Simple Things

My Favorite Time of Year!

2011-11-19T07:52:00.000-08:00

This guy above says it all! HA and BOO!

Mt. Vernon is the best time on Halloween but you have got to go early to beat the massive rush. The experience is so worth it though!

The best part is running into friends that we haven't seen in a while!

BIG CHANGES

2011-11-16T03:49:00.000-08:00

It has been several weeks since I have blogged and I have missed it. There have been some wonderful changes for the girls and I. As the girls are getting a little bit older ... they have been showing interest of attending "a" school. Ha! That is an interesting thought since we have homeschooled for 6 years.  I felt a bit saddened to hear of their curiosities yet happy to see them blossom with confidence and adventure and to take on the challenge. But, of course that means they will have to put up with me thoroughly investigating every school in town. Yes, you heard it right!

As the story goes ... I did investigate as though I thought I did. I choose a private school and I sent the girls to stay an entire day to see what it is like to be at school all day long. I too stayed for a while and then left and about cried hoping they would hate it. I arrived to school super early and the only mom sitting in the parking lot with my window rolled down listening to the activity inside the open door classrooms from my car. I sat and waited eagerly to hear of how their day went.

School is now over and I get them from their classrooms and hop in the car and they "loved" being at school! I about died inside yet came alive instantly! So, we went back the next day and I enrolled them. About a week and a half goes by and I am hearing an increase of things that I don't like to hear and the girls are concerned as well. Kayla would report how the teacher is nice but lectures everyday about what they won't be able to do in middle school. She reported daily how there was little to zilch math instruction on the board. Mainly worksheets and then go over answers ... then of course the weekly "packet" of homework that I mainly had to sit with them and do. What it their homework or mine?   I would say mine!

I about died! No way was I going to sit daily in the evenings and do homework!   I believe they are at school 6-7 hours a day and they should have plenty of time to get their work done in class. After all, we did homeschool and I taught them for 6 years so I know how long it takes to teach and get the work done!

Two weeks go by and it is the same soggy story of concern from my kids and they were telling me that I am paying for a waste of their time. Love them kids! So, I then went to the one last school that I didn't go to as I thought it was something else that didn't fall into my "Category " of a quality school. I am very picking and the outside of a building needs to look a certain way before I even park in front of it. ha,ha,ha!

Thank goodness I choose to stop at the school and walk thru the front gate one morning. It is a expeditionary school and it was amazing! The leadership, teachers, the interaction with the kids.... everything! The atmosphere was almost to strange to be for real in the fact that the kids in the class seemed to want to be there and were wanting to learn and in a way that I myself had never seen or experienced. Two days later I brought the girls to stay a day to see and experience the difference ... after all at this point ... they only know of homeschool and the one private school. I stayed for 7 hours and visited with the director and I stayed and observed both classrooms.   Within a couple of hours I new for sure this was it and .... it was. We enrolled and are loving it! My kids love it and everyday they come home from school with an ear full of EVERYTHING they did during their day. AMAZING! The main difference is the way the material is presented. It is presented in a way that is intriguing and captivating to a child to want more and it works.    My oldest can't wait to write a book report, she loves her quiet reading time and talks about how math is so amazing and how the teacher explains it in a way that keeps her positive and her light bulb is on shinning brightly. My youngest says she is doing things in class not to just have fun but that she is learning at the same time and she loves her math and spanish daily.

As a former homeschool mother ...  putting your kids in school is a hard decision to make. If the atmosphere in its whole is right then the transition is easy.   I can breathe and know that the end of the day my kids are happy, feel safe, the kids surrounding them are nice, and most importantly they are learning .. not only school subjects but about life.
Trisha

Freeman Farms Performance / Beg - Int. Jazz

2011-10-15T13:41:00.000-07:00

Graffiti Art

2011-09-14T06:46:00.000-07:00

My sample

This month we focused on "Graffiti Art." The kids were stumped as they couldn't figure out what word to use. In the end, they picked a word and went to work. They all did a fabulous job!

They each wrote their word and then bubbled around the original work and erased the original pencil markings. From there they added the 3-D if they choose to or the color fill. Two of the students choose the brick wall behind their word ... which came out great. To create that they learned to line their paper after and stagger the brick lines. Then mixing several black, reds, yellow and browns ... they created the brick colors. They worked for a solid two hours!

Go Ice Breakers! AYSO/ U10

2011-09-10T16:37:00.000-07:00

Our team rocks! I love their spirit and motivation!

