Celebration of Iris

This was one of the highlights of last Sunday. I sat in the corner of my parent's office and watched my mom catch up on reading the blog. She asked questions, giggled, grunted, corrected my spelling and grammar, and noted that Sybil is officially in the tween stage of crusty expressions.

Of course, my parents' house turned into a den of pantsing and wedgies. These two remarked that they enjoyed wedgies, but the ensuing rug burns on their butts told a different story. 

2 firsts are marked by the following picture:

1) Hunt asked me to take a picture of him

2) The reason Hunt wanted a picture was because this was the only time in history that Hunt was more dressed up than David. It was Hunt's first day directing after being called into the bishopric.

David said that he's old enough that potential injury is not worth the glory.

Therefore, arm wrestling has been passed down to the next generation. 

Birthday celebrations:

Iris = 15

Fernando = 39

Sybil Elizabeth Udall = 111

Sybil often asks me if she can have the Udall's Vespa when they die.

The main reason for the trip to AZ was a bday present for Iris:

a little boy band from Utah: Riff Wood.

These girls got matching outfits for the concert:

Claire and Esie made a sign stating that there was a bday girl in the bar so Iris got a serenade by the band and the whole audience. After the concert, they waited in the merch line to talk to the cute band members. Esie was bold enough to ask one of them if she could get his number if she did the Worm. She got the  number. I'm pretty sure I taught her that move.

Next birthday event for Iris: watching the Legally Blonde musical at the outdoor theater in Red Rock.

Of course I had her birthday announced there and screamed her name for everyone to hear. 

On her birthday, she wanted to get all of her birthday freebies: Starbucks, Ulta, Sephora. She invited a hoard of teenagers over to eat pizza and hot tub that night.

I loved listening to Elijah talk to my mom last Monday. He talked about his love for Bible bashing, even though he admitted he shouldn't do it. He said he went up against a man who had been studying the Bible:

 "longer than I've been alive! And I totally won--he was so mad!"

He also talked about the challenges of being a Zone leader: missionaries serving who don't necessarily want to be there. Elijah said, "I change their view of the mission from serving out of a sense of obligation to something that is exciting, so they get FOMO."

And then he explained FOMO.

Hash stash

Iris loves discovering obscure indie groups. For her bday, she invited a good friend and we are in AZ to see Riff Wood, a sold out concert geared towards teenaged girls and their eye-rolling fathers, which is exactly what I predict for tomorrow night.

Yesterday, a car full of 7 ladies went thrifting. Claire has been in rare form this trip. We've been suspicious that she has a hidden hash stash. This is Esie in the front seat, trying to escape Claire by moving her seat forward. Notice Claire's feet.

Retaliation:

The men got back from hiking Humphreys and we went to the temple.

Taiwanese dessert got mixed reviews. The grass flavored pudding was lacking.

Tonight we'll have a bday dinner for Iris, honorary Grandma Sybil, and Fernando.

I took this girl driving a few times last week.

"The fat one is the brake, right?"

"Wait, I don't use my left foot at all?"

Summer lovin'

We had so many good visits from family and friends this week. 

Sybil is learning how to use a flat iron because we need one more skill to carry her to teenager-hood. Last night, we had friends over to make pupusas and swim. Sybil strutted around in Claire's heels all night. Ironically, she told me she would definitely wear them to church today, but she wasn't wearing underwear (as per usual), and she hadn't showered since Tuesday. That girl has some interesting priorities.

Sybil's makeover by Addie.

I had a very similar makeover by Sybil on Friday.

David flew down to AZ where they enjoyed the game from a suite since Jon threw the first pitch. I would have liked to go down, but it was my first day of OB/GYN rotation [This week has been awesome and I really wish I could permanently shadow doctors instead of ever  having to practice]. 

This girls is getting ready to fly to coop!

Mid-week visit from Jacob and Rod.

This is what happens to the hair of those who swim instead of shower:

And this is what happens to those who swim after getting a makeover at Aveda while dad is getting a haircut.

Quick temple trip before pupusas:

Pics from Puerto Rico:

Please note his spectacular pants. His email this week began with: "This week was LIT!!" and ended with great spiritual insights.

A large percentage of my call with this kid last week was him trying to convince me that it was possible for him to "appreciate" the emails I sent him even if he didn't read them.

Everything is awesome!

There are 11 people sleeping in this house. The quiet hours of the morning are wonderful. Especially Sunday morning because I don't have to worry about homework or exercising. 

Andrew and Ashley and kids came in town yesterday. Our freinds Craig is in town also. Nest week, we will have Jacob and Rod staying with us. I ove that Las Vegas is a stopping place for our loved ones.

