Melissa's Birthday/Mother's Day Picnic

I love it when Melissa's Birthday lands on Mother's Day. I really do. Mother's Day is such a special day for me because there is nothing I enjoy better than being a mom. Nothing. And to celebrate that day with my oldest daughter? Absolutely wonderful.

Melissa loves to spend her birthdays walking through the flower gardens of the Arboretum. We had all intentions of doing that until we learned that there was also a Mother's Day brunch and Plant sale going on that made parking an impossibility. So, plan B was just as good....perhaps even better!....we had a relaxing picnic in the park in the middle of our town. Having the place nearly entirely to ourselves, we enjoyed the day immensely. And Melissa couldn't have been happier with all of the special birthday attention she received. Doesn't she just look soooooooo happy?!?

Of course, a good cupcake has been known to bring a smile or two to anyone.

And this card, made by Grandma ?.

Good gracious, this card.

With a picture of Melissa as a baby and one of her now...10 years later. So creative. And beautiful!

Alex hijacked my camera for the rest of the afternoon.

I am glad he did....I really enjoy his perspective on things:

After our large picnic lunch and birthday cupcakes, we walked down the streets of our small, adorable little town to the local little ice cream shop. Bethany even shared a few smiles with us.


I love our little town....strolling up and down the quaint little streets.....it just makes me happy!

Eventually, Melissa was antsy to get back home and to play with some of her birthday presents. She spent some time getting to know her new doll Rebecca, and giving her beautiful new hair-dos in the new salon chair.And her "big" gift this year was a Zune HD. Alex spent several days loading tons of CD's, a few videos, and some other fun stuff onto this high tech device. After a quick tutorial by Alex, Melissa was able to navigate it quite easily, and had a great time listening to music and playing bowling. A perfect gift for an emerging tweenager.To top off our already super-fabulous day. Daddy took his two special gals out to dinner. Melissa picked the local Chinese buffet. One of our favorites.
It was so sweet to spend some quality time with just our daughter. Something that doesn't happen all that often in our ultra busy household. We ate, talked, ate, laughed, ate some more, and then went home when we thought we would most certainly burst from our midsections. It was the perfect ending to an as near to perfect as possible day.


Happy 10th Birthday, Melissa!

Dance Recital

Laura had a dance recital today. It was an amazing show! SO many groups, so many girls. And even a few little boys took part in the program. Having had only exposure to Just for Kix(in which nothing of substance was learned, and if you can't keep up on your own power, too bad for you) in the past, I was totally impressed with this show. With set changes, ever-changing costumes and songs, I almost felt like we were watching something on the likes of being on Broadway. Well, with the exception of professional dancers. But that is what made this show even more charming. All those kids were simply adorable!

Laura did great, and remembered a good portion of her steps throughout their tap segment. Knowing how shy she is and how nervous she was to perform on stage in front of hundreds of people in a giant auditorium, I was so proud of her. And so was Daddy, her siblings, and all her grandparents in attendance.

She was thrilled to get flowers......she never knew that was part of the joys of being a dancer. Nice perk, for sure!

So all that hard work each week for 8 months came to an end today. Was it worth it? Perhaps. It would have been nice if the girls were allowed to watch the show when they weren't on stage. But the audience didn't seem to have an empty seat available. I do know that Laura felt very proud of all she has accomplished this dance season. As a first time dancer, she gained some good confidence and skills. And now has another way-too-cute costume she can play dress up in!

Birthday Party Girl

Birthday Girl.

She has one every year.

A birthday, that is.

In fact, this is her tenth one.

.....in a row.

We took the day off of school.

Rather, utilized the day off that school gave us.

Melissa chose to go to Pump It Up.

Lots of inflatable fun.

For 90 solid minutes!!

They were hot, tired, but had so much fun!

Bethany was a bit intimidated, but she liked the balls.

Crispy was the only boy, but didn't mind one bit.

We then went back to our house for pizza and presents. And just some regular old birthday craziness. Like "hospital". Before long, we had 5 doctors and a multitude of critically ill patients, most of whom needed life saving surgery....STAT.

Just for fun, the girls all insisted we go to Jonny's Wizard of Oz play. Some very nice people in the front row allowed all of the kids to sit in front of their feet so that they could actually see the show this time. Thank you God, for the goodness of kind human beings.

They all loved it!

Back at home, with the grandparents joining us as well, it was time for cake. But before we cut into it, I had Melissa play her cake.

Rather, she played the musical line written atop it with cherry notes.

She did it! And so began the beginning of the "Happy Birthday" chorus.

After cake, the girls had a wee bit of energy to blow off. Go figure.

Once all the scheduled surgeries were completed, the doctors shed their day job clothes and began their cheer leading practice. They even found some new recruits. And mascots.

They practiced, and practiced. And put on quite a show for us. I videotaped the "War!" cheer. Too bad for you all that I am not high tech savvy enough to possibly make it onto this post. It was a pretty good cheer. For a bunch of 10 year old girls.

For sanity's sake, we had a calming down activity in front of the tv. But instead of just mindlessly watching the pre-recorded new episode that had aired while we were at the play, I had the girls make their own pillows. Because you need a pillow for a sleep over. And you need to have a sleep over if you are having a birthday party. At least that's what I have been told. And it really helped to round out a very special birthday for my very special girl.

