Wow….we are so emotionally exhausted but we are so grateful to have been selected to participate in the Every 15 Minutes experience. I know that all of us are forever changed as individuals and as a family. The whole experience was so amazingly realistic and each of our hearts have been touched in ways we never would have imagined. I honestly believe that I will remember this educational experience and the emotions that go along with it for the rest of my life.

I commend the students, teachers, rescue workers, SJFD, SJPD, the ambulance people, the trauma team people, the morgue lady, and everyone who was involved in putting this together. Thank you all for everything you do everyday to make such a positive impact on our lives and those around us. God bless.

Aren’t they gorgeous!

Every year, Alanna and Fallon would have lunch and spend a day together in Carmel with Fallon’s mom Michelle. This year, the two girls went on their own. I don’t have all the details, but from the pictures I found on my camera, it looks like they had a great time

I’ve been sifting through our old digital photos, trying to get them sorted into at least some kind of category (like year!) and in one humongous “photos” file, instead of a little in this file, and a little in that file. Anywho, I recently stumbled on some holiday pictures from my first Christmas in 2000 with John and the girls. They were so small!!

While Kaileigh and I were enjoying our girl bonding time together, Jono and Alanna spent last weekend in Reno at Hot August Nights. They both had a great weekend and came home exhausted. Alanna and her friend Kimmy rode in the prade with Pat and Tina on Sunday – how fun is that! And all of them got to meet the Fonz, Ralph Malph, and Potsie from the sitcom Happy Days!

Last year they got to meet Cindy Williams from Laverne & Shirley. I think I’m gonna tag along next year with the hope that David Cassidy might be there!

All three kids are out of school as of this afternoon.  John-John had his last day today and is now officially a first-grader. Alanna and Kaileigh have been on summer vacation for a week now and have already been to the beach and Great America. It is hard to imagine that Alanna is going to be a Senior and Kaileigh a Sophmore. Where has the time gone?! I am sure we will keep asking ourselves this very same question for years to come. It continues to amaze me how fast the time flies.

Both the girls were asked to Winter Ball this year. This was Alanna’s third year going and Kaileigh’s first (and her first HS dance as well). They both looked so pretty and grown up!

I just got home from Ashes Ashes CD release show at MACLA. It was the first time I’ve been to this particular venue and I have to say, it’s a great place for an intimate show. The stage is up just high enough that everyone in the back can see and not too big that the band gets lost. It’s really dark and the music is really loud. 25 years ago, I would have lived in this place.

The show was really great. The kids were so excited to officially release their new CD, they all worked so hard. I think the fans were just as excited. Everyone with their hands in the air, singing along, and cheering. It was pretty cool to watch!

John and Alanna left for Southern California this morning. Ashes Ashes headed down there for a few days on the last week of their tour. The kids are pretty excited to be touring down south again. The highlight being their date tomorrow night at the Knitting Factory. I don’t know much about the place, but the fact that I’ve heard of it, I know it’s a big venue for them. I’m crossing my fingers that everything goes smoothly, and wishing I was there to cheer them on. What a cool dream to live.

We attended Alanna’s Conservatory Recital program this evening. I really enjoy going to these recitals, you get to see the kids at the beginning of the year, then again at the end of the year. It’s amazing how much some of them develop. They’re all so fantastic!

Alanna struggled with this recital a little this year. In the past, she’s always performed an original piece, something that was completely different than what the other students perform. She’s also one of the few vocal students in the music conservatory program. This year, she decided to sing “My Funny Valentine” instead of performing an original. We’re used to having her just pull something out of the air and it turns out great, so having her performing a song that wasn’t her own, was a little disappointing. None the less, I was looking forward to the recital.

What a surprise it was when she walked out on stage and said “I know in the program it says I’m going to perform My Funny Valentine, but instead, I’m going to perform an original song”. Huh? What? Did I hear that correctly???

She never ceases to amaze me how talented she is. She can just come up with something on the fly, perform it and have it be fantastic! I loved the song she performed. The best part was that she performed it on the piano, where in the past she performed with her guitar. She’s so talented.

Alanna announcing she’s going to play an original song.

At the piano