happy #12 Eliza

Dear Eliza,

You turned 12 this year and are a beautiful young woman.  I know you are an official big girl because you wanted new clothes and highlights in your hair for your birthday, instead of dolls and dress up clothes!  We celebrated with a waffle and whip cream breakfast before school and you were proud to wear the new neon pink sweatshirt that your hip Grandma picked for you.  We were both too tired to venture out for the Women's Broadcast so we gave each other pedicures and watched it in the attic.  I cried thinking how lucky I am to have a daughter to celebrate womanhood with.

I cannot wait to see what lies ahead for you.  You have so much potential with your strong, beautiful body, bright mind and sweet personality.  You are the girl everyone likes, the student teachers appreciate and the athlete coaches focus on.   You are your Daddy's bright spot and your brothers are getting pretty protective of their sister.   I love you with all my heart and cannot wait to share all the upcoming milestones with you.  I promise you Hula Lula, that life after 12 just gets better and better.

prom, spring break and a weird dad

Wilson took the lovely Amber Walker to prom this year.  They were super cute and by all reports had a great time.

Dad on St Patrick's Day

 Spring Break Fun:  Cooper gets his braces off and refuses a picture.  We roller blade on the Chipman trail.  We see the Muppet movie in an empty theatre.  Wilson and Kaleb experience their first road trip, visit BYU Idaho in Rexberg, and have a great time following the campus Audio Engineer and experiencing college life.

thespians

The last two weeks the Lundbergs have been very dramatic! Eliza, Max and Marcos participated in Missoula Children's theatre and played the parts of beach bum, sailor and parrot, repectively. It was fun to watch Eliza feel a little more confidence this year and get into her part.

 Also in the drama department, somehow I thought it was a reasonable idea for Rachel Anderson and I to produce a high school musical. I greatly underestimated the amount of work this would require. About two weeks ago I realized I had bitten off way more than I could chew and was deeply underwater. My family was suffering, Tony was suffering, I was not sleeping.

I took the problem to Heavenly Father. I told Him that I could make sacrifices, work hard, and spend a lot of time on something that had purpose and merit. I was afraid that that I was putting all my energy into something that would not make a difference to anyone. I pleaded with God to consecrate my efforts for His purpose and make something good out of my overcommittment. I told Him I did not want any glory, just to know that the time and sacrifices of my family were for a good reason.

The week before the scheduled performances Rachel and I considered cancelling. Kids were quitting or getting deathly ill, morale was low, we were discouraged. On Saturday I began to feel the Lord's hand. The set came together, Cooper agreed to help with music, the kids picked up energy and by the Wedensday dress rehearsal, I was seeing the value of this project.

The most significant value I saw was for kids who don't usually get to be apart of a group. They were a part of something. One girl in particular is an obvious outsider, a loner. Because she couldn't make it to practices, we asked her to be stage manager. One night when I was taking her home after practice, she confided in me that she could handle teasing and unkindness, but it hurt so bad when she was "invisible." I think this play was an opportunity for some kids to not be invisible and that is a project worth the sacrifice. The added bonus was watching Wilson feel success and social normalacy. He really is a ham, if we could just get him to learn his lines!






- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Thespians

wilson shocks us

In a display of unprecedented normalcy, Wilson has sweetly asked a super cute girl to prom.  Her friends video taped it.  Every girl in the room swooned.  Wilson was unbelievably cute.  There is still hope.

'''The Video of the Event'''

happy valentines day

I always feel a deep sadness when our family outgrows a tradition.  For the first time in a long time, we did not have a special breakfast, heart shaped meatloaf or do our family cookie exchange on Valentine's Day.  Instead, we had the Larsen family over for spaghetti and sugar cookies and watched a movie.  It was a fun night, but as opposite of an intimate and romantic evening as you can get.  To top it off, I forbid Tony from getting me flowers or chocolate and requested instead that he replace all the toilet seats in our bathrooms.  I could not have felt more loved!  

happy birthday cooper

Cooper came home a few days before he turned 15 and announced that he was going to prom.
"We don't date until we are 16,"  I responded.  "What?!"  he demanded.   "When did that become a rule?"   Really Cooper?  You have never heard that we don't date until we are 16 in all the 100 million FHE lessons, church talks and reviews of "For the Strength of the Youth?"    Unbelievable.

Also unbelievable is the fact that you have size 15 feet at age 15.  If you grow anymore we will have to custom order your shoes and we officially can no longer afford to clothe you.

Also unbelievable is that fact that you get yourself up every morning  and attend seminary with more consistency than anyone I know.  You don't always like it, but you are there.

Also unbelievable is the fact that after BIG battles over piano, you have decided you LIKE to play and will spend hours practicing.  You are getting really good.  Crazy unbelievable.

It is unbelievable that you asked for a $100.00 pair of sunglasses for your birthday.  We settled on a more reasonable price, but you are going to look awesome lifegaurding this year.

The last unbelievable fact is how much I love you.  For 15 years you have been like balm to my wounded parenting ego.  Parenting approaches that backfired with Wilson work like clockwork with you.  You are an amazing leader, perceptive and gifted.  I like to watch how much people like you, especially little kids.  At least half the primary have a little crush on you.

I love you Larry.  I could not be more proud to be your Mom.

sushi with the Stones

We miss the Stones!  Thanks for a yummy night and great sushi!

silvermountain

Our Silver Mountain trip was great this year.  We were terrible at taking pictures and documenting the fun.  We had a great time with the Bryson family, with Cam and Jill and the Workmans.  It seems like every year the crowd gets bigger and we have more fun.  Dee Bryson made a crazy good breakfast for us and introduced us to bacon pancakes and Texas style breakfast casserole.  We also tried waffle and chicken potato chips for the first time and grossed ourselves out!  The water park and skiing were nice, but the company was the best.