2011 Disco Party!

2011-09-10T09:01:00.000-07:00

Here I am in my 70's Disco outfit that I made for the "Moms Disco Party Night."

Way fun with the Disco make-up!

Me and the Greatest Disco party host!

My HOT date!

The girls on the dance floor.

We had a surprise guest show up mid way thru the party! Summer and her man from Summer's Dance Works showed up and taught us all the Hustle. In the end they gave us a finale performance.

ROYAL POOCHES

2011-08-24T06:25:00.000-07:00

I had art class this week and it was fabulous! My kids did a great job! We worked on "Royal Pooches" for this class.
Above and below are my two samples. I love Deep Space Sparkle for art ideas!

I worked on a white board and created columns for my lesson on the dogs. The kids decided on which dog they wanted to draw and then focused on that dog as I was doing my lesson. I drew all the dogs at the same time but started with one feature. I drew the crowns first and the kids were to create a crown of their choice then I went on to the facial features.

Above and below are some of the kids finished Royal Pooches.

They drew their dogs with pencil then used tempera paints. After they dried they used black marker to outline the dogs.

A few of the kids working hard. This class runs 2 hours long and they all work so hard. They love what they create in the end.

2011 Art Class ~ August ~ POP ART

2011-08-14T12:54:00.000-07:00

Above is some of my samples of pop art.

Below is a sample from two of my kids in class.

I decided to start out the school year with pop art. I like funky art and it is super fun. My main goal while teaching this class is for the kids to create their art on their own. And go with the flow. I encourage them to LOVE what they create! The kids are only allowed to make positive comments about each others art. Below are some of the kids finished projects.

It's over! Darn it!

2011-07-24T12:22:00.000-07:00

Our AMAZING director, Joanne Robertson!

The show is over and it is so sad! Darn it!

It is to bad that Kayla only had one night to do the show as Lucy! They worked so hard and it ended so fast. But, she had the best experience and this new theater group is magnificent!

She loved all the audience members coming up to her after the show to congratulate her.

Lucy and Charlie Brown

You're A Good Man Charlie Brown

2011-07-22T07:13:00.000-07:00

The show is great! Come tonight, July 22nd 7pm ( Kayla is Lucy ) or July 23, 7pm.

SHOW TIME!

2011-07-14T19:56:00.000-07:00

Here are the two Lucy dresses that I made for the show. Kayla's is the one on the right.

Here is the back of her dress with the bow.

Here is the front of the dress.

These are the large flats that are up right on the stage.

Friday, July 22nd at 7pm Kayla is Lucy!

The other showing is July 23 at 7pm but Kayla won't be appearing as much as she is a schoolmate in this showing.

Park Avenue Theatre presents... You're A Good Man Charlie Brown

Showing at Trinity Presbyterian church in Prescott off Park Ave. and Copper Basin.

Save the date!

2011-06-30T06:40:00.000-07:00

More info to come

Auditions and cast selection

2011-06-30T06:25:00.000-07:00

Auditions are always scary!

Kayla wasn't sure if she wanted to audition and be rehearsing for a show all summer or just relax for the rest of her summer.

Well, auditions were at 6pm and at 4:30pm she was still undecided.

She decided to go and watch. Then after a few minutes she decided to audition. They always ask for volunteers and Kayla volunteered to go second and did a great job singing, "I Know Things Now." They didn't call her back up to read from the script this day, so we went home and returned the following night. She was called up three times to read the character, Sally and once acting as Woodstock. We went home that night thinking she had a chance of possibly being cast as Sally, Woodstock or chorus.

Well, to our surprise she got the lead of Lucy! This part is HUGE! With over 110 lines to memorize and lots of singing .... she is excited and already getting it down. She will be transformed into Lucy in no time. It is great to see her come alive with this character!

BRACES, YIKES!

2011-06-30T06:20:00.000-07:00

The time has come!

Kayla got her braces on this week.

It was a shared experience with her good friend, Kassy.

This was the most uncomfortable part. The mouth spreader! Kayla did very well!

All done!

The girls and Dr. Young! He is the greatest orthodontist!

And of course we can't get braces on without visiting Yogartz!

Making Hula Hoops

2011-06-30T05:40:00.000-07:00

This is sooooooooooooooooo easy! Yes, you read it right! We made Hula Hoops!

We ran into a fabulous hula hooper at the square the other day and she told me how to make them.

These are some of the hoops I just finished in various sizes. These hoops are heavier duty than the ones you buy at Target or Wal-mart. I then decorated them with decorative tape.

These are the sleeves that connect the ends. No glue needed!

