Feb 2012 Events

I can't believe Little Mouse is already 11 months old!!

She is an absolute joy to have around (although I could do without the high pitched, ear splitting screach.)

She got her first goose egg this month.  It was very, very sad.

She also had her very first hair do.  There was just enough hair to gather into a tiny pony on top of her head (kind of like a top knot.)  Then we clipped a butterfly onto that.  It was super cute! 

Banana Girl in her hairdo for church.

On our way home from Pheonix, both girls slept most of the way home.  Made for a quiet ride.

Banana Girl had her second dentist appointment.  She loved the sun glasses and she had no cavities.  Yea!

Princess M had a blast performing with her Kindergarten class in their choir concert last Friday.  Whenever, I thought I had a good shot of her, and would push the button, they would turn, or someone would get in the way by the time the flash finally clicked.  This was the best shot I could get of her in concert.  It was, however, a really good shot of her cute hair do.

The concert was focused on being healthy.  Some really cute songs by all grades.  Princess M's class sang the Body Boogie.  It was great!  Here's her after the show with Banana Girl.

Yep, it's real!

Here's a snip from the AZ Daily Sun website:

That's right, folks.  Uncle Wayne is on the Republican Ballot for US President here in Arizona.  Don't you all wish you were registered here so you could vote for him?  

We were in the Pheonix area this past weekend to spend some time with them, and visit the Mesa Temple.  We had a fabulous time!  And while there Uncle Wayne released his official campaign poster:

He says you may interpret that any way you like.

Just a little update

Here's a few things that have happened in February (so far.)

Didn't do much for Groundhog day; but we did make fun treats for dessert.

Little Mouse is a whopping 11 months old!! And is so close to walking on her own.

And I found this at a thrift store.  

I've wanted a piano forever, but there has always been a reason not to get one yet.  Well Princess M is now 6 years old and the perfect age to start lessons, so I've been on the lookout for something cheap.  I finally walked into the Re Store and saw this sitting there with 2 signs on it "$400" and "1/2 off".  So I asked if half off meant it was originally selling for $800 or if it meant they were selling it for $200.  She said it meant it was on sale for $200, and then the lady behind the counter said she'd sell it to me for $150.  That was about as cheap as I expected to find anywhere.  And on top of that, they were going to deliver it to my home.  So it was all moved in before Alex even got home from work and could talk me out of it.

We brought the piano tuner in and after tuning it and fixing all the sticky keys, he informed us that we really lucked out; because most pianos this old are not worth buying at all.  However this one has had all the keys refurbished as well as several other refurbishments inside that left this thing in fairly good condition.  Hooray!

And then when I was sitting down for the first time and playing a little tune, Princess M came and sat by me and asked if I could teach her how to play.  And I thought, "why not?"  I had never even considered teaching her myself, but to save around $60/month, it was worth looking into.  So I contacted my best friend, "Google", and found all kinds of free information on how to teach your kid to play the piano, which the best lesson books were, and some good sales on books at Amazon.  So I dropped over a hundred on books and am now teaching my daughter to play.  She's taking to it very well.

To make things even better, Alex expressed an interest in learning to play as well; and we stumbled upon a fantastic plan.  I give Princess M a lesson, and then when we're done, she turns around and teaches her daddy what she just learned.  Alex isn't progressing as fast as he could on his own, but what a wonderful gift he is giving to our daughter, by solidifying her lessons as she is teaching him.  And boy, does she LOVE being the expert, being in charge, and correcting his mistakes!  It's working out great so far!

A Dedication

This is just a really cool video a friend of mine posted this week.  It reminded me of you, Don.  Good luck on your audition!

(Be sure to scroll to the bottom of my blog and pause the site music before playing this.)

P.S. I keep watching this video over and over.  I love the music and there are so many fun little nuances that I didn't catch the first time.  What a treat!