When It's Number 2, I Look Like Number 1...

That is one of the lines in Oliver's Huggies Jeans Commercial. It hit Youtube today and will release on TV this weekend. Enjoy!

Crazy Hair Day

I am a Child of God

This is Izzie and Allie's little friend Maddie! She is our ward in LA, and is right between my girls in age. She became a close little friend for my girls. They are going to miss her terribly. Maddie and Izzie sang "I am a child of God" in sacrament before we left. Isabelle sang the descant. It was very sweet. I only got a video of practice, and didn't get a final song on video...

Oliver hits newstands!

This was in the New York Times this morning....his commercial is supposed to air on May 31 on 13 networks. Huggies is debuting their "Denim Diapers". So, keep your eye out for him :) Here is the link to the article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/25/business/media/25adco.html?src=busln

Oliver Painting

My mom gives me a hard time for not letting the kids paint or play with playdough every time they want to. So, I have been trying to get better at it....hmmmm.

Colburn Class Recital

This was Isabelle's last Colburn Recital. We almost didn't make it, we rushed from her dance competition, I pulled of lashes and removed makeup and redid her hair in the car on the way. She had been up from 6 that morning, a long day at competition and playing with her cousins, and she was getting sleepy already on the way. She has one little crack which was good for being so tired. She always does such a good job. This was her solo "In My Own Little Corner" from Cinderella.


This is her duet. She is the youngest of the group, the others are 10, 11, and 12. But she really loved the end result. They all learned their parts seperately and only sang together the first time that night. These girls are amazing, the one next to her only sang in Taiwanese until coming to Colburn, and only really used her lower register, but she has won all sorts of awards for her piano playing and composing at age 10. It is such a great opportunity for her to be surrounded by such talented friends. This song is Ave Verum (The Great Creator) by Mozart, it is sung in Latin.

My dad took this picture of her...he loved that her little feet didn't even touch the ground. I forget that she is just little. She is so grown up in so many ways, and such a little friend to me. I sometimes forget she is just bitty. Poor little thing was so tired, her little head started to bob toward the end. But she loved every minute of it. She said it was a perfect day, she had so much fun.This is Kay Montgomery, her voice teacher. She is an amazing teacher with a great ability to explain in a way a child can grasp. Isabelle has learned so much from her. She offered for us to fly back once a month....don't tempt me :)

Dance Competition Riverside

Isabelle had her final competition in Riverside, which is an hour away. This wouldn't have been an issue, but she had quite the itinerary.
8 am Voice Lesson (LA)
9:30-12 Solo Dance Competition (Riverside)
4:45-6 Group Dance Competiton (Riverside)
7:30 Colburn Recital (LA)
and she had to sing early Sunday morning at church...

It was quite the day.

But she won Platinum (the highest trophy) and second overall for her solo. And they won platinum and fifth overall for group. So, she was very happy. Her teacher was so excited she placed that high. And Izzie was happy about the trophies. And I was happy we made it to everything on time :)

Cousins

This has been the craziest week of my life! And my mom and dad came to enjoy all the madness, and performances :) So, with them in town, we met up with the cousins who live in San Marcos...my brother Mike's kids. First, on Sunday my cute little nephew Nate was in an art show, all of their boys are so artistic. Not a surprise, since their parents are so artistic...
Then on Wednesday, we met up in the middle in Mission Viejo (where Ben grew up) for TK burger and fun at a park. They are so cute when they are all together.

Then Saturday, we met in Riverside and played at a park between Isabelle's two dance competition performances. Looking back, that was probably not the best idea, she had a long day. But they have so much fun together!

Recorder Performance

Colburn School Recital

Isabelle had her Colburn recital that was a judged recital this week. She was chosen from the Friday night recitals to move on to Saturday night "School" recital. Her teacher was very excited because Isabelle is the youngest, by a few years, to move on to a school recital at Colburn. She was the youngest to do a Friday night recital, it was actually an accident that she was put in. It is a judged recital, and her teacher got the results, and not only did she make it to the next level, it was a perfect review. So, "school recital" is the next level, she has to sing the same song. The next and top level would be "honors" recital, but that is usually teens, 16 or older. But it is quite an accomplishment that she got this far.