David washed all three of the cars yesterday. The third time around, we went with him. The girls got their free fountain drinks and as soon as they got in the car, I asked Iris and Sybil shilch one of them was going to be nice and share.

Iris: "I'll be nice to you Mom."

Sybil: "You only need one nice daughter."

Claire went on a 2-week tour of church history sites. She said the spiritual aspect of it was wonderful, but not so much the social aspect. Last night I went to pick her up with Iris and Vincent. This morning my throat is sandpaper sore, because Metalica sing-alongs will do that to me. Then Iris insisted that I stop head-banging while driving.

Here's a new path near my house that I discovered yesterday. I went rucking (walking with a 20 lb vest). 

I should have taken kids. The last hike Sybil went on with her father was Timpanogas a week ago. She sent me a text afterwards: "We only hiked to the saddle because I threw up." A fourteen mile hike plus altitude sickness will do that. She loved soccer camp and Iris had a blast at BYU Young Authors Academy.

Finishing off with an awesome experience I had this week. I was able to give a talk last night at the baptism of a good friend. She called me earlier this week and told me that she wanted to talk. She was nervous about her baptism and especially how her husband would react to it. He hadn't been supportive of her church attendance so she didn't intend to tell him about the baptism until afterwards. We knelt down and prayed in the church late on Thursday night after an emotional chat. Last night, we witnessed Yuri's baptism with her two little boys AND her husband.

One more spiritual experience from David when he was in El Salvador. After he came home, he received an email from a young woman he met at the temple. She and her friend had just been called to missions in Peru and were visiting the temple. She said that even though she and her family do not have much money, she had decided to go on a mission after reading this quote from Elder Packer: "I speak to that young man who doesn't have any idea how he can finance a mission. I do not know either. But I do know this: if you have faith and determine that you will go, there will be a way."

When she saw David, she only had $5 in her pocket, not enough money to get home, and was very hungry. David offered her and her friend rides home and gave them each money for their missions. Knowing David, he probably also gave them something that consisted of 95% sugar and 5% blue food dye.

 

From last week

These are the pictures that I uploaded last week, but never posted; Sunday was a bit too busy. We got home late  Saturday night, Claire's friends from the Cambodia trip came Sunday, and everyone was packed up again and gone (except Zoe, Porfirio and me) by Monday at 3:30am. Claire is on a 2-week church history tour. She called last night and told me about a spiritual experience she had with a woman in the laundromat that ended with her giving her a Book of Mormon and exchanging phone numbers.

El Salvador: David and Iris spent most of the tine with mission friends, which was awesome since most of them had kids Iris' age. They got a house on an island lake in the middle of a lake in a volcano and went jet skiing, zip-lining, hiked to a waterfall, ate lots of pupusas, and went to the temple. This is Iris making pupusas with Suzi.

I headed to AZ about mid-week. This kid has boundless energy. Ezra kept wanting to get physical with me, which was wonderful--I have few tricks up my sleeve. This is us arm wrestling.

I got to shadow Hunt on a surgery day and a clinic day. I never knew how physical those ortho surgeries can get. There was lots of squirting of blood and laparoscopically-injected saline.

Leah, Mom and I went on an awesome walk to the Riparian Preserve. 

 

4th of July at Hunt and Sarah's

Dad enjoying non-alcoholic beer

Hunt jumping off his roof

This pic is awesome bc if you zoom in on Sybil's left hand, it looks like she's grabbing a bird.

We got the pleasure of hearing some oldie-but-goodie stories from my dad: 

1)He didn’t want to come to the art museum with us: "I went there enough as a kid because I lived down the street and I always went to see the shrunken heads." My mom said she thought it was the actually the Heard Museum that had the shrunken heads.

2) Dad: I ranked 215 out of 310 graduating high school students, actually maybe not that good. 

Hunt: And you were probably the only one in the bottom third who went to Harvard and MIT.

 Dad: Yeah, someone [pointing to my mom] made me get a job when I was 39 

Mom: He wanted to go to law school after getting his MD and PhD! 

3) Memories of Mom as Dad's lab assistant, feeding baby rats milk at home with eye droppers so my dad could do medical experiments on them. That was an upgrade from stripping the legs of bunnies.

These ladies went to Prescott to a rodeo with Leah, Aunt Laurie, and Uncle Terry.

Hopefully I'll have time later to update from last week. Claire is still on her church history tour, and David, Iris and Sybil were in Provo last week for soccer and writing camps. Lex spent the night with us last night so we had a great walk this morning.