Drama Queen and the Utah Shakespearean Festival!

We were so excited when Drama Queen told us that she was picked to participate in an internship with the Utah Shakespearean Festival this season. We love USF, and we love Drama Queen. It's a perfect combination. We can't take pictures of her in her costumes for Amadeus or South Pacific, but here are a couple of her working the crowd as part of the Greenshow.

So everyone head on down to the Cedar City and catch our girl in one of these fabulous performances!

Most Happy Girl stats (for today)

**Stolen from Dizzy Dandelion's blog**

Just for fun:

WHAT'S YOURS?
Age: 48 (almost 49)
Relationship status: married
Biggest fear: bad things happening to my family
Dream job: wife (nailed it)
Dream car: Something with heated leather seats
Dream house: 7-10 acres with lots of trees and a house that's not too big to clean easily

FAVORITE*:
Artist: Drama Queen
Movie: It's a Wonderful Life followed closely by Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Song: You mean like picking a favorite child?
TV series: Chuck
Animal: Penguin
Book: The Door in the Hedge by Robin McKinley
Color: Green

THIS OR THAT?
Twitter or Facebook: Facebook
Snapchat or Instagram: Instagram
Pandor or YouTube: YouTube
Coke or Pepsi: Don't really like either
Tea or Coffee: neither
Tacos or Pizza: Tacos, no piz-arrrgggghhh!!!
Winter or summer: winter

WOULD YOU EVER?
Get married: Uh...see relationship status
Have kids: Yes
Swim with sharks: Yes
Daredevil stunts: Not really my thing
Jump out of a helicopter: If it's only about three feet off the ground and I have something soft to land on

How about you?

*Some of the answers in the FAVORITE section change depending on the day and my mood

Lawyer-in-the-Works graduates to Lawyer-in-the-Family

We just came back from a lovely trip to Spokane, Washington to visit Lawyer-in-the-Works for her law school graduation. It was truly memorable. Her class ranking was 25th, and she graduated with honors (Magna Cum Laude). It was also wonderful to meet her new man, Seahawk's #1 Fan, and get to know him and his family. Here's a quick picture I grabbed of them after the ceremony.

The Joy of Singing

In August, Mr. Perfect joined the Utah Symphony Chorus. This fall, he had the opportunity to sing Mahler's Symphony #2 (The Resurrection Symphony), Beethoven's Symphony #9 (The Chorus Symphony) and Handel's Messiah. He had a blast! And it was so much fun attending the symphony to listen to him perform.

This month (January 2015), the chorus had auditions for more singers, so Most Happy Girl took the plunge and joined the fun. The music is challenging, the amount of music is frantic, and the rehearsals are filled with non-stop singing for 1-1/2 to 3 hours (depending on what we are working on).

In early February, the women only will be singing Mahler's Symphony #3, so it will be Mr. Perfect's turn to bring the Mamas and enjoy the performance from the audience as Most Happy Girl sings her heart out (in German).

Papa P.

My father passed away the Sunday before Thanksgiving. He had been declining for a while. During that time, I wrote the following post, but was asked by some family members to remove it for privacy during Dad's illness. To the end, he maintained his sense of humor, his love of Mom P. and his love for his family. I miss him every day, but I rejoice in the life he lived, the legacy he gave to all of his posterity, and the knowledge that he is whole and happy and waiting for us to join him.

(Originally written in August 2013)

For the past two weeks, I've been working through how I wanted to write this post. In January, we lost Dad M. after a serious brain injury. Now Papa P. is experiencing his own form of brain injury, only his will be very drawn out and lingering. For the past several months, we've all notice a dramatic decline in Papa P.'s memory, his desire for physical activity, and walking. He has had difficulty remembering some names and relationships, and he started shuffling instead of walking with full strides, like Tim Conway's Old Man character.

After a series of tests with several doctors over the past five months, we now have an official diagnosis: dementia and some Alzheimer's. He has had many infarcts (mini strokes) that are affecting his motor skills. His thyroid is also slowly dying, which has drastically affected his desire and ability to stay active. He is already showing improvement from the thyroid medication, and Mom P. does what she can to gently encourage him to be active, help around the house where he can, and get out to activities or just walking around the mall.

One of the things that our family doctor told us is that the shuffling isn't his fault. It is actually one of the most common side affects, and therefore signs, of dementia. It's part of the loss of motor skills Papa P. is experiencing. We also need to be careful about taking as good of care as Mom P. as we do Papa P. We do not want her to wear herself out and get sick. Her health is paramount in helping Papa P. manage his illness and live a happy and fulfilling life.

I know it will not always be easy, but I also know that this life is not the end. Even though Papa P. may not remember the music he used to play so effortlessly and he may eventually have to be reminded of my name when I talk to him, one day all that he is and all that should be his will be restored to him. I'm grateful for that knowledge.

I love you, Papa.