Thomas' Band Arrangement

Thomas loves to arrange and compose music.  He has arranged pieces for his school Orchestra each year beginning in 5th grade.  This year he took on the task of arranging a piece of music for the 7th grade band.  It was a lot of work as there are so many instruments in the band.  He arranged the piece, "Dumbledore's Army" from "Harry Potter."  He has been so excited for the band to learn this piece.  He finished the arrangement at the end of last year.  The band director, Mr. Newman, told him they would work on it during the last quarter of the year.  A few days ago the band had their concert and they performed his arrangement.  

Thomas was so excited that he was almost giddy.  You could see his grin from ear to ear before and during the piece.  As I watched and listened my eyes filled with tears as I thought about what grand things he is going to do with his life.  It was incredible to hear the band play what he arranged.  I know he has been blessed with so many talents from Heavenly Father and he works diligently to perfect those talents.  His love and passion for music are so evident in all he does.

Mother's Day

I am so blessed to be a mother to these wonderful kiddos.  They keep me busy, they entertain me, they exhaust me, somedays they make me cry, most days they make me laugh, they are my source of joy.  

We BBQ'd chicken after church and enjoyed eating outside.  It was wonderful and we didn't even have to sweep the floor after!  Spring made my favorite cake-carrot cake, with a little help from Mary and Joshie and Thomas made the frosting for the cake.  That was our dinner! :)

I loved all the sweet notes the kids made for me at school this past week.  They even kept them hidden and surprised me with them after church today.  I was very impressed.  We had the perfect day together...just enjoying being home together.

I always wonder why they give moms a flower at church.  It's one more thing to hold on to for 2 hours, as if we don't have enough to hold onto already.  Well, mine served the best purpose ever today...it allowed me to stay in all of Relief Society.  Sara had been playing with it like a sword as we were walking the halls during Sunday School.  When Relief Society started she sat down and started to pick up petal by petal and hand each one to me.  By the end of the meeting my hand was full of rose petals and the flower had none remaining.  But, she was quiet and content.  I consider that a win!

Ms. Bakkum

When we moved here we found a gem of a piano teacher for Thomas.  We found Kim Bakkum.  I was relieved to only have to drive about 10 minutes to lessons for him each week instead of an hour like were doing in California.  But, that wasn't the tip of the iceberg for the blessing she brought into our lives.  She is a wonderful woman who has become a dear family friend.  She and Thomas speak a language that we don't understand and I am grateful for this opportunity for Thomas.  She is more than a teacher to Thomas.  She is a mentor, a friend, an example, and inspiration for him.  

She told us a few weeks ago that she is relocating to New Mexico this summer.  This was devastating news for all of us, but particularly Thomas.  Thomas was in tears and has been emotional about it ever since.  We are happy for her to be closer to family, but so sad to see her leave.  

When she was talking to Thomas about it she told him that she wanted to GIVE him her baby grand piano that she learned to play on as a child.  She told Thomas that this piano is very special to her just as Thomas is.  She told Thomas that she wanted to always be a part of his life and a part of his music and this is a way she can do that.  It has been very emotional for both of them.  It is amazing to see Thomas play on this piano in our home.  

Although she is moving, Ms. Bakkum will always be with him. They will stay in touch and she will continue to mentor and love Thomas.  She is a great blessing to us in Ohio.

Recent Happenings

Last week was a busy one for our family.  Joel was in Florida for work for a few days and there were things going on almost every evening.  It served as a reminder to me of how grateful I am for the partnership we share in raising our children.  It is hard to do alone and I am grateful the times I am flying solo are few and far between.

Thomas and Spring performed in the All-City Orchestra concert.  It is amazing to hear how far Spring has come in playing the cello.  We spent time in the yard doing yard work and playing, of course.  It was a week of beautiful weather so the younger 3 and I spent many mornings at the park with friends.  I usually pack a lunch for them and we play until nap time.  Then we come home and they are super tired, already fed, and ready to go down quickly and easily for naps.  They have continued to play outside whenever they possibly can.  I have been reminded of the flip side of being outside so much...they need bath every night.  Gone are the evenings when we can skip baths just because I am tired and don't want to worry about it right then.  I remind myself, however, that the absolute necessity of a daily bath/shower before bed for little ones means they had a fun and productive day enjoying the pleasures of childhood.

