The boys’ team performed the haka to intimidate the other teams. It almost worked. They came in second in Region, but Grant had a great meet and swam his personal best in the 50 and 100 free, and also swam in two relays. He put in so much time and hard work this year. As a varsity swimmer he had the privilege of going to 5am practices. He accomplished his goal by lettering this year! Can you spot Grant in the back, on the right side? He chose not to shave his head this year. Smart boy.
Watching free episodes of Chopped on Amazon Prime has become a favorite pastime in our house this year. I decided it was time to host a “Chopped” dessert round. Grant and Jillian were our chefs and Corinne, Hayley, and Brian were the judges. They began with four ingredients in their baskets: thawed blackberries, prepared angel food cake, potato chips, and coconut milk. In 30 minutes they each created delicious desserts for us to try. I was very impressed with their creativity and skills in the kitchen. Where did they learn that? (patting self on the back) The judges had a difficult decision to make, but finally declared Grant the winner. Why did I forget to take pictures of their creations??
Know what that means? Turn these kids loose in the grocery store with $13 for 13 minutes to buy their dinner and they come out with frozen pizza, soda, candy, and chips.
It gets harder and harder to take the back to school pictures of the older kids!
I used to be the kind of mom who talked the kids out of big plans, especially if I thought it meant more work for me or involved trying to sell things to the neighbors. Until Jillian took charge and worked out all the details and assured me that she had everything under control. She and her sisters wanted to have a lemonade stand—it was on their summer to-do list. She requested a list of jobs that she, Corinne, and Hayley could do around the house to earn money to buy their start-up supplies. She made a list of things to buy—cups, lemonade (it has to be the good kind, Mom, made from real lemon juice because it tastes better, she insisted), napkins, and chocolate chips for the cookies she wanted to make. The rest of the items I let her purchase from me.
She got up early this morning to bake cookies, and then worked hard designing and making a banner. She allowed Corinne to make a sign, and in the process I overheard Corinne say, “Oops, I made a mistake. Oh, well.” Immediately Jillian said, “Oh, well??? Fix it! It has to look really good.”
But the best part was this piece of paper that I didn’t find until after they had hauled everything to the corner and set up their stand. Apparently there was an employee training meeting this morning where the rules were explained to the 4-year old “sign holder” and the 7-year-old “casheire”. Take a look below. Does she know her sisters well, or what. (#6 “All employees who whine or cry loudly will be asked to leave.” Such a great rule.)
I loved watching these girls set up their stand and wait for customers. Hayley was so cute smiling and waving her sign at passing cars, even when she forgot rule #2 after a car would drive by without stopping and she’d drop her sign in defeat. Business was booming this afternoon despite a little wind and overcast sky. They’d run home to restock the cookie plate or to give me an update on how many customers they’d had.
They closed up shop when they felt a few raindrops and were almost out of cookies, and hauled everything (including the wooden table from their bedroom!) back home with huge smiles, talking about how to spend their money. (Corinne—movie ticket to see Brave, Hayley—candy, and Jillian—”probably I’ll start saving for college since I can’t think of anything else I want right now.”) Can you see how she came up with rule #8? Purpose accomplished.
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| Itineris Early College High School graduate. She also received her Associate of Science degree from Salt Lake Community College, with honors. She was one of only two National Merit Scholarship Finalists in her graduating class. And we’re not proud of her at all, not one bit. :) |
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| Graduation took place at Thanksgiving Point and it was beautiful! |
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| I had flashbacks to the night before my high school graduation because I spent last night the same way I did 23 years ago—sewing a dress for graduation and finishing in the wee hours of the morning. Brian told me that if I’m planning to make her wedding dress, I should get started now so that I won’t have to stay up all night before she gets married. And no, that is not something any of us are planning on any time soon, Brian was just trying to be “helpful”. |
