Because we can't seem to stop throwing neighborhood parties: St. Patrick's Day, By Mindy

Lots of luck will come your way if you join us for St. Patty's Day!

Ye are hereby invited to a Wearin' of t'Green Party celebrating St. Patrick's Day! March 17th will always be a special day for Clan Larsen, having spent four illustrious months on the Emerald Isle, so we want you to come help us celebrate all things Irish! (well, except for the food - Irish food is really bland). Your whole family is invited for music, merriment, dinner (BYO soup - Ireland is a cold country), limerick contests, a green dessert buffet, a game or two, and a general good time. T'will be a very casual night among friends - don't miss it! and do RSVP by Friday so I know who's coming!

Date: Saturday, March 17th
Time: 5:00 PM - ? whenever the little green men go dancin' home
Place: Larsen Barn
Wear: green, of course!
Bring: a pot of your favorite soup. I will take care of bread, drinks, salads and desserts.
RSVP by email or phone

Tanks a million, Mindy

Very Random, Late Winter Observations

1. I'm grateful to my dog, not only for giving me unconditional love 24/7, but for getting me outside more often than in the past (for pee pee walks) so I can appreciate the beautiful moods of an Idaho winter. Watching the moon wax and wane, looking surrealistically crisp and close in the chill night air; gazing at the gazillion stars visible in a clear sky, especially my friends Orion, Cassiopeia and the Big Dipper; laughing as Bella bounces and pounces in new snow like it's the best toy ever invented; admiring the crystalline frost blooming on the wood slats on my back porch in the morning light as my big black Boo tumbles down the steps, eager for her walk; enjoying the same frost forming on my eyelashes on the longer walks in 8 degree weather... it all truly has been delightful. I'm glad I'm in a place now where I can love, appreciate and care for a dog - she has given me much in return!

2. If you have bronchitis for over a month and it's getting worse, the only way to get rid of it (evidently) is to cancel every activity not strictly necessary, stay very warm all the time, get tons of rest, and stay inside. (This is where Bella's morning walks took the form of me driving along beside her in the car while she ran along beside me.) Honestly, it felt great to actually take it easy, and I got better. Fatter, yes, because Zumba was verboten as well, but still, it was nice to make progress after six weeks of ickiness and an horrendous cough. Note to self, Mindy: sometimes it's O-KAY to slow down!

3. As nice as the warmer weather has been lately, I'm not quite ready for the mud. Spring in Idaho in the country = mud. I actually would be fine with another month or two of snow, if only we got some good storms that really dumped a ton of the lovely stuff and cold enough temperatures to keep it here. We haven't even had a good sledding day at Rigby Lake yet this year! As ready for spring as I usually am... I don't really feel like I've had a winter yet! Not in the Rexburg sense, at any rate!

4. Nothing is sweeter to a mom than having her five year-old son voluntarily wrap his arms around her neck and tell her he loves her. Especially if that five year old boy is Spencer and the mom is me. My kids can be pieces of work but oh they bring such joy! How I love the little buggers!

5. If we don't find a morally courageous, fiscally responsible, true conservative to trounce Obama in November and slow down our current slippery slope trajectory, I'm going to be sick. Since I have friends on both sides of the aisle, and I do try very hard to appreciate other perspectives, that's all I'll say. Here, anyway. With Gary it's another story. I've found though that you should NOT talk politics before trying to go to bed - not only will it give you indigestion, but it will keep you up all night, absolutely tied in knots. Sometimes I think it would be so much easier to just not care...but that's not me.

5. My hollyhocks are starting to grow already. Bless them. There's a sign of hope if ever there was one!

QOTD

Quote of the day:

Women are angels. And when someone breaks our wings, we just continue to fly... on a broomstick. We're flexible like that.

Yup.

Maggie's Boston Tea Party School Skit

Maggie was chosen to be the narrator of her fifth grade class play. She had the longest part by far, and Gary and I worked with her to learn her lines. She has an amazing memory and learned each section almost instantly. She's the one in pink at the corner of the stage. Gram and Nana this is mostly for you - enjoy!

Ahhhh...

Sleep in, check. File taxes with huge refund, check. Take dog on nice long walk, check. Redecorate daughters' bedroom a la Maui, check. Nap, check. Update blog, check. Sip hot chocolate while watching blizzard outside, check. Cuddle with kids while watching a movie, check.

What a lovely day.

Gag Me With the 80s

Okay, here they are, pictures of The Big Night. Apologies in advance for my camera - it says point and click but evidently it's not as simple as it seems because almost none of these turned out. Still, they'll give an idea of the totally radical time had by the over 70 decked-out, party-ready attendees!

