Perry's Pleasures

Adventures at the Ranch

2012-01-26T16:40:00.000-08:00

Hiking to the top of Cowpie Hill

View from the top

Cousins - and my Mom's friend Pam's kids

Picking unripe apples in National Reef Capital Park

The petrogliffs on the way to the waterfall

Grace, Riley, Avery, and Mia playing in the creek before dinner

Emmy - "Look at me guys! I can walk!"

So happy

Look at those eyes!

Classic weenie-roast at the creek. Good times at the ranch!

Summer in Grover - 2011

2012-01-25T15:44:00.000-08:00

Could you not just eat her?

I promised myself not to go back and blog about things so far in the past, but I made an exception. We had the most amazing summer at the ranch. Sadly, Savy wasn't with us any of the time... she was in Peru. Not a bad trade-off I guess. She had a blast with 20 other kids from the stake, volunteering at an orphanage for a week, and hiking the Mochu Pichu Trail and site-seeing the next week. That's another story though! Here are some highlights of our wonderful time at the ranch:

Playing the pole game Grandma taught us - even the adults got into it.

Beautiful Ranch House- My favorite place in the world

Our hike at Pleasant Creek - there was a fun little waterfall at the end.

Noah admires Penn's fish. Why is it that he always catches the fish anyways?

Sweet baby Kamae

Kai goes free-style

Penn and Beck have a heart-to-heart on the trampoline

All the "littles" (that's was we call all of the cousins under age 10) loved to watch the tractor every day cut and bring in the bails of hay.

Beck - "Wait for me guys!"

The Beaver Hut - we built this when I was really little and it's still intact today! Every summer we freshen it up with a new grass floor, flowers, wood we use as furniture, ect. Good memories!

Cal and Grace pet the horses.

Heading home from the Cottonwoods

Penn holding a snake we found on a 4 wheel ride

I just wish I could live at the ranch! No stress, surrounded by my favorite people - life doesn't get better! :D

MERRY CHRISTMAS - 2011

2012-01-15T16:27:00.000-08:00

Savy's 17th Birthday

2011-10-24T17:05:00.001-07:00

Ferrying over to Balboa Island

Dinner at Ruby's on the pier

Savy blowing out the candle on her sundae. That's one thing I love about Ruby's- on your birthday all the waiters and waitresses get together and sing to you and give you a free sundae.

Lo, Savannah, Jasmine, Savy, Hannah, and Sylvi

Cal- what a ladies magnet!

Lo, Hannah, Savannah, Savy, Jasmine, Sylvi, and Perry

Perfect night in June!

Back in June, Savy got a couple friends together for her birthday and we went to Balboa Island. We ate dinner at Ruby's and then took way to many pictures on the pier! After a ride on the fariswheel, we took the ferry back across the bay and headed home for cake and presents. What a fun night!

Happy late 17th birthday Savy!

Trek to the Temple

2011-10-22T21:44:00.000-07:00

So pretty much we met at the church at 4:30 a.m. and set off into the hills for an eleven mile hike to the Newport Beach Temple. The icy wind blew hard as we journeyed through the streets of downtown Laguna with only a few street lamps to light the way. We climbed the steepest hill of the hike within the first half hour, which scared some of us who thought the whole hike might be this steep! Luckily it only got easier from this point forward. Here we are huddled around a flagpole at our first stop, after singing a few hymns :D.

After a couple hours the sun came out, which was kind of disappointing to me! I though it was a lot more exciting in the dark. :)

After about 6 1/2 miles in the hills we eventually made it the streets where we hiked the remaining 4 1/2 miles or so.

After coming down the last hill, we saw the Angel Moroni on the temple and we all started running from there. When we got to the parking lot we were greeted by balloons, a table full of delicious lunches, and our other Young Women leaders. The hike actually went by so much quicker than I thought it would, and when we finally got there I was hoping we could go five more miles!

After lunch we got cleaned up and headed inside the temple. It was such an amazing experience to be there together as a Young Women group. I love all these girls! Overall it was a great experience and I can't wait to do it again next year!

Easter in Laguna

2011-10-22T21:29:00.001-07:00

Kayaking in the front yard

This is how we Brian kids roll.

Oh boy!

Like father like son

Easter dinner with all the Brian cousins (except Kurt and Marnie's family... we missed you guys!)

How cute is this kid?

February: Featuring Penn

2011-06-28T14:26:00.000-07:00

Penn spends more time in the water than he does at home!

Penn turned 13 back in February and enjoyed mom's traditional ice cream cake.

Brandi and the kids drove up for a quick weekend back in February. We went to Disneyland (we all have season passes) which was awesome, even though the lines were kinda long.

Penn and Beck

Our big girl, Chessy

A "small day" for waves at Thalia.

Grandma Brian's Birthday

2011-06-24T11:36:00.000-07:00

For my Grandma Brian's birthday on MLK Day, we rented a fifteen passenger van and headed to Glendale to see some of her old houses and some other memorable places from her childhood. It was a super fun trip and one that we will always remember! We love you Grandma and miss having you so close by :(.

Grandma in front of her first house.

Checking out a hamburger joint... we decided on In-n-Out though :D

Grandma's best friend Dot's house.

Dad and Cal waiting for our food.

Cal: I love this place!

The whole gang at The Americana at Brand. After touring around Grandma's old stomping grounds, we parked the van and walked around this fun downtown area. We went for a ride on the trolley, had ice cream, and tried to convince Mia that she didn't need every toy at every kiosk (especially the iphone case that she just about stole from one of the kiosks :D).

Penn, Savy, and Grandma enjoying their Thrifty ice cream!

All of us again (not quite sure how Avery didn't make the picture...)

After this we walked over the the Glendale Centre Theatre that my great grandparents opened in 1948? It was fun to see Aunt Sandy and Uncle Alan and roam the big theater.

Eliza running the candy counter

Grace is Eliza's first costumer

Cal taking full advantage of the soda machine :)

And Gracie, always making us laugh!

After the theater we took a drive through Griffith Park, the of the largest parks in the U.S.! We got kind of lost on the way, so it wasn't the highlight of the day, but everything else went smoothly. Most of all, though, we just had a great time hanging out with our grandma :D. Hope we can make this a tradition!

Blast from the Past!

2011-06-23T17:13:00.000-07:00

Yes, I took this picture! Still can't believe it myself...

