seriously?

paula abdul on american idol last night. what was the deal with that?? who do you guys think will be off tonight? i'm worried for jason (i confess, i really like the guy), and i want syesha to go.

Happy News

Here is a happy bit of news. Christine Brinton forwarded this to me this morning and I thought you'd all enjoy seeing it. For those unaquainted with Kim Brinton, she is the widow of our friend Hyrum Brinton. She is a great girl and I'm so happy for her!

Love to you all!

Wendy

Pinewood Derby

Nathan had his first cub scout pack meeting. It was the pinewood derby! After some joint work on his car, Greg's car, and Katie's car we were off to the races! Katie won the award for the Loveliest car (car named Raspberry Lemonade), Gregory won the award for the Car with the Best Use of Decals (car named Lightning), and Nathan won the Mach Speed award (car name was Mach 5). Nathan also won 3rd place in the wolf den! Katie was 4th overall, and Gregory came in first in one of his races!

Here are some photos of the evening.

See how beautiful the ranunculus (spelling) are at our home. It brought spring in all its beauty.

Surprise Ending

The first thing the boys do when I tell them it's time for baths is to run upstairs, into our bathroom, lean over the edge of the tub, and just scream. I wonder if they hear an echo, like when you yell over a cliff or something. Anyway, I was trying to get that on video, but instead, I got this.

Burke is learning to sing and do little hand actions. He is also smiling, hugging and kissing on demand...what more could I ask for?

31 Years ago on April 20th

As I have been doing my Saturday activities, my mind has been thinking of events that occured 31 years ago....my world was spinning around the imminent arrival of a new baby. It was a planned c-section delivery, so my bag was packed and ready to go...ultrasounds to determine the sex of the baby were not done, so we didn't know if John would have a baby brother or sister. In the mid morning of April 20th, Dr. LaPata delivered an absolutey beautiful baby boy - Robert Lynn Bennion. That amazing face - so totally sweet. To this day, that face is still there although "handsomed" up by the years. As all moms will attest, there is no joy so sweet or so sacred as the birth of a child and so it was on April 20th that the magic of a soft adorable baby boy was placed in my arms and the life of Robert Lynn Bennion began....Happy Birthday, son. Let me be the first to say...."I love Rob because...."
He is persistent.
He is brave.
He is patient and kind.
He is smart and loves to learn.
He is undaunted by a hard task .
He is loyal to his family and friends.
He is the funnest sports fan.
He is the leader of the family in his lifelong commitment to fitness.
He is a great conversationalist.
He is a model gift giver....loves to give, loves to give something that will be "just right", takes the time to make it special.
He only needs to know you to like you....he sees the good in people.
He likes to think.
He loves people and loves to be around a group.
He is comfortable in his own skin.
He is married to the love of his life and I love being in their company...he has chosen so well.
He has great faith and loves to serve others.
He is a peacemaker.
He is the calm in a storm.
I am so lucky to be his MOM.

why SC is a great place

thanks so much for the great birthday love! it makes me feel so fantastic to read your posts! i had a very happy week.

so, we totally have wild turtles here! who knew that was even a possibility? i was walking around my neighborhood, and there, in the middle of the street, sat a little turtle. and sometimes my roommate, aimee, has to stop her car and move a turtle from the middle of the road so that she doesn't run over it. big ones! i knew there was a reason for me to move here. wild turtles!! how do they even survive?

Happy Birthday Anna

Happy Birthday, Anna. What a great day it was on April 9, 1981....A Girl!!!

I love Anna because
We share so many interests.
She is a fantastic listener.
She is intelligent and interesting.
She is beautiful, absolutely beautiful.
She is great at bringing people out of themselves.
She is a fantastic friend and beloved of many.
She is a gifted teacher.
She is pursuing her passion.
She is a thinker and is not afraid to face tough issues.
She is grateful for little things.
She is so good to me and Dad.
She is a fabulous sister for each of her brothers.
She is a delightful traveling companion.
She is always willing to learn new strategies to deal with tough issues.
She is well-read.
She is committed to living what she believes.
She is the perfect daughter, friend, confidant.
I absolutely adore her and consider her one of the most amazing women I know.
I am proud to be her mother and whenever anyone asks about her, I always say, "Anna is amazing " and I mean it.
I trust her and have the utmost confidence in her future and feel it the joy of my life to be a part of it.
Happy Birthday to my dear and amazing daughter.

Richard & Linda's Most Excellent Adventure

Tuesday morning we set out on our tour of the Danish countryside in search of my grandfather Soren Jacobsen's roots.
Below is Sct. Hans Kirke (St. Hans Church) named after Hans Christian Anderson. It is in the town of Odense, about 2 hours from Copenhagen. The town is large sized for Denmark (Wenatchee - East Wenatchee combined). We visited 3 other churches looking for this one. We asked several people in slow English for directions. We were misguided three times. Finally we went to the police station and asked. There we got the day's dumbest look. The policeman knew it was somewhere nearby he thought. The GPS is what saved the bacon. We only had to ask it twice...
Sct. Hans Kirke is where Maren Pedersen married Soren Knudsen Flensted. They are Soren Jacobsen's maternal grandparents.



The inside of the Church is beautiful. An original Carl Bloch painting is behind the altar. It is similar to the painting in Frederiksborg Castle (only better) :-) If you click on the picture you get a better view of the painting, plus a view of the lovely Irish girl on the pew :-)



Farther north in Hjorring district is the small town of Horby. Actually, Horby is an average size town (village really) - about 100 or so. It is amazing how small most villages are in northern Denmark. Below is Horby Kirke where my grandfather Soren Jacobsen was christened. His only brother Knud Jacobsen died here when he was one year old. His father, Martin Peder Jacobsen died before his second son was born and was buried here as well.



The inside of the chapel is simple. The font where he was christened is visible. Today the original font is inlaid in gold. Quite stunning.



The entire adventure was stunning - especially in the context of family. This is actually where my ancestors lived, walked, and are buried. Good stuff.