The order of the party went:

-6:30 arrival, mingling, comparing of shoulder pad widths and fluorescent attire
-make your own ugly 80s corsage or boutonniere at the flower power table
-pictures taken (and printed, and mounted in a fab envelope to take home) at the Pretty in Pink photo backdrop
-play Frogger on the original Atari on the big screen in the corner
-7:00 Dinner (chateaubriand, cream cheese chicken, mashed potatoes, caesar salad, poppyseed salad, homemade rolls, sparkling cider and punch)
-Dessert at the unbelieveable, tiered, underlit, gorgeous dessert table created by the incomparable S. herself (my partner in crime)
-80's trivia sheets on tables as people finished dinner; Thriller music video playing in background
-Name that Tune with 80s sitcom and movie theme songs
-prizes for Trivia and Name that Tune
-performance by our Festival Team: traditional clogging, 80s medley, contemporary clogging
-open dance floor - EVERYONE danced! It was awesome!
-crowning of Prom King and Queen (Stephanie Ricks and Emi Flamm - we deviated a little from tradition but they earned it - they had wicked moves on the dance floor!)
-more dessert and dancing
-10:30 the coach turned back into a pumpkin and we had to clean up. And turn the lights back on. :-( I loved our hula hoop chandeliers! The dining room was SO pretty!

Special thanks go to R. and S. A. - we should eat Sunday dinner with you every week because look what happens when we get our great minds together! S did half the work; I could not have done it without her. Same time next month? :-) Also to Dad and Nanny for coming out a bit early to check out the final arrangements; my ever-fabulous, wonderful, talented mother who stepped in as pitch hitter in food prep during the first hour of the party and totally made the whole thing work; Terry and Eileen Wilcox (!!!) who supplied the tables, most of the chairs, the centerpieces, and the camera and printer - I have the most supportive dance parents in the world!; the Kellys, Stones and Kings who mashed the finest potatoes in three counties; and everyone who came, ate, danced and partied like it was 1999. I'll have a total eclipse of the heart if we don't do it all again next year!

Your Invite to the Most Bodacious 80's Valentine's Dinner Dance Ever!

Brush off your rubber bracelets, grow out your mullet, and pull that 80's monstrosity prom dress out of the closet - Footworks Dance Studio announces the "most excellent" 80's-themed Valentine's Day Dinner Party ever! Why dump a load of cash on a mediocre meal at a chain restaurant this Valentine's Day? Treat her - or him - right and come to our 80's bash for the best tunes, tastes and talent around! It'll be awesome to the max!

*Bedazzle your senses with our Filet Mignon or Chicken gourmet meal, with salads (Caesar and poppyseed), mashed potatoes, homemade rolls, and sparkling cider. And a "non spiked" punch bowl, of course. Because what's an 80's party without a punch bowl? and pop rocks? And rubix cubes? Like, we're so totally happening!

*Entice the date of your dreams with promises of strawberries dipped at our chocolate fountain!

*Get your Crazy 80s picture taken with your group, to take home as a souvenir of the night when all your wildest dreams came true
*Make your date a customized corsage or boutonniere at our flower table

*Floor show featuring our 2012 Festival Team's totally rad "Gag Me With the 80s" medley

*Thiller demo and teaching option (BYOG - bring your own glove)

*Request your fav tunes for the open dance floor under the glowing disco ball. Duran Duran, Flock of Seagulls and Boy George are already cued up.

*Vote for Pedro (or the most outrageously dressed guest) to be our Prom king or queen

*80's trivia contest (no looking up the answers on iPhones allowed - like, that's so totally NOT 80's)

*Contests, door prizes, and giveaways galore! Like, you could win, like, totally serious prizes!
*This invite will make a Splash so show you're Footloose (and not a Gremlin) by passing it on to anyone who might be interested!

Date: Friday February 10th, 2012

Time: 6:30-10:00 PM

Place: Footworks Dance Studio, 1561 W 5500 S, Rexburg (we'll gladly valet your DeLorean for you, though we can't promise not to sneak a peak at your flux capacitor)

Cost: $35/couple, with proceeds going towards our Festival Team costumes.

Threads: anything you can bust a move in that brings out your 80's pride. Feathered hair, leg warmers, and cell phones the size of a shoe box win you extra points.

RSVP by FEBRUARY 9th to: Mindy at 351-2301 or idahofootworks@yahoo.com

Be there or be square! but it's hip to be square...