Our Favorite Things (Spring break edition)

Pierced ears

and earrings

and meeting an author

Ally Carter, who wrote a couple of our favorite books, too!

Owl Earrings

and Hunger Games

Getting a Nook

 

 

Bright colored measuring cups with the numbers still on

These are a few of our favorite things!

Swimming and new clothes

 

and party invitations

Haircuts and

sleepovers and

Helping with yard work

Batmobiles found in the Wal-mart parking lot

These are a few of our favorite things!

When it rains all week
And mom has to work
And we're feeling mad
We simply remember our favorite things
And we don't feel so bad!

Caitlyn's Musical Talent

Better late than never, I say.

First the choir (she was in it this 9 weeks. She liked it enough to take it as a class next year.)


And then the band playing Funtango.

Active, Engaged, Engrossed, Industrious, Occupied, Unavailable

But definitely not busy.

 

Monday was Caitlyn's band concert. They did very well -- it really is amazing how fast these kids can go from sounding like out of tune beginners to fairly competent band players. (Though I'm refraining from commenting on the 8th grade french horn players, because I was there.) Each band played one regular song and one fun song (I need to put up the video...); we liked the 7th grade fun song best; but then, how can you not like a song where the band gets to go "shhh" as part of the piece, and then several members get to stand up and whip around plastic tubing to make a noise. Pretty dang cool. (We have the BEST band director.)

 

Tuesday, was Caitlyn's birthday. Hip hip hooray! She opened one present before breakfast (I really have no idea how this tradition started...), went to school, got excused from homework by one of her favorite teachers ("It's your birthday? Well, then you don't have to do your homework. But you have to let me pick on you during class." Sounds like a fair trade....), came home, opened more presents after dinner, and ate cake. And then I took the rowdy bunch of girls to the library because Russell was feeling just a bit overwhelmed with all our girlness. Sometimes he gets that way. (I do wonder if we had nothing but boys, if I'd feel that way... though, honestly, I sometimes feel overwhelmed with the amount of estrogen in our house...) At any rate, it was a fun birthday. We get to go get her ears pierced this week as part of her present, too. Excitement all around.

 

Wednesday was actually relatively slow. Caitlyn went to her first mutual night, and had a good time... And the younger two and I sat around trying to figure out what kind of room re-do we wanted to do, since I'd promised them I'd paint their room over spring break. (And since Spring Break started Thursday, that meant we needed to do it NOW. Not later. NOW.) We spent an hour trying to come to a compromise, then I threw out an idea that Alison had thrown out a few weeks ago in jest: what about a Harry Potter room? Immediately, they agreed! (Seriously??) We worked on it all day in Friday (the girls were a big help cleaning and painting) and did the last of it on Saturday, but they now have a Harry Potter Room. Which is wicked cool, if I do say so myself.

 

Also on Friday, Megan planted potatoes in our garden (I think all my kids need to take Botany in high school, along with the food science class. She's really enjoyed both, and they've been great for practical reasons; she learned how to plant potatoes right. Cool.), and Saturday she, Russell and Caitlyn went around with the other young women collecting items for the garage sale fundraiser they're doing next week for Girls' Camp. Alison had a birthday party at a karate studio, and talked me into doing a first-time private lesson (it's free), because she really wants to take karate. I'm not sure that's such a bad idea....

 

So, that leaves Thursday, in which Megan stayed at home to do "homework" (read: watch Bollywood movies while doing "homework" and texting friends), and the rest of us headed to the zoo. Caitlyn's girl scout troop was there to get some footage for a movie they're doing for a badge they want to earn. Caitlyn discovered that she's really good at interviewing people, and out of the four Girl Scouts that were there, was the most comfortable in front of the camera. I mentioned that maybe she should look into broadcast journalism; it combines writing, talking and acting... all of which she's really good at. It wasn't something that she'd thought about before, and she's interested in it now...  Alison walked around with a camera, taking pictures, and got a really cool one of a hippo, and Kristen was the little mascot. Both the younger two were interviewed for the video, which thrilled them to no end. It was a good start to spring break.

 

And today's been nice. Nothing to complain about. Caitlyn enjoyed her first Sunday in Young Women's; they came and got her from her Sunday School class to welcome her, which made her feel special, she said. And the rest of us are hanging in there (if a little tired).

The Awesome Harry Potter Room of Awesomeness

So, Alison and Kristen had asked for a room redo and I promised I would over spring break. Well, since spring break started Thursday, Friday I was set to start. Right?? Well, first we needed a plan. The three of us checked out piles of library books, and sat for more than an hour looking over colors and ideas and we just couldn't agree. Until Alison suggested, "What about a Harry Potter room?" Kristen was enthusiastic! I was... well... anxious. Could I do it?


The answer is yes. (It just takes imagination and a bit of organization and hard work.)

We decided the best thing was to paint one wall in each house color...

So we have a Gryffindor wall:

And a Hufflepuff wall:

And a Ravenclaw wall:

And a Slytherin wall:

It was the little touches, though, that really made this room really cool. Megan had the brilliant idea to write the poem from the Sorting Hat in Sorcerer's Stone on each wall. It took some doing, but it turned out really, really cool.

The other little touch was my idea: to put a full-length mirror on the wall, and call it the Mirror of Erised. It turned out pretty well, too:

The only things left are to get a purple valance for the window, paint the chair that belongs in their room purple, and perhaps put the Hogwarts crest on the roller shade we bought. But for right now, it's done. And everyone's happy. But that's because it's the Awesome Harry Potter Room of Awesomeness.

A good way to spend a couple of days, I think.

