Winter Band Concert 2008

On the evening of Tuesday, December 16th, Red Lion Christian Academy hosted the annual Winter Band Concert. Alex again played percussion, now for the Middle school. Abby made her debut performance on the clarinet for the 4th grade.

This first video is of a song called the The Crusader March, composed originally by John Philip Sousa. This was performed solely by the clarinet section.



The young man next to Abby was having problems with his instrument. So ultimately Abby was performing a solo here.

The next video is of Abby's actual solo. She was the only performer in the 4th grade to have one. Her music selection was Go Tell Bill, originally composed by Giocchino Rossini.



The final selection was Alex's first number for the evening. The music selection is called Carol of Joy. He's on the crash cymbal.

Wait for it... Wait for it...



Alex actually performed on 2 other songs; one on the snare drum, the other on the bass drum. I may post them later...

His Mysterious Ways...

This past weekend, Mommy and I packed our bags, tossed the house keys to Nana and Poppop, bid the children au revoir, and headed north to take part in the wedding celebration of a dear friend of ours (congratulations again, Gina and Trevor).

We left the house with the intention of checking in at our hotel, dressing for the wedding, perhaps relaxing for a few, then heading to the church and still having time to spare. But things began to go awry as soon as we left the highway to look for the hotel: It wasn't there. Not where our map said it was at least. We pressed on further down the road, through traffic, time slipping away.

We eventually found the hotel but only after finally stopping to check with a postman (thank you Mr. Postman), then calling the hotel itself. But now, time was not on our side. We checked in, dashed into our room, dressed hastily, and ran right back out the door...only to get lost again on our way to the church.

After the ceremony, the silver lining in all this began to present itself. In getting to the church, we had traveled in exactly the opposite direction we should. But as it turns out, it was the correct way to get to the reception: A fantastic venue call The Brickhouse. This provided some much needed relief.

Several hours later, after enjoying an unbelievable amount of excellent food (honestly, I wasn't hungry at all Sunday), and enjoying the company of some great people, it was time to head back to the hotel. Well, it turns out that our first turn at getting lost put us close to the reception facilities. This prepared us for the return trek: We got back to the hotel in a much easier and faster fashion than Google had planned for us.

All in all, we could see God's hand in the ordeals and had a great time catching up with an old friend.

Congratulations

October Update

Poor blogger that I am, it has once again been nearly a month since my last (major) post. Sorry.

Soccer season has come and gone. As in previous years, Alex, Abigail and Amanda all participated in the GRPC Fall Soccer League. Both Abigail and Amanda have really come of their own this year, showing significant growth.


Alex added something new to the mix this year by joining his first competitive school sport: The RLCA Middle School Soccer team. The season had already commenced by the time he made his decision but he did get to play in a few games before the season wrapped. And the coach has asked him to return next year.


Besides soccer, Halloween has also come and gone. With the exception of Aidan, who donned a lion costume, sports were the over-arching theme this year. Alex dressed as a rabid UD fan, Abigail sported Mommy's old field hockey jersey and stick, and Amanda looked suspiciously like a GRPC soccer player. We had incredibly nice weather this year for walking around and Grammy took the opportunity to heap loads of abuse on her knees just prior to having them both replaced. Eek...

One final item: Amanda had a field trip to the Delaware History Museum. However, neither Mommy nor myself went so there are no pictures and we don't know much about what she saw. Sorry.

How To Know Its Time To Clean Your TV

Your youngest begins drawing happy faces in the dust.


Update soon. I promise...

Milburn's Fall Festival

On a whim, on Sunday, October 5th, after church, Mommy and I hooked up with some friends of ours and took both our families to Milburn Orchards in Elkton, MD, which is currently hosting their very popular Fall Festival Weekends.

Blessed with unseasonably warm weather (Translation: Should've worn short sleeves) we got to enjoy a myriad of attractions which included the petting zoo, the Bale Trail (a maze made out of hay bales) and a very enjoyable hay ride around the property.

