Weekend bliss

We had a fantastic weekend. It was extremely busy, but a whole lot of fun. Friday night we spent playing a game with the kids. Saturday was soccer, cleaning, cooking, and then the 5 Browns concert. Before the concert we got to go back to the green room and meet the 5 of them. They were extremely nice. The kids acted nervous, but all of the Browns asked them questions and talked with them about how long they had been playing piano. The show was by far the best classical preformance I've ever seen. It was delightful to see 5 people so excited about what they are doing. They literally ran to their pianos! Before each piece they spoke to the audience about the song, the composer, and how they felt while playing the song. It was very interesting to hear the details.

My favorite part of the evening was the look on the kids face when the encore began. Since we ordered the tickets sometime last fall all the kids talked about was that they hoped they played "Hall of the Mountain King." I had gotten the set lists about a month before the show and knew that they weren't going to be playing their favorite piece. Aiden almost jumped out of his seat giggling after the first two notes of the encore! Yep you guessed it, "Hall of the Mountain King." We sat mesmerized at the speed of their fingers (we were in the 3rd row). Aiden and Zoë were all smiles and mouths agape throughout the song. It was a perfect way to end the show! If you want more details read Tom's blog.

The other interesting thing I discovered (really it's no surprise) is that the Browns were all Homeschooled. There's a nice little video of them talking about their Homeschool experiences on youtube. I'd love to talk with their parents!


Sunday's meal turned out excellent, and we all enjoyed having company over. Then that evening we got to visit with Tom's Grandma and Aunt at his parents house. At one point in the evening GiGi (short for Great Grandma) pulled me to the side to tell me how proud she was of me for working so hard with the kids and how excited she was that we were homeschooling. I was floored! I am so grateful to be surrounded by people that support our decision! We're planning a trip to her house to interview her about the changes she has seen our country and the world go through. She'll be 93 this fall, and I'm sure she has seen some amazing things. It all fits right in with Zoë's unit on change, so we're really excited about it. Plus, who doesn't love a trip to visit their Great Grandma!

This week has been slightly different because the kids had JET on Tuesday instead of Friday. Today they have a math test (it took them 2 days to do the entire chapter). Everyone is either in the middle of or starting final projects for the end of a small unit. Next week they start art classes with a former art teacher out of her home. I'm also looking for a good way to have them start learning a language. Aiden wants to learn Spanish and Zoë wants to learn Russian. Basically, it's the usual whirlwind of activity around here!