Piano Recital

 

 

When I picked up Phillip from preschool he gave me a huge hug and wished me Happy Mother's Day. Then he held open the door for me! He even held open the door for other folks at the hardware store. They were delighted with his good manners (me too). The boys and I made a fun trip to Bomgaards for garden compost. The boys tried out each of the lawn mowers while I shopped for dirt. The store has huge bins filled with live baby chicks and ducks. The store clerk helped the boys pet one. Everett tried to squish one chick's little head. I got each boy a little truck. They played outside with their new toys for hours while I worked out in the lawn. Everett even helped me weed the grass, he pretended to be a donkey pulling a cart. Amelia performed in her first piano recital on Monday. She looked so cute up there in her little spring dress plunking the keys. I accompanied her on the first song, that was fun! We practiced together several times and finally got the timing and syncopation down correctly. She loves piano lessons. The recital was at the E Free church in Sidney. The chairs had pens and suggestion papers for the members to use, the boys used all the pens and paper of our entire row. At least they were mostly quiet. We snuck out after Amelia performed because I thought she had a party for her ballet studio. I got the wrong day. We snuck back in and watched the rest of the recital without the boys and Justin. We worked on the garden and Justin worked on hacking out the broken fence post for FHE. I have never planted my garden this late in the year since we moved into our home. I find my motivation is somewhat lacking...or my time is more limited. 

Everett has a fun talent for making guns out of any old item...including the elastic cinch waists on most toddler pants. A long piece of elastic was sticking out of his waistband. He grabbed it and used the elastic throughout the day as a personal blaster. That elastic was something amazing. It could blast chairs, slides, and even annoying brothers. Our slide was used as the Magic School Bus this week as well. It is amazing how many functions a slide can be used for. Miss Evelyn learned how to clap her hands last week. She spent most of the week perfecting her clap. You should check out her cute little cowlick, the hairs stand straight up on the back of her head. 

Wednesday we had a day long playdate with the Hornboogers (Phillip's pronunciation). Evelyn Hornbarger was in Lincoln attending a state training for three days. Little Kaylee is about as hangry as Everett, maybe even more so. I carried around a pocket full of snacks, when a kid started to get whiney or angry I'd pop a treat into the whiney mouth. It was brilliant. Little Seth trailed me around waiting for treats like a puppy. Sethie even snuggled with me while he took a nap. Everett and Kaylee found a tame potato bug who tried to jump off their sticky palms with suicidal tendencies. What kind of bug does not like to be held by a little kid? Geesh. The bug finally got lost in the grass (or died). Everett and Kaylee played together really well. Seemed like everyone enjoyed a nice day playing outside. Phillip got into Justin's tool bucket. He grabbed a hammer and punched a lovely hole into the larger slide. Then he tried to glue two hangers back together with gorilla glue. Since he had glue all over his hands he grabbed the graphite powder and tried to sniff it. He was covered in black powder. Mercy Me. That child can get into things faster than I can blink my eyes.

Thursday we woke up to thick, heavy snow covering our lawn and pavement. After Amelia left for school Phillip convinced me to help him make an Olaf. We made an Olaf while he had me sing the "Do You Want to Make a Snowman" song. The snow was so wet and heavy we used almost half the snow on our front lawn making it. Phillip was quite pleased with our lumpy Olaf the Snowman. He declared it finished after we gave it a carrot nose and rock eyes. He then ate the carrot like a moose would. I love that kid. He almost got blamed for the mess on our bedroom floor. Justin walked into our room and found a large pile of clothes and boxes. Justin even yelled, "PHILLIP!!!!" but then noticed the bent frame of the shelving and the yawning gap behind the shelf. Stupid thing came right out of the wall. Maybe we have too many hanging clothes. Dang! We don't have room for another chest of drawers in our tiny bedroom. So now my clothes are neatly strewn all over the floor and a new closet innards will be gracing our closet. 

Friday I had a photo shoot in Lodgepole. The entire situation was a little over the top and stressful. I am glad it is over, mostly. Now my customer wants to come see the unedited photos and choose which ones she wants me to edit. Not. It is hard when customers do not trust your judgment even when you have a little bit of experience on your side. Right after the session Justin and I met with Phillip's speech therapist for his end of year evaluation. I was surprised at the team assembled to support Phillip on his journey. His therapist, Lori, Mrs Cassie, Mrs Angie, and Mr Jeffers (the principal). I think Phillip felt special with all the attention and adults surrounding him. He showed off some of the skills he learned. We discussed his progress and what we need to work on over the summer. The meeting really drove home how special and amazing our Phillip is. Most days he drives me nuts but in the end his happiness, exuberance, and creativity win our hearts over. Justin and I enjoyed a late date to see Spiderman II. It was not as cool as I wanted, mostly it went way too long on a thin plot. Still, sitting next to my hubby with some popcorn is always a good idea. Justin really scored this year with his Mother's Day gift. He sent me a bouquet of yellow tulips in a cute vase shaped like rain boots. So adorbs. 

Saturday was utterly insane. We had three birthday parties, two at the same time. Amelia went to Ella's party with a friend. The rest of us worked hard getting Everett and RJ's party ready and successful. Sarah and I really worked to get everything ready in spite of challenging odds. Sarah's basement flooded last week so they are in the middle of ripping out the damaged areas and repairs. We worked and planned for weeks, here and there. It was super. After the party the boys and I rushed home to get some lunch while Justin picked up Amelia and Avery from the party in Dalton. Then we were off again for cake and ice cream at the park for Jacob and Levi (two boys near Phillip's age). Justin called me at the park and suggested we drive to Sterling Home Depot to get a replacement closet system. I was so tired and crabby by this point that a ride in the car sounded heavenly. It rained most of the way there and back. We picked up a simple closet maid system and walked around the garden center for a while. The kids tried out more lawn mowers while Justin checked out. Justin let me pick out a restaurant for a Mother's Day dinner. I chose Santigo's...gosh I love that place. Simple carnitas with half and half sauce, mwah. Perfection. The staff knows us all by now and shows us to the same table (tucked in the back corner). We order the same food and dig in. I went to bed at 10:15m, an unheard of time for me lately. Course, Evelyn decided sleeping was for the dogs and woke up several times. Phillip, Amelia, and Everett joined in the party at odd times of the night. Why? Why? Why? I should just give up. Every time I try to get to sleep at a decent time we endure the worst nights.

Mother's day was awesome. I love all the little homemade gifts from the kids. I got random hugs, snuggles, and kisses from the kids. Amelia made me breakfast of two tbs of oatmeal in 1 cup of milk, 3 tbs of cinnamon sugar and a side of lemonade! She delivered it on a cookie sheet. It was so sweet. The best was watching Amelia and Phillip sing. Amelia kept laughing at Phillip. He was so excited to be on the stage. He would sing about every 10th word in a loud voice with a scrunched up face. It was hilarious. Every couple moments he'd shoot us a thumbs up. HS graduation was right after church. There were a ton of parties after church for the 3-4 graduating seniors. We went to the party for our neighbor. Serena had a huge spread of food, dessert, and drinks. It was almost like a wedding reception! Poor Evelyn must be teething. She was awake until after 11 pm just crying and whimpering. She did not want to nurse, take her binky, play, or snuggle. Just cry. I felt so bad for the little lady. This is the first time she has not gone to sleep. Crazy. I finally sang her to sleep after sucking boogers, a dose of Tylenol, and oil in her ears. She slept fitfully most of the night.