February Happenings

 Looking over our photos for the month, it appears that we ate and had a lot of band stuff. Which is true although not as much band as during marching season. 

We enjoyed the Germany Yum Box.

Our friend Jason from Mines visited us for a few hours. It was so nice to see him!

Jason, U and Me

The kids had the concert band concert one evening. Both Megan and Matthew played in the Concert Band, the Symphonic Band and the Wind Ensemble. First up were solos by five students who received superior ratings at the solo festival in January, including Megan.

Megan playing her solo with Anne Kirkham accompanying. She played Allegretto Grazioso by Brahms and did an amazing job!

Wind Ensemble playing "The Great Rubber Chicken Gallop" which is a fun song! If you look closely, you might be able to spot Megan. Matthew, on the other hand, is very hard to see due to his seating location.

Bowing at the end of the concert band concert.

The next night, we were back for the jazz concert.

Jazz Maroon

Matthew playing with the band.

Matthew during his solo.

Megan and U painted toenails and fingernails together. They are quite fancy!

We enjoyed the France Yum Box.

We went to the Count Basie Orchestra concert. Matthew and Megan were both super excited to go as they are one of the oldest jazz bands (91 years!).

U, Me, Matthew, Megan

The Count Basie Orchestra

The jazz bands had their area festival. Jazz Maroon got an "Excellent" rating which is the second tier rating and good for a lower jazz class. Jazz Black got a "Superior" rating which is the top rating.

Mr. Bullock conducting Jazz Maroon.

Jazz Maroon including the rhythm section.

January 2023

Here is a sampling of what happened in January. 

Enjoying life with a dog: Megan and Artemis taking a rest together.

This is where Artemis went the first time we vacuumed after we brought her home.

Another angle.

Artemis chewing on the tag of her dog bed, which she loves. (She loves the bed and she loves chewing on tags.)

A couple of shots from Matthew's running club race. He came in 3rd for 6th grade boys.

Megan was happy to get a blue dress! (She'd been looking for one for awhile.)

Megan and some of the other 12-13 year old girls. They made the black skirts.

We successfully conquered the Amazon Rainforest escape room without any clues!

Artemis exploring the backyard.

Italy Yum box.

Megan's solution for when she doesn't want to wear socks but wants them with her in case she wants to wear them later....

Michelle, one of Me's college roommates, and her husband Reed, who we also knew from college, came into town for a conference for Reed. Michelle and Me went to the Gilbert temple and to lunch one day. The next day, Reed and Michelle came over for dinner. It was nice to catch up.

Matthew and Artemis

U's picture of the Gilbert temple

Christmas card wall

One evening, Megan told Me how she was feeling about the whole Sarah situation. Then she wrote down what she had said. (Note that Megan does keep track of how many days Sarah has been gone.)

Here's samples of a few interesting conversations from our house:

Is Melatonin an upper or a downer?

Megan: It is a downer because it helps you calm down.

Matthew: It is an upper because it increases the amount of melatonin in your body.

Megan: How do they get melatonin? Do they take it from people who sleep too much and then convert it into the bottle to give to people who can't sleep?

Matthew: Wife is asleep. Husband is awake. Husband performs surgery on the wife to take melatonin. Husband falls asleep. Wife wakes up screaming.

Interesting conversation for a couple of 6th graders to be having. While melatonin isn't actually an upper (stimulant) or a downer (depressant) I think they both have valid points. And the "how do they get melatonin" question and answer is amusing.

Conversation on the way home from church one week:

Megan: I really love Sarah but sometimes I just wanna slap her across the face and scream at her.

Matthew: I want to give her a piece of my mind. And strap her to her bed with rope, seatbelts, iron and wire that shocks her.

Megan: That seems a little hard core. Besides, she has wire cutters in her room.

Matthew: But she'd be tied down. She couldn't get to them.

Megan: She lived in the wild, Matthew. She knows ways.

This shows how worried Megan and Matthew are about their sister and how they really want her to be safe.

Road Trip: Colorado School of Mines

We got up Wednesday morning and ate a nice breakfast in the hotel. Matthew said he'd like to come back next year. Then we headed through the mountains.

We decided to stop at Mines. It's been awhile since we've been there and even longer since we've stopped in to see our professors (most of whom are now retired or semi-retired). Sarah asked us if anyone would even remember us. We told her that Barbara, the admin, would at least (and she did!). The campus has changed a lot. The physics building is no longer in existence and they are building a new, bigger building in its place. Consequently, the physics professors are in temporary trailers until the new building is complete. A few of our professors were around: Dr. Collins, Dr. Kowalski, Dr. Wood (eccentric, as always!), Dr. Ohno, Dr. (Chip) Durfee.

With Dr. Collins. He told us he'd actually just been thinking of U, putting his name on a list of people in industry to contact.

Chip Durfee. He was our Quantum Mechanics professor. It was his first semester teaching and my first semester back from my mission. It was a challenge, to say the least, but he was great to work with!

Dr. Kowalski played with the kids and made them a great paper airplane that they still have. The kids really liked him. However, when we wanted a picture with him, he ran the other way. Literally ran. So we knocked on his office door and got this picture, stealth-like.

He agreed to pose with Matthew for a proper picture.

With Barbara, the admin. She's great. It's amazing when you can walk in after a long time and she still remembers your first and last name.

With the mules.

Guggenheim. Sure love to hear that bell!

We also visited the Geology Museum and drove through downtown Golden ("Howdy Folks! Welcome to Golden.").