I don't deal with school photos. I think they are a rip-off and am never happy enough with them to buy them. I prefer to have studio portraits of my children where I can be more in control of the poses, backgrounds, hair, clothes, etc.

I don't even pay attention to when school photos are taken. The day of Niall's most recent one, I did nothing to restrain his unruly hair and paid no attention to his clothes at all.

Oddly, the picture is really great of him- handsome guy- and his messy hair and torn jeans look staged. I think I will break down and buy one of these.

We went to bed Sunday night anticipating a family hike early on Memorial Day.
"But when next morning came there was a steady rain falling, so thick that when you looked out of the window you could see neither the mountains nor the woods..." C.S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Like Lucy and Edmund on their rainy day, our altered plans led us to Narnia. We, however, entered through the magic portal of the cinema.
Prince Caspian was lovely to look at and quite enjoyable with great symbolism and great special effects. However, some of the dialogue was a bit silly, as often happens in action films; Prince Caspian was almost as cartoonish to me as the prince in Enchanted, but he seemed plenty romantic to India; the Telmarines reminded me of the "El Guapo" crowd in The Three Amigos; and, I am worried that the mouse should not have really been the comic relief. These elements were actually quite entertaining and did not detract from my enjoyment of the film. I will have to review the book to really know how well I think the subject matter was portrayed. One thing I love about the Narnia series is the combination of Christian symbolism with the images and traditions of earlier, nature oriented belief systems and superstitions. I was sad to only see a brief glimpse of the White Witch, again played by Tilda Swinton- one of the greatest movie villains ever!! I have a fantasy of portraying her for Halloween some year. This year, I am trying to put together a convincing Professor Umbridge costume. Some of my children and their friends already think of me in that role....

I stepped outside to add water to some of my new plantings and was closely followed by the boys, itching to squeeze in a bit of Sabbath recreation. Leith jumped on the swing and for the first time swung himself without any assistance for at least 15 minutes. It is almost as big a milestone as potty training to not have to push a child on the swing! He was very proud of himself, announcing that he is now really a big boy!

The week's highlights and lowlight

Highlights-
I did my last art project with Niall's class. It was based on Picasso. The children drew several musical instruments then cut the paper into quarters and reassembled the pieces, cubist-style. Then they used tissue to apply pastel chalk dust to their composition. I was impressed with the finished products.

Leith has declared that Wednesday is the only day he will let me kiss him, but this past Friday he wanted me to watch a show with him and I was able to sneak in quite a few kisses.

We had several days of rain this week.

Kevin and I attended the very beautiful wedding reception of Lynette, Leith's former speech therapist and Chris, a member of our Ward. Her dress was gorgeous, and there were many lovely details, but the flowers and the food were beyond anything I have seen lately- possibly ever. There were several enormous flower arrangements on stands surrounding the rotunda where the couple were greeting guests along with a number of flower 'balls' suspended from the ceiling on ribbons. On the tables were vases of stock, a very fancy and fragrant flower. Several different chef stations were placed around the seating area. One served thick oriental noodles in small green and pink take out boxes, one a selection of salads in champagne glasses, and another served black bean tostadas. Everything was freshly prepared and delicious. Two tall, tiered glass shelves housed a selection of tiny desserts- lime bars, fresh fruit & and cream cups, chocolate cake, and chocolate mousse with orange slices. Each was about a two bite serving in creative, tiny serving pieces. On the way out we filled small gauze bags with strawberry shortcake Jelly Bellies.
The line to greet the couple was very long and Kevin was thinking he would rather eat and leave without standing in it. Then, we began chatting and he even ran into a childhood friend and decided to stay and visit.
When we finally greeted the bride and groom, they looked happy, but exhausted and a bit stressed. I confirmed my suspicion that they had not even been able to eat any of the amazing food being served. Classic. I suspect that 3 weeks in Hawaii will make up for it.

Lowlight-very low-
A boy in our Stake, a senior about to graduate, was killed in a car accident on the way home from school. Coral and I were also on the way home from the high school and passed the accident as they were beginning to extract people from the cars. As we drove by, we were both deeply affected. I just knew it was a student and prayed in my mind that all involved would be OK. I am now praying for comfort and peace for his family. And, I am worried every time my children are out of my sight.

The smell of summer...

One of the things I miss about CA is the smell of jasmine and gardenia in the air all summer. When we were there last weekend, I spent the whole time inhaling. Imagine my surprise today as I made my requisite suburbanite Saturday Costco run and found myself inhaling jasmine as I passed the pallets of gigantic televisions all showing the newest National Treasure DVD. Well, needless to say, I am now the proud owner of a Star Jasmine vine that I know will not make it through a UT winter. I just plan to inhale it all summer until it freezes in October.

