Very First Violin Recital.

Rosie was able to play in her very first violin recital last night and remained very composed and focused throughout her entire piece.

It was a musical milestone for our girl.

And afterwards, I made her pose in front of the beautifully decorated alter in the chapel and then had a  flashback of another young violinist who posed very similarly years ago.

Sure enough...after only a little bit of research I found this photo of her big sister Lily, post recital in the chapel rocking the very same red dress as a second grader in 2008.
I really love that these two sisters are able to share so much... and I don't think there is a better way to begin the holiday season than a first grade violin recital.

 

Big City Chicago Visit to Mary.

Happiness is watching your kid doing good works in something that they love and take great pride in.

I was thrilled to have a chance to see Mary in her element... assistant stage directing a production with her theater pals. 

Although this photo is blurry and grainy, I love it very much.

At the end of this show, the cast and crew of 7 gifted theater majors raised their hands in the air with a raucous cheer of "Mary-Mary!" in appreciation for her work and help. 

It was awesome. 

The play was called Amazons and their Men and was a gorgeous production full of love and fear and the despair of trying to create something beautiful in the middle of wartime. 

It was moving and lovely and the mom in me wanted to hug each fabulous young actor afterwards and tell them how extremely excellent they are.

And so I did. 

And to her credit, my Mary was not even embarrassed.

 

 Because I was only in town for a night, Mary's dear roomies were gracious enough to let me stay with them in their very cool Chicago apartment. 

And so I made her pose with this throw pillow that I gave her of the state of Ohio in silhouette with a sweetheart on her hometown.

Did I mention that I gave her the Cincinnati pillow to keep with with her always?

Mary was indeed very patient with her mom. 

Train station selfie with my kid... 

So proud of my girl for carving out a happy niche amongst the bright lights of the big Chicago city...you go-go, Mary-Mary!

Summit Silver Knights... 3rd and 4th grade Football Champions!

Today is a very happy Monday for the most important football team in our family...yesterday the  3rd and 4th grade Summit team won their championship game, their very own Super Bowl. 

Which is very cool and not something that happens everyday, or really hardly EVER in the lives of 9 and ten year old boys. 

And Henry was very, very excited to be a part of this team.  

My favorite part about this group of guys is that because they are so few in numbers, they really need to work together to be successful. 

There are 12 fellows on the team... which means that almost every guy plays every down and have to learn how to play on both offense and defense. 

Which is great because each guy gets a lot of playing time, but is also exhausting to play for so long without a break...each boy needs to play well with the others. True teamwork at it's best.  

During the week before the big game, the school held a pep rally where the high school team visited to give our little guys some words of wisdom and encouragement. 

The high school team captains stood up in from the the entire primary school and told them that they were proud of them for playing hard and working together.

What could be better to a 4th grader than to have a big high school kid say that they are proud of you? 

Our team is extremely fortunate to have coaches who truly brought out the best in the boys. They have taught them the right skills and give them the right kind of support...the emphasis was always on playing well and enjoying the game rather than winning. 

This type of perspective and positive attitude makes for very happy players and even parents. 

Thank you coach Greg McGrath for leading our boys and also assistant coaches, Tom Schaefer, and Joe Kidd... you are truly appreciated, by both players and parents. 

The team during the school pep rally... 3rd and 4th graders in front... high school team backing them up.  

Congratulations Henry and all of the 3rd and 4th grade Summit Silver Knights... were are all proud of you for doing your best and staying strong until the end!