Lots of good things lately!  Mary graduated!  Dad turned 79!  And we will have our 52nd anniversary this week!

Mary graduated from the NRG Stadium in downtown Houston.  There were 600 graduates and lots and lots of friends and relatives.  It was a really nice graduation with short, interesting speeches and Mary crossing the stage early in the program.  Jon bought her flowers that thrilled her.  She kept saying, I feel so special!  And of course she certainly was.

Afterward, we drove around (since we were already downtown) looking at where Jon works and where Mary will go to school next year:  The University of Houston.  She will be in the dorms.  It is a huge school!  Then Jon took us all (their family, the elder Barneys, and us) to a Vietnamese/Chinese restaurant Mary had chosen where I tasted Pho (pronounced Fuh) for the first time which is a really tasty soup with veggies.  We had ordered so much food we all had it again for dinner on Sunday.  And it was still delicious.

Friday Jon treated us all to dinner for Dad's birthday.  Dad chose the Tin Roof Barbecue for dinner.  Everyone was really pleased with the food and the live entertainment.  It was raining like crazy but that didn't dampen the good food and good company.  Sorry my pictures are fuzzy, but you get the idea.

And look what Lara gave us!  We killed our mixer trying to make divinity.  It just gave up.  ( I was later told that you should never try to make divinity on a humid day!)  So we needed a new mixer and since it's close to our anniversary I thought we could finally get a good one, but she had one already that she wasn't using and she gave it to us!!  What a treat!  It makes me so happy to finally have a KitchenAid mixer!!  We plan to celebrate our anniversary by going to see Jungle Book and eating at Jason's Deli.  We will go after the temple on Wednesday since we will be busy the rest of the week here and there.

Today is Memorial Day and we are taking it easy around here.  We will go watch the kids swim later today and then maybe take a nap.  :o)  It's nice being old.

We had a happy surprise a couple weeks ago when Kathy and Grace came to visit!  What fun to get to see them and hang out together!  We drove around and explored different places around here that we haven't been before, watched movies, watched the lizards and squirrels on the deck, talked and talked and talked.  A perfect visit!  Feel free to drop in on us anytime all of you!  I wish I had taken some pictures.  I don't think of it till it's too late.

The man has been keeping busy around here.  Today he's out mowing the lawn and sprucing up the front.  His grass stolons are taking hold and looking really good.  They may fill in that piece of lawn by the end of spring.  The trees are all leafing out and looking green and pretty.  I love the green and the sunshine on the trees and grass.  He also fixed the gutter along the garage so that there won't be water pooling in it to encourage mosquitoes.  He still goes to the peanut butter factory every week to either help with production or clean the equipment.  This is a one year mission he has been assigned.  He enjoys it.  

We are still serving in the temple every Wednesday and it's beginning to become a part of us.  I have heard people extolling the temple before and I didn't understand how they felt, but now it's beginning to make sense to me.  I got to serve this Wednesday on our regular shift, then subbed for other ladies Thursday, Friday and then again on Saturday this week.  I was tired by the end of the week, but I had such a sweet peace after being there that long.  And the very best part of that service was that I got to help with the initiatory for a young woman getting her own endowment before leaving for her mission.  What a supernal blessing for me to be able to do that for her!  I can't express how much I love being able to do what we do.  

Last week was also the awards week for the high school.  Mary received a National Merit Scholarship award.  She is second from the left.

She also got to play in the last concert for the year in the orchestra.  They played good music--which means music I like :o)--and then they showed pictures of all the graduating seniors on the big screen.  It was a nice evening.  The teacher/conductor is very good, but he graciously gave credit to the junior high music teachers and rightly so.  Some of our Beehives in jr high can really play beautifully.  Two of them brought their viola and violin to our little class talent show and were just playing around afterwards in an impromptu duet together and they were excellent!  I was truly in awe of their skill.

Sam also got an award.  He received the male sophomore class merit award.  We are happy for him and how he exemplifies so many good qualities.

And Sarah is once again involved in swimming.  She has practice every evening after school and swim meets every Saturday.  It's time consuming for her and for Lara but she loves being with her friends.  She has improved her technique and her swim time this year already.  We get to watch her in her events and cheer her on!

Da is still doing well in her reading.  We are more than half way through the book and she is remembering most of what she is learning.  She still confuses b and p.  But I can't even imagine trying to decipher her language.  It just looks like curlicues to me.  I think she is doing remarkably well.  Her goal is to get her driver's license.  When she finishes the book lessons we will get a driver's manual and work through that.  She is already trying to read notices and signs she sees around her and that is a big step forward.  

We are now looking forward to the middle of June when we will get to visit with the Evanses and Erin in Illinois!  What a happy anticipation!  I really do love being us right here and right now!