I am NOT old enough to have adult offspring

My oldest child turned 18 one week ago and is now fully emancipated. He's registered for the draft and will vote in the next election. How could this have happened so fast? It truly creeped up faster than a rodeo clown running from a mad bull.

I remember when Sean was 5. We were eating at Grandma Fisher's, which consisted of a casserole saturated with onions. Sean, despising onions, became annoyed at trying to pick them out and finally blurted, "does the federal government regulate the amount of onions in a casserole?"


Moab, Utah 1995. Kristi, Sean (5), Brent, Grandpa Hackworth

One of my favorite things about Sean is his quick, clever wit. For example, one evening at the dinner table, I announced: "we have a new rule at our house. From now on, the kitchen table and the living room are NO-FIGHTING ZONES." Sean immediately retorted, "well then, we'll have to have Family Home Evening downstairs."

Another time, Sean, age 16, was preparing for a pioneer trek to Martin's Cove. I said, "Sean....you will be without a book or computer for four days. Will you be able to STAND it?" Sean moaned, "at the end of the next 4 days, I don't think I'll be able to STAND." Indeed, that trip was a grueling adventure, but Sean returned home cheerful and happy, without a complaint about the hardships. Instead, he spoke of the great lessons learned about endurance and faith.


12:00 am: Leaving for trek 2006

My dear, dear son: you are a miracle. Thank you for giving us 18 incredible years of learning from you and sharing in your successes, heartbreaks, joys and maturation.

So how did we celebrate??
We went to dinner at Zion Noodle and Pizza Company in Springdale, Ut. We sat outside on the patio at dusk, near the massive red rock cliffs, surrounded by intriguing people from all over the world. We dined on pineapple cheese pizza as well as barbecued chicken pizza topped with fresh cilantro, red onions and large square chunks of smoked gouda!



Sean's birthday present from Brent and I is a skydive jump.
Have we gone MAD? If something goes awry, I will never forgive myself. But if all goes well, it will be a memorable passage into adulthood!
(If it were me jumping, it would be a memorable
passage of...uh....let's just say certain bodily fluids).
Of course, you are all invited to witness the jump! We'll keep you posted on the date/time....

Sean claims he is excited to skydive (good heavens....)
and is also excited because he can legally buy..............
dry ice!! To celebrate, we will be serving home-made
root beer at his big birthday bash next Saturday.