Brett, Dad, Grandma, Christy & Emmy, Alexa, Emily, & Kris (my mom's college roommate)

Aunt Christy and Emmy

Penn, me, Grace, and Alexa in a fort built from all of the storm debris. Kind of an awkward picture...

Savy

Cal my pal

Savy and Grandma below

BEAUTIFUL!

My Valentines

2011-02-17T17:34:00.001-08:00

Eliza, Emmy, Mia, and Avery

Emmy and Mia

This is how I spent my weekend :D

Brett and Christy went on a quick trip to San Fransisco for the weekend, so my grandma and I babysat these girlies. I am so happy we live close to them, and to Derick and April's family now. Just looking at these pictures (from Nov.) makes me smile! I love you girls... no matter how crazy you are!

And so this is Christmas...

2011-01-11T13:51:00.000-08:00

It began with a 15 hour drive through the snow (this picture doesn't show the half of it). From warm sunny Laguna to bitter cold Grover, UT, all in a days journey. We were happy we made it through without slipping off the dark, unpaved roads in the middle of nowhere, and that we didn't hit any of the many deer that crossed our path. It was all worth it once we arrived, though. This is how we spent our Christmas...

Decorating Gingerbread Houses

Crew, Riley, and Cal

***
Playing Games

Penn, Savy, and Cal

Riley, Crew, Grandma, and Aunt Brandi

***

Family Time

Savy and Beck

***

Putting up the Tree

***

Decorating

***

Long Walks

Over the river and through the woods

***

Playing in the Cottonwoods

Riley, Crew, Beck, and Penn

Riley and I

***

Baking

I must say my cinnimon rolls were pretty tasty... (thanks mom :D)

***

Eating

I couldn't resist taking pictures of this guy

***

Cleaning

Beck is a great helper!

***

Reading

Cal read the whole Harry Potter series in about two weeks

Dad

***

New Christmas Eve Pajamas

All four

Plus the cousins (such a small group compared to last year)

***

Christmas Morning

We cover the railings in the loft with blankets so that none of us can see the presents on Christmas morning. When we were little, if we had to go to the bathroom on Christmas Eve, Grandpa would come upstairs, through a blanket over our heads, and carry us downstairs to the bathroom :D.

***

Opening Presents

Look at the excitement in that boys eyes!

Grandma reading the book the family gave her for Christmas. Kurt and Marnie's family came on Christmas day, which made things really fun!

***

Our Traditional Christmas Breakfast

Eibelskevers!

***

Playing with Presents

Riley spent hours with this puzzle memorizing the states

***

My Favorite Place in the World

The end!

I'm Back!

2010-12-12T14:41:00.000-08:00

A cloudy day on the beach nearest our house

The steps on our street leading down to this beach

Our street (our house is the one furthest down on the left corner, covered by a tree)

Grandma, Mom, cousin Will, and Savy walking down to the beach on the other end of the street)

Savy

Heisler Park on a sunnier day

The Laguna Beach lifeguard tower

After stressing for months about how I was going to catch-up on everything I hadn't blogged about, I finally accepted the fact that I needed to just move on. We had an amazing summer full of huge changes, and I really wish I had them recorded, but I realized if I tried to go back and cover everything... it would probably take me years to get back to the present. So, I'm starting from now.

We are currently living in Laguna Beach, CA.

I know. We were surprised too :D.

I am happy to report, that as far as moves go, this has probably been the easiest for everyone. There are so many things we miss about Arcadia (the people more than the climate) and also living close to so much family. We are now lucky enough to live really close to Derik and April's and Brett and Christy's families, and we have had so much fun with these cousins!

Savy and I love the high school (so many more Mormon's :D), Penn has an awesome middle school, and although I still think nothing tops Hopi, Cal loves his school too. The ward is absolutely amazing, as well*. The only downer is that a couple, with the last name Nelson, move into the ward at the same time as us, from Arizona! Everyone has been confused, thinking they are our parents, or praising the Nielson's on something the Nelson's did, or vice-versa.

But really, life is great! Also, after months of searching, we finally found a house! We are now in transition from the Jasmine house, as we all call it, to our new house. Thankfully we had the wonderful and accommodating Jasmine house to stay in all this time, because we don't know what we would have done without it. We feel so blessed to have found this house and are so excited to live there, even if it does have its "things". Most of all, we are excited grateful for the fact that we will live across the street from the ocean (with a few big houses in between)!

*Great job on your talk today Daddy!

Don't Give Up On Me Yet!

2010-07-30T16:16:00.000-07:00

There is an explanation for why I haven't posted in 22 days. Here's why:

1. I have been very busy having fun
2. My nice camera started working again (hallelujah!), but the adapter that I need to download the pictures onto my computer is packed up and stored in Timbuktu
3. A lot of the time I have been without Internet
4. There is so much to post about that I don't even now where to start!

So, in short, I will start catching up whenever I get a chance, which might be in a few more weeks because we are in AZ right now, and then in Bluewater, and then I am off to Girl's Camp, again. I promise to do my best, because I know you are all just dying to know what my family is up to!

Gone Fishin'

2010-07-08T15:59:00.001-07:00

The game of patience

We have been up at the ranch for weeks now, and I still haven't posted about any of our activities! So here are a few pictures of a fishing trip we took the first week we were here. It was actually pretty successful!

Looking back... Provo, Salt Lake, and Orem

2010-07-08T14:40:00.000-07:00

My cousin Beck and I (yes, I have two baby cousins named Beck!)

My cousin Riley in front of a float at the Springville Parade

Riley and Crew getting their faces painted at the festival at Utah Lake

Riley showing off the craft she made

Spidey Man!

Penn, Cal, Riley, Crew, and I in front of the lake

Penn pushing Riley on the swing near their house

The Provo River is literally in their backyard!

My mom is the family hair-stylist on both sides of the family!

Savy and her friends in front of the Salt Lake Temple

All of us at Temple Square on a Sunday afternoon

We also spent time with our cousins in Orem. This is Penn and my cousin Emerson on a ride at the Orem Summer fest.

This is what the mountains looked like outside of Kurt and Marnie's house. It was cloudy all weekend but we still had a blast!

