Solo/ Ensemble Festival

Noel and Asher played in a solo and ensemble festival held at their school. It was only required to learn a solo, then play it for the orchestra teacher during class time. Those that wanted (or were pressured by their parents) could show up on a certain Saturday in March, and play in front of judges as well.

Asher worked hard on a piece from the movie Lord of the Rings. A friend on his, Spencer, accompanied him on the piano. They practiced hours and hours, for weeks. They preformed it at a Boy Scout Court of Honor before the festival. It sounded great.
Here is the orchestra teacher, Mrs. Riley, checking to see if Asher is ready to go.



He played beautifully, and got a "1" , the highest score possible. Spencer also did a fantastic job accompanying him.



Here is Spencer. Why is he smiling? Because this shot was taken after it was all over, and we went out for ice-cream! We all survived!

Noel also played a solo. She played "Morning" by Greig. She played it very accurately and confidently. The judge told both kids that they have very good ears, and are very in tune with their fingerings. She also got a "1"! Noel didn't like the solo experience much, so next time, she will just play in an ensemble. I'm very proud of her for trying it at least once.

Here is the quartet the kids played in. They are joined by a couple kids from the neighborhood... Lukas on bass on the left, and Emmee violin on the right. The McMullin hinkypunks are in the middle, with their orchestra teacher helping tune them in the back. They played a slower piece called Goin' Home by Dvorak. It was tricky getting all the kids together to practice in the weeks before the festival... I'm glad they persevered. The quartet also got a "1" rating.

(Just so you don't think the judges were tossing "1"'s out to everyone, very few other kids got that score. I think our kids did, because of the hours of practice they put in.)





Afterwards, we went down to the cinema cafe, for very large scoops of ice-cream. Sylvia had trouble with her icecream hitting her nose every time she licked it. She was a very co-operative sister through the whole festival. She sat and listened through almost a half hour of music. Everyone deserved icecream!

Archery

One fun thing about our town is the Stoughton Conservation Club. If you buy a pass, you can go shoot (guns or bows) there 24 hours a day. We like to go in bad weather, or when it is humid. So far, we have only used the indoor facility, which is air conditioned, and had a lounge, with snacks you can buy. It is usually empty during the daytime.
Here is Mattias...


And here is Asher, with his English longbow replica ...


This is the archery indoor range. We are looking forward to trying out the outdoor course this summer.


Even Sylvia thinks she is big enough to shoot. Robin Hood is one of her favorite Disney movies. Mattias happened to catch the arrow mid-flight in this shot.

A Thursday morning...

It is tough to tell what a normal Thursday around here would look like. So, I offer you a description of this morning as an example.

The day started with a continutaion of Mattias's most recent mad scientist idea. He has been researching "induction coils" and wants to ramp up enough energy with an electromagnetic coil to make an electric arc between wires.
Here, Asher is his trusting helper.



Although Mattias claims he saw a spark, there no other witnesses... so he is going to try a new way to test if the is any electricity flowing through the top coil of wire. Stay tuned for shocking news...


Another homeschooler, Ben, came over this morning for a Dungeons and Dragons game. As Dungeon Master, Asher enjoys making up the setting and story line. There was much raucous laughter from the dining room all morning. The boys were sporting the latest trend in Wisconsin Wizard Wear. All the cool wizards are decked out like this.




I heard a battle cry "Attack the castle!" and thought I'd get an action shot. I'm sure it looked much more impressive in their imaginations. :)

Sylvia wanted me to braid her hair this morning. We put ribbons in it, and a necklace. She was so proud of how she looked.

She immediately ran down stairs to the dinning room, where the boys were playing, and yelled "Hey Boys! Look at me! I am so pretty that you can't believe your eyes!"

I heard lots of chuckling and the boys all telling her how nice she looked. Good brothers!

Then I sat and read books with her for an hour. One of her favorites is the Dr. Seuss book "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish".


This is Sylvia with her favorite creature in the book - a Zans. Let me post the words, in case you haven't read this book as often as I have recently....

At our house
we open cans.
We have to open
many cans.
And that is why
we have a Zans.

A Zans for cans
is very good.
Have you a Zans for cans?
You should.

