Goldilocks

Our little outdoorsman- seriously, he'd live outside if he could.

He's very happy (usually) in his stroller
grinning at mommy

This is his first time in the swimming pool. He enjoyed it even though it was freezing!

Daddy's make-shift playpen.

Brady turning out to be such a little blondie! It's so funny to me, I don't know why. Richard is definitely blond, so I shouldn't be surprised I guess. And- it gets curly when it's wet. So cute! He kinda needs a haircut, but he's too little! I'll wait a little longer...

He just started saying Mama! Yay! So sweet to hear. But, since school got out and I've been home, he has turned into such a mama's boy. He crawls around after me begging me to pick him up, and he's HEAVY! Oh well, I love him to pieces, and I'm trying not to spoil him.

Last little tidbit- every time he crawls up the stairs, he turns around after every step and holds his hand out for me to give him "five". So cute! He'll be walking before long!

Check out this article!

Come one, come all! I am participating in the East Valley Mormon Choral Organization (in the symphony orchestra)- and we have a concert this Friday! It is at Gammage at ASU, and you can find tickets through ticketmaster. This is a link to an article about the orchestra: http://www.azcentral.com/community/pinal/articles/2010/05/13/20100513sev-mormonchoir0515.html
I bet if you come, you will recognize more than me up there! I always see old friends when I go to rehearsals! Please come- the music is wonderful! And- we are playing with William Joseph, who is an LDS composer/pianist that I'm sure many of you have heard of.

Happy Mother's Day!

What a wonderful holiday! I just wanted to wish all you mothers a fantastic mother's day! I hope you all had a great one, and that you feel as appreciated as you should! Smile- somebody loves you!

Family Update

Check out these legs! Yummy!

Brady: 9 months. 23.5 lbs. Eating pretty much anything. He's now "army crawling" and therefore has semi-permanent carpet burns on his arms. He has started throwing tantrums- arching his back, throwing his head back, etc. He has 6 teeth, with 2 more coming very close behind. He can sit back up after laying down. (new today, actually) He "sings" all the time. He growls ALL the time. (ask anyone in our ward) He says, very clearly, Dad. He pulls the shade thing on his carseat forward and plays with it. Such a sweet boy. He is very good natured (except for the tantrums...), and loves being outside. We LOVE him to pieces!

Amber: In my last month at Gilbert High. Exactly what I've wanted, but I didn't expect it to be with such mixed emotions. I'm totally excited to be a stay-at-home mom, but I will miss teaching orchestra. Looking forward to our next adventure!

Richard: Finishing up his Associate Degree, and getting ready to move our family to BYU-Idaho! Excited to move to Rexburg and start working on a degree in Social Work. Go Vikings! (I actually don't think BYU-I has a mascot. If it does, it's probably a Cougar. However, in my heart, BYU-I will always be Ricks, so therefore I say GO VIKINGS!)

The fruits of our labors

You know how the carrots (well, anything, really) that you buy at the store are perfect? Perfect size, shape, color? Well, ours aren't like that. But, I LOVE them anyway. They are sooo much better. Check out the little funky guy in the middle. Talk about character. Seriously though, I'm so proud of our garden. Way to go, carrots and beets! Way to survive our sporadic watering!

Vegas, baby!

At the beginning of April, I took my orchestras to Las Vegas

(no, I'm not crazy... I don't think) Besides completely cleaning up at the festival (1st place, Gold Rating, Festival Sweepstakes, etc, etc, etc...), we also went to Phantom of the Opera at the Venetian- notice the gondolas below, as well as the Phantom chandelier

My last trip with GHS was fabulous, and I will miss these kiddos so much! It has been such a great experience, and I will remember my years as the orchestra director at Gilbert High School FOREVER!

Thieves- I don't like 'em!

Last Thursday, Richard, Brady and I were loading up our car to head up to Utah for Conference and an interview (info coming soon...). So, as we were making several trips out to the car and back inside, etc., I went out with a final load, including my purse, which I set on top of my car. I'll never stop regretting that. I went back in for Brady, and when we all came back out to get in and go, we heard a car door slam, and saw a small white pick-up peel out of the drive way and down the street. This kid seriously just ran up, snatched my purse, and then drove away, all the while with my dad standing like 30 yards away. Gutsy, right? Unfortunately, we weren't able to even get a license plate number. Richard, my night in shining armor, hopped in our car and sped off to... what? Catch them? Actually, I think he was trying to at least get the plate number, but the car had already turned the corner, and he didn't know which way they had gone. I immediately called the police, but there's really not much they can do but file a report. So, sadly, I am now purseless. The more I think about it, the more it just makes me so mad! Those are my things, not someone else's! Items lost: wallet, credit cards, drivers license, cash, fingerprint clearance card (expensive to get), cell phone, car keys, house key (we had to replace all the locks), school keys, sunglasses, plus other little odds and ends. Grrr! After mulling it over for hours on the long drive to Utah, we decided it's only a purse. We are blessed it wasn't the car, or more money, or WORSE- our sweet boy. Still- it's not cool to steal.