Beginning Band

Emily has always liked music.  When she was younger she asked me if she could learn to play an instrument.    I always hoped she could,  but there was never an opportunity for her too.  In fifth grade they learned to play the recorder,  and Emily loved that.  She would practice every day and learned every song she could.

  

Last year when the Junior high registration forms came home She was really excited about the band.  Being a choir person myself I did try to convince her to try the choir, but I knew my efforts were no good.  It was no surprise to me that she wanted to learn to play the trumpet just like her dad.  I knew she would get plenty of support and help from her dad and he would be happy to help her learn.  I also knew how hard she would be willing to work.    

Emily started playing the trumpet in the beginning band last September and has loved it.  I know she loves it, because I never have to tell her to practice, and she has also joined the beginning Jazz band which meets every Tuesday and Thursday after school.  She is pretty good for only playing a few months, and I am really glad she has found something she likes.    This video is part of a song with the beginning Jazz band.  She is the only girl in this extra band, but that does not seem to bother her.    The teacher placed her right in the top middle where everyone could see her though.  I think he was trying to recruit more girls.  

I am so glad Emily is getting to learn how play an instrument.  I love seeing her develop her talents.   

Biking Season Begins

Spring is here so it is time for biking.  

Last summer Joe was getting a little too big for his bike, but when we took him out to look for a bigger bike he was not ready to get one yet, so he happily spent the summer riding his little Orange Specialized bike.  This year, it was time to move on. though.  Joe knew exactly what he wanted and and it took a little bit of shopping around, but luckily he was able to find it.  He loves his new blue bike.

 He told us he thinks it looks like the Tron blue so it is his light cycle.  He had to practice a little to get used to the hand brakes and the gears, but that did not take long.

Last summer Ryan tried to teach Josh how to ride a two wheeler,  but he was not interested.  At all.  Even when his friends learned how and got rid of their training wheels,  Josh was happy to continue to ride around with his still attached.

Yesterday, While Joe was off with dad looking for his new bike Josh and mom went out to get him a new helmet. Josh is a fast shopper so it did not take us long.  When we got home he was dying to try it out.  The only problem was his bike needed some repairs before he could ride it and mom could not fix it.  Josh did not want to wait for dad to get home, so he pulled Joe's bike out and asked if he could ride it.  By then I was trying to help Valerie so I told him he could, but he would need to wait a minute for me to help him.  He asked me a few questions about riding a two wheeler and then went over on the grass and started working on it by himself. He used some of the tricks his dad had tried to teach him the year before.

 Within just a few minutes Josh had figured it out on his own, and can now ride on two wheels.  Now he keeps begging to go ride his bike.

It will be fun to get out on the trails again.  The next question will be whether or not Valerie will be willing to ride in the cart or if she will insist on riding her trike.  I have a feeling It will be the latter of the two.  During one of the shopping trips looking for Joe's bikes Valerie was busy checking out the princess bikes for herself.   Either way it will be fun.

Tea Party

There is nothing more fun for a little girl than a tea party with her friends

Valerie went to her very first Tea party today to celebrate her friend Elena's birthday. It was a princess tea party, so they had to wear their princess dress. Valerie had so much fun, and it was fun for the moms to watch all of the little princesses run around.

When Elena's mom gave Valerie her wand and heart sticker, Valerie ran right over and showed it to me. She had so much fun playing and dancing. She did not want to leave when the party was over.

(I wish I had brought my camera to get pictures, but I didn't so I had to use my phone.)

Joe's Bob Cat

In January Joe started Cub Scouts. He was very excited to go and he has a lot of good friends in his pack.

He was really looking forward to this months pack meeting for two reasons.

First of all, it was the Blue and Gold Banquet, and they were serving one of his favorite meals, tacos.

And Second, he had worked very hard the past few weeks to earn his Bob Cat Merit Badge.

I am very proud of how hard Joe worked for this. He was very motivated to earn it quickly. For this badge there was a lot of memorization. Every day after school, he would bring me his book and we would work on it. It did not take him long before he was ready to pass things off.

After all of the awards were handed out the boys put on a few puppet shows. Joe was the narrator for this one.

I am grateful for Joe's leaders who make Cub Scouts so fun. He is loving it!

