July 21, 2011 

The boys...yes all 5 of them are eating us out of house and home.  I think it might just continue to get worse.  I make lots of food, big breakfasts, dinners and everything gets eaten up.  It is great to have a bunch of healthy boys around....and that is why I have no choice but to use coupons as much as I can.  Yikes!  Our food bill is huge!

U2 !! !!

I have the most wonderful brother in law and sister.  They just happened to have extra tickets to the famous U2 360 concert!   And invited ---ME?  Whoa!  Ok for one thing, I have never been to a concert in my life...well, except to the group "America" and "Ronny Milsap" at Ricks College -taken to  those on a date--not by choice.  Oh boy! 

I am so uncool about things like this...and that is one of many reasons why I am so lucky to know these two very cool fun people:  

To start with... I had to be open to the idea...  I wasn't a U2 fan... I am pretty clueless.  Luckily because of Aaron, I now am a big fan and he helped me to see how amazing this band is.  I didn't know what to expect and was so amazed!   I was lucky enough to take Eric with me (Steve had to be at Young Men's) and we had a great time!   This was one of the funnest nights I have had in sooo long.  How can I thank Christine and Aaron enough?  Thanks guys!!!  

Amazing stage...absolutely amazing show... such a thrill!  It's a beautiful day...

I am clearly not the rock concert going type... and was dressed wrong for the whole bit..I look like a tired dead mommy.  Ha ha!   

Bad picture.. but I love my sister and buddy friend Chrissy...

Such awesome, mesmerizing music...  So much fun.  

Oh and I had to include a copy of this email.  Steve and I were discussing how we would arrange child care so I could go to the concert.  

This is one reason why I love this guy... he just cracks me up!

From Steve:  

RE: U2 on TUE

If Eric goes with U to U2, you two will not be home to watch the little 2.

 

So What 2 do??  What 2 do….

 

I will be at YM with Joe, Jon, and Mike 2.

 

That leaves the little 2 home alone while you are at U2.

 

Then if Christine leaves her little 2 with our little 2 while they are at U2

 

What are those little 4 to do while  you all are at U2???

 

What to do… What todo… so you 2 can go to U2???"

The End 

Silly I know...but I love that this guy makes me laugh.  :)  Maybe love is blind, but this is one reason why I adore him.  Ha ha!

Catching up.....The Big Send off to College .....

So ....I didn't even want to write about this..... It was  a happy, exciting, wonderful and very sad day...

This was a day I knew would come....

It was a day every mother begins to dread from the minute  you hold that new baby in your arms--you know it is coming, way back in the back of your mind.  You know it's there every time you tuck him in, every time he starts another school year,   each time you celebrate his birthday,  each time you go on vacation....there is a little thought in the back of your mind  reminding you  that one day your child child will fly.......out of your nest and begin a life of their own.

We don't own our children.  We only borrow them for a while and teach and love them the best way we know how, but ultimately they are responsible for their lives.  And as they go, you just hope they remember all you tried to teach them and hope with all your heart that Heavenly Father will make up for all you didn't teach them....

And you hope that they know who they are and that their Heavenly Father and Savior love them and that they are never alone.  So many things... on this day if Eric had asked for the moon I would have tried getting it for him.    I am sure every mom feels so many emotions as she sends off her oldest to college.  

And so after 18 years of knowing just about everything they do from what they ate for breakfast to how math class went that day to who they are hanging out with....they go and you have no idea whether or not they are starving to death, brushing their teeth, hanging out with good people....nothing!  Poof!  Gone!

And I text this boy and he just texts back, "don't worry Mom, I am fine!"  And you suddenly feel like you really shouldn't ask too many questions...and let them get their feet on the ground and begin a life of their own on their own.  And it is exciting in many ways and so sad in other ways.


Here are some pictures taken the night before Eric left for college.....

The night before Eric left, we celebrated his birthday!

And he finally got what he has been asking for for the past 3 years...a laptop!!!  

Since, he left, I am happy to say that he seems to be doing just great!   He is rooming with a cousin and has a couple of other cousins close by...and seems to have a fun social life.  He reports that he has all A's, well, one A-.  We will keep our fingers crossed for him that his final grades are so good.    He is getting along well with all of his roommates except one ...and has learned to "just give him his space," and everything goes ok.  He seems to be making new friends....  !  He made Men's Chorus!  This is his favorite class.  He also just auditioned for a show choir with his cousins and they all made it!  Yippee!  BYUI is such a good place to be......so uplifting, testimony building....I hope everything continues to go well...  We are happy for him!

