"All is Well"

 Our good friends Holly and Jeff Andersen are very close with Rob Gardner.  Rob is a well-known LDS composer and talented musician.  He has written several operas and arranged the most beautiful hymns.  Truly, the man has a gift!  One night, Jeff was talking about us to Rob and said that he should have us in his choir.  Well, lo and behold, we got an email from Rob asking us to join his choir for a performance of "All is Well" (a combination of songs from Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Saints and Pioneers.)  I was floored!  I couldn't believe it!  I accepted the offer without even asking Tom about it because I knew he would be so happy to join as well.  Rob only held 2 rehearsals then a large rehearsal the day of the concert and boy, did he ever work fast.  We had never seen the music before and I had to really work to learn it all in such a short amount of time.

 One of the best parts about the concert was that I got to stand right next to Tom in the choir.  I was an alto and he was a tenor so our lines met in the middle and it was so fun singing by him!

 But when the night of the concert came, I was so excited to sing I just couldn't wait to get up there and perform.  Tom auditioned for a speaking part and played the role of William Clayton, the man who wrote the lyrics to Come, Come, Ye Saints.  He did a terrific job! (although they had his part incorrectly labeled in the program)

 My parents flew down for the concert because I told them I didn't know if I'd ever be asked to sing in something like this again.  I was SO glad they came.  The concert was packed and we received a standing ovation both nights!  As we sang the songs, "Praise to the Man", "My Kindness Shall Not Depart From Thee," "Lord, Wilt Thou Fill My Soul with Peace", and then "Come, Come Ye Saints" I felt the Spirit SO strongly!  There were 200 voices in the choir plus a full orchestra and the sound was incredible.  It was an experience Tom and I will never forget!

 Look at my beautiful little daughter, Hailey.  I just adore everything about her!

 She really likes a new American Girl Movie that has a girl baking french macarons in it so she asked me if we could learn how to make them!  So, we gave it a go.  This was our second time around and they turned out pretty well!

 We bagged them up and sold them at Izzy's Bake Sale that she had through American Girl to help raise money for underprivileged children.  Those macarons went really fast!

 These are just some nice messages for me from Tom :)

 Hailey and Izzy made these little animals out of puff balls I had in my craft box!  They are so creative!

Hailey came with me to play for a baptism on Saturday and she helped choose the prelude songs for me!

 This was Kelsey's last YW in Excellence Night.  She showcased her new business, "Kelsey Creations" and I couldn't have been more proud of her.

My Baby is 20 Years Old!

Happy Birthday Elder Chamberlain!!!!!!

Happy 20th Birthday to my Oldest Child!  Elder Chamberlain is in San Raphael, Argentina and on his birthday he is also celebrating having been in the mission almost 14 months now!   We are so very proud of him and honestly are so happy to read his letters and hear of the growth he is experiencing.  

 His district got together and surprised him with a birthday breakfast complete with french toast and birthday cake!  Sounds exactly what a bunch of 20 year olds would want to eat for breakfast! ha ha!  The hermanas made him a paper lizard and gave him a box of fun notes and cards from everyone.  He told us in his letter that this group has been the closest to him of his entire mission they feel like "family" to him.  As a mom, I am super thankful that these missionaries have rallied around each other to strengthen each other and give support so far away from home.

 Elder White, the one sitting next to the left of Kohler, has been such an amazing and fun companion for him.  He is from Tucson, AZ and they hope to connect up after their missions.  Elder C says he has helped him through so many things and has been such a positive and hard working missionary.

This is Elder Houghton and he was Kohler's Zone Leader---just went home this last week.  Elder C is going to miss him!

 This is a family Elder Chamberlain really loves, even though he said they lived illegally in California for over 7 years.  oops!

 Here is Elder Chamberlain's pench (apartment).

 Kohler's bed is the one under the window.  Yep - he sleeps in a sleeping bag every night and he's super grateful for it because it has been really cold lately!

 This is his apartment from the street view.  He said the little shop next door is like a mini-market that has just a few food items but they rarely shop there.  I'm just glad to see that the apartment doesn't have barbed wire fencing surrounding the complex like his first area.  Yikes!!!  That was scary.  I'm so glad he is in a much safer area--plus the apartment is WAY nicer and I'm so happy for him to have it a little more comfortable.  Although, he says they still don't have hot water showers but he is used to it now.

Baby Dean's Blessing

 Yep - so we drove down to California for Baby Dean's blessing and of course, the day before, we HAD to visit the American Girl Doll Store with the Davis cousins because HOW FUN IS THAT?!

 I was so glad my mom could join us.  What a treat!

 Matching dolly hats for the cousins!

 We had to stop at the Los Angeles Temple on the way home to add another temple to our collection!

 It was a dream come true to see Hailey with her fun cousin, Olivia, at the American Girl Doll Store and Cafe for lunch.  They had an absolute BALL and actually, so did the moms!!

 Dean-O!

 Tony gave such a beautiful blessing and here is the whole darling family with Baby Dean!