Jonathan's Band Concert

Jonathan had his first band concert!  He did a great job!  He was pretty nervous so he was glad when it was over.  Afterwards, we went to Menchie's for frozen yogurt.  He had been talking about that for weeks.

Jingle Bells

When the Saints Go Marching In

Ode to Joy

Hard Rock Blues

Great job, Jonathan!

Andrew and Daniel's Band Concert

Andrew and Daniel did a great job at their band concert!  We enjoyed eating the Crumbl cookies they sold as a fundraiser, and we also bought one of the poinsettias you see next to the stage.  And, of course, the music was really good!

Daniel, Concert Band

The Pioneer Spirit

A Merry Mariachi Christmas

Andrew, Symphonic Band

Algorhythms

A Glorious Christmas

Great job, boys! 

Emily's Field Trip to the Musical Instrument Museum

Emily's band teacher needed more chaperones for her field trip, so I was thrilled that I got to go!  Usually I lose the field trip lottery, but I guess it's harder for them to find chaperones for high schoolers.  I don't know why--the kids in my group were really good.  It was a fun time.  I didn't know what to expect at the Musical Instrument Museum but I was really impressed.  It was a very nice museum and the exhibits were great.  I loved how we could use the headsets they gave us to hear the different sounds of instruments at different displays. I really enjoyed it, and of course I was thrilled to be there with Emily.  After the museum, we went to an outdoor mall area for lunch.  As Emily and I walked to check out the restaurants, another mom lamented that her daughter didn't want to go to lunch with her and preferred to hang out with her friends.  Not my girl!  She was glad to go to lunch with me. :-) 

Here are some of the cool displays
This is an Ud

Emily and her friend, Grace

Instruments made from bamboo

I thought this one shaped like an alligator was cool

My flute player!

Argentina--where Michael went on his mission

Bolivia--where Nathaniel is on his mission.  We thought it was cool that it actually says Bolivia...Mission

Double-bell Euphonium

Steinway piano

Emily figured out how to play I See the Light on this harp

She says she wants one for Christmas.  Oh, and a Steinway grand piano as well, haha!

Emily's Band Concert

We really enjoyed Emily's band concert!  She did a wonderful job, as always.  I loved seeing her right in front. 

'Twas in the Moon, Symphonic Band

Nutcracker Suite, Symphonic Band

Sleigh Ride: Symphonic Band, Concert Band, and Orchestra

Great job, Emily!

Thanksgiving Weekend

It has been a great weekend!  We had fun celebrating Thanksgiving and my birthday with family.

First, we went to dinner on Wednesday night to my favorite teppanyaki restaurant.  Jonathan wanted to wear the dragon head so I let him.  Everyone thought it was his birthday so it was less embarrassing for me.

My birthday fell on Thanksgiving this year.  Michael got me this double layer cookie cake--yum!  It was more popular than the pies.

Unfortunately, little Aaron got sick so Betsy and Geoff had to leave early.  We didn't get a group picture this year.

On Friday night, Michael and I went to the David Archuleta concert.  He has such an amazing voice and it was a wonderful concert.  He sang mostly Christmas music along with some of his popular songs.

I hope you all had a blessed Thanksgiving!

Jonathan's Field Trip

The good news is, I was able to chaperone Jonathan's field trip today.  The bad news is, he thought it was boring.  I still had fun with him.  They learned about American history from the Revolutionary War to World War II.  They also learned about what life was like for the Pilgrims and people living during all those times.  I had a group of seven children to manage, including Jonathan, but they were all really good.  They had a packet of questions to answer, and they did a great job.

Here is the Civil War battle re-enactment

I'm so glad I got to go!

Andrew's Broken Arm

Poor Andrew.  First he fractured his tail bone.  That took four weeks to heal and he was finally able to play football again, but they still didn't put him in a game.  Now it's too late, because in practice last Wednesday another player hit him in the arm with his helmet.  The Urgent Care didn't do a very good job because they said there was no fracture.  He was still in a lot of pain.  We took the advice of a retired pediatrician at church and took him to an orthopedic surgeon.  It turns out there is a fracture and he needed a cast.  He has to wear the cast for a month and then a brace for another month and will not be able to play football for the rest of the season.  He is loyal, though, and continues to attend practices and games and works as an assistant to the coach.  This is after his first day at school with his cast and it's already filled with signatures.  We're so sorry you got hurt, Andrew!