My eyes have gone from blue to green, apparently. Also, I'm feeling more... transparent. And I've shed my carapace!
Wow, Emilyn is really tearing up the choir scene!
She entered the Solo and Ensemble Festival a few weekends ago and got very high marks -- from a real judge -- for her version of "Sing Me to Sleep."
Then, at the spring concert, the kids put on what Steve and I thought was one of the best shows ever, pounding out some pop tunes and melodies, including this epic medley of Queen favorites. (Sorry the video is so dark... I'm still getting used to my new camera.)
Rough morning at the oral surgeon's office as Emilyn went under for some work related to her braces. As she went in for the procedure, she calmed down a bit, and the doctor and nurses appreciated the clear, specific questions she asked. She really just wants to know what's going on and feel in control.
After about an hour, they walked her into the recovery room... They waited for her to wake up before we could come in and see her... I know exactly how she felt for this part: When I woke up from having my wisdom teeth out, I just squeezed Dad's hand and cried for about half an hour! I remember it so vividly.
In the end, Emilyn did really well... she's more freaked out by the prospect and effects of the anesthesia than the pain itself. She had four baby teeth removed and a chain attached to a grown-up tooth so it can be pulled down over time with her braces. I'm sure her mouth feels like a foreign country right about now! But there's lots of ice cream and pudding on the menu, and we hope those stubborn teeth will just fall into place very quickly! And she didn't need any of that fancy pain medicine they gave her! So, now we have some liquid codeine in the medicine cabinet, for when The Big One hits!
Congratulations to Emilyn, who made all A's on her report card for the second trimester. Given her early struggles with her science class, this is an achievement to really be proud of! Her A's put her on the seventh-grade honor roll, and she also earned six "outstanding" marks for classroom citizenship, which earned her a spot on the citizenship honor roll! (I like this one, because it means she's keeping up a positive attitude and being respectful!) AND, she was selected as Spanish student of the month for February! Way to go, sweetie! We are so proud of you!
Emilyn and some girls from the 7th and 8th grade choirs got the opportunity to learn solo songs and perform them for Steven Slusher, a professor of music at Lindenwood University here. He said she had a "beautiful voice" and cautioned her only to look at the ground less often!
Anyway, then the girls all got to sing their solo songs for an audience of parents tonight. Emilyn's selection was a beautiful traditonal lullaby, "Sing Me to Sleep." (I challenge you not to tear up... I'm so strung out over house worrying and lack of sleep myself that I had to try not to bawl.)
Sing Me To Sleep
Sing me to sleep, the shadows fall
Let me forget the world and all
Tired is my heart, the day is so long
Let it soon come to evensong
Sing me to sleep, your hand in mine
Our fingers as in prayer entwine
Only your voice, love, let me hear
Singing to tell me you are near
Love, I am lonely, years are so long
I want you only, you and your song
Dark is life's shore, love, night is so deep
Leave me no more, love, sing me to sleep
Sing me to sleep with you alone
Stay with me and remain my own
Gladly my heart will know no pain
When I awake from sleep again
Sing me to sleep and let me rest
Of all the world, I love you best
Nothing is faithful, nothing true
In heaven or earth but God and you
Love, I am lonely, years are so long
I want you only, you and your song
Dark is life's shore, love, night is so deep
Leave me no more, love, sing me to sleep
Despite many pitfalls along the way, Emilyn triumphed with her science project, getting a B and creating a beautiful, professional-looking display of her work. We couldn't be more proud of the way she persevered through what was a very difficult assignment.
... was a big bummer, because we showed up on the wrong day, and Emilyn missed a chance to sing with the
All-Suburban Choir. But we did see these totally ginchy half-picnic-tables!
After Emilyn's spelling bee triumph, she made it again to class champ, this time for the Geography Bee. We hustled off to school again to hear lots of nifty questions about geography, land forms, capitals... you name it! Some were plenty hard even for trivia buffs Mommy and Daddy!
Sorta makes this professional speller (and multiple bee washout) just glow with pride!
Emilyn bested everyone in her Communication Arts class to qualify for the all-school spelling bee. Wouldn't you know it'd be right in the middle of my day shift, but I made a deal to leave work two hours early, then come back at night to finish up. I couldn't miss this!
The field started out pretty big, with about 30 kids in sixth, seventh and eighth grades. They started to fall out quickly, though, even in the first round -- where a certain 6-year-old in the crowd could be heard saying "Yep" every time a correct word was spelled!
Our girl rolled through "journal," "monitor," "height," "monotony," "protocol" and "treacherous" while friends and classmates dropped out around her.
The field was whittled down to seven, then four (at which point I could almost hear her thinking: "Oh, crap, I might actually win this thing!"), then two... and the battle between Emilyn and Aman began. They both missed "sarcophagus," but Aman correctly spelled "allegiance" after Emilyn tripped up, and the sixth-grader was crowned the winner. But what an amazing effort by my sweety!