Especially For Youth

2010-06-21T20:09:00.000-07:00

Carol and I

From June 7-11, Savy and I went up to EFY in Provo. Savy roomed with her friend Brighton and was hall-mates with her two other friends, Sarah and Alexis. I went with my cousin Carol. We had a blast! It was very spiritual and a great way to meet awesome people. Going, I didn't know what to expect, so it wasn't until the last day that I realized how much I loved EFY. I still miss it and think about it all of the time. I can't wait to go next year!
Here are a few pictures that illustrate my week:

My councelor group of 12 girls

The other councelor group in our company, Heart and Soul

The group of boys in our company (crazy, as you can see)

Carisa, Garret, and my councelor, Summer

Carol trying her first Jamba Juice EVER!

Having Jamba Juice so accessible was one of the best parts of EFY!

This was one of the skits in the Variety Show (it was hilarious!)

Savy and this boy got the first slow dance of the night, because it was their birthday that day.

A group of my friends from my company at the dance

They had a dance off, and Carol was brave enough to go up!

There were some really talented dancers!

We ate breakfast and dinner at the Morris Center, and although the food wasn't the best :D, it was fun hanging out with everyone.

This is our company holding up the banner we made for the banner and cheer off night.

Brighton and Savy

My councelor group at pizza night

Carol showing off the blanket we made for the service project

One of the best parts was hanging out with the people in our hallway.

Goofing off

And more goofing off!

I miss these people, and the tree was sat under every morning (we named it Charlie).

Best cousins!

Catching Up!

2010-06-20T18:07:00.000-07:00

Wow! These last few weeks have been crazy! We are now at my ranch and I haven't had computer access until now. This is definitely the longest I have gone without posting! The weekend after school got out, we packed up the entire house. It seemed like an impossible job to do in such a short amount of time, and it would have been if we didn't have so many amazing friends and family! We moved everything into trucks that are now in storage and will be until sometime in August when we move into a house. Until then, I guess we are considered homeless. Ha ha! Well a lot has happened since then, like Girls Camp, EFY, cousins, ranch, and much more. I will do my best to catch up. Wish me luck!

Girl's Camp

2010-06-03T15:59:00.000-07:00

Over Memorial weekend we went up to girls camp. This was my third year and it was as fun as always! The theme this year was The Game of Life, and each cabin had a different game as a theme. My cabin was Clue, and we decorated our cabin with a different mystery decorations, based our skit on a mystery, and incorporated it into our cheers.

Here are some of the highlights of Girl's Camp 2010:

Shooting guns (in this picture we are waiting for our turns)

Skit night

The cute "First Years"

The supper cute craft we made (they gave us a copy of the group picture to clip on it)

Being there with my awesome friend Sami

Relaxing

The fun service project

Going to the lake

Canoeing

Having Sis. Richardson and Sis. Ord there

Canoeing with Rylie and Sami

Hanging out with the people in my cabin

The surprise birthday party for one of the First Years

Friends from my ward (Anne and Amanda)

Pretending to be Isabelle's big sister

Other "likes" that I don't have pictures of:

the fast, high zip line
s'mores and scary stories around the campfire
my awesome cabin moms (Sis. Jones, a.k.a Mama J., and Sis. Eliason)
the clubhouse we made in the loft of our cabin
not going on the hike!
spa time with our cabins
playing the cup game in the Ramada
testimony meeting
making up cheers for Flag each morning
spending time with awesome people!

I really loved camp this year, but I did have a few "dislikes":

Not having my mom there this year
Having Savy come up late because she was sick
Giving a talk in Sacrament Meeting (I was really stressed out at first, but it did end up going really well
dirt, spiders, and bugs

Schools Out, Scream and Shout!

2010-05-27T11:13:00.000-07:00

My friends, Emma and Lisa

My class watching the 8th Grade Goodbye movie

My friend Ally and I on the bus

Yesterday was the last day of school..... and I don't know if I should be happy or sad. I have really loved school this year, and enjoyed going to school every day, until a few weeks ago. At that point, I realized that I was just done. I had put in so much hardwork and effort and had given up so much sleep, and I just didn't think I could do it anymore. My mom and dad, and many other adults, kept telling us to "finish strong", so that's what I did, or at least tried to do. In the end, it all worked out, and I am proud to say that I managed to get all A's the entire year! All of those long nights are worth it just to be able to say that! I couldn't wait for summer these last couple of weeks, but yesterday was the first time that it really hit me that I wasn't going to see a lot of these people ever again in my whole life. I haven't ever realy loved Ingleside, but yesterday as I walked away from Ingleside for the last time, I almost felt like crying! I thought I would be so happy when this day finally came and I was out of middle school, but know I just can't believe it went by so quickly. Even though I have already been going to high school, it seems so weird that I am now a high schooler! I am sad to leave all of those memories behind, but oh well, I guess that is why we have yearbooks :D.

P.S.- Thanks Ms. Doan

Cal's Trip to Costa Rica

2010-05-27T10:48:00.000-07:00

Cal and Mom on their way to school

Mom dressed-up in her old flight attendant uniform

On Tuesday, Cal's third grade class went to Costa Rica. Not really, of course, but I did tell one of my friends this and she was shocked and said "Really?". In his class they had been learning about Costa Rica, so they decided to go there. When they got to class they sat down on the "plane" and my mom was the flight attendant. In her twenties, before she was married, she was a flight attendant for Delta Airlines, so she was the perfect candidate for this. Mrs. Greene, Cal's teacher, didn't know this about my mom, so she was pretty surprised when my mom showed up in her old uniform and gave the class the exact introduction, using a real seat belt and mask! Then she walked around and gave them their snacks, and all of the kids loved it! Once they arrived in Costa Rica (their classroom decorated like a jungle) they went outside and played some games native to Costa Rica. Cal and everyone else in his class had a blast! He really does have a great teacher this year!

Pete

2010-05-27T10:15:00.000-07:00

Pete (Peter or Petey)

Pete snuggling with Penn

Rarrrr!

So cute!

