Full Circle: Solo & Ensemble

Life has really come full circle lately.  Chris and I were both super involved in music, growing up...and even still.  Being in band meant participating in Solo & Ensemble every year.  Something we both did beginning in seventh grade.

This year, in sixth grade, Warren began playing percussion in band and.....had the "opportunity" to participate in Solo & Ensemble.  He worked on his solo, a bit secretly, for several months at school.  And with the help of his sweet band director, Mr. McElwain, he was ready for his solo performance last weekend!  For those of you asking and wondering, Chris actually worked very little with Warren.  In fact, neither of us had heard the entire solo until he performed it for the judge.  Trying to "teach" your own kid doesn't prove to be very successful in our home.

So, like Chris and I did growing up, we loaded up the grandmas and all headed over to Lake Region, where we'd sit in the cafeteria while Warren warmed up before his scheduled performance.  It brought back so many fun memories for us as we sat, in a cafeteria filled with a loud mismash of instruments.....and watched him work through his nerves, practicing two especially tricky measures.  We talked him through the nervous mind game...."Don't practice it too much at this point.  You know it.  Just relax.  Take a break from it for a little bit."

And all the while, Harper sat.  (As a sidenote.....kudos to Harp, as he is the most patient, supportive little brother.)  Warren had already decided that he was too nervous and really didn't want all of us to go in the room while he performed.  When Mr. McElwain came over, we talked for a bit and he told us he and his intern were going to be at Warren's solo.  I casually said "Oh good!  Warren doesn't really want us in the room, so we're all gonna just sit outside the door."  And he sweetly looked at me and smiled, and said "Oh, well, we're gonna go inside."  I guess you get to do that as the teacher.....just not as the mom or dad.  So, we all resorted to the fact that we'd sit outside the room.

As we left the cafeteria and headed to the judging room, mom told Warren that she'd been praying for him and knew he would do well....to which Warren replied, "So have I Mimi!  When I took a shower, I just let the water fall on me while I just prayed!"

We found the judging room, with plenty of time to spare.  And with plenty of time to pace the hallway, nervously.  And with plenty of time to see the flood of people standing in the hallway.  And with plenty of time....well, you get the idea.

After listening to a couple of the other students, the judge finally popped his head out and called Warren's name.  So....we all sat, while Mr. McElwain and the intern went inside with Warren.  Well, that is.....we sat after Chris finished setting up the drum (the same drum Chris used for his solos....and the same drum he's been working on "restoring" for this very night).

When Chris walked out, he immediately began secretly recording Warren's performance.  He crossed his fingers as Warren approached the two tricky measures and immediately gave a huge air fist bump when he nailed it!  I all but paced the small hallway, trying to peek, but still stay out of Warren's line of sight.  The grandmas stood at the end of the hallway, trying to juggle between watching Warren, and watching Warren's two incredibly proud parents.  And Harper....you guessed it.  Harper sat.  But, Harper didn't just sit.  He sat with his little hands folded, praying for his big brother.  (Probably praying he did well, so we didn't have to "deal" with the wrath of disappointment and anger that would surely ensue if he didn't do well.....but, praying nonetheless.)

Warren finished and walked out with a smile.  We all congratulated him on finishing, no matter what the judges score said.  As we walked back over to the cafeteria where we would "sit and wait" for scores to be posted, Warren turned to me and said "Mom, I just want to cry though.  I don't feel like I did very well and I really messed up on a couple of parts."  I told him to hold the tears until the scores came out and if the scores reflected that he didn't do so well, then he could cry.  Otherwise...."Suck it up, Buttercup."

We found a couple of chairs and a waiting spot...and while we waited, Harper sat.  Again the memories came flooding back.  I remember the nervous excitement, so well....waiting for scores to be posted and thought about how these nights would become such fun memories for Warren, too.  At first,  the high school "runners" got fumbled up with the tape used to post the scores.  We waited.  Then, with each batch of scores, Warren (and every other kid) walked up to the wall to find it wasn't his turn yet.  So, we waited....and Harper sat.  When Warren's scores were finally posted, Chris and I couldn't have imagined the smile that would come as a result of his hard work!  He earned his first Superior!  In fact, we were all smiling.  Even Harper....for his sitting and waiting was finally over and we could go celebrate with ice cream!

Hard earned smile....and a fist bump!

And a Little Child Shall Lead Them

I am a very structured person.  I like organization...I like a plan....I tend to stay in the box.  (Ok, maybe not "tend to".....I do stay in the box.)  Not too long ago, I picked up the boys from school and Harper jumped in the car with a huge smile on his face!  The first thing he told me (before "Hey mom") was that Mrs. Stone picked him to be one of the Artists of the Week!  His artwork was chosen to go up on the school website!  He could not have been more excited!

Fast forward a week or two when Chris and I received an email from Mrs. Stone, with the subject "Harper's wonderful work of art."  All it said was "He did this just today!"  Then we saw his artwork and were beyond blown away.

Our plan was always that our kids would take piano lessons through 5th grade.  As musicians, Chris and I know how much learning piano benefits any instrument they play.  So, as planned, both boys started piano in 1st grade.  Warren stuck to the plan and took lessons through 5th grade.  As he started playing percussion this year, in middle school band, we decided it would only help him, so he continued to take lessons.  Meanwhile, Harper, who is only in 3rd grade, still had a couple of years to go with piano.  Until the email from Mrs. Stone.  It was that email that made us rethink our plan.  

