Graduation Open House Luncheon...

The parents of the graduates put together an open house luncheon for them... I am not sure if they really know how much they are loved.

But there were so many who came to support them and show them... it was wonderful!And sooo much great food!

It just kept going and going and going... YUM!!

Good Friends...

And leaders...

And admirers (he he he)... And long time friends...

So much love and support...

And the bestest Nene who thought of everything, down to supporting the school colors!

We couldn't have done it without all the great help coming together!

What's a party without balloons and silly boys?

Great idea from one of the mom's to have a scrapbook page of their schools (we have kids from two different high schools) for everyone to sign and write their well wishes... very nice keepsake for the graduates, I loved this.

What a great day, with great memories.

Sight seeing Celebration Park Bridge...

One of our favorite Bridges... everyone went for this fun drive, but it was super cold, windy and raining... so they stayed in the car, while we got out for a few photos.

.

Mom always said "Beauty is Painful"... there was nothing we shouldn't have been able to endure like sleeping in pink hair rollers spun up all tight to your head until your scalp ached... just to have beautiful hair for the next days special occasion...

.

Well... I have kind of adapted that theory... there is pretty much nothing I haven't put my boys through to get a photograph. Wind, snow sleet and hail... and just stay there until I check and see if it turned out okay.... digital; a blessing and a curse.

The Grad Hat Cupcakes...

I got the bright idea that I HAD TO HAVE Graduation Hat Cupcakes.

They were a little labor intensive... as chocolate melts when you touch it.

And the candy was messy...

But I had lots of help...

And they were cute...

But the important test was in the tasting...

And they passed the test, so I guess it was worth the effort!

And luckily I had minds around me when I couldn't think clearly to cut back the order to make sure all the graduates got one, and don't try and make 200 of them for the entire luncheon... good plan!

Oh Henry!

For spring break when we went to Seattle for my Dad's 80th birthday, Dad pulled my Strong Silent Mysterious Man aside and asked him if he could give the teenager a special gift for his graduation.

We were very humbled that he asked permission. He has come a long way from a time that we got the feeling all the time that he wasn't sure that we were raising the kid right and loved to take him on Friday night and we had a hard time getting the kid back... he would just keep saying "oh, he can just stay", and he would avoid us and put us off, and it would be Sunday night before we could get the kid back home again. I get the feeling now that he finally trusts that we are good parents and that we did a few things right.

So during the spring break visit, Dad was so excited about this special gift... he had told everyone in the family except me about it, and told each one of them, not to tell anyone.

Finally I caught on that something was up, and they finally told me what the gift was all about.

It was all he could do not to give it to the teenager right then and there.

I have to admit, it was hard to keep it a secret for the next month.

Saturday after they arrived in Idaho for the graduation celebrations.... he presented to the teenager the Henry Golden Boy "Eagle Scout Tribute Edition" Rifle!!!

Oh WOW is right!!

I wasn't sure the teenager knew what he had in his hands... but he did. And he LOVES it!

He told me later, "Mom, There were only 1,000 of them made, and I have one! I will have this for my whole life!!" I think he gets it... so cool, so special!

Arriving for the graduation festivities...

Yesterday was quite possibly one of the longest days of the year... waiting for my parents and my Sister and BIL to drive from Seattle. They came over to be with the teenager for his graduation.
Good thing they didn't have cell phone service, or I just might have talked to them the whole way!
They are finally HERE now!!

His Grandpa D. is coming into town on Monday... Yay!

We are so excited to have them join us in celebrating with the teenager.

Scotch Kisses....

My Strong Silent Mysterious Man got a new assignment at church to teach a class of men every 4th Sunday. It will be challenging, but he wasn't worried about it too much. He just gives me MY assignment to support him, and that is to make candy once a month for him to give out in class.

Apparently the teacher before him brought in his wife's (now very famous, I am not even attempting to duplicate her recipe) fudge! So now these men are conditioned and they won't stay awake in class without this boost of sugar. NO PRESSURE!!