This is the material used. The lady recommended 160 PSI poly tubing at 3/4 ". But I decided upon the 125 PSI. This was $20 cheaper and plenty sturdy.

Cut at desired length for the diameter you want.

It is coiled so you will need someone to hold it for you while measuring.

Insert end into boiling water for 30 seconds and then insert the sleeve and hold until cooled.

When hoops are cooled you can decorate them with colored electrical or cloth tape, but not duct tape. Duct tape gets all yucky and sticky and doesn't work well in the heat.

Tennis

2011-06-30T05:38:00.000-07:00

We are very lucky to have Sterling Fetty as our tennis coach! The kids just LOVE him! This is our once a week sport activity.

SUMMER FUN!

2011-06-30T05:24:00.000-07:00

We love hanging pool side with our friends!

So, I moved the side and closed in the top portion of the fort. The girls wanted a little window ... so, you can see I made them one. It is so cute in there with the walls all pink and a hibiscus flower mural and a large mirror on the wall. I made my first ever ladder that leads up to the enclosed fort area and it is HEAVY DUTY cool!

As you can see, they like hanging out on top rather than inside. ha,ha,ha!

2011 APA~ Once Upon A Time ~ dance recital

2011-06-10T06:01:00.000-07:00

Goldilocks
We are having the most fabulous experience with the Academy of Performing Arts in Prescott, AZ! It is recital time and if you can't make it to see the show here is a little sneak peek of the girls in costume and dress rehearsals. There are 34 acts so it is a long one, but well worth the ticket! Shows are tonight at 6pm at PHS at Ruth Street Theatre and Saturday at 2pm. $15 tickets can be purchased at the door.

Kayla on right

Shae in pink on right

Shae on right

Golfing with dad

2011-06-10T05:59:00.000-07:00

The girls love to golf with Tom! Now that the weather is nice .... this will be their weekend activity.

SEWING

2011-06-10T05:53:00.000-07:00

Kayla enjoys sewing and so does one of her friends. I had them pick out the fabric and they made their first simple dress. They got to use the serger machine as well! This dress was rather simple as it was mainly sewn up the side, serged and hemmed and they picked ribbon for the straps. With the extra fabric I made up a simple purse pattern and they made a purse two weeks later. It all came out great! All in all they spent 4 hours over the course of 2 days making all this.

Mother's Day

2011-05-15T20:54:00.000-07:00

Time with Mimi and Papa Dude.

The girls and I had a fabulous Mother's Day while visiting my mom!

The girls got to plant Mimi and Papa Dude's vegetable garden, go on a walk to the pond, play baseball, paint, and spend valuable time with their grandparents.

Memories made by all!

Spring and Softball

2011-05-15T20:40:00.000-07:00

Shae is hitting the ball real good! She is liking softball a little bit more each game.

Running to second base.

At first base.
And the minute we got home she went to her room and got her three pet caterpillars and played with them on the dinner table.

SHOW PERFORMANCES

2011-05-03T13:08:00.000-07:00

So, the show went on and the kids did a great job! They worked hard and worked thru the many changes. Shae had a blast being Polly the parrot and Kayla enjoyed being Squire.

This was Shae's first big role in a play and Kayla's first lead role and with 60+ lines to memorize.

Now, time for a break and then off to auditions for our next show which we can't wait to do!

Pirate Ship Tour!

2011-04-25T06:39:00.000-07:00

The flag of "Brother Hood."

I am pretty lucky to have Captain Shep as a contact. He is an amazing guy and very interesting to talk to when talking about the old pirating days. He made this pirate ship replica with his own hands. It is amazing! I set up a special tour for some of our Treasure Island cast.

Top left is a real sextant! That is one of Kayla's lines and she actually got to see a "real" one. The captain and the first mate were the only ones who knew how to use it and to read the maps on board the ships. The pirates needed them or they would not know where they were going. The sword collection is just awesome!

The treasure chests, skulls, empty bottles of rum and booty that lay around the ship is so cool to see! Even a 8 pound cannon ball!

Thanks Captain Shep!

PRESS NIGHT! SUCCESS!

2011-04-23T09:01:00.000-07:00

The ship is on deck!

The kids rocked the boat last night!

We had press night and it was the first time the kids actually had the full set on stage. They did great! There are more special effects to work on but it will be all ready to go by show time next weekend.

Shae loves being John's parrot! She will have full face paint for show times.

Showing at Franklin Phonetic Auditorium in Prescott Valley

Friday April 29th at 7pm

Saturdy April 30th at 3pm and 7pm

Tickets at the door $8