Maddi's Crib

Maddi is off at college having a blast and lovin life! She is at EAC, Eastern Arizona College, in Thatcher, AZ. Most Mormons know about Safford (which borders Thatcher), the home of Pres. Kimball and where one of the new AZ temples is being built...see below.

Here's some apartment shots...it's tiny but cute and her roommate is Stephanie Martin, a surprise 3rd cousin in our ward. Her mom and Regan are 3rd cousins, so maybe the girls are 4th cousins actually? Oh whatever. Reports are that the two are having way too much fun and we're all concerned whether or not they're studying ;)

The girls are on the top floor

See the building off in the not far distance?? That's campus...her long grueling walk ;)

Area surrounding Thatcher/Safford...kinda cute

A preview of the Safford Temple:

Donny & Marie

So I love Donny & Marie...always have, always will. A fond childhood memory of mine is making up dances with my friend Kelly to the Donny & Marie album...fighting over who danced to Deep Purple ;) Friday nights in the 70's meant...THE DONNY & MARIE SHOW!! If we were out to dinner or something I would be just sweating and stressing hoping we'd get home in time. I loved the show so much, sometimes I'd cry when it was over (Okay I was young in the 70's) HAHA!! In high school for a lip sync contest, I suckered my very good and very goofy friend Mark into doing "I'm a little bit country-little bit rock 'n roll" with me. My mom had yellow Go-Go boots and of course we made sure Mark wore purple socks and rolled the pant leg up! Good times!

Regan's big bro Greg calls up and asks if we'd like to meet him and Patty in Vegas and go see the Donny & Marie show HIS TREAT!! Are you kidding me? We'd love to!! It was so fun, I was grinning ear to ear the entire time--especially when they sang "Deep Purple". Marie is BEAUTIFUL and Donny with his creamy voice and megawatt smile is well, there are no words ;) Greg got FRONT ROW tickets...Patty could have climbed up on stage. We shook Marie's hand, she's the cutest winker ;) Then Donny walks out to the audience across the tables and goes down our row...so of course, I touched his ankle as he walked by!! He caught me...power grin! End of show...he comes back to our row and PURPOSELY stops at my table and looks down at me & smiles...so I shook his hand again and the audience egged me on so...I massaged his calf!!! HAHA I tried to check for purple socks but he JOKINGLY said "Stop it!" and had to walk on! What a hoot! Loved it!! Thank you thank you thank you THANK YOU Greg & Patty...you make dreams come true!

"If you put these glasses to your ears...you can still hear Donny & Marie"

Little Man is startin to look like Dad...

Freaky eh? For those of you who knew Young Regan F., don't you agree boy Stone is looking a lot like his old man? Regan says sometimes he thinks he's looking at old pics of himself. Jarom's voice is deep too, so watch out on the phone...it's a tricky call!

Wicked!

Girls nite out to see WICKED was amazing!! We absolutely loved the play and wanted to stay and watch it all again! My mom always hated the Wizard of Oz as a child, it terrified her and she was actually a bit hesitant to come with us since she knew nothing about the play. She was pleasantly surprised and absolutely loved it and doesn't hate that mean ol witch anymore ;)

Glenda...our fave! Toss-Toss!!

Jarom's Eagle Scout Court of Honor

YAHOO!! He is finally, officially DONE! No one could be happier than Jarom and this is partly due to the mere fact that now he has his old man off his back :) We are so proud of Jarom and his diligence and hard work.
One of my favorite things about Jarom is his compassion & that he is attentive to others feelings. He's going to be like Ammon someday ... a mighty missionary he will be!

We were so glad to have G-Ma & G-Pa, Aunt Stephanie, Nana & Papa & Marcie with us for the big event! Steph helped Jarom write some brilliant thoughts that he read during the presentation. It freaks me out hearing Jarom speak sometimes, low & monotone like Regan, you have to be paying attention or you'll miss their wit & subtle humor!

Jarom was given a framed picture of an Eagle as well as a gift certificate for 1# of See's Candy compliments of Bro Rogers-a personal gift he gives the boys in our ward who earn their Eagle Scout. Bro Layton was his mentor but he was out of town :(
In the pics below that super cool wood carved "scout" bolo tie was hand carved, with love, by Wayne Layton. Jarom would NOT have his Eagle at 14 yrs old without the dedication of Bro Layton to our ward's scouting program. He has had many wonderful leaders...his favorites are Brothers Shipley, Bingham, Welker & Layton.

I think Moms of Eagle scouts should be allowed to get in that Eagle's Nest ;)
I really want to get in the nest.

SLIDESHOW IN NEXT BLOG BELOW...WHY WOULDN'T IT LET ME PUT TEXT WITH THAT SLIDESHOW???

Graduate #2

Madisen is a high school graduate. Unbelievable. Not that it is unbelievable she graduated, but simply I can not believe we have two children who have graduated from high school. Madds had a great run and certainly enjoyed HS to the fullest. She reminds me of HSM 1, 2 & 3 without Zach Efron. She did everything she possibly could making her super busy with no time to clean her room but she did it right. She was always in check with the fact that this is only 4 yrs of her life, & since important and meaningful things are still to come - it is a high schooler's job to just have fun without life altering mistakes, grow & gain knowledge!!

Keep your nose clean and enjoy the ride!! It'll never be this easy baby so if life sends you a wave, get on your surfboard and ride it all the way in!!

