a trip to santa rosa

i must tell my posterity that Heavenly Father has really blessed their grama susie. santa rosa is an absolutely beautiful little place to be. the weather was perfect, the landscape was gorgeous, the only thing that will be missing for the next three years will be the people we have to leave behind! (mind you, that is huge, but at least we will be where there are beautiful surroundings, and we are only a short plane ride away from "the people"!)

keri and i flew into san francisco last thursday morning, took bart into the city, shopped, bought some missionary skirts (painful), jumped into our rental car (it looked like lightning mcqueen, lauren's favorite), plugged in the gps navigaiton system and headed for santa rosa!


lightning queen!


the golden gate bridge!

the drive was beautiful! it took us about an hour and a half - traffic was only bad off and on...all in all a great journey! we found out later that horizon air (a subsidiary of alaskan airlines) flies from las vegas to sonoma county airport (santa rosa) for not too bad a price. unless someone wants to see san fran, we can bypass that three hour round trip. :)



santa rosa has a cute downtown and after we checked in, we walked to the very best restaurant ever. the hotel clerk recommended LoCoCo's (italian), and we loved every biteful! a "must eat" for any future visitors!

friday morning we met up with a childhood friend, valerie (ence) hardisty, who had offered to show us around a bit. we went to hailey's high school (it was spring break/bummer), saw our new church, saw some deer, and went to our soon-to-be new abode!


me and valerie!


inner courtyard of the school.


hailey will be a PUMA!


maria carillo high school!


the deer!


view of the hill behind the school from the church.


the house!


the view from the back porch.

after sister stoddard showed us around we went to lunch and she tried to tell me everything i would need to know for the next three years. yikes! seeing the house and the school; that gave me a good feeling. by the time we were finished with lunch, i thought my head might explode. luckily, keri and i got to be tourists again after lunch and we took a drive to the beach; bodega bay. what an incredible drive! i kept thinking the whole way how comfortable brent and michelle would be in this part of the world. there were cows, barns, ranches...i was even comfortable. i think it is a great blessing for me to have "a little bit of country" in me. i think jon is in for the biggest adjustment missing the city. we'll see. i don't really like that the city was shutting down at 9:00 at night either. my visiting children will have to get used to it. :)





it was great to be able to see it all in person. our "handbook" told us not to visit the mission before we were to arrive! i had planned just to see the school, get the details worked out and drive past the house. i never planned to let the stoddard's know i was coming. i'm not sure how they found out, but they did! it sort of freaked me out, but i'm so glad i was able to meet her and see the house inside and out. sister stoddard was so wonderful, and welcomed us with open arms. (note to self: be wonderful in three years when leaving.) she had sent us a handful of pictures of the house about a month ago. they were (to put it mildly) depressing. in person, it is much better! i think i will miss my shutters the most...

i couldn't have asked for a better traveling companion. keri was SO VERY POSITIVE about everything! again, she showed me how to be a true and loving friend, by her support, her smile, her jokes, her laugh, and her encouragement. I AM BLESSED!!!

i wrote hailey a text message while i was there and said, "we are going to like santa rosa! i'm so glad you are coming with us." she wrote me back and said, "i'm excited to be able to go with you too! i love you mommy!" her excitement and sadness comes and goes...just like mine. she's normal. but i think we are going to be very happy!

Spotlight Dance Cup 2009

On April 21st Megan had another dance competition, but this one was here in town. As expected they did very well! They did have some stiff competition from a couple of studios though, and that always makes it feel better when you win. They got all diamonds (except jazz?), most category winners, most overall awards, several judges choice awards, and a director's choice award!

What I was most excited about though, was how well she did her solo! She also got a diamond for that and a judges choice award. The "Smooth As Silk" award because of her beautiful flowing moves and arms. Way to go Megan! Not bad for your second time ever!!! WHOOP! WHOOP!

