The Apple Tree Winter Wonderland event came first. Both boys have been practicing for this for quite a while. It involves all of the classes in the school doing a short song or skit for the assembled parents. This year's event was so large that it went off site to the Iowa City Public Library. Things were chaotic when we arrived, as one would expect from an event where dozens of kids must be corralled by teachers, dressed up and made to perform. Given that, the event was a smashing success.
Daniel's class was first up, performing a handful of songs, including a song about a mitten that allowed Daniel to wear a large cardboard mitten around his neck. The only photo I could get of this in action had Daniel with his back to the camera, so this shot of him waiting to go on must suffice. They also performed the Iowa Fight Song, during which Daniel (who knows some of the words) stood stoically with a serious look on his face, pumping his fist with determination (see video).
Next up was Edward's class. This was more involved, as they did a skit rather than songs. They performed a version of "The Three Snow Bears," a retelling of "The Three Bears" that is set in the Arctic, with Aloo-ki standing in for Goldilocks. Edward was a Mama Bear (taller kids were Papa Bear, shorter kids were Baby Bear). Because there are so many kids in his class, there were several of each; it was quite amusing. While Edward was one of two mama bears that seemed to remember his lines, his biggest moment came when he saw another child's costume paw on the ground. He stooped to get the paw, then held it up and told his teacher that he had found it. He would not move until he had been acknowledged, thus pausing the skit. She told him to hold onto it, which he did, dutifully, until the skit was over.
The kids came back after all of the songs and skits were done to do more music. Both take a weekly music class called Kindermusik that they really enjoy. They often come home telling us about musical terms or singing new songs. The kids in the Kindermusik program closed the show with some songs. Daniel's group played bells at piano (quiet) and forte (loud) volumes. Then Ed's group showed their new knowledge of the length of notes (which has been shown around the house as he recited "ta ta ti ti ta" over and over. It was late by this point (and Mary's class night), so I got these two sleepyheads home and to bed very quickly.
Gymnastics is a new endeavor for Ed. It's pretty low-key -- he's not on an Olympic track by any stretch -- but it does burn some Saturday morning energy and have some fun, and that's all we're looking for at this point. This was the first week with a teacher, so it was more structured that last week (and thus less energy-burning). He did tumbling, balance beam walking and several jumps from a vault. Meanwhile, Daniel was at the library, which is our usual Saturday morning routine. Daniel isn't jealous, but he does miss his brother ("I want Edward to come to the library") has been a frequent Saturday morning utterance.One chuckle. When I was bringing them home from the Winter Wonderland event, they were a little punchy. Edward started singing the the "days of the week" song in Spanish (they've been learning this at school. That led to a discussion of names. I asked him what "Edward" is in Spanish. He said "Eduardo." Soon, in their punchy state, they were calling everything "-uardo," as in "Dad-uardo," "Mom-uardo" and Daniel-uardo." This got Daniel's dander up. In true "I'm not, you are" sibling rebuttal form, he said to Edward, "I not wardo, you wardo." I nearly drove off the road.
Here is a video of all of this. You get Daniel and the Iowa fight song, Ed as Mama Bear, Daniel with bells, and both boys playing with scarves (Ed is a very casual "whale," walking around with one hand in his pocket and the other very lackadaisically swinging a scarf around). After that is a minute of Ed at gymnastics. Sorry for the long video; we had a lot to summarize.
