Lydia Elise: 11.5 Years

Happy half-birthday Lydia-darling! 

The more you grow the more incredible you become. I genuinely just enjoy spending time with you and am here for you through thick and thin. 

Growing up isn't always easy and we are consistently working to navigate the big emotions that come with growing up. Emotions, expectations, boundaries, relationships - they all take work and we are putting in the effort on both sides to have healthy and happy lives (now and in the future). We depend on Lydia a lot, and she has turned into our #1 babysitter. She is hardworking, dependable, kind, and creative. It is normal to feel overwhelmed or upset when things dont go your way and we are navigating those choppy waters together. 

Some things about Lydia right now: 

-She's involved in a lot of things: Piano, makerspace, Girls Club, Coop, SPARK Coop, primary activities and other things I'm sure I'm forgetting. Sometimes this is a lot but she's doing a great job. 

-Her favorite candy right now are Albanese Gummy Bears and her favorite food is anything potatoes. 

-Favorite book she's read recently: Mr. Lemoncello's Library (series)

 -Her favorite outfit is her lepoard shirt, shorts, and shoes. 

-She is so excited to have her very own pet bird! 

Here are some highlights of the past 6 months with Lydia: 

-Her half-birthday wish came true and she became an official pet owner! Polly the parakeet is the newest addition to our family. 

-Lydia is the valiant leader of the Cousin Crew. 

End of School festivities: Lemonade Stand, Hope of America, Coop, Readathon, Last Day of School Cones. Lydia had a great school year and has been involved in some really neat things. 

The end of school Lagoon trip was a success this year and Lydia had a great time.  

-Learning new skills as a member of a Spring Soccer Team and a Summer Softball Team. 

Two things Lydia Loves: 

Harry Potter (We have been reading the sixth book and are almost done!) 

Dogs (G&G Walker got a new puppy, Pippi, and Lydia is in dog heaven) 

Going on a Kid Date with Dad to the play "Oliver" at Hale Center Theater. 

The other day that Lydia told me her favorite place in the entire world is the Summer Range. We went camping there this summer and Lydia's love for that place deepened. 

A typical breakfast (or any meal) has Lydia eating with a book in one hand (until she's reminded of using good manners at the table). She is a multi-tasker and truly believes that she can do any task (eating, brushing her teeth, getting dressed, doing her homeschool) while also reading a book. Below she reads a book while finishing breakfast and working on a crochet project. Also, she was hired by a neighbor to crochet a turnip for a Halloween costume. This girl is impressive. 

She's such a great big sister to Lucy and one of my joys in life is how much they both like wearing matching dresses. It makes my heart so happy. 

This summer we spent a lot of time at the pool and not nearly enough time at the lake. 

We try to go to Maple Canyon at least every other year. This year, things didn't work out perfect to camp- but the kids and I still snuck down and slept overnight in the back of the van. It was a great time and we loved this special place. We've also started the tradition that whenever we go to Ephraim, we stop at the Malt Shop to get a special drink (and sometimes piccadillies). 

Lydia got to volunteer at the Saratoga Springs Temple Open House. She served as a youth usher putting on foot coverings and also was able to hold the door for people entering the temple. It's been a neat experience for her to watch this temple be built and participate in the open house. She is excited to attend the temple in January!  

Lydia loves dogs and has started dog-sitting for several neighbors. She doesn't limit her love for animals to dogs though. We went to a local farm for a field trip and Lydia made a valiant effort to convince us to get a pet pig. 

Visiting with Grandma Knowles in Morgan, reading books on the porch swing together. 

Hiking the Timpanogos Cave Hike with the family. 

Lydia is quite the cowgirl. She loves to go to Wyoming and visit the animals there. She and my dad have a special bond and he loves when she gears up to work on the ranch with him. This year at branding she got in the chute and helped push cows. She did a great job! 

Halloween

Haunted house making, princess dress-up-ing, and pumpking carving. 

Lydia dressed up as Queen Susan the Gentle (from Narnia) for Halloween and she looked amazing! 

We got Cornbelly's passes and Lydia definitely got her money's worth out of the experience! 

Sunflower Festival - I love these pictures of her. (also a fall hike we went on together)

We went to the theater to watch the new paw patrol movie. The kids all dressed up as their favorite pup, and it was giving me all the feels because I was seeing little 4-year old Lydia dressed up Like Zuma but then I'd blink again and she was 11 year old Lydia who was only dressing up to appease her siblings. 

We went to the most amazing production of James and the Giant Peach at the Hale. 