Philadelphia

On Wednesday, October 1st, I had the pleasure of accompanying Abigail and her 4th grade class to the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, PA. The NCC is a history museum on Independence Mall, just two blocks from the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall, which opened on July 4, 2004.

The tour begins with a fantastic presentation called Freedom Rising in the amazing Kimmel Theater. The show, which follows the evolution of the phrase "We the People", is hosted by a live actor who roams around the theater while video clips are played on the floor, walls, and screens which drop from the ceiling. I have to confess: I found this presentation to be very emotional. Freedom Rising is by itself well worth the price of admission.

When you exit the theater, you enter into another exhibit called the American Experience. This exhibit wraps around the outside of the Kimmel Theater and shows the significant role the Constitution has played throughout history. As you progress, you have the opportunity to vote for your all-time favorite President (Yeah Reagan!), take the Presidential Oath-of-Office, and take a seat on the Supreme Court. There is a tremendous amount of information to be taken in here, but unfortunatly, due to the attention span of two 8-year-old girls, we passed through this exhibit far too quickly. Anyway...

Upon exiting the American Experience, you find yourself in Signers' Hall. Signers' Hall is a room featuring life-sized bronze sculptures of the 39 signers of the Constitution (and the three dissenters). Here, we found George Read, John Dickinson, Gunning Bedford, and Richard Bassett; the four delegates from Delaware who ratified the Constitution on December 7, 1787.

Other highlights of the day included a walk through a temporary exhibit called Headed to the White House, which followed the history of Presidential campaigns, a small stage where kids where given an opportunity to vote in the current Presidential election (Good girl, Abby...!), and the always classic ride to and fro on a school bus with 30'ish kids trying to get semis to honk their horns...

Wisemen Rule

We have these drawers where we keep the kid's papers that come home throughout the school year. So Julie was working to clean out those drawers today to make room for this year's flood of papers and she came across this little gem.

Behold! Super Camel!

The creator of this piece of fine artwork was Alex...back in 4th grade.

Note the shirt on the orange Wiseman: "Wisemen Rule"

A New Year Begins

Its that time again. Time to clean out the backpacks of whatever funk got left in there from June, load up on paper, pencils, and other essentials, and send the kids off to school.

This year, Alex has moved onto the big league: 6th grade. He's now in the Upper School building and has his own locker.

Abby graduated up to 4th grade and is learning of the joys of switching classes. She has also decided to take up the Clarinet in the school band.

And Amanda is now a big time 2nd grader. The big news for her this year is that Red Lion opened the After-School Choir to her grade. Which she has promptly and excitedly joined.

Bicycle Break Through

Back at the beginning of summer I raised the training wheels on Amanda's bike and I informed her that by the end of the summer they would be coming off; much to her dismay.

Well, on Saturday August 9th, while the kids were out peddling about the neighborhood, I noted that Amanda really wasn't spending much time on the training wheels any longer: She was riding and didn't realize it. So without any warning, I grabbed a wrench and yanked them off. Again, much to her dismay.

With the deed done, I had her mount up and ran alongside her up and down the street twice, letting go occasionally. She was really close, but not quite there. So we came back to our driveway where she dismounted and I went on to talk to Mommy.

After a few minutes Amanda came up behind me, picked up her bike, hopped on, and rode away. By herself. Without assistance. Way to go Amanda!!!

What We Did on Our Summer Vacation

It had never been my intention to ignore the blog for the better part of the summer. But as so many of you know (all 3 of you that read this), life happens.

Despite a plethora of home and health issues which seemed to dominate the season, we were afforded the opportunity to go to the beach thrice during the break.

The more notable of these treks was our second annual trip to Virginia Beach (VB) with the entire Tokarski clan; including Nana, Pop pop, Uncle Jason, Aunt Debbie, and cousins Nick and Brianna. Blessed with a wealth of good weather, we spent a great many days just enjoying the soft sand and warm sun.

