Congratulations Grandson--Class of 2016

This evening because of the wonderful technology that is a part of our lives Grandpa and I were able to sit and watch the Fargo South High School graduation ceremony and with great pride see Owen receive his diploma.  We are so proud of you Owen for so many reasons.  Keep up the good work--can't wait to see you at Concordia in August!

Busy Day

 We had a great visit with Bill and Bev before they headed home after visiting with their family in Utah, Idaho, and Washington.  We wish they could have stayed a lot longer!  It didn't take us long to get back into our routine and today we had a great time attending Ava's awards assembly and then going back to her school in the afternoon to watch her participate in the school Spelling Bee.  She was great and did great but I was a nervous wreck!  She had to stand on her tip toes to reach the mike but she held her own and was one of the last to go out.  It sure made me remember similar experiences many years ago!

Dance Time

The week before the piano recital for Ava and Ellis we were in Arizona for a dance recital for Jane and Ruth. They both did a great job and I loved their costumes and dance routines.  It has been such a treat to be able to participate in activities that the kids are participating in.  I wish the rest of our grandkids lived a little closer so we could enjoy what they are doing as well.

Rachel's Getting Married!

Time has flown by since this picture was taken!

We got a call this week from Rachel telling us that she was engaged!  We had suspected for a while that something was happening and it was great to hear the good news.  Rachel is a lovely young woman and when I see her and Austin together I know that it can be a marriage made in heaven.  Can't wait to attending the big event in August.  Believe me many more pictures will follow!

I realized something so wonderful about what this means for us--another grandchild!  Welcome Austin!  We will be excited to get to know you better in the coming years. You definitely have good taste and I think Rachel has some good taste as well.

Tickling the Ivory

On Saturday we enjoyed a piano recital.  Ava and Ellis did such a good job.  I was amazed at how much they have learned and how good they both played their songs.  I think Ellis is going to be a great asset in the coming years because of his hard work of learning how to play the piano.  Ava especially impressed me because she was so self confident and didn't miss one note.  Her self confidence has definitely increased while we were away on our mission.

Eden

We can't get enough of this cute little girl. Her facial expressions are what is known as--PRICELESS!

Proud of Ava!

We joined Andy and Angela and the kids for a treat to celebrate Ava's accomplishment at school. She was tested and has been placed in the GATE (gifted and talented education) program at her school. So proud of her!

Heavenly!

On Sunday evening it was wonderful to hear Ruth practicing her Cello. She asked Lincoln to help her tune it and before long he and she were playing together. It was a special moment for me.

Lincoln's Project

Even though he has earned his Eagle for Boy Scouts it hasn't slowed Lincoln down and he continues to earn merit badges. Last count--71! His latest project is to build a kayak. There is a great deal of detail work but hopefully I will soon be sharing the finished project. Wood is soaking right now so it can be bent. Stay posted for the completed project. I'm sure it will be awesome!

Taste Testers!

Each Wednesday, Ava comes over and we spend a few hours cooking together.  Our first project was making cookies which involved several weeks and wonderful sweets.  After that I thought we probably needed to cut back on the sugar high and work on something more natural.  Fruits and vegetables were what was settled on so yesterday we made strawberry-banana jam, and then did some fruit art.
We needed to bring in our official "taste testers" to let us know how we did.  According to Grandpa everything was great but Caleb was a little more critical of our efforts so occasionally we'd get a thumbs down!  Not to worry, because in spite of his criticism I noticed he gobbled everything up! Grandpa is now our official tester!

Officials!

One of our Creations