disillusionment

Tyler picked Grace up from school today. He said she got in the car and he could see that she had been crying. Hard. The whole front of her shirt was dotted with tears. She refused to speak to him. All the way home he tried to get out of her why she was crying. Finally, as they approached the house, she gave in and squeaked out "a plane flew into a tower and a lot of people died!"

Once he got her calmed down a little, he told her that it happened before she was even born. Imagine her quizzically cocking her head and blinking at him for a minute before saying, "ooohhhhh.....I thought it happened today."

???

Apparently, in her class they had a moment of silence and read a book about 9/11. And CLEARLY they DID NOT do a sufficient job of explaining it.

Add this to her ever-growing file of "we should have figured it out by now." It never crossed my mind to talk to a 7 year old about the significance of this day. I still so want to shelter her from sadness and uncertainty. As a result she gets blindsided continually. Sigh.

Puppy Love

Here is the newest member of our family. Last night we took her outside for about an hour and Ry and Grace literally ran around with her for an hour. She was at top speed chasing them around the yard. Then we came in and gave her a bath...we were laughing that it was just like having a baby...get them tired, give them a bath, a snack and hope they sleep through the night! The exercise and stress of the bath and blow drier wiped her out. Zzzzzz...
The biggest news is that Gracie will hold her now! Grace has always been terrified of pets in general. Not a big fan of the jumping, licking, growling etc that accompanies the furry friends. Right before this picture was taken Snickers (or as we affectionately call her, Snicker-poo, Snicks, Snickerdoodle, Snickerpoodle, or my personal favorite "Naughty!") was licking Grace's chin. Amazing progress, and one of the reasons we embarked upon this stinky-poopy-pet thing.
It is also quite the opportunity for personal growth for my youngest son, our resident germ-o-phobe. He is the one who filled her food and water dishes, gave her a bath, brushed, blow dried and held her to keep her warm until she dried off.
Of course, afterward his entire outfit went right in the laundry basket and he had to take a Silkwood Shower, but baby steps have been taken.....

Follicular Entertainment

Grace and I were outside last night waiting for the puppy to pee. We were sitting on the back porch, chatting about I don't know what when she suddenly gathers her hair into a side ponytail and with a completely straight face says, "Look! I'm from the 90's!"
Are you serious? How in the world did she come up with that? She wasn't even born until well after Y2K. I'm not even sure I WANT to know....
On a related note: during Family Night last night Ty somehow got Ry to agree to a cutting his hair into a mullet. You'll definitely want to be around the week before Ryan enters the MTC....that is when it will happen, and they even pinkie swore on it.

She's leaving home... (bye bye)

Here is her front door...
The kitchen...
The bedroom...
And us saying goodbye...it's definitely a college apartment. Last year she lived on campus in a dorm. This year she's off campus in a smaller 2 bedroom apartment that is at least 30 years old and a little dicey in the cleanliness department. I realize that it's all part of the "struggled and suffered to earn my degree" thing, but yipes.
Isn't it supposed to get easier to let them go?
Bonus question: who sang the song that titles this post?

10th and 12th grader

Back to school poster? Check. Surly Sophomore? Check. Delighted Senior? Check.
Girlfriend with a car to give you a ride to school? Check!

First Day for the 2nd Grader

Monday was the first day of school for the baby. She got the teacher she wished for, the new backpack of her dreams, new shoes, and friends from last year in her class. What a perfect life!?

In Which the Boy Rocks Chinese Camp

He's been home for a week now. He slept for 2 days. Then we went to Cafe Rio and Walmart for a bit of "BYU detox" before he was his normal self.
The banquet this year was so much more entertaining, organized and high-tech. StarTrek the TV series vs. StarTrek the 2009 movie better. Ry was one of seven 4th year students who MC'd the event. They whipped on and off the stage with witty dialogue worthy of Spock and Kirk.There was a chinese yo-yo demonstration, tai-chi, poetry, some songs, the 4th years did tongue twisters and a Ry did a number rap that would boggle your mind if we had it to show you. We don't. Perhaps the Klingons captured it. All I know is that it's impossible to hear on the recording.
ANYWAY. Below is a small snippet of what we enjoyed that night. He is the second from the left, and the first and almost last speaker on the video. He learned so much this year. He can basically now understand most of a normal Chinese conversation. AND a couple of Chinese guests came up to him after the performance and told him that he had the best tones of any white honkey they'd ever heard. Or something to that effect....