Lydia is in a darling primary class called "Valiant Primary" - they are separated from the regular primary classes and are hyper-focused on preparing them for YW and YM. I love that they have a specific choir teacher who teaches them songs and gives them the opportunity to sing in Sacrament meetings.  

We spend every Thursday with Sue and Cal. They are such amazing grandparents. Here we are doing a special "dinner date" that we gave to Sue for Mothers Day (left) and Cal and Sue are giving the kids stuffed animals that they brought back from Yellowstone (right).  

School started again and we jumped back in with our Friday Field Trips. One of our favorites: Berry Picking. 

Lydia and I went to an overnight Stake Womens activity. We had fun attending classes together, but my favorite part was that we woke up at 5 am to go on a sunrise hike together. I loved this experience with her. 

Rainbow Day has to make it into Lydia's six-month review because loves it so much. 

More swimming to finish out the season. We loved that Cal and Sue (and Jacob and Aubrey) came one day to have a swim party with us.

We had the really neat opportunity to attend the dedication of the Saratoga Springs temple in person, at the temple. I hope that Lydia always feels the peace and power that come from the temple. 

We had a Mario party and invited some friends. Lydia asked if she and Sarah could make some treats and they made some Mario themed rice-crispies. I love how creative and able to make her vision a reality. 

Last lake day of the season. Lydia is a good friend, a kind sister, a capable human. I love seeing her experience the world around her. 

Living her best life, creating things and going on dates with dad. 

This is such a tender memory. Lydia was able to go to Wyoming with my dad to help with Haying. They stopped at Walmart on the way up and sent me a picture of her with new cowgirl boots, gloves, work shirt, and hat. She drove a tractor for hours on end and was a huge help in getting the haying done. She and my dad stayed at my Grandpa's house and she got to spend some really quality time with him. They went out to Church Butte to wander around and explore and to the Summer Range (the favorite place of Lydia, my dad, and my grandpa). Less than 10 days later, Grandpa had passed away. I love that Lydia got to have that experience with him and that she was with him on his last trip out exploring. 

This is another tender memory. Lydia got to wear my Grandma Knowles' wedding dress at the fashion show for her 90th birthday party. She was beautiful and it was a really sweet connection for them to make together. I love the picture of her holding the picture of my grandma on her wedding day while wearing the wedding dress. I love things like that. 

Also as part of Grandma's Birthday Celebration we hiked to the M for a sunrise hike that morning. Lydia was the only child that wanted to come so she got to come with us. I think we are all loving that she's big enough to do the adult things now! 

And last but not least in the highlights of Lydia's past 6 months, we took a Peaden/Haderlie family vacation to San Diego. We went to the beach, the zoo, sea world, old town san diego, and spent a lot of time at the pool at our house rental. Lydia is big enough that she will remember these vacations now and I hope that she remembers how we liked to spend out time having fun, learning, and exploring the world around us. 

Darling Lydia, I love you so much. You are funny, sweet, kind, and have a great sense of dry humor. I have loved these last six months with you. 

Perkins Shield Date / Cousin Weekend

David and I are so grateful for the good friends that we are surrounded by. The Perkins and Shields were two of the earliest friends that we made in our neighborhood and they have been such good friends to us over many years of great things and hard times. When our ward got split and the Shields were in the other boundaries we were so sad, but I think that set us up for being able to maintain our friendship after they moved to Spanish Fork. These are the kind of people that like you for who you are and who leave you feeling better after you spend time with them. That's a true gift. 

We've started just putting a quarterly get together on our calendar. Before we end our evening, everyone pulls out their phones and we pick a date three months away to make sure we see each other soon. Three months seems lke a long time between - but honestly, there isn't anyone else that we see more regularly and having it on our calendar makes sure it happens. I love this about these people. I feel like they prioritize spending time with us because they like us and we like them, too.  Usually our gatherings are just dinner at someone's house and then we chat while the kids play in the basement, but this month we deided to do a full date night together. We went to dinner at a new hamburger place Backdoor BRGR, then moved to the main level of the building to try our hand at hatchet throwing, which seems to be a replacement for taking your date bowling, ha. We had a good time, although I don't know that David and I would go back on our own. But we sure loved hanging out with these people. 

