Watch Out World!

 

My little girl graduated from Cascade High School on June 14th, 2014.

 

I can hardly believe it's true. The years have flown by.

 

 

My parents were able to drive up for Heidi's graduation, and I am so glad that they did! We had so much fun all weekend with them. My mom kept asking me how it felt to have a high school graduate and I could hardly answer. It is so surreal. She knew exactly what I meant, though.

 

My dad took some beautiful black and white images of Heidi while they were here that weekend. Of course, he was working with a gorgeous subject, so that didn't hurt! It meant a lot to be able to share this neat experience with them. I know that it meant a lot to Heidi as well.

 

Heidi leaves in the fall to start a new adventure of her own, attending classes at BYU-Idaho. She is excited and admittedly nervous. She is going to do great, though. I am so excited for the next phase in her life.

 

We love you Heidi!

Seminary Graduation

The last month has been such a whirlwind of events that I haven't been able to keep up!

 

On June 8th Heidi graduated from four years of Seminary. I am so proud of her in her willingness to sacrifice sleep in exchange for something so much more valuable. This girl was in class at 6:00 am every morning for four years, always with a positive attitude and a smile on her face.

 



Lance and Linda Lamprecht were Heidi's seminary teachers this last year. She loved them and the Spirit which they brought to their amazing lessons each morning. Brother Lamprecht was Heidi's teacher last year as well.



Alma Snel was Heidi's teacher for her Freshman and Sophomore years. He brought a lot of life, fun stories, and a spiritual witness of the truthfulness of the gospel to his lessons each day.

 

Heidi said that she was proud of graduating from high school, but that the graduation which meant the most to her and was of the most value to her as a person was her seminary graduation. She developed a strong foundation for her testimony in these last four years, and I couldn't be more proud of the young woman she has become.

 

Congratulations Heidi!!

Mormon Formal

The end of April Heidi went to our regional Mormon Formal. She had been asked to the dance by two different boys on the same night, each asking in a very creative and cute way. She answered in the fairest way possible--the one that got to her first!

 

We ordered her dress from the same place that we ordered last year's dress. It fit perfectly and she looked like a princess! The dress looks long because it has a beautiful train behind it. I think it's no wonder that she had more than one boy asking her out!



Eric got a little emotional when he saw his pretty little girl, all grown up. It goes too fast...



Heidi's date is a good friend from our Ward, Jared Johnson. They went with a very large group of friends, going to Claim Jumper restaurant before the dance. They had a lot of fun together!



I just love this pretty girl!

Birthday Girl

 

My girl is no longer a little girl. She is a beautiful young woman.  The same age that I was when I moved on to the excitement of college and a new world of possibilities. The same age that I was when I met the man of my dreams and got engaged. 

 

Now I'm really scared! :) 

 

My beautiful, smart, courageous, amazingly warm and generous young lady.  You mean the world to me. And this crazy world is so much the better for having you in it.

 

Happy Birthday, Heidi!

Just Around the Corner

A cute random kid I found on the internet... :)

We are in the middle of looking for housing for Heidi to attend BYU-Idaho in the fall. We are lucky, because Heidi's cousin Kaylee will be on the same tracks as her (fall and spring terms), and they are excited to be roommates together. Also, Kaylee and her family live near BYU-I so they have been able to scout out the housing situation for us.

The only problem is, I feel like I have entered the Twilight Zone.

When did this child of mine grow to be old enough to leave the nest? I didn't give her permission to grow up so soon, she did it all on her own. I don't remember agreeing to this part of the bargain. It seems like she should still be a cute little thing, barely big enough to lug around her suitcase with a sticker proclaiming "Off to Gramma's House!" on it.

The problem is, I know that I did agree to this part of the plan. From the moment this tiny little bundle was handed into my arms nearly eighteen years ago, I knew that someday I was going to have to let go.

It doesn't make it any easier, of course.

These eighteen years have made it all that much harder to let go. Every day I have had the privilege of watching her go from a teetering toddler, full of smiles and laughs, to a beautiful young woman, full of promise and courage. I have seen her struggles and triumphs, her heartaches and growth. Watching it all, I have had the opportunity to love her more every day.

Yes, she may still be just a cute little thing, barely big enough to lug around her suitcase (she is mine, after all), but now it will be emblazoned with a sticker shouting "Off to COLLEGE!" The collection of beloved dolls and stuffed animals are now replaced with a collection of fashionable scarves and bright bottles of nail polish.

It is just around the corner, and she will be off to start her own adventures, but she will always be my sweet little girl.

This one's my girl!

Wisdom Teeth

On Thursday morning, I took Heidi to the oral surgeon's office to have her wisdom teeth extracted. When we set up the appointment, we had joked about how it was the day before Valentine's Day, which meant she would not be having any special dates on that romantic holiday.  We even envisioned her, with cheeks swollen, and bloody gauze hanging out of her mouth, saying, "Do you wanna be my Valentine?"  Yes, we have a sick sense of humor.

