Spring Recital

Monday evening was our Spring Piano Recital.  I still have ten students, which is just the perfect number, and they are such an amazing group of people.  Each one of them have grown immensely over the past six months and I'm so proud of how they've progressed.  For some reason, at this recital, I was a bit more in my head and had the epiphany that everything that these students knew about the piano, I taught them.  As I see them blossoming and navigating different hand positions, pedaling, new key signatures, playing duets, and so many other things, I felt so proud of the hard work and progress we have made together.  I remember back to each of their first few lessons - when they couldn't identify any notes on the page or on the keys, didn't know what a quarter note was, and could barely get their fingers to cooperate.  Looking at all they have learned made me feel like a good teacher and I can't wait to see what they can achieve next.

Week 22: My love

12 years together...almost 7 as husband and wife...2 kids...and a lot more grey hair...he's still the one that makes me laugh, supports and encourages me, and helps me take myself and life a little less seriously.

Last Day of 4K

It's hard to believe, but today is Nolan's last day of 4K!  It seems like he just started, but when you look at the picture from September to the picture from this morning, it's startling how much he's grown!!!  Not only has he grown taller, but he has soared through his 4K program - excelling socially, emotionally, and academically.  In the past year, he has learned to be away from Mom, play better with classmates, follow the structure of a school classroom, and has even learned to read!  We are so proud of him and can't wait to see what his future holds.  Congrats on completing your first year of school, Nolan!  We love you!

Field Trip to the Children's Museum

One of the perks of being a Stay-at-Home Mom is getting to be involved in my kid's school.  I was able to chaperone Nolan's 4K trip to the Eagle River Children's Museum this week and it was fun to spend some time playing with him and his classmates in this fun place.  Aside from playing in the many exhibits, the 4K-ers also got to do a dinosaur dig - where they donned their "sun hats", "canteen" and followed the camel through the desert to gently brush away the sand from the buried dinosaur bones.  It was so fun to see their imagination at work!  They are so cute!

Nolan's teacher, Mrs. Powell, and teacher's assistant, Ms. Yeager, are such sweet and nurturing ladies and Nolan really loved being in their classroom this year.  I love their calm and gentle demeanor, especially when dealing with seventeen rowdy 4 and 5 year olds!

While we were there, I recognized one of the other chaperones as one of the wonderful delivery room nurses that helped me and advocated for me during Nolan's intense birth.  I never got a chance to thank her after that traumatic ordeal, so I decided to go say hello.  She said she recognized my face right away, but couldn't place me.  I mentioned a few details of the birth, and she remembered right away - down to which other nurse was in the room.  It was a scary and memorable experience for everyone!  She said it meant so much to know that Nolan had turned out ok - once the baby leaves the floor, they never know how things end up, and with his traumatic and prolonged ordeal, there was a distinct  possibility of injury to him and me.  Seeing a big, strong, smart, and healthy 5 year old almost brought her to tears.  We are so grateful things turned out the way they did!

Before we knew it,  it was time to head back to the bus.  I can tell it means so much to Nolan when I get to come along on his trips.  I know he won't always feel that way, so I'm trying to soak it up now, while it lasts!  It was a fun day for the kiddos and adults alike, and was a perfect last week of school activity! Summer's coming soon!

Memorial Day Weekend

This year's Memorial Day weekend boasted record highs - well into the 90s - so we spent the majority of the weekend on or in the water.  We spent the majority of the day on Saturday playing outside with the sprinkler, kiddie pools, and water balloons.  Grandpa Jim and Grandma Marcia came to join us for the weekend, which added to the fun.  Everybody had a blast!  

On Sunday, we headed to Tom's for the first boat ride of the year and the inaugural float of our new friend...….Poopy Frankenstein. (The kids named him.)  Patti found this ridiculous giant sized peacock at Sam's Club and thought we would have a blast on it this summer.  She was right - and we all enjoyed the sunshine and water while aboard our noble bird.  

We headed on a lengthy pontoon ride up the Wisconsin River and made our way to Backwaters Restaurant, where we got a bite to eat.  We saw several critters on our pontoon ride, including a few bald eagles, several muskrats, a blue heron, a deer, a loon, and even a clam!  The Northwoods sure is beautiful in the summer!  I found myself in such a wonderful state of relaxation and contentment as I watched the beautiful clouds float by and felt so grateful to be spending my day this way.  

By Monday, Eric was back in town and he joined us for some more time on the water.  The day was much hotter, so we didn't go as far and we were all ready to get into the air conditioning by the mid-afternoon.  It was a wonderful weekend spent in a beautiful place with all my favorites close-by - it doesn't get much better than that!

Week 21: I'm strong because...

I'm strong because...I have this amazing group of people to stand behind me, love me unconditionally, and support me through good and challenging times.

Nolan's Spring Concert

Nolan's spring concert was on Thursday morning at the High School.  He's been practicing his songs at home for weeks - the ABC sounds song, Five Green and Speckled Frogs, and Mr Golden Sun.  Little buddy was a little nervous the morning of the performance, but he decided to be brave and told me he was 5 scared but 10 brave.  He gave it his all and did all of his actions perfectly and knew every word.  I'm very proud of my sweet and musical boy!