is expected to make All American this year. He came and talked to the kids and showed them some of his favorite moves, and then jumped in and helped coach them through the moves. He was only able to actually work with a couple of pairs of kids, but Jon was one of them! It was pretty cool.

Gone Camping....

Lenard went on his first Deacon's quorum campout this weekend. Apparently it is the first of many....I am told they go camping about once a month?? LUCKIES! :o) He got a new 20° mummy bag since he is going to be needing it! He was really excited to go...even though he knew they were going on a 5 mile hike today. I hope he is still excited when he gets home!

Getting him packed up made me look forward to the summer and camping at Greens Peak or ????wherever!! Lets start making plans!!

The Scrap Review....

I know, I know, I have not been scrapping much lately, HOWEVER.....it is never far from my mind, LOL!! I will, one day, find a way to work scrappy time back into my schedule.

I am afraid that, as I am currently taking a bit of a scrappy break, I will miss so many fun things that are coming into the scrappy world. This is why I am so happy to have found a new scrappy site called THE SCRAP REVIEW which will be launching next week!!!



They are going to have real product reviews by real scrappers, and that is what I need to see. I want to hear all about the new stuff, so I can be dragged (ever so willingly) back into actively scrapping!!

I cannot wait to see what they have to show us!!

4th Grade Patriots....

Last Friday, the all the 4th grade classes at Jon's school put on a Patriotic presentation for the parents. It was obvious that they had worked very hard on the songs and speaking parts. I was so happy that I was able to go and see it. Here is just a tast of the program, but the whole thing was GREAT!!

WRESTLE!.....

On Feb 9th Jon started wrestling. I have been looking for something active to sign him up for that he would truly enjoy, and I think we have a WINNER! He is LOVING wrestling. They have practice 3 times a week for an hour, and he is doing great (well as far as my untrained eyes can tell). He seems to be quite strong for his size. His first match is March 7th - he weighs in at 8AM, and I think the wrestling stars at 9am!! Can't wait.



Go JON!!