We’ll Sing A Song That We All Know

Best part of my week was definitely going to Nevada to celebrate M’Li’s 58th birthday with Kirsta and her family. Kirsta found out that Howard Jones and ABC, two of our favorite bands from the 1980’s were playing on M’Li’s actual birthday, so how could we NOT go? The sweet thing for me is that Howard Jones was my first concert as a teenager and M’Li took me to his concert on a beautiful hill in Park City on my 16th birthday, so it was also a full circle moment for me.

Best things we did:

- water aerobics in Kirsta’s pool with KJ and Ivy

-Savers, The Dollar Tree and grocery shopping with Kirsta and Ivy

-Decorating for the birthday together

-Burgers and fritters with zucchinis, tomatoes and onions from M’Li’s garden

-Just chilling and laughing together and catching up with Bill, Will and Ivy. They are so great!

-Paige called during breakfast and said the blessing on our food. It really felt like for a few minutes all of the Nielson Sisters were together again!

-Going INSIDE the house at 1344 Chestnut Lane and talking to the son-in-law of the current owners who is helping to remodel it. Steve and Connie Hansen, who used to live down the street from us on Chestnut Lane bought it in 1989 and raised their kids there. They had a water leak in April this year that made them decide they should just gut it (except for the room I used to share with Paige, which became a master closet) and remodel. Ronnie, who was talking to us, intends to do a great job of remodeling because he wants to raise his kids there too when his parents-in-law are done with the house.

-Going to church on 5th Street in Boulder City, where Kristen Tobler Torgeson’s husband Gerry is the bishop. I got to hug Kristin and tell her to pass on my love to Lori Delp, who moved back to Boulder City. They walk together once a week.

-Parking spots and Mexican food that were precisely right for Mom.

-Going to a concert at the Virgin Hotel Theater: Haircut 100, ABC and Howard Jones were SO MUCH FUN! I came away with a new respect for Howard Jones as a musician and a performer. And Kirsta came away with a drunk agoraphobic concert buddy for life! 

M’Li (and I a little bit) gave Kirsta a fun haircut. 

A picture where we had our pictures taken after our baptisms.

This is looking into our old dining room where I remember Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. And fake grapes that we liked to steal and chew on.

Looking out onto the patio where I chipped my front teeth and where we had a hot tub that gave me a concerning rash and where we hosted Corrie Jensen Anderson’s wedding reception. Behind the spiral staircase on the pool deck is where Kirsta had her front two teeth knocked out as a toddler.

Inside the closet where Paige wrote her angry things about mom on the walls.

Inside the entryway we all had to dust mop

Kirsta outside the Boulder City hospital where she was born almost exactly 50 years ago.

We woke up like this. Hahahahaha! Happy birthday M’Li!

On a hot walk together. Well, I think it had cooled down to 102. And there was a breeze! So it was totally manageable. Like a very gentle convection oven, only set to dehydrate.

I took pictures of Ivy about to drive away to hang out with her friend Amy at Target.

Ivy about to get drivey 

Kirsta giving some sass in the purple wig I bought.

Wondering if we should return to the 80’s style for our concert. 15 bucks seemed steep for a one time wear.

My true love and I also celebrated our 33rd wedding anniversary (the next day, which actually belongs to Paige and John) by going out to eat at Lazia, a fun Italian restaurant in the Crossroads Hotel. We had a fun view of a gritty graffiti alley with string lights and we got to sit side by side on a comfy couch while we ate some amazingly good salad, tableside-made caprese, a couple of fun pastas and a delightful chocolate blackberry dessert.

There was an outstandingly beautiful sunset after stake council. The camera didn’t do it justice.

I dropped off some donations and got some pictures for the Independence Stake’s clothing drive, which gets amazingly larger each year. Most of the volunteers and the people who come to get free clothes are Spanish speakers in the Santa Fe Branch.

They expanded to include toys, baby gear and maternity clothes this year.

Carmen Bosch makes this happen. She sometimes asks for clarification for English things she doesn’t feel like she understands, but I think does much better in English than I do in Spanish.

This sweet volunteer wanted her face shown in the picture and made sure she was unmasked for the photo op.

Eve and Griffin started 6th grade. Eve is in Mrs. Mullin’s homeroom and Griffin is in Mr. Williams’ homeroom. So far they seem unimpressed. They did do some fun sixth grade gang signs and outfit checks for me before I drove away to the temple and Wyatt walked them to their first day.

Wyatt and I both got pics of UV napping in a basket.

One fun thing happened on the way home from my trip. I sat by a guy who totally reminded me of Joel. He was smart, totally conversant on any subject that came up, had dark hair, eyes and eyebrows and cute freckles over a nose shaped like Joel's and sported a short beard. He was a spiritual seeker and told me about his meditation practice and about being in a sensory deprivation tank. His mother was Danish, he spoke Danish and had visited the island of Bornholm and his father's family were Ukranian Jews, and his name was Peter. It felt almost like a visit with Joel.