I wasn't feeling my very best, so we ended up coming home early and not doing dessert with the group. Jenna was watching our kids for "cousin weekend" and so we came home and put on the BBC Version of Pride and Prejudice and binge watched the entire thing. (I'm sure i've written about this elsewhere, but this year we picked books for each other to read and watch the movie. David read Pride and Prejudice and we have been working through all of the movie adaptations of that, which has been fun. I am reading the LOTR series. I've read the Hobbit and the first book, and we've watched the movie - but i'm still working my way through the second book.) One of my favorite things about this evening was that we spent a good four hours watching TV downstairs on the couch, which is very abnormal for us at this stage of our lives. We finished P&P and were heading up to bed, but then we got talking about the book series that I'm listening to right now "Lockwood and Co." - I had heard that there was a Netflix series about the books and I've been loving them so much that I thought I wanted to watch that series, too. Feeling irresponsible, we grabbed the laptop raced to the bed and found the series to start watching. It was a little scary, and felt spontaneous and a little irresonsible, and it was just so fun. I love living this life with David and I'm grateful for weekends like this when we get to step out of the daily routine, do some fun things, and connect with each other. 

Hale Center Theater Season Tickets and Play Review 2023

The last time we had season tickets to the Hale Center Theater in Orem was 2018. See our play review Here: https://thepeadenlife.blogspot.com/2018/11/hale-center-theater-season-tickets-play.html

"Pride and Prejudice"
By Jane Austen, adapted by Melissa Leilani Larson

Adapted from the beloved Jane Austen classic which spawned 200 years’ worth of retellings. Join us at Pemberley for Pride and Prejudice, the timeless story of when opposites attract featuring the witty and intelligent Elizabeth Bennett, the equally brilliant and wealthy Mr. Darcy, and a cavalcade of unforgettably relatable characters. Star rating: 3.7 out of 5 stars.

Shantel's thoughts:

When David leaned over about 1/4 of the way through and admitted that he wasn't familiar with the storyline of the play I was shocked and felt that I had done him a disservice in our married life by not watching every version of Pride and Prejudice with him. He still enjoyed the play, but I have plans for our future movie-watching. Maybe I'll even start reading the book to him at bedtime like I would to our kids. We bought season tickets for this year, but hadn't picked any of our dates yet. Jenna unexpectedly offered to watch our kids this weekend, but when we checked - this night was sold out! After another phone call to see if anyone had canceled last minute, they told us that we could come sit in as standby tickets and if there were any cancellations, maybe we could get in. We came, and we got in! I am SO glad that we were able to go this weekend when we had a babysitter because the more difficult part about going to Hale Center Theater plays is just having a babysitter that will stay late and put our kids to bed for us. The play was lovely and the casting was SPOT on. When I saw the photos of the actors in the playbill (now on your phone after clicking on a QR code on the back of the seat in front of you, boo, I don't like it) I laughed out loud because the casting was SO perfect even just by seeing their faces. The entire production was a little one-note, a little bland. Not a lot for the scene changes and the costumes were simple and a little stiff, with no costume changes other than putting on a matching overcoat when "walking outside". However, the characters were great, the chemistry was engaging. Mr. Collins ended up being the comedic highlight of the show which I resisted for a while because you're not really supposed to cheer for Mr. Collins but he was just so funny. Highlight: David and I squeezing our shoulders together because we ended up squashed between two fairly large men on either side and laughing with each other and wishing that the middle arm bar would go up so we could be a little more comfortable. Making it into the play while on standby after crafting alternate plans for what we would do if it didn't work out. Mr. Dacy and Elizabeth's end scene. 

David's thoughts: Overall I really liked this play. We actually did not even have tickets, but we had date weekend with Jenna watching our kids and so we got in a standby list at the theater and amazingly, they ended up having room for us. I'm so glad that they did. Just after the play started I leaned over to Shantel and told her that I have never seen or read Pride and Prejudice (my entire knowledge of the book consists of a couple of vague references in "You've Got Mail" and a Pride and Prejudice count to 10 kids book. Shantel had a very worried look on her face when she realized I did not know the story - however - I actually think it worked out so well. First, it meant that the storyline was new to me and the plot was interesting because I did not know how things would turn out, except of course that Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet would eventually end up together. It was probably a better introduction to the story for me than starting right into the full book or movie. Okay- now to evaluate the play. Acting was good, I'd say 4.5/5, the characters were really good and well played. The storyline was great and had just enough funny parts to keep it interesting and give it some depth (4.5/5). The big miss on this play was the set design. I'd give it 1/5. They basically just had wallpaper on the walls and 8 chairs they moved around. While we did not expect it to be HCT Sandy - Shantel and I came up with 5-10 ways they could have made the play better by doing more with set design in the time we drove home from the play. My favorite part: sitting with Shantel and particularly watching her face at certain parts where you could just see the happiness in her face as she was enchanted by the story. 