Pops Concert-A Catch Up Post!

Pops Concert is the culminating event of the year for Vocal Ensemble, the audition Senior Choir at Hillcrest High school.  Anything goes in this concert.  The group does a few combined numbers at the beginning and end and in between the kids create and come up with the music they want to perform.  It can involve a slide show, any instruments they want, any number of people, choreography and even past alumni!

Eric sang "Kiss the Girl."  He did a great a job with flair!  As part of the song he had a couple of his friends (girl and boy who are going out together) sit away from each other on the stage and his job was to coax them together as he sang...the song culminating in a kiss. (yes the audience went wild..it was very cute)  The drama teacher had a crab costume for him to wear and a bunch of other costumes for about 10 others and the song got crazier and crazier as it went on... first out came the clown fish, then the mermaids, then jelly fish etc.  I hope you can get the picture.  It was very cute!

Plus, Eric was able to sing the solo to the popular Glee Club version of "Don't Stop Believin'" It was Great!  He also sang this when his group was on tour at Disneyland!  He has such a great voice and I was so proud of him....thrilled really!  I watched him with my mouth sort of hanging open, thinking "is that really my son up there, dancing like a pro, singing so well...looking so darn cute?"  It was one of those really good nights for a Mom....me.  It felt great. We are so proud of Eric and all that he has accomplished.  Here is the picture and little bio. written up about him that was in the program for this Pops Concert.

Eric Knudsen is excited to perform in this year's Pops Concert.  He has performed the past three years in Hillcrest's musicals including, Beauty and the Beast, Seussical the Musical, and Curtains.  He has also sung with Hillcrest Concert Choir for three years and Vocal Ensemble as a Senior.  Lettering in music, he is an accomplished pianist and an award winning soloist.  In his spare time, Eric enjoys studying history, hiking backpacking and playing basketball.  After graduation, Eric will attend BYU Idaho before serving an LDS mission in 2011.  Most will remember Eric as the nice guy who found himself tickling the ivories at every opportunity. Eric would like to thank Dr. Bentley and Mrs. Dalglesih for their excellent instruction and personal encouragement, helping magnify his love of music that he will always cherish.  

Sadly I didn't get very many good pictures of the Pops Concert!  There was no flash photography allowed and I don't have one of those fancy cameras yet.  So here are just a few clunky pictures I managed to snap after the show was over...

Eric had a great time talking to people after.

This is the Vocal Ensemble "Mom" Robyn London.  She did such a great job helping in almost every way to make this year in Vocal Ensemble run smoothly.  Everyone loves her and as you can see, she loves these kids.

Eric's buddy and neighbor (lives two doors down from us)  No one will forget Cory's very fun, classy rendition of the song "L is for the way you look at me.... O is for the only thing I see" I just loved it!  He did a great job.  Plus he also did another number dressed as Hercules.  He was so cute and entertaining.  I loved it!

Eric's Graduation Class of 2010

Wednesday..... June 2, 2010 .....about 4:30 pm

It's Graduation Day!  

Celebrate!  

My heart takes a picture.  We are so proud of this fine young man.  

The adoring proud family....minus Scotty...who was fast asleep having his nap.  :( 

The wonderful supportive grandparents....we love you!

Words cannot fully express how much I love this boy....

And Commencement begins.... 6 pm E-Center

The new graduate!  He did it!

Wish I had taken more pictures.... We went out to eat to the Olive Garden after Commencement to eat.  The manager bent over backwards to make sure we had the best time.  And we did...it was one of the best of times.   

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."   -Eleanor Roosevelt

Carpe Diem!

Last Day of High School...

Well, my oldest child finished his last day of high school today.... That is a bit surreal for me... to say the least.  I am trying not to be a silly weepy mother.  But, I can't help myself.  I get very nostalgic at the end of every school year anyway, but this year I feel this feeling more poignantly than ever before.  

My oldest is set to leave the nest.  I have been thinking about this time for the past two years, trying to be prepared and excited...which I am !! ...but this marks a real turning point in our family.  I tell myself to be focused on how wonderful this is... 