We also had a few memorable outings during the week. The first was a rainy-day trip to the Virginia Aquarium. Even though many of the exhibits were closed for a major renovation, there was still a good deal to see, including a Ray pool, large sea turtles, and a pen full of young alligators.

Our second VB outing included just my clan and was to Ocean Breeze Water Park. Ocean Breeze is a nice little water park that has grown from just 4 mat slides when I was a kid to a full fledged water park with tube slides, a wave pool, and a kiddie area. Alex once again surprised us and tackled such reasonless anomalies as the speed slides and a torture device that mimics a toilet flushing called The Hurricane. (Guess which part of this equation your body mimics... :P )

The other little deviation we took was to finally rent one of the 6-seat bicycles frequently seen peddling up and down the Virginia Beach boardwalk. This was a great workout for Mommy and myself as we rode end to end on the boardwalk; nearly a 6 mile round trip.

Special thanks go out to Nana and Pop pop for our vacation. Without you, it wouldn't have been possible.

All in all, everyone had a good summer. Now, on to school...

A Really Useful Engine

On Wednesday, June 18th, our whole clan, along with Uncle Jason, Aunt Debbie, and cousins Nick and Brianna, headed north to Strasburg, PA for A Day Out with Thomas. This event, hosted by the Strasburg Rail Road (SRR), features a full-size, working, Thomas the Tank Engine steam train that kids and parents are able to take a rides on. And that's just what we did.

Almost immediately after arriving, our group jumped in line and awaited our turn to ride on that really useful engine. Once the "All Aboard" was called, Thomas pulled out of the station and we got to enjoy a 20 minute ride through the beautiful Amish countryside. Aidan was a bit leery of of the whole experience, what with the noise and motion and all, but he quickly got over this and had a great time.

When we returned to the platform, there was plenty more to do. The SRR has an operating 1/4 scale steam train call the Cagney which can be ridden. The Cagney was originally built in 1920's for an amusement park. The little thing can really move (see video below) and was so much fun we rode it twice.

After the Cagney, is was back to the full-size rails. We hopped aboard the 475 for a 45 minute ride through the countryside. This adventure takes the passengers out further than Thomas where you get to see sites such as Cherry Crest Adventure Farm and its Amazing Maize Maze before reversing direction in Paradise, PA to return to the station.

The one other big activity for my brood was the chance to pilot a hand-powered pump car. Alex, Abby and myself provided power while Amanda was a passenger. Heading out from the stop was surprisingly easy. It wasn't until the return trip that we realized we needed to go up hill. Oof!

Aside from a little rain late in the day, everyone involved had a wonderful time and we all look forward to going to back to tour the Rail Road Museum of Pennsylvania and the Choo Choo Barn.

Post edited on 5/9/2011 due to shutdown of GoogleVideo.

School Year Wrap Up

On Tuesday, May 6 (I know, I know, I'm really, really behind), RLCA presented their annual Spring program. The show this year was titled Power. It was styled after an afternoon or late-night talk show. Abby and Amanda both participated by singing with their respective classes. Alex broke new ground this year and had his first speaking part; that of an Ed McMahon-esque announcer.

On Friday, May 16th, Amanda and her 1st grade class, accompanied by Mommy, took part in the annual field trip to Longwood Gardens. This trip is always a favorite with the kids as well as the adults. This year presented something new with Longwood's new display called Nature's Castles. Nature's Castles are a series of fantastic tree houses that are nothing short of stunning.

On Wednesday, May 21, Abigail's 3rd grade class headed to to Fort Delaware for the final field trip of the '07-'08 school year. The Fort Delaware tours are hosted by a great many actors which help bring the history of the fort to life. Abby had the chance to assist 'Esau', a former slave, in the foundry.

Finally, on Thursday, May 22nd, I played hooky from work and accompanied Abigail, Aidan, Grammy and Mommy to an afternoon Blue Rocks baseball game. The main draw for this event was that Abigail, along with the RLCA After School Choir, was going to sing to the crowd before the game. The choir did great...which is more than I can say for the Rocks, who lost to the Potomac Stinkin Nationals by a score of 10-3.

