Homecoming Week for Spencer

Spencer didn't want to go to Homecoming this year, but ended up going. A week before Homecoming, a friend asked if he would come in their group, so he said yes. Then they told him they were going in couples and told him who he was taking. So, we had less than a week to prepare. (Of course. That's my life!) Here is how he asked her. Cupcakes.

Here is how she responded. The smile says YES. I thought it a very clever answer!

The tradition in Texas is for the boy to give the girl a mum. (That's the silk flower in the middle) The mum has ribbons flowing down and is decorated according to the school colors if you are an underclassman. If you are a junior, you get a silver mum, and seniors get a gold mum. (Tradition!) You can buy them for a lot of money (a basic mum runs you around $60) or you can make it for a lot of money. I think they are fun to make, so I made this one. You add stickers and cheap plastic school spirit trinkets, add lights, things that make noise and clank (jingle bells and whistles and cow bells), and any other cute fun toy or whatever. Then boy takes it to girl who gives boy a garter with a little mum on it that he wears on his arm. Macho I know, but it is a sort of trophy, so they all think it's cool. The day of the game, the kids wear their mums and garters at school. The girls wear overalls, which they have painted and decorated up, and attach their mum (which is heavy) to it. They also wear them to the game. It's pretty wild! Here is Ashley and Spencer exchanging the mum and garter. I put a Tinkerbell Pez dispenser on hers and a feather boa around the mum with mini Christmas lights which you can't see.

I had Taylor take a picture of Spencer at school with his football jersey and garter.

That night was the football game (Thursday, and I have already highlighted that in a previous post.) Saturday night was the Homecoming dance. Here is Spencer all spiffy and ready to go pick up his date and then meet all the parents at a location for them to take a million and one pictures. His car looks spiffy too, he spent more time shining it up than he did on himself.

We went to the home of a friend of one of the parents to take pictures. There was a house that was on the market across the street that was vacant and I guess it was okay with the owners, so we took pictures there. Of course I forgot my camera, so I have copied some from others. Here are a few.

Ashley's is the red and white.

Then we went to a park with a little waterfall and a cool tunnel and took more.

No Pina Coladas, Just Getting Caught in the Rain

Ok, so it rained this morning before I got up for the second time today. (I get up at 5:15 to get the boys breakfast, make a lunch and spend a few minutes with them before they leave for twelve hours. Then sometimes I go crawl back in bed for the seminary hour.) I thought it was done raining, so instead of running on the treadmill at the YMCA, I decided to run 2 1/2 miles home from the gym after doing a little weights for my arms. It is finally cool enough in Katy for me to go back outside to run.

I got about half-way home when lightening and thunder rolled in really close. There was no shelter, so I kept on running, hoping I wouldn't be on the news tonight for getting struck. Then it started to rain. No problem, it was nice. Then it started to pour. All I could do was keep running home. I'm sure the wise, dry drivers in the cars passing me just clicked their tongues and shook their heads at such a nutso, OCD runner, who will run even in life-threatening weather! But I was caught!

Sr. D let me in after I had stood on the porch for 10 minutes waiting for him to get home from the YMCA. I wasn't sure Emily was up yet, so I just stood dripping on the porch. I asked him to take a picture of me before I came in. (Am I not just the beauty queen?:))Behind me is our street flooded in water, gutters full and the water moving slowly up to the sidewalk. Yep, it was one of those Houston rain storms I talk about; how I never understood the concept of the Flood till I moved to Houston.

The other day I ran and listened to the song "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on my Head," but today I LIVED it!

A Rally in Houston

Well, the political activist in me woke up from a twelve year nap and finally did something! On Saturday, October 17, I participated in a rally called "Operation Can You Hear Us Now?" I went downtown Houston to the Houston Chronicle to demonstrate my frustration of the biased media.

The Operation Can You Hear Us Now? was a national rally responding to the silence of the major networks on 9/12 at the Washington DC rally. I heard 1.7 million people peacefully demonstrated in DC and only Fox News covered it. So, on October 17th, Americans in cities across the country went to their local newspaper, and/or TV station and sent the message "Can You Hear Us Now?"

