Music (and rain) was in the air all week

 We celebrated Sarah's 30th birthday last Sunday...

We have had rain and more rain this week.  This is what the Bear Creek looked like yesterday!

I worked my last day at the Refugee and Immigration Services office on Monday and I had lunch with Kaye Miller at Bangkok Gardens.  Mmmmmm

And, the rest of the week was full of music:

Tuesday, Steve and I drove to St. Louis to hear Noah play in his third grade violin concert.  All the third graders in his school take violin.  They have class twice a week, they don’t get to take the violins home, and, even with those restrictions, they sounded really good in their concert. 

Thursday I accompanied my cello student play in the state music festival so that meant choreographing the day around a trip to MU campus. She got a "two".  (I felt she deserved a "one")

Saturday afternoon was my last studio recital.  Fourteen of my sixteen students played.  (I also teach five adult students - I don't make them play in my recitals)

Today, I played duets with two of my students in their sacrament meetings – Roberta up in the Moberly ward (one of my adult students)

and Ethan in the Perche Creek ward.

Elise sang with the Memorial Baptist Choir in a performance this evening with guest conductor, Paul Crabb.  I got to attend and they sounded amazing. 

Finally, Kirsti and Ryan are in Missouri.  They braved snow on the highways of Wyoming and arrived in the wee hours of Saturday.  Her baby is due the first part of October and she has a pretty decent baby-bump.  Sadie is LOVING having her around, as you can see.

 speaking of babies, a parting shot of Larkin grinning at Uncle Steve last Saturday

Two weeks in April

On Tuesday, April 11^th, we released our Trissy from her aged and sick body to go to heaven.  The huge tumor on her hip had grown so large so quickly and it had developed an open wound that would not heal.  She died surrounded by as many Lambsons as could be rounded up – Steve, me, Elise, Steven, Tamara, and Sarah.  Add a vet and a vet-tech and you have one crowded room!  And, while Trissy had the mildest, sweetest temperament, she was also rather strong willed in some things (unable to be consoled during thunder storms, always escaping under the back yard fence to wander the neighborhood) and her stubborn streak showed up at her death.  She did not like having to lay down on the examination table and having her paw confined while they inserted an IV for the anesthesia over-dose and she caused it to be pulled out with only half the dose going in.  They had to insert another IV in another paw for the rest of the dose but it was not enough!  She was calmed down by that time, of course, but her strong old heart was still beating. It took a third IV in a third paw to finally release her.  Oh, Trissy!

Steve giving treats to the dogs the night before Trissy died.  You can see the bandage on her rear end.  Even, then, she was up for her nightly tricks for treats.

That same week was full of Easter Cantata rehearsals (Tuesday and Thursday night) and the performance on Friday night.  The music was beautiful – as always.   Well, there was that one song that sounded like a Klezmer band that I thought was kind of goofy.  But, overall, the music was fun to sing, it was enjoyable to sing next to Steve in the back row, and I think the performance went very well. 

We were in St. Louis Easter Saturday – to celebrate Lucy’s 6^th birthday and to work in the temple.

Larkin got some grandpa time while

Emily set up for Lucy's birthday party

Lucy and Quinn hanging out

Easter Sunday was quiet.  Sarah was driving back from a last-minute trip to Idaho to take Kevin Moegling out to college, Steven and Tamara were with her parents, Emily and Joe and kids stayed in St. Louis.  We did have Beckie join us, however, and Elise and Melanie. 

My Sundays changed two weeks back.  I was called to work in the nursery for the last two months we will be here!  It is a pretty easy gig because the parents of the cry-ers stay with their kids. 

Steve and I tackled the garage four days this past week.   We did it in quadrants – the tools in the southwest quadrant one day, yard stuff and cleaning out the old refrigerator another day, the camping equipment the third day, and sports equipment and other miscellany the last day.  All of our stored stuff is now occupying the northwest part of the garage.  Elise is coming on Tuesday to help us re-organize her storage in the northeast part of the garage and Beckie’s things will be moved to St. Louis on May 1^st.  Throughout the week we made numerous trips of all our unwanted junk to assorted donation centers around town.  Good thing we still had the truck.  But, we won’t have it for long.  We found a new vehicle for us – a 2003 Honda Element – and we have a buyer for our truck!  

Jason and Denise Black.  We are letting them check it out the next few days and hopefully we will make the transaction by the end of this coming week. 