Outing to the Zoo

On Thursday, our first day of spring break, we went to the zoo with Caitlyn's girl scout troop, so we could get footage for a film they're putting together (it was supposed to be on endangered animals, but it turned out being about the zoo in general). Alison and Kristen were good eggs to tag along and not complain. Kristen became the little mascot for the older girls, and Alison had her own camera and took pictures. It was a fun day.

One of Alison's photos. Pretty dang awesome!

A 12th Birthday in 2 Parts

 Part One:

A sleepover/party/outing to Color Me Mine with two of her best friends. Mom forgot to take pictures of them painting/talking/giggling at the studio, and forgot to take a picture of their creations. But she did get a couple of pictures of cake-and-presents afterward:

The present Merry got her. She named them Philipe, Fluffball, and Pedro

No, I don't know why she looks like that.

Then we had part two on her actual birthday, which consisted of the annual first-thing-in-the-morning present:

It was Grandpa and Grandma Madsen's, so she could wear it all day.

The cake (we really didn't need another one after that chocolate creation on Friday, but she requested one.):

They're supposed to be daisies, but I think they looked a little like mutant cracked eggs.

Oh, look! It's totally spontaneous.

Sisterly love. Maybe.

She was very excited to get her 12-year-old book. And thrilled with the contents.

It was a wonderful birthday for a wonderful girl!

The Week. In Disney Songs.

Megan woke up singing Be Our Guest from Beauty and the Beast, and they've watched that and Aladdin today, so we've got Disney songs galore running through the house. I thought I'd use them to tell our week.

 

Circle of Life... we're busy. Again. No surprise there.

The Work Song... because that's what we do.

Poor Unfortunate Souls... they weren't because they didn't go to yet another band concert. Though they did have loads of homework. And were sick.

A Spoonful of Sugar... to make the medicine go down.

The Bare Necessities... food, even if it's lamb biryani, which stunk up the house and which Russell made fun of me for getting sick from the smell.

Cruella DeVille... not quite, but my boss was a bit, um, persnickety this week.

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious... because if you say it loud enough, you'll always sound precocious. (Also: I sold a copy of the Steve Martin Twitter book. I can die happy now.)

Hakuna Matata... what a wonderful phrase. No yoga this week. Found myself saying "Let it Go" a lot. Hakuna Matata would have been better.

A Friend Like Me... We had a houseful of girls for a sleepover

Happy, Happy Birthday to You... because it was Caitlyn's birthday party, and because Alison Insisted that she Could Not not bug the Big Girls without Someone to Sleep Over for her, too. Which made Kristen Upset because she's Little.

You've Got a Friend in Me... thankfully, Kristen has a friend who invited her over on Saturday, so they could go on a Picnic. Which was Wonderful.

Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo... and all is better. No fairy godmothers required.

Be Our Guest... Russell went to the Republican caucuses yesterday, not to vote, but to go with some students to observe. Then he was on TV this morning. It must be an election year.

The Rain Rain Rain Came Down Down Down... thankfully, we got the garden prepped for some spinach and potatoes (Megan wants to be in charge of planting those) before it rained today.

Stay Awake... which we're trying to do. Hate when the stinking time changes. Pick one, already.

Jolly Holiday... next week, when Spring Break starts.

When I See an Elephant Fly... because that's a good way to end.

The All-City Band Concert

Or what I got of it before the camera's battery died.

Perhaps We Watch Too Much Reality TV

The girls came up with this game show/reality TV series yesterday:

Accomplishments

It was yet another busy week. It's amazing how fast things can fill up, especially with four kids going different places (poor Kristen, she never has any place to go that's just hers), and two adults working. *sigh* At the very least, there's no time for brooding.

 

So. Accomplishments.

 

Megan: the All-City Honor Band was amazing. Seriously. She was a bit miffed afterward because someone's phone went off in the middle of a piece, but the audience didn't hear it, so all was well. And she was third-chair clarinet (out of the 9th/10th graders in the whole city), which I think is pretty impressive. Also, she finished everything for her Young Women's Personal Progress award. She had decided she wanted to get it before Caitlyn started Young Women's, and she did.

 

Caitlyn: decided that she wanted to play trombone in the Solo and Ensemble festival. Her band teacher got together a group -- there was supposed to be two players on every part, but Caitlyn's partner flaked out, and she was the only one in the end. And... they got a 1 (that's the highest you can get). She was pretty stressed about it the night before, but they did awesome.

 

Alison: She brought home Sea of Monsters, which is the second in the Percy Jackson series. I seriously didn't think she'd be able to read it (bad Mom, doubting her daughter's abilities), but she spent all day yesterday, curled in the corner, reading. And while it's going slow, she's getting it. I'm impressed. Also: she ate spinach. Raw. (Or at least uncooked. And yes, it was dipped in ketchup.)

 

Kristen: With Caitlyn's upcoming birthday, she's getting pretty excited about hers. (Since she knows that her birthday is right after Caitlyn's.) So, she made a whole Birthday Book, with plans for her birthday, a menu, games, and an invitation list. Unfortunately, it got thrown away, but she made it (and spelled most of it, too) by herself. (The idea of the girls planning their own party? I could go for that.) She's also reading Betsy and Tacy with Dad, and wants to go on adventures. Thankfully, the weather cooperated, and it was lovely one day this week. So I kicked everyone outside, and she (and Alison) worked on cleaning up the flower beds, and transplanting the irises. It wasn't quite an adventure, but she does like to be useful.

 

That's about it for us. The calendar looks slightly less crowded for March (it helps that we're staying put for Spring Break this year), which is something to be grateful for.