Leah's Dance Recital

Leah has been practicing ballet and tap for 3 years now. Last year she missed the recital since we were in transition from NC to Vermont, but this year we got to see the fruits of all her efforts. I have loved the studio we chose here in VT for her lessons. They are easygoing and laid back but also very structured in their teaching and make them work hard. She was put in the beginner class at the beginning of the year because she had never taken lessons with this particular teacher and didn't know her style, positions, etc. and at first I thought it would take her back a level, but actually I think it was right where she needed to be and I believe she really excelled. She really seemed to be one of the more dedicated in the class and really was able to imitate the teacher's techniques. Her teacher was a little more experienced than the one in NC and Leah really liked her. I am hoping she continues to enjoy dancing because I feel that she really has a propensity to do well and become a great dancer.


We took a few pictures outside before we left in her costume. She had one costume from which the skirt could be removed to make a second costume, thus saving money on an extra costume. The skirt was on for the ballet portion.

I was so proud of the bun I made in her hair-- it turned out so well and stayed tight all day long. After the last recital which didn't turn out well at all, I looked it up online how to make a good one. And as it turns out, her teacher at this studio didn't really care quite as much whether her hair looked perfect in a bun.

She looked so grown up! I kept having flashbacks to the day she was born and she was just so tiny and now she is this beautiful young lady. (It's probably a good thing I won't have extra pregnancy hormones on her wedding day.)

I got this shot of the tap dance part of her costume backstage before the show started (minus the tap shoes, of course).

It's pretty hard to get good shots during the show from far away while also trying to actually watch the show and get a video and not use a flash, but you can get an idea. She is right in the center of the girls.

Of course, most of the time the girls were looking to their teacher on the sideline for direction, even though when I saw them practice these dances in class, they nailed them! Leah said she felt really good about the tap part but then couldn't remember a lot of the ballet song and couldn't see the teacher well. None of them seemed to have stage fright and even though it didn't look professional, they looked like they were enjoying themselves.

They actually had two identical shows, due to the size of the auditorium. So they performed at both 2:00 and 5:00. I went to both shows, but Brett, Andrew & Abi only came to the 2nd show (which I had to explain to Leah at least 3 times-- she kept thinking Daddy missed her show!). Between shows they had a little down time, since it was only about an hour long. Leah and some of her friends from class ran around outside (in their $75 costumes with moms hovering to be sure there were no rips or dirt stains!).

The 2nd show was just as good as the first and Andrew and Abi sat mesmerized the whole time. There was enough action for them to stay entertained.

In the finale they all got to come back out on stage and take their bows.

They were not professionally taping the show, so we were allowed to do our own video. So here is the tap song from the 2nd show:

And here is the ballet song, in two parts because I accidentally hit the wrong button on my phone.

And a portion of the finale, from the 1st show. (The girl that walks out in the red jacket after Leah's class takes their bow is her teacher, Miss Caitlin.)

And of course the best part is flowers from Daddy, and a trip to McDonalds for dinner afterwards ('cause we're classy like that!).

May Lately

We've had such beautiful weather this May we have tried to go outside as much as possible. It's been a pretty busy month, with regular activities finishing up and new summer activities lying ahead.

We got our garden put in a little at a time the week of Memorial Day and after. Last year we had a lot of success with many things, and other things didn't turn out so well, so we adjusted this year and we'll see what comes up! We like to get the kids involved in it as much as possible. Of course, Abi could care less, but Andrew, especially, loves to help Daddy with all the mowing, digging, and planting. He was out there all day for at least 3 different days. I think Leah just likes to have the wide open spaces to practice her dance moves.

They must be working hard on the corn seeds here. They did pretty well planting the seeds correctly as long as I showed them where they needed to go. I'm pretty sure they could tell you everything we're growing and where it is planted.

We had indoor activities too! Leah and Abigail and I were invited to a Tea Party Bridal Shower for a young lady in our small group at church whom Brett is marrying in July. Of course Leah is all about a tea party, so she was so excited! We got dressed up and Leah even tried some tea. She didn't really like it, but in her defense, I gave her a flavored tea and then we put milk and sugar in it which probably didn't need to go in.

Abi got a little antsy at the party but didn't get into too much trouble. She just got a little bored after 30 minutes of watching presents being opened!

One of my favorite things about spring at our house is the sunsets. They seem to fill the sky with colors you could never imagine even existed! We are surrounded by mountains on all side, so it's just a beautiful wonder of God's creation we get to enjoy!

One day I just took my camera outside when the kids were playing. So I call these shots "childhood unplugged."

Spring is finally here!

