Magic vs HeatAs

As Floridians, we had a treat tonight - someone gave us some REALLY sweet tickets to see the Orlando Magic play against the Miami Heat.
 We walked into the arena wondering who we should root for, and we both ended up rooting for the Magic.
It was a super tight game and it went into overtime.
Loved it!

Hardanger - Swedish Cutwork Project

Hallelujah!
It is finished!
I started this project many many moons ago.  MANY.  Like so many that I've lost count.
It consists of a lot of wrapping, and cutting of teensy tiny linen threads.  And lots of counting and precision.
It has been a practice in patience.  I went in fits and bursts with this, but mostly finished it in October, then realized I needed to add beads, and then do some outlining.  I finished the second time in late November.
I took it to the framing store where I had some great coupons.  They said the frame would be done in a couple of weeks - perfect, I wanted it on the wall for Christmas. 
They called me mid January to tell me the frame was done.
Then, I couldn't find it!  I assumed it had been packed into one of the six boxes of Christmas deco.  Sigh.
I found it last week tucked into my sewing box (where I HAD previously looked - just not hard enough).
I ran it over to them, and it is now proudly sitting on my wall - where I will enjoy knowing how many times I picked it out and re-did it so that it would be 'just perfect'.   

Family Home Evening - Prayer Rocks

We've been talking with our kids about working on their prayers a little more.  They kept insisting that they always forget and needed prayer rocks. 
So, last week I bought rocks. 
Yes, you heard right - I never thought I'd see the day.
But here in Florida, our soil is sand - like beach sand. 
If someone has a rock, you know that it was purchased, because you just don't come by them here.
So, much to my chagrin, I purchased rocks.  Sheesh if only I'd known, I could have made a mint, and brought half of my Colorado yard with me!
Anyways, here are our prayer rocks.  We pulled out the craft supply box and found eyes, hair, eyebrows, paint, jewels and paints. 
Can't wait to see these little guys on pillows and floors! 

Easter cake

For Activity Days Recognition, the girls were each asked to make a treat.
Our youngest decided that she was making a cake with a basket weave.
She did.  Our oldest daughter suggested that we turn it into an easter basket. 
Here's the final product.  It was pretty darn cute!
 

Beach 2012

We headed out to the beach last week after we picked up our daughter from school.  Just in time for the sunset.  The water's temperature on average for late Feb/March is generally between 59-65*.  It has been around 74-75* lately.  Spring break is next week - hoping for some sunny days!  With a warmer ocean though, I'm already starting to worry about hurricanes.  Deep breath.
Anyways, while it wasn't TOO cold, we've learned that sharks have bad eye sight and like to eat early in the morning and in the evening (this area is the shark bite capital of the world).  The pelicans were diving - which meant there was food in the area, and there was some wind, so we didn't end up boggie boarding like my daughter had hoped, but enjoyed the sunset and the drive. 

And I just realized you can see how my haircut here too. 

Character sitings

We ran into Alice.  She was late and just heading out for her tea break, but she was nice enough to give us a clandestine (without the line) photo.


Every time I see this guy I want to sing - "Now I'm the king of the jungle, the jungle VIP"

Every picture Aurora was in, she cocked her hand to the side - like a princess.  The girls decided to include their princess hand as well!

We explored some cool sections that we'd never seen before.  I loved the fountains and tiles.  And see those braids?  I chopped 8 inches off of my hair (not that you can really tell), but it was below my waist and halfway down my backside.  It is above my waist again, so this photo is my only proof of the previous length.

Such a cool courtyard - I wish this photo had come out a little better.

 

Princess topiaries

We kept running across prince and princess topiaries or sculpted bushes - not sure what to call them!
It was so pretty with all of the blossoms scattered by the wind like a carpet on the grass.
AND - our kids look like they like each other and are having fun!!   

 

Epcot pics

One of the nice things about living relatively close to Disney is that we can head down for a couple of hours, take our time and not over do it.  We went a couple of weeks ago, and decided to hang out in Epcot.  We ran into a lot of characters, and the weather was cloudy, but perfect! 

 

 

 

Daytona Speed Week

Since we live under an hour from Daytona, we figured when in Rome....

