Teuscher Family News

Bowling and Ginny with her Rebecca Doll

2012-01-09T19:25:00.000-08:00

Aquarium visit

2012-01-09T19:22:00.001-08:00

Cousins!

2012-01-09T19:21:00.001-08:00

Funny Faces

2012-01-09T19:17:00.000-08:00

Christmas lights

2012-01-09T19:13:00.000-08:00

Pictures!

2012-01-09T19:08:00.000-08:00

I finally took some pictures!!! I got a new camera for Christmas. Love it! It's really hard to get Max in any sort of photo--always has been hard, but it's worse now that he's a teenager. I'll post a few pictures from Christmas and our little family trip to Salt Lake.

August 2011 family picture

2011-08-28T18:55:00.001-07:00

Summer

2010-07-10T11:58:00.000-07:00

Summer...this means a vacation from work, only to do more work! I am helping Trevor with his huge summer load of instruments--cleaned 3 sousaphones and 3 french horns this week. Only about 10 more sousaphones to go! At least I'm building some muscle from all the lifting! I've also been doing a lot of work in preparation for school next year because I'm starting a new job--choir director at Sky View High School. I'll be half-time there and half-time at North Cache 8/9 center.
I'm excited about it! Lots of prep work to happen before school starts though.

When I'm not working, I've been trying to spend a lot of time with the kids. We've been in a pretty good chore and practicing routine--let's hope we can keep it up when school starts! I also have a summer project coming up to just go through the whole house and get rid of stuff! I took the kids to Bear Lake last week with our 4H YFP group. It was really fun to play on the beach and just relax for a few days. The kids enjoyed hanging out with the other youth their ages.

Emily just got back from girls' camp. She survived her 4th year overnight survival hike. She said it wasn't even too bad, so she must have had fun. She's been busy this summer with EFY, camp, Driver's Ed, a teen writer's conference, and working for her Dad. She is the proud owner of a learner's permit--and is doing a good job in learning to drive--we haven't even hit anything yet! :) (knocking on wood...)

Max and Sam have been playing baseball. Sam did a good job in his first year. He played outfield and 2nd base. I think it was a good experience for him. Max has really matured as a player this year. He's been a consistently good hitter, and alternates between 3rd base, catcher, and left field. His team is in the play-offs, they just won their game last night, and will play the next round next Tuesday.

My sister Sandi came up from Texas for a couple of days. It was fun to have a family reunion with all the cousins while they were here and then we went up to 2nd dam with Sandi and Scott. Her two boys are really cute--little Soren is a very jolly baby. He's got the cutest baby chuckles! Mannix had really grown up since the last time they visited. He's about 3 1/2 now.

The 4th of July was super fun! We had a family picnic and then did some small fireworks in our driveway. Trevor took the kids to the Logan City fireworks on Friday night since I was out of town. I had an opportunity to play with the American Festival Chorus and Orchestra on their summer tour up to Sun Valley Idaho. It was fun to play with the orchestra. It's a good group. The guest artist was Peter Cetera from Chicago--"You're the Inspiration!" I had so much fun re-living those old songs from high school.

I think that's about it! One of these days I'll have to see if I have any photos to put up. Ginny lost her top two front teeth, and is very cute right now. I think I do have a few pictures of the kids to dig up.

summer

2010-06-08T21:47:00.000-07:00

School is out and summer begins. I thought I was going to be so motivated to get projects done and clean out my proverbial corners, but so far, I haven't really gotten much accomplished. I have, however, got the kids practicing, reading, doing a few chores, and playing baseball. So, not too bad in the parenting department. The main thing I have been telling myself I need to do is get up early and go walking, but not much happening in the exercise department. I crave the sleep-in time. I'll get it together one of these days...

Ginny quote of the day..."Mom, what year were you born?" (Long pause from mother, who was really not listening and thinking about something else...) When she didn't get a response, Ginny said, "That's okay, that must be really hard to remember something from that long ago."

I told that story to my Dad today, and he had to ask what I am turning this year on my birthday, which he knows the answer to very well...it's a big one this year, and I'm going to celebrate! Not until October, though, I'm happy to remain 30-something until then.

Spring Break

2010-04-06T07:27:00.000-07:00

We're relaxing a little during our spring break. Whew! What a relief! It is nice to take some time off--although my school kids were not impressed when I told them my spring break plans were to to laundry and taxes... But, as an adult, sometimes I think it is more fun to catch up on things than to "play", just because it feels so good to get things accomplished that I am usually behind on. I cleaned my fridge yesterday! Laundry today... the kids are having fun playing with their friends. I did actually sit down in the middle of the afternoon yesterday and watch a movie. Can you imagine? A movie in the middle of the afternoon!
Loved general conference this weekend. There were lots of messages on families and parenting that were just what I needed. We had a really nice Easter. Ginny didn't let us forget any of the family traditions. She reminded me every 15 minutes all day on Saturday that we were going to dye eggs after conference. Then, lots of reminders on Sunday that we were going to have an Easter Egg hunt right after conference. She keeps us hopping! The kids had fun finding their Easter baskets on Sunday morning. We had to give Ginny and Sam a few seconds head start on the egg hunts since Max is so fast.
The kids are getting ready to start soccer, and then later, baseball. This is a busy sports time of year. I like it, though, because it is good exercise and fresh air for them. We'll be busy with all of those games. Ginny is going to play soccer for the first time this year. She has a ballet recital coming up, too. The boys are already playing catch in the yard, as their true love is baseball. They like soccer, too, but it is baseball that they dream about.
I'll have to see if I have any pictures to post later this week.

2010-01-31T21:36:00.000-08:00

Some pictures from 2009. Sorry you have to turn your head sideways to see Ginny at her dance recital. Emily's extra "tan" is her opera make-up from Carmen. Trevor is playing the euphonium at Logan's first annual Tubachristmas, which he organized this year.

