Travis is Home and Now We Are Off to CAMP!

Hey there! Travis arrived home safely from his cross-country journey. He had a good time and was happy to be home. He also brought the camera back with lots of great pictures. So now I can post pictures of the finished quilts for Morgan. There are 2 quilts - they are NOT identical (even though they may look that way). They are pretty great, if I do say so myself. I am so pleased with them and have been thinking of other t-shirt possibilities.

On the way out to Utah, Morgan was adamant about getting her National Park Passport stamped at some point. She looked at the planned route and she chose this location (Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site) based on what she had learned in her AP US History class. She and Travis learned a lot and enjoyed their stopover here and Morgan got her stamp.

She was thrilled to arrive at BYU campus and thought it was just beautiful. She wrote to me today on facebook and stated that she knows she made the right decision and is so happy. I asked if she still goes to dinner by herself and she said, "My dorm is so much fun!!" She also reported getting an A on her first Bio quiz!!

Her roommate never showed up, so she has a room to herself for the summer (that will change in the fall). She was concerned about this at first so I suggested that when she was in her room and willing to take visitors, keep the door open. Then, every once in a while, take a walk around and go visit someone. That worked very well for her!!

After leaving Morgan, Travis drove down to Hurricane, Utah, to visit his parents for a couple days. He helped with a few things around the house and enjoyed his visit.

Then it was time for Travis to head home. His dad rode along with him and kept him company. He really enjoyed the company!! They stopped over in Houston for a short visit with his brother Shan, Mikkyn, and their family.

The kids are a hoot! They were thrilled to have Grandpa and Uncle Travis there. They were entertaining. Here is the family in their natural state. The above picture is completely posed!! This next picture is the REAL family!!

So the next phase of summer brings us to Girl's Camp. We are all going (except Morgan). The theme is "BEE" oriented. It is kindof a tradition in our ward to make matching tshirts for the girls to wear as they arrive at camp. I offered to help them tie-die. The shirts came out beautifully!!! This is my shirt:

Then I took the shirts home and embroidered them thusly:

There is a story here and I will start by saying that those three dots under the bee are not blood. The black dye has many different color dyes in it and those are pink flecks. As I was embroidering my shirt (with my titanium embroidery needle) I was moving the fabric out of the way and the machine made that "chunk chunk chunk" noise and I stopped the embroidery. The needle had broken and the lower part was bent in a "C" and stuck on the pad of my right ring finger. I went to pick it off and realized it was stuck. Horror filled my sould. I slowly turned my hand over, and...two strands of thread were coming out my fingernail. "What have I done?" "I'm so embarrassed." "I have been sewing for 31 years and have never done this." "I can't teach a sewing class if I just sewed my finger." All those thoughts were running through my head. Then I thought, "I have to pull this out." The needle was out and I cut the thread running to the maching. Then, with firm resolve, I grasped the needle and pulled really fast. I put my finger in my mouth and ran downstairs for a paper towel. I thought, "I need to apply pressure." So I did. I paced the kitchen for a minute and then felt a little dizzy, so I sat down on the bed. I held my hand until it was numb. I put a bandaid on it, and then went back to finish the sewing project. I still had 9 shirts to go!! I have a hole in my fingernail that I have to keep filing down as it catches on things. It still gives me the heebies to think about it.

Odds and Ends and Dance

Great Joy!! School is out. So first things first, we took the youth to the temple in Orlando. They are a great group of kids. The excitement of the day was arriving at the temple and one of the girls ran to the waiting room and vomited all over. All got cleaned up and the kids moved forward with their business and she was feeling fine a few hours later.
This picture is going way back in time to Rozzie's birthday. In all the confusion of graduation, parties, send-offs, and all that, I never posted a picture of Rozzie's birthday group. These are mostly church friends. She just wanted her cake decorated "prettily" so it has butterflies on it. She has her driver's permit and is looking for opportunities to drive at every moment. She does a pretty good job behind the wheel.

Last night was the dance recital. It was wonderful, as always. A great evening of entertainment. I haven't worked backstage for two years now and I miss out on all the group pictures. They got a few, but then the costume changes were coming too fast. They sure enjoy their time at the studio. This is their tap class - there are a few more girls, but they were doing quick costume changes. They danced to "School's Out for the Summer". I love their little school-girl costumes.

Maddie had taken a few years off from ballet, but decided to pick it up again this year. This is her ballet class. She has a man-teacher and he works them really hard. she has really liked betting back to ballet and hopes to be on pointe next year.

