Sherwood Conservatory & Daddy's Trumpet

Steve played the trumpet when he was around 12 and the guitar since he was 15. I can play the piano a little; I took six years of lessons and learned a lot on my own, but I haven't played for about 17 years now. It kind of makes me feel a little sad sometimes, almost like I wasted talent somehow. It's not like I could never go back to it some day, but as for now we don't own a piano, and it's hard with the kids. I just don't have the desire to put in the time.

Our kids love music. I've written about Jared's drum obsession. I think he'll go crazy if he doesn't get a drum set for his birthday; he asks about it almost every single day. Alexa loves to sing. She'll put different CD's in the player and listen for over an hour at a time.

I 've never wanted to push the kids into taking music lessons.  I've had a homeschool mom tell me I should put the kids in Suzuki lessons when they turn 4, but if they don't even seem excited about an instrument at that point, why should I go through the trouble of taking them to lessons and fighting with them over practicing (something I never want to do)?  I figure if they want lessons or to play an instrument, they'll ask someday. As for now, we just try to provide as many opportunities for them to touch real instruments, and see real musicians.

Recently, Steve brought up his old trumpet and played for the kids. They, of course, would rather try to play than listen to him most of the time.

We went to Sherwood Conservatory's Open House for the second time. Last year, the kids really, really enjoyed the instrument petting zoo and the wonderful jazz trio concert, running back and forth in front of the stage.

This year wasn't as great as last year, but still it gave the kids an opportunity to try out the different instruments. We started out the day watching a short concert put on by the Suzuki violin students in the Level 1 and 2 books. I think the kids liked it, although they became a little squirmy towards the end. Now, if there would have been drums and more variety, their eyes would have been glued to the stage, especially Jared.

We headed upstairs after the concert, where the kids ran right for the instruments. The big favorites this year were the violin, upright bass and saxophone.

We could have sat in on a few classes, but since we were going to Steve's sister's for dinner that evening, we cut out early. I am really looking forward to the warmer weather and concerts in the park.

Oak Park Conservatory

On November 11th, we met up with my friend M and her son J at the Oak Park Conservatory.  We've visited the conservatory one other time with Steve when the kids were about twenty months old. They have programs for kids in thier Exploration Station every Saturday morning, and I had thought this day, Veterens' Day, was a special day, but I was wrong. Still, the hour that we had there was just right.

It's a much smaller conservatory than the Garfield Park Conservatory, with only three small rooms to visit.  Alexa seemed a little more interested in looking at the flowers than she had a few years ago. Jared still mainly like running up and down the paths, although he did stop to play with J and the pumpkins for a while.

My mom went with us so that let me have a bit more time to talk with M.

I think the animals, definitley won out over the plants and flowers as being the favorite things to look at. There are many birds in cages as well as a coy pond and turtles.

Before we left, the kids checked out the Exploration Table which was basically just a place to pick up a magnifying glass (which Jared liked) and to color (which Alexa liked). Jared, always wanting to beat on everything with a stick, quickly found a long reed and played drums on the chunks of tree bark laid out.

Fall 2008

Fall 2008

I have about a month’s worth of blog posts to get up, so I’m going to just write in short check list for the some of the highlights from the fall, winter, and spