Dream Come True

Way back in Jr. High when everyone was getting braces and I didn't need them (perfect bite, apparently), I was very, very disappointed. It looked so fun to run your tongue over those metal railroad tracks. Those big metallic, shiny smiles! What could be cooler?

Even better, after your teeth were straight, you'd get a retainer! How I wished that even if I couldn't have braces, that I could at least have a retainer. It looked so fun to click it on and off your teeth. You would never be bored with a retainer to play with! Kids could click-clack it around their mouths and get it back in place without even having to use their fingers. They were so talented!

I tried making my own retainer with straightened paper clips. Or sucked the large jolly rancher sticks until they could mold to the roof of my mouth. Even used little rubber bands to wrap around my front teeth which narrowed my gap but mostly to have SOMETHING cool! Because braces and retainers were so darn cool. And so were the kids who had them. Weren't they?

30 years later, my wish is being granted. The dentist (in fact all three that I saw in my quest for a better dentist) suggested I get a night guard. And on Thursday, along with my two new crowns (teeth, finally!), I got the night guard. I couldn't wait to give it a try the first night. And I discovered it's big and bulky, catches spit in the mold and is kind of hard to get used to. And I'm a little unsure if now I'm biting differently and wondering if it might ruin my perfect bite! We'll see.

Crawling Through The Crack

Last day in St. George and we had to do our favorite -- a trip to The Crack -- with Nick and Miles. We were happy to find out that Miles liked to be cautious on steep cliffs, same with Nicholas. And me. And Dan. The boys squeezed through The Crack and Dan and I waited at the top.

We also granted the boys their dearest wish... visiting two different pawn shops. 

Dan found a couple of vinyls -- Eagles and Simon & Garfunkel

We are going out of town again next weekend and we had some difficulty finding time to pick Kershaw up and drop him off again. So.... Kershaw stayed at the trainers for the rest of the week. We missed him, but have to admit, it was super nice to not have to hurry home while out and about! Is that bad??

Letter from Marty -- Okinawa, Japan

We heard from Marty, and he's in Okinawa!
He arrived in Japan his time, Tuesday evening. They stayed at the mission home and after dinner went straight to bed. The next day he had some training and then he stayed another night in the mission home because the next day he was assigned to take another flight to Okinawa where he will be serving in the city of Naha.

So that makes arriving in Okinawa on Thursday. Thursday, Friday and Saturday doing missionary work. He's not on a military base so the speak Japanese and they do a lot of street contacting. They also teach English classes. Sunday he went to church, of course. He said he got to introduce himself to the congregation (in Japanese, of course). And they also taught a discussion to an investigator.

He is 15 hours ahead, so our Sunday afternoon is Monday there -- P-day.




We are in St. George for Spring Break. Dan drove Chris and a few friends and Nick and Miles down on Friday after Nick finished school. Originally, I was going to be with Courtney visiting Univ. of Colorado at Boulder with Courtney Thursday - Saturday and then take a flight to St. George when we got back. But now that she's going to Columbia, we cancelled that trip and she and I enjoyed a girls night the two of us on Friday. Nails, dinner at Settebello, ice cream and watching "Big, Little Lies" back at home. And sleeping in on Saturday! And time surfing for New York housing!

I flew down on Saturday to join the boys and then will head back with Nick and Miles on Monday so Nick can go back to school. Dan will stay with Chris and friends here in St. George while the boys swim, hike and hang out. They love it here. Dan tolerates it. But really, the red rock desert is beautiful. It's warmer than rainy SLC is right now. Happy teenage and children's voices our outside our door where we can here them hanging out at the pool. And we've been reading books, napping, taking walks and just relaxing together. Hard to complain.

Columbia!

Courtney got accepted to Columbia for grad school! She called last week screaming and crying that she got accepted! Yay! This week she decided for sure that's what she wanted to do and sent in her official acceptance and declined the other schools she got into (she got into all 6 she applied to! UW; Univ of Colorado, Boulder; NYU; Tufts; Northeastern). Way to go, Courtney!

So while she's home we're surfing around looking at housing options. So fun!

