Stockton's Recognition Night

Today was such a great day! I took Jorja to Chick-Fil-A after school for her second job interview. She got the job! She is pretty excited about that. My dad took Preston to diving which was so nice. There was no way we were going to be able to get him there. Mike stopped by Walmart and picked up Stockton's graduation pictures we finally printed out. I love how they turned out!

Stockton's graduation pictures

Alta had their Principal Recognition Night tonight. It is pretty much the only time academics gets honored, so it was great. Also long. Really long. I remember not getting a great seat when Maysen had her night. The school has a reception for about thirty minutes before the ceremony. I snuck into the auditorium and saved three seats. I was glad I did! I also picked up a program on my way out. Immediately I noticed something wrong. I'll get to that later. Anyway, Stockton was honored, a lot. It was well deserved too. He was one of eight 4.0 kids. Each of the counselors said a little bit about the 3.9 students they were over. The principal talked about the 4.0 kids. It's too bad Alta doesn't have valedictorians anymore. Eight isn't an unreasonable amount.

 Stockton getting a box and a plaque for his 4.0

Stockton was surprised how many people cheered for him. He said, "I got Nate Brown level cheers." He also laughed when they said he was 2nd in the state diving competition. He was actually 3rd thanks to Camden having an insanely good meet that day!

This is part of the program that was wrong. All the Sterling Scholars that are printed here are from last year. I couldn't believe it! I wanted to say something to the principal. I was waiting for him, but then other people came up to talk to him. I wondered if he knew about the mistake. I guess I should have made more of an effort. He didn't know. He announced last years Sterling Scholars and was quite embarrassed when he realized what happened. He said, "Okay, all the Sterling Scholars come up and get your rope!" It was kind of funny. I was wishing he would have the kids say their names and category as they came up.

The rope is really cool looking. We didn't think he got a rope for Sterling Scholar. It wasn't on the list. I picked up all six of Stockton's ropes awhile ago. They were $6 a piece. It was much cooler to be awarded the rope, plus it was free! He also got a yellow/silver rope for the Honors diploma, which is the highest diploma offered.

Sterling Scholars getting their ropes

 Stockton receiving his hawk medallion

A few days later Stockton was called out of class and asked to go to the office. He was in the middle of taking a math test. Good thing those tests are easy for him. Alta had reprinted the program so if we wanted one with his name in the Sterling Scholar spot for a scrapbook we could have one. That was nice of them to do.

At the end of the super long ceremony the principal had the Sterling Scholars come back up and be recognized. That was nice. Too bad they didn't mention that Addie Wray won the entire thing! That is a huge deal!

Jack, Amber, Maggie, Lydia, Nate, Rachelle, Emma, Hannah, Anna, Addie, Stockton

It was pretty funny how loud people cheered for Stockton. As he was walking back after receiving his Hawk Medallion someone yelled, "I like your sideburns!" The Affleck's were sitting behind us and commented that Stockton looked like a rabbi. Hahahaha! We were wondering what was in the box the 4.0 students were given. Stockton thought it was probably laffy taffy. It wasn't. It was a watch! Alta High School and 4.0 GPA Award are engraved on it. How cool is that?????

Jorja, Mike, Stockton

 Jorja, Stockton

 The Watch

We went to Iceburg after to celebrate, then home to bed. Tonight was so cool, but it was LONG! I am TIRED! Stockton sure is amazing. It was nice for him to be recognized for all of his hard work. So many people came up to him and congratulated him. As Madison would say, "He was the star of the show!" Hahahaha

22 Years

That's how long ago my mom died. Twenty-Two years today. Boo. We hurried this morning to make it to the 9:00 session of the Jordan River Temple dedication. When we came home there was a plate of cinnamon rolls on our doorstep with flowers. Becky Johnson had left them there with the nicest card hoping my day was going okay. I love her! She is so kind.

Steve & Shannon and their boys came over for lunch. We had hamburgers. For some reason the pilot light went out on our indoor grill. Mike didn't want to take the time to fix it, so he grilled outside. Just as a giant windstorm came. And rain. It didn't rain for long though. The kids were able to play with their laser tag guns. Recoil, I think? Steve has the same guns that Mike got for his birthday. They played outside with those for awhile.

They also played some weird jeep shooting game on their phones. I'm not sure what the game is, but I know Mike kept running over his own teammates. I know he wasn't supposed to do that. It was nice that they could all play at the same time. Mike had it on the tv screen as well.

Stockton, Steve, Jorja, Weston, Mike, Brandon

 Jacob, Steve, Jorja, Weston

 Weird game they were playing.

Jorja likes to play this even weirder game. The Grandma is the bad guy. You have to hide from her, collect things and try to get out of the house before she kills you. It is freaky when she gets you. Jorja has never made it out of the house alive. These next two pictures are of Jorja showing them the grandma game. Her phone is also hooked to the tv.

Brandon, Weston, Jorja, Stockton

 Jorja was not successful.