It was LOUD!! 
And interesting. 
Thanks to the clean air act, we haven't been in a place for so long where people smoked incessantly.
We moved 3 times, and it didn't really seem to matter.
So we watched the cars go around and around.  After a few minutes it got boring and we started wishing for some excitement - a crash, a fire, something, anything!
Then, when we got some excitement, after the adrenaline rush, then we got bored waiting for it to get cleaned up and taken care of, and we found ourselves wishing they'd just get on the track and start driving again.
I just noticed from this photo that our friend who is with us is now taller than me. 
So not fair!

Jim & Laura - TLA

My friends Laura and Jim were married last week.
Two weeks ago, Laura told me that they'd finally set a date for the 16th. While Laura wanted to just have something very simple and small in the bishop's office because they are planning on being sealed in the temple in a year, and that's when they want to have "The Big Party", Jim wanted something a little bigger.
I commandeered her one afternoon just to look at a few cool spots I'd seen around that I thought would be nice for an intimate wedding ceremony.
We found a REALLY accommodating restaurant in Winter Park that was perfectly quaint complete with an amazing patio space for everything.
A few days later, we went dress shopping.
Then, last week, (the night before she got married) a friend and I threw a bachelorette/bridal shower party for her. Thank goodness for evites, and facebook event planning!
Here's the group that showed up for the party.

The next day, I got to pick up my cello and do some solo work as I played out on the patio as the few guests arrived and enjoyed appetizers prior to the wedding.
I'm hoping I can find some photos on my husband's camera since I was playing...
Congratulations to Jim and Laura!

Happy Valentines Day

Every year, we make our valentines day cards for the kids to give to their friends.
Last year - our cards were 'preciosos' - I don't know how to give them justice, but they really were pretty spectacular.
Unfortunately, our kids saw some of the kids take them, rip the homemade caramels off of the back, and stuff them in the trash. They were pretty disappointed.
This year, I found some cute ideas on marthastewart.com, and we made some cute little flowers with a hershey's kiss in the middle. Much less time consuming than our previous endeavors at least!

Here's the carnage from last night's melee!

Sending love to all of our family and friends!

Visit

Last weekend was busy!
After the race, we stopped by the farmer's market for some orchids. (Hopefully we can keep them alive) and then hurried home to finish getting ready for my brother and his wife's visit. They were the first visitors we've had from my side of the family, and we loved seeing them! We were also excited that they only had 3 bags, and could check 4. We got to send some fresh Florida oranges, and strawberry jam back with them.

Kids 5K

After the adults ran their 5K, the kids had a parking lot dash. At first our youngest was NOT going to race. However, we encouraged her, and her friends encouraged her, and she decided to run.

While we were waiting around, the kids were walking on their hands, doing push ups, V ups, sit ups, back bends, and walk overs - we were just trying to keep them busy and occupied. I couldn't believe they still had energy to race.
We were shocked when our youngest pulled ahead and finished 4th in the race...even past her older sister who came in 5th. The kids' friends took 1st and 2nd, but then, they are on track teams and do this all of the time.
I just wished that I'd signed up as well!

Our daughter in the back was disappointed that she only got a participation ribbon rather than a medal. :)

5K shots - read to the end

My husband and his Saturday running friend Kirk decided to hit a local 5 K this last weekend.
Here are some of their running shots.
1st .25 mile

2.5 miles

Finish Line - notice the time clock on the left side. That's his fastest 5K since he was in high school!

My husband has been working on a new running technique where instead of going for a personal best every run, he does some longer slower runs as he trains during the week. It seems to be paying off!

My husband came in 3rd over all, and first in his age category.  Not too shabby for an older guy!!

Additional shots

As I was downloading pictures, I came across these. I think they are a little clearer than the previous ones - such a great day!

SRI celebration

SRI. I wish I knew what those acronyms mean. I'm just not sure. Student Reading Index perhaps?
What I understand them to mean is my child's reading level, or having something to do with the lexile learning level.
This morning we were invited to a celebration ceremony to celebrate that our daughter jumped 175 lexile points between September and January. We are pretty excited about it!
Congratulations little miss!