"A GENTLEMAN'S GUIDE TO LOVE & MURDER"
March 31, 2023
Book & Lyrics by Robert L. Freedman; Music & Lyrics by Steven Lutvak; Book by Roy Horniman

A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder follows Monty Navarro as he plots his way to the front of the line of heirs to the earldom of the D’Ysquith family. The only problem? There are seven other family members in his way. Do not miss this hilarious new musical romp! Star Rating: 3.7 out of 5 Stars

Shantel's Thoughts: I had friends who raved about this play so I was very excited. I'm having a hard time judging because when I was in the moment, there were several things that made me uncomfortable or had me wishing that they had taken it a different direction, but it's hard to remember what those things are now - especially with the outstanding performance that it was. The very beginning number has a group of people come out and essentially say "This play is about murder and other distasteful things, if you're not okay with that, you're welcome to leave." When they were saying that I was like "That's me! They are talking about me!" So I feel like there has to be some level of understanding with the storyline. But the production itself was OUTSTANDING. The acting was incredible. The set, scenery, effects, etc added incredibly to the show. If Pride and Prejudice was a little bland in production value, it's because Gentleman's Guide stole ALL the available set/scenery changes. The details were hilarious and spot on. When I realized that the same actor was going to be playing ALL of the characters in the D'Ysquith family I laughed out loud, especially because it had taken me a bit to realize what was happening - the actor was SO good I initially thought that he was several actors. I am giving it a 3.7 - the same as Pride and Prejudice and this is why: Where P&P had excellent acting and storyline, the production was a little bland. GG had outstanding acting and production value, but the storyline was a little tricky. (Mostly, there was an affair that was bold and blatant and a few other uncomfortable innuendos.) I actually think I would give a personal rating of 4 stars because now that I am reflecting back on it all I can remember is the outstanding performance value and the incredible acting and that should be worth something extra!  

David's Thoughts: 

I liked this play. I feel my personal rating would be a 3.5 stars. As Shantel mentioned the set design and production value was excellent. They did all the little things that really enhance the play. There were also plenty of clever little things that made it fun. For example, at the very end it shows him leaving his memoir on a table in the jail cell and since that is full of him admitting to murder there is this moment where you think he'll be caught and then the guard just gives it back to him without looking inside at it. It was funny and clever. However, it could not reach that next level for two reasons that ultimately drop it down a point. 1) The plot line I feel like could have been better. I wish that they had made it so that he accidentally kept killing all the people (probably because that makes him more likable). It could have been done with just slight adjustments because even as the first murder was happening they were almost setting up for that to happen. 2) There were some innuendo's that made it so there were a few uncomfortable scenes and that made it so you were also cringing just a bit worrying whether there would be anything else uncomfortable. As Shantel mentioned it is about love and murder and includes an affair. However, since that is what it is about, it gets docked a bit there as well. Overall it was good. It did provide a lot of discussion after and so it gets a few points for that as well. 

ONCE
APR. 21 – JUN. 03, 2023
Book by Enda Walsh; Music & Lyrics by Glen Hansard & Markéta Irglová; Based on the Motion Picture Written and Directed by John Carney
Based on the award-winning film of the same name. Travel to the streets of Dublin for Once, the unforgettable story of when Guy meets Girl, told through one of the most beloved scores in all of musical theatre and featuring a cast of live musicians. A not-to-be-missed experience. Star Rating: 2.5 out of 5 Stars

Shantel's Thoughts: This play was about 100% different than what I was expecting. I thought it would have at least some fairy-tale element to it (because of its title, maybe?). Or at least a happy ending. But it had neither of those things. The acting was excellent of course, but I couldn't get into the story. The best part of the play was that each of the actors played a musical instrument as part of the play and the music was incredible, although I couldn't say that there were any songs that I loved for the song itself, more just impressed with the talent of the cast. 

David's Thoughts: I agree with Shantel 100%. I did not really find this play inspiring so it did not really draw me in. The description above sounds way better than the execution, although the acting was well done, I just did not love the story line. 


OLIVER!
JUN. 16 – AUG. 05, 2023
Book, Music and Lyrics by Lionel Bart

Considered one of the crowning achievements of the golden age, Oliver! is the classic Charles Dickens’ story of the orphan Oliver Twist. Featuring beloved songs such as Where is Love? I’d Do Anything, As Long as He Needs Me, and the titular Oliver! Consider Yourself lucky to fall in love with Oliver! Star Rating: 2.5 out of 5 Stars

David and Lydia went to this play together because we couldn't find a babysitter and Lydia was due a "Kid Date". They enjoyed it, but it was another play without a happy ending. 