*sigh*

Not to worry.....they were all out 20 minutes into the movie, Princess and the Frog.

And Bethany got quite bored watching me clean the kitchen at midnight. I guess I don't blame her.

Happy Birthday(Party), Melissa!

Off to See the Wizard

The Wizard of Oz returns for Jonny. This time, he is performing a different version of the play....a bit more classic than the silliness added through Prairie Fire last summer. He has been practicing for this play over the last 6 weeks since landing the part as Tin Woodsman. For three afternoons every week, he has gone back to the Middle School, working diligently at his craft. One of his many talents. His niche.

Jonny is such a natural. Just like his Dad. He performs on stage like it is what he was meant to do. Always in character. Always knows his lines. Always knows his clues. And always cracking the jokes at just the right time.

The play went very well. For a little middle school production, it was an impressive little show. The stage was terrible, but that is not the cast or producer's fault. Whoever designed the "cafetorium" was certainly not thinking clearly. It is the only crazy stage I have seen where all the audience slowly slopes upward, as the stage is located almost below ground level. Meaning, unless you are sitting in the exact front row, all you get to see is the person's head in front of you. It is ridiculous. Each concert and performance in this horrible place is amongst one of the biggest annoyances experienced. Ok...rant now over.

Jonny had three performances for this play. The kids enjoyed the first one so much, that I brought Melissa's birthday party full of girls to the second performance the next night! Thankfully, there were some very kind people sitting in the front row who allowed all the kids to sit on the floor at their feet in order that they could see. Nice people in this here town of ours. Bethany was funny. Each time she heard Jonny's voice, she would get a huge smile on her face, and look all over for him. But she could never find him, as he was disguised in silver make up from head to toe! Once up close, she didn't quite know what to think of his new look.

I think it is time to conduct an interview with our actor son:

What do you enjoy most about acting?

I don't know. It's one of the things I'm good at.

What have you found to be the most challenging part for you?

That's a good question. Ummm....I don't know. It just comes along pretty easily for me.

What was your favorite character you have been cast as, and why?

I think I had the most fun with being the Tin Man because I had more rehearsals as a leading character and got to see my friends I made more.

What kind of character are you hoping to try out in the future?

One that's got an abnormal personality. All of my characters so far have been on the safe side.

How do you stay calm on stage in front of all those people?

Gosh....ummm....it starts for me by just pretending that every rehearsal is an actual performance. This keeps the stress level lower during the actual performance.

What advice would you give to other aspiring actors?

I guess just to practice as often as you can, and learn your lines quicker.

Thanks, Jonathan. We look forward to your next production, A Midsummer Night's Dream. Coming this July....and Christopher is joining the cast with you!

Modern Day Prom

My first baby went to Prom today. Yes today. Not just tonight. Or this evening. Today. As in all day long. The proms of the past seem to be no longer. Which is a good thing. Prom at our High School is not simply a fancy dance followed after a fancy dinner on your own. It is an all day event. And I think that it is a very good thing.

It began with pictures in the park just after noon. Here are a whole bunch of prom attendees. They all looked so lovely. Even in the 20mph winds and cloudy skies. My son was not in this group. He had already left. I cried.

They next had the Grand March in the gymnasium. The decorations were amazing. The entire gym was transformed into something fit for royalty. Each couple was announced and then proceeded to walk through the fancy prom-walk, stopping at each corner trellis for pictures taken by hundreds of paparazzi fans. Laura and I found a great little spot on the floor by crawling under and through the packed bleachers. We ooooo'd and ahhhhh'd over the beautiful dresses.

Alex and his prom date looked lovely. And all grown up. *sigh*

After their stardom walk, the nearly 200 couples were loaded into buses, and bussed to the dinner and dance site, nearly one hour away. They were then bussed back and locked into the high school until about 4am. Appetizers, food, and entertainment occupied their time. What a great, safe way to have prom! And as parents, to be free of all moments of worry was a priceless thing.

Taking Down the Giant

Another JAM play today! This was Melissa's last JAM experience as she will be moving onto the middle school group next fall. JAM has been a great place for the kids to worship God in compelling ways through theater and song in a very safe and spiritually uplifting environment.

Meeting every Sunday from 3:30-6:15 pm was a little rough at times. But the end result is a beautiful and successful musical performance that every kid in the cast could be proud of.

They did so well. And they completed all their lines with confidence. Both of our kids knew all the words and actions to each of the songs.....which tends to happen when you listen to the CD in the car about 257,931 times in a matter of a few months.

Crispy and Melissa were Israelites together. Crispy had a few more lines than Melissa had. And that was exactly what both of them were hoping for. They were thrilled to be in special rehearsals together. There is something so special with these two.....Crispy is always picking up where Melissa leaves off, they always "get" each other's silly jokes, and they get along so marvelously. They just seem so much like twins to me. I hope it is a bond that will last a lifetime for them.

The rest of our crew, as well as Grandparents, and even a friend of Melissa's. were quite entertained by the whole performance. I think this was their best one yet. Funny, but I think I always think that , and wonder how they will ever top it next time...yet, they always seem to do it!

The highlight of the show came at the very end, as the giant, Goliath, was finally revealed.

But no worries, because David knocked him one with one rock slung, and that giant was a goner. Melissa and Crispy surprised us with their abilities to "drag" that massive dude off of the stage. No more getting out of taking the trash out chores for them now that we know what they are really capable of.