CLB's day off from school . . .

I don't like to make a big deal about my birthday, especially as I get into the upper age categories . . . but Tracy and the kids seemed to want to make it a memorable holiday. As soon as we were back from seminary, Tracy let the kids have a day off from school and sent them downtown on the strassenbahn while he went to a work meeting. They didn't tell me where they were going or when they would be back, so I simply went back to bed and had a wonderful morning nap!

Here is evidence of the fun they had downtown
"birthday shopping!"

The next picture definitely needs some explanation. Lissie has been calling Bryant "fat" and "chubby" for the past several months. This happens on a daily basis and Bryant (who is one of the most fit young men we know) just takes it in stride. I like to remind Lissie that she might want to cease this name calling habit (albeit friendly and in jest) . . . it might come back to haunt her someday! So they thought this postcard they found (while in search of my birthday card) was hilarious!

Translation: Fat children are harder to kidnap!

I know this is only funny if you have been present for all of the teasing banter between Lissie and Bryant. Basically, it is an inside joke and I completely understand if you don't understand their humor.

One more pic of CLB's day off from school . . .
They all got new shades!

So basically, this was the beginning to a wonderful birthday celebration. They arrived home with a whole new outfit for me (including summer hat!), birthday card, and chocolate (saving it for Sunday)! Then we went to lunch at Giardino's, stopped at IKEA for my birthday wish - a new duvet cover (plain white floral), and then watched the movie Tangled (Lissie's wish for me).

Happy Birthday to ME!

Bow-Tie and Dress Remake

It's amazing what can be done with an extra large hem!

I ordered this dress from Macy's for Lissie since she needed a dress for the upcoming end-of-the-year ballroom dance recital. She and Bryant will be doing a couple's swing routine to Dance With Me Tonight (from the movie That Thing You Do). Lissie envisioned something akin to the dresses in the movie musical Hairspray. Plus, she and Bryant are doing a series of amazing dance lifts for this special number and she needed a full skirt to make it all happen. As we examined this dress online, we thought it looked like it had an extra large hem -- like maybe 5 inches. And this is what I was able to do with an extra 5 inches of fabric off the bottom of the dress . . .

I crafted sleeves for the sleeveless . . .
and a matching bow-tie for Bryant.

I can't wait to see them perform on Saturday, 4 June.
Wish you all could join us!

And I thought I was "Prom Free" this year

A couple of months ago, Christian asked me if I thought he should go to prom this year, and I replied, "Well, yes, I think you should go either this year or next year." And he readily decided that there was no girl this year that he "wanted to spend that much money on!" Then last Sunday I was observing some of the girls in YW who were contemplating whether or not to wear their prom dresses to church on the day after prom, and I thought to myself, hmmm . . isn't it nice to be "prom free" this year.

So we were all a little shocked when Lissie came home from seminary on Monday and announced that Ryan Nelson had asked her to prom. Then I responded, "Really?! Isn't prom this coming Saturday??" Well, Lissie had already told Ryan that she would have to "get back to him on that," and that gave us Monday afternoon to do some preliminary prom dress hunting. We drove out to RNZ (Rhein Neckar Zentrum) and scoured all the stores . . . but guess where we found the dress that she wanted? H&M, of course. She was in love with this flowy, knee-length, off-white dress, but I wasn't convinced yet. We bought it, but I reserved the right to return it if we found something better. However, by Wednesday afternoon, after a trip to the Heidelberg Hauptstrasse, we had the whole ensemble assembled . . . H&M dress, Monsoon shrug, Bijou Brigitte white flower headband, and red satin shoes from Ibiza Jeans. (Lissie's fashion style dictated just a touch of red amidst all that white (red shoes, red lipstick, red corsage).

And she truly looked LOVELY

And isn't the Heidelberg Castle the perfect place for a prom?

She had a lovely evening and we're all glad she got to go,
even if we thought we were "prom free" this year!

Ryan Nelson and Lissie

Heidelberg Prom 2011

My Little List of Little Things

More Musings on Little Things for which to be Thankful . . .

1. Happy Mother's Day greetings from ALL SEVEN of my children this year

(Hooray for Skype, iphones, and international flat rates)

Here is a picture of the last time they were all together -
August 2009
Matthew, Marie, Christian, Emily, Lauren, Bryant, Lissie
They are all very dear to me

2. My first ever "haengen Geranien" for my balcony

(This is the idea -- just a bit of German influence)

3. Allergy season is almost over
(Every spring I am compelled to consider every imaginable allergy remedy. This year's winners -- Aphedrid, a good dose of steam, and the great indoors!)

4. A scholarship that will take care of the rest of this year's tuition
(Hooray again!)

5. Hard working children
(2010-2011 school year is coming to a close)

6. A hard working husband
(we all love him dearly)

7. An abundance of wild poppies growing in my yard this year
(no other yard around has had the same spontaneous blessings!)

This is basically what my front and side yard look like

This ends my list of seven (not so little) things!

All in the Same Week!

Lissie and Christian recently entered a couple of talent shows and shared their original songs -- Higher Ground and Pixie Dust. I'm thinking we need to someday put together an Allred Family Song Album!

Thanks to a coworker of Dad's, here are some videos of the most recent show at the high school:

Christian singing Higher Ground

Lissie singing Pixie Dust (lyrics by Marie)

They didn't place in either show, but they're definitely winners in my book!