Today was really fun hanging out with the Smiths. Brandon graduates from high school a week earlier than Stockton. Lucky! The kids are so ready to be done at this point, but they all have school tomorrow.

First Date

Preston had his piano recital today. He is my fourth child and is parented like it. I can honestly say I have never heard him practice either of the pieces he played in his recital. He either practiced while I was gone, practiced on Stockton's piano downstairs or is an excellent sight-reader!

Preston

Preston's first song was too long to upload, but here is his second one.

Preston, Taggart, Hadley-Kate, Liam's brother, pretty girl, boy, Liam, Sister Newman, Liam's other brother

Ava, two boys, three pretty girls

Today was Jorja's first official date. Technically she went out with Mackie yesterday as part of the date today; but yesterday I wanted to put the title as Engineering Project, so I'm claiming her first date as today. Jorja spent all day getting ready. I would never have the patience to spend that much time on hair/makeup. She was trying to get her hair in a weird 50s updo. She got frustrated. I think she looks great like this. Clair picked her up first. I snapped a few quick pictures before she walked out the door.

Jorja

 For some reason I snapped a picture of the car as it drove away.

Fifteen minutes after Jorja left we got a call from her. She had been in a car accident. Claire, Jorja and Mackie were in the car. They were driving to pick up Claire's date. A lady ran a red light. She was also speeding. The car was totaled. We are so lucky that the three kids in the car were just bruised. This could have been so bad. The lady wasn't hurt either. Jorja said she was acting pretty mad at them. Jorja was looking down at her phone. When she looked up the car was right there. She said everything went in slow motion. She vividly remembers watching the car hood crumple up. They spun around. She felt like she was in a movie. All three kids were super quiet while this was happening. Mackie threw out his arm to hold Jorja in. He wasn't wearing a seatbelt, so glad he stayed in the car! Claire's leg started bruising up right away. Jorja has had chest and neck pain for a few days since the accident. Mackie's back was pretty sore by the end of the day. Still, so lucky! To think, I had been so worried about her being in a car accident the night before when they were driving up the canyon in the dark. I didn't worry about it in the dry daytime!

Jorja said Claire was crying. She felt so bad. She kept apologizing for ruining Jorja's first date. Claire's parents came down and were with them while they dealt with the aftermath. They had to stay at the crash site for a good hour. I am so glad that Jorja called us. One of our neighbors called us and asked if Jorja was in an accident. They had driven by. So glad we found out from Jorja and already knew she was okay! Claire has a twin sister, Sydney, she went and picked up Claire's date. The group was meeting at the football field. The other kids waited there for Jorja and her group to arrive. They were able to snap a few pictures before they hurried off to dinner.

Jorja and Mackie

 Maggie & Maggie's date, Jorja & Mackie, Liz & Darby, Sydney & Max, Hasti, Finn & Ellie, Christian & Brinley, Jared & Kenzie, Griffin & Claire

Hasti is by herself because her date got sick. At least she was able to go with him last night. She was a pretty good sport to go to the dance and not let that spoil her night.

 Jorja, Sydney, Kenzie, Brinley, Liz, Claire, Ellie, Hasti, Maggie

The kids then went and ate at Sonic and were able to be at the dance for about an hour. Claire's parents took them to the football field. They were split into different cars after that, so Jorja and Mackie were no longer driving together. Jorja had fun being there at the end of the dance. They do this weird circle/cheer thing. The student body and class officers all get to lead the cheer from the middle of the circle. She loved it. After the dance everyone went to Kenzie's house. They wrestled and played games and then came home. I was so happy to have her home! Overall, Jorja had a great first date. She could have done without the car accident though. She'll never be able to say her first date wasn't memorable!

Liz, Jorja, Ellie, Hasti

Stockton meanwhile had a fun time of his own. He went downtown and hung out with his diving friends. They played Mario Kart, ping pong and one other game. Stockton never lost a game. He got home shortly after Jorja did. Stockton, Jorja and I stayed up talking until 1:30 in the morning. We are going to be tired tomorrow!

Engineering Presentation

I found this picture on Jorja's phone. She said it was her president picture. These kids have been so nice to Jorja. Jorja will be sophomore president next year. Travin will be student body president next year and Kenzie was student body president this year. I really like both of these two friends of Jorja. They are incredibly kind. Great role models for her.

Jorja, Travin, Kenzie

Stockton had his huge engineering presentation today. He has worked on this for most of the semester. They are presenting their projects to a bunch of engineers. Stockton and Abby worked so hard yesterday finishing the last minute details. Stockton was so happy for about three minutes. He had everything perfect and was ready for bed. Then he accidentally broke the on switch. The piece flew off onto the floor. We searched and searched for it, but could not find the piece. Mike went to Best Buy and bought some bluetooth headphones and dropped them off at school. Stockton and Abby frantically rebuilt their project. They said they liked the new design even more. Stockton and Abby designed a watch that a deaf person could wear to hear the beats to music so they could dance. It is pretty darn cool.