Sam's Baptism

2009-09-05T19:18:00.000-07:00

Sam was baptized today! He was really nervous about it, and excited, too. He looked really handsome in his new white shirt and tie. All of our family that lives in the vicinity came, which was great. We've never been able to have that much family attend a baptism before. The Guthrie cousins came up and all the cousins sang "Baptism" out of the primary book. Papa gave a talk and Grandpa Steve gave a prayer. Trevor baptized and confirmed him with a lovely blessing. Afterward, we had a family dinner over at Tutu and Papasan's house. It was a very nice day.

He celebrate his 8th birthday a couple of weeks ago. We had a little family birthday party with his grandparents and then a week later we had a small party at the park with his friends. He's done lots of celebrating!

Ginny's preschool graduation

2009-07-06T20:53:00.001-07:00

Ginny's ballet recital

2009-07-06T20:44:00.000-07:00

Okay, this also took play way back at the beginning of May, or it might have even been the end of April...hopelessly behind in the pictures, here. She was a cute little ballerina. I am a new ballet parent, and was unaware of the tradition to bring flowers to the kids after their performance, so Ginny was the only kid not to get flowers, and she was DEVASTATED! So, we had to make an emergency trip to Walmart on the way home to pick out some flowers. She loved being up on the big stage at the Ellen Eccles theatre. A star is born!

Random Pics of kids

2009-07-06T20:42:00.000-07:00

How about some Easter pictures in July?

2009-07-06T20:40:00.000-07:00

Okay, I know I'm terribly late...but perhaps better late than never????

Ginny rides her bike!

2009-07-06T20:34:00.000-07:00

This actually happened a few weeks ago, but here are some pictures! Ginny had been wobbling along on her less-than-functional training wheels throughout the spring, and finally Sam said that he thought it would be easier to ride without them. Sure enough, her big brother taught her how to ride a bike! I helped her around the block for the first time, and then she just took off! She's been zipping around the block ever since...

Happy 4th of July!

2009-07-04T21:20:00.000-07:00

We had such a nice day today. For me, it literally felt like a breath of fresh air. We slept in, totally ignored our chores, and went to the Hyrum parade. That's actually really a fun parade. The kids love it because the firemen squirt water on everyone, and all the floats give out tons of candy, drinks, popsicles, etc. We explored the new Walmart in town as we bought some groceries, and then went on a picnic with Tutu and Papasan. It was great to just relax with the kids, playing games, frisbee, etc. and talking. It seems like ages since we spent a whole day just playing together. When it got dark this evening, we did a few of our own small fireworks in the driveway. The kids love those little pop-its, too.
Of course, the big fireworks for the city of Logan were done last night. For some reason, it is a tradition to always do this on the 3rd around here. The kids look forward to that every year. I think they have at least as much fun rolling down the hill at our favorite spot as they do watching the fireworks.

Out of school!!!

2009-06-01T11:28:00.000-07:00

We're out of school! Wooohooo! Now I'm going to try to catch up on chores at home, get some kids practicing their instruments, help Trevor with some chem-flushes, and get ready for a workshop I'm taking at the end of June. A few goals of the summer--get to the bottom of my laundry pile, do a photo album for Ginny (notice I didn't say scrapbook, I'm way past that...)get the kids in a chore routine so next school year will be easier, spend lots of time just being mom! I think next year is going to be really hard with me going back to work full time.

New Job!

2009-05-17T15:46:00.000-07:00

I was offered a new job this week as the choir director at North Cache 8th and 9th grade center. I'm really excited about it! It will be half-time in the mornings, and I will continue to teach band at Thomas Edison Charter in the afternoons. I think it will be fun to split my time between band and choir. A really great added benefit is that they can provide health insurance. Hallelujah! It will be hard to manage full-time work on top of my family, but I think we'll all just have to learn some important lessons about pitching in and helping. More home responsibilities will probably actually be good for the kids.

Emily's birthday and Mother's Day

2009-05-11T07:26:00.001-07:00

We had a really nice weekend. Emily turned 14 yesterday. (Wow!) That means she is officially a Mia Maid at church, which I think she is excited about. She had a party at the park on Friday with her friends from school. (a few boys were invited, too, yikes!) But, I will say that it seems like she really has a nice group of friends. The girls spent the night at our house afterward. On Saturday we had 3 soccer games and a dance recital. Max is somewhat of a kamikaze on the soccer field--he'll throw his whole body into a kick and end up crashing at least 20 times per game. But, he's actually pretty effective with his strange tactics. Sam is also doing well. He likes to play goalie. Emily has really taken off with soccer this year. She is less stressed than usual and is tending to score at least one goal per game. It's really great to watch her play and have fun. Ginny was a darling little ballerina at her dance recital. What a cutie! The girls all wear black leotards, skirts, pink tights and ballet shoes and their hair in a bun--very traditional. She did a great job--I think her favorite part what flitting about on the stage after the recital was over. I wasn't up on the protocol about buying your dancer flowers, and she was pretty sad that she was the only dancer in her class who didn't get flowers so we made an emergency stop at Walmart to let her pick a small bouquet.

Sunday was Mother's Day. Ginny and Sam brought me really cute things they had made for me. They both sang me original songs in my honor, and kept bringing me cute notes and drawings all day. Both Max and Sam brought me little vases of flowers on Saturday. Also very cute. Trevor and Emily brought me a pretty little bamboo plant. Emily and I decided to make cherry cheesecake for our combined birthday/mother's Day treat. Yum! We went to visit Steve, Suzanne, and Gladys out in Smithfield in the afternoon, and Tutu and Papasan to deliver a flower and cards. We also stopped by my mother's and Nana's graves to sing our favorite song, "Today" and leave some flowers, too. It was cute at my mom's grave, Sam and Ginny both said they wanted some "alone time" with Grandma as we were leaving. The knelt individually by the grave and talked to Grandma--I don't know what they were saying, but it was very sweet.

Patterns

2009-03-25T07:22:00.000-07:00

Ginny:

"Mommy, is it always going to be winter, spring, winter, spring, winter....?"

I really hope that we'll eventually have spring for real. My poor little crocuses that were so cute are frozen!