David's Thoughts:  Yes, it was not my favorite play either and overall I was a bit disappointed. The kids did a good job, but you could tell that the acting was not quite at the same level as the adults and the story was not my favorite either.

CLUE
September 15, 2023
Based on the screenplay by Jonathan Lynn; Written by Sandy Rustin; Music by Michael Holland Based on the Paramount Pictures Motion Picture and the Hasbro board game CLUE
An uproarious adaptation of everyone’s favorite board game. It was Colonel Mustard in the Library with the lead pipe. Or perhaps Miss Scarlet in the Ball Room with the rope..? No, Professor Plum in the Conservatory with the wrench! Honestly, we’re not sure, but you can find out in Clue! Star Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Shantel's Thoughts:  I love the board game Clue, so I was incredibly excited about this performance (and was so confident that I would love it that we chose to go for my birthday date). I have to say that the timing and complete precision of the cast was unparralleled. They did such an incredible job of hitting every single scene, every sequence, perfectly. The way they used the small stage to create the feel of an entire mansion with moving doorways and tiptoeing feet was so fun. It's such a hard balance for me, because I have such a low tolerance for anything inappropriate and when they slip one or two things in that didn't need to be there it basically ruins the show for me. I realize that I'm in the minority and that if I ever want to enjoy a show again I'll have to figure out how to deal with it, but I can't give higher than a 4 if I am being true to the way that I felt during the show. 

David's Thoughts:  I would give this only a 3 or 3.5 It was okay, but not great. There are a couple of cringy items in the play especially at the beginning and once I am set on edge a bit, it is really hard to get in and really enjoy the show. I feel like this is another show where there is a ton of potential, but I'm just not show the way it is written pulls it off. 

THE MUSIC MAN
November 3, 2023
Book, Music and Lyrics by Meredith Willson; Story by Meredith Willson and Franklin Lacey
Harold Hill is headed back to town in The Music Man! One of the most popular musicals of all time, the current and classic Broadway hit marches its way to the HCTO stage. With a little something for everyone, grab your trombone and join the band for this family favorite!

Star Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Stars

Shantel's Thoughts: 

This was outstanding. One of the things that I love about the Orem Hale Center theater is that they can do such an incredible job with such a huge span of productions. One of our favorite productions was "Dear Daddy Longlegs" and it had two people in the cast. Total. But then you get a production like "The Music Man" and it blows you out of the water. There were SO many people, so much going on, and everything just worked together SO well. The cast came out toward the end and each of them had a brass instrument that they were holding. When they all started to play them together, was just the perfect culmination to an amazing performance. I couldn't believe that final number. Everything about it was just so fun and after a season of disappointing plays, we really really needed a win. This was that for me. (I would give this 4.8 stars!) 

David's Thoughts: This was my first "I love it" show of the whole season. I did not know the story coming and and I thoroughly and completely enjoyed it. I would give it 4.5 out of 5 and 5 stars is reserved for only truly inspiring shows. It was fun and entertaining. I loved the large cast and the singing and the music and how it all came together. It pulled me in as I was hoping for everything to work out (and then it did!) and the actors were perfect in their roles. This is definitely a play I would want to go back to again. 

BONUS: 

JAMES & THE GIANT PEACH (THEATER FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES)
November 3, 2023
Book by Timothy Allen McDonald; Music & Lyrics by Benj Pasek & Justin Paul
See the beloved Roald Dahl tale of James and his cavalcade of anthropomorphic friends as they adventure across the globe in their enormous airborne peach. The perfect show for the whole family, and the newest addition to our Theater for Young Audiences program, productions made especially for youth and performed by a troupe of professional actors. Join James and his crew onstage at HCTO!

Star Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Shantel's thoughts: Okay, so I took the kids to this performance for a homeschool field trip and loved it so much that I convinced David to come back with me. We decided to do back to back performances and we did the Saturday Matinee of James, then went to dinner, then came back for the Music Man and I loved the whole thing. This season has been a bit of a bummer, but these last two shows really did it for me. I loved the music of James and the Giant Peach, loved the casting/acting, and just everything about this darling performance!  (I would give this 4.7 stars!) 

David's Thoughts: This one turned out to be a bonus play. Shantel went with the kids and liked it so much that we were able to get tickets to it on a Saturday before our Music Man show. It was delightful and enjoyable and I really liked it. I'd give it 4 stars. 

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Our rankings of the shows this year:

The Music Man (Easily #1)

James and the Giant Peach

Pride and Prejudice

A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder

Clue

Once

Oliver