Happy Birthday, America and Elinor!

 Monday, Beau came to dinner. Before that, Lia and Miriam took Katharine to Murray for an interview, then came home for her to pack for FSY, then Lia drove Katharine to Ogden to drop her off. As soon as she returned home, a friend texted saying she and her four year old daughter were stranded with a broken down car, so Lia was off to the rescue. Justin asked when she returned from that how her voice lesson had gone. "The concert!" groaned Lia, Ariel-like, and dashed off to the voice lesson that she had forgotten. She was happy to cross paths with Julia, who was finishing up her voice lesson with the same teacher, and happy to see her brother Beau when she got home at 5:55, right on time for the 6:00 dinner she had promised him but had yet to begin cooking. A good time was had by all during both dinner and FHE, despite the late hour, especially by the nieces and nephews to whom Beau showed the trick of making you feel like you're falling through the floor by a simple tip of the head. They couldn't wait to try it on each other once again the next morning. 

Tuesday Gwyn and younger took their parents to the annual Coldwell Banking client appreciation pool party so they could swim in frigid waters, eat ice cream, and feel the cold winds blow all for free. "Unwanted consumption is always the price of a good deal," Anyone? The beautiful ring Elinor won in the duck toss and the Velcro catch game that Gabriel won made it all worth it, though, as did Lia getting to watch Miriam love on another baby in the ward from the sidelines. So. Sweet.

Wednesday was filled with instrument practices and instrument lessons, including Elinor learning her very first song on the viola. "Ants, ants, ants, digging in the dirt, dirt, dirt, going underground, ground, ground, going off to church, Church, Church," which is cleverly also a mnemonic for remembering the string names.

Thursday Justin took Elinor swimming at Orem Rec while the rest of the family birthday shopped for our pretty princess. Gwyn and Gabriel were excellent present finders, as was Miriam, who eyed a plush duck that looked like the statue of liberty and never let go.

For our account of the fourth of July, we turn to Justin's letter to Elisabeth:

"Our Fourth started early as Mom ran the Freedom Festival 5K and Julia, Abdiel, Gwyn, and Elinor ran the mile. Mom had not trained and hadn't run that far in at least eighteen months. But she still locked in and finished strong. 

A little later we met up with the Bollingers at East Canyon Resort, where they have a timeshare. We feasted on KFC, potato salad, watermelon, chips, and cherry pie. There was also mini golf, basketball, and swimming. While everyone else swam, I played with Miriam. At one point, I was lying on my back on the grass in the shade of a pine tree while she just climbed all over me. I have such a sweet love for that little girl.

Before heading home, we picked up Katharine from FSY at Weber State. She was in ebullient spirits, and all the kids were delighted to see her again--especially, and endearingly, Abdiel. On the way home we found ourselves pelted by the full fury of a hailstorm. The hailstones looked like golf balls, and they pounded and rattled the rack on top of the van. After the elements quieted, we listened to patriotic songs, with "patriotic" understood quite loosely. The program included Katie Perry's "Firework," Miley Cyrus's "Party in the USA," and some random Imagine Dragons song (guess who picked that one?) that includes a passing reference to the Fourth of July. I made us listen to "God Bless the USA" and "Battle Cry of Freedom." For the most part, everyone sang along lustily; Katharine was loudest of all.

In the evening, I took our three most recent (or imminent) birthday girls--Julia, Gwyndelin, and Elinor--to Stadium of Fire. It was loud--so loud that I genuinely worried about permanent hearing impairment. [All of our favorite part was] a drone show tribute to the 250th anniversary of the American military that included a tank firing, marines planting the flag on Iwo Jima, and an airplane taking off from an aircraft carrier. Then came the fireworks with their annual thunder and boom.

Elinor's birthday featured lots of excellent food. We had crepes for breakfast, Pizza Pie Cafe for lunch, and stovetop mac 'n cheese for dinner. By the end I was very ready for a fast Sunday. Elinor loved her presents, especially a Wicked Lego set, with which she and the two Gs spent most of the rest of the day playing.

This was my birthday poem for Elinor:

Elinor turns 7

 

Well, my Elinor turned seven—

O, the dirty, rotten tricks!

Though at least she’s not eleven,

Still, her proper age is six.

 

She’s a gifted cleaner-upper,

And she often makes her bed,

But she sometimes leaves her supper

To go stand upon her head.

 

She conducts our scripture study

With both elegance and grace,

And she makes a loyal buddy

When you run a mile race.

 

Nur-Nur’s smile is a wonder,

And her eyes are two bright flames,

And she’s strong like rolling thunder,

Delicate like Henry James.

 

Nur-Nur seasons life with laughter,

And she’s hard not to adore;

In my happy ever after

She’ll be mine forever more."

Today the family hosted a Patriotic Sunday Sing at the church in conjunction with Lia's new calling as the Ward Music Coordinator. Katharine provided a beautiful rendering of "Shenandoah" on her cello to break up the singing of a curated list of patriotic songs ranging from all five verses of "Battle Hymn of the Republic" to "Erie Canal." Refreshments included George Washington's Cherry Pie, James Buchanan's Chess Pie, Thomas Jefferson's Pink Peppermint Ice Cream, and Martha Washington's "Jumbles," a mini cookie whose caraway seed and rose water flavor palate definitely render them an acquired taste. 

The week ends with Lia and Justin (and Katharine, though she won't admit it) eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Cheney children, who will spend the night here before attending a BYU camp.