FOOTBALL!

So, W went back to football practice this week and decided he wants to join the team again.  It was a good few hours and W felt he did really well.  They're practicing in a school gym for a few weeks and then they'll move out to the park.  I'll admit, the drills are tough.  But W is tough, too.  I told him that in order to be really good at anything, you need to work hard at it.  It might not be fun all the time, but it will be worth it in the end.  He thought about that and agreed.  He may eventually hate football, but at least for now, he's giving it a chance and putting his all into it.  Back in the summer of 2008, W played defense. I kinda think he'll be doing that again this time.  :)

Football, Scouts & Dance

It's been a nice week off so far.  The girls are enjoying the break from school, and W gets an almost-free week as well.  Last Saturday, W wanted to give football another try.  He loved it a few years ago.  It's really rough and tumble, with full-on tackling and brutal practices.  For not being there a while, he got through the whole 2.5 hours of off-season practice.  He was hurting for a few days afterward, though, and isn't sure he wants to get back into it.  We'll see.  His Boy Scout Blue & Gold Ceremony was on Friday and W is now officially a Webelo.  At next year's Blue & Gold, he will be a full Boy Scout.

J has been so busy with dance.  The weekends are filled with pointe class, teaching new babies, and 3-4 hours of perfecting the new choreography for the upcoming competitions.  On Monday and Tuesday this week, She was one of six kids from her studio to get to go to the High School Dance Festival at Hofstra University.  Both days went from 10am-5pm with classes in Modern, Ballet, Jazz, & Hip Hop.  On Tuesday they got a nice dinner at 5:30pm, then were part of a performance from 6:30-7:30pm.  B, W, & I went out to see it.  They performed a routine from each of the classes they took.  It was impressive.

Film Class & Tyce

W went to this great film class on the Lower East Side yesterday.  This is perfect for him since he's been making films for what seems like forever.  The class had about 8 boys from age 10-14.  For over 2 hours the kids discussed, created, acted, and filmed different scenes.  The instructor is a professional filmmaker.  He and his assistant were so good with the kids.  W absolutely LOVED it and can't wait until the next class.

J went to Broadway Dance Center today after school.  She took an advanced jazz dance class taught by TYCE DIORIO!!   She said it was amazing.  Tyce gave them a hard-core workout and then they did some choreography.  He's one of my favorites on SYTYCD.   Being the youngest in the room, J and her friend from school held their own.  The 30 or so others in the class were mainly in their late teens and twenties.  This was such a wonderful experience for her.  I'm so glad she got to be a part of it.

Weekly Recap

This week W and I read a few chapters each from:  Pagoo, Seabird, An Island Story, A Child's History of the World, A Cricket in Times Square, The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood ($0.99 on the Nook!), & Joan of Arc.  W is half-way through the 4th grade Spelling Skills book, still loving the proofreading sections.  He also did dictionary skills, analogies, and definitions.  Math was money (decimals) word problems and subtraction (regrouping/borrowing) with 4 digit numbers.  Copywork was from a few different poems.

He spent time with his friend next-door, went to Cub Scouts, and got a "new" Game Boy Advance SP (old school, lol) with a few games.  He's made lots of drawings and videos with his Flip.  He's training one of the parrots and creating flying machines with his Legos.  He spent $5 on 3 new mini Nerf guns that he already modded to shoot faster and farther.  We watched a few scary movies together and he decided his new favorite shows are Dog, The Bounty Hunter and Man vs Wild.

J's new school (spring) term began so all her classes have a "2" in front of them now.  School is still awesome, she says. Today J and her friend S were the paid entertainment at a 10-year-old's birthday party.  They taught dance moves and basic choreography for an hour and made $30 each.  Now J is at another birthday party (as a guest this time, lol) and having a sleepover.  Last night I met her at school (with my mom and sister) to see the Senior Dance Showcase.  It was amazing, as I knew it would be.  In junior year there, the dancers do a "Junior Project" where they choreograph their own numbers with all original movements and based on a certain theme or idea.  Several of those were performed as well - the kids originally performed these last spring.  The talent these kids have is mind-blowing.  Then we walked around the Lincoln Center area and had dinner at Ollie's Noodle House.  So beautiful over there.

K is currently on her senior trip.  Paintballing, snow tubing, rollerblading, dance clubbing, swimming, and having a blast with all her friends.  She's ready for summer - and college.  We should be getting the college letters sometime this month.  Eeeeek.