Brown School Variety Show 2017

After much deliberation, both boys decided on their variety show acts for this year. Evan decided to play March from The Nutcracker and Ryan did a solo on the drum set. We had a rehearsal at school a few days before the performance, and then the actual show was on March 6. 

We accidentally discovered that not only did Evan have his piece memorized, but he could play it without looking at his hands. So we made a schtick of it. The emcee offered him music, Evan tossed said music, then the emcee blindfolded him. At the rehearsal he used a scarf as a blindfold, but the show director supplied us with a sleep mask for the actual performance. Love this vantage point. He had no clue I was there taking a picture. 

Ryan at rehearsal

They had two performances on March 6. One was during the school day, and the entire school was bussed to the high school to be the audience. This is the first year the students were bussed over for the daytime performance, and it worked really well. It was nice that the acts were able to perform on the high school stage before the evening performance. [In the past, the daytime performance was held at Brown School, and the evening performance at the high school.] I was happy to be subbing, so I got to go along to see the daytime performance. 

Evan at the daytime show

Ryan at the daytime show

For Evan, everything went off without a hitch during the daytime performance. The evening performance was a different story. The trick is, he has to have his hands set before he's blindfolded. Well, his hands were set, but at the octave above what he's used to hearing/what's written. When he started to play, it sounded wrong to him, so he stopped... 

...lifted his blindfold to check his hands, got a chuckle from the audience, waved them off...

...replaced the blindfold after placing his hands to start again, but when he started playing again, it was still wrong...

...got another chuckle when he had to check his hands again...

...but this time, on the third try, he got his hands positioned correctly and started playing. I think he was a little rattled so he sort of blanked in the beginning of the song, but soon he got in his groove and played the rest of the song smoothly. 

There is a version of Evan that would have started crying when the audience laughed. We were so impressed with his composure. When we talked about it afterwards, he said he was following Ryan's example, because during rehearsal Ryan's bass drum striker kept sticking and he had to make some adjustments and had some restarts. Ryan comically played off that situation during the rehearsal. Evan remembered that, and applied the strategy himself. I almost started crying when he was able to articulate that. That's what it's all about, people.

The audience didn't totally realize that he was actually struggling, maybe thinking it was part of the schtick. So they sort of loved it, and the act was more memorable. We are so proud of him for his interest in piano, desire to perform, and his confidence/composure.

Another mom mentioned to me during the rehearsal, that it was sweet that Evan was playing so well, and his feet don't even touch the floor. That comment gave the whole experience new meaning for me... a real "they grow so fast" moment. 

Video of Evan's evening performance

The audience vibe I got was that they were excited to see/hear Ryan play again, but it wasn't a new surprising act like it was last year. Nonetheless, Ryan consistently delivered at both performances, and feedback was great. He played a clip of Darth Vader's theme song during his solo, and I heard some audience murmurs of approval. I love that he purposely wore this shirt as a statement of patriotic peace. 

He's starting to outgrow this set. 

[We are not ready for a full size set yet!]

As always, we are very proud of Ryan's accomplishments. He's such a cool kiddo!

Video of Ryan's performance 

Well, Variety Show 2017 is in the books. Great job, boys! We are proud of you, and love you so much! You are showing that you can handle challenges and curve balls with grace, courage, and perseverance.

Lansing

Last weekend, the boys and I had an mini-adventure in Lansing, which is the capitol of Michigan! A college friend, Kara, is expecting her first baby in April, and I really wanted to go to her shower in the Lansing area. However, Burke was on an orchestra trip, so if I wanted to attend the shower the boys would have to come too. I spoke to my friend and her mom, who was hosting the shower, and they both said it would be totally fine to bring the boys. Though bringing kiddos to a shower is unconventional, knowing that the boys are good travelers, and are good in social situations, I thought it would probably work out okay. 

They love hotels. Ryan has always mentioned he wants to be a "hotel worker." When we got into the room, Evan said it was the best day of his life, because we were in a hotel. 

Kara suggested a local place for dinner, so we headed to Cancun Mexican Grill. The booths and tables were so colorful and ornate. Pretty good food too.

Swimming is no longer a stressful situation for the Lokey boys. They were excited to pretty much have the hotel pool to themselves. They got to swim before bedtime, and then the next day after breakfast, so they were pumped. I didn't even have to go in with them to ensure their safety. They just swim all around by themselves. Their swimming progress is impressive. 

Ryan asked to go see the state house. He's studying Michigan in social studies this year, and we were so close, so the answer was of course, yes! Especially, since I enjoy visiting capitol buildings myself. When we arrived there were demonstrators, both for and against our current president, and a police presence. It brought tears to my eyes to see democracy in action, and prompted some good conversations about government and politics. I was so excited the boys got to experience this. 

Even though when we first walked up, Evan spotted a big old flag that said "F- Trump", only the word was spelled out in its entirety. Evan noticed it and asked in a sweet little voice, "Mama, what does F- mean?" Only he spoke it in its entirety, a couple times. I got a good chuckle out of it, and we had a discussion about "level 3 words," as I call them. [Ryan already knows most of the curse words thanks to his classmates, including this one.]

We, of course, gravitated toward the demonstrators opposed to the current administration. 

You can see some Republican demonstrators in the left side of the picture. They were selling Trump paraphernalia at little carts. [Gross!] But I mostly posted this picture because I like the clouds.

We were able to go into the building and take a quick look at the dome and glass floor, which is a unique feature. Then we were off to the shower...

It was a lovely shower, and it was so nice to see Kara and Jen. They boys did well too. They played in the basement pretty much the entire time, and were angels on the drive to/from Lansing. A memorable weekend for all of us! 

Congrats to Kara! 

Can't wait to meet her little girl!

While the boys and I were in Lansing, Burke was off on an orchestra adventure. The SJ Chamber Orchestra competed in the National Orchestra Festival at the annual American String Teachers Association conference in Pittsburgh. They did great, and earned a superior rating.