The things kids say -

I have often been prone to laryngitis - in fact, I have a whopping case of it at the moment.  And this was not a good week to be having a raspy voice.  I had to keep the folks singing at the Blue and Gold Banquet - we are having dinner with good friends tomorrow night - and I was observed today for my yearly teaching evaluation!!

But it reminded me of a time when she was little and Leslie discovered that my voice was indeed gone.  She asked me where it was!  I told her I had laryngitis - and she promptly hollered out, "Barbara has itis gitis!!"

So every time I lose my voice, I remember "itis gitis" and I smile!!

Go for the Blue and Gold!!

Once again it was Blue and Gold Banquet time!!  And no wonder they do it at our building - we have the outdoor basketball court - we live in SoCal so we can do this sort of thing in February!!  Seems like we do spend a lot of time "rounding up" everyone however!!

 

Miss Isla - always willing to pose for me!!

 

Porter - who led his first flag ceremony tonight - he is moving right along in his Cub Scout book!

 

The Stake Primary did the food - chilli dogs and lots of trimmings.

 

Harry and Dawn - supportive Scout parents - the kind we count on!

 

Arcadia Ward made these for their centerpieces - not sure what the names mean - but they were lovely and springlike!

Can I just say that I love my Cub Scout calling??  We sang songs while the boys were divided up into groups - and were given a basket of props - 10 minutes later they had to put on a skit - and they were pretty hilarious!!  I purposely didn't put in anything that looked even remotely like a weapon - but they still made weapons out of them - to foil the bad guys of course!!  

Good food, good singing, good entertainment - a great way to have a really good evening!!

Homecoming!!

Alice and Axel are here for a short visit.

 

Harry and Dawn came over to say hi!  (and enjoy some Clayton Chocolate Chip Cookies!)

 

Of course Mother and Donna joined in the fun.  It was a very nice evening!!

Our family is so large - one drawback is not being able to see everyone as much as you would like.  But we try to enjoy it when we do get to visit.

A read-a-thon of my own!!

 A long weekend invites some serious reading!!  We went to Mammoth Lakes over President's Day weekend, so I took a couple of cd's from my school library for us to listen to while we drove.  They were definitely adolescent fiction, but after a slow start, this one got gripping.  The reviews I read said that it wasn't great literature, but that it would probably capture the reluctant reader.  I agree - and it's been that way in my classroom.  One boy started this, raved about it, so now everyone is reading it.

 

Same was true for the above - a slow start, but then you got pulled in.  These two titles come from the intervention program I teach, so every so often, "Tanya" comes on and explains or asks questions - I thought this would annoy me, but it did not.  And I can see how students would find this helpful.  If you have a reluctant reader in your midst, give them both of these titles.  A group of boys read this together last year in my intervention class and they all talk about it still.

 

Alice and Eliza both said I'd look at my closet differently after I read this book - and they were right.  I think every woman ought to read this - "cheap" fashion has some pretty powerful, negative consequences for our economy - and the way we see ourselves.

 

I had read this about 10 years ago and then it was selected for my book group.  It's a lightweight read - sometimes funny, sometimes poignant, always entertaining.  There is apparently a movie - so I think I will hunt for it!

I need another long weekend already!!

"Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without!"

Unbeknownst to me, Harry had a stash of old ski wear from the late 80s in his storage.  I thought it had all been discarded eons ago. I should have taken a shot of the suitcase he brought it in - it was vintage too!

 

I should have gotten a shot of Bruce too - he was really into the sweaters - wore one to church on Sunday!!

 

In its day, these were very cool duds!!

 

These ladies can carry off the look, that's for sure!!

We had a great time on our weekend in Mammoth.  I don't ski - well, I did once and that was enough!!  But I had fun riding the gondola to Mammoth Village - walking, eating, Facebooking, shopping, crocheting and reading.  Got two books read.  The whole weekend was not spent skiing - we had fun exploring restaurants, playing games, watching movies, and church on Sunday.

A big thank you to Bonny and fam for hosting us in such fine style!!

Be Mine Valentine!!

Pretty sure I post this every year - probably because I don't have any other "Valentine pictures" to post.

This is February 1968.  I went to Woolworths and took my photo in the machine - then posted the strips on pink construction paper - very old school.

Harry and I do not make a very big deal out of Valentine's Day - I used to make cookies and get gifts for the children.  I still send cards to the grandkids.  And this year I went hog-wild and got heart shaped lollypops for my students.

They won't know what to do with themselves!!

Saturday Afternoon Matinee

Ara and I decided to "mix it up" for our Grandma's Birthday Weekend.  Our shopping for Ara's b-day gift was successful and swift, so we decided to take in a movie.  We both wanted to see Life of Pi.  We had both read the book, so that made it even more fun to talk about afterwards.