Stockton

Stockton's friend, Acea, opened his mission call at 5:00. Stockton hurried to that. He is going to Manaus Brazil. Two friends called to Brazil this week. Stockton raced back to Alta for his presentation. It went really well. That is Stockton's last big school project of his high school career.

Stockton & Abby

 Stockton's engineering journal

 Abby's engineering journal

Jorja had her 'day date' for the dance tonight. It's weird how kids do day dates now. They ended up going to a cabin up the mountains. One of the girls' mom is an event planner. They use this cabin to host events. Jorja said it was pretty cool. They went on a hike and roasted hotdogs. I was super nervous letting Jorja drive up a canyon at night with someone I didn't even know. Jorja was great and texted me as soon as they got there and again before she left. I was really glad when she was home.

Jorja

 Ellie & Jorja

 Jorja & Mackie

Globglobgabgalab

Today was such a crazy, busy day. After school I took Jorja to Chick-Fil-A for a job interview. She finished that just in time for me to take Preston to diving. Stockton was staying at school to work on his engineering project. Preston did great at diving. He is getting better at his inwards. Preston and I came home to complete chaos. Stockton and Abby were here working on their engineering project. They are presenting tomorrow. Jorja was finalizing her costume for the dance on Saturday. The missionaries had just arrived. We took the missionaries to Sister Masters house. We talked to her a bit and was able to pick up a slip for Jorja's poodle skirt. Jorja taught Sister Gregorson about the Globglobgabgalab. They make me laugh.

It seems like there were a ton of other things going on, but I can't remember them right now because it is almost a week later! I hate being behind on my blog!

No Grade Kids

Jorja got to miss ballroom, lunch and seminary to help with the Special Olympics Alta was putting on for the elementary schools. Jorja had a great time. The kids liked to chase Jorja around and hit her with pool noodles. They would laugh because none of Jorja's friends would help her because they were too busy laughing at her.

Kenzie, Jorja, Carter, Finn

 Jorja and Carter

 Jorja and Mackie

Stockton stayed after school for the last National Honor Society meeting. They had a slide show. Stockton said it ended up being a power point presentation that he could tell was put together at the last minute. Mrs. Pugmire is in charge of NHS and was doing the slideshow. She is also Jorja's English teacher. Mrs. Pugmire had a huge picture of Jorja come up and said, "These are some of our 'No Grade' students" Hahahahahahaha!!!!!!! All the National Honor Students think Jorja is a slacker. Nevermind that she has a 4.0. Stockton laughed and laughed. He found it much more amusing than Jorja did!

I took Jorja and Preston to a Chinese event today. Jorja is .3% away from an A in Chinese, this is extra credit. A Chinese dance company is touring the United States. It was long, but pretty cool. The worst thing about it was finding the place. I hate driving to places that are new to me. As we were driving, Evan texted Jorja and said I cut them off! WHAT? I don't cut anyone off, ever! He then proceeded to text her about everything I did. 'Your blinker is on too long.' 'Now it's off.' 'Speed up!' That was a little unnerving.

Ariel, Jorja, Preston

 This pickle dance description made me laugh.

 Jorja and Ariel

Jorja went to elementary school with Ariel. She now goes to Corner Canyon High School. It was fun to run into her.

 Jorja and Preston on stage at the end of the show.

 Looks like Jorja got some sun during the Special Olympics. She will be feeling that tomorrow!

Odysseus

Jorja had to stay after school to make up a 'No Grade'. This is the first time one of my kids has had to do that. If you are late to the same class more than five times you get a 'No Grade'. Jorja has Chinese first period. She has been late three times this quarter. Some because of elections (trying to get her posters and shirts to the right people), some because of construction is going on/awful traffic, and some because she just didn't get ready in time. Anyway, one of the days she was late they were taking a practice Chinese AP test. Jorja wasn't more than 3 minutes late. The Chinese test was divided into different sections. Listening, speaking, writing and reading. Jorja's teacher marked her late on the assignment portion of Skyward, which gave her four tardies. Jorja does not like her Chinese teacher. She is scared of her. She decided just to stay after and make it up in the 'No Grade' class than talk to her teacher about it.

Jorja had some of her English classmates come over to work on their Odysseus project. Every group was assigned a different part of the book they had to recreate. This is what Jorja and her classmates came up with:

Once Jorja's friends left, she hurried to Young Womens for their Camp Kickoff. I picked her up about thirty minutes later when she had finished what she needed to do. She spent the next hour working on editing the video. At 8:30 she went and practiced for the trek dance for about an hour and then back to editing. It was a long day for her.

Stockton went to diving and came back with Gavin and Noelle. They went to Josh Holmes house to see him open his mission call. Josh dove with them a few years ago. Josh is going to Sao Paulo Brazil. Exciting!

Parking Meter

Stockton had his end of the year National Honor Society banquet for the seniors today. It was at The Spaghetti Factory. He seemed to have a great time. I took Preston to diving today. I use an app on my phone to pay for parking. The app will text me when time is running out. Preston messed with my phone and now I get texted from 'Annoying Parking Meter', he also added this picture to go with it.