I Feel Lucky by Sam

2009-03-25T07:21:00.000-07:00

I feel lucky because I have a nice teacher.
I feel lucky because I have my name.
I feel lucky because I have a family.
I feel lucky because of my Heavenly Father.

Regional History Fair

2009-03-13T16:28:00.000-07:00

Emily is really excited because she and her friends took first place at the regional history fair for their play about Nikola Tesla. That means they get to go to the state competition at the end of April. It's fun to see these girls work so hard and succeed.

old mother's day card

2009-03-13T16:22:00.000-07:00

Found this old mother's day card from Max. I think it just from last year, but I got a giggle out of it this week.

Yo mom--

My mom rocks.
She cleans my socks (and underwear)

Emily's freewriting assignment--subject, tuna

2009-02-25T08:08:00.000-08:00

I found this in Emily's English papers and thought it was quite entertaining. She said the freewriting topic for the day was tuna, and truly, what DO you write about tuna?

I love tuna. We don't have any. I am sad.
I think I shall go sit in a corner and mope.
Or maybe I'll fall apart where I'm standing.
Life. Don't talk to me about life. Or tuna.
I like tuna. We don't have any. I am sad...
You know, strangely, I feel like I've told you that before.

Sam's Essay

2009-02-25T08:04:00.000-08:00

If I were a singer, I would do many songs. I would write a song called, "The Bird Without Wings."

I know you have no wings.
You know how it is so uncool.
I know I do not feel it, man.
So I feel. Oh. Oh.
I feel so like the way so
I know, oh.
I know, yeah.
I know. I know.
So it is what I know.

After I write the song, I will perform it in front of a crowd with my band. My brother Max and some of his friends are in my band. I am the singer. We are going to perform the song in New York City. Millions of people will be at the concert. There will be a hundred girls chasing me. I would be happy to be a rock star. I would travel all around the world to sing songs. In my house, I would have a mini stage to practice with my band, and I would have a glowing ceiling, and a very soft carpet, and a couch and band equipment. Reporters will ask questions. I wouldn't go to school because I would have concerts everywhere instead.

Kid Updates

2009-02-24T17:53:00.000-08:00

Shall I brag a little bit about my children? My mother always really embarrassed me by telling all of my accomplishments to absolutely everyone, but I think inside I was secretly pleased... So, here goes...

We are very proud of Emily for being in the top ten percent nationwide in the Iowa testing in every subject, and the overall scores. Way to go Emily! She also has straight A's and feels a little miffed at receiving 97 percent instead of 99 or 100 in one of her classes. She also wrote a great play with her friends about Nikola Tesla for the school history fair, and took second place, therefore she will be moving on to regionals. Her photograph won 1st place in the school arts competition, too. She was also just selected to be in the middle school honor band next month. Indulge me...I'm a proud mother!

Max was invited to read his reflections poem in front of the school board this evening. He had received honorable mention at the district level, and so was invited to open the school board meeting with a reading. I think he was a little embarrassed, but he did very well. I think I've previously posted the poem--Wow! What a pumpkin. He has also earned his Webelos award in scouts.

Sam won 3rd place in his school arts competition with an essay entitled, "What if I were a singer?" I'll post this separately. Sam also had really good grades at his parent teacher conference. (can't report on Max yet, his conferences are tomorrow.)

Ginny quote of the week..."Mom, I'm little AND big." How true! Little enough to loved to be cuddled. Big enough to not be carried anymore. Little enough to love lullabies and stories. Big enough to be independent as she waves and runs into school. Little enough for band-aids and kisses to still make the hurts go away. Big enough to not want to be left out of the big kids' activities. Etc.

Christmas morning pictures

2008-12-28T16:05:00.000-08:00

Kid quotes

2008-12-28T15:31:00.000-08:00

Ginny to her big sister: "Emily, I'm gorgeous!"

Sam and Ginny were acting out the nativity story with their grandparents. Papa was the innkeeper, and of course Sam and Ginny were Joseph and Mary. The rest of us were shepherds and sheep. When "Mary and Joseph" knocked on the innkeeper's door, he answered the door in quite a gruff voice. Joseph froze for a minute, then elbowed Mary and whispered, "You ask!"

Max's surgery

2008-11-29T11:48:00.001-08:00

Max survived his triple surgery this past weekend. All minor things, but scary for him. The worst recovery has been from the tonsillectomy. He wasn't able to eat much at Thanksgiving. He didn't talk much for several days, either. He was brave for the surgery though, he was cracking jokes for the nurses, and said it made him feel better to laugh. The worst part for him, I think was getting in the IV. He has been really quiet this week, which in a way has been very nice.
We had a fun Thanksgiving at Tutu and Papasan's house. Nice to just relax with the family and play silly games, etc.

The next couple of weeks are going to be crazy. Tons of concerts both for me and my kids. We'll have to take it one day at a time.

Also, I will mention that max's two reflections projects were both chosen to go on to the district competition. Emily will be doing her school spelling bee next week.
Max got to perform the song he wrote on the awards night with two other boys from his "band." I think he felt pretty cool performing on his guitar for the first time.

Vote Today!

2008-11-04T08:32:00.001-08:00

I'm voting today. Even though my vote won't count in Utah, I'm still glad to exercise my American privilege to vote. Go Obama!
(My neighbors wouldn't like to hear me say that!)

Emily

2008-11-04T08:17:00.000-08:00

I've written something about each of the other kids, so I'll take a moment to comment on Emily. I know she has just barely stepped into the teenage years, but truly, she is a lovely teenager. I've been waiting for the storm to begin, but so far so good. Don't get me wrong, we all have our moments of grumpiness (hers are mostly hair-related), but I am feeling grateful to have such a thoughtful, responsible, and generally kind-hearted daughter. (Can you hear me knocking on wood even as I am typing this?) I watched her play on the floor with Ginny and her new birthday toys last week--lovely. She will frequently tuck her little sister into bed, or read to Sam and Ginny. Her teachers all rave about how responsible she is, and her friends' parents all tell me that Emily is just the best, and most creative and fun friend. She is even starting to do her chores without complaining. So far, I think thirteen is pretty great. Of course, fourteen is coming, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

Sam, the reader

2008-11-04T08:14:00.000-08:00

Sam proudly announced after school yesterday, "Mom, we have another reader in the family!" He was feeling very proud of himself because he was able to read all of the directions on his math homework without help. And what better title is there than "reader" ? Welcome, Sam, to the world of books!

