On Sunday the kids had their CCD class. They've missed 3 weeks in a row due to us being at the circus and 2 competitions. It seems to be ok though. K taught the 6th grade class for the day. I know it was a big job (there are some rowdy ones in there), but K handled them well. In the afternoon we all went to a big party for our (hs) friend's 2 daughters - one made her Confirmation and one made her First Holy Communion. It was a lot of fun, with a big sit-down Italian dinner, a DJ, dance floor, and tons of kids.

On Monday we all pitched in and cleaned up the house. Tuesday the kids did a lot of table work from their schedules and I did a couple of readalouds. J had dance at 4, where they're putting the final touches into some recital numbers. They're also tightening up their company routines for the upcoming competition.

On Wednesday we met up with the new homschool group for a book quilting discussion.. The kids are going to eventually make a big quilt and every square will be of the kids' own creation based on their favorite book. The big kids (10 of them ages 8-11) went into a separate room to work on their ideas. The little kids (9 of them ages 3-8) discussed their favorite books, read us some books, and enjoyed some play time. After that, some of us went to get pizza and then returned to the library for an awesome class on making Andean pan flutes. This was a free class given by the library and we were invited to join in. The instructor was an amazing flute player and has been giving these classes for over 20 years. He got down to the basics and showed the kids how to cut the reeds to size, what kind of musical scale is generally used in these flutes, and how to put it all together. He even played us a few tunes. Everyone got a hacksaw (!) and sawed away at the reeds. Then sanded it down flat and got it ready for stringing. It was really cool and the kids loved it!






J went over a friend's house after that class. K met up with friends after school and just hung out all day. She gets out early on Wednesdays and has a few hours to herself. The kids meet up at a nearby juice bar or snack place usually. Ah, to be a teen again.

Thursday was the circus class. They rehearsed their routine mostly for their show on Sunday. The adult group is a profesional bunch of acrobats who do weekend shows every spring. All the kids classes get to show themselves off during one of the professional shows. J and W's class has theirs in 2 days. B, K, and I are going and my mom is driving in to see it as well. It looks so cool. After that I'm going to meet up with my homeschool mom friends for a Mom's Night Out. I'm really looking forward to that!

When we left the circus class we headed over to a pretty little park for a May Day celebration. One of the moms (S) made a really awesome may pole and the kids were so excited to ribbon the pole down to the bottom. We all brought picnic stuff and had a great lunch on the grass. It was a gorgeous day. The boys went off to play baseball while the girls made flower wreaths for their hair. S brought a few bouquets to cut the flowers off of and showed the girls how to string them into a crown. I was impressed at how they came out. When it was may pole time, the girls (and a boy or 2) grabbed a ribbon and interweaved themselves around each other in a alternating circles to create a braid of ribbon down the pole. It wasn't perfect, but they certainly tried really hard and I know they had a blast. They were at it for a while, trying new dances and attracting a bit of an audience, lol.