Here is Megs with a few of her adoring fans! :)




On a side note:
1-Kathy is planning a BENEFIT CONCERT to raise money for the Rising Star Outreach foundation. (trying to end leprosy) It will be Tuesday evening May 12th. If anyone wants a ticket, please let me know!
2-End of year concert will be June 12 & 13th. Again, let me know if you want a ticket.
3-Nationals will be June 29-July 3rd at the Flamingo Hotel, and July 4-10th at the Mirage!
Mark your calendars NOW! haha...

EIGHTEEN YEARS OLD!

Happy, Happy Birthday to Miss Megan





My goodness. Where have the years gone? It is hard to believe "me-megan" is eighteen years old. She has been a JOYFUL child! We all love her so very much. Here are some of the reasons why:

Hailey - "nothing holds her back, she is funny, she is not afraid to be herself all the time, she easily plays along with jokes, she is determined!"
Sadie - "i love her smile! she is easy to be around and i always have my most fun when i'm with her! she's awesome."
Tod - "I love Megan's smile, kindness and her desire for new adventures and challenges."
Kristen - "she always likes to have fun! we both have a crush on Julian from one tree hill. :)"
Mike - "her smile, her laugh, she lives in her own world, her confidence!"
Sue - "i love her clothes, her shoes (ha!ha! little inside joke), even though i do love her very fun style sense there is so much more to megan that is wonderful! i love her testimony, and her desire to share the 'good news' with her friends. she's like the energizer bunny...she keeps on trying even though it doesn't always get accepted like she would like! i love when i get to spend time one on one with megan! it doesn't happen very often, but i like spending time with her! she makes me laugh, and she can laugh at herself. she is really a sweet, beautiful person. :)"
Jon - "spiritually: her missionary example and spirit, her prayers, her testimony, her leading the singing in Sacrament, her faith.
physically: her big, round, beautiful eyes; her big, warm, loving smile; her perfect, graceful, flowing dance technique and incredible lines; her happy, infectious laugh; her adventuresomeness.
other: megan is slow to judge, slow to anger, will never talk badly behind someone's back (friend or foe), but is very quick and eager to forgive. she simply values harmony, peace and love more than competition, pride or arrogance. I absolutely love and admire her for that and hope that i can grow up to be like her in that way some day!"

We are so lucky to be a part of her family! She is one in a million!

What is she thinking these days?

What are you thinking you want to study in college?
I want to be a college graduate and a really smart mom!

Tell me three things most people don't know about you.
1- the #1 thing that annoys me the most is people who don't answer their phone (hint hint: Kristen Gardineer).
2- i'd rather watch old dance videos on a saturday night than go out.
3- i share my father's singing ability, national anthem is my forte.



Favorite color? yellow


Singer? anything but country
Clothing item? sweat pants & sweat shirts
Heels or flats? converses

What is your favorite dance this year?
I'm really sick of them all, but the ones I like performing the most...mumbia and free fallin'.

Megan, we love you and hope your nineteenth year of life is full of wonderful adventures, much health and lots of happiness!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEAUTIFUL!

march madness

tod just walked in and said, "have you checked how well your doing on your bracket picks?" i said, "no!" (fully expecting that i would be rock bottom.) i got up this morning and remembered that i better hurry and get my bracket filled out or i would miss out on the fun this march. it took me no time at all to click on my random set of teams, and after last years disgraceful showing, i wasn't planning on winning much. but, guess what? tod and i are tied for second, one under mikey g. and you know why i'm not on top with mikey g.? byu. b.y.u. i didn't want to go against them. i was trying to will them a first round win by picking them, and look what they did to me? my only bad pick so far...

oh well. i had to quick post it while i was almost on top! i figure by the time the games are over tonight, i could be starting my disgraceful decline, so why not celebrate while you can, right? thanks for the laughs my son. you rock!

good news minute!

1-SHE GOT IT!


i have an announcement to make! we went to the mailbox last night and sitting inside was a letter addressed to megan bunker from uvu! in it they were pleased to inform megan that she had been accepted as a member of the Synergy Dance Company and that she has been selected for a Modern Dance Exceptional Performance full non-resident scholarship award. WOO HOO! I guess the many, many long hours and days and weeks and months and years of dancing has finally paid off! We are so happy for her!!!