DANGER: Pinch Point

Saturday evening, our neighbors were going to take Mommy and I out to the New Candlelight Dinner Theater to see West Side Story as a 'Thank You' for the work we’ve done on our other neighbor’s house.

After working outside for the afternoon, I went and got dressed up, then headed back outside for something (no idea what now) and noted that one of the kid’s scooters had been left outside. So I unlock the garage door, put the scooter in and start to close the door: All in a smooth, very quick motion.

So quick in fact that I went to close the garage door wrong and had 2 of my right-hand fingers in one of the seams. OUCH! In a panic, trying to get free, I reversed the motion of the door only to have it shift abruptly and make things that much more uncomfortable (understatement).

I finally got myself freed and, not having felt anything break, my initial thought was, ‘I can play this off’. Then I looked at my imprinted, black and blue fingers. I ran inside and put them under cold water for lack of any better clear-headed thought.

After a brief explanation of my stupidity, Mommy got me ice...and a chair as I now felt like I was going to pass out. A few long moments later, convinced that I hadn't broken anything, yet still decidedly uncomfortable (understatement) I decided we should still try to head out to dinner. So I spent the evening cuddled up to a icepack, but still got to enjoy a good dinner and show with my beautiful wife.

Today, I'm sore, but really not in bad shape; all things considered. If only the garage door had faired better...

Field Trip Frenzy

With the school year winding down (seriously, where does the time go?), the last 2 weeks have seen the final 3 (off-campus) field trips for the big kids this year.

First, on Wednesday, April 16th, Amanda and her 1st grade class, along with Mommy, spent the day at the Delaware Museum of Natural History.

The DMNH is always an exciting time for the kids, offering them a glimpse at a wide range of living and long-dead critters. The girls especially love this... :)






Next, on Wednesday, April 23rd, Abigail and her 3rd grade class, again with Mommy in tow, took a bus trip to historic Philadelphia, PA.

Some missed opportunities aside, such as touring Independence Hall, the class got to spend some quality time with the Liberty Bell, Congress Hall, the Franklin Court Underground Museum, the Betsy Ross House, and even Starbucks(?).







The third and final trip took place the very next day when Alex and his 5th grade class, along with Mommy and Daddy this time, headed to the Sight & Sound Millennium Theater in Strasburg, PA (awesome aerial shot here) to see the play Daniel and the Lion's Den.

If you've never been to Sight & Sound, honestly, you've got to see it to believe it. Their productions are awesome. The stage is 300 feet in length and wraps half-way around the audience, the sets can reach over 40 feet tall, and they make regular use of live animals; horses, camels, dogs, etc. Add to this the fact the shows are very God-honoring.

Absorbent and Yellow and Porous is He!

To Aidan's credit, he's learning and using new words daily; elbow, wheel, and eye are just a few recent examples that come to mind.

One of his troubled areas, are fruits. All fruits, with the exception of bananas, are "apple". This is less of a problem with pineapple, which in Aidan's limited world is yellow and comes from a can.

So Mommy took Aidan grocery shopping this morning. In the fresh fruit aisle, Aidan spotted the spiky object pictured to the left.

How to know your 2 year old is watching too much TV that's age inappropriate thanks to his older brother: He points to the fruit and excitedly blurts out, "Bob Bob!" (Aidanese translation - 'Sponge Bob')

The Best Things in Life

Taking advantage of the rare shimmer of sunlight we were blessed with on Saturday (Honestly, we've gotten more rain since getting getting the dog...kind'a like Murphy's Law when you get your car washed.) Mommy donned her running clothes and MP3 player, leashed the dog and went out for a run.

Upon her return, she excitedly told me about a foosball table she had seen while running. It was sitting at the curb and appeared to be being discarded. During her quick glimpse while running, she felt it looked to be in good shape and she wanted to go back and check it out. Maybe even retrieve it. So we emptied the van and drove down the street to check it out.