Ginny's Birthday

2008-11-04T08:10:00.000-08:00

Our little princess is now 5 years old! It was celebrated in grand style, of course, with an impromptu birthday party on Saturday, her grandparents came over for cake and presents on Sunday, and we opened family presents on her actual birthday. Whew! She had quite a bit of attention for a whole week, but then yesterday she said, "Mommy, how come I don't get any letters or packages anymore?" Ahhh, to be queen for the day...or week... or month....year?

Max the poet

2008-11-04T08:04:00.000-08:00

Max has written a couple of cute poems recently. One is for the school reflections contest, and that is below. The other one, I'm trying to find to post, because I really liked it. But, it has gone missing. So, here is his Reflections entry. (He also wrote a cute blues tune called, "Wow is in my mind.")

Wow! What a Pumpkin!
by Max Teuscher

We were walking down the path
On a pretty autumn day.
Wow! We saw a giant pumpkin
UP and yonder where it lay.
We took it home to carve,
And although we did it beautifully,
It was for the pumpkin seeds we starved.

When we tried to roll it home
on that pretty autumn day,
we lost our grip on the pumpkin,
and we watched it roll away.
It was rolling through the woods,
and we thought that it was gone,
so we chased it through the woods,
and found it in the pond.

We went back home and pulled out our canoe
And we were very glad we had it, wouldn't you be too?
So we rode into the pond in our little red canoe,
and we couldn't get it out, so we thought what to do.
We found a 10 foot rope and a sharpened hook,
so then we took, we took, we took the pumpkin through the water.

We reeled it home and we left ourselves a trail
of pumpkin tracks.
And then when we got home we enjoyed our pumpkin seed snacks!

Emily's 4H hat and dress

2008-10-02T20:45:00.000-07:00

Here is the hat Emily knit for 4H this year. It was fun for her to learn how to use circular needles. She sewed this dress, also. Unfortunately, the picture was accidentally taken in sepia, which is not the cutest for a black and white dress. I'll have to take another picture sometime. The dress was challenging because it had sleeves, a lining, and a zipper--all new skills for her. She did a great job, though, and got a blue ribbon at the fair.

Emily's 4H photos

2008-10-02T20:40:00.000-07:00

Emily took some really excellent photos for 4H this year. Three of them were chosen for the state fair, and one of them was chosen as the best of show. I'm posting a few to show her excellent work. Can you guess which one was the grand prize winner?
Dad picked it right away.

2008-10-02T20:35:00.000-07:00

There is no good reason why I put these two photos in the same blog entry, other than I thought I would post them both, and they didn't fit with anything else. I wanted to put up this picture of Trevor in his Father's Day tie because it is definitely a sign of a true loving Dad who would wear a tie like this in public just because his kids decorated it for him.
And, I thought this was a cute picture of my Dad and Ann.

crazy pictures

2008-09-16T07:47:00.001-07:00

pictures of Sam's birthday

2008-09-16T07:42:00.000-07:00

I'm terrible about getting pictures posted at the same time as the event, but here are a few pictures of Sam on his 7th birthday .

Sam quote

2008-09-16T07:40:00.000-07:00

Sam, to an employee at the Book Table:

"Could you exchange this penny for a quarter, please?"

picsof kids

2008-09-15T08:26:00.000-07:00

more pictures of Provo trip

2008-09-15T08:21:00.000-07:00

My cute nieces and nephews. Also, I was lucky to get to see my Aunt Judy and Aunt Kay and Uncle Harold. Kay and Harold live in Washington, so I haven't seen them in many years. It was fun to see them.

Visit to Nancy's house

2008-09-15T08:18:00.001-07:00

I had so much fun visiting my sister and her kids last weekend. It was great to hold my brand new nephew. What a cutie! Here are a few pictures.

Bear Lake trip

2008-08-31T13:46:00.000-07:00

I think I mentioned earlier that I met a bunch of my oldest and dearest friends at Bear Lake for the weekend earlier in August. It was totally fun to reconnect and see all of their kids, etc. (Couldn't even count how many kids!) Here is a picture of us--20 years after high school! Yikes!

my new nephew

2008-08-31T13:37:00.000-07:00

Here is my new nephew! Alex Peter. My sister Nancy delivered him on August 27th. I get to go down and visit next weekend! Can't wait!

Sam's birthday and 1st day of school

2008-08-21T07:53:00.000-07:00

August 20th was the first day of school, and Sam's birthday! He had an awesome day--his school class made him a whole stack of birthday cards, and he even lost his first tooth! The tooth fairy visited and brought him 4 quarters! He was totally excited. We had a little family birthday party last night. Tutu and Papasan and Grandpa Steve and Suzanne, and Grandma Gladys all came over for birthday cake and presents. We'll have a friend party on Saturday.

While our grandparents were here, Grandma Gladys was telling Ginny that she was so cute that she should come and live at her house. Ginny said no...thought for a minute, and said, "but you can borrow me!"

Emily and Max also had good first days at school. Max started at Hillcrest--my old stomping grounds. His teacher is really nice. He knew lots of the kids in his class from baseball, scouts, church etc, so I think the transition won't be too difficult. Emily was beyond thrilled to see all of her friends again. I think she's even willing to put up with homework so she can see her friends every day.

My first day went fine as well. Of course the real excitement will be when the 1st year students bring their instruments for the first time on Monday. There's nothing like hearing a beginning band play their first notes to wake you up in the morning!