My son has grown into a kind, patient, humble, considerate human being.  He has found his inner voice...has gained his own testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ...He knows what he believes and where he stands and he stands tall and firm.  He has become a wonderful pianist.  We love to hear him play.... He has a beautiful voice.  He has won awards on the state level in the solo competition.   He  and has enjoyed singing in the Vocal Ensemble this year.  He has worked hard and has earned a high GPA.  He has worked very hard and he set to go to college and begin his wonderful life. So, I feel such a mixture of absolute joy, pride, gratitude and yes a bit of sadness..but I am not sure sadness is the right word.  I am not sad...I am not sure what I feel.  I just know it makes me cry.   

He has also done all of this while dealing with some pretty significant challenges in his life.  I have learned so much and been blessed beyond anything I could have imagined because of this SON.  

Goodbye beloved Hillcrest High School!  And onto bigger and even better things!!!  BYU I , here we come! The future is so bright ...and it is all before you Eric!  Move forward with faith and determination to make your dreams come true!  

We are so proud  of you...and feel so fortunate to be your parents!   

And We Have a Seminary Graduate!

Eric graduated from Seminary Sunday night!  It was hard for me to not sit there and bawl the whole time.  I knew I was grateful for the seminary program but I guess I was surprised at how much !  I saw and felt how much this program, studying the scriptures and learning from amazing teachers for the past four years  has impacted these boys...and most of all my own son.   He has enjoyed "feasting upon the word"  He has gained a testimony of his own.  He has come to know Jesus Christ better.  I could see and feel that.  I am grateful!  

The Sunridge Ward Senior Boys.  These boys have grown up together in our ward and Sunday night they all graduated from seminary.  Yahoo!  It is hard to believe that college and missions are next...!  

And I have watched these boys grow up together too...from elementary school on.  It is sort of surreal to see them all grown up, preparing to go to college and serve missions.  What an exciting time!  

Congratulations boys!  

Eric's Graduation Announcement!

Eric is set to graduate in a mere few weeks!  It seems surreal to me but it is really happening.  I am so proud of him and all that he has accomplished!

In honor of Eric's splendid high school career, here is a list of some of his accomplishments:

-Performed in three musicals, Beauty and the Beast, Suessical the Musical and Curtains
-Performed in Concert Choir (3 yrs), Men's Ensemble (JR year)  and Vocal Ensemble (Senior Year)
-Scored a 1-the highest score in the state solo competition!
-Excellent Pianist.  Accompanies his choir a bit and we love to hear him perform.  Performed in the Talent Show.
-Maintains his 3.7 G.P.A.  Thanks to a Math 1050 (college level class) he didn't quite make it to the 3.9 but he consistently gets All A's and a B+ except for one quarter of that darn college level math class...But we are still so proud of him!
-Eagle Scout!
-Has toured every year with the Performing Arts and Productions company of Hillcrest High for the past three years.
-This year he sang the solo of Don't Stop Believin' (The popular Glee Club version) at DISNEYLAND!!!  And he did an awesome job.
-And  with all of this Eric is truly humble.  His parents gush with pride over him but he just doesn't seem to get why it is all such a big deal.



We are so proud of this boy and love love love him.  He is a truly nice person, kind, helpful, polite and fun to be around.  He has a great sense of humor and always makes us laugh.  He is a peacemaker in our home and is always on the look out for ways to help.  He loves learning and is always reading!!  I hoped to have a great reader and he has surpassed my goal.

Congratulations to Eric for years of hard work...always striving to do his best. We are proud to be his Mom and Dad and are grateful for the wonderful example he sets for his younger brothers.

Eric has chosen to go to BYU Idaho in the Fall. A bunch of his cousins are going and he is going to room with his cousin Craig Vanwagenen.  We hope he has the time of his life.  He is only going for one semester and then coming home to work for a few months before he leaves on his MISSION!  Whoa!

Life is good ..so exciting...I am so proud of this boy...but man oh man sometimes I just can't believe time goes so fast.

Utah Honor Choir Performance

It was fun to get away on a sort of dull Saturday afternoon to go to a great

concert. Every year Utah pulls together the audition choirs from highschools across the state and invite two guest conductors to come. They practice together for two days and then perform. The performance is held at Abravanel Hall and that makes it even more special.

While we were waiting we also found out where Eric was sitting and ofcourse waved back and forth at each other. Do you see Eric on the front row looking down at us. Doesn't he look great in his tuxedo?

