Well, I am pleased as punch!  I have had it in the back of my mind to redecorate the upstairs, hall bathroom for awhile now.  In fact, when school started, I thought that could be the project I worked on with all the extra time I’d have once the kids were in school.  Smirk.  You can see how well that worked out.  Nonetheless, with the end of the school year quickly approaching, I decided I wanted to get it done before summer vacation.  I also decided I could.  I prepped during the week, wonderful Grandma Gazdik watched my children on Friday, and look what I did!  It’s amazing what paint can do.

I should have taken a “before” picture.  (It was white with light blue accents – very blah!)  I love it.  The biggest thrill for me, though, was getting a new mirror.  The old mirror started about halfway up the wall and had a sliding medicine cabinet along the bottom.  My children have never been able to see themselves in the mirror without a stool until they were about age ten.  How awful is that?  One of the older girls asked me, “Why didn’t you change this for us?”  I don’t know.  I think because it took me awhile to realize that I could.  Funny how that is, isn’t it?

 

This was the week of our crazy concert night.  JUST LIKE LAST YEAR, the junior high choir concert was the same night as the Let’s Play Music year-end piano recital.  Unlike last year, we had two singers at the junior high singing at the beginning and end, and two graduating students at Let’s Play Music, so they played at the very end of their recital.  There was no way for everyone to see everything this year.  It was very sad!  Anyway, we were smart enough to leave the two babies home with a great babysitter.  Then Dad and Megan went to the junior high where Sarah and Savannah were performing and Mom and Mariah went to the piano recital where Calianne and Cheyenne were performing.  Cali and Cheyenne got to wear their new skirts, shirts, and headbands!

But their sweet personalities outshone even their clothes.  Their teacher had them introduce their songs themselves and I was so impressed with their clear, confident little voices.  I’m telling you, they were heart-melters!  Then, they played their pieces so well, too!  As the culminating feat of this three year music program, they work on composing their own song.  Their teacher helps them to get it written up “for real” and they perform it at the year-end recital.  If you are interested, here are videos of our two composer/musicians!

We accidentally deleted the video of Cheyenne introducing her piece.  She said, “The name of my piece is ‘Kitty, Dog, and Dragon.’  If you listen carefully, there is an A section and a B section.  In the B section, a dog is chasing a kitty and a dragon comes to save her.”

They both played their pieces even better at the performance.  I was so happy for them!  They were the most excited, though, over getting trophies for graduation.  There is nothing better than a trophy when you are six years old!

We high-tailed it over to the junior high as soon as the recital was over and burst through the doors just as Savannah’s group began their song and dance medley of songs from Guys and Dolls.  Yay!  I really did not want to miss that!  She did great, too.  She told me she needed a dress from the 80s for this medley.  I told her Guys and Dolls was set in the 50s!  She said, “Whatever.”  Funny how that seems like a big difference to me since I grew up in the 80s and Guys and Dolls was set in old times, wasn’t it?  Heh, heh.  Anyway, she danced and sang beautifully as always.  I missed all of Sarah’s songs, but Dad and Megan said she did fantastic.  Savannah was most jealous that she got to stand in the back row and Savannah has never gotten that opportunity.  No fair!  Either way, they are both my favorite members of the junior high choirs.  (Notice the choir shirts.  They say, “Master Singers,” and “Apprentice Singers.”)

On other fronts, we have accepted the primary’s challenge to read the Book of Mormon this year.  Bethany goes through varying stages of disruptiveness as we continue to give it a go.  She didn’t bother us at all one night this week.  This is what we came out of the room to discover she had been doing:

I think she may be starting to enjoy family scripture reading time.

This was also the week of Megan’s Hershey Track Meet.  Go Megan!

That fast blur is, in fact, Megan.  Though, you’ll probably have to take my word for it.  She ran the 200 meter and did great!  She is a fast kid!  We love her!

On Saturday, Mariah and I had an Activity Days Mother-Daughter Spring Picnic.  It was so much fun!  Mariah made me lunch (she makes fantastic turkey, lettuce, and tomato sandwiches!), we made a flower pen craft, got our picture taken, and even got to play water balloon volleyball.  Mariah is very good at that, too!  Afterwards we had ice cream sundaes.  It was fabulous and it didn’t even rain on us!  I love that girl and I’m glad she and I could spend some time together.

What a week!