She's had fun playing with Kershaw and he already loves her. Does she have a familiar scent that he recognizes? We both hate this Snapchat filter. But after she took this photo she changed her mind! Ha!

Got this photo from Marty's Mission President today!

Oh, that smile!

Also, Mr. Roboto on the radio and Marty's shoes sitting out (Chris is wearing them now) 

just make me happy -- these little signs of him!

Courtney came today! Look what she and Dan brought me home from Whistler!

Can you see it's Anne of Green Gables raspberry cordial?

And some main buildings have been torn down in Holladay to make room for a new Harmons!

So excited for a grocery store nearby and to have it be a Harmons! Love! Finally our little neighborhood is getting the facelift we've been wanting for years! 

Whistler, Canada

Dan and Courtney are living their dream right now, skiing in Whistler, Canada. Intense skiing and hiking to find the best powder has made their trip a blast for both of them.

Just the way you are

Marty arrived in Japan today. We were wondering if he might call from the airport--we've often been there on days missionaries are flying out and seen them on the phones. Marty didn't call--maybe you're actually not supposed to. Or maybe he figured there was nothing to report that he hasn't already said in a letter. (They're such short letters, but they're so typical Marty! I would love to have details about what happens every moment of every day and every feeling he's experienced, both good and bad. But that's simply not his personality. And that's ok! I love him just the way he is! (Mister Rogers taught us that. Happy Birthday (yesterday), Mr. Rogers!))

Chris had his 3 month Dr. appointment. He has no pain but does have a limp. 

That will ease up when his muscle gets stronger. The doc cleared him to ski and start to run, 

but advised him to stop when he gets tired. 

Chris asked if he could hike and jump off rocks in St. George and the Dr. said,

"Sure, it's good for you!" (I really like this guy.)

Here's his leg now:

In other good news, I finished my 2nd British Lit unit and studied for the test all day yesterday. 

Decided to take it at 11:00 last night, afraid by morning the information would all be gone.

I started the unit back in October, hoping to finish before Christmas. Thought I'd write my essay on the plane over Thanksgiving. That didn't happen and I didn't crack my book back open until February.

But I finished the essay back then, finished the last section and then had to remember what in the heck I'd studied 5 months ago. (Where has the time gone?)

Took my test and at least had answers for each of the short answers. 

They were decent. That's all I wanted.

And another one of Mr. Rogers and all our friends at the castle. 

Laughs and Parades

We didn't march this year, but Saturday morning, Dad & I, Nick & Miles went to watch the St. Patrick's Day parade together.

I would describe it as: Beer, Dogs, Catholics, Unions and Bagpipes.

It was very festive and, like my Dad, I think it's fun to be out-and-about doing something with a community. Feels social and like you're taking advantage of what life has to offer.

And quite frankly, one of those things life is offering, is time with my Dad. I always love being with him. His constant jokes keep me giggling and entertained. He's just seriously so funny. I love being with people who can make me laugh--probably because it reminds me of being with my dad.

He's also a good listener and thoughtful in his responses. He has a way of helping you see and understand alternative perspectives.

Nick, Dad, Me, Miles and the Adair coat-of-arms poster.

This coffin on wheels got him planning that if he's not around next year we could bring him in this instead. His dark humor. Makes me laugh. And makes him having cancer easier.

Morp--Hawaiian Style--was Saturday evening. 

Nope, Noah was not Chris' date. But he was his car buddy. 

 Chris and Annie

(Mom, if you read this, this is Whitney Badger's daughter. Fun how life comes full circle!)

So Lucky

It's Official! He's got his license!

Happy 16 to this Happy Kid! 

Having your birthday on a Friday is the best because you can celebrate all day long -- and all night long -- if your parents are super chill and only make you come inside when you and your friends are in the middle of the street by the neighbors house being so loud you wake your mom up (3 houses down)  at 3:00 in the morning and she has to run outside in her pajamas and tell you to 

"freaking get in the house--it's 3:00 a.m. and you're totally waking up the neighbors!" 

(In an annoyed voice, not a mad voice. So that's better.)

Chris' birthday actually started on Thursday so we could have some celebration time with the family. 