Thursday evening Thomas and Spring played the national anthem with the Orchestra at the Akron Rubberducks game, a minor league affiliate for the Cleveland Indians. Joel took them and Sammy to the game.  Sammy had been counting down days for this for weeks.

Friday evening Joel and I were able to go to the temple.  We are always so grateful for this time together.  We are working on the names that Thomas prepared and performed baptisms/confirmations for.  It will take us a lot longer to complete them but it is so rewarding to know we are helping our ancestors and family members.

Saturday started off busy, as usual.  Thomas had tag day for Band, a fundraiser for the Stow band.  They are in groups of 4 and given a route to walk around and ask community members for donations of spare change for the band.  I was able to be a driver for this so I followed them around for a few hours in the morning.  The band typically earns about $10,000 every year with this fundraiser.  While I was with Thomas Joel took the kids to "Touch a Truck" at the library.  When I got home I heard all kinds of fun stories and excited voices telling me all about the trucks they climbed into.

Thomas, Spring, and Sammy then spent about 4 more hours working on cutting up the tree they fell in Sue Ann's lawn last week.  We went to a goodbye picnic for Ms. Bakkum, Thomas' piano teacher, and then came home to put little ones in baths and bed while Thomas went and worked for about 3 more hours on Sue Ann's tree.  

Joel and I were talking about how full our weeks and weekends have been lately.  I always look forward to the weekend, however, when we can be together.  We sometimes have to tag team and split up to get things done and be sure to cover things for all the kids of different ages, but we are finding ways to do things together and it feels good.  Tiring, but good.

Joyful Saturday

We had a full day on Saturday...a JOYful day.  In the morning Thomas and Joel changed the oil in all 3 of our vehicles.  Thomas is finishing his Automotive Maintenance Merit Badge and needed to change the oil for one of his remaining requirements.  He has helped before but never done it on his own.  He was up early and came into our room (while we were still trying to wake up for the day) to tell Joel he was headed out to check the fluid levels in the cars before the oil changes.  That was our cue to get up for the day.  He and Joel did the first vehicle together and then Thomas did the next one on his own.  I think they worked together on the last one.  

 Then Joel and I headed to Massillon to pick up a swing set Sue Ann had found on Craigslist.  She found a great deal on it and asked if we would be OK having it if she purchased it for the kiddos.  We didn't tell the kids about it, just told them we had to run out for a few hours.  When we got home we had them come out to help us unload it and the looks on their faces were PRICELESS!  Jaws dropped open and eyes were wide.  They were beyond excited.  We had it in our driveway and pressure washed it to clean it up nice.  Then came the almost impossible task of moving it to the backyard.  Boy was that thing HEAVY.  Joel, Thomas, Spring, and Sammy then worked on putting it all together.  The kids have had a great time with it and spend so much time out there.  I am sure there will be countless hours spent playing outside.

Joel and Thomas took a short break in assembling the swing set to help Sue Ann out.  She has a big tree in her backyard that has been dead for a couple years.  Joel volunteered to fell the tree for her, with Thomas' assistance.  Thomas asked Joel if he was properly trained to do that and Joel replied, "I'm going to get trained by YouTube."  They watched a short "how to" video and headed over.  Joel said it fell right where they wanted it to.  Thomas spent a few more hours Saturday chopping up firewood from the tree.  He still has lots of hours left to do that and plans to work on it a little each afternoon and on the weekend.

It was a very full and productive day.  There was work and all the kids helped in ways they could.  Mary did great keeping an eye on Sara as we were lifting and moving and assembling.  Joshie and Gideon were great gophers!  One of those days that you climb into bed at night exhausted, but with a wonderful feeling of joy and accomplishment.

Sunday Morning

We were waiting for the time to head out the door to church yesterday morning and Thomas was at the piano, as usual.  Sara decided to join in with him.