FUN

At the end of school this past year,  Liam was invited to the FUN concert by one of his buddies who had two tickets in this Easter basket.  Liam was over the moon excited and when we determined that it was not on a Sunday we gave him the green light.  I did warn him though that friends can be fickle and being that the concert was nearly 4 months away, things could change. I even suspected that there would be great disappointment because even though Liam had said they were best buds, these two had never had a play-date, never.  We heard from this friend once over the summer when they invited Liam to another concert that he couldn't make it to.  But it was then that I apprehensively asked the mom if the talk about Liam coming to the FUN concert was still in the plans. When she said that yes,  I will admit that I was very relieved.  It's hard to be the bearer of bad news for your kids.

So last night was the culmination of 4 months of anticipation. When the U2 360 tour came around Jared took both Caleb and Liam to Baltimore to see the show.  It was huge with thousands of people and the whole 360 stage set up was mind-blowing in it's scale and very cool design.  That was a rock concert! (Jared and I saw them previously here in C-ville). But FUN was going to be something entirely different.  Held at the Charlottesville Pavilion where President Obama set the record for number of attendees at 5,000 two years ago, there may have been only 1,000 or so concert goers with the majority being young people, teens and preteens and the accompanying parents.  The stage was close...about 30 rows in total and the remaining space was standing/dancing room.  There was a big screen so he could see everything going on on stage, but it was close enough that if he wanted (he didn't) he could have walked right up the where they were playing.  He said they mostly stayed behind the last row of chairs, which were useless as no one sat, and spent the 90 minute show dancing, singing and screaming.  He also said his favorite part was when they dropped all of this confetti at the end of the concert. Magical. It doesn't get much better for an 11 year old!

He was home by 10:45, much to my surprise as I was expecting him to show up at 11:30 or later with the traffic congestion, and wow was he BEAMING!  He went on and on about the how awesome the whole experience was.  A mom sent video of Liam and all his preteen friends, both boys and girls, jumping and singing all the words to songs like We are Young or Carry On and I cannot describe what vivid memories that elicited and even made me choke up.  Seriously...but ever since having babies I get choked up and teary with any sort of event that involves a heightened sense of emotion.....calling out of the players names at a NBA basket ball game, I'm done, the tears are there.  But  I LOVED "stomps"...dancing and singing to all the latest songs from bands like B52's, Oingo Boingo, Lionel Richie, Culture Club, Prince, Cindi Lauper, REO Speedwagon, Madonna, Pet Shop boys and all the other 80's hits .  I also remember my first concert: Oingo Boingo.  It's a far contrast to Jared's favorite bands at that time which included Boston, Rush, Van Halen, REO Speedwagon, James Taylor, and these are still some of his favorites!

Here he is with all his buddies on this night that he will never forget:

Week with G&G Harris

A few weeks ago,  G&G Harris came out to visit for the week to see us and as well as to enjoy the first game of the UVA football season against BYU.  It's been 18 months since we've seen them out here in Virginia and one year since Gavin and Jonah and myself have seen them at all, which is way too long!

They arrived late and with the time change we were all up and gone to school and piano before they woke, so the boys were all very excited to get home and see them....especially Gavin because it was his birthday. Here they are prepping Gavin's birthday card.

Grandma, as always, was excited to try whatever new game the boys wanted to play.  She even ventured into Clue a game that required a little refresher from Gavin. It happens to be Jonah's favorite game next to Sleeping Queens, which is what they are playing here.

An evening walk up and down the luge before heading to Gavin's birthday dinner.

Liam escorting Grandma to the restaurant for Gavin's birthday.

Caleb recently bought a tent and had it set up for a little show and tell.  Grandma was a great sport to join Caleb inside and help keep Ruby out.

You'd never guess that Grandpa was 86 years old and Grandma 84.  They were always good sports about playing with the boys.

An evening walk for Gavin to give his new long board a nice long ride on the only relatively level stretch of pavement in the neighborhood.

Jared and I with the boys (sans Jonah) had picked peaches several days before G&G arrived with the intent to do some canning together.  Despite our efforts of ripening these little beauties, they were devils to peal.  We canned 4 quarts on the first day before giving up and waited a few more days only to fail again.  I ended up with 8 quarts for Jared and I (the boys are pretty sure they don't like them, but they haven't even tried them yet, sheesh!).  I ended up making freezer jam with the remaining peaches, which to everyones surprise was delish. And how could it not be with 6 cups of sugar to every 3.5 cups of peaches.

Before heading out for the events on Saturday,  Caleb made his weekly breakfast of ebelskivers.  He recruits Liam to melt the butter and prep the bowls of cinnamon sugar, but it's just the two of them who pull off this wonderful morning treat.

After our great breakfast, we ventured out to Caleb's first travel soccer tournament in Lynchburg, Virginia. Unfortunately it was super hot and super humid....like so hot that you sit there doing nothing and the sweat still drips down your back, your face, everywhere. Caleb played left striker for the first half which meant he was on our side of the field making his moves very visible to all of his sideline fans.