As we were warned, winter in Vermont was long and cold and snowy. It could have been a lot worse-- we had no major snow storms and were never stuck at home more than a day or so. However, now we understand why so many Vermonters are outside all spring and summer. The cold weather definitely makes you appreciate the warm weather so much more! The kids were so excited the second week of April when it finally started getting nice out. It seems as if we replaced the winter coats & gloves with shorts. It's still usually 70's or 80's, but it's pretty hot to us. So we try to get outside a little every day.

The kids got into the sidewalk chalk on the porch for a few days.

Abi has gotten quite good at going down the hill on her own on the car. It scared me at first but she is in a phase where she wants to do everything by herself!

A friend from church offered to take them fishing. They didn't catch anything but they had fun trying something new.

Abi enjoyed running back and forth from the water to the car.

Don't they look picturesque?

And we found a new playground we love. It's at the elementary school, though, so we have to go only when school's out. We enjoyed a picnic the other day.

So now we are really looking forward to summer and this year we will know to soak it in as much as possible, because it doesn't last long before it's cold once again.

CC End-of-the-School Year Presentations

Even though we are still doing "school"-type things around our house, our homeschool Classical Conversations group just wrapped up our last day with a pizza party and a little presentation of some of the things we learned. Andrew and Leah have truly loved going to CC this year, have learned a ton and made a lot of new friends. Sadly a lot of those friends live an hour away, where the homeschool group meets, and some are not coming back next year, but we may still have chances to get together with them over the summer and beyond. Andrew really did well for being the youngest in the class and is really starting to find his "niche" in schoolwork.

Here is a little song all the kids learned this year in order to help memorize some Latin. It is the words to John 1:1-6 in Latin. I cannot believe how well these little 4 and 5-year-olds retained this information, and Andrew can still sing the song (although I doubt he could tell you the meaning of any of the Latin words if you asked).

And Leah's class had fun learning this geometry song to memorize some of the formulas. I can't say I learned any of this stuff until high school! They are building a great foundation  for when they get older and remember these songs when it comes time to actually learn how to work with this information.

Here are their class pictures, actually taken a little while ago. Andrew's friends in his class were the only boys, Ravi & Wyatt. His teacher was Mrs. Young.

Leah's closest friend in her class is Fiona (to her left in the picture) and also Evelyn (to her right). Her teacher was Mrs. Larson.

Resurrection Sunday 2015

It seems like the holidays are always sneaking up on me and I end up feeling like we should have done more to celebrate. But actually I think the one or two things we do (consistently, every year), are probably enough to leave an impression on these kids.

This year we made Resurrection Rolls the Friday before Easter. You roll Jesus' body (a marshmallow) in oil (butter) & spices (cinnamon & sugar) and then wrap him in the tomb (crescent roll). When you cook them, Jesus' body is no longer there! They're actually a really tasty object lesson!

Sunday morning we saw the Easter bunny had visited. We try not to make a huge deal out of the bunny, so as to take away from the true meaning of Easter, but we do small baskets and let the kids think what they want about the bunny. They each got one thing to play with inside, one thing to play outside, a coloring book & crayons, plus some candy. They seemed happy. 

Abigail hasn't been feeling great the past two days, with a few teeth coming in and a fever as a result, so she was a little uncertain at first. I had to pull things out of her basket to show her and she eventually warmed up to it.

This was the first Sunday in awhile that Brett didn't have to do a sunrise service (it's entirely too cold in Vermont!) so we had him with us for the Easter baskets, and the rest of the day on Easter.

Thanks to Brett's mom and sister Karen, we had beautiful matching outfits for Sunday morning. Of course we had to cover them up with sweaters since it was 40 degrees outside, but at least we were styling. Andrew even had a little matching bow tie.

Abigail wasn't really having anything to do with pictures Sunday morning, since she still wasn't feeling well and just didn't really want to be around people unless I held her, so this picture was actually taken a few days ago when we got the outfits and tried them on. Hence the reason for no shoes. The sanctuary will have to do for a backdrop since it was too cold to go outside.

After church there was an Easter egg hunt. Well, it was more like a mad dash to get as many eggs as you could! It was over so quickly I didn't get many pictures, but the kids all got a ton of candy. Abigail again wasn't really into egg hunting-- at all-- she didn't want me to put her down. I don't know if it was too cold, or she was just tired, or scared-- I could do nothing to interest her in finding eggs. So I collected a few for her.

And once we were inside she managed to muster up some of her usual energy to convince me to open every single one of her eggs so she could single-handedly eat every single piece of candy. (Even though she'd eaten nothing for breakfast, mind you.) 

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I finally managed to get a few candid shots of her, but nothing with her brother & sister. She was happiest with candy in her hand.

And to recap my morning: "Hold me, Mommy!" I suppose I will cherish it while I can!