May Happenings

We were SO busy in April & May that they literally just flew by.  I can't believe how close we are to summer!

Lorien had her European Culinary Competition at Spangdahlem Air Base in Germany this month.  She got to go for 3 days & take classes on different culinary things like quick breads, dessert sauces, & yeast breads.  The last day they were there, they got a secret ingredient (which was MEAT. . . so random) & had to create an appetizer including that ingredient.  Her team put together a nacho dish (Lorien made the chips from scratch. . . homemade tortillas, then fried).  They won by a landslide.  She had a blast.

Taya & her friend April do tennis together every Saturday& they are adorable.  Taya is getting pretty good & I enjoy watching her play.

The boys have kept busy (without our household goods) with small random toys that fit in their suitcases.  We've also tried to hang out with friends a lot this month to make it go by faster.

Canyon did a whole night of geocaching with some friends in May which he loved.

We've also enjoyed several friends having us over for dinner & games while we don't have anything at our house.

Taya got asked out on her first date in May.  Normally we don't let our kiddos go on dates until they are 16, but Taya will be turning 16 right after we move so she won't know anyone & was really really sad she'd never get to go on any dates with her best friends here.  So we gave her permission to go on 1 or 2 dates with her 2 best friends before we leave so she can enjoy their company.

Shawn asked her out & Ethan asked Lorien out which was super fun.  Taya's first double date had her sister there which was a blast.  They first made panini sandwiches at Shawn's house, then did a chalk art contest at a park.  They ended by playing several fun outdoor games in Ethan's backyard.  Taya had a blast.

Bladen continues to work on his bread making skills.  Once a month he is in charge of the sacrament bread for our church so as part of his responsibility, he makes the bread from scratch.  Now that we are moving & all of our things are packed up, we don't have a mixer so he figured out how to mix & knead the bread by hand.  It was his most delicious batch yet.  Yum.

Taya got to go to the temple with her early morning seminary class this month.  There are 32 kids in her class & it was great to see them all go to the temple together.  They are such a great group of teens.

As we were getting ready for the movers, I made Trek go through his "bin of mystery" that he's been hoarding for the last 20 years.  Every move, I beg him to go through it & make sure there's things in it that he really wants to keep & every time, he doesn't.  This time he DID.  We were laughing hysterically as he pulled out his old Blockbuster Card, a tape recorder, a walkman, & a ton of cassettes from his mission.  He also found a big tube full of "artwork."  He was excited to see what artwork was in there, we all DIED laughing when this picture came out.  That's definitely a keeper.

Bladen & Craiger both mastered the Rubik's Cube this month.  Without their "toys" they've had to rely on the one activity they chose to keep in their suitcases.  Rubik's Cubes have saved their sanity this month.  They are FAST at it.

And, just one more time I have to say how much I'm going to miss Germany.  The yellow rapeseed flowers are in full bloom right now & they are gorgeous.  Trek took this picture at sunset of the fields behind our house.  I'm going to have this one blown up on a canvas for our new house.  I never want to forget our beautiful farmland in Germany.