4H

2008-08-04T18:46:00.000-07:00

4H projects turned in to the fair for the year! Wooo HOOO!!! This is a major relief for me. Stay tuned for more info on the kids' projects. I'll post some pictures. They are excited to go to the fair later this week and see their ribbons. Suffice it to say for now that Emily entered 16 projects, Max entered 11, and Sam entered 4. Yikes! (note that 6 of emily's projects were photographs). I think the other families in our 4H club got their stuff in to the fair today, too. Our club was really a lot of fun this year...a lot of work, too, but fun for the kids.

fun

2008-07-27T14:26:00.000-07:00

I entered the kitchen the other day to find Ginny carefully pouring water from a measuring cup into a plastic baggie. I asked her why she was doing that, and she looked up at me with a gleam in her eye, and said, "Because it's fun, mommy!" Lovely to find such pleasure in simple things.

Summer

2008-07-22T21:16:00.000-07:00

We finally had some relaxing summer fun tonight at our ward swim party. It was fun to just chill out at the pool. (Trevor even came!) Dinner was provided--always a bonus when I don't have to cook dinner. Emily also spent the afternoon boating on Hyrum Dam with the young women. We had 4H this afternoon, too--working on some craft projects. WE've started Emily's sewing project. In general, we've really got to get working on the 4H stuff because the fair is less than 2 weeks away. I've been putting in lots of early morning hours flushing brass instruments at the shop--and teaching 4 classes a week.

note from Ginny's preschool teacher

2008-07-11T12:54:00.000-07:00

We received a lovely note from one of Ginny's preschool teachers, and it was such a good description of her personality that I thought I would post its contents.

Ginny is so much fun to have in preschool! She is always smiling and her laugh is so contagious. The other day Ginny used her literacy skills and wrote some songs, then she sang and danced them for us! It was such a treat. Ginny also created a cat house out of cardboard, paper and glue. She then took on the role of the pet cat. Ginny is such a special part of our class!

Max's championship baseball game

2008-07-02T19:26:00.000-07:00

Max's team won the championship in his age division in the final game tonight. He was really excited about it. He has a really cool trophy that goes with the honor. Max's strong points in the game of baseball are the guts to go for the steal, and a killer ability to slide into the bases. He scored lots of times by stealing his way around the bases. He normally played 3rd base in the outfield, and did a good job there as well. He scored several RBI's as well. Most of all, I think he likes spitting out sunflowers seeds in the dugout, and the comraderie of the team. It was a good experience for him.

20th high school reunion

2008-06-29T21:54:00.000-07:00

Attended my 20th high school reunion this weekend. There was a casual family day on Friday evening, then a picnic with some of my close friends on Saturday, and a formal dinner on Saturday night. I was nervous about it, but I actually had a really great time. Friday night was really the most fun for me--it was more casual, and I had time to talk to everyone there. 20 years! Most people looked just the same. It was fun to see how much people's kids looked just like them back when we were in junior high or high school. Most people recognized me right off, which I guess is a good thing. (No regrets on my hair dye)

Poor Emily

2008-06-22T21:01:00.000-07:00

Poor Emily had a really tough day. She stayed home from church with sore throat and stomach ache, but I guess not long after we left, she started to have really severe sharp pains in her right side. There was no way to get hold of us at church, so she walked down to her great grandparents house practically doubled over in pain. Papasan and his neighbor gave her a blessing and then came to church to get us. I came home and took her to the urgent care. They took xrays and drew blood (very traumatic for a girl with a fear of needles) and said her white blood cell count was too high. So we were sent to the hospital for a CT scan--which meant IV and other very invasive procedures that were really scary and hard for her. But she managed to be brave. Finally, the word came back that is was not her appendix (thank heavens) but she has a large cyst( 7 cm by 6 cm) on her ovary. They said the cyst would eventually rupture and take care of itself, but gave her some pain meds. Poor kid. She's still really hurting, hasn't been able to eat anything, or even get out of bed all afternoon. She even passed out from pain at one point this afternoon.
We were grateful for the blessing from Papasan this morning. I think she'll be okay, but I just feel bad for her. It's hard to watch your child suffer from fear and pain. Luckily, it wasn't anything worse.

A few leftover pics that didn't make it onto other pages

2008-06-13T19:35:00.000-07:00

Leah's baptism

2008-06-13T19:34:00.001-07:00

SLC spring break photos

2008-06-13T19:30:00.001-07:00

More spring break photos

2008-06-13T19:28:00.001-07:00

Spring Break Trip photos

2008-06-13T19:23:00.001-07:00

Here are the spring break photos of our trip to Ogden and Salt Lake City. It was really fun to get away for the weekend. WE went to the treehouse museum with Papa and Grandma Ann in Ogden. In Salt Lake City, we visited the Utah state capitol building, the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers Museum, Gateway Mall, Temple Square, Clark Planetarium, and Liberty Park. This was all in two days! We were exhausted, but it was really fun.

Sam's kindergarten graduation

2008-06-13T19:19:00.000-07:00

Sam looked very handsome at his kindergarten graduation, although it was hard to get him to crack a smile until they brought out the cotton candy! It was cute though. The kids recited poems and sang songs, and they threw 2008 grad visors in the air. We loved Mrs. Larsen, his kindergarten teacher. He had a good year.

Memorial Day

2008-06-13T19:15:00.000-07:00

Memorial was really nice this year since we lived in Logan and were able to visit the family graves in person. It was lovely to be able to share family stories with the kids about our families and be able to have them appreciate some of their heritage. I took pictures of my mom's and Nana's graves because the flowers were so pretty. We also went out to Trevor's family at the Smithfield cemetery.

2008-06-13T19:10:00.000-07:00

New spring blossoms, swinging, Max's bacon and cream cheese beehive for the Utah history night at school, Ginny with grandma Gladys.

Various pics of kids

2008-06-13T19:07:00.000-07:00

Ginny is my champion vacuum girl. She does a really good job, especially on the stairs. The other pics are just random moments with the kids.

