Nice Try, But No

Matt is on Student Council this year, and he gets to help plan all sorts of fun activities in this role.  One of the events he got to assist with was the senior picnic.  From what I understand, it was a typical teenage event with lots of good food and loud music.  Although the weather wasn't great, I think the seniors had a good time at one of their final get-togethers. 

Matt got to help clean up, and he was responsible for returning the school's speakers.  He was super excited when he learned that last summer a girl had "stored" the speakers at her house until school started up again.  Apparently, this was approved by the student council advisor, and Matt thought it was a rockin' awesome idea and offered to keep the sound system at our house over this summer.  I, however, was less than enthusiastic.  To the right are the aforementioned speakers.  No, I did not enlarge or enhance the picture.  Matt hooked them up one day when one of his friends was here.  I was upstairs changing my clothes when I "felt" the music.  He took the speakers back a couple of days later.  Why?  "Because I'm the mom.  That's why."  Nice try, however.

Last Friday I had the wonderful opportunity to meet Karen, my oldest daughter, in Brigham City for lunch.  She and Andrew were going to come up for the weekend, but Andrew is still up to his eyeballs in work and master's thesis loose ends.  So, since I was really missing my girl and already had the day off and because I was super interested in seeing where they would be moving to in a couple of months, we set up a lunch date.  It was totally worth the long drive.

Brigham City is a surprisingly quaint, comfortable little town.  I was very pleasantly surprised to see so many fun little places to explore.  It reminds me a lot of Heber City and a little of McCall.  I think Karen and Andrew will have a lot of fun there.  I was very impressed with the high school. It is in the midst of a renovation/remodel, and I think it's going to look quite modern when it's done.  I did take my camera, but then I left it in my car when Karen offered to drive us around.  You'll have to look at her blog if you want some good pix of the place.

In a completely unrelated note, I had a wonderful little jog tonight.  I was going to go by myself, but Adam offered to accompany me.  He had tweaked his ankle pretty well earlier in the day playing basketball, but he still wanted to take an easy run to loosen things up.  So, I jogged along at my normal pace while he practically walked and/or hopped.  It was super pleasant, and I've decided that if he ever gets seriously injured (loses a leg, tears his ACL, or has extensive knee surgery), we would be great running buddies.

Last, I can't close tonight without revealing how EXCITED Matt is that the WORLD CUP starts tomorrow!!!!!  Seriously, he is reminding me what it was like to have little kids on Christmas Eve.  He can hardly contain his excitement, and his sheer joy at the upcoming even is actually starting to rub off on me.  Can the Yanks pull off a miracle and make a decent showing?  Doubtful, but we can dream. . .

P.S.  The boys had their last day of school on Tuesday, and it's AWESOME to have them home more.  I love summer. . . almost as much as I love my kids!  

Memorial Day Weekend

In spite of my having to work both Saturday and Monday, we managed to have a fun Memorial Day weekend.  Matt's soccer team was in State Cup from Friday night on, and they played their way to a third place finish, which I thought was awesome, given the initial tournament pairings. 

We're still trying to figure out how the best team in the state got put in the very weakest bracket, and I mean weakest by a huge margin.  When Matt's team played the second place team from that bracket, they beat them 6-0, which in soccer is like 63-0 in American football.  A complete blowout, utter domination, but I actually kind of enjoyed watching it.  Even in the rain. . .   

This tournament likely brings Matt's club soccer career to an end.  I don't think we'll pay for him to play after his senior varsity season.  It has been so fun to watch him grow and progress in soccer through the years.  I remember when he was just a wee lad, and we were downtown at Ann Morrison Park.  We stopped to watch a "big boys" soccer game, probably comprised of high school age kids.  I remember thinking how strong those boys were and how physical the game was.  I wondered how my little boy would be able to handle what seemed like an almost violent sport.  Well, he grew up, and sure enough, he's right in the mix with all of the other players.  Time flies, no?

Mike and I also drove through the Cloverdale Cemetery briefly on Sunday night.  No, we don't have any relatives buried there, but since we moved here almost 16 years ago, I've been impressed every Memorial Day weekend with the care and thought that goes in to the decorating of the graves.  It's inspiring, really.

One part I really like is that the cemetery caretakers line the entry road with American flags. It truly makes one feel patriotic to see such a display.  I thought a lot about my granddad and his service for his country.  I also thought about the men and women presently serving the world over.  I felt grateful for them and for their families.  It's no small sacrifice for them to be apart, particularly when the soldiers are in harm's way.  I hope I never take all the freedoms I enjoy too lightly.

I wish that I had the photographic skills to truly capture how gorgeous the cemetery looks.  I look forward to seeing it every year.  Here is my best attempt:

  

Of course, it looked even better by Monday night, but I was tied up with work by then.  Anyway, I never realized that living so close to a cemetery would be such a delight, but then I never stopped to think about Memorial Day.  Beautiful!!