After much discussion, we sat the boys down and had a family meeting.  Not that he needed a reminder, but we reminded him of our deal to take lessons through 5th grade.  Then told him that if he wanted to stop lessons and focus on percussion, we'd be good with that.  Let's just say there was no discussion needed.

With that, Harper said "So, does that mean I can stop piano lessons too?"  I realized that, while having a plan is a good thing....it's also a good thing to adjust your plan sometimes.  You see, Chris and I lived in a musicians' box and we expected our boys to live inside that same box.  Instead, what if (wait for it), we opened our box.  And, instead of expecting Harper to live in our box...what if we opened our box and tried living in his art box.  So we told Harper that he could stop piano lessons.  His immediate response "So now can I go to ArtCentric?"

ArtCentric is an amazing locally owned children's art studio we learned about from our church.  Each month, they offer fun after school classes for kids.  We signed him up and each week he came home smiling and excited, something we hadn't seen when he was taking piano lessons.  And, not only was he having fun....but slowly, our box was opening as we learned art appreciation.  Harper taught us about different artists and art styles.  Go ahead, ask me about Jackson Pollock?

Isaiah 11:6 says "...and a little child shall lead them."  Surely Harper is leading us....teaching us that sometimes it's good to get out of your box, right?  And even if you stay in your own box, it's good to appreciate the boxes of others!  

Goodbye Lincoln, Hello Lawton

Don't let the sign fool you!  While Warren tried to play it cool with this move to middle school, it was certainly met with his share of tears.  As he said "I've been at Lincoln since Kindergarten."  And though he left the walls of Lincoln, he's moved to the new walls of Lawton, with most of the same friends...which is a huge blessing.  He's made a great group of close friends.

To prepare for the move to middle school, we decided this would be a summer of growing up....he learned to do his own laundry, on his own time.  He learned to make his own lunches and how to use the microwave.  He even went to his first sleepover.

As I drove around before dropping Warren off, I went over a million different things I felt he needed to know for his first sleepover.  What to do if he couldn't fall asleep.  What to do if he woke up before everyone else.  What to do if he got homesick.  What to do if he wet the bed.  And when we pulled into Lincoln's driveway, Warren said "Mom, can you quickly give me a kiss out here before we go inside?"  And, at first, I was sad.  Sad that my boy was at the age where it wasn't cool to give your mom a kiss or hug.  But, I decided to look at it from a different perspective.  Instead of being sad, I decided to be happy that, while it may not be cool anymore, my boy still wants a hug and a kiss from me!

Now that school is in full swing, we couldn't be more excited for Warren and this new chapter.  While the week before school started was filled with lots of anxiety about getting to classes on time, middle school seems to suit him well!  He's playing percussion (with Lincoln) and enjoys hanging out with his friends in the band room before school.  (Brings back such great memories for Chris and me.)  He was also selected for a leadership class, that he has 8th period....and really loves.

Meanwhile, we're all learning how to deal with "middle school meanies."  I had to check Warren out early one day last week for a doctor's appointment to have a wart removed.  The next day, after freezing the wart, it had become much, much larger.  Before school the next day, Warren was talking with a group of "friends" when he accidentally spit on one of the boys while talking.  That boy made a huge deal out of it, exaggerating his wipe and squealing "Ewww, that's so gross!  Great, now I'm gonna catch your wart!  Ewwww!  That's so gross, Warren!"  While my heart broke for him, I couldn't have been more proud of how he handled the situation.  He apologized to the boy for spitting, saying "I'm sorry.  I can't really help that when I talk."  Then he simply said "That's not really how it works.  You can't catch a wart from my spit."  He could have easily "fired something" back to the mean boy, but he didn't.  Instead, he took the high road.  And the next day, he went and found some new friends to sit with.  You really do find out who your real friends are!

So, while middle school is filled with some tough "character building" times...it's also filled with lots of fun, new experiences, like Cotillion.  As Warren started Cotillion this year, Chris and I "braved" the first carpool duty!  And, I just need to give huge props to all the girl moms out there!  While Chris worked with teaching Warren how to tie a tie, these girl moms got to work their way through experiencing panty hose!  And, based on the nervous chatter in the car, I can only imagine what that might've been like.

I'm sure learning to tie ties isn't nearly as exciting as panty hose.  Definitely not as much hilarious conversation....As the girls got in the car, Paige lifted up her skirt to fix her panty hose.  With that, Marin says "....and that's why you need Cotillion!"  That, just after Paige says "Ugh!  Panty hose are so hot!  And they scrunch up!"  To which Marin responds with "Ya, they scrunch up somewhere!"  All this as I look back to see Harper rolling his eyes, cracking up!

Not having navigated this road before, we weren't sure what to expect with middle school.  But I can tell you, we have been pleasantly surprised.  Granted, it's just the third week of school, but already, we have seen a much more confident, relaxed 11-year old.  We've watched some pretty great friends learn to be awkward together.  We're learning to step back and let Warren handle things.  We're learning to trust that we've built a good foundation and laid the groundwork so he's able to handle the tough situations without us....but that he still knows he can come to us at any time!  But most of all, we're learning to enjoy the ride!  Enjoy the moment!