Recitals.....Well one recital and one performance of another sort.

Conner and Jude's piano teacher recently moved, but before she did they had one final recital. The boys both worked hard and performed their pieces very well. A BIG thank you goes out to their fabulous teacher, Nikki! We will miss you!! (Yeah, she'll probably kill me for this!)

A couple of days later, Conner wanted to play for me all the songs he had learned in school on his recorder. However, he played them all with a twist. Oh, I love my boys even though I don't always understand them! *hehe* (Note: This was am impromptu perfermance, so I was holding Avery, and she got the camera.)

The Birthday Boys

Conner and Jude's birthdays are only a day apart, and this year we celebrated them mostly together. We pretty much let them call the shots as to what we did for a whole Saturday. So, here is what a 6-year-old's and 9-year-old's collaborative day of fun looked like:

1. Get up early and go to McDonald's for breakfast. Kind of a funny request, but one that has a bit of a back story. About two months ago Jude had a dental appointment at 7:00 in the morning. Chris was out of town, so I packed up all the kids and took them along, but wasn't able to get breakfast in them before it was time to go. So, in the few minutes between the dentist and school, we went through the drive-through at McDonald's for a quick breakfast (of champions). Jude wasn't allowed to chew anything, so he had to settle for orange juice and yogurt, but the other kids had the little McGriddle pancake and sausage sandwiches. Ever since then Jude's been REALLY wanting one of those sandwiches, so that was a birthday request.

2. Go bowling. Our kids love bowling - it's kind of weird because neither Chris nor I bowl. We took them once for fun and ever since they seem to crave it fort-monthly. The first half was cool because they had the cosmic bowling going with lots of black lights - another thing our kids are fascinated by - but for no apparent reason they turned those off midway. Oh, well. They all still had fun! And just because this is me, I HAVE to say how stinking cute Asher looked in his bowling shoes!! They should really sell them in regular retail stores!!

3. Had pizza for lunch. Enough said.

4. Chris took the three boys to the movie "Up" while Avery stayed home and napped. Of course popcorn and candy were involved. After all, it was their birthdays!

5. Had more pizza for dinner. They got to call the shots, remember?

6. Had cake and ice cream. Jude has been obsessed with Pokemon lately and knew immediately when I asked him what cake he wanted that it needed to be a chocolate pokeball. Speaking from a decorating standpoint, I was very pleased. Although, nothing could beat the ease of Conner's cake - he wanted to make his own "chocolate, chocolate cake." He made the cake, frosted it, and even decorated it by writing "Happy Birthday Conner" on it. I only had to give a little supervision and help. It was a beautiful thing!

7. The boys opened their presents from us - matching Super Soakers! It was a fantastic day, so we took them out for a trial run. Here's a picture of the birthday gift:

And here is a picture of a little boy whose two older brothers got Super Soakers for their birthdays (he was loving it, don't worry.)

And finally here is an adorable picture of Avery enjoying watching the merry chaos. She giggled so much every time the boys would let out one of the special super blasts of water.
8. Bed time. OK - so they didn't get to call ALL the shots, we still made them go to bed, but they all slept very well that night. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CONNER AND JUDE!!

Park Pride Day, 2009

Last weekend we went with our ward to a couple of local parks to help clean-up and beautify as part of the annual "Park Pride Day" extravaganza. The park district provided all the materials, but the man power was all from local citizens. It's a great way to get invested in the community and build unity in neighborhoods. Here is a run down of the kids' activities:

Conner and his friends Matthew tried a little of everything: planting flowers, weeding, mulching, picking up trash, and the never to be under-rated "air raking."

Jude stayed busy with the mulch, either spreading it or climbing the huge piles put out at each park. However, the most notable way he spent his time was by shamelessly flirting with the teenage girls there helping. They ate him up and he said "I made lots of new big girl friends." Good for you, little Romeo!

Asher spent his time throwing away trash, climbing the mulch, and (the most time consuming activity of all) trying to avoid getting his picture taken. Haha, though. My friend got one! Avery did what Avery does best: charm everyone with her smiles and waves while taking off her shoes and socks.

Conner's Concert

At Conner and Jude's school, every grade has a concert at some point during the year. The third grade concert was this week. What's special about the third grade concert is that it is the only year where all the kids play an instrument. Conner got to play the bass xylophone. Here is a short clip of him playing accompaniment. I don't have him playing while the choir is singing because some little kid came and stood right in front of me with a cell phone camera that I don't think he really knew how to use. If I moved, then the other parents filming their kids would have lost their shots. So, this is what I have (the part with the choir went better - not as much unintentional syncopation).

While it's difficult for 20 eight-year-olds to keep a steady beat while in front of a large crowd, I thought they all did a fantastic job. Conner was a little nervous at first, but he soon relaxed and had fun singing all the songs and, well, just being Conner!

Bravo, Conner!

First Day of School

Today was it - the first full day of school. Conner is in the 3rd grade, and so excited to be back with all of his friends (and for the new shoes he got for the event) . So far he seems to really like his new teacher. He was so sweet with Jude today. He held his hand all the way from the time they stepped out of the door to when they got on the bus. The whole time he was telling Jude about how great school is, about all the cool things Jude will get to do, and how awesome his teacher is (Jude got Conner's kindergarten teacher - Mrs. Krull. Hooray! We LOVE her!). Booyah, Conner!

Jude is in KINDERGARTEN! I can't believe he is that old, but it's true. Here in Flossmoor we have full day kindergarten. I think the day was a little long for him, but overall he seemed to enjoy it. It certainly helps that the classroom theme is frogs!! He came home with a frog hat craft and a little book he made about green things. He's so cute about all of it, and so excited to show us everything he did. Good job, Jude!