My Big Helper

At two and a half, Valerie has entered a new phase of busy. She still gets into things, and makes a few messes, and she still prefers her clothes on the floor rather than in her drawers, but now her intentions are to be helpful.

For example, her clean clothes are usually on the floor because, she likes to pick out her own clothes, and get herself dressed. But often this results in most of her clothes on the floor, because she was looking for a certain item. (usually something pink.)

Most days I enjoy this new busyness It is fun to have a little helper with me at the grocery store. She loves pushing the little cart, and as long as I remember to put my foot up when I stop, it is not too painful to let her do it.

She always tries to add a few things of her own. I usually let her add one thing, and she is always good about leaving others on the self if I tell her no. But, it is usually because I point to the item already in the cart and have her chose which one she wants. There have been times when we find an extra item or two in the cart when we check out, but she does not seem to notice that they don't always make it home.

Valerie also likes to help me in the kitchen. She likes to stir the things in the pan, and sometimes she tries to add a few spices of her own to the dinner. I usually stop her, but with three other kids, sometimes I am not quick enough.

The other night I was helping Josh with some homework and did not notice the items being added to the soup I had simmering on the stove for dinner.

Valerie had helped me make the soup by adding a few things that I told her to, and stirring it while I added others. When we were finished I put the lid on the pan and told Valerie that now we just needed to let it cook. I then went to help Josh on the computer.

While I was in the other room, Valerie got back on her stool and added an entire containers of Thyme, Cumin, and bay leaves to it. Needless to say we did not have that for dinner.

Another thing she likes to help me with in the kitchen is the dishes. What kid can resist a sink full of soapy water? She also helps me unload the dishwasher. She likes to hand me the plates and cups and have me put them away. She has been doing this for a few months, and I found this week she is getting a little more Independent in this job.

The other morning when I got out of the shower, I could hear dishes clanging in the kitchen. I knew this meant Valerie was "Helping" with something, but I could not imagine what. So I quickly got dressed, and ran out to find Valerie unloading the dishwasher and placing everything in it's appropriate pile, ready to be put away. I was a little surprised how well she had done.(and glad nothing was broken) The bowls, plates and cups were all in nice stacks. So I quickly put it all away. This turned out to be very helpful, but I hope next time she waits for me before she does it.

Valerie also likes to help me clean up. She is good at helping me put things away when I ask, and when I vacuum she gets out the old Swiffer mop and pretends she is vacuuming too. It does not have any soap in it, and Valerie likes that it makes a sound like a vacuum.

I love my big helper, and I am glad she is learning so much. I don't mind cleaning up the messes that come from her helping. It makes me happy to have a buddy to do my everyday things with.

Crazy Hair Day!

Today was Crazy Hair Day at school. My kids love this day. They have been talking about it for days. I have tried to talk them into a few of my ideas, but all they want are Mohawks. So Mohawks it is.

Even with their crazy hair, I think these are two cute little boys.

Happy 6th Birthday Josh

Today is Josh's birthday!

It is hard for me to believe Josh is 6.

When we asked him what he wanted all he said was new DS games.

However Emily had a better suggestion.

For Christmas Joe wanted to be tricky in his wrapping, so he wrapped Josh's gift in an empty Ritz Cracker box. Christmas morning when Josh opened his present, he was so excited when he saw the crackers he started telling us that they were all his. Then he opened the box and pulled out the Angry Birds shirt inside, and was a little disappointed.

Emily thought we should buy him a real box of crackers. So we did,

and he loved them. We did get him a DS game, but I really think that the crackers were his favorite present.

We celebrated josh's birthday at Classic Fun Center.

(Left to right) Sarah, Nate, Camdon, Ryker, Aiden, Joe, Emily, Jackson, Valerie (you cant really see her), Ben, Josh, and Rowan all came to the party.

They had so much fun playing Lazer tag, Bouncing in the bounce houses, Climbing in the jungle gym,

Playing blaster ball, and skating.

Josh even won a few prizes from the birthday wheel and money tube.

It was so fun watching all the kids play. Josh is getting to be such a big kid, and I am so grateful that he is a part of our family. We Love You Josh.

Happy Birthday!