I'd Rather Eat Glass

Today was our first rehearsal in the actual theatre for Macbeth.  The lights don't work, the sound doesn't work.  I hate technical theatre, I'd rather eat glass.  That's all I have to say about that. 

An apple a day

Today we took the kids to Oak Glen, a little mountain community near Redlands that is full of apple farms.  Today it was FULL of other families with the same idea, but we still had a great time.  The highlight for the kids was running through the apple orchard and picking apples.  Sometimes the simple things are the most fun.  I know that Dave and I are looking forward to a slice of the delicious mile high apple pie that we purchased and will have tonight after dinner.

Cooper and his bushel of apples

Cooper is just a bit big for a shoulder ride

Bella is almost too big for this play house- she looks like Alice In Wonderland in the scene where she drinks the potion in that makes her huge

Bella picking the perfect apple and Dave using her skirt as a sun shade...ha ha

Shave and A Haircut

To Mohawk or Not to Mohawk....That is the Question
This style is just too silly for real life
And in the end, Cooper gets exactly what he wants-really really short hair...
Bella has recently announced that she does not like to get her picture taken, so here is the back of her new style- it's a cute picture anyway! 

After many weeks of needing to get the kids in for haircuts, I finally managed to fit it in the schedule.  Mind you, Cooper has already had school pictures when he was in great need of a haircut, but oh well, those pictures are supposed to capture your life at the moment.  And, his shaggy hair pretty much sums up how chaotic things have been around here!  At least they will look well groomed in the pictures from Cooper's upcoming birthday party.  

"Goodbye Love"..

The title of this post is not meant to alarm, it is simply one of the many powerful lines from the musical Rent.  On September 7 ,2008, the cast of Rent performed their last show on Broadway.  Sometime during the summer of 08, one of the performances at The Nederlander in NYC was filmed and on September 24, 25, 26,,27, it is being shown in theatres across the country.  Miraculously one of those theatres is right here in Apple Valley.  So, on Wednesday night, Dave and I went to watch it.  If you ever had the chance to see Rent in NYC, you know that the space it was performed in was meant for this show.  It was as much the show as the performers on stage.  Seeing it on screen it made me sad to think that I will never see Rent in that space again.  Rent is a show that has had a huge impact on my life, especially my life as a director and a teacher of theatre.  I am so inspired by the life of Jonathan Larson and the effect that he had on Broadway, bringing an entirely new generation of spectators to theatre.  As I watched the movie, I thought about all of the different times I have seen Rent, all of the different students that I have watched perform scenes from Rent, and about the fact that I have seen this play more times than I have ever re-watched a movie.  The performance of Rent always makes me emotional, but sitting and thinking about all of this at the same time resulted in quite the catharsis.  At the end of the film, the current cast and the original cast of Rent join together to sing "Seasons of Love", I couldn't think of a better way for the run of this life changing show to end.  If you know the story of Rent, you know that Jonathan Larson( the creator of Rent)  didn't even live to see his dream become a reality.  I once read that Jonathan Larson wanted his funeral to be a celebration of his life, an event where people would sing and dance on tables. Every time Rent has been performed over the last twelve years that has happened.  And in that final moment from the movie, it most certainly happened.  I hope another show like Rent comes along and continues to inspire young people to see and perform theatre, I know that I am thankful for all of the inspiration it provided my students throughout the years.  Measure your life in love!

A Pit and Fumes

No these aren't the main elements of a horror movie, nor am I talking about a teenager after P.E., they are the current elements at our house.  The stain was put on the cupboards today and the pit was dug outside for the new septic tank.  The smell of the finish takes me back to my childhood when I'm pretty sure our house smelled like this for a couple of years as mom and dad built everything inside the house.  The pit....it's pretty scary--maybe the cat from a few weeks ago will find its way into it...kidding....well, sort of kidding!  

Happy Birthday Jack!

