Graduation Day

The IB hood. We got to go to a special luncheon for the "hooding."

My baby.

A picture I can't figure out how to delete.

The whole gang--all 30 of us!

The proud family.

Walking off the stage

The sibs

This weekend has been so great. It was so fun to have so much family here. Poor David's 16th birthday was a little lost in the commotion, but he did get a cake on Saturday. We enjoyed having the family here and I just felt so lucky to have so much love and support from everyone. It was a little bittersweet, though, to know that one more of my children has accomplished this feat and is ready to move one to the next phase of life. I am just so proud of him and his completion of the International Baccalaureate program. As an IB candidate he had to complete 150 hours of community service over the past two years. We are anxiously awaiting the results of the two week testing all of the candidates just completed.

Conversations with the men in my house.

1. Conversation with Jacob--"Mom, I got a four year scholarship to Colorado State. " Me--"Really, that's great! " Jacob--"I think I'll go to UNT."

2. Conversation with David-- "Mom, do you need the guest list for my surprise birthday party? Remember, I want to go to that rock climbing place, but be sure you don't do the party on May 16, that's auditions for West Side Story. And work around all the banquets at the end of school, too. Maybe you should just have my surprise 16th birthday party in the summer."

3. Conversation with Chris--"Can you get the vin number for my truck off the insurance stuff?" Me--"Yes, but why?" Chris--"My truck has been stolen from the parking lot at work."

Conclusion of my Sunday School Lesson

On one occasion Joseph said to a group of priesthood holders:

“Brethren, I have been very much edified and instructed in your testimonies here tonight, but I want to say to you before the Lord, that you know no more concerning the destinies of this church and kingdom than a babe upon its mother’s lap. You don’t comprehend it.” “It is only a handful of priesthood you see here tonight, but this church will fill North and South America it will fill the world.”

“It will fill the Rocky Mountains. There will be tens of thousands of Latter-day Saints who will be gathered to the Rocky Mountains, and there they will open the door for the establishing of the gospel among the Lamanites, who will receive the gospel and their endowments and the blessings of God. This people will go into the Rocky Mountains; they will there build temples to the Most High. They will raise up a posterity there, and the Latter-day Saints who dwell in these mountains will stand in the flesh until the coming of the Son of Man. The Son of Man will come to them while in the Rocky Mountains.” (Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, pp. 38,39)

"I contemplated several things as I was there, one of the most amazing to me being that from that hillside temple site at the southeast end of the Salt Lake Valley you can see three temples, Draper, Jordan River, and Oquirrh Hills. If there weren't so many tall buildings surrounding it you could see Salt Lake too. What a blessing to this place!" (Laurie's Blog on Feb. 27, 2009 )

Thanks, Laurie, for a great ending to my Sunday School lesson. Sometimes I forget we are seeing prophecieis fulfilled all around us.

Twin Peaks

Cathy's story about IHOP reminded me that I, too, went to a restaurant this week. My friend and I went to lunch and decided to try out this new restaurant--Twin Peaks--which advertised food, drinks, and scenic views. So I was thinking of some kind of mountain decor or something. We walk in and low and behold--we are the only women in there, except for the ones showing their "twin peaks."

Think Hooters and you'll get the picture--lots of skin, little clothing, lots and lots of men. We went to On the Border.

Can You Believe It?

I am sorry to report that cheating is alive and growing. In the last two weeks I have "caught" students cheating 3 times, and I am sad to say that I have probably not caught even more.

The first time, two students came in during morning tutorials to get help with their homework. I was standing right beside them when I noticed one copying homework for another class. I asked what he/she was doing, and he/she replied that they had lost their homework, so had gone to the teacher to get another page. So I pursued it and asked if the other teacher knew he/she was copying someone else's homework. The other student jumped in and said, yes, they saw the teacher together and she said it was ok. So I said, "Then, when I email the other teacher to confirm that she gave you permission to copy homework, she will tell me that it is okay?" "Oh," the second student said. "Well, no, not exactly, but she knew we were together and that student #1 had done the homework but had lost it." So I took up both homework pages and emailed the teacher about the copying. A few days later one of the students gave me a note apologizing (that was nice) and explaining that since he/she had actually done the homework the night before, he/she felt it was okay to copy someone else's. I did not know that if you first do your homework, then it is acceptable to copy someone else's if you lose yours.


A few days later a teacher emailed me about two students in one of my classes. During her class she had taken up the homework that was being copied. So I talked to the two students, gave them zeroes, and told them I wanted a note from their parents explaining they knew why the students were receiving a zero on the assignment. One student brought the note with a request that the student not be given a zero since the homework was actually done, but perhaps could have a different punishment because said student is very naive and did not actually realize it was wrong. Second student (who I forgot to mention, talked during a quiz the same day and admitted that he/she had asked for an answer) said the note was in a binder which was, unfortunately, left at home. So , time for phone call. Parent knew nothing about either incident nor the note, but assured me it would be taken care of at home, and sure enough the note arrived the next day. Now the student hates me.

