Orange Belt

Island Boy graduated to his first real belt in Martial Arts class today. (Don't ask me how many belts they are - I have no idea!)

He's been taking classes since October when a new studio and a new instructor moved into our neighborhood. Perhaps eager to grow their fledgling business, the studio gamely agreed to accept students that were not-quite-three. There are days - and I'm only guessing here - when those instructors must ask themselves whether or not that was absolutely positively really really necessary.

It's true that Island Boy, like most now-barely-three-year-olds, can have a short attention span. Fortunately he is the youngest in the class and it is also true that he somehow manages to soak up some very impressive moves and snap to attention just when you fear that all hope is lost.

As the parents gathered for this class's first ever Belt Graduation Test and Ceremony, the children must have felt the excitement in the air. Although the parents routinely watch from the sidelines during class, on this day there was an extra current of energy running through the building and the children knew it. They reacted as expected - some wore their game faces and others pulled out nervous behaviors we had not seen before this day, but they all performed and, in the end, they all graduated.

Although at this age these children are still learning what it means to be "proud", every one of them was as proud as I've ever seen anyone as the rank of "Junior Orange Belt" was bestowed upon each of them.

Happy Birthday, Island Boy!

We celebrated Island Boy's birthday with the biggest cake you've ever seen. We didn't really intend for it to be that big - we asked the folks at the cake place how many the cake would serve when we ordered it and their estimate sounded right on target.

It started out when we asked Island Boy what he wanted on his cake.
"Sprinkles!", he responded.
We breathed a sigh of relief. Why? Because, selfishly, it meant that I could order a cake from a place that makes fantastic cakes, but not so much with the children's designs on them. And, naturally we asked about the number of people our cake would serve.

It turns out their estimate was WAY off. Perhaps it would have been on target had the cake been a single layer. Perhaps it wouldn't have been far off had it been a double layer or perhaps it wouldn't have been far off if everyone at the party ate as much cake as I like to eat.

However, THIS cake turned out to be a TRIPLE layer, ginormous (and very delicious) masterpiece. Did we have leftovers? Yes, yes we did. Even after giving some to just about anyone that walked by we had leftovers upon leftovers - so much so that we found ourselves distributing more around the neighborhood that evening. Too much cake? Not such a bad problem to have, really.

The bottom line is that the celebration was wonderful. Nearly all of Island Boy's classmates joined us for a party that was fun and even educational. All in all it was a very, very special day.

We love you, son. Happy Birthday!!!

Cabbages

Island Boy woke up bright and early and we asked him what he wanted for breakfast.

"Cabbages!"

Yes, our boy wants brussels sprouts for breakfast. That's my boy!

The Purpose of Statues

We were reading to Island Boy today and he asked what statues were for. It was such a good question we asked him to speculate and naturally his answer was much more brilliant than anything most adults would come up with. The purpose of statues?

To make the buildings dance.

I love it!

Holiday Happiness

The Holiday Sing was wonderful. Honestly. It was magical. Island Boy and his fellow performers produced some of the most beautiful music I've ever heard.

It was so much fun to be there in the crowd and see the little faces light up as each child scanned the crowd and located their families. It must have been pretty overwhelming for them as they lined up on the risers and faced so many adults with their many big cameras. Once he located us in the crowd, Island Boy sent us a huge smile, then buckled down and took his task so very seriously that he barely cracked a smile while performing his songs. He performed flawlessly (as far as we know) and sang each song complete with adorable choreographed gestures.

It was a wonderful holiday treat!

Island Boy Takes the Stage!

On Thursday, Island Boy will take the stage for the first time - officially, that is. (As readers of this story know, Island Boy loves to take the stage informally at nearly every opportunity.)

He's been practicing for weeks - entertaining us with surprisingly harmonious holiday melodies complete with adorable choreography. I am positively bursting with pride. It's wonderful to see him practicing for his performance and enjoying his ability to master the lyrics, the melodies and the choreography. I cannot wait to see it all pulled together!

Music Hath Charms

Last night we were transported...if only for a few magical moments...

We attended one of the most chaotic and fun Christmas parties ever. There were children. LOTS of children. And they were everywhere. But the party was well-organized with supervised craft projects to keep the little ones focused as well as backyard trees to keep the less-focused little ones occupied.

The highlight of the evening were the Christmas carols sung by professional carolers in traditional costume. The guests were positively captivated. As if that weren't enough, a professional singer among the guests graced us with her rendition of, "White Christmas". While she sang, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.

Everyone enjoyed the evening. It was lovely.