It has been a plant week. I bought some annuals at an insane State Gov surplus plant sale. It was cold and rainy and hundreds of people were lined up to rush in at the 9am gate opening and grab flats of cheap plants. The competition was intense. I actually had to steal one of mine back from the woman who stole it from me.

I also picked up my very cool, very large porch containers from the nursery that planted them for me. They looked amazing-but not amazing enough to distract Kevin from his shock and dismay that I had paid someone to plant them for me. He gave me such a hard time that I dreamt that all the plants had died overnight. Nice.
I spent a long day today planting my annuals, my Star Jasmine, and my vegetable garden. Leith is super excited about corn on the 'hob'- I can't convince him to say cob-and about the white and orange pumpkins we planted.
Interestingly, my day of gardening was blissfully free of teen drama. They stay far away when yard work is happening.

Time Warp

Time seems to have slowed down for me- the last few weeks seem like months.
Kevin and I have been working feverishly in the back yard to prepare to plant a garden and to make the space attractive and useful. Leith works with us pretty consistently(he likes to do 'hard work')- the other kids, not so much. We had a classic FHE last week- the whole family working in the yard together. The teens were openly hostile right up until they started singing together. Niall escaped on his bike several times. But, we actually accomplished a lot before we ate fabulous biscuits topped with strawberries, blackberries, and cream.
The weather has turned warm, finally, and I feel like we need to get everything done before it becomes hot.
We took a quick trip to CA for the wedding of Kevin's niece, Marissa. Coral has taken her AP exams, and all the kids are counting down to the end of school.
It is a busy and productive time- just like Spring ought to be. Perhaps the time warp will continue so we can get everything done in time to play all summer.

Niall was up and out riding his bike early yesterday- early enough to see a large owl on the roof of a house in the neighborhood. He spent nearly 30 minutes watching it and coming back and forth with reports. I took the camera and rode with him to see it briefly before it flew away- no time for photos. We have done a bit of research and think it must have been a Great Horned Owl based on its size and likelihood of living in this area. Amazing.
I also read a bit about the mythology and folklore of owls around the world and throughout history. The ideas vary widely.
Our day seemed blessed as a result of seeing such a fascinating animal. I felt a sense of reverence and wonder. When asked how he felt about seeing it, Niall said, " I felt excited and happy and, like, whoaaaaa! And I felt tired from riding up the hill so many times to keep seeing it!"

May Day 2

Another hard freeze last night...

I was in Harmon's again to score more amazing bread and noticed a few things I didn't mention before: an olive bar, carving station, and dessert/chocolate display. I'm converted.
It is like a fantastical escape from the reality of worldwide grain shortages, brothers leaving their families for deployment in the war, chronic illnesses, and the emotional & spiritual poverty I see both in people I know and love and in the world around me.

Since nothing else is flowering in the cold weather, I 'planted' some glass daisies to brighten the aspect of my house.

May Day

There will be no Maypole dancing today. We awoke to a blanket of snow on the grass and roofs and it has been snowing on and off all day. Coral and India are about to pack up and head south. Leith told his friend that snow is good because we can ski on it. Sadly, most of the resorts are closed and our gear is all stowed.

A distraction from the absence of Spring is the opening of the new Harmon's grocery store- or rather, grocery 'wonderland'. Now, the closest store to us is a huge, fancy collection of gourmet food products. It is really over the top with a gelato bar, Pan-Asian takeout, mezzanine cooking school, fabulous produce & flower departments, incredible bakery, and amazing customer service. I had a little chat with the demonstration chef about the fish he was cooking. He told me just how to make the 'Prosciutto Wrapped Halibut with Lemon Thyme Butter' and then directed me to his associates at the fish and deli counters for all the ingredients. I cooked it all for dinner with artichokes and country French bread- pretty tasty. Too bad I didn't bring home the Pink Grapefruit Gelato for dessert- maybe next time.

It is a good thing I ate before book club or I would have lost my appetite. By strange coincidence, our book choice this month was Escape by Carolyn Jessop who left the FLDS polygamous cult with her 8 children several years ago in a dramatic, dangerous, and pretty amazing 'escape'. I was not happy to read it as I thought I could pretty well imagine the disturbing details, but felt compelled to proceed after the raid on the FLDS compound in Texas.
It was every bit as gross and heartrending as I imagined, but I am glad to have the background information as I watch the situation in Texas play out. I have many questions about the legal aspects of the raid and all that will follow, but no question at all about the hideousness of the inner-workings of this closed society. I am reminded of the Mafia the more I know about it.
A big 'Thank You' to all the media who have correctly portrayed the historical connection but current differences between the FLDS and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
And, apparently, DON'T MESS WITH TEXAS! The FLDS are in Texas precisely because their increasingly abusive and extreme lifestyle was becoming more and more difficult to conduct in Utah and Arizona because of increased investigation and prosecution. I hope they will soon find themselves with no refuge anywhere.