My biology teacher, Mr. Bodznick, has a club at school called Animal Welfare. What they do is rescue cats and kittens and try to find them homes. I am not in the club, because they meet at lunch and I am at the middle school for lunch, but he keeps the kittens in his classroom and lets them run around. It is really fun because you can hold them in class and feed them bottles. Even if you don't want to adopt one, you can foster them for however long you want. We have done this once before with a gray and a black kitten, and on Friday Savy surprised us and came home with this kitten. Even though I am the one in his class this year, I didn't know about it, so it was a fun surprise. Another girl had just fostered him and had named him Peter, so for some reason we decided to keep that name. We called him Pete or Petey for short, though. He was really one of the sweetest, cutest kittens I have seen, and it was so hard to say goodbye to him yesterday. He was so lovable and would crawl up under your neck and go to sleep. He was also really cooperative and would stay and sleep in the little basket that we made him, every night. We already have a cat, Chessy, so we couldn't keep him, but we wish we could have had him longer. Someone else in Mr. Bodznick's class wanted him, though, so we had to give him back. We miss you Pete!

Garage Sale

2010-05-27T09:29:00.000-07:00

Setting up the sale

Savy folding clothes

Early shoppers

Jane, Penn, Henry, Lily, and Savy

Jane and Penn

Pete

Lily and Henry selling lemonade

On Saturday we had a garage sale for the first time in a long time. When we lived in Maryland, our neighborhood held "Garage Sale Day" twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall. It was really fun because almost every single house would be having a sale, so we would go around on scooters throughout the whole neighborhood and buy things (which according to my parents, defeated the purpose because we were trying to get rid of things, not collect more junk :D). The night before, our friends, the Ords, told us that they were also planning on having a garage sale the next day, so they joined us. My dad and Bro. Ord put up signs throughout the neighborhood at like 11:00 on Friday night, and at 5:30 the next morning we already had people at our house. We worked the garage sale all morning, but eventually Penn, Cal, and my parents had to go to Penn's baseball game (which they won) and Savy and I had to go help out at a birthday party. We left the rest to the Ords, and by the time we got back nearly everything was gone. Good work! What was left over we took to Savers, and then we headed to our going away party that our friends in the ward hosted for us. It was a swimming party at the "Gilbert Resort" and we had a blast! Thanks guys! Leaving our friends and ward is going to be the hardest thing about moving :(.

My 14th Birthday

2010-05-17T21:05:00.000-07:00

Birthday Girl

Mom and I at the Parlor

Dad and I at the Parlor

My delicious meal

Savy, Mariah, Gwyneth, Cal, and I

Gwyneth at the mall dressing up

Gwyneth and I at the mall

Lulu, Ellie, and Grace at the party

Jake and James

The giant water slide (it was bigger in real life)

Savy and her friend from Maryland, Mariah

Hank and George, my twin cousins

"Aunt" Liz and Jane

James and Livy in the pool

The men- Chris, dad, Mike, and Jim (Uncle Mark was somewhere...)

"Aunt" Heidi lighting my candles

Mike, Aunt Sarah, and I - the birthday people

Everyone waits in anticipation

Yes, it took me more than one breath!

Me and some of the kids

Some of the group

The half eaten ice cream cakes

The boys on the tramp

Me going down the water slide

Well, if the pictures don't already show it, I had a great birthday! On Friday night, my mom and dad took me out to dinner to a new Italian restaurant called the Parlor. I got some kind of pasta bolognese with meat sauce and it was delicious! I ate so much that I didn't even have room for desert! On Saturday morning, my real birthday, my mom made me a special birthday breakfast of waffles with buttermilk syrup, strawberries and blueberries, and whipped cream. Again, delicious! After breakfast, Savy and her friend Mariah, who was visiting from Maryland, and I went to Last Chance to spend my gift card. After that, we came home and I opened some of my presents and my previous neighbor, Gwyneth, came over. Becuase we still hadn't had our shopping fill, we decided to go to the mall! Gwyneth and I just walked around into a lot of different stores and tried on things, ate Wetzel's Pretzels, and played with puppies. After the mall, we jumped into swim suits and headed over to the Richardson's house. My mom had wanted to do a little reunion with some of our close family friends, who we invited to our ranch last summer, and she asked me if it was okay if we did it on my birthday. I wasn't planning on a party this year, so it worked for me! We went swimming and played on the giant water slide that Chris rented. It was actually really fun. I couldn't stop going on it! We ate hamburgers and hot dogs and then had my mom's homemade ice cream cake that we have every year for our birthdays. Mike and my Aunt Sarah's birthdays were also that week, so they blew out candles on the other cake. Everyone loved the cake, and when Mike saw them he asked "who bought these?". After the party, we came back home and I opened the rest of my presents and then watched a movie with Penn and Cal. It was a great birthday, as always, and couldn't have been any better!

Mother I Love You

2010-05-14T16:56:00.000-07:00

Mom reading my Mother's Day card

Savy's and my cards

Mom smiling at her Yogurt Land gift card

WOW! That about covers it (especially because it is the word MOM upside down). My mom is amazing! She is a model of the woman I want to be when I grow up. She handles so many difficult situations so well, and teaches me by her example. She knows just how to get through to me and helps me everyday become more like the person I want to be. She gives up so much of her time, and sleep, to do things for all of us that we tend to take for granted. Like waking up early every morning to pack our lunches and drive Savy and I to Seminary, or staying up until one in the morning to help us with a project. We also tend to think she has nothing to do during the day, which is most definitely not true :D, and we just expect that she can drop off our homework, project, or lunch that we left behind, and she always does. She is always ready at a moments notice to drive us anywhere and do anything for us. I really don't know what I would do without her! She is also such a wonderful hostess and makes our home very welcoming and makes everything so fun. When we were younger, we used to spend almost a month at our ranch in Grover, Utah over the summer with our cousins. For part of the time, my mom would be the only adult there with us and a lot of our cousins. None of our cousins were home-sick with her there, though. She would keep us busy the whole day, going on hikes, swimming, eating ice cream, exploring, and so many other things. She is so fun to be around and makes every birthday, holiday, and everyday, so special. Thank you for being the BEST mom in the WORLD! I love you Mom!

School House Rock Live!