It was a beautiful day and there were about 80 people who came to the Chronicle, and including the TV stations, 300 came out to be heard and seen around Houston. I don't know how many across America, but I think thousands showed up. There is a cool link that shows 18 videos people took and put on youtube. The first one shows a group in North Carolina smashing a TV that says MSM (Main Stream Media) with a baseball bat. But if you flip through, you will see and feel the energy from patriots across this country, and it gives me hope that I'm not alone in my love of country and freedom! Here's the link: http://www.breitbart.tv/can-you-hear-us-now-top-18-videos-from-nationwide-media-protests/#

Some more shots from my little corner of America.

And here is a very short video clip I got. It was fun. Someone had brought a boombox and played patriotic songs like I'm Proud to be an American and songs like that. In my video, Neil Diamond's "Coming to America" is playing.

Happy Birthday Emily!

Today is Emily's 12th birthday. Wow! My children are officially out of Primary. She is just growing up too fast. Emily is a wonderful daughter, full of love, very organized, loves animals, is sensitive to others feelings, generous, beautiful, and talented. I feel so blessed to be her mom!

As I've done this year, I am going to walk down memory lane. And instead of going through each file on my computer to find the best picture of her each year, I decided to just go to her birthday pictures. I've had fun making cakes for her or with her, and she's had some great parties, so I chose to highlight these fun, festive, celebrating pictures!

3 years old

4 years old

5 years old

6 years old

7 years old

8 years old

9 years old

10 years old

11 years old

12 is the first picture. Happy Birthday Emily!!!!!

Football Frenzie

Above: Spencer #11, Below: Taylor #5

It has been a different year so far with the boys gone all day and just me and Emily at home. But it isn't as slow as one might expect! I'm doing volunteer stuff for the team each week and each of them has a game every week. So football has taken over our lives this fall, but it's been fun. (For Damon and I, not so much for Emily, but she's tried to be a good sport.) It has been very hot at the games, but the cool weather has finally arrived! (I think.)

Taylor and Spencer are both wide receivers (x receivers they say, which is more specific to the side they play on.) They usually get to be out on the field for 4 plays each game. Except for one game, they have not been thrown to. Of course, the game Spencer was thrown to was the only game I didn't go to. (it was an away game an hour away) But he caught it for a first down and was pretty excited about it.

Spencer has been working out with the varsity team, but the day before the first game, the head coach told him that because he is technically a freshman (credit wise) he can't play on varsity for six weeks. It's a law or something. So he has been playing in the JV games. He has gone to all the varsity games, and been down on the field, just not gotten to get in the uniform or play. So two weeks ago, he got to dress out for the first time. The game was too close for him to get any plays, but he didn't care. Last week was the Homecoming game. They smashed the other team and so Spencer got three plays!

Football has been a great experience for both boys. Physically it's pushed them, between hard workouts and long days at seminary, school and long practices after school. Mentally it has been challenging to learn the myriad of plays and all the complicated details and rules of the sport. Socially they have enjoyed the associations they have made; and spiritually,... well, each of them has given a Book of Mormon away, and they are seeing how language is a good indicator of intelligence, as it says in the For the Strength of Youth! :) They both say that their teams know they are LDS and are respected.

Taylor is #5! Go Taylor!

This is Spencer at the Homecoming game. He's #11.

"Number 11 on Morton Ranch is a scrub; Number 11 on Cinco Ranch is a STUD!" -Spencer (who is in the maroon jersey and white pants.)

Go #11!

# 11 in his white jersey

This is Rhodes Stadium where they play most of their games. It is Katy School District's stadium. Pretty ligit, huh? This picture is before the game, listening to their school's song. (If you click on the picture, it will enlarge it. The man in the tan coat on the field taking pictures is our neighbor right across the street, Mr. Mosley. He takes awesome pictures at these games! Check out these pictures of my boys on his website Photos By Mose!

http://www.photosbymose.com/Football/2009-08-28-Cinco-Ranch-vs-SA/2009-08-28-CR-vs-SA-Reagan/9444385_Jm3bj#633981671_vuavt

http://www.photosbymose.com/Football/20090827-Cinco-Ranch-vs-Cy/20090827-CR-Soph-vs-Cy-Lakes/9488692_D6hxm#637220710_MtSmN

http://www.photosbymose.com/Football/2009-09-10-CR-Soph-vs-Travis/2009-09-10-CR-Soph-vs-Travis/9627626_iMGNf#649058336_4LfNL

Now for some more unprofessional photographs!