Heidi made it through the procedure just fine.  They put her to sleep for it, so she doesn't remember anything from it.  Ethan was disappointed that she wasn't acting silly or saying anything embarrassing.  She was just sleepy.

Yesterday she did get a cute Valentine in the mail from a special friend, however.  I am sure it made her day.

She has been eating homemade chicken soup, ice cream, and popsicles since Thursday, and getting tired of it.  I noticed today that her jaw is a little more swollen.

Eric likes to remind me of when I had my wisdom teeth extracted.  It was one month before we were married. Since we were living on opposite sides of the state during our engagement, he wasn't there when I had the surgery done.  When he came to visit that weekend, however, he said that he couldn't believe how huge my cheeks were, and that there was a significant amount of bruising on my jaw.

We went to see the new Disney movie "The Lion King" in the theater with my family, since I didn't feel up to doing much else.  I remember that it hurt to laugh.  I think that was the hardest part, because I love to laugh.

Here's to hoping for a speedy recovery for my girl that shares my same crazy sense of humor, bloody gums and all.

Picture Perfect Prom

Saturday night was the regional Mormon Prom, held in Issaquah, about forty-five minutes away from Everett.  Heidi went with a good friend, Drew Surowiec, who lives in Port Orchard.  He is our babysitter's nephew, and he and Heidi have hung out several times when he visits his family here in Everett.

 

 We found a really pretty dress online and had it custom-sized for Heidi.

 Shoulder detail....

 I took Heidi to a salon to have a fancy hairstyle done.  It was a little crazy looking when the stylist was finished, so Heidi deconstructed it when we got home and did her own hair!  It helped that the stylist added so much product to her hair, so it worked fine, but I think next time Heidi is on her own!  She doesn't need any help!

 My gorgeous girl.

I can't believe that she has gotten this old.  Where has the time gone?  She is such a treasure to me, and I have loved every minute watching her grow into a beautiful young lady!

 Drew came to pick Heidi up and they exchanged flowers.  He looks a little nervous about the pins...

 What a cute couple!

 Heidi made Drew's boutenierre with her Laurel class on Friday night.  She did a great job!

 Heidi and Drew went with a great group of friends to the dance.  They had so much fun together!  Half of them didn't know each other when the night started out since they were from all over the region, but by the end they were all great friends!

 The group went to Buca di Beppo (Italian restaurant) for dinner and had a great time.  Lots of yummy food!

 The dance had a Pirate theme.

Heidi had such a great time with her friends!  I am so glad that she gets to have these wonderful high school experiences with people who share her same values!  It was a wonderful night!



Prom Dress Shopping

Last weekend Heidi and I did a little Prom dress shopping...in my closet.

 

I was happy to pull out my old prom dresses from high school and show them to Heidi, after all, I have fond memories of my mom, pulling out her old dresses from the back of her closet.  I also distinctly remember making fun of her gingham taffetta bride's maid dress from her sister's wedding...which she promptly defended as being quite in style at the time.

 

Funny thing was, I still wasn't expecting Heidi's reaction to my old dresses....she thought they were hilarious and couldn't believe I wore them!  And I, of course, promptly defended them, saying there was nothing silly about them and they were quite in style at the time.

 

Have you heard the expression:

"I keep opening my mouth and my mother comes out!"

???



Heidi's critique: "It's soooooo shiny...and what's with these sleeves?"
To which I said, "Oh, you think these sleeves are big..."



Christmas Formal 1992

 

Heidi: "Holy Sleeves!!!"

 

Sweetheart Dance 1993



Heidi: "This looks like a costume from a theatre group. Why does it have a doily on the front?"
Me: "It's called lace, and it's on the front of my wedding dress too, and it's gorgeous!"



Senior Priom 1993

  Heidi was impressed that they were all homemade: my mom made the shiny blue dress and the peach prom dress, while I made the simple teal dress for a Personal Progress project.  Personally, I thought they were all gorgeous and Heidi looked amazing in these "old-fashioned" gowns.  To be fair, Ethan thought they were pretty hilarious too, but I still don't see it.

 

Wow, I must really be getting old.

Happy Seventeen!

 

Seventeen years ago today I gave birth to the cutest little button of a baby girl.  She was so tiny, only 6 pounds, 4 ounces.  Eric and I were both smitten immediately, and were in constant competition over who got to snuggle and love her.  Now I have had the joy of watching her grow to be a beautiful, smart, generous, kind, talented, strong young woman.  I am so proud of who she is and how she upholds her standards.  She brings so much light and joy into our home.  We have been so blessed to have her in our family!

 

We signed Heidi up with a local gym membership for her birthday. She got a bunch of cute workout clothes to show off!

 

Heidi's Black & White Cake



Yes, I was terrified that the paper flower in the center would catch fire! I started singing my own version of Alicia Keys: "This cake is on fi-ya!!"

Surprise inside: ZEBRA STRIPES!!!
Turned out AWESOME!

I think the cake was a hit....

 

HaPpY BiRthDaY HeiDi!!