January is always a quiet month after the hustle and bustle of December, so I took the month off and here we are at the end of February already. There is nothing quiet about February, however, and I did manage to take a few more photos for our family files.
The big event of the month was our youngest child, Clark, turning 8 years old and getting baptized. We had a fun family party the night of his birthday and then the next day we had his sports birthday party with his friends. That afternoon Clark was baptized along with his friend and cousin Parker Morgan. We had a lot of family come and support us and it was a really nice program. I really feel it is our first milestone -- having all of our children baptized now. It makes me feel old too....
The next week was Alan's Aunt Shirley's birthday. She turned 75 -- a milestone for sure. We had a family dinner in the dining room at the Wellington which is where she lives now. I think Shirley loved everything -- the balloons, the dinner, the cake and her new walker. The family went in on a new walker for her. This particular one sports four wheels, hand brakes and a seat -- just in case she needs to sit down and rest, which I will tell you, she does a lot. Now taking her shopping will be a lot easier!
Last but not least, it was my birthday -- hopefully I haven't reached a milestone yet! Loren and Phillip came up for Sunday dinner and a little birthday party. I decided to read to them from my mom's history about the day I was born and then I showed them some of the home movies that my dad had taken when I was having my second birthday and showing a lot of apprehension about two candles with fire I was supposed to blow out. In the end, my brother Mark had to blow them out for me!
The night before my birthday Alan and I spent the evening at the symphony downtown and afterwards I asked Alan to drive me up into the avenues so I could drive by the house I grew up in. He was surprised I would want to go up at night, but I have to tell you, that that view of Salt Lake City from that house is absolutely incredible. I'm sorry to admit that when I was living there, I became used to it and didn't always notice and appreciate it for how beautiful it really is. It was fun to drive around the old neighborhood -- I was feeling very nostalgic.
Clark and Elliot both had their school assemblies in February. Clark's second grade class taught us all about the different countries of the world. Clark choose Italy because he has many Italian ancestors. His costume was all about the mustache -- everyone loved it. It's amazing what a $3.00 mustache can do to spruce up a costume from the dress up bin!
Elliot's class taught us all about the American Revolution. Each class member was assigned a specific event and then had the assignment to describe it in poetry form. They all had their parts memorized and while each one was taking a turn reciting their part, the rest of the class was acting out the scenes with costumes, props and all. You could tell they had a fun time putting it all together.
The fifth grade also has spent the past two months researching reports on various famous Americans. Elliot choose Albert Einstein to learn about. They had to do the whole nine yards -- note cards, time lines, a mobile, a report and dressing up. We bought him a wig and a mustache that we didn't try on until the night before, only to discover they were both way to big for him. So, out came the scissors. I gave the wig and the mustache a big trim -- white hair was everywhere. The results? Well, I thought he looked pretty good myself.
Every year the dance department at school puts on a program. The fifth grade boys have the tradition of doing a Russian folk dance and they love it! Everyone claps as the music starts to go faster and faster. It was pretty amazing how they could get down and swing their leg around and around their body. If you see Elliot, you'll have to ask him to demonstrate!
Both Clark and Elliot played a winter season of Junior Jazz Basketball. This year we managed to get on the teams with friends, so we were able to car pool which made me very happy. They had a lot of fun and I think their skills are really improving.
Elliot was in his first percussion recital where he was able to solo. He played Solfeggietto which he had been faithfully working on for months. In fact, we were all getting kind of tired of it, so I think he was really glad to be finished with it. He was also able to play in front of judges at the Day of Percussion that is a festival held annually. We haven't heard back from them yet, but Alan tells us he did great. Now he is working on the snare drum. Even though the drum set is in the far corner of the basement, we hear every beat!
Spirit Day is a fun day at school when the upper school kids get to dress up for the day. Each grade is assigned a different color. This year the Juniors were red. Tess didn't really want me to take her picture, but hey, when has that ever stopped me?