2010-05-12T16:47:00.000-07:00

Cal's show picture

The cast singing "A Noun is a Person, Place, or Thing"

Cal singing part of "Three is a Magic Number"

The cast singing "Unpack Your Adjectives"

One of Cal's speaking parts

Cal's friend Ben (Elvis) and the cast singing "Circulation"

Mom and Penn working the concession stand at intermission

Cal standing in front of one of the raffle prizes at intermission

Cal leading the cast is the song "Conjunction Junction"

Cal singing "Conjunction Junction"

Last Thursday and Saturday night, Cal had his performances of the play "School House Rock Live, Jr.". This was the second play he has been in with the Art and Sol program. I have been in four of these plays (Annie, Willy Wonka, Aladdin, and Beauty and the Beast) and Cal was in one of these with me. It was Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, and I played Mrs. Gloop and he played my son, Augustus Gloop (the German family). We both had to wear fat suits and speak in accents, and it was hilarious. This play was done in fewer practices, and wasn't as big, but was super cute. Cal got a lead role again. He played one of the five School House Rockers, Joe. He did a fantastic job, especially with so many lines and his own song! He was by far the cutest and everyone loved him :D. This play was directed more for younger kids, and they even allowed kindergartners to be in it. The majority of the cast was really young, so I was really impressed that they could pull off the whole show in only eleven practices! Way to go, Cal!

Sunday Dinner

2010-05-04T18:18:00.000-07:00

Every first Sunday of the month, all of the family members on my dad's side of the family, that live in AZ, go to my grandparents' house for Sunday Dinner. It is a tradition that has been going on for my entire life, and well before that. A lot of times we meet over there more than once a month, for holidays and parties and other events. I love being there with my cousins, and that is one of the things we are going to miss most about moving. This Sunday was the first of the month, so we went over. We had a much smaller group this time than we usually do, but it was the same as always. Every Sunday Dinner we always have the same food (except occasionally) which is, my Grandpa's famous mashed potatoes and gravy, roast beef, salad, homemade rolls, peas, and sometimes other fruits and vegetables. You would think we would get board of the same meal, but it is so delicious! After dinner the girls (and more and more often now, the boys) go into the laundry room and dress-up in my Grandma's large collection of old-fashioned dresses, hats, gloves, wigs, ect. Then we take walks in the backyard through all of the flowers, or ride around on scooters and bikes, or jump on the trampoline. This time on our way to my grandparent's house, we stopped by my Aunt Charity's grave. We haven't been there in a while, and it was her birthday last week, so we stopped by. It was a good experience and we should do it more often. Anyways, here are some pictures of a typical Sunday Dinner (minus quite a few people).

Savy walking around the graveyard

Dad, Penn, Mom, and Cal looking at Aunt Charity's grave

Aunt Charity's grave stone

Mom, Savy, Aunt Alice, and Grandma looking at pictures

The boys finishing up dinner in the backyard

Owen enjoying his desert

Carol, Molly, and I in the backyard

Jack trying to stay out of the irrigation water

Me (photo by Carol)

Molly poising on a bike

Molly

Brett and Major dressed up as old ladies

Grace, Lucy, Collin, Jonah, and Brett in dress-ups

Penn riding a bike through the irrigation

Prom Already?

2010-04-27T16:31:00.000-07:00

Savy on the night of her 1st Prom

All ready to go

Isn't she looking fancy!

Mom and Savy

Mom assembling Charlie's flower

Savy and Charlie

What a cute couple

Mom, Dad, and Savy

Sophie, Sam, Savy, and Charlie

Savy, Dylan, and Brighton

Chatting

Poising

Random shot of girls' dresses

Peaking through the window

Saturday night was Arcadia's Prom. Savy won't be 16 until June 8 (not like anyone is counting down or anything), but my parents decided to be nice and let her go. Her date, Charlie May, brought over cupcakes, that he made himself, with scrabble letters on the inside that spelled PROM. I think they had already talked about it, but she was really excited. She got the dress she wore from my Aunt Katherine who collects vintage dresses. Then a lady in our ward, Sister Deaton, made some really cute twisty flowers with pearls in the middle, out of some fabric Savy picked out. Then with help from Katie Gilbert, and myself who acted as a manikin, we arranged the flowers on the dress. Morgan Deaton helped Savy with her hair and make-up, which she loved. At 5:15, Savy and a ton of other kids headed over to a friends house where they took pictures and had dinner from Sauce. From their, they got on a big party bus and drove out to Gilbert (I know, seems kind of random) where there was some kind of castle that was rented out for Prom. She said she had a great time and was really glad that she got to experience an Arcadia Prom before we moved!

Cal's Trip to Tucson

2010-04-26T17:08:00.000-07:00

Grant, Bryce, and Cal - Best Buds

Sonoran Desert Museum

Cal's class learning about desert animals at the museum

Grant, Michael, Bryce, and Cal eating pizza at a park after a long day

Hopi's third graders outside of the Biosphere

Last Monday, Cal's whole grade took a trip to Tucson. This is the first year that the third graders have taken this trip, and Cal's teacher, Mrs. Greene, was the one who put the whole thing together. Cal was so excited to go and he talked about it for weeks. They had to meet at Hopi, the elementary school, at 6:30 Monday morning. That is pretty early for eight year olds! At 7:00 all of the third graders, in their matching tye-dye shirts, boarded four charter buses. They then made the two hour trip to Tuscon. Their first stop was the Biosphere. In case you don't know what that is, it is a giant, enclosed dome with different live-size, man-made habitats (ocean, rain forest, desert, savanna, ect.) that was supposed to support life. A few years ago different scientists were put inside this airtight area as part of and experiment to see if this fake ecosystem could support life. They were able to live inside for almost 2 years, according to Cal, but eventually had to come out. Anyways, they now give tours inside of it, and that's what the third graders got to do. Cal said it was pretty awesome! After the tour, they ate their lunches outside of the Biosphere at picnic tables. Then they boarded back onto the bus and headed to the Sonoran Desert Museum. Even though it is a "museum", Cal said it was really cool. They got to go into a room where a lady taught them about different animals in the desert, and brought out a gopher snake, a desert tortoise, and a lizard. After that, they went outside to a small zoo area were they saw a mountain lion, a bear, a few snakes, some bugs, prairie dogs, birds, ect.. They then got to go inside a man-made cave that was really cool. After the museum, they went to a park where the had pizza and played around for a while. Finally, the got back on the bus and drove back to school. I went with my mom to go pick up Cal (at 8:45 at night!) and we watched all of the buses pull up to the school in the pitch black. It was kind of crazy because there were so many people there and it was hard to see who was who. It was really fun to see all of the excited kids jump off the bus, thinking they were so big and independent, mixed it with a few really sleepy kids. Cal couldn't stop talking about it and we know he had a great time!