Provo trips

2008-06-13T18:52:00.001-07:00

We had a couple of fun trips to Provo this spring to visit our cousins. We went one day over spring break for a fun picnic with Nancy's kids and extended family cousins. (Very fun to see everyone!) WE also went down recently for Leah's baptism. A lovely day. Here are a few pictures, although, I'm still trying to find a few pictures that I have misplaced on my computer. Will post more later.

Emily's birthday

2008-06-13T18:49:00.000-07:00

Emily had a slumber party with her friends for her birthday. They all dressed up in 50's costumes. Cute!

This is why I dyed my hair

2008-06-13T18:47:00.000-07:00

So, in case you were wondering why I finally succombed to the lure of hair dye, this is the reason! One too many grandma comments.

Ginny in curlers

2008-06-13T18:46:00.001-07:00

I think Ginny is darling in spongy rollers.

Max haircut

2008-06-13T18:44:00.001-07:00

Max's new haircut. No more mop top!

Summer

2008-05-29T08:40:00.000-07:00

the first week of summer is under way. I'm afraid the kids are bored already. We've tried to just relax this week and let them play with friends, etc. Max is playing baseball, so it's fun to go and watch his games. max is brave! He makes lots of runs on stealing bases. Sam ended up having to miss the last couple of his soccer games due to weather, etc. Too bad. He loved soccer, and was also really brave. He average three or four goals each game. Emily has also had a good soccer season. Her last game is on Friday. She scored a goal last week, and had some good defense as well.

This summer is going to be crazy. I have several weeks of workshops coming up to finish up my licensure points. Ginny is going to attend a morning preschool at the university so she has somewhere fun to go during my workshops and all the classes I have to teach. The boys have a camp one of the weeks that I will be in workshop. I think Emily is going to work for Trevor somewhat this summer. I have music classes. Music camp next week, and then a regular session starting in July. Unfortunately, I'll have to miss the last couple of weeks of music class for an orientation at thomas edison. And, of course, I'll have to help Trevor with chem flushes when I have the chance. We're starting 4H next week, so I can have the kids doing something fun throughout all of this chaos. It looks like we're going to have a pretty big 4h club. Several families are helping me out, which will make it more fun and social for my kids as well. Oh, and I am teaching at the Family Institute on Wednesday nights. It is turning out to be really a lovely experience. The Family Institute services children who have been abused or who have seen abuse. They come for counselling, group class, and music therapy. Music therapy is not something I've done much with in the past, but I'm really enjoying it. And the kids LOVE it! One little girl last night said, "I get to come here 6 more times! This is sooooo fun!"
I'm also preparing a duet recital with my friend Jo Hays, another flutist, sometime in July. We played a wedding last week with a cellist friend, and we are hoping to do more of those in the future. Our recital program should be pretty interesting. We have some things with piano, some with cello, and a nice mix of music from all the periods. This is fun for me. Our flute choir is also performing at the tabernacle in a couple of weeks.
So, amid all this chaos, I'm hoping that the kids will still be able to relax and have fun this summer. I should mostly be able to be home in the afternoons for having friends over, swimming, park outings, etc. I hope we can also take at least one family camping trip.

Whew! I feel better just getting that all off my chest!
Karen

New job!

2008-05-23T15:25:00.000-07:00

Haven't had anything interesting to report in quite awhile. But today, I got a job offer to be the band director at Thomas Edison Charter School, which is the school my kids have been attending. I'm really excited about it. I have a meeting with the principal on Tuesday to hammer out the details of the contract.

Sam graduated from kindergarten today with a cute ceremony. The kids sang patriotic songs and recited poetry, and they gave out certificates and awards. Sam was given an award for the most improved boy. The best part for the kids was the cotton candy at the end.

Max finished the 4th grade with his best report card ever, and Emily coasted through the finish of 7th grade in style with plenty of A's on her report card as well.
I think we'll try to relax and have fun next week, and then I'm ready to start 4H and summer reading programs, etc. I'm taking some workshops and teaching this summer,too so it'll be pretty busy.

interesting quote to ponder

2008-04-03T22:25:00.000-07:00

Went to a teacher workshop last weekend. If you ever want to just have a really fun day, attend an Orff workshop! Singing, folk dancing, xylophones...what could be more fun than that?
Here was a quote that I thought was applicable to both teaching a parenting. Something to think about anyway.

"The least that you accept is the most that you can expect." This would apply to both behavior and quality of work.

accounting headaches

2008-03-28T20:27:00.000-07:00

Buried in paperwork! I've been swamped with taxes for business and personal. The spring accounting for my music classes, and of course the regular bills. I'll be so relieved to be finished with all of this. Not my expertise at all, but I'm sure spending a lot of time with the books!

Max's birthday

2008-03-28T20:22:00.000-07:00

Max is now officially in his double digits. We thoroughly celebrated with family dinner and presents last night. My Dad came over to have birthday cake with us, too, which was really nice. Also, Trevor's Dad and Suzanne came for Easter dinner on Sunday, and we sang to Max over cake then, too. Then today, we had his friends over for the birthday party. We took about 7 boys and one girl (sadly outnumbered--but she was a trooper) to see the dollar theatre showing of National Treasure 2. (A good film for that age group. Trevor and I enjoyed it, too.) I noticed that Max conveniently right next to this girl during the movie. Then we came back to our house for an easy dinner of hot dogs and then birthday cake. It was a little crazy, but I think Max had fun.

ginny in curls

2008-03-14T10:23:00.000-07:00

Ginny requested to have her hair curled today, which doesn't happen very often. She wanted her picture taken afterward. We went outside, so she's a little squinty, but otherwise very cute.

Mado's cute girls

2008-03-11T09:58:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture my friend Mado sent me of her cute girls. They've grown up a lot since I last saw them!

more christmas pics

2008-03-11T09:56:00.000-07:00

Christmas morning photos

2008-03-11T09:52:00.000-07:00

A few more shots of the kids on Christmas morning.