And finally, Morgan is settled into her room at BYU. I cried all last weekend. Morgan had a little panic attack Sunday night as we were finishing up the last bits of packing. Then Hannah and Sarah showed up and helped her out and calmed her down. Bless those girls!! Morgan and Travis pulled out of here early Monday morning and drove cross country to Utah. Morgan was so excited to see the mountains (and snow up at Rick and Holly's). She has been to BYU many times, but this time she was looking at it through different eyes and she loves it. She had freshman orientation yesterday and today. Travis and Katie helped her get unpacked. Travis said she started to get a little overwhelmed last night and Katie, with her cheerful attitude, just started helping out and Morgan followed suit. I think those two will like being close together!! So far, Morgan's roommate hasn't shown up. But Morg is off on her grand adventure.

I'll have more pictures to post when Travis returns home. Oh, and about the FSU blanket on her bed, I made her TWO tshirt quilts and she covers her bed with her FSU snuggie. alas...She'll get the quilts out when it gets colder (on the flip side of the summer).

I have vacuumed out her room. Her bathroom is next on the list of things to tackle. Rozzie and Maddie have dealt with all this pretty well. They cried on Sunday and Monday morning, but are mostly just really excited for Morgan. They ask what she is doing. And they stay busy with their own stuff.

Ta ta for now!!

I Hope She Had the Time of Her Life...

Congratulations, Morgan!! Class of 2011 - Fleming Island High School
We have come to this point in our lives where we have a graduate. Morgan has been so excited about this (as all graduates are) and she was thrilled to be done with school. (I keep wanting to ask her what she has due.) It was nice to be with the seniors as they readied themselves for the occasion. The kids take a lot of pictures with friends and favorite teachers. I am usually posing with students, but this year I followed Morgan around and took pictures of her. Here she is with her very number one teacher, Ms. Jenkins, and a few of her very bestest friends.

This picture speaks for itself:

It was a hot night. Here come the teachers!!

I had set up chairs early in the day for Travis and Annette. They were pretty close! Here is me being very excited for the upcoming transaction. I was continually misty eyed and excited.

Then the moment came when I was able to accompany her to the podium. I had tears in my eyes and so did Morgan. I think she was rather excited to have this moment with me (and I, her). I have been so excited about this for 4 years, when I found out that our school allows us to give our children their diplomas.

And here it is. The transaction, itself. I didn't fall down the stairs, either. It was a very sweet moment. She was smiling and was so happy to have gotten to this point.

Pictured: Maddie, Annette, Rozzie, Morgan, Travis, Jenni, Sara, Mom.

Pictures with friends and family: Sarah, Hannah, Morgan, Rozzie, Maddie, & AJ.

Here is McCall. Her grandma is from Hawaii so she makes leis for the kids. Morgan got one, but it was covered up by cap in this picture.

Now, a note on the National Honor Society stoles - the thick, yellow neckbands. The sponsor of NHS didn't order enough stoles and many kids (including the valedictorian) didn't get one. Kids were really mad!! They were told they would all wear a patch instead. The kids rebelled and wore their stoles anyway. The patch was crudely affixed with safety pins to their arms. Sadly, the patch was white as was the girls gowns so they were basically invisible. Morgan refused to take her stole off as she walked in. This infuriated Mrs. Malicki and she started ripping the stoles off the kids. Isn't that a nice way to treat your honor students? The kids were horrified. She punished the kids for her error.

We had a busy weekend of party preparations and party attendance. Then it was time for our party!! Our first arrival was Andrea - my cousin - from California. She was on vacation with her family on the east coast and were driving through on their way to Universal Studios and Harry Potter World!! What a treat to have her here!

Sara helped me build the cake. I think we did a fantastic job and it was delicious!! This is Morgan's "shrine". I made her two quilts out of all her tshirts. There should have only been one quilt, but the quilters couldn't quilt it that way - it is a long explanation. Just so you know, they are amazing!! She won't be cold out in Utah, for sure.

The foods!! We made different salads, meatballs, chips/dip, fruit, and Travis was outside making funnel cakes! It was so good, and we have a lot left over.

These are the three graduates from our ward: McCall, Morgan, & Joanna.

The house was packed with people. Cars were parked up and down the street. The chairs were all full. People sat outside, even though it was hot. A neighbor made a video for Morgan and we watched it a few times. It was a tear jerker!! Morgan mingled. I mingled - which is hard for me to do when having a party. I wish I could just sit and talk with everyone. It also gets confusing to me when I have to monitor food!! We had such a nice time, though.

When it was all over and mostly cleaned up, I had to go in to school and write out quick sub plans for today. I'm glad I took the day off so I could sleep in and enjoy Mom and Sara for just a little longer. A big thanks to them for making the trip.

And now for your daily dose of cute:

Patrick is so naughty. He scratches, bites, and sits on the table. BUT HE IS SO CUTE!! Just look at his cuteness!!