Updates and Performances

It's been a little busy lately as we've been going back and forth to Salt Lake for choir performances.  This week is pretty filled with them as well.  Spice will be performing The Messiah (abridged) at the Provo Tabernacle tomorrow and then at the Assembly Hall in Temple Square on Saturday at 7:30pm.  They got chosen out of all of the children's choirs that have performed at Temple Square to be recorded by the Mormon Channel so they'll be on the radio as well.  Pretty exiting.

It's funny how not being home can get you out of all your good habits.  The house is pretty messy this morning and there is a pile of laundry to fold in the living room.  We're home all day today (first day in quite a while!) so we'll be doing some catch up.  My friend, Lara, once told me that if her family is out of work practice because they've been on vacation or something else, they have a family work camp and all they focus on is work until they remember how to do it again.  I think that's what we'll have to do today.  We'll have our devotional and I'll be strict about how well and fast the work goes.  Maybe we'll even have some free time if everyone can manage to stay on task.

I wanted to write a quick update about what we've been up to and I'll dot it with some videos from the choir performances (since that's mostly what we've been up to).

Spice during the "Friends and Family Concert" singing Personet Hodie
(Spice is the third from the left in the front row)

Rock's been busy working and trying to figure out what to do with our house in Texas now that our tenant has moved out.  We can't find renters (it's that time of the year) and we would really like to sell it, but the market's not great.

Everyone singing Deck the Halls at the Festival of Trees
(I used my Iphone and it doesn't zoom :-( )
(Bud is the first little boy that walks in after they start singing - furthest to the right on the second row.
Little Miss is the third from the last little girl that walks in  - third from the right on the first row.)

I've been driving back and forth to Salt Lake, and eating pretty often to keep the nausea at bay (I have felt so good, by the way. I haven't thrown up at all and I actually feel good most of the time.  Maybe it's the nursing, maybe it's the healthier way I have been eating for the last year and a half - those daily spinach smoothies and more fruits and veggies may be paying off!)  I'm still working on Les Miserables.  I keep putting it down and reading my children's books when I need a break.  Lately, I've read Wind in the Willows, Pollyanna, The Witch of Blackbird Pond, Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, The Diary of Piper Davis, Wizard of Oz, and Eight Cousins.  Right now I'm in the part in Les Miserables when Marius is wasting away in his love for Cossette and Eponine is taking him to her.  It's rather annoying and I'm hoping Marius redeems himself soon.

Everyone singing As I Sat on a Sunny Bank at Santa's Breakfast (auditorium performance).

(It was kind of noisy at this performance because there was a long line of families waiting to get their pictures with Santa)

Besides singing, Spice has been doing a lot of journal writing, some spelling (I've just been getting words from her writing lately.  It's easier than doing a program), she's been reading Wind in the Willows and several books in between (Wind in the Willows is taking her some time, it's not really a page turner, but she says it's cute and wants to finish it).  She also practices the piano quite a bit.  She has given up on math again for a while.  She wants me to find her a different program - maybe I'll try different books from the library until I find something that appeals to her.  Math programs are kind of expensive and I don't want to keep buying them.  For now, I think I'll give her a little break from it.

Spice singing "Unto us a Boy is Born" at Santa's Breakfast - gym performance

(sorry for the shakiness, Ray was on my lap)

Bud has been devouring The Two Towers in the Lord of the Rings series.  He started the first book a while back and then put it away for a while because it got kind of boring in the middle.  Then we went to see the play The Hobbit that some of out friends were performing in and he got exited about it again so he finished the first one pretty quickly and he is zooming through the second one.  If he has a spare moment you'll see him with his book in hand.   Or you'll see him playing that he's Legolas and he's shooting people with his bow and arrow (a hair band that I let him have). 

Bud and Little Miss singing "Fum Fum Fum" at Santa's Breakfast:

Little Miss is also playing the piano a lot.  She doesn't really "practice".  She likes to figure out all of the Christmas songs that they are singing.  She does really well.  She can figure them out pretty fast and then she remembers how to play them.  She's been starting to get more curious about reading music and she's starting to work on that.  She is also reading a lot.  She started The Wizard of Oz one night and finished it the following night.  She also started Alice in Wonderland one morning and finished it that afternoon.  When she gets into a book she doesn't put it down.  She's in between books right now, but plans to start Pollyanna today (which Spice read recently and highly recommended to her).

Spice in "What shall I Give?"

Bazinks is becoming a better worker these days and is a lot more willing to help out during family work.  He also just had an episode of throwing really angry tantrums, but he seems to be getting over it.   I do take blame for it, though, because we let him watch parts of the new The Karate Kid that Rock brought home one night (first movie he has brought home in a long time).  There was a lot of anger in the movie and I think Bazinks had a hard time knowing what to do with it.  It surprised me when the next day he started kicking walls and slamming doors and throwing things when he got mad.  We've been talking about how to deal with anger appropriately and he has calmed down a lot lately, although he stills yells at me rudely when he's mad and has to go to time-out quite a bit for that.  He is doing "reading lessons" and he loves them.  He doesn't like me to forget them.  He's doing pretty well with them and I think he'll be reading soon.

Everyone in "Here We Come A' Caroling"

Ray just started nursery at church.  He seemed to really like it.  He had no problem with me leaving.  I think he's specially enthralled with the battery powered toys in there.  Since we don't own any of them anymore, he's pretty fascinated with the buttons that make noises and things.  His teachers said he was a model student and participated in everything really well.  At home, he walks around and finds things to explore.  He sings and dances a lot and gets into the Christmas tree too much.

"As I Sat on a Sunny Bank" Columbus Senior Center Performance

Spice in "Three Kings" at the Festival of Trees
(they stop glowing after a few seconds)

 

Everyone in "Up on the Housetop" at the Festival of Trees

Other things we've been up to lately:

I got to take Spice and Bud to the Conference Center to watch the Christmas devotional with my friend, Calene, and her two oldest kids.  There was such a beautiful spirit there and the talks were lovely.  I love it when the prophet walks in and everything goes quiet and everyone stands until he is seated.   I hope the kids always remember what it feels like to be in the presence of the prophet of God.  There is such a power there.  

 Yesterday, we went to the State Capital after their Senior Center performance.  I wanted to take them to a museum, but for some reason they were intent on going to the Capital again.  We got our own personal tour and we all learned a lot.

That's all I better write for now.  I have more to say, but I better wait until later because now I am really behind in getting started on our day!