This week, before my family comes to town, before graduation where I am making desserts and salads to take to parties and cooking and baking and cleaning and already have a very busy schedule... this week instead of telling my strong silent mysterious man NO... I instead decide to do the opposite and take it up a notch.

I am not just going to make candy for him to take, I get it into my little head I will play super wife and make his FAVORITE candy. So I go searching and find a recipe online for See's Scotch Kisses. (somehow those emails from See's have gotten into my head and corrupted me in a way I could have never imagined). I find it!

So yesterday I decide while I am home doing laundry and cleaning getting all of that work done on Thursday, so I can get all my cooking and baking done on Friday... that I can fit in candy making (I know, should have been a red flag somewhere, but NO).

Just 3 ingredients, how hard could it be? Right?

I make it through the painstaking process of getting everything to the exact temperatures... it's a process, but if you don't do that right you can blow the whole recipe!

Then the labor intensive process of cutting sticky marshmallows and hand dipping them into the butterscotch. Messy, sticky, yes but I managed to do that without burning ALL of the skin off my fingers and tongue (because any good cook knows that when you get something hot on your finger, you cool it off my sticking it in your mouth, which then surprises the heck out of you when you scourch the skin on your tongue... and you never ever learn from it, this could happen possibly 2 or 3 times during one candy making batch).

Check, so this isn't so bad after all.

Except when the recipe says it makes 100 and I only get 50? And I hadn't really factored in that I was making my husbands FAVORITE candy on a Thursday thinking they would last until Sunday. Hmmmm? Some red flags begin to go off, but I am almost done (so I thought) and I can't stop now. I finished folding some laundry and wiping dog paws because they chose today to run in and out and the ground was wet outside, so I have to wipe feet every single time they come back in. 4 paws times 3 dogs, well you do the math, but that is allot of paws. I did find a cool secret that works well though and put an old sock over my hand and I can grab a paw and wipe all in one swoop, so it makes it pretty fast.

In the meantime, the teenager comes home and asks if he can eat one?

NOOOOO!!! What is he thinking? That this week is all about HIM, or what???

More big red flags go off that I am painfully making this candy for a bunch of ment I barely know while my only Son is at the crossroads of a very big milestone in his life!) Yes, I get it now, but it's too late, the candy is almost done!

But it reminds me to get them wrapped fast, and put them away so they don't get eaten before Sunday (another very labor intensive process); and they are stuck! Every single last one of them, stuck, they won't come up without all the paper sticking to them. Drat!!

Idea! (insert light bulb moment here) Stick them in the freezer!

So while they are in the freezer, I need a moment to cool down too. The teenager wants to get an icee and watch episodes of The Office on Hulu. So instead of cleaning my house or losing yet another moment with him. I stop everything and we do just that! It was the best part if my day and I can't stand The Office. But it makes him belly laugh outloud and that was my reward, I love watching him laugh! It was awesome moments to cherish!!

And a bonus when I checked on the scotch kisses in the freezer, it worked! They pulled right off that paper, what a neat trick. So I got them all released and in a bowl and I would them wrap them individually... but first back to the teenager, one more episode. When the phone rings... the missionaries don't have dinner tonight. Of course I will feed them! I never ever ever pass up a moment to feed the missionaries... and I bet the teenager will help me. He loves the missionaries!!

We go in to put that dreaded candy away, only to find "the bowl" I had put them in for safe keeping was sitting out at room temperature... and yep, you guessed it, they had all melded together! I must have skipped that day when they taught that lesson in science class or something! Maybe these scotch kisses just weren't meant to be?

Well if it worked one time, maybe it would work again... the bowl, back in the freezer!
Dinner cooking (I do everything better under pressure anyway), check.
I pull the bowl out of the freezer and begin to pop them apart, IT WORKS!! YAY!! I got them wrapped up and put away. I gave one to my strong silent mysterious man when he got home from work, and didn't share with him any of the details of the process (he says I can't make a long story short... and I am not giving him any fuel for that fire!).