We left Caleb in Lynchburg to play his second game while the rest of us headed back up in the nick of time for the kick-off of the BYU vs UVA game.  Just because Jared and I are BYU alumni, the boys were not entirely swayed that thats who they should cheer for, and being that UVA pays our bills, we too were torn as to who we'd cheer for. In fact, I opted to wear neutral floral attire and Jared a nondescript blue shirt.  But then there was Liam who argued, "why would I cheer for a team I have no personal connection to"?  He was solidly decided on UVA and chose his clothes accordingly...orange from head to toe.  Gavin was gifted with Jared's old t-shirt from when he was Caleb's age!  Either it has really shrunk, or Jared was really small, or it was the 80's when clothes were designed to fit more snuggly and people were generally thinner.  I'm guessing the latter. Then there was Jonah who dug out an old UVA Caveman's shirt, but he never really took sides.

Every time UVA did something well, Liam was cheering with a little smack talk to all the BYU fans who surrounded him.  

Then a huge storm came in requiring us to evacuate the stadium for what ended up to be a very long two hours.  The boys were starting to poke, pinch, wrestle and chase each other in this very confined space with lots of other worn out folks.  Grandma, who never complains, finally suggested that she needed to sit down and good thing Jared brought down our stadium chairs, purchased for rent for $5.   The best $20 we spent the whole day.  

After a little more than two hours we were let back in to watch what would amount to 15 minutes of play before half-time and seconds before the clouds opened up again with heavy rain and more thunder.  Fortunately, Jared stashed our umbrellas near the entrance so we quickly grabbed those and made our way to the car.  Jared found a spot after dropping us off and parked illegally around the corner from the stadium, but it was by far the smartest move of the day next to the chair rentals.  Otherwise we'd have to walk over a mile in the downpour to get to our van. 

But, what we didn't expect was that when we came home to watch the second half of the game on the t.v., we found the power was out.  Seriously!! Those blasted trees all long Garth road, that they refuse to cut down for the scenic beauty, came crashing down on the power lines....just like they do at least 4-6 times every year!  Yes, it makes me super grumpy because what it really means is that we have no light, no AC, and worst of all no water.  Think toilets, think dirty dishes, think washing anything including yourself, think brushing your teeth, then think how grateful most of you are that you seldom lose power or when you do, you at least have water.

I love Jonah's face in this photo because if he had his way the power would be out all the time, but he is NOT happy with tomato soup and grill cheese.  And then there is Gavin, who I swear cannot seem to understand the value of the utensil despite the hundreds of times we've clearly explained it to him, with his paw in the bowl of watermelon intended to be shared.  Honestly!!  I hope he goes to Ethiopia on his mission where he can eat with his hands to his hearts content.

The next morning, Grandma getting ready for church in the sun room with the mirror from my bedroom.  The only way to get adequate light for primping and then there is Caleb getting his hair washed in the sink with a gallon of cold water.  He was not happy!

When we came back from church and a meal out where we didn't have to prepare or clean anything up we found the power was back on!!!  Oh the joy!  We had a great afternoon together and the puzzlers started into a new challenge.

Family shots.  The first one is taken by Caleb...not bad.

The night we had no power there were some who decided why not make it a tent night! Jonah spent a great deal of time getting organized with his animals, a book for the morning and his trusty clock.

It was still steaming hot at 11pm.  You can see Caleb's road rash from a spill on the long board.

The main project for the week was finishing the desk we bought a few days before G&G arrived.  The bottom is an antique and the top was an unfinished piece that we stained to match.  It turned out so well and Liam was beyond thrilled!

We had a great week with two of our favorite grandparents.  The boys are all old enough to hold the memories of this time with you in their hearts which makes me all the more grateful that you made the effort to come and be with us.   Thank you Grandma and Grandpa for being two truly remarkable people who are always full of a desire to bring joy to the lives of those around you.  

Just another day

Yesterday while I was picking up in the 90 minutes before the boys started trickling back home, I spotted Jonah's blanket laying over his stool where he left it that morning.  That remnant of himself gave me pause.  Several hours earlier he had come down stairs for scripture reading, still warm from his cozy bed and still a little bleary-eyed and wrapped in his "cow-cow".  During breakfast he likes to keep it with him for warmth and so it sits under his bottom and he wraps it around his skinny little legs. I was missing him, I was missing all of them in that moment.  As I made my way thought the house, I found other treasures they had left behind reminding me of who they are and what is important to them today.  I feel humbled that Jared and I have been able to provide for them this life.  It is simple on some levels, extravagant on others, it is hectic on many days, it is unifying on others, but it belongs to the six of us and nothing makes me happier.

Jonah is obsessed with Dinosaurs and has been for some time.  This is a book of posters that he wants to hang in his room sitting where he left it the day before.

Gavin came home today and finished this book he had left on the rocking chair the night before.  He's already into the next book in the series.

This pile of rocks greets me and everyone else at the front door.  They are collected in the woods, on the walk home, on hikes, wherever the boys spy a piece to add to the collection.

That curved stick has made its home on the front porch opposite the side of the rocks for nearly a year.  Others come and go and those there now are a few they were working on this past summer.  There is also bow in the mix that was either made by Grandpa Harris several years ago or it could have been made by Jared.  The funny thing is, I have no idea who made it or which of the boys it belongs to, but hand it to one of them and they'll immediately know the answer.

I love this picture of our scriptures left sitting from the morning reading next to the puzzle Jonah started two weeks ago with Grandma Harris.