GOOD JOB MEGAN!



and 2- someone, (no names allowed) kissed a boy this week!
we are so happy for her too! :)
got ya!

what's NEW with the CRU?

1-Tod has been in Virginia for a few days on business! A couple of nights ago he went with his good friend Ben Ness (a Secret Service agent) to have an "up close and personal" tour of the white house. What a lucky dog. :)


The oval office.



The West Wing. Ben, Tod, Colt.



Tod would be an intelligent, good looking press secretary, don't you think?

2-Sadie went to a Laker/Suns game at the Staples center with seven of her favorite men. (Jon, Tod, Mike, Brent, Jared, Scott, and Stacy) It will be a trip she'll never forget. :) This weekend she is in Provo. Her good friend Lauren Angerola is being baptized. Guess what? It was snowing last night when she arrived. A special present for a cute girl who absolutely adores the snow. NOT!



3-Megan had her wisdom teeth extracted yesterday morning. It has been a tough go over the past 24 hours (she fainted, threw up, basically scared me to death!), but I think she is making a return to her normal self. I will be a very BAD, UNQUALIFIED mission nurse. I can tell we will spend a lot of time seeking the professionals help. :) Anyway, back to Megan, so far, she isn't too swollen. If it gets funny, I'll take a picture and post it for everyone's enjoyment!

4-Hailey got some new glasses (FINALLY) and a hair cut! The bottom 4 or 5 inches had turned into strings hanging from her head. She looks adorable and like she has healthy hair again!


BEFORE!


AFTER!

5-Wednesday was Senior night and the Rebels last home game! I will miss watching Wink, Rene, Joe and Mo.


I was very sad when I realized our New Beginnings fell on the same night as senior night. The news brought Hailey to tears. :( But New Beginnings was great and I think we didn't miss much at the game; except giving our boys a proper send off from three of their biggest fans! I'm glad we had Mike, Kristen, Lauren, Beau, Jon and Sadie there to represent us. I'm praying for a miracle next week at the Mountain West Conference Tournament. GO REBELS!




A picture that turned into a movie. :)

6-Alden Levi (my father) has made an amazing recovery. From one Sunday to the next was a complete turn around. :) I think he will be with us for a while. I am SO HAPPY!

LA Danceforce

some photos of "risky business".

this year, bunker dance center decided to try a new competition! we traveled to anaheim and attended la danceforce. we had fun and the girls performed brilliantly! since our last competition in utah megan has learned her solo, another tap dance, another modern dance, and re-did their indian production number. usually kathy has them "cleaning" the numbers a ton before a competition, but this time there was no time. they were learning choreography the night before we left town! i figured the new stuff would be pretty messy...NOT SO!
they rocked the house!

their new modern number "toe the line" won the best overall senior company award and $250. (loved it!)
"seated in thought" (the big winner in the past) won the best overall group award $200 and the senior regional champion $350.
"between the light and me" won the choreography excellence award and $50.
"composition of me" won the judges choice award $250, and the teen regional champion $350.



in case you are wondering, megan gets NO cut of the prize money. :( it all goes to the studio!
she was so fun to watch doing her solo! that was the first time she has ever done one, and i was so proud of her! i was going to upload the video, but i'm thinking you all need a break from my crummy videotaping skills!
congratulations to megan and her team mates!!

before the competition started on saturday, sadie, hailey and i decided to enjoy a little beach time! jon dropped us off at huntington beach for a few hours and i was shocked! before we left the hotel, i was telling hailey to bring a jacket, i was sure it was going to be freezing! after ten minutes they were both stripped down to their swim wear and i was sweating in my sweat clothes! it was a gorgeous sunny day, and on february 28, they both got sunburned! i swear i've been to the beach in june with blankets on. having the sun out makes such a difference! :)




what a great weekend!