Christmas photos

2008-03-11T09:44:00.000-07:00

Okay, I know I'm way behind on posting these photos, and it's not very exciting to look at christmas pictures, when we are waiting for spring with baited breath. Nevertheless, considering the fact that I don't really do very well with family photo albums, I think I'll post a few, just for the record. The first two pictures were taken at my Dad's house in Ogden. Grandma Ann had gingerbread house projects for the kids, and we had a nice dinner, and went to see the lights. Then there is a picture with Raquel and Tutu and Papasan during her visit. We had a nice time during her visit. Quiet time at home, which was great. The other pics are just of the kids on Christmas morning--Daddy with no beard. (By the way, he has a goatee back, so he only lasted a couple of months clean-shaven.)

Max and Emily's new haircuts

2008-02-22T15:22:00.000-08:00

Ginnyisms/Max's composition

2008-02-14T07:37:00.000-08:00

A few little things I've been meaning to write about Ginny before she grows up and these cute things are lost forever. One of my favorite of her little words is "snook" as in past tense for "sneaked". She'll creep into bed with us and say, "I snook up on you!" Another cute ginnyism is that she calls the fridge the "fridger."
Yesterday Emily was sitting at the table eating a grapefruit, and Ginny came up, took a look at what she was eating, and said, "Emily, you're eating the grown-up fruit!"

Also, something cute about Max. Yesterday, at parent teacher conferences, his teacher told me about a darling song he had performed for his class on their talent show day and wondered if it was a song that I had taught him. I didn't know what she was talking about, so she sang a little for me, and said it was the most darling song she'd ever heard. I told her I thought he made it up, which little brother Sam confirmed. Anyway, at home, Max performed it for us, and it really is cute. (Don't tell him I used the word "cute") Sung it complete blues style complete with drum riffs and an improvised solo. Here are the lyrics. I'll see if I can figure out how to upload a recording of it later.

One day I missed the bus....one sad, sad day (drum riff)
I bought some candy...it tasted good, one happy day (more drum)
That day the bus came early, one awesome day (I ate my twix)

Bruiser cruiser red, slug bug blue
Bruiser cruiser red, slug bug blue
Slug Bug red, one happy day.
OoooAAA, oa, oa, ------vocal improvised solo

ONe day I missed the bus-- (drum riff)
One day I missed the bus..... (drum fade)

picture of my mom and sisters

2008-02-14T07:31:00.000-08:00

My sister just sent me this picture of my mom and her sisters. The little boys are my Great Aunt Elaine's boys. I think their names are John and Mark. Mom is the middle size girl on the left. I think she looks so much like my sister Nancy as a child, but I think Sandi and I look more like her adult photos. Interesting. Fun to see these old family photos and see your mother at the same age as you kids!

snow

2008-02-06T08:18:00.000-08:00

Here's a picture of our house buried in snow. We shoveled about 18 inches between Friday and monday. That's on top of the mounds of snow we already had! The snowpiles are taller than my kids! The backyard is thigh deep. I don't dare let Ginny play in it because I think she'll get buried!
The weather forecast is for more snow this week. At least you burn lots of calories when you shovel!

Emily quotes

2008-01-17T21:03:00.000-08:00

A couple of my favorite lines from one of Emily's recent school essays.

"Think inside the box. With all these people outside of it, the box must be getting pretty lonely."

"When wallowing in your own pity, it is very hard not to be pessimistic and think that every smile is secretly plotting your demise."

family pic

2008-01-14T13:14:00.000-08:00

Suzanne took this and emailed it. Cute of the kids and Trevor. Me with frumpy hair and fat face. Oh well. At least my fat face is now 4 pounds lighter than it was at Christmas. Heading in the right direction. I'm having a contest with my sister to see who can lose the most weight by August. (my twentieth reunion!) 20 bucks to the winner! I've been really sore the past week with my renewed exercise, but I feel really good and more energetic.

The Holidays 2007

2008-01-02T21:53:00.001-08:00

Quick summary of our Christmas break. Took the kids and a couple of their friends to the local Fun Park for rollerblading, and a few arcade games. YOu should see Sam on roller blades! He's really coordinated for a 6 year old! Then, we spent the weekend cleaning, finishing shopping, wrapping presents, etc. and getting ready for the big day. We drove to Ogden on Saturday evening to have dinner with my Dad and Ann. Ann helped the kids make gingerbread houses. AFter dinner we went to see the lights downtown. Cold but fun. Trevor's mom arrived Sunday afternoon. Very brave of her to travel, considering that she is still recovering from surgery. We spent some good time with her and Tutu and Papasan for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. It was also fun to visit with Trevor's Dad, Suzanne, and grandma Gladys on Christmas Eve. Definitely a Christmas full of family, which is a fun change for us. All of these grandparents were more than generous with our kids' gifts, so they had tons of packages to open on Christmas morning. Unfortunately, after the Christmas fun, we spent the next few days nursing sick kids, but made some recoveries in enough time to go sledding on Friday, and then have a little party with some old friends on Saturday night. (played a karaoke version of DDR that was fun and also embarrassing.) For New Year's Eve, we attended an early 80th birthday party for papasan, which was also fun to see more family. Put our Christmas things away on New Year's Day, and the kids went back to school today. That's the reader's digest version.
Now for the longer version.....
Just kidding. The short version was long enough!
We had a lovely and restful holiday.
Now we're back to schedules, homework, and, of course, a new diet!

Young artists

2007-12-21T23:08:00.000-08:00

Max really likes to draw. And since Sam does everything Max does, he likes to draw, too. They are both huge Harry potter fans, and have been spending a lot of time drawing wands and swords, etc. Max has a pretty good eye for detail on this sword. Sam's drawing is of the showdown between Harry and Voldemort. Duel of the twin cores.
Pretty good for a 6 year old.

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-19T17:29:00.000-08:00

After much bribery and threatening, we finally ended up with a decent Christmas picture. Honestly, wouldn't you think they would just cooperate so they could get it over with?! Anyway. Here it is. The official 2007 Christmas picture.

me compared to Ringo Starr by Emily

2007-12-17T23:05:00.000-08:00

This little school assignment that Emily wrote really cracked me up. HOpefully I will be able to figure out how to get it to show up on here.