A Day at the Zoo

2010-04-13T16:22:00.000-07:00

Cooper, Emerson, and Paige

Cooper and Emerson petting the stingray

Giraffe

The tigers (if you look closely you can see Cooper, Paige, and Emerson looking through the bars)

One of the monkeys inside Monkey Village

Another monkey that was standing about two feet from us

The week after Easter, while Kurt and Marnie and the kids were still here, we decided to go to the Phoenix Zoo. The boys wanted to go to a skate park, so it was just me, my cousin Emerson, and her best friend Paige Young, and her little brother Cooper. The Young's live across the street from my cousins, and they happened to be in AZ too, staying with their family, because it was their spring break. We had a great time at the zoo! I hadn't been to the zoo in a year or so, so it was fun to go. First we went to Stingray Bay and petted and fed the stingrays. Then we mapped out a little course and tried to hit all of the animals we could. About half way through our adventure, we stopped at a picnic table by a lake and had a picnic. The Monkey Village was really fun too, because you actually get to go inside the monkey's cage and they come up really close to you. It was a really warm day and when we saw all of the kids splashing around in the water area, we wished we had brought our swim suits! We did a lot of swimming that week, though. The Young's grandparents had a pool that everyone swam at a lot, and on Monday night we had FHE at the Gilbert's house and had dinner and went swimming. It was a great week full of skate parks, hiking Camelback Mountain, the Zoo, swimming, shopping, bike rides, Yogurt Land, and much more. We are so glad Kurt and Marnie stayed a whole extra week, and we missed Montana and wished she could have come too!

The Railroad Park

2010-04-12T17:52:00.001-07:00

Emerson, Avery, Eliza, and Mia in the car

Avery coming down the slide at the park

Mia on the Carousel

Eliza, Avery, and Mia

Eliza, Mia, Mom, and Avery waiting in line for the train

Avery, Eliza, Mia, and I on the train

Eliza and my mom

Eliza, Avery, and Mia on the little train in the museum

Eliza holding up a bag of money from inside the museum train

Avery, Mia, Eliza, and I inside the big train

Last Monday, while Kurt and Marnie and the other kids were on a hike, and Brett and Christy were shopping at Last Chance, my mom and I took Eliza and Avery and Mia to the McCormick-Stillman Railroad park. When we got there we played on the playground and then had lunch. After that, we took a ride on the carousel and then on the little train. It is actually a pretty fun ride because it goes pretty fast and it takes you all around the park and through a dark tunnel. After the ride, we played in the old play town with a sheriffs office, a jail, and an old buggy. Then we decided to go inside the museum, which is actually inside a train. My mom and I didn't think the little girls would like it, but they actually loved it. When we came out of it Mia asked to go back in, and Eliza and Avery talked about it the whole ride home. It was kind of a neat experience because it is a real train that was built in 1928, and three of our U.S. presidents use to travel on it. Apparently it was really upscale back then, and it still was pretty nice, but everything was so small! Each room had a tiny bunk bed and a bathroom with a tub that was about one foot by one foot. The girls liked the rooms, though, because the beds were pink. We had a great time and Avery said she can't wait to tell all of her friends in California that she has been on a train that three presidents used to use!

More Easter Weekend Activities

2010-04-12T16:38:00.000-07:00

I know that I have already posted a lot about Easter, but here are just a few more photos (and by a few, I mean 14) of some more of our activities that I have already mentioned, but didn't have pictures for.

The adults eating Easter dinner

Some kind of delicious Strawberry Shortcake desert that we had on Easter. It was Finn and my Aunt Christy's birthdays the day before, so we made it into a little b-day celebration.

Cal riding his chopper on our bike ride

Me, Emerson, and Eliza at the Civic Center

On our way from the Civic Center to Yogurt Land

Mia and Indy chatting by the fountain in the backyard

Mia in the hammock

Eliza and her bunny

Cousins hanging out in the front yard (boys are creating a bunny trap)

Emerson taking Mia and Kai on a wagon ride

Mia and Kai

Avery pretended to be a hair stylist and put a lot of stuff on Emerson

Even Mia got in on it. You would have thought it was wacky Wednesday!

Emerson and I giving Avery and Mia a bubble bath

Easter Egg Hunt

2010-04-11T19:25:00.000-07:00

Aunt Katherine and Aunt Marnie holding back the kids before the hunt

And they're off!

Aunt Christy trying to explain to Mia the purpose of an Easter Egg Hunt

Kai has got the hang of it

Eliza running to find more eggs

More cousins searching the trickiest places (there are always a few left behind that we will probably find in September)

Reaping the rewards of all that hard work

After dinner on Sunday, we ended the day with an Easter egg hunt (because we didn't already have enough candy to last us a month :D). This time the moms put the whole thing together while my cousin Emerson and I took the kids on a walk. I was pretty impressed with some of there hiding places! Our backyard doesn't have that much foliage, so they had to get kind of creative. Everyone had a fun time, even Mia and Kai, once they got a hang of it. Kai, who is only about 19 months old, actually ended up getting more eggs than almost all of the other kids! There were some eggs just sitting in plane sight, but he actually went for the hard ones. Even the older boys participated in it, which kind of surprised me. Well, I guess it isn't Easter with out an egg hunt!

Easter

2010-04-11T13:43:00.000-07:00

Easter eggs we dyed the night before

Emerson showing off her polka-dot egg

Me helping Mia find her Easter basket

Penn and Finn searching for their baskets

Everyone hunting for their baskets

Penn, Finn, and Indy checking out their loot

Eliza, Cal, and Mia have found theirs

Mia, Me, Savy, and Emerson going through our baskets

Eliza, Myla, Avery, Emerson, Noah, and Kai drawing with the chalk from their baskets

