Choir

I have sung in choirs for most of my life. I sang in a children's primary choir in our ward back in Kansas when I was really young. I sang in the ward choir with my family all growing up in Utah. In high school I sang with the A cappella choir. And at BYU I sang in the Women's Chorus for a few years. I've had so many wonderfully enriching experiences singing, going on tours in high school, singing in concerts, devotionals, and even General Conference in college.

When we moved to Texas, I promised myself that I would find some music group to join. Well, 2 years later, after a great experience serving in the deaf branch in our stake, I still hadn't found a group to sing with. And while I loved the people we served with and really enjoyed our time there, I did miss the regular music at church too.

So this fall I was thrilled when I found the Texas Master Chorale! Even better, they practice very near our home, so it's only a short drive away to get to rehearsals. After missing the audition night while playing phone tag about audition times, they told me to just come to the first rehearsal back in August and they'd find a time to let me audition that night. So I sat in the seats with the first altos and had the time of my life sight-reading a bunch of Christmas music with the wonderful singers and musicians from around the area in this group. Many of the members of the choir are current or former high school choir directors, or private music teachers. By the end of the evening, the director told me to go ahead and come back next week and they'd listen to me then. I was happy because it gave me at least one more week to come sing with them. They were testing the range of everyone in the alto section that night and just let me slip in with them without an official audition.

So one night a week I get to go and sing again! We have a couple Christmas concerts in December, if anyone feels so inclined to come and visit. We're also recording a cd for Christmas. And we're singing really fun big Mack Wilberg arrangements that the Tabernacle Choir sings. I'm going to love singing again for the Christmas season this year.

Climbing

I think I'm in trouble. He got up there all by himself. Then Anna followed him up, of course, because in the true spirit of sibling-hood she can't let David do anything alone that looks like fun (read: gets lots of attention from Mom).

What a proud little guy!

Excuse the mess, this is in the extra bedroom that is still a mish-mash of pictures that haven't made their way onto walls yet and boxes that haven't fully been unpacked yet. Hey, we haven't even been homeowners for 6 months! I refuse to feel guilty that I'm not fully unpacked yet. Now after 6 months, you can judge me. Shoot, only a month--I'd better get on top of it. If only I didn't have such cute little distractions as these 2 kiddos... Oh, and the climbing aspect. David is getting pretty fearless around the stairs lately too. Gotta keep on my toes to make sure the gate at the top of the stairs is closed at all times lest he gets any crazy maniacal urge to hurl himself down head first. I'm not sure how I feel about this free-spirit-exploring nature in my 11-month-old. Anna sure spoiled me by leaving a lot of these waters untapped until she was older. Dan definitely looks at his son's curiosity with much pleasure of a proud papa. Probably because he doesn't have to chase him around for more than an hour or two after he gets home at the end of the day...

Would you like to swing on a star?

Carry moonbeams home in a jar

And be better off than you are

You could be swingin' on a star

Love my Techie Husband

Since we moved into our house a few months ago, we didn't want to sign up for another expensive cable or satellite package. We spent the summer realizing that we really didn't miss the 100+ channels from our old Dish Network too much, but we especially didn't miss the bill that came with it. I did, however, miss having Sesame Street, Clifford, and some of the other PBS shows that Anna was distracted, I mean entertained by.

So after a little research, Dan built us this with a few cut up wire hangers, a board, and a $10 receiver from RadioShack.

Now we get all the regular local channels coming in on our homemade antenna! Dan is my hero. And now this awesome addition has a home in a nice little corner upstairs out of the way, while being very appreciated by the family downstairs in the family room. It's nice to have a few minutes to myself here or there during Elmo's World on Sesame Street. Some days I actually get to take a shower before lunchtime!

I do miss having BYU TV that came with Dish. And no, the many local Christian televangelist channels here in the South don't make up for it. Although this singing muppet had us laughing one night.

I guess I just have a hard time taking sermons and scriptures seriously when they're being sung in a wave-the-lighter/candle/flame-back-and-forth-cheesey kind of way by a pink muppet. I think we'll stick with watching BYU TV online and ignore the singing muppets until we need a little giggle.

School

Anna is so thrilled that she gets to go to "school"! It's really just a once a week joyschool that I am doing with a couple other moms, but she loves it. She started last week and had her second class this week.

When I picked her up from Miss Cindy's house after the first day (don't you love calling people Miss First-name? I get to be Miss Liz when it's my week to teach), Anna told me all the fun things they did, and then said, "Let's go to school now!" Apparantly through all the excited talk of going to school, she'd gotten it into her head that she was going to go to school at the elementary school near our home. Poor girl was a little disappointed at first, and it melted my heart. I guess I should have figured when this has been her favorite book lately. That lucky little girl is old enough for kindergarten. Ever read it? I remember loving it when I was little too.

I don't know what I'm going to do when she's old enough to go to the real school. I want to keep her little as long as possible!

Here she is with her backpack on her first day of school.

So proud

10 Months Old

David is 10 months old! Well, he'll be 10 months old tomorrow, but I'm jumping the gun a bit. Wow, it's been a fast year. I haven't been very good about posting lately, so here are some pictures of the last month or two.

He's pulling up in his crib now, and pretty proud of himself.


Of course he's now a teething monster with 5 teeth.

I think he's finally outgrowing the sink.

Just so sweet after our evening walk.

Loving to stand up and take steps with his walker toy!

And just being silly.


We love our baby Davy!

You're so pretty, Mom!

Nothing better to my self-esteem than having Anna come in the room and say this to me just now. Maybe it's because it's Sunday and I actually did my hair and make-up for church today instead of opting for the pony-tail. I love my 3-year-old. She knows how to make my day!