David Archuleta Concert/Jesse's Football Game/Avril's Baby Shower

Alicia's friend, our former neighbor (now married) Alycia King Rickords, helped host a baby shower for Avril last Saturday at her parents' home next door. Also organizing were Cheri Murdock, Janet Garn, Diana King, and Lindsay Grover (Alycia's sister).

Alycia and Alicia.

Janet Garn, one of Gayle's best friends and a great 8th ward member, helped at the baby shower with great food.

Margaret Mortensen, one of our best family friends, also came. Here she's with Alicia and Gayle.

Here's the star of the show, asleep on her mom's chest. She's not a party girl!

All dolled up in her jeans for the baby shower.

Yesterday (Saturday the 28th) Rob, Kristen, Carly, and Brandon visited after coming from Grandpa and Grandma's house. Trish and Kelly also dropped by. During the week, Gayle and I took Grandma to a birthday lunch at the Olive Garden. By the way, Grandpa spent a couple of nights at the hospital this week to recuperate from pneumonia. Fortunately he's back home and doing well now.

Shelby loves to hold Avril too!

Jesse plays football for the semi-pro team the Stampede. They won their season opener yesterday against the Davis Vipers at Woods Cross and Jesse caught a touchdown pass! He was written about in the Herald Journal (see below).

From the Sunday, March 29, 2009 Herald Journal.

Number 11 with his helmet off. The chin thing (a "soul patch") is whiskers, by the way.

#11 pointing to something from the line.

OK -- The highlight of the week for Gayle and Spencer was going to a David Archuleta concert at the E-Center in West Valley, compliments of Tara Jensen (birthday gift to Gayle). We loved it. I've been to many concerts (mostly in the 60's and 70's) and Archuleta is the most gifted of any vocalist I've heard. He's also a talented instrumentalist for that matter. His vocal interpretation, improvisations, phrasing, and clear tenor voice are amazing. He also writes good music, and he's barely 18 yrs. old. And the adulation doesn't seem to have ungrounded him. It's refreshing to see talent with humility and wholesomeness.


This is a video clip from our "point and click" digital camera from the song "Somebody Out There." I like his ballads best, with few instruments and simply done.


Here he sings a Kara DioGuardi (a current American Idol judge) song with just him on the keyboard and his violinist (who also sings harmony). The song is "To Be With You." Listen starting about 1'30" into it as he goes up into his higher register.