Mia the artist

We had a great Easter this year! Three of my moms siblings and their families stayed with us over the holiday. My Aunt Katherine and her three kids were here for an entire week before Easter, and My Uncle Kurt and Aunt Marnie and there kids stayed a whole week after! That equals two full weeks of fun with cousins. The Saturday before Easter was the first day that everyone was here together, so we did lots of fun things. After a delicious breakfast of sourdough pancakes, we all headed to the movie theater to see "How to Train Your Dragon". It was actually a really cute movie and a lot better than I thought it would be. After that, we somehow managed to find a bike for everyone (thanks to the Richardson's who loaned us a few) and headed down to the Civic Center to climb on the Love Statue, play Frisbee and football, and to cool off in the fountains. After that, we rode over to Yogurt Land, which everyone loved so much that we ended up going like five more times the next week. The rest of the day we watched a little bit of General Conference (we usually record the Saturday session and watch most of it later), had a barbecue, and dyed Easter Eggs. On Sunday morning we all got up pretty early, thanks to the excited little kids, and went on a search for our Easter baskets. Every year the Easter Bunny hides our Easter baskets, and it is different each year. This year they were all hidden in the backyard. The little kids' where just sitting on the grass, or behind a tree, but us older kids had it kind of tricky. We eventually all found our baskets, though, and spent the rest of the morning eating our sugary box of cereal, chocolate milk, and candy, or coloring with our new chalk, or playing with stuffed bunnies. After that, we watched General Conference, went on a walk with the kids, and then had a delicious Easter feast of potatos, ham, rolls, salad, fruit, and vegatables. It was delicious! It was a great Easter and I am so glad we could spend it with so many family members!

Pinewood Derby

2010-04-11T13:20:00.001-07:00

Cal's car

Cal, Kendal, Logan, and Addy

A few of the boys waiting anxiously for their cars to come down

On the 25th, Cal had his first Pinewood Derby. In previous years, he was so anxious to be in one, so my dad would help Cal make a car while he was making Penn's. They always had a race at the end for the younger siblings who also wanted to be a part of the action. This year he finally got his chance to be in a real one, and he was very sure he was going to win. That kid has a lot of confidence, and I like it! He actually didn't end up winning, or placing in the top three, (which I don't understand, because you could set that car on a flat surface and it would start rolling!) but he had a good time and won a medal. "Don't worry" he said "I will win next year". Way to go Cal!

Side note: This picture doesn't do his car justice, because you can't see the cool "rocket" weights coming out of the back.

Meeting Mitt Romney a.k.a. Mitch Rodney

2010-03-23T18:59:00.000-07:00

Mitt Romney

Cal shaking hands with Mitt

Penn and I waiting while he signs the book

Last Tuesday, Mitt Romney came to the Borders near us for his "No Apology" book signing tour. I heard about it from my seminary teacher, Brother Ord, who was having lunch with Mitt that day because his wife's parents, the Gilberts, are Mitt's head campaign people in Arizona. My mom, Penn, Cal and I went to the signing that night and didn't arrive until 7:00, which is when it started, even though we knew we should have gone earlier because there were really long lines. While we were waiting in line, there was a man behind us talking on his cell phone and he was telling his friend that he was waiting to meet Mitch Rodney. Can anyone get it right? Anyways, we ended up waiting for about an hour in line, until we ran into Paul Gilbert who brought us to the front of the line. At that point, though, our group was already heading up. We are glad we ran into him, though, because when we got up to the front he told Mitt to sign the book to the Nielson family, even though for everyone else he was just signing his name. He wrote "To the Nielsons, Best. Mitt Romney 3-16-10". We said hi to him and he still had a really big smile on his face, even after signing books for over an hour, and he thanked us for coming. It was a great opportunity to meet him, considering he could be our future president :D. How cool would that be to be able to say you have met the president! He used to be my moms Stake President while she was living in Boston, so that would be even cooler for her.

Stake Youth Retreat

2010-03-23T17:08:00.000-07:00

My friend Sami and I at Karaoke Night

Evie, Caroline, and Holly waiting to leave to Prescott

Savy and some of her friends playing Spoons

Sami, Amanda, Rachel, Savy, Emily, Anne, Evie, and Annie-Cate

Me with one of the disabled boys at the carnival

Me in my fairy costume for the carnival

Penn and one of the kids at the "cupcake walk" station

Hair-dying station

Heidi and Chris Richardson who made it all possible (along with the Cashens)

Mark Erickson practicing his song for the fireside

Hank Cashen guarding the snacks at the service project

Penn and a friend at the service project

A few weeks ago, over Spring Break, all of the youth in our stake went on a retreat up to Prescott for a few days. It was an amazing experience and one of the best ways to spend a Spring Break. When we got up there on Thursday afternoon, we checked out the camp-ground, played games in the gym, ate dinner, and then had Karaoke Night. My friends Allie and Holly and I sang the song "You Belong With Me" by Taylor Swift. We dressed up as "cute nerds" (reason I'm wearing big glasses and pigtails) and just rocked out on stage. I love to perform, so while I was up there I made up a bunch of actions and had a lot of fun. Later someone asked my how many times we had practiced that song, and I told him we hadn't practiced at all, unless singing along on the radio counts, and then he asked how I could have come up with all of those actions. I told him I just made them up while I was up there, and he didn't believe me! It must have been good, though, because our group ended up winning iTunes gift cards. On Friday morning we did our big service projects, which helped two boys in our stake get their Eagles. All of the kids 16 and up went to horse stables and helped clean them up and groom the horses. Everyone else, including Savy, Penn, and I, went down to a big lake and helped fix a trail. It was a walking and biking trail that had been used by lots of people, but that had been damaged by a flood. Right in front of the bridge that crossed over part of the river/lake, the trail had been washed out completely, leaving a 12 foot deep hole! With all of us working, for 4 long hours, we were able to fill and compact the whole hole with dirt, place more rocks along the sides of the trail to keep it in place, and to clean up a lot of debris. It was hard, dirty work but it payed off to see the before and after and how much of a change we were able to make. After that, we showered and then had some free time. That evening we had an amazing fireside. A family from Utah, the Ericksons, came to speak to us. They had six children, three of which were born heavily disabled. They and one of there disabled sons, Mark, the only one of the three who is still living, came. It was a very spiritual and inspiring night and really opened my eyes to the struggles that disabled people and their families go through. Mark spoke fairly well, but his mom helped translate for him, and it was amazing to hear some of his experiences and feelings. At the end, he bore his testimony through a song that he wrote, which was very touching. Savy and I, and some other girls in the ward and stake, also got to sing a song that night entitled "Jesus Listening Can Hear" written about one of the Erickson's daughters, Heather, who couldn't speak. It was a beautiful song and was so much more meaningful after knowing who it was written for and why. On Saturday morning, we held a carnival in the gym for all of the disabled children in Prescott, and their families. There were lots of different booths and stations that people were assigned to, but my job was to dress up as a fairy and hand out wands to the kids. It was so fun to be able to interact with these amazing kids and everyone had a great time. After that we had lunch and then packed up and headed home. We had an AWESOME time and I hope they continue the tradition!

