They told her that she got a scholarship for one class next year. Which is great because she was wanting to add on another one next year.

At the end I went up & thanked the owner who made the speech. As soon as I said I'm Tristen Metcalf's mom she gave me a big hug. Then she talked to me for about 10 minutes, in the middle of all the commotion of the end of the recital. She told me all these great, wonderful things about Tristen & I just kept thanking her for thinking such great things about her, and recognizing her talents and personality. She told me how good she is (which of course, I already knew!) and that she sees great potential in her & compared her to some of the older girls who are highly recognizable as the studio stars, saying she could be that some day.

Later, when all the family was congratulating her (& she cried for the 3rd or 4th time) my mom said, so what class do you think you will take with the scholarship? And Tristen says, "I don't even know what that means!" How great. She's so selfless that she doesn't even care what the prize is, she just appreciates the recognition. And that's exactly how I felt too. I just felt solidified to know other people see the same greatness in her that I do.

Wow. Long story. It was very moving though, and we want to share it with everyone. When we get the DVD from the production company I'm going to try to "clip" that part out & put it on You Tube to share...

CONGRATULATIONS AGAIN TRISTEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

To further document the weird wind I have a picture of the house across the street that is in the framing stages. The whole north wall came off last night.

Oddly, no other damage appears apparent in the neighborhood. Of course.... We can’t use our garage door now (Ryan was hammering it into place this morning at 4 am just so he could get his truck out to go to work) and our back door doesn’t lock.

Fantastic…

photos here

I know! And only in the 50s today -- I had the heat on last night! --Gary

I heard someone talking about this on MSNBC this morning. She said, from the point of view of the American Idol producers, they're thrilled with this result. They want, she said, a person they can re-shape and re-package as necessary and who won't cause a lot of legal and contractual problems -- which Archuletta ( + his dad) is definitely NOT. Maybe that's why Simon gave Archuletta the "kiss of death" on Tuesday by basically declaring him the winner. :-) --Gary

Oh, and by the way Donna, come next weekend, or really by the first of June life slows down CONSIDERABLY, and the girls would LOVE to spend the night. Come on June 2nd!!!!!

Amanda and Ryan were talking about going to Campbell's Nursery to look at trees, when Livy got a puzzled look on her face and said, "Trees?!? They have trees at Campbell's Nursery...?"
I said, Yeah.
She said, "I thought it was just soup!"

After we enjoyed this for a moment, she said, "I thought it was kind of a big place for just soup!"

And one from Teghan: As she was loading up her plate with a mound of barbecued brisket, she turned and seriously informed us, "This is in the meat group."

And one more about Teghan, by way of Tristen: Many of us have observed that keeping secrets is not Teghan's strong suit, so I asked Tristen if Teghan knew ahead of time about her mom's surprise party. Tristen said that Ryan told them both about the surprise and told Teghan not to say a word about it to her mom, when Teghan suddenly started crying. They asked what was wrong, and she said, "Does this mean I can't even say hello to her?" He explained that of course she could -- and she kept the secret, too!

And here's three-and-a-half minutes of rapid-fire Seinfeld moments for your viewing pleasure:

Cool today, I planted a few seeds this a.m. but am staying inside now. Fixing rhubarb with dumplings for dessert. New --to me-- recipe. Hope it will taste o.k. Found a couple Pampred Chef items, Amanda, I guess my needs aren't so great any more, had to look for somthing I didn't already have.

Anyone in Lincoln voting today? Ryan & I need to go...

Grandma & Donna, want me to pick up a Pampered Chef order from you tonight? We'll be around there for dance!

Oh, and we planted something! We put 3 shrub roses there! It looks great. I'll take photos soon & send them in.

Re: voting. I'll be voting over the noon hour. --Gary

Just when you think this lame-duck moron has done just about every dumb thing that can be done, he does one more. But even though I am (like all of us) oh-so-tired of looking at his face, I am kinda looking forward to seeing this movie. :-)

Yay, Erika! Have some peanut brittle and caramels! --Gary

And, Teghan could use it to fill her teapots for any outdoor tea parties. :-) --Gary

Bella had her first vet appt today. She's 2 pounds 9 ounces. Doing pretty well, except that he discovered a heart murmur. Nothing ot be overly alarmed about (though you know we are!), he just said he'd watch it. She's so tiny they couldn't give all her shots in one day, I have to take her back on Saturday.

Grandma, you might be getting a call from Ryan. Teghan has morning kindergarten tomorrow (Thursday) and will be done around noon. Ryan is playing "soccer dad" and taking Tristen and a few other kids to a different school at 2-3:30 for a band concert. Teghan doesn't want to hitch along & has requested to visit you!

Karen, what a great week you have. All employees should be treated that way and we should all get summers off.

Congratulations on the new job, John. It sounds like the perfect job for you.

Oh, and CONGRATS John on the job! What a great opportunity for you, and to do something you truly beleive in is always rewarding! And Marsha & Grandma, thanks for the recipes!

Fairly horrible at driving AND listening. That is a problem... Cold Stone, I wish I could enjoy it, but thinking about it makes this lactose intolerant stomach roll! Anna & Sam though did turn me into a soy convert. I've always gotten Starbucks (whether it was my classic chai, or a latte of sorts, vanilla or honey are the best) regular and just dealt with possible stomach complaints... However, I tried it with soy & I'm loving it! Also, Anna, I tried soy chocolate milk, LOVE it! And I'm getting some calcium. Thanks for the suggestions girls, you oughta visit more often! (Bella misses you! All 2 pounds 5 ounces of her! Ryan took her to the vet to get weighed today. She was 1 pound 13 ounces 2 weeks ago today.)