Let's Go Dynamo

So for those of you who don't know, Houston has a great soccer team - The Dynamo.  They just built a new stadium downtown and we attended the first night game!!  Our seats were great (thank you to David and Veronica for donating them to our school Gala) and we had so much fun.  The game ended tied 0-0...oh and that's why Americans have trouble watching soccer...but it was great!  We hope to catch another game this season!

Happy Mother's Day

I hope all you Mother's had a great Mother's Day weekend!

My Mother's Day started on Friday.  Marlie's school had a tea which was so fun.  The kids sang songs and served us breakfast.  I really liked Marlie's poster of me too! She said I am 20 years old, smell like flowers (thank you Gucci), and look like a rose!

Nene took the kids Saturday night and I was told Sunday morning that I had to come over.  When I did, I was greeted with a great performance of "You Are My Sunshine" and given flower arrangements that the kids made for me.  It was awesome!

Daddy made an awesome dinner for Nene and I and I laughed so hard when I went to sit down and saw this...

Matt and Marlie had decided to each get money out of their piggy banks and give it to me.  They said it was so I could go buy something I wanted.  When I tried to give it back, they insisted that it was for me.  I thought that was sweet, but I did sneak it back into their piggy banks because we are saving for college!

When we were in SA for Easter we took all the kids to a pottery place to make something for their Mom's for Mother's Day.  Everyone worked so hard and we all had fun.  Here are some cute pics from the day...Aunt Dawn and Aunt Dani, we hope you loved your gifts!

Marlie's Recital!

We were so excited for Marlie's recital!  She seemed uninterested all day and when we got to the gym I got the feeling she was very nervous.  She panicked because Nene wasn't there, her shoe hurt, etc.  So I grabbed her and we got her friend Emilie and went to play on the floor in front of all the people.  That seemed to do the trick!

The girls did great and I was SO very proud of Marlie.  She didn't look nervous at all and performed very well.  I have watched the video several times already!

We were happy as could be afterwards which was the perfect time to take MORE pictures!

 We even found Payton and Mrs. Danielle and got to take pictures with them too!

Marlie we are so very proud of you!  Even Matt said "Marlie you were the best one out there" which made me cry of course.  You worked so hard in class and at home and did great listening to your teacher.  I can't wait to watch you again next year!  You are my favorite "Tiny Dancer"!

Ballet Trophies!

I can't believe another year of ballet has come and gone.  Marlie really enjoyed ballet this year because her friends Lauren and Emilie were in her class.  Her teacher, Mrs. Danielle, was very kind and sweet with these little ballerinas! 

This was a big week!  We practiced hard for our upcoming recital.  The girls performed for the parents and did great!

We got trophies and the girls thought they had won a national competition! They were excited and even gave us some silly poses as we were snapping pics!

Stay tuned for pictures from the big recital!!

Matt's First Guitar Recital

Santa brought Matt a guitar for Christmas so we decided we should take lessons! In February Matt started lessons with Mrs. Kristi.  Her son Zach plays on Matt's soccer team and is in Kindergarten at FCE too. 

Neither Doug or I know anything about music.  So I was happy that I am able to sit in on the lessons and try to learn too.  I kept up for the first month and then Matt blew right past me.  Unfortunately we aren't too helpful when he practices at home, but he seems to be able to figure it out himself.  I am amazed at how well he is reading music already.

We had our first guitar recital last Sunday and I thought Matt did really well! He played a difficult piece and also did a duo with his teacher.  I like his smile towards the end of his song.  It's that "I nailed it" look he has. 

We will definitely continue lessons with Mrs. Kristi.  She is a great teacher.  This is not Matt's favorite thing to do so I don't expect him to be the next Santana, but I hope he can one day sing and play for his children when they are babies or around a campfire.  Matt we are really proud of you!

The Big Show

Marlie loves to sing and dance.  She also loves performing for people.  Her expressions are just adorable.  So I thought I'd sign her up for a theater/acting class.  The age range was 4-6 so I thought I might as well sign Matt up too. 

We had 10 weeks of Mom driving the kids into town to Main Street Theater every Wednesday.  The kids loved it.  They wouldn't let the parents stay during class so it was nice that I got to run errands or do a little shopping. 

Last week was the big play!  I was glad it wasn't crazy and over the top, but disappointed in how simple it was.  Oh well, Matt and Marlie had a blast and met some new friends. 

For their performance they did 4 plays from Aesop's Fables:
The Tortoise and the Hare - Matt was the Hare
The Lion and the Mouse - Marlie was the Mouse
The Cat and the Fox
The Grasshoppers and the Ants - Matt was a Grasshopper, Marlie an Ant

Matt was the first to come out and was very nervous.  Luckily it didn't take him long to warm up and by the middle of the Tortoise and the Hare he was good to go.  Marlie was not nervous at all!  The kids made their own masks which were very cute, but hid their facial expressions which I think is the best part??? 

Here is the video and some pics.  Matt is the tallest kid with the navy blue shirt on and Marlie has a light pink shirt and a skirt.  I hope you get a good laugh like we did!