I am so grateful for talented directors and others who so generously give of their time, talents and enthusiasm to create these marvelous experiences for these highschool kids to enjoy. I was so impressed with the quality of the music and the pieces they selected to perform. I just loved it. I was brought to tears a couple of times. What a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon. So proud and happy for you Eric....so glad you choose to involve yourself in such good things.

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Steve and I did a little reading while we waited for the performance to begin. This was pure heaven for me because I struggle to find uninterrupted time to read or blog for that matter.

On Flying the Nest.....

I think about this everyday...... My oldest son is leaving for college next year.....

When I was a younger mother, older wiser mothers would stop me in the store and tell me, "Enjoy your children. They grow up so fast." And, I believed them and I tried to enjoy every day...But I didn't fully comprehend. And now I really do know exactly what...they.. meant.

My oh my...whoosh....where did the last 5 years go? My little group of children have been mine....here around me in my nest. I have mothered them, read them the same favorite books over and over again, made them peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, helped them with homework, kissed their "owies," carted them off to scouts and lessons, cheered for them at their games, applauded them at concerts and recitals, reminded them to do their chores, come for family prayer and scriptures, make their beds, tell the truth, talk nice, be polite, do their best, be a good friend and say their prayers..and I could go on and on..Whew!!!!

Steve and I have worked and planned together creating family adventures, outings and vacations. We have counseled and prayed together about each child...We have been intentional in the way we have planned family home evenings and have worked to cultivate a "spirit" in our home that is loving and affirming. Whew!!! That is a lot of work!

It has not been easy....This has been HARD work...there have been discouraging days when we have really questioned whether or not we could be successful at this parenting thing. But we've also known we are not alone in this work and have relied on faith and prayer to pull us through... We know deep in our souls this is our greatest work..and now it seems when we are just getting things sort of figured out...one of our's is going to fly the nest....It is so strange, no.... surreal.... to contemplate that we are entering the next phase.... And that after he goes...others will follow.

So, I am really trying not to freak out or be one of those mothers who cries more than normal when their children try out their wings...but...I can understand now why they do. I will get used to this and I will have a good attitude. I will. For their sakes... It's all good..... And, I still have many years left to enjoy....Well, really when do you ever stop being a mother? It just changes- that's all. I have a two year old for heaven's sakes. I know there are many grand adventures and challenges ahead. And now I will appreciate it all more. I am grateful for time...and the precious time I have to cherish with this little group of boys...I shall not take a minute for granted...for time slips through our fingers like sand.

Not For the Faint of Heart....

Every Summer, Steve takes our boys on some sort of hiking or backpacking trip. It is tradition! This year they decided to hike Mount Timpanogas and bring a group with them. So, Kenny King and his son Jamison and Aaron and Zach Haruch came. They didn't spend the night and hiked with just their day packs. They left at 5 am and reached the summit by early afternoon. Better than Me!! Wow!!

What a great group! Congratulations on reaching the summit!

Oh, Where Do the Years Go?

My "Baby" boy Eric..is 18 today. I am feeling a surreal sort of happiness and sadness all mixed up together. I am thrilled for him...Wow! But, really how does time go by so quickly? Turning 18 means many things..mostly that big changes are coming. I am so glad we have this year to enjoy with him. Happy Birthday Eric! I am his mother and I know that I am hopelessly biased but really really Eric is one of the kindest, sweetest, most honest, good young men I have ever known. He is so patient and forgiving of others. He is so humble, quick to apologize, the first to offer to help and the first to express appreciation and love. He is honest and so "good" in every way. I am so blessed to be his mother. Here's to celebrating his wonderful life so far...

A great student...hard worker..loving brother

So helpful to his momma...what a great support

The Eagle Scout...Congratulations!

What a great sense of humor..!

Celebrating his 15th birthday...I love this boy

Loves to play sports...soccer..and basketball.

This past summer at the Oregon Coast....

His 14th Birthday

Yes..there is a fun rivalry at our house...

Always good for an adventure with his dad and brothers...

Adventures at the National Jamboree...

Eric has had many great opportunities!!!

Passionate about having fun!

So darn Handsome!

You came into the world and I became a Mother....What a privilege and blessing it has been and will always be to be your Mom and walk this path through life together........xoxoxxox Happy Birthday beautiful Boy!