The big girls are learning to play the piano.  (Ivy is in her third year, and Charlotte is in her second year.)  They love it, although it is often a lot of hard work for them.  They’ve learned a tremendous amount from all the hard work, though, and both Scott and I see wonderful fruit in their lives from it.

They’ve had two recitals this Christmas season, and we’ve posted videos of them both.  Watch them if you’d like. (Although they will probably be mainly enjoyed by grandparents!)

The first set of videos is from a recital hosted by CAPTA, at the arts center in Cary.  It was a bit fancier (and bigger!) compared to what they are used to.  (Big stage and audience!) They practiced for weeks on these songs (they had to be memorized!), and we celebrated with buying fancy  new dresses for the occasion.

Click on the images to play the videos.

Charlotte:

Ivy:

Their second recital for Christmas was at their piano teacher’s lovely home.  Informal and cozy…we love those kinds of recitals.

Christmas recitals are over (now we’re playing carols for fun!), school is winding down for the year, gifts are wrapped, books and curriculum are ordered for January, the tree us up, house is decorated, and the Christmas music is queued up in the cd player. Today is gray and cold, and on the list for this week:  gingerbread men, sugar cookies, lots of icing and decorating, and some reading.  (Scott started reading Redwall to the kids, and I am so excited.  Many memories of loving these books as a child!)  I am reading The Railway Children to them, and as I’ve never read it before, I can’t wait to get to the next chapter!