Garth Show #6--Glendale

This year's vacation destination was decided in November when we secured two tickets to see Garth at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, AZ, on March 23. 

Here are a few highlights we learned/experienced while in Arizona . . . .

1. Reserve your car ahead of time. 

We arrived at the airport to find--no cars! This had never happened to us before. As it turns out, it was a busy weekend for Phoenix, and the concert wasn't even first on the list of events. As we hopped in the taxi to drive to another rental place, the taxi driver said he hadn't heard the name Garth Brooks in a long time. Whaaaattt? I told him my husband hears me say it too much. :) At that point, I realized we weren't in South Dakota anymore, where Sioux Falls devotes pretty much all of its news coverage and attention to Garth for weeks ahead of time and weeks after, too!

2. Reserve your parking spot--because it's fun.

Because they were expecting 75,000 people for the concert and another 25,000 for other events in the Glendale area, it was suggested to reserve a parking spot and arrive between noon and 4 p.m. to avoid the worst of the traffic. We arrived at about 1:30 p.m. and, after turning around several times to find the right parking lot, finally found the Red Lot. We were caught off guard when the parking attendant asked us our name. We answered "Melius." They found our name on a list and let us in. We felt so important. That was fun. :)

3.  Discover the area. 

Since we had several hours before the show, we walked a few blocks away from the stadium and found the Westgate Entertainment District. It was here where we met some nice Garth fans, and were glad we arrived at the restaurant when we did after the rest of the 75,000 started to arrive. We finally entered the stadium an hour and a half or so ahead of time--plenty of time to walk around and meet some more Garth fans.  I even got to take an excited couple's photo. So fun.

4.  If you're not going to stand/sing/dance/scream for 2-3 hours, watch Garth on TV.

No matter how many Garth concerts I go to, I always fall into the anticipation that builds in the seconds before it starts. I feel like I'm 18 again and back in Bismarck, ND, at my very first concert as the clock counts down to 0. . . the music starts and Garth appears. . . . always in a different way. 

And then I choose to remain 18 until it's over. . . standing/singing/dancing/screaming and crying as he sings "The River" and the place lights up.

A huge shout out to Section 204--thank you, thank you, for getting into the concert so that I could, too. :)

Section 204 wasn't close enough for a sign or an air hug from Garth this time, but the concert was a fabulous experience as always. As we drove back to our rented condo, David asked if I was "Garthed-out." 

Never!

And that brings me to my final point. . . .

5. Life is short. See Garth as much as possible.

With 6 shows at about 3 hours each, I have been blessed to spend about 18 hours of my life in the same room with Garth singing along to the music that has made up so much of the past almost 30 years of my life.

Garth said he is hoping for 30 more years.

I will be there.

**Thank you to our children's grandparents who made this trip, and several others, possible!! :)

Wildcats 2019

The #3Wildcats advanced to the SoDak16 with a hard-fought win over 49-55 win over #2Warner on March 2. 

Unfortunately, their season ended with a narrow 3-point loss to #8Viborg-Hurley (NW was #9) in the SoDak16 the following Tuesday. It was tough--so close to the State Tournament, and my heart hurt for the boys who played their hearts out game after game. Our home gym bleachers were filled every game and the fans followed them all over, too, with some opposing fans wondering why we were cheering so loudly even in not-so-close games.

We were just that excited about every single basket and every good play. 

Excited to see that the hard work these boys put it year after year, and after experiencing so many losses in their younger years, was now paying off and coming together.

There are many different ways to measure success--and it can't always be found on a scoreboard or even in a state tournament. I believe this is just the start of successful years, and what a great start it was.

It was a fun, nail-biting, exciting season that gave all of us fans plenty to cheer about and the younger players plenty to work hard to accomplish in coming years. 

Confirmation

Landen was Confirmed on March 3. Although the day was different from what we thought it would be, it was still a very blessed day. It is appropriate that wind is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, as we experienced record lows and plenty of wind all day.

Due to weather and health concerns, Bishop Swain was not able to be at the Confirmation mass. Fr. Tom confirmed the Confirmandi, with Fr. Axtmann con-celebrating.

Landen's sponsor was his aunt Amanda. He chose St. Joseph as his patron saint.

The All Saints class with their teachers.

Grandma and Grandpa Melius were able to join us for dinner following Confirmation. We are still waiting for have their reception at All Saints, as another blizzard rolled through yesterday.

February

Look at that! February is over halfway through. There was a time when my kids were little, I remember looking at the calendar this time of year and thinking it must be at least April or May. The first two months of the year took forever. 

Well, they don't anymore!

Lately, when the frequent cold snaps and winter storms allow me to leave the farm, people ask what I've been up to. My answer is always the same, "Church, calving and basketball." We are nearing the end of regular season ball. Landen played his first year of JV and C team this year. Our Varsity team has realized many of their goals this year, which has been such a fun season for this high school basketball fan to watch. As I have said to my great friend and "bleacher buddy" several times, up until last year, there were plenty of games that we still commented, "Well, at least we only lost by 20," or "We won the 4th quarter." This year they are outright winning (with just 3 losses) and we are talking about power points and region standings. They are co-Lake Region Champions for the first time in 12 years and have beaten teams they haven't in 10-12 years. Think about that. That is the entire time many of these boys have been in school! The best part is they show up to work hard every single game

Is there anything better than a 3-pointer going in at just the right time?

This time of year there isn't. 

Go Wildcats!

The Cookies

Oh, the Eureka School chocolate chip cookies. 

Let it be known that I have never met a chocolate chip cookie that I didn't like. However, it seemed the cookies that we had at the Eureka school were especially unique because no matter how many different recipes I tried, they never turned out like those did. 

It was about 5 years ago, maybe more, and probably after a conversation with fellow Eureka alumni, that I put out a request on Facebook if anyone had a similar recipe. I didn't get a response. After trying several different recipes, I eventually just gave up on finding it. (Yes, I suppose I could have put a bit more effort into something that had been one of my life's unanswered questions, but I can't devote my entire life to baking cookies. I had basketball games to go to, and probably at that time, diapers to change.) 

After I found the Peanut Butter Bars earlier this month, I was inspired to find the cookie recipe, too. I decided I would try one more time. After putting out the request on Facebook, I received a very similar recipe and later that day . . . the jackpot. The actual recipe.  The actual recipe makes 290 cookies. Here is 1/4 of that recipe--

Eureka School Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 7/8 cup oil

scant 1/2 tsp salt

1 3/4 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

4 eggs

1 7/8 tsp soda

1 7/8 tsp vanilla

scant 4 1/2 cups flour

2 cups mini chocolate chips

(Tina's Tip--7/8 cups is 3/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons)

Bake at 375 for 10-12 min. A small scoop makes them Eureka School sized. :)

Both recipes that were shared with me are very similar, but I've found that whichever one you use, you need to follow the amounts exactly or they won't turn out quite right--still a delicious cookie--but just not the same.

Maybe you will be like some who have tried these and wondered where they have been all their lives. Maybe you will be like my kids who liked them, but wondered what the fuss was all about.

It was a fun week of reliving memories of good times in the Eureka School lunchroom. The hunt and discovery were just as memorable as taking that first pan of cookies out of the oven that finally, finally resembled the ones I had been searching for. 

And the peanut butter I mentioned yesterday? I'm quite certain that was government-issued peanut butter and syrup mixed together to stretch it farther. You should try that, too. And fold your bread over top to bottom--because that is the right way to do it. :)