.

He loved them! And he was so excited to share them, he offered some to the missionaries for dessert after dinner. And they were a BIG HIT, they will for sure like them in the Elders Quorum on Sunday! "But are you going to have some more, there really isn't enough here for everyone"? :) No problem, Honey!

Ahhhhh! I gotta go, I hear a squirrel scurrying across my roof top... another story for another day!

Clean hands lead to a pure heart...

I found this idea and gave out a few bottles for the ladies I visit teach with a message from the conference talk "helping hands, saving hands".

.

It was a very easy little project, and so rewarding to me as I pondered the message and thought about all the "hands" I have hand influence my life.

And how I will use my hands to be an instrument in the hands of the Lord.

I "HEART" See's...

I know it wasn't the smartest thing I ever did to sign up for See's email list!

But I sure do love getting good mail in my inbox that says this...

.

"Root beer lollipops are back... just in time for summer"

.

And then I go peaking and their graduation boxes are adorable...

I really love hearing about all their yummy seasonal candy, even if I don't go run right out and buy it. And so far I have resisted ordering it online and having it sent right to my door.

.

.

.

.

So far :)

Seminary Graduation...

Sunday my strong silent mysterious man had to go into work to finish up a major job that had been hanging over him all weekend long. It was one of the biggest stressful weekends he has had of work worries in a long time. I was on the phone helping him on Saturday and lets just say when you are under this kind of pressure, and a man was supposed to send you parts from Tennessee and they haven't arrived at 5pm on a Saturday afternoon and you have to locate him... well you pull out all your connections and "where there is a will there is a way"... and nothing short of finding the gentleman's mother and pulling him from a family BBQ to get your parts on a hot rush truck to arrive on a Sunday! Let's just say it sucked all the energy from our family for the entire weekend. But we got er done!

.

So Sunday my strong silent mysterious man had to take the parts in and get a motor rebuilt to ship first thing Monday morning. It was huge, it was his job! They were counting on him.

.

The only little glitch I had was that it was also the teenagers seminary graduation! At first he was going to try and leave, drive back for the graduation and then drive back to work... but as he went through the plan in his head... losing 2-3 hours on this particular job could be detrimental! Would it be okay if he missed this one?

It's the only one we get... but I don't want to be without a job either.

.

We decided to divide and conquer!

But nobody really wins. And this kind of emotional roller coaster was not what I needed on this special occasion, but what could be done?

.

So I prayed and decided I would just take lots and lots of pictures!

I had to pull the "Dad" card for almost each and every one of them...

We had gotten him the series of approved books that he can take with him on his mission as a seminary graduation gift.

He laughed that it would be all he could read for two years...

then we laughed harder that it would probably take him the two years to actually read them.

I sat down with a family sharing a bench in the chapel of our church, and the the program began, as the graduating seniors walked in together and were seated all adorning flower corsages... I was still able to keep it together and not cry outloud. But I was so sad his Dad was not there to see him.

.

Our Stake President spoke to the youth, and had a little different twist on the regular go out in the world and conquer it speech. Most of these youth have been in his home over the past four years and has a window above his sliding glass door and in that window is an etched photo depicting Lehi's dream of the "tree of life" in the Book of Mormon and the photo etching he has is a Japanese version of it (he served his mission in Japan). So he reminded them of that glass, and the meaning of the large and spacious building in 1 Nephi 12:18, being "vain imaginations and pride" of the world. And he reminded them of what they have learned about the gospel in their seminary classes, and they as they go out into the world that there would be people who might think what you know is wrong and what they know is right. They will be convinced of it, and try to convince you. He gave examples in the scriptures, over and over and some in the world would believe that the "new" way to believe is not through God. And he explained this is not "new" at all... Satan has been using that for a very long time. And he read many more scriptures showing them examples of this.