Grandma & Grandpa came in May for Madisen's graduation and Jarom's Eagle court of honor. Unfortunately Grandma wasn't feeling well after a busy, tiring day and couldn't come at night but she was definitely there in spirit!!

Papa had a rough day too so Regan to the rescue with a motorized scooter!!

Cousins being CRAZY!! Love these girls

My wonderful neighbor/flight attendant brought Maddi back a flower lei from Maui...I always wanted to do like the Hawaiians do with flower leis at graduation. In our rush to leave, I left it in the fridge at home :( I was soo sad, sorry Madds.

She also of course, graduated from seminary! Yahoo! Here's the gang representing Bellair War. What a bunch and all grrrEAT kids!!

Dancing Queen

Courtney was UHmazing in her dance show in May!! Soon I am going to make the long journey to Costco ;) and see if I can get my video of two of her dances uploaded to DVD and try to figure how to post them. Sounds like someone needs a better digital camcorder don't ya think? Meanwhile...here are some pics of the show. She is growing so much at SCC, has wonderful teachers and she just gets better and better (if that's possible ;)) When I was young and snotty, I didn't appreciate modern dance which was the type of dancer my mom was. Ya that's right. My mom was a professional modern dancer and I didn't get it or like it! I still struggle with some pieces haha Boy, art can be funky but for the most part...if I can come up with a story...I really do like modern now and would kill to time travel and watch my mom dance. So, we live through Courtney now and it's a good thing, cuz when she dances you can't take your eyes off her!

The leg that's straight up...that's Courtney

Courtney & Jen...her mentor and beloved teacher

A tribute to Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson was, well he was a nut HOWEVER...his songs bring many memories of pom line dances, fun friends, singing MJ's stuff loud with the windows down and the easy days in the 80's when homework & overprotective parents were my stress. My first year on pom (pom was Arizona's answer to 'dance line' or 'drill team') was at Connelly Jr. High, our first performance ever was to Michael Jackson's "Working Day and Night". It was such a great dance ;)

I found these pics of Mikki and one of her best friends Maggie and I thought I'd post them. One day when "liquid hot MAGma" was over...the girls watched the Thriller video a million times trying to learn the dance and wanted me to film it (which sadly didn't record right) but when I walk in for taping they had dressed up as zombies. Aren't they cute?

Say "Cheese"

Jarom earned his Eagle Scout ranking and we're working on the announcements to send in the mail. I was dragging my feet and then BOOM, it's two weeks away and now I'm rushed and the picture part hasn't turned out well. AARGHH!! Too late, they have to go out and now I've learned my lesson on florescent lighting (don't take an indoor portrait print anywhere near them) and I need to enroll immediately in a photoshop course.

14 [almost 15] year old boys do not cooperate in photo shoots. Here is proof:

Big Growed up kids...

This Mother's Day video makes me laugh every time because...well, the mushy ones make me cry and this just depicts a photo session with kids so well and there are only TWO haha Try 4 or more. One year I tried to get a good Christmas pic of the kids PLUS our beloved Golden Retrievers BAD IDEA. By the end of the shot, I was FUMING because the dogs were retarded especially Copper, only Courtney was posing of course and Mikki was too little & squirmy and I think I yelled "SMILE IT'S CHRISTMAS quit being brats!!" At the end of the shoot with many, many bad shots one of my kids says "Hey Mom, for your photography business you should put on your cards 'Specializes in children and pets'". Thanks gang.

Only a few days left...

Two of my favorite things...my Jasmine bushes and windchimes.

The bushes are in full bloom and smell so delicious! I need to make time while the fragrance is still thick to read a good book in my hammock. If a slight breeze would just blow through ...

I will be in Heaven!

Track Time

Maddi is right in the middle of track season
well, regionals are next week and her 4X8 team qualified for STATE
This video is crummy and dark but I like how she busts out of the box she was in
and PR'd in the 800. Go Maddi!!
I like to watch her run...it looks so hard and not very fun
plus I remember it's a sweaty heart-pounding good excuse for her messy room!

Santa Fe Road Trip

Regan had business on a Saturday in Santa Fe, New Mexico so I decided to go along to keep him company. We got our kicks on Route 66! Git along lil doggies!! Such a cool little artsy town. Checked out some historic sites, museums, interesting architecture, shops and had super yummy Mexican food with the best queso & chips mmmmmm!!

San Miguel Mission is the oldest church in the United States...next door is the oldest house in the US. Pueblo Indians trying to attack, shot their arrows from the top of the house which went through the rafters above and started the attic on fire. Everyone inside died. It is said to be haunted...some claim to hear children running up and down the aisles and the gift shop is haunted by a young child who died there. Many are buried inside and mass is still held there weekly. We lit a candle for Imelda inside. I think they really need...MELINDA GORDON GHOST WHISPERER!!

Here is the mission...

Inside...

Not a Pueblo Indian leaning on the door of the oldest house in the US...

When the settlers came, much fighting ensued with neighboring Native Americans. This monument was built to honor the men who fought and died...well, actually, honoring the white men who fought and died. This monument was erected in the 1800's.

So, someone took the time to put up a gold plaque to "apologize" for wording on the monument that could be considered offensive now and to please remember the times etc etc So here is how the plaque reads now...notice the cut out? It used to say SAVAGE. Don't know if it was vandalism or they removed it anyway. Click the picture to enlarge if you can't read it very well...



Some candids, not sure what the totem poles were and of course, Stone Soup.