LPA Art Show

Ethans art work

Ana's art work

below is Morgan's art work

Below is Victor's art work

Last Night was the school Art Show/Fundraiser. It is fun to see the kids perform the songs they've learned through out the term and to see all of their art work. They mat and hang the kids art work through out the entire school and then the kids get to bring home the projects they have done during the semester. So the pictures above are of the kids performances and of their art work that they brought home. Then there a some short clips of their performances.

Grant smiling?

Look at that good looking smile! Yep, Grant got his braces off this week. Monday, April 26, 2010 at 8:30 am to be exact! And just in time for the musical. So he gave me a great smile to make up for not smiling in pictures for the past 18 months.

Where have I been?

Grant is in the HS/JR High production of Crazy for You! this year. He is playing Wyatt. Very exciting in that he has lines this year and is one of the guys tap dancing on the store roof. Although his character then jumps, 8 feet, off the roof! Ackkkk. So instead of blogging I have been sewing costumes and making/finding props. I even helped build the balcony and stairs on the set the other night (Mike would be proud, I still remember how to use power tools!). I then roped my mom into helping me sew. She ended up sewing 15 pink dresses and resized and hemmed the dresses I was sewing! Isn't she an ANGEL! She also taught me how to put in a zipper! Exciting stuff going on around here.

The musical is next weekend and should be great. There are so many parents working hard to get the set/props finshed so we can have a wonderful performance. For those interested it will be at Davis High Schools Theater. Yep being a charter school we don't, yet, have an autitorium... maybe next year? hmmm. There will be performances at 6:30 Friday and Saturday and a matinee on Saturday at 1 pm. This is a big change for the kids, it's a full fledge musical with lots of tap dancing! The last two years they have performed Jr. High productions, so they have been working like crazy to pull this together.

Spring

The boys have been wanting to make a fire in the fire pit for about a month now. They will go down and rub sticks together trying to make a spark. So the other day troy sent them down with some newspaper and matches and let them start a fire to poke sticks in. They were in heaven.

On our first sunny Saturday we trimmed all the bushes and trees in the yard. Good timing too because then we got more rain, but it made everything look beautiful so pics of our blossoming yard (sticks and all).

april

In April Ethan became a cub scout! Yep we have him in Grants old cub shirt until I go and get a new one or take all of Grants patches off. As for Ana it was a family home evening where we were writing things down that our family should do or work on or any questions and then we talked about how the scriptures answer all of our questions and the things that are good that we should be doing. Our Stake President, Pres. Castillo, spoke in church on Sunday (few weeks ago) on this subject so we are going to talk about it in our next couple FHE lessons.

Adoptive Mom's Retreat

I just sent this email to a few people, but thought I'd post it on the blog. I couldn't get the flier to upload so I cut and pasted from Diana's blog.

Hi everyone,

Just sending this out and hoping everyone will pass it along to anyone they know who has adopted/fostering and would like a weekend break with other mom's who have adopted/foster care kids. Diana started this to give moms a break and have a chance to talk about the challenges with have and how we can help the kids we adopted, all while relaxing and rejuvenating. It should be a lot of fun and we can all use the support. She still has a couple spaces to fill. It is the weekend of May 21-23, at the Homestead. The cost is 157.00 for two nights to relax and hang out and to share. Mothers of any age can attend and mothers of adopted/fostered kids of any age! We are just wanting to support one another!!

I just went to a seminar on adoption today and Heather Forbes repeated a few times the importance of support! Diana's information is on the flier if you are interested in attending! The more the merrier! If you can't come, please pass this along. Someone you know may be needing something just like this! She is also raising funds on her blog to help those who would like to come but can't cover the cost, so let her know if your interested but money is an issue.

Thanks and feel free to email me with any questions. I'm so looking forward to this little break!
Carlin
carlintk@yahoo.com

From Diana's blog:
Speaking of the upcoming retreat, there's still room for a few more.

Just a reminder of the major details:

May 21-23, 2010
Homestead Resort in Midway, Utah (approximately 45 minutes southeast of Salt Lake City)
There's all sorts of fun things to do at the resort including spa, swimming, mineral pools, gardens, golf, etc. Plus, there's all sorts of fun things to do nearby. But best of all, there's peace and quiet, sleeping in, rest and relaxation, and hanging out and connecting with other moms who GET IT and are living our same crazy life!

Money for the accomodations is due on May 10 at the latest. That just happens to be the day after Mother's Day. What a great gift being able to come on this retreat would be! It's what I'm getting! :-)

You can find lots more details by clicking on the "Moms Retreat" link under my header.

I've had quite a number of inquiries regarding the retreat and I KNOW there are a bunch of you out there sitting on the fence still trying to decide if you should come, if anyone will like you, if you'll like them, if you'll have anything to offer the group, if you'll really fit in, if you can fit it in your schedule, if you can sacrifice the funds to come, or whatever. The answer to all of it is YES, you should come! You're worth it, you deserve it, I know for a fact that none of us who are coming bite (unlike some of our precious children, ha ha!) and you'll return home an amazingly new and rejuvenated person!! You don't necessarily need to have adopted children, either. I know many who read this blog are parents of older adopted kids who are struggling, but there are others who read who are struggling with the special needs of their biological kids as well. What it boils down to is that if you're a stressed out, maxed out mom who's been run through the wringer with your kids, no matter how they joined your family, you're welcome to come.

Easter Dresses

I got a laptop last year, which I love, the only down side being my cords and camera are never in the same place. So a couple weeks late our the kids in their Easter clothes. Sort of smiling, it was fairly windy. The boys lasted two photos, Tanya made it through a third and as you can see the chilly wind didn't bother Morgan or Ana in the least and we took a few pictures. Most of Morgan's the wind blew her skirt up or her hair across her face, so we have this silly, extravagant pose that turned out the best, funny girl.