Finally, we were correcting homework, and I was giving out the answer. Towards the end, one student raised her hand and said, "What is the answer you gave to 4th period?" (This was 5th period.) I asked why. Student said, "I don't know, I was just wondering what you told the other class." Now isn't that interesting. Why would he/she even wonder if the answer was different in a previous class. Hmmm. And just before that, a student who is a regular goof off and frequently does not do homework at all, gave a completely correct, very detailed answer to one of the questions. At the time it struck me as very strange because that student does not usually do homework, much less give that kind of correct detail. At the time I wondered how that had happened. But what I can't figure out is, there is only 5 minutes between classes. How on earth did they get all the answers so fast?

Here's the irony--in all of those classes I am teaching about ethics. I was using the example in the news about the lady who gave birth to the octuplets, and how the medical world was saying it was unethical to deliberately place the mother's health and the babies' health in danger. Maybe next week we'll get a little more personal in our discussion of ethics: we'll talk about cheating.

Just Passing the Time

Well, I'm sitting here in the lobby of the theater in Cleburne waiting for David to finish his rehearsal. I've done some school work, still have to rip out a hem in some curtains I'm making for Caden's room, but I decided what the heck! I may as well blog a little. I always intend to on Sundays, but this past week we had an "emergency" missionary dinner at our house, plus, I didn't feel good, so it slipped past me again.

Anyway, I am here in Cleburne while David rehearses for his rather large part (150 +lines) in Kiss and Tell. I am here because MTD is in Irving rehearsing for his part in Romeo and Juliet. He's supposed to be here because he also has a role in Kiss and Tell. They are both missing rehearsal in Hurst for their roles in My Fair Lady. And if being in all those plays isn't enough, MTD is also costuming 2 of the 3 plays he is in. We now have a large hand-made wooden rack in our sunroom witht lots of military costumes, etc. hanging on it. But before that they were on the table, and before that they were stacked on the ping pong table. Lucky didn't have to say a word to convince MTD to build the costume rack--he just kept sleeping on top of the costumes, and before you know it, we had a rack.

And people ask me why I don't do theater. I do "do" theater--just in the car!

Well, rehearsal is over! Gotta drive home. :)

Plays, Books, and Movies: A Review

Over Christmas I read three books, so I thought I would post about them. And, also, I would love to hear your recommendations on books you enjoyed.

I finished The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. I enjoyed this book much more than I thought I would, and I want to see the movie. This is the story of two boys growing up in Afghanistan before the Russian invasion. The characterization is really good, the story is engrossing, and at first I started underlining all the literary devices and stylistic techniques (thinking I might be able to use them at school), but then I got too involved in the story to keep it up. I am looking forward to reading Hosseini's second book, A Thousand Splendid Suns, which I have been told is even better than the first one.

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Piccoult was really good. I highly recommend it. I read one other Jodi Piccoult book, The Pact, which kind of bothered me, but My Sister's Keeper was really good. Here is a synopsis from Jodi Picoult's website:

"Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age thirteen, she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood. The product of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was conceived as a bone marrow match for Kate - a life and a role that she has never questioned… until now. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she truly is. But unlike most teenagers, she has always been defined in terms of her sister - and so Anna makes a decision that for most would be unthinkable… a decision that will tear her family apart and have perhaps fatal consequences for the sister she loves. My Sister's Keeper examines what it means to be a good parent, a good sister, a good person. Is it morally correct to do whatever it takes to save a child's life… even if that means infringing upon the rights of another? Is it worth trying to discover who you really are, if that quest makes you like yourself less? "

I really, really enjoyed this book --couldn't put it down. So, thanks, Tricia!

The last book was Diane's Story by Dean Hughes. It is part of the Children of the Promise and Hearts of the Children series. I really enjoyed all the books in the two series, but Diane's Story was very "predictable" as Cathy warned me.

Now for two plays which I had not seen before. Seussical The Musical was really cute. I enjoyed it, but I Love a Piano was fabulous! This was my first time to see this musical as well, and I want to see it again already! This revue of Irving Berlin's music was extraordinary. I urge everyone to see it when you get the chance--there is no plot, but the musical arrangements are in 6 part harmony and they are great!

I saw Boy in the Striped Pajamas a few weeks ago. It is a beautifully made movie, but of course, no movie about the Holocaust can have a happy ending. I did like the movie very much, though.

Please let me know what books, plays and even movies you are recommending!