Today it is Jack's (my nephew's) fourth birthday.  It is so hard to believe that the little frenemies are turning four already.  It seems like it was yesterday when we made a trip to Iowa City in the fall to meet the new baby Jack.  I remember how little he seemed compared to Cooper and how funny it was at Flash! when the photographer told Wendy she should bring him back for some "nudes" (actually more creepy than funny).  Now Jack is a little man.  I swear he is the most intelligent four year old I know.  Last year when Cooper was in Kindergarten, I kept telling Wendy, "I think Jack is more ready for school than Cooper."  Jack has a love for life and an amazing imagination. He is probably going to grow up to be the next Doogie Howser- but with more bedside manner .  He comes up with some of the funniest one liners I have ever heard.  We wish we could have been there for his bounce-house party!  We weren't there physically, but we were in spirit!  

One Step Closer to the Finish

My favorite cabinet...the wine cabinet
The wall that the fridge, oven and microwave will be on

The work station/desk in the laundry room

It's been a while since the last remodel update.  First and foremost, I'm excited to announce that we are getting to the end of the remodel posts.  We are almost finished!  This week was a week filled with painting, baseboard installation and most importantly cabinet installation.  It is really starting to look like a house now.  You can see for yourself in the photos!  You will notice that we are already starting to utilize the counters in the kitchen- how sad is it, they aren't even finished and our crap is already starting to accumulate on them.  Old habits die hard. 

Thank You for Being a Friend...

Today, I finally connected with a dear friend. Lisa and I started teaching at Victor the same year.  It is hard to believe that it was 14 years ago that we both began our teaching career at V-High. Since then Lisa has traveled the world, even spent time living in Costa Rica.  When she and her husband lived in Victorville, there wasn't a couple that Dave and I enjoyed spending time with more.  When they moved to other locations in So. Cal, we still found time to hang out, go on weekend trips together and just have a great time every time.  We went through the experience of being newly weds, new dog owners and new home owners together.  We even lived together in one house for about a month when they were remodeling a house they had just purchased.  How many friends can do that?!  I dedicate this blog to Lisa and the fact that no matter how much time passes between our phone calls ( years) it still seems like yesterday when we spoke last.  Thanks Lisa for being such a wonderful person and a wonderful friend! 

TRI-Again

Yesterday was the annual SVL triathlon, which takes place in our very own community.  Not only was the event local, but Dave and I both participated. This is the first event we have done together since I became more active.  It was held in Spring Valley Lake and each participant had the option of doing all three parts or breaking it up into a relay.  I chose to do all three and Dave and two others burned up the course with a relay.  I made it to the bike portion before Dave, but shortly saw him whiz by me in a blur of speed.  I really liked the course:  the water was warm (and cleaner than Disneyland, kind of like Storm Lake), the bike route was fun and the run is a 5k that I do at least once a week with my friends. My time was two minutes faster than a comparable tri I did in Vegas in  April, and I beat a lot of the male competitors- some of them younger than me- so I couldn't be happier.  That's actually a bit of a lie...immediately after the  event, I had to jump in the car and head to a meeting in Pasadena- so the one thing that could have made me happier was time to go take a shower before the meeting.  It wasn't that bad though, a little bath and body works spray covers up even the stench of sweat and lake water!  

Friday Night Lights

Tonight was the first home football game and the kids have been counting down the days all week.  I put in a long day today, school, rehearsal, happy hour with Paula (that part was fun), so had to meet everyone at the stadium.  The kids were dressed, let me just say, uniquely.  They convinced Dave to let them wear their Hawkeye football and cheerleader uniforms.  They got to cheer on the team, hang out with the cheerleaders and Cooper had a photo shoot with the Jackrabbit.  All in all in was a great night.  We left shortly after half time, but it looked like the Jackrabbits were going to win their first game in over two years.  Let's hope the losing streak was broken!

Mr Responsibility

Today was the first award day of the year at Rio Vista, Cooper's school.  Dave and I were invited to attend because Cooper was getting an award.  After watching the third graders and their very humorous rendition of "Catch a Wave" ( I'm sure to their parents it was adorable and entertaining), the awards began.  Cooper received the "Responsibility" award for his class.  Cooper says it is because he helped his friend Presley, who is in kindergarten, the day that he couldn't find his lunch and because he lets the new boy Richard play with he and Logan.  Who knows if these are the reasons. But I'm sure it is the little random acts of kindness that Cooper does all of the time, that made his teacher take note.  We're proud of you Coop and we hope you are still considered a "responsible" student when you are 16!  On a final note, as you can see, I will not be receiving the award for "best parent photographer".  

