1. Addie's middle school dance concert. Little Miss Gymnast who has been opposed to taking dance lessons her whole life has now discovered that she loves to dance is actually very good at it! I was very impressed with the talent at this middle school dance concert. This was light years away from anything we could have done at good ol' Dixon. Addie's dance was mostly done in the dark with a black light and I could only see her part of the time. Oh well. What we saw of her looked great! Her arms are ripped!
2. Isaac's breakdancing concert. He was so excited for this! And he did an awesome job. Such a cool kid.
3. My parents requested that my kids give a short recital at their home for some of their friends. I told my mom that May was not the best time for something like this - but I am so glad we did it. As usual my mom planned a perfect evening with a lovely atmosphere and delicious food (my dad did a lot of work too!). And then we were overwhelmed by the love and support shown by their friends and neighbors. Marion B. even brought two trays of divinity!! Addie sang 4 songs, Isaac played the cello and the piano and Cate sang a song. They did great. Here a few videos for anyone who might be interested.
"Come Thou Fount" - Addie
"Gesu Bambino" - sung by Addie with Isaac on the cello
Cate's solo. I think Cate is a born performer - she just eats it up! She will sing or dance for anyone, anywhere, anytime.
Isaac's cello solo.
4. The next evening we took the older kids to the long-awaited (over one year awaited!) U2 concert. And it was worth the wait! It was quite a spectacle and the kids loved it - including Wes - our family's biggest fan.
We rode trax to the stadium.
5. Sarah wasn't left out of the fray! Her preschool program and picnic was the next day. Being the unpredictable child that she is - upon arrival the tears started to flow and she refused to participate. Ugh. After a lot of coaxing (and threats that we would have to go home) she finally agreed to sit with the group. But she didn't move her hands or open her mouth more than one or two times. She warmed up a bit after the program and we ended up having a nice time.
6. Later that day it was off to the elementary school for the end of the year dance festival. Cate did the Hukilau while Isaac's class did their dance from the Hope of America (forgot to blog about that! Oh well).
7. The next item on the docket was another outing with the older kids (we starting feeling sorry for Cate and Sarah but they didn't seem to care). We saw Les Miserables at the Capitol Theater. It was fantastic - powerful and moving. I love that show.
8. And finally the big whammy - Friday. Three recitals back to back starting at 4:30 pm and ending at 9:30 pm. I will post about this later. But I think some "Grandparents of the Year" awards need to go out to the grandparents who stayed for 5 HOURS (!) to watch these recitals. Wow! Brother and baby sister were troopers too!
I can't describe what a relief it is to have these two weeks over! And believe it or not - we still have a couple recitals to go! Now I can officially start catching up on the last three months.
I have had several conversations with moms over the past month about how crazy life seems these days. And I know there are many moms out there that can sympathize. It's partly my own fault - I know - that my kids are so busy. But I am starting to believe (after talking to moms whose kids are grown and gone) - that this is it. That it isn't going to get any easier - any less stressful. In fact it may even get worse! So I am trying hard to embrace it and make the most of it instead of complaining about it all the time and constantly wishing for the return of simpler times. It's not easy - but I am trying. I may be completely off-base here but as I am figuring things out as I go along - this is the conclusion I have come to. Thoughts?
4 comments:
LOVED this post! So much fun to read about your life. It is a very full and wonderful life.
Darling SJ photos. LOVED the videos. I believe we were right across from you at the U2 concert. Our photos could be flip-flopped almost exactly.
Hang in there and go for the ride. It is over so quickly.
Uh? Exhausted? Summer will be a nice time to wind down (I hope). It looks fun though. You are really shaping your kids into fine people.
Embracing is good. Sometimes I also just plan an at-home day, and gracefully decline invitations, telling friends and family that they would be welcome to stop by, but that we need a day to rest, catch up, cook our casseroles for the week, and do laundry. We all appreciate our down-time.
Anne K
I think we live the same life. This week and next are CRAZY with end-of-year stuff. And it makes me lose sleep--woke up at 3 a.m. with my head swimming in details! I read your italicized post and got a bit teary. I feel the exact same way, except that last night I (unlike you!) was absolutely bemoaning the craziness of life to Brian--and I still have 2 kids who haven't hit the activity whirlwind yet. I really struggle to know what is enough per child and what is enough for the family as a whole. The craziness grows exponentially with each kid. I don't have any answers, but this is a very real struggle for me...and I sympathize with your feelings in a big way. If you figure out anything, I'd love to hear it!
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