We both liked it.  In Ara's own words, "Every thing in the movie was from the book, but everything in the book was not in the movie."  They usually can't do that anyway, and we both felt they'd chosen wisely when they transferred the story to the big screen.

We topped off the day with a late lunch at Cafe Merengue and a visit to Grandma Terrill.  Harry's been working all day - we are going to turn in - we can tell him all about it on the ride to Malibu tomorrow.

A nice Saturday - Ara is a great companion!!

Like mother, like daughter!!

Bonny at 18 months or so.

 

Ara at 18 months or so.

Looking forward to my Grandma's Birthday Weekend with Ara!!

Aunt Audrey

This is a photo of my Aunt Audrey.  She was probably my favorite aunt.  I'm not sure why, but she was very kind, quiet, and soft-spoken.

She was married to my dad's brother Ted.  They had four children - Pattie, Peggy, Phyllis, and Jimmy.  Pat was my age, and when I ran into her at BYU, she wondered what I was doing hanging out with Harry Terrill - he'd been the home teaching companion to their family's home teacher - which they called a Ward Teacher back then.

In 1967, after Harry and I got engaged, I would often stay out here in the San Gabriel Valley instead of having Harry drive all the way back and forth - and his folks didn't have a spare room, so I stayed at Audrey's house.  She was a lovely hostess and always made me feel welcome.

Ted and Audrey were divorced at one point, and Ted actually died at a relatively young age, but Audrey never sounded bitter or unkind.  She seemed to take everything life had to offer her in stride.

My most vivid memory of Audrey is an odd one, but it has stayed with me over the years.  They were out at our house once for some kind of family meal.  Audrey was helping dry the dishes.  I was so intrigued with the way she flipped silverware from the towel in her hand  into the drawer as she dried it.  I kept trying to learn how to do it  myself - it took me a few years, but I eventually mastered the skill!!

I also recall going out to visit their family.  They lived in an upstairs apartment, with a landing.  And they had a back porch with a retractable clothesline.  I remember on the way home saying "Pattie and Peggy are so lucky.  They have stairs and a landing and a clothesline you can pull in."  And my mom saying, "Poor Audrey.  All those stairs and having to put up with Byron (my dad's younger brother)  coming over all the time and having to have her wash out there for all the neighbors to see."  Interesting what a difference perspective - and station in life - have on how we see things! 

Audrey died a few years ago.  Alice and I went to visit her one summer - she had moved to Utah to be near her daughters.  And the next summer my mom and I went to visit.  I'm glad I did.  She was just the same lovely person - it's wonderful when you can count on your favorite aunt!!

"A Social Quagmire!

While Phoebe was here, she was visiting with friends and commented that maybe her teacher friends got tired of hearing her go on about what's wrong with schools.

I said, well, I thought you were happy with your schools in Oregon.  And she said she mostly was - she was just not happy with the whole middle school concept - thinks it ought not to start until 7th grade.  I'm sure she thinks that way because Henry is in 6th grade.  (She mentioned the whole "social quagmire!!")

I recall Bonny going to middle school.  I was worried.  I myself had gone to a junior high - 7th, 8th, 9th and a three year high school, and so I thought 6th grade seemed young for leaving elementary.  Bonny was very apprehensive about going - I worried all day her first day there.  But when she breezed in that afternoon asking what was there to eat, I realized that I had been doing most of the worrying that day!!

Our kids all had different experiences in school.  Some better than others.  They appear to have survived them.  But it is a little scary these days.  

But then, I thought it was scary when I sent kids off to school.

And as a middle school teacher, I can tell you that teachers and administrators and counselors are very aware of the pitfalls - and work hard to smooth the path for everyone.

Do some fall through the cracks?  Undoubtedly.  Do we keep trying?  Definite yes.  Is there a good answer?  Probably.

We are working on it!!

Just keep supporting your child and your school and the teachers and administrators.

Thank heaven for little girls - especially my little granddaughters!!

Sweet little Agnes as a baby - wearing the dress her mother wore at her blessing - the one my Grandma Stevens made.

 

Sweet Agnes - a little older, but still my sweet girl!!

 

Sweet Agnes - with the bow and arrow set from Brave - her souvenir choice from her first-ever trip to Disneyland yesterday!!

Carrying on in the fine tradition of Terrill women everywhere!!  (You can change the name, but those Terrill women just don't go away!!)

Fun with Phoebe and Agnes

Phoebe and Agnes are enjoying a day at Disneyland.  We are waiting up for their report.  The day here was balmy and a bit overcast.  Not bad for February 1st!!

Maybe you got photo by phone - it looked like Agnes was in heaven!!

Stay tuned!