Spencer in his JV uniform. He was #8. (Really?!)

Taylor in his white jersey.

The Homecoming game was on a local TV channel, so Damon went home at half time to record it, and couldn't. So he just videoed the TV as it was going. This is one of Spencer's plays in the game. He is in the top right of the screen, and then he blocks and goes out of view, then comes back in after the play. You just see his jersey and number 11. He does a little skippy thing.

Happy Birthday SrD!

Yesterday was SrD's birthday and I just have to post! He is a most wonderful companion and friend for me. I feel so lucky and blessed! Oh I feel a burst of literariness coming on!

Dynamite Dad

Affectionate, articulate, ambitious and amusing

Monster muscles

Optimistic, orderly, original

Nice, nautical, noble

The list could go on and on. I ended up getting a dictionary out to help my withered brain think of words of certain letters and I'm ecstatic to report I couldn't describe him as absurd, aimless, angry, annoying, obscure, odd, offensive, ogre, oily, orangutan (though when our boys were young, they were little monkeys! Hmm) , ordinary, outlaw, outrageous, nun, or nut! Whew!

Happy Birthday Hunny-Bunny!

A Little Tribute to My Grandpa

My Grandpa Stucki passed away on August 30th, 2009. He was almost 89 years old. He served in World War 2 and really had an interesting life. He was a character and had some idiosyncrasies that made him endearing to me. I will take the liberty of recording a few memories.

I remember...

as a little child feeling so grown up helping him wash and dry the dishes after dinner. There was no dishwasher, so it was a long process and I wanted him to know I could work hard.

getting a lemon drop for helping.

we visited for Christmas one year when I was very young (less than 5). I didn't know how Santa was going to get down the chimney because Grandpa had a coal potbelly stove that had a skinny pipe going up to the ceiling. But I woke up in the night and thought I heard it rattling. I lay shivering with fright and excitement.

his enthusiastic voice. He would get started and then really get excited about whatever he was talking about.

his great laugh. He was always cracking jokes, mostly poking fun of himself and laughing.

picking him up at the Greyhound station. He preferred to travel by bus.

hearing him tell stories of what it was like growing up, of the war, and the Great Depression.

getting a Valentine card from him every year with a $1 bill in it.

getting a birthday letter with a $5 bill in it every year. He wrote it in blue ink usually and Mom would read it to me because his handwriting was challenging to read. But the "HAPPY BIRTHDAY TIFFANY" was done in red ink.

he came to Heather's baby blessing and stood in the circle.

he bought a crib for Heather.

calling him on a veterans day one year to thank him for his service to our country, and having a very nice visit with him.

visiting him on a long road trip with the kids. We spent the night at his home and enjoyed KFC for dinner. We went to Shoney's for the yummy breakfast buffet the next morning. Uncle Paul came too and tried to win a stuffed animal from a claw machine. He kept putting in dollars and trying but not succeeding, then letting the boys take a turn and Grandpa grew more and more agitated. It was pretty funny.

sending him a little Christmas package each year these past ten years or so. And sometime around the New Year, along would come a letter of thanks in his wonderful style. And I quote: " You surely did give me a fantastic Christmas with a whole box full of splendid gifts. I feel rather guilty to be showered with such a huge assortment of presents. They will be keeping me thinking of you all through the year. Your box of gifts arrived Christmas Eve- afternoon, if there is such a "title!" Thus, because the Big Day was almost knocking on my door I didn't start shaking the box nor holding it up to the light nor cutting a little corner off to "Flashlight" it's secrets! thank you so very much for making Christmas Day a bright one to remember. It should be added, I guess that I was expecting ole St. Nick to bring me the usual coal for Christmas - an' it's always enough to keep me warm all winter!"

Even though I didn't see him a whole ton in my life, he was always there and I knew he thought about me and loved me and was proud of me. I thought about him too, especially at Christmas because there was always a gift from him under the tree. I love him too and will miss him.

I want to share a couple of videos. One is in 1983 when we stopped in to say hi for a few minutes on a trip we were on. It kind of captures him I think. The next is some of the graveside service I got on video. It was very moving to have the WWII veterans there do the 21 gun salute and give the flag to Mom. It made it more beautiful and grand. Then there is a little at his house after the funeral as we are taking a look at some of his things and getting to know him a little more.