His dinner request: Crab and artichokes. Bundt cake for dessert.

We even opened presents the night before so we could go to the DMV first thing on birthday morning.

Rollerblades, car subwoofer and new boots.
And money to get through the month before he gets a job and officially becomes responsible for himself.

Leaving the DMV practically before the sun came up.
I'm wearing the shirt I made for everyone for Chris' 2nd birthday.
Then I changed when I got home because it was too tight and uncomfortable to wear the rest of the day.

Taking Luke for a spin!

Gram sent him a balloon banner

to help celebrate his St. Patrick's Birthday in style!

  

 We really are lucky to have Chris as part of our family!

Win-Win

The weather has been so perfect.

I love when our apricot tree blossoms! The blossoms only last a few days, but it's like Old Faithful, arriving once each year and brings back memories of springtime -- kids playing in the tree, on the tramp, throwing baseballs, shooting baskets, passing for lacrosse, night games and enjoying warmer weather.

Did a better job of reading today than I did in the car on Monday. 

When I'm outside, Kershaw gets to run around the yard and because he loves to be outside, 

it gets me outside enjoying the Spring weather.

Win-Win.

Tayo

Beautiful inside and out!

Taylor came today!

Courtney and Taylor (Tayo) were best friends through Jr. High.
Taylor was the friend who saw dirty dishes in our sink and washed them. She was kind, could be quiet, but also loved to laugh, was fun, creative and a beautiful dancer. She and Courtney were in accelerated math together and Taylor was working hard in school and planning her future a step ahead of most other kids.

Taylor's parents got divorced during Jr. High and she had to weather through some tough trials. Courtney was right by her side caring about her through it all. Taylor was Lutheran and an important example in Utah that not all religious kids are Mormons. Not only that, the way she lived her life -- how she treated other people, looked for ways to help, was honest and trustworthy, respected and loved her parents -- was so very Christlike. She was always a delight to have over and I loved her and Courtney's friendship.

And then in 9th grade, we found out Taylor was moving to Texas! Oh Tragedy! (So happy for her mom and her new love, but SO sad for us. And sad for Taylor too!)

Life went on, Taylor loved her new younger brothers, she met new friends, thrived in her new high school, was captain of the drill team (so much bigger and better in Texas, obviously... because everything is bigger in Texas) she visited Utah in the summers so we got to see her once in a while and Courtney even visited her in Texas once.

Now she's graduated, working toward graduate school, loving her career and has a darling boyfriend. And a dog! And that brings us up to now.

I got to take them to lunch and then sit on the lawn in our front yard on a beautiful day while the dogs played (I didn't realize how fun playdates for dogs could be! Kershaw worshipped Rory!) and we got caught up.

Classic Taylor story: 

When we got home from lunch, Kershaw was so excited to see us (actually Rory) that he started peeing on the floor. I rushed him outside for a few minutes so he could do his business. While out there, I wondered... what's Taylor doing right now?

And sure enough, when I came back inside, she'd found the rags and cleaning supplies in a closet in the laundry room and was about to wipe up after Kershaw.

This girl! Always seeing something that needs to be done and doing it! 

What our kids friends don't know is that good friends for our kids are treasures for us as parents.

In addition, good friends that actually help out when they're over -- cleaning up, watching the younger kids, doing what they're asked to do -- are a blessing to us as well. 

We may look like the parents, but we're also regular people, sometimes tired or at the end of our rope and when anybody steps into help -- whether a 14 year old or 21 year old, we are so grateful that they are part of our lives and we want to give back to them whenever we can too!!

Catching Zzzz's

I dropped Nick off at Saxophone and sat in the car to do my homework.

he snapped this photo after his lesson to document that I didn't do any homework at all.

It's so hard to read Paradise Lost at 4:30 in the afternoon!

(No wonder I have a crick in my neck!)

More photos from Michelle. About 1978. 

(Guessing its summer before 3rd grade by my hairstyle and enormous front teeth!)

Snuggled up to Grandma Regan. That's Aunt Marge next to her!

Grandma would have been 69. Marge 39. I was almost 8, Michelle 6.