Colburn Choir

Isabelle has been a part of the Colburn School Childrens Choir. It is a very prestigious choir and such a great experience for her. And she has made so many good little friends. She is sad it is over, but we are headed to the East Tennessee Childrens Choir, which has quite the reputation too, and I'm sure just as many friends :) So, she is excited too. These are most of the songs from the evening. But if you don't watch them all, watch the last one. The poor kid on the far left in the top row gets sick...which is sad. But the reaction from the kids around him is quite funny :) Kids are so funny.

Nani and Papa were here for Ben's graduation and stayed for the weekend of performances...and they are staying for a whole week for her next weekend of more performing. She is so lucky to have such a supportive extended family. The kids have been loving having all the extra love and attention, and I have been loving the kids being entertained constantly :) I don't think I'm going to let them go home.

Dance Competition Video

Her group number is first and then her solo :)

USC Graduation

Ben is finishing his last month at USC. He specialized in Pediatric Dentistry. It has been a fun two years and has flown by (at least for me :) My mom and dad, and Ben's dad were able to come down for the graduation. It was awesome to have them all there. The graduation was so cute, because if your dad or grandfather (or both) were USC graduates, they got to present you with your diploma. It was so sweet, it almost makes me want Oliver to go there. Too bad they can't do that at BYU, although that would make graduation 10 days long :)

So, we are off to Virginia! He is going to practice with Jayson Smith from dental school and Todd Pillion from Jayson's residency. Ben is more than excited, it is a great opportunity. I am excited too. I'm going to miss parts of LA, but as much good as there is in Los Angeles, there is twice as much negative. So, it will be fun to visit :) I am really excited about moving to Virginia, I have half of the house packed already :) It is a cute little town, Abingdon, with lots of charm and history. The people there are awesome, and the sense of community is worth moving for. I think I am going to really love it. The girls are excited at seeing the Smith girls again, and the Pillions have darling kids their age too. Plus the prospect of a grass yard, and a dog (maybe) is quite exciting. So, just a little over a month left...

The Grove

I realized on our last trip to The Grove how spoiled we really are...and how much I am going to miss that. The Grove is a highend outdoor shopping mall between LA and Beverly Hills (just a few miles from our house). It is often the place celebrities shop. I am usually oblivious at what or who is around me, but last time we did see Puff Daddy and his friends at Cheesecake factory. We see celebrities all the time though, so it is not too exciting. The fountains, the amazing stores, the food, and of course, the main reason we frequent the Grove...the American Girl store. We went over to meet up with my uncle and cousins (who are my girls ages) at the American Girl store. We go all the time, and the girls have quite the collection of dolls, but this time, I got all sentimental, thinking this could be one of the last times we go. While we waited we went to the original part of the Grove, which consists of rows of small little shops full of trinkets and food from every country you can imagine. We shared sushi with eel (and by we, I mean the kids too...LA makes kids very well rounded with food, they really like sushi) and it was quite amazing! We then went to the donut shop that has been there since the original "Grove". The man that runs the italian place next to the donut shop, is old school italian. One of our visits, he talked to us for a long time...he has quite the wall of stars....Frank Sinatra, the whole rat pack, Dezi Arnez, Lucille Ball, Marilyn Monroe...the list goes on and on, he knew them all personally. He said Sinatra and all of his buddies would come eat after work and hang out...can you imagine....all of those old Hollywood Hollywood back in those days must have been amazing, before we had time to ruin it, I couldn't help but wonder the scenes and the memories that are in that guys head. I will miss this part of LA, the cool little joints we have discovered nestled in the craziness of it all...

Butterflies...

We bought Alexandra a butterfly habitat for her birthday. They came as little caterpillars and the girls watched them go from caterpillars, cocoons, to butterflies. These are some pictures setting the butterflies free.

Hall of Fame Dance Competition

Isabelle had her second dance competition this weekend. She had her first solo dance. She competes in the 10-12 year old age group for both because her group is in that age group, and they can't do a solo in a younger group. She was a little nervous at the beginning of her solo, but she loosened up. Her group won 1st and showmanship, her solo won 2nd and showmanship. She had a blast. I'll post video when I get it.

Easter Dresses

Isabelle was asked to sing this song for the Easter program at church. We recorded it after church for Grandmas :)

The girls were so cute in their Easter dresses...I caught them playing in their makeup and jewelry, so I started snapping pics. And the little models that they are...it turned into an impromptu photo session. I think these might pass for Allie's 6 year old pics.






















This is a blooper from trying to video this...the music didn't start...I thought it was cute :)