But he went on to share that the hope is that these youth can know of the truth, and there are many ways to know what is true! And it is by the spirit of Christ, that we can all know. By reading and studying the scriptures, through the holy priesthood we can know of the truth, it has been restored on the earth for us to have the fullness of the truth. He also said we have prophets, of old in the scriptures to follow, but also a living prophet to listen and to give us guidance today. And by taking the sacrament each week and taking upon us the name of Christ, that it is only through Him that we can know of the truth. It was a wonderful message, full of hope! I could not paraphrase it well enough, he is a great speaker, but I didn't want to forget the beautiful message he gave to these graduates!

.

I looked down at one point and saw to my right next to the girl beside me a pair of boots and jeans at the end of the bench... I looked up and it was his Dad!

In his dirty grubby work clothes, he had left work and slipped in to be with his kid and watch him graduate from seminary... he snuck out quickly as it ended and gave up hugs and kisses to the teenager in the hallway before he left again. But he was there! Yep, I cried, I couldn't hold it back.

I can't imagine what anyone might have thought who saw him dressed the way he was, but I quickly put that out of my mind, and it was such a lesson to me, not to judge others because you don't always know what is in their hearts!

He wanted to be there for his kid so badly, that he came no matter how he was dressed... nothing else matter to him, it was the most important thing. It was the right thing. And for our little family, it was everything to have him there!

(with the stake young men president)

I am really proud of our son. He has loved seminary since his freshman year, when a couple of wonderful young women who were in our ward, older and much wiser than him. Taught him through their example and through their love of seminary that it was indeed a good place to be.

They taught him that it was worth the energy and effort to get up early every day before dawn to go, to participate and to love seminary.

He did just that, he loved seminary... it was by their example that he came to teach those younger than him coming into seminary to love it as well, he made it fun. The past two years, he made that his goal to encircle other youth and help them come to love seminary as much as he had.

(his friend Kyle, the seminary council president that he served with his senior year)

During the teenagers sophomore year, I was out mid morning visiting a lady in our ward, and while I was in her home, she got a call from her sister who worked at the school... who told her to get over there and get their daughter! There had been a student with a gun in the building and they were on lock down.

.

She heard that they had stopped the kid, and got the gun, but she didn't know anything more! That was a horrifying experience! Had anyone been shot? Where was my child? How do I get to him?

So I left and tried to call the school, they told me that no body was hurt and they obtained the gun, but they would keep the kids in lock down as the police were still checking the neighborhoods for a couple of suspects that were with the youth that brought the gun into the school... and that he was not a student. They said the kids were all safe in classrooms, and discouraged parents from coming to the school, but if I wanted to pick up our son, I could come to the office.

I had a sick feeling in my stomach, I thought he was okay, but I had to see him!!

I had to touch him and hug him and KNOW for myself he was okay!!

.

So I called my strong silent mysterious man to let him know what was going on... and he said "wait there, I will go with you"!! What a comfort! That was the biggest gift of comfort God could have given me at that time, on that day!!(we are so grateful for wonderful mentors, the teenager has had over the years...

thank you Presidente`, we "LOVE THIS KID" too!)

We drove together to the school and waited in the office as they went to get the teenager from class and walk him to us... we waited and waited. We finally got news that he was not in class, he was at the seminary building!

.

As we walked out to the seminary building, we couldn't figure out why he would be out there, he had early morning class and this incident had happened much later in the morning.

.

We walked up to the door, where the instructor had to come unlock it to let us inside. We walked inside to hear hymns playing on a cd player in the background and two youth sitting under a desk playing a game with the instructor. Jacob and his friend Trevor! What a sight for worried eyes! We gave them the biggest hugs ever, and asked them why they were there, and when they had first heard of the lock down they were in the hallway on the same side of the building, so they went out a side door and ran to the seminary building for safety! They said it was the safest place they could think to be! So there they waited, unscathed, in peace, with hymns playing to comfor them and not a trouble in their hearts!

.

It would be one of many signs we were given over the past four years that our teenager loved the Gospel of Jesus Christ and had a testimony of his own, and that he KNEW where to turn for peace and comfort!

.

Congratulations Jacob on your graduation!

We love you!