My teen girl had a pretty awesome birthday, even though it involved a full day of school first... Her friends dolled up her locker, and she spent much of the day singing for the kids in the cafeteria during the three lunch shifts -- missing a bunch of classes in the process... Way to celebrate! ;)
When school and choir were over, we picked her up and took her for a special birthday dinner at Candicci's, because she has specifically requested canneloni. Mmmm. Then, it was home for cupcakes and PRESENTS!
Boy, we missed Trick or Trunk last year when no one was a student at Sorrento!
But now we are back all over again, this time with Allen as the schooler. And that means Emilyn gets a chance for more candy, too!
This time, a bonus... the Hartmans were here! So everybody got in on the act. We dug out last year's costumes, because both kids said they wanted to repeat... And they look SO darn cute, and still fit! And we tarted up our trunk (center)... but there was no way we were going to beat this kind of competition (right)! Whoo, scary stuff. I think we must be into a new generation of parents! heeheehee
Emilyn went in for her first adjustment appointment today... Really quick! They just changed her rubber bands and snipped off a bit of wire. You can really see that her teeth are straighter! It's amazing!
And let's not forget: Wonderful weather!
After such a long and nasty summer, it was nice to finally get to the ballpark, and in such great weather. It was Emilyn's first time singing at the game as a middle schooler... She and the 7th and 8th grade choir sang "God Bless America."
It's a long and expensive process, but Emilyn is on her way to a perfect, healthy smile.
She made the big board at Dr. Mason's office, which lists all the kids with "back to school" braces. And she posed for one last photo with that smile we know and love...
Wow, this day seemed so far a way a few years ago... But, Allen has started kindergarten, for real. And Emilyn has moved into seventh grade. A big step for both of them!
Now they're both getting their pictures taken by the porch railing on the first day! They are so big! *sniff*
Emilyn's orthodontia update:
Four spacers went in the day before school started. They are little rubber bands that go between her back teeth to make a space for the metal bands that will anchor her braces.
We celebrated the end to another awesome summer by going to the Incredible Pizza Company. We first went there in 2008... In my post then, I called it "kiddie Vegas, with pizza."
It was a bit of a rough day for my girl!
Last week, at the dentist, Dr. Dunagan had some concerns about Emilyn's X-rays and recommended we see an orthodontist. I made an appointment for a consultation today at West County Orthodontics.
We went in, and Dr. Mason made the diagnosis pretty quickly: Impacted cuspids. Emilyn's secondary top canines won't come in without orthodontic help. If they stay where they are, they could become abcessed. In the case of one, she'll have to have a bit of oral surgery to expose the tooth and add a small chain so it can be pulled down and into place.
Of course, all this means... braces! Honestly, I thought braces were for rich kids who wanted perfect teeth. But Emilyn has a true medical need for them, and she's going to get the side-effect of a perfect smile! Not bad.
After all that shocking stuff, we took our girl to the mall for some "retail therapy." She got to pick our lunch destination (food court), plus a spot for treats after (Auntie Anne's).
When we got home, we found that her seventh-grade schedule had come at last. She's a Champion! (As opposed to a Trailblazer. But we knew she was a "champion" already.) A few tough moments there, too, as word rolled in across the 12-year-old texting superhighway that most of her friends will be Trailblazers. She's feeling better about that, though, because four of her classes (choir, Spanish, math and science) go across teams, so she'll have friends from both in those. Including her all-important "bestie," Sarah!
So, considering how many blows her world took today, I'm pretty darn proud of how she handled herself. We'll take each tough thing as it comes and, no matter what, her special beauty will shine through! Love you, my girl!
On Monday, Allen met his kindergarten teacher when she came to our house for a quick visit... Mrs. Kelley, who Emilyn never had but has taught all the way from kindergarten up to eighth grade. Perhaps she'll need all of that experience to deal with Allen!
Emilyn is burning up the Web and wearing a path to the mailbox waiting for her schedule... Soon we will know whether she is a Trailblazer or a Champion! Another one of those famous Crabbe Coincidences came yesterday when we were shopping for school supplies during Missouri's tax-free weekend. As we were waiting in line to check out, talking about Mr. Bradley, last year's math teacher, the woman in front of us asked: "Where did you have Mr. Bradley?" Turns out, she's a teacher at Southwest Middle, seventh-grade world history! So, if Emilyn is in fact a Trailblazer, she has already met her social studies teacher! How convenient!
Allen has his very own binder now... and of course a shark backpack, with matching lunch box. And we've got lots of lunch foods to load it up with -- we just have to keep Allen from eating them all before school even starts! Which is now just 10 days!
I think that, after this week, I could give Joe Edwards a run for the title of "honorary mayor"!
Emilyn and Allen both spent this week at COCA arts camp in the Delmar Loop of University City. Emilyn took part in "Own the Mic," a class about singing and stage presence. Allen -- luckily, we think -- got shut out of "Supersonic Superheroes" and ended up in "Sculpture Safari," a camp for slightly older kids about animal sculpture. His teacher, Rudy, said he thrived with the bigger kids and did a great job!
