The kids got home from school on Friday, December 17, buzzing with energy. That night was their first piano recital! The first recital ever for both Quinn and Declan. And the first in-person recital for Fiona. Up to this point, her other recitals have been virtual. They were very excited and quite nervous. I think they were equal parts sad that their cheering section was pretty small and thankful that their cheering section was pretty small.
After a quick dinner, we got down to the business of hair (the girls) and working ourselves up to putting on the pre-agreed-upon non-athletic pair of pants (Dec). About halfway through curling all Quinn's hair (which was like 25 minutes into curling), I was seriously worried we were going to run out of time before I finished with her head! I still had Buggy's head to deal with after hers. Yikes! But I somehow managed to get through all of Q's hair and put some beachy waves in Bugs' hair. I also got big time mom points for having found her a black velvet jumper earlier in the day. She rocked it and loved it!
All three kids did a really great job and felt quite proud of themselves. Not one of them remembered to bow after they played. They just awkwardly stared at the audience and then hustled back to their seats. So funny! Pretty good showing for the first official in-front-of-an-audience recital for all!
Fiona got to test out the brand new piano on our first official day in the new house. Sunday afternoon, we were all set up on Zoom for Fiona's end of year recital. She had been working really hard on her song, but was feeling nervous for the recital. Especially since it was her first time on the new piano. She did not need to worry! She did so well - and loves the new piano.
After over a year of Zoom meetings, you'd think that people would be better at them. But wow, the overall recital did not go well. Extra invited guests (not the actual students) could not figure out how to go on mute. We listened to one person go through the drive thru, another complain that she had to attend the recital (ugh!), and various other ridiculous interruptions. Thankfully Fiona's song did not have any added background noise, but we felt so terrible for all the other students who had also worked so hard. They didn't deserve the behavior of the adults on the call.
My favorite part of the recital is that after it was over, she told me that SHE was proud of how she did. While of course Mike and I are proud of her (we always are), it is a big deal for her to also feel that sense of pride. She can be quite hard on herself - so allowing herself to feel proud is a big step!
Fiona is taking the summer off of lessons. She has been going for almost 18 straight months, and just needs a few weeks off. She's excited to start up again in the fall. And it's fun to hear her continue to pop down to the basement to play on the new piano when the mood strikes her.
The piano is definitely not collecting dust this summer. Little brother has decided that he is interested in piano and wanted to take summer lessons. He had his first one this week (lessons are bike-able from the new house) and loved it! Now Quinn is saying that she wants to take lessons in the fall as well. Thank goodness we got that new piano.
Sunday morning, all the kids could talk about was going back to the lake to skate again. All the kids (and adults) could do was move very slowly because we were so tired from the exercise and fresh air the day before. There was a lot of moaning and groaning and working up to doing anything. Nonetheless right after lunch, we headed back to the lake, knowing that there was a definite chance of it going sideways quickly because the humans were wiped. But firm in our belief of the power and benefit of fresh air on attitudes!
We got a small dusting of snow mid-morning, so the lake was less glass and more white. It was perfect for making patterns with the hockey sticks we brought - or spraying people with hockey stops. Fact about snow on lake - it is much harder to spot protruding branches or holes in the ice. Mike had quite the dramatic wipeout! The attitudes were a bit edgier than the day before, but we still enjoyed skating around for about an hour. Then we needed to pack it up because we had big afternoon plans.
Miss Fiona was going to be playing Away In a Manger in her second [virtual] piano recital. We had enough time when we got home to decorate our gingerbread cookies and then she called in Q's assistance and disappeared to get ready. There were lots of giggles from the bedroom. Dec, to his chagrin, was banned. We were reminded yet again both how big the girls are getting and How We Need More Bedrooms!
Fiona emerged fully decked out in her holiday gear and looked fantastic. She even asked me to put her hair up and decided the high ponytail I did is her new signature look. She was both super excited and very nervous. Thankfully this time, she did not have to go first, which helped a lot. It also wasn't her first recital ever, so she knew more of what to expect. Her sweet friend E also takes lessons from the same teacher, so we got to watch E and her brother play. And Quinn knew several others from hockey [Q is debating whether she wants to take lessons or not. It's in the mix with softball and gymnastics. Q may have her mama's tendency to over-commit].
Fiona played her song very well and was super proud (no tears!!). I was told very firmly to not video her playing during the recital, but she let me record this encore after the fact to share with you. Enjoy!
In January, Fiona strongly expressed the desire to take piano lessons. And I strongly supported that desire. A quick text to a good friend for a teacher referral (thanks, B!) and we were connected with a wonderful teacher here in S-town.
The first few lessons showed that Fiona has a real knack for piano and the concepts quickly make sense to her. She was really moving along in her lessons - and then everything went into lockdown. Her sweet teacher continued lessons for a bit in her house, but we decided to hit pause. Eventually, her teacher moved to virtual lessons and we were back in the game.
Virtual lessons went well, but basically required me to hover in the background and help her find her hand positions or demonstrate the technique. It wasn't a big deal and I didn't mind - but it wasn't the same as in-person instruction. However, she was learning and it was a shade of normal! When her teacher mentioned the end of year recital, we really encouraged Fiona to do it - and were so proud when she said she would!
She worked really hard learning Beethoven's Ode to Joy and practiced hard to make it perfect (and overcome her recital nerves). Then her teacher sent out an email that the church where the recital was being held had canceled since churches were still not allowed to be open. Fiona was devastated. Mike and I did a quick pivot (we've honed those parenting skills during lockdown) and proposed a family recital via Zoom. It made her feel much better and she agreed.
Then, because life is ever fluid these days, her teacher said the recital was back on via Zoom. Oy vey! So we went from one recital at a church on Wednesday to no recital to a family Zoom recital on Thursday to a Zoom recital on Wednesday AND a Zoom recital on Thursday. It was dizzying. And yet, there is nothing else on the calendar - so it was fairly easy to accommodate.
She was very nervous for the Wednesday recital (and I panicked several family members by posting a picture of her all dressed up on instagram and they thought they missed it. So sorry!). She looked beautiful and asked us all to dress up for it as well. Dec was not really on board (but his dad tricked him into it). Quinn was not really on board (but Fiona tricked her into it by offering to let Q wear one of her dresses). It looked like we had actual places to be. Like the basement.
Between first recital, general nerves, and going first, Wednesday's performance did not not spectacularly well. We were so proud of her, but she ended her song in tears. It's really hard to be the first one - especially after only three months of lessons. I said all the things that a Mom says - but they didn't mean much. So after the recital was over, we called in the pro. And by that, I mean Auntie. Who said the exact same words I did - but this time they sunk in. Fine. As long as they healed the heart. F's friend E was also in the recital and sent Fiona a sweet text over Messenger that also made her smile.
Thursday night was the redemption recital. She had a full house of grandparents, aunties, and cousins. With a friendly audience of people she knew, she was shining! She played four songs and did so amazing. We could not be more proud of her!
Wait, we could! She also submitted a video of herself playing Ode to Joy for the virtual version of the school's end of year talent show. The talent show video was posted this morning and we all watched it together on our big screen TV. SHE WAS IN IT!!!
She has already asked to keep going with lessons through the summer. Done and done.