The Big Challenge

This is the beginning of my 15th year teaching at Victor Valley High School and my 12th year as the drama director.  Without a doubt, directing Macbeth, by Shakespeare is the most challenging thing I have ever done.  In addition to staging the show, I am finding that I also have to teach the students word by word what they are saying.  Just like anything though, the challenge is thrilling and I think that because everything has to be discussed in such great detail that this will turn out to be a great show.  If the production turns out as dramatic and disturbing as the shirts (see photo), I will be ecstatic!  If you have noticed that the frequency of the blogs has changed drastically, it's because of good old Shakespeare- and I don't mean our dog!  

Almost There

The dry wall is up, the end is in sight, can't wait 'til we eat in our kitchen at night! (I've been immersed in Shakespeare at rehearsal, can you tell?)

Birthday Surprises

Those of you that are near in age to me, will agree that birthdays seem to lose their excitement after the age of about 25.  Don't get me wrong, I had a wonderful pre-birthday weekend celebrating in Vegas, but yesterday, the actual day, left a bit to be desired.  It was one of those extremely hectic and stressful days at work and that kind of puts a damper on the whole idea of "happy" birthday.  Last night I came to two realizations. One, stressful birthdays like this, as an adult, are the reason why we need to make our kid's birthdays so fun!  Stock up on the fun while you can.  Two, the smallest thing can make your day better.  I got home from the work day from hell and had an e-mail from a dear friend that I haven't heard from in a long time (that goes both ways, this blog is pretty much my only form of communication).  Kim, it meant so much to hear from you,and it brightened my day.  After dinner, I went to work out and when I got out to my car there was a card on the windshield from Dave and the kids, that too made me feel loved.  Thanks to all of you who sent warm wishes. 

High Rollers

This past weekend in Vegas was one filled with good times, good drinks and lots of laughs.  We arrived on Friday and met up with Wendy and Brandon.  They had arrived early poolside and had the perfect chairs saved for us.  It wasn't long before we had our first drink and vacation had begun.  Lunch on Friday was probably one of the funniest moments of the trip.  Everytime the waitress approached our table, Wendy would get the giggles which in turn would make the rest of us laugh.  The waitress seemed to think we had been doing more than just drinking.  Friday evening was perfect, Dave's sister Tracy joined us for a night out on the town.  We hung out at our favorite little bar in Ceasar's forum shops, the boys enjoyed cigars, and the girls really enjoyed Mojitos!  The evening ended at our traditional Friday night in Vegas restaurant, Margaritaville, where we were entertained by a local performing a drunken modern dance to whatever song the band chose to play.  Wendy and I would be happy to recreate the dance for you anytime you are with us and we have been drinking. 

For Dave, Saturday began very early as he got up after about  3 hours of sleep to go do a bike race.  Wendy, Brandon, and I had a more leisurely start and headed to ESPN Zone around 9 to watch the Hawkeyes demolish Maine.  We were there long enough to become friends with our waiter Joe.  Turns out, Joe has actually been to a Hawkeye game before.  Sometime back in the 80's, he went with an aunt and uncle who used to live in Oskaloosa.  Wonder if we were all at that same game.  Apparently it didn't have much of an impact on Joe, he didn't even remember who they played.  After the game, the boys headed to In and Out and the girls did some shopping at the M and M store.  

After another afternoon at the pool, it was time for naps.  When you are in your 30's, naps are vital for two nights of partying in a row.  That evening we went to Koi at Planet Hollywood and I had sushi for the first time- pretty crazy considering there are as many sushi restuarants here as there are Starbucks.  After dinner, we spent the evening people watching.  It seems that there are very few women with the fashion sense that Wendy and I have.  Ha Ha.  It's pretty cruel that we were laughing so hard we were crying at a majority of the outfits that strolled by, but it sure was fun.

The weekend was perfect.  I'm so lucky to have a sister and brother in law that are so much fun to spend time with.  Until next year, Viva Las Vegas!