This is the stage we were in when we sat on the porch of this house during a thunder and lightning storm and Marge got us super excited about the lightning and counting until the thunder and taught us that thunderstorms were so much fun!!

Please notice my knobby knees and tennis shoes. I remember clearly not being able to understand why it mattered if I wore tennis shoes to church or not. Shoes are shoes... right?

Also to note, the bangs that started back on the middle of my head.

Hi, Christopher!

Contagious

I have this weird thing... when someone in my family gets sick, my body tries to copy them. 

It's weird! And embarrassing because is my body secretly wanting attention? 

That's so unlike me! Actually, the wanting attention part is like me. 

But not the "I have to be injured more so someone else doesn't get all the attention" is not like me! 

Example #1 -- When Courtney hurt her back in soccer years and years ago, she was in a lot of pain.

 I found her a chiropractor and the morning of her first appointment, I woke up and couldn't move my neck. It was seriously cricked for no explainable reason and I ended up seeing the chiropractor at the same time and her next subsequent appointments we both got fixed at the same time.

That was the first time I noticed I was an injury copycat. 

There have been more, but more recently, as I was reading an e-mail from Courtney saying she had some cavities and was needing some dental work, I was eating a treat (the one I blogged about that was purported to be cheesecake but actually was caramel), and my crown came out. 

The same moment I was reading about Courtney's teeth!

Like I said, it's weird.

This week Dan developed a bump on his face under the skin. It got bigger and pretty soon the side of his face and eye were swollen. He went to Instacare and discovered it was either a strep or staph infection, he needed to take antibiotics for both and he needed to get it drained from a plastic surgeon to eliminate the risk of it spreading to his eye.

Bandaid Face :-(

So he did and he felt miserable. And that same day I got a crick in my neck during my workout -- related, I think, to essentially being whiplashed so much at Universal Studios. 

And by Friday, I couldn't move. Well, I could. And I did. But I wished I didn't have to.

It hurt mostly trying to lean back, lie down or sit up after lying down.

Saw a massage therapist, and two different medical massage professionals before it started to feel better.

Even though he didn't feel well, Dan took the scouts up to Bear Lake for a campout. 

Luckily they were sleeping in a cabin, so he didn't have to have an infection 

AND sleep on the ground. (He's actually now sleeping on a cot at campouts and enjoying it so much more. We are getting old.)

The next morning the other leader took the boys cross-country skiing. Dan wasn't supposed to exercise, so he was the car guy. Which also included re-winterizing and cleaning the cabin while everyone was gone. He's such a good sport!

This was the boys' first time X-country skiing so obviously a huge learning curve that included a lot of time lying in the snow. 

After they were about 2 hours late from their show-up time, Dan was getting worried.

Meanwhile, the boys felt somewhat lost and then when some got separated from the group they felt really lost. 

The next day in Primary (I have the same boys for Primary, Dan has them for Deacons),

one boy shared their experience of getting lost and deciding to say a prayer and having to make a decision two different times of which way to turn. They felt prompted both times, turned the right way, and finally ended up at the top of a hill where Dan was waiting in the car with Pizza!

He actually was a little teary testifying that even though he was scared, he wouldn't give up that experience to have the experience of feeling the peace he felt after praying.

Pretty tender.

Go Nick!

Speaking of having fun in the snow, check out these vintage photos Michelle found!

Dad's pants!

Do you think the ski boots were brought with the intention of keeping Mom's feet warm?

Springing!

Wish I could post the smells too!

Walk on the Wild Side

KT and I took a slow stroll to the first stream on Mt. Olympus today. 

Us on a stretching break.

 And the entry tile!  It's amazing!

Spring is Coming

You know its Spring in Utah when the kids start hitting the streets -- hanging out. 

Look who we passed walking home from school.

I've often wondered if Utah teenagers get to have a laid-back childhood and teenage-hood the longest.

Kershaw was loving being outside too. But he kept trying to eat my magazine. So I perched on the ladder of the playset so I could read about the latest design styles while he ran around.

This:

And This... made me cry this week:

From Marty: Scripture of the week! 

Moroni 10:4-5

And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.​​