The Yans': June 2010

So Brenda officially graduated from Kentridge High School along with 480 plus students last Saturday. This is my first time at the Snoware Center (we used to go the Tacoma Dome for graduation) and I am pretty impressed. It was large enough that we could see all the graduates plus there was a big screen high up in the readers board that we could watch. Brenda got her name in the program as one of the top 10 percent in academic achievement. We are so pleased... She did not walk for Green River community college's graduation the night before but she also graduated with an Associated Degree in Art.

I said it was a busy weekend because even on the day of graduation, Brenda and her friends that dance with British Dancing Academy still has to wake up early and attend the rehearsal at the Performing Art Center at 8:45 a.m., then they rushed home so that they could be at the Center for graduation by 12 noon, came home and took a short nap and off to graduation party from 11 p.m. till 6 a.m. the next morning, got up and went to rehearsal at 10 a.m. and came home at 9 p.m. Brenda was exhausted. Ted went and video taped the rehearsal and Ada and I went and watch after church. Brenda has the lead role of Peter Pan during the last 3 casts. I think she did a wonderful job as Peter (we finally got the boy we we thought we were going to get :))). The show this year is 2 1/2 hours long. I love all the dances, but my favorite is the Jack-in-the Box dance...

(Sorry, I tried uploading this video and could not so no video! :( )

Brenda turned 18th yesterday. I couldn't believe she is all grown and is leaving us in a few month heading to BYU Provo. It seemed it was only yesterday... I started having some mild contraction in the morning of June 5, 1992. We headed to the hospital around 10 a.m. and the nurse said "let's check you out first before we put you in the room." Evidently, they were very busy and they weren't going let me have a room unless I am in active labor. This nurse was one of my friend in the hospital and I told her she should put me in a room instead because my last labor with Alicia was only 4 hours long. So instead of going into an examination room, she put me in a labor room and Brenda was born an hour and 22 minutes later. The contractions were one on top of each other and usually, I could have breath thru them, but not this time, there were no breathing room at all. I tried to hold out as long as I could and finally agreed on getting a shot of Stadol so I could sleep between the contraction. Little did I know between the time it took to get the shot and for the Stadol to take effect, Brenda was born... So needless to say, I spent the first hour after delivery sleeping because I couldn't keep my eyes opened because of the Stadol. I remembered though Ted looked at me with a pizzled look -- "You told me it was going to be a boy! What am I going to do with her?!" I remembered saying "so she is not a boy, go tend to her!" Then I felt asleep. When the kids all came and picked us up, Justin made the comment of where was my brother? I told him he will have to talk this over with his Heavenly Father instead.

We are so glad we have a girl instead... Brenda has been such a big blessing in our lives. She has been my support these last few years when I couldn't really be a mother to her because of caring for my parents. She has been very helpful at home; first take care of herself making sure she is doing good at school, going to seminary every morning, working and shopping all by herself... for Christmas, for dance at school. I didn't have to worry about her and I could totally devote myself in caring for my parents. She helped around the house and Grandparents-sit where-ever she is needed.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! "Make a wish before you blow out the candle!"

So much for reminiscencing... Here are some picture taken for Brenda's surprise Birthday celebration. It was simple but we had a lot of fun with her friends and some close friends. Afterward, they went for a movie "Shriek Forever After."