Sunday, March 28, 2010

Spring Break : Give me a break!


The Friday morning before Spring Break, we woke up to about an inch of the white, fluffy stuff.
Thankfully it melted by the day's end.

I think this was Mother Nature's way of warning me about the dangers of starting my garden too soon.

I started a couple of flats of plants with "Greenhouses" that I bought at Meijer on sale. Each tray contains 72 Jiffy Pots (peat packets) for a mere $5.99 on sale.

Note to self: Next year wait to plant squash & cucumber seeds outdoors, directly into the garden. I already have had to transplant into bigger pots and I still have about 6 weeks to go before danger of frost is over....

At least my indoor gardening has helped curb my Spring Fever!

Sing For Your Supper



The above photo is the scene that greeted me when I arrived to pick up my eldest son from track practice Friday afternoon.



I was running a bit late. Well actually I lost track of time at work when I received the "Mom? Are you coming to pick me up?" phone call. (what did Moms do before cell phones?) Thankfully I am just minutes away and was getting ready to pack it up and end my day. I told him I'd be there in 15 minutes or so.

When I pulled up at the school, I could not believe my eyes ( & ears). The kid was actually making good use of his time and practicing his trumpet. Some Moms might feel guilty... or even be a bit mortified. But not this mom!

"This.Is.Awesome!"
I exclaimed as I threw the car into park and jumped out for a photo op. I was impressed at his lack of self-consciousness. And he actually sounded pretty good!

note to kid: Busking in front of a Middle School is probably not a great way of making money!

Other Musical Notes:

I also had the opportunity this week to attend a concert at our local High School for the area Middle School and the High School Jazz Bands. Alex plays piano (as well as clarinet in band) and Devon (as shown above) trumpet. The boys are in both Band and Jazz Band.

I was uber impressed at the quality of our district's music program. I was surprised that the auditorium was only half-full. We were encouraged to bring family and friends to the next concert. With all the negative stories in the media, it is so nice to see our youth doing something positive.

YouTube Concert Series

In an effort to encourage my younger two boys to practice their piano, I will occasionally film and post practice sessions. If you have kids that are musically inclined and have an account, feel free to pop by and "friend" us. I am hoping that peer-pressure and constructive comments will inspire them to work a little harder. http://www.youtube.com/user/badmommablogger?feature=mhw4

We have a Spring Recital coming up soon.

Happy Spring Break!

5 comments:

SurprisedMom said...

I think it's pretty impressive that your son was practicing the trumpet while waiting for you! What a constructive use of his time! I also find it disappointing when kids put such an effort into an event and then find the auditorium half full.

Spring Break was divided into two time slots this year. The Oldest has already come and gone on her spring break. The Youngest starts hers on Wednesday. I hope the weather is better!

Spring in Chicago started with a snow storm. It can only get better!

WeaselMomma said...

How well does your son do with track while running with that trumpet?

seashore subjects said...

What a great use of his time! It is great that he has the confidence to practice anywhere.

terri said...

We almost always get a good taste of spring and then get dumped on again with a snow storm, but not this year. Then again, this is Minnesota. It could snow in April, and I wouldn't be surprised if it did!

What a great kid, squeezing in some trumpet practice while he waits. Mine would have probably taking the thing apart to the point it was no longer usable.

Momo Fali said...

You have clearly trained him very well!