Arriving at the house, the table clearly had a sign that read "FREE + IT WORKS". Plus, it had the added bonus of also being an Air Hockey table. After a knock on the door went unanswered, we loaded it up, brought it home, and cleaned it up.

The kids haven't been able to stop playing with it since.

Science Olympiad 2008

Saturday, February 9th, Alex participated in his 2nd Elementary Science Olympiad at St. Marks High School. This year, 16 kids from RLCA competed in a 22 events.

The morning opened with the egg drop. Alex competed in this same event last year and hoped to capitalize on the experience. Teamed with friend Ben, the boys first tackled a 10 question quiz on energy, momentum, etc. Upon completing the quiz, the boys immediately went to work on their carrier, combining a Styrofoam cup, straws and index cards to try to protect their precious cargo. Check the video for the results.

After the egg drop, Alex moved on to compete in 2 more competitions: Up in the Air and Maps and Symbols. Up in the Air was a closed competition. Alex was teamed up with classmate Angela and had to answer questions about the atmosphere. Maps and Symbols was similarly a closed competition. Teamed with classmate Zach, the boys had to work with different types of maps to find locations and measure distances (right up Alex's alley).

At the end of the day, Alex and Zach brought home 5th place medals for Maps and Symbols. In total, RLCA brought home medals in 12 events. Not too shabby considering there were over 30 teams competing and this was only the 2nd year that RLCA has competed.

Congratulations to all who competed.

Post edited on 5/9/2011 due to shutdown of GoogleVideo.

Renovations

Back before Thanksgiving, Mommy and I decided that we were going to use Christmas break as a chance to redo our aging master bathroom. In the spirit of our kitchen, this would be a complete renovation: Taking it down to the studs. The advantage of doing the work over the break would be that the kids would be off school and I off work.

The plan was to plan and purchase during the beginning of December then lay into the project on Dec 20th and go non-stop over the next 2 weeks to finish it. Yes, we wanted to finish it during those 2 weeks. I kind'a looked at it this way: Those folks on TV can rebuild a whole house in a week. Surely I can redo a measly bathroom in 2 (ha ha).

So the 20th arrived, Poppop came over, the hammers came out, and the drywall came down. Demo took nearly 2 full days; longer than I had hoped, but we could make it up.

We had decided on an tub and toilet early on, but hadn't had a chance to pick any of it up. So Saturday morning we headed over to Lowes to do some buying. Once in the store, we met a very nice vendor who pointed out to us that the tub we wanted wasn't really white; it was more of a bone color. Thats a problem. As an alternative he pointed out to us that Lowes had on clearance they're remaining steel tubs...for $20. Mommy was sold instantly. The only trick; we had to drive to the New Castle Lowes to get one. By the time we got home and unloaded, Poppop had to leave for church. No biggie; we can make it up.

Christmas came and went (Merry Christmas, by the way), as did New Years (and Happy New Year, too), and we never made it up. By the time I went back to work on Jan 2nd, the electric and plumbing had been buttoned up, the tub had been set, the drywall hung and the tile mounted. But we still had spackling, painting, grouting, flooring, etc. etc. to do.

Aidan's 2nd birthday came on Jan 19th (by the way, Happy Birthday, Aidan). By this point, 30 days in, I was determined to have the space buttoned up and usable to show off to the family. I thrashed on it Friday night into Saturday. This is the point at which I discovered that my much desired toilet, after assembly and mounting, was just too darned big; it sat too far from the wall (?) and blocked the tub. So, in all the chaos of preparing a birthday party, Mommy ran out and bought another toilet. God bless her.

At this point, 41 days and counting, we're not 100% finished: Among the finishing details, we need to put quarter-round molding around the floor, I need to cut down one of the doors a bit more, and we need to paint the cabinet door I custom made. But everything is working and the space exceeded our expectations.

Domo arigato to Grammy for taking Aidan to her house for so many naps and to Poppop for all his hard work. Without you both we'd still be showering at our neighbor's.