Speaking of transactions, we officially signed the lease for the house with Elizabeth on Friday.  And, speaking of houses, we got a call from the Phoenix mission office on Thursday informing us that we will be living in the home of the Johnsons – the current missionary office couple whose places we are taking.  They purchased a home in Surprise a few years ago – they are snowbird types – and, we guess when they decided to serve a mission, they requested Phoenix because then they could live in their winter home?  Anyway, the cost difference for renting a brand-new two-bedroom apartment for us and having to furnish it vs. renting the Johnson’s furnished home was nominal (although I am sure they are giving the church a price-break) so we will be spending the next two years in a beautiful, four-bedroom, three bathroom home in Surprise, Arizona.  Check it out on Google maps!  15359 W. Columbine Dr. Surprise, AZ  85379

I love April

I have thought this more than once this past week.  And, the redbud time in April is the best!  The fruit trees are starting to pop open and many of the non-fruiting trees are just beginning to get tiny green leaves.  Lilacs are starting to bloom.  Daffodils are just about finished and tulips are taking their turn. 

We had quite a few rainy days earlier in the week – which I don’t mind – and then yesterday was the perfect day of temperature and sunshine!  I had a make-up cello lesson in the afternoon and while I was teaching, the mom went to Gerbes to pick up supplies for a cookout and she said it was like a battleground at the hamburger bun section.  I guess everyone else had cookout in mind, too. 

Not us.  Our ward had a youth fundraiser event last night including a spaghetti dinner, silent auction, and variety show.  Proceeds went to scout and girls camp this summer.  Steve and I were quite involved.  We donated items for the silent auction:  Steve’s was four dozen home baked cookies.  Mine were three of my nicer houseplants.  And, we performed in the variety show.  I twisted Steve and Steven’s arms and we played a trio (baritone, trombone, and I resurrected the saxophone) of Americana-type tunes.  And, the dinner was almost completely gluten-free:  they had gluten-free pasta, the salad was crouton-free, and the dessert was root beer floats. 

We did savor the beautiful day yesterday by taking a bike ride on the Grindstone Creek trail. 

It was just beautiful.  Numerous hawks soared above on the thermals and we spotted a herd of deer.

On my pre-mission/pre-moving checklist this week I purged clothes and sorted them into different piles:  donate to charity, pack and store, wear until we leave, wear until we leave AND during our mission, wear on our mission.  It is kind of confusing. 

We have had frustrations with our internet connection all week.  It has gone down FIVE times in seven days.  And these are not quickie phone calls to set things right.  First of all, just finding the internet help phone number was a pain because phone books are a thing of the past.  (Hooray for smart phones)  Then you have to go through a series of automated responses before even getting to a live person. And, CenturyLink has help centers in the Philippines so the first two times the live person was half a world away from me.  The third time we had problems was sort of a break through because, after being on the line for over an hour with the help desk, Steve (it was his turn) finally said “we have other obligations and we have to go” and they gave him a number to call when we returned.  Well, that turned out to be a DIRECT number to a REAL person who sounded like they were in the United States so the next two times, fixing the problem was much faster if not still very annoying.  A REAL repair person is coming Monday to look at the situation but I am seriously considering switching internet providers for the last two months we are here….

Brrrr – it has been cold and rainy all week.

  But, I am grateful for the rain!  And the weather hasn’t stopped the spring flowers from blooming.

 This past week was Spring Break so it was a rather quiet lesson-wise for me – but not for the two music teachers now using the basement.  Trissy and Sadie have always been a part of my music teaching:  barking to announce their arrival (Sadie), greeting them at the door and escorting them downstairs (Trissy), hanging out at my feet during the lesson (Sadie), or sleeping on the couch (Trissy) so this week has been rough on them.  Steve actually caught Sadie barking outside the closed door of Elizabeth’s studio – she thought it was me teaching!  We finally had to install a baby gate at the top of our stairs so Trissy and Sadie would not go downstairs every time a student arrived.  So, in spite of car-parking issues and confused dogs, I believe having three music teachers at the house for the next six weeks is going to be fine.

Steve and I saw “Beauty and the Beast” on Tuesday and we LOVED it!  We loved the original and this was just as wonderful.  I loved the new songs, too.

Aside from some glazing, I am finished with pottery until we get back from our mission.  I tried my hand again at making tiny pots and here they are…..  The tallest is not more than four inches.

Tamara, Sarah, and Steve helped me tie all four t-shirt quilts Friday afternoon at the church.  I finished up the edges yesterday and they are finally done! 

Our BIG day was Thursday when we drove to St. Louis to hang out with Julina, Alex, Shiloh and Stratton as well as with Emily, Quinn, and Larkin at the Museum of Transportation.  The time with the Smiths was way too short but so glad we got to see them at all.  

Whenever we go to St. Louis and attending the temple is in the plan, he always dresses for the temple. Rarely does he go casual and dress for the temple later.  

This is in one of the oil cars