Spelling Bee

Emma was invited to participate in the spelling bee again this year. She did great job. She spelled words that I didn't know.

Sadly, she got out on a word that we skipped while practicing. When they said the word I had no clue what it was. I thought, I have never heard that before. I tried using my mental telepathy to tell Emma to ask for a definition and to use it in a sentence. I thought that would help. But she didn't. Then I asked Clay about the word when I got home... Should have know it. The word was Lanai. Had I thought they were talking about an island in Hawaii I would have known. But this was a spelling bee. Lots of verbs, adjectives, nouns. I couldn't think of any word in the English language that sounded like "lanie". And neither could Emma. 

I am still so proud of her to making it to the spelling bee. Most of the kids got out on the same round that Emma did. Though she was upset because she knew how to spell all those words that the others got out on. Maybe will will have to take her to Lanai one day to make it all better ;)

An evening at the theater

It was a local production of Narnia the Musical. It was a fun to see some of our friends in the show.

40 continues

The party continues...

Clay's mom is in the process of moving. She came across this hat and sent it to him for his birthday. It is from the 1982 World Series when he got to go and see the St Louis Cardinals play.

Then his sister sent this box of 40 balloons!

 And inside those 40 balloons were packages of M&M's. 

The big 4-0

It's not everyday you turn 40. 

It requires a celebration.

We invited a bunch of friends from church over to celebrate. I asked Clay what type of cake he wanted. First he said a Legends of Zelda cake, which I did last year. Then he said an outer space cake, which I did 4 years ago. He decided an Appalachian Trail cake would be great.

The girls helped me with the cake. They rolled out the brown fondant. Mixed together and made the rocks. And Emma made the deer on the top. It was a chocolate cake with green cream cheese frosting. Clay is not a big fan of fondant so we only used it for the decorations. 

There was plenty of good food and good friends.

A big THANKS to my "staff photographer" and best friend of the birthday boy, Jeremy Rosenlund! Without you I would not have any pictures to remember the day (still trying to get our camera fixed).

Now for 40 Fun Facts about Clay:

(For the party, we posted 20 facts on the wall, the remaining 20 facts was a multiple choice quiz)

1. Clay was born at Mercy Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri, less than 2 miles from where the St. Louis Temple now stands.
2. Clay was baptized on Nov 26, 1993 during his Sophomore year of college.
3. Has been to 49 of the 50 states (all but Alaska).
4. Briefly played the violin and clarinet in elementary & middle school.
5. Had 4 cats over the years (Tiki, Boston Blackie, Frito, Rambo) and 1 guinea pig.
6. Lived in Missouri, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, then went to college in Michigan.
7. Favorite Childhood cartoons: Voltron, Transformers, G.I. Joe, Electric Company
8. Favorite Computer Games: Decathlon, King’s Quest, Star Control II, Castle Wolfenstein
9. Favorite Bands Growing Up: Duran Duran, Bon Jovi, Police/Sting
10. Favorite Song to Sing Out Loud: ‘Heaven’ by Warrant
11. Favorite 80s Movie: Return of the Jedi
12. Favorite 90s Movie: Dances with Wolves
13. Favorite 00s Movie: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
14. Favorite Book of Mormon Scripture: Ether 12:27
15. Favorite Bible Scripture: John 17:3
16. Favorite books: Ready Player One, Old Man’s War, The Worthing Saga, Ender’s Shadow, A Walk in the Woods
17. Sports played in Middle School & High School: Soccer, Baseball, Basketball, Track & Field, Football, Downhill Skiing, Softball
18. Worst Sports Injury: Kicked in torso during soccer practice and lacerated liver
19. Scariest moment: Getting caught after sundown while roaming a New Mexico ranch miles from the family summer house and hearing a pack of coyotes surround him.
20. Most Embarrassing Moment: getting ‘pantsed’ in 8th Grade Gym class

21. What mission did Clay serve in?
1. Portugal Lisbon North
2. Idaho Pocatello
3. Germany Frankfurt
22. What is Clay’s favorite video game franchise?
1. Halo
2. Super Mario Bros.
3. The Legend of Zelda
23. Where was Clay baptized?
1. Ann Arbor, Michigan
2. Globe, Arizona
3. St. Paul, Minnesota
24. What is the fastest Clay has ever driven (stupidly) in a car?
1. 100 mph
2. 135 mph
3. 150 mph
25. How many schools did Clay go to before High School graduation?
1. 1 Elementary, 1 Middle, 1 High
2. 1 Elementary, 2 Middle, 1 High
3. 2 Elementary, 2 Middle, 2 High
26. According to Clay, what is the best Star Trek movie?
1. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn
2. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
3. Star Trek: First Contact
27. What is Clay's favorite professional sports team?
1. Minnesota Twins
2. Milwaukee Brewers
3. St Louis Cardinals
28. About how many miles has Clay hiked on the Appalachian Trail?
1. ~150
2. ~360
3. ~740
29. Clay’s greatest personal dream is to:
1. Travel the World
2. Go into Space
3. Get out of debt
30. What is Clay’s favorite book series?
1. Twilight
2. Harry Potter
3. Ender’s Game

31. Where did Clay & Heidi meet?
1. In College
2. At a Homecoming Open House
3. At a Single’s Ward Activity
32. What is Clay’s favorite candy?
1. M&Ms
2. Twizzlers
3. Whoppers
33. What is Clay’s favorite brand of Root Beer?
1. Old Dominion
2. A&W
3. Henry Weinhard’s
34. Clay’s Ideal Vacation?
1. Visit family out West
2. Tropical Island
3. European City
35. What is Clay’s middle name?
1. Harold
2. Bartholomew
3. Allen
36. Where was Clay on 9/11/2001?
1. At work in Los Angeles California
2. At school at UCLA
3. On vacation at Disney World
37. What is Clay’s favorite animated film?
1. Toy Story 3
2. Finding Nemo
3. Wreck-It Ralph
38. What temple were Clay & Heidi married in?
1. Salt Lake City
2. Washington, D.C.
3. Los Angeles
39. Who did Clay vote for in 1992?
1. Bill Clinton
2. George Bush
3. Ross Perot
40. What is Clay’s favorite color?
1. Blue, no yel…aaaaarrrrrrggggghhhh
2. Green
3. Pink

Winter Concert

Emma chose to play the Viola for 6th Grade music. Tonight was their first orchestra performance. Emma and her friend Olivia played Silent Night as a viola & cello duet. 

I also included a video of the orchestra playing Beethoven's Ninth symphony. I was impressed with how well they did considering they have only been playing for 4 months.

Bambi invasion

This morning I looked out the window to find these deer in our yard. It was right as the girls were leaving for school. They opened the door to scare them off and discovered there were actually 5 deer in our yard.

They have not been very nice to my plants this winter. We will have to replace these in the spring.

Another year ... younger.

Another year older younger. I spent most of last year thinking I was a year older than I really was. To make up for it, this year I am going to think I am a year younger than I really am. It all works out, right? 

On Sunday we had dinner with the Rosenlunds. They bought this peanut butter cup pie to celebrate my birthday. Rebekah was not happy that it had peanut butter in it. Then we went out to dinner on my actual birthday at Maggiano's.