Ringo Starr and my mother have many things in common, but are also different in many ways.
They have an awful lot of differences. Ringo Starr has a fake name. His real name is Richard Starkey. My mother has only one name, Karen Teuscher. While Ringo is world famous, my mother is only famous in our ward for her flute music. Richard was a member of a band. My mother was only in marching band. Ringo was a fantastic actor, my mom can't pretend to be asleep. Ringo was only average height, my mom is quite tall (for a woman.) Ringo has a quite prominent nose. My mum has only a medium nose.
Ringo lived a rather depraved childhood. He was sick for several years and missed quite a lot of school. He spent more time in the hospital than at home. My mutti lived a normal, up-and-down childhood. She was sad sometimes, but all in all, she had a very nice first twelve years. They chose different instruments, Ringo the drum and Karen the flute. Some would say that means their personalities are quite different. I agree with that. My mother is as normal as teenage complexion problems, and Ringo wrote a song called "Octopus' Garden." That in of itself is well... strange.
While they are different in more than a few ways, they are alike in quite a lot of ways too. Both are accomplished musicians. They both dedicated quite a lot of their lives to learning music. They are both still alive, which, thank goodness, means my dad doesn't have to cook my meals. They are both fun to hear about, and have interesting stories to tell. My mother blamed things on "a nony mouse" when she did something naughty. Ringo was the star of several movies and a member of a very cool band, the Beatles. All of those things would make interesting stories.
Both are hard working. They completed their dreams, being a mother, and being famous. If lives like that aren't considered full, I don't know what a full life is.
Here is more information on my mother. She is thirty-seven. She is the mother of four children. She has two sisters.
Mr. Starr is an only child. He didn't get to write very many of the Beatles' songs.
In conclusion, although they lived and are living very different lives, both are really cool, and very musically talented.

Preschool snow day

2007-12-14T08:14:00.000-08:00

S is for Snow! WE sang lots of little snowflake songs. Counted snowmen. Colored S worksheets. Played and drew in fake snow (shaving cream), and made some glittery snowflake pictures. It was funny how some of the little girls did not want to get their fingers dirty at first, but they soon warmed up to the idea.

Sam's Kindergarten program

2007-12-14T08:10:00.000-08:00

Sam did a nice job of singing and reciting winter poetry in the kindergarten Christmas program. We discovered he is a bit of a "ham". He was a little nervous, but proud of himself after it was over. (Sorry you have to tip your head to see the picture. I forgot to rotate it. and am too lazy to go back and do it now.)

Snow!

2007-12-14T08:06:00.000-08:00

The kids love to play in the snow. It's just so hard to find them any matching mittens!

Thanksgiving picture

2007-12-14T08:01:00.000-08:00

We had my sister's family and my Dad and Ann over for Thanksgiving. Fun to have the cousins play together. I think I wrote previously that we all attended the Nutcracker together followed by the feast. Anyway, here is a picture of the festivities.

Ginny's Birthday

2007-12-08T11:13:00.000-08:00

We had a princess party for Ginny with her little friends from preschool and our neighbor. Our theme, since it was part of preschool was "P is for Princess". It was fun to act out the stories of the Princess and the Pea, the 12 Dancing Princesses, and to make crowns, etc. The girls had a lot of fun. I had fun, too!

Who is that unmasked man?!

2007-11-30T09:21:00.000-08:00

Trevor shaved his beard after 13 1/2 years! He did it late one night as a surprise. The kids did not recognize him in the morning! The people at the BookTable didn't recognize him at work, either. He really does look completely different. For me it is like a time warp. The last time I saw him beardless was when we just got married! Too bad I can't suddenly drop my gray hair and extra 50 pounds to jump back to what I looked like on our wedding day! I told Trevor that I'd bet a lot of money that he wouldn't last 2 months without the beard, and he said he didn't think he'd take that bet. So, it'll probably be back soon. Kind of fun for now though.

Hair update

2007-11-30T09:18:00.000-08:00

UPdate in the continuing saga of me trying to grow my hair out. Trying and failing mostly. I've made it 4 months since my last hair cut. Maybe I'll actually succeed this time.

Emily in her children's choir costume

2007-11-30T09:12:00.000-08:00

Here is Emily in her dress costume for the Cache Children's choir. She looks very nice, but she hates it. The first day she had to wear it (for a nutcracker performance) she cried for at least a half hour about how there was no way she could possibly "maintain her dignity in such a ridiculous outfit!" (direct quote). A week later, she can laugh at herself, which is why I can type this on the blog. The choir sounded absolutely wonderful at the nutcracker performance.

A Nony Mouse

2007-11-30T09:06:00.000-08:00

When I was a little girl, about age 4, I once sneaked a handful of chocolate cake before dinner. Though the evidence was clearly all over my face and hands, I of course denied that I had been the culprit. My mother asked me if it was our friend A Nony Mouse who had stolen the cake. Poor A Nony got in a lot of trouble over the years!
Well, this Thanksgiving, A Nony Mouse struck again at our house! None of my children seem to know what happened to this Thanksgiving pie!

Emily in the opera

2007-11-19T16:55:00.000-08:00

Emily successfully completed her opera performances this weekend. She's exhausted, but she was glad she participated. She learned a lot of really good life lessons in addition to the musical education. Things like: sticking to something when you are tired and frustrated, learning how to be patient with a director who is a little crabby, making friends with kids you've never met before, etc. The opera was really cute, and very professionally done. Very family friendly. I was very proud of her for all her hard work. She was wonderful! My dad came to watch on Thursday night, and Trevor's Dad, Suzanne, and both sets of his grandparents came on Saturday afternoon. What a treat to be able to have family attend these kind of events!
Here she is in her costume.

Emily in homecoming parade

2007-11-07T07:55:00.000-08:00

Here is Emily marching in the USU homecoming parade. She is singing with the Cache Children's choir this year and this was one of their activities. She is also singing in a production of Hansel and Gretel with USU opera, and a small choral part in the nutcracker at the end of this month.