Montana nostalgia

I've been going through our old pictures, finding baby pics of Sylvia for her scrapbook.
There are certain pictures though, that show why I feel Montana is about as close to heaven as you can come. I thought I'd post them, for those of you who are not lucky enough to live there. :)

This is the Clark Fork river, a 5 min. walk from Sean's parent's house. Very nice fishing. It is a fun place to swim in the summer, as well as a good place take rock hammers to chop ice in the winter. We loved this river in all the seasons, with it's sandy banks to dig in, and osprey hunting overhead. Until I moved to the mid-west, I thought all water was ice-cold, algae free, and full of trout that jump for flies. Ahhh.... I miss the snow fed waters. Mid-west water is warm and murky.

That is Sylvia tucked into her babysling. She is about 2 months in this picture. We fished almost every day... she literally teethed on the cork on my pole handle that autumn.

This is Mattias. We were celebrating the fact that public school had started, and we were still free to enjoy the beautiful, but cool August weather. Another thing I didn't appreciate fully - that air in the west cools off at night. Mid-west air just get thick. If you go walking in the morning, in August, you have to chew the warm air.

Somebody asked me if I skied recently. I said yes, but I couldn't stand the thought of skiing in the mid-west. So I haven't been in 4 years.
Here is a shot from the top of Discovery (by Anaconda, MT). - Skiing isn't just about going downhill on some snow. It is about being even with the clouds, and seeing the tops of snow capped rocky mountains surrounding you. It is about long, steep runs that go on forever. You quietly swish your way down the trails, around the trees, on runs so long, you forget there is a bottom. When you finally level you, you hop on the chair and are lifted into heaven again.
The ski hills here are so small, that the kids burst into hysterical laughter when we first drove by a resort. What kind of view would you have? Flat, snowy farmland? That would be so depressing. I don't think I could handle it. So, we stay inside our home a lot here during the winter.

Our other favorite Montana place is the Rattlesnake. Just a 10 min drive from downtown Missoula, it was our daily summer hang-out for years when the kids were small. We would walk down the trail, and play among our favorite giant tree roots. Noel would make moss nests, and the boys would hit everything with sticks. It was a cool, shady place to avoid the hot sun. The best thing about the Rattlesnake was the way the lighting was always so dramatic. The mountains nearby are steep, so shadows would move across the valley as the day progressed.


The Midwest has wonderful people, but we do miss how easy it was to get to heavenly corners of wilderness. I had no idea how concentrated people could be until I moved to the mid-west. Towns touch each other, and run together into one blob of buildings and roads. (I'm sure my sister in New York is saying "Baby, you haven't seen anything yet!")
I wish I had know to appreciate many of the things we left in the west, but I didn't know that things could be so different elsewhere. If we go back... I will be a wiser connoisseur of cold water and dry air.

Five reasons to homeschool

It has been a great week here at the McMullin Homeschool. I am so glad we have all our kids at home.

1. When you homeschool, you can snuggle on the couch in the morning sun, with a warm dog, and read Bambi.

2. When you have a three year old who is interesting in mechanics, her older brother can show her how to make a crank and piston system.

3. When you are practicing storytelling, you can invite friends over for a Dungeons and Dragon party.
4. You can walk in the beautiful sunshine, in the middle of the day.

5. If you need a snow shelter built, you can assign it out as a "recess" project. Doesn't every house need a snow cave?

Christmas Eve

Santa came to visit this year. We were a little worried, due to Sylvia's fit of hysteric screaming at Santa last year. It seems to be improving.

Soon, they were old pals, and she was excited to start into her Santa gift. Yes, Santa does resemble one of my sons a little. :)

Sylvia was thrilled to get a play farm, and wanted to know if Santa would keep coming back every day.

After Santa left, we read the Christmas story. With so many seasoned actors, it went smoother than ever. No complaints even about singing carols intermittently. It was a very nice time.
Noel played all the wildlife (donkey, sheep, etc.). Asher doubled as Joseph and a wiseman. Mattias played a wiseman and Inn keper. Deb filled in as all the angels and King Herod. Sean was exhausted from making a tastey Christmas dinner, and sat relaxed on the couch, reading the story aloud.

Sylvia played Mary, and was amused at all the costuming.

Sylvia and Maya think it is about time for bed. Christmas can be a tiring holiday. You need to pace yourself.

Maya, living the good life.

So, when our dog (Maya) isn't stealing gourmet cheese off the counter tops, she can usually be found curled up on the couch. Unless the dishwasher is being loaded, then she helps with the pre-washing.
Initially we weren't going to let her on the furniture, but when I felt how good it felt to tuck my cold toes under her warm body, we loosed the rules.