Annual Grapefruit Picking Trip

2010-03-09T07:28:00.000-08:00

Melonee at the Civic Center

Melonee in the Love Statue at the Civic Center

Mexican dinner made by Jen

Melonee playing with blocks

Melonee and Anabelle

Me with a balloon on my head (thanks to Maren)!

Maren, Maile, and Melonee playing with dolls

Aunt Camiel blowing out her candles with help from Maile

Aunt Camiel getting kisses from Christian and Maile

Christina and twins and triplets eating dinner

Kids and I rocking out to music after party

Kids dancing to Hannah Montana

Every year for the last three years we haved lived back in AZ, and maybe even before this, my Great Aunt Linda, her two daughters, Heather and Jen, Jens three year old daughter Melonee, and my other great aunt, Camiel, come to visit. They usually come in February because the weather here is usually pretty warm, at least compared to the Utah snow, and it is a good time to pick grapefruit and lemons. They all really love grapefruit and have it for breakfast when they come, and they use the lemons we pick for delicious lemon pie! They came two weekends ago, and were only planning on staying until Tuesday, but Aunt Linda, Jen, and Melonee ended up staying until that Thursday morning. We had a lot of fun picking citrus, eating great Mexican food, and going to the civic center, mall, and lots of other places. We also had a birthday party for my Aunt Camiel, just like last year. We grilled hot dogs and hamburgers and had delicious potato salad and baked beans, chips, and soda. Then of course homemade lemon pie for desert. We invited some of my second cousins that live out in Mesa. One of the families could only stay for a little while because their baby was sick, but then our other cousins came and made up for the loss. They have twin five year olds and triplet two year olds! So cute! We had a great time and I hope they will continue the tradition, even when we're in California.

Presidents Day in CA

2010-03-08T18:11:00.000-08:00

Over Presidents Day weekend we took a quick trip to California. Since my dad has started his new job in California, his company payed for us to stay at a cool hotel and gave us food allowances. We took advantage and ate out at lots of different restaurants. On Saturday morning we really wanted to go to a cool breakfast restaurant on the beach, Las Brisas, but is had an hour long wait, so we settled for IHOP. Later we hung out at the beach with Grandma and Grandpa Brian, who were also vacationing there, and my cousins Maddy, Ford, and Grace. After that we saw The Lightning Thief and then hung out at the hotel pool the rest of the night. On Sunday we went to church, looked around Laguna Niguel, our possible new neighborhood, and then had dinner at our cousins, the Brian's, house. On Monday we hung out at the hotel for the morning and then hit the beach again. You would have thought it was the 4th of July, the beach was so crowded (at least for February)! The weather was perfect, and Penn was even brave enough to swim in the freezing ocean. It was an awesome vacation and got us really excited to be moving there in the summer!

Breakfast at I.H.O.P.

Savy and I

Cousin Grace, Mom, and Penn walking out of hotel

Gorgeous Day at Beach

Presidents Day at Main Beach

Penn and Cal pretending it's summer

Mom and Dad

Laguna Beach

Savy

Penn

Cal

Walking around Main Beach

Relaxing on the beach

Variety Show 2010

2010-03-08T16:55:00.000-08:00

My Cousin Carol and I at the show

Cal and Bryce on Stage

Cal and Bryce Singing

Penn on stage about to give Leslie a hug and rose (4th from right)

On February 4 and 5 Hopi Elementary School has their annual Variety Show. It is a talent show that has become a huge deal over the years. The show was once directed by Alice Cooper, which is one of the reasons it became so big, but for the last few years has been directed by a lady in my ward. Her youngest son is in fifth grade this year, so it was her last time directing the show. Savy, Penn, Cal, and I have all gone to Hopi, but Cal is the only one left there this year. For his Variety Show act this year, instead of just doing a big song dance number, he decided to do a comedy act with his best friend Bryce. They dressed up as farmers and told jokes from an old show called Hee-Haw, and ended it with a song. The jokes were pretty funny and both boys were so cute! The second night, though, Cal and Bryce were both sick and didn't even want to go on stage, but they did, and did such a great job that no one could even tell. All of that practice payed off! The rest of the show was really cute and so many people from my ward and kids that I babysit for were in it. Also, at the very end, all of the MC's from previous years came on stage and gave the director, Lezlie, a hug and a rose. Since Penn was an MC last year he got to go on stage. It was a great show this year and very professional! It was also really fun to have my grandparents and cousins, the Brown's, come see the show too.

Penn's 12th Birthday and the Desert Botanical Gardens

2010-02-21T13:32:00.000-08:00

On February 1st Penn turned 12. I can't believe it! He is now old enough to hold the Aronic Priesthood, and today he passed the sacrament for the first time. Grandma and Grandpa Brian were staying with us that weekend, while my parents went to CA for my moms reunion with her college roomates. My parents came back the day before his birthday and my grandparents were still here that morning for his special birthday breakfast. Later that night we had cake and presents. One of his highlight presents was a Volcom jacket that zips all the way up his head! Above are some pictures of Penn and the birthday cake, made by none other than his loving sister, me!

My friend Karly

Me at the Desert Botanical Gardens

A few weeks ago my friend Karly and I went to the Desert Botanical Gardens for a biology assignment for school. Even though I am in 8th grade, which is Middle School where I live, I take three classes over at Arcadia High School, along with Karly and another girl Missy. I wanted more of a challenge than Ingleside Middle School was giving me, so I tried home-schooling last year. I did that for one semester, and then Karly gave me the idea of home-schooling only half of the day and going to school the other half. I liked that idea, so that is what we both did for the second semester last year. I have loved going to high school this year, though. It has been a great experience and is giving me a jump start for "real" high school next year.

Welcome

2010-02-19T16:26:00.000-08:00

My family in Grover Utah, September 2009

Me at my ranch in New Mexico, summer 2009

Hi, my name is Perry Nielson. I am an 8th grader in Arizona. I decided to make a blog so that it will be easy to look back on my memories. I tried keeping a journal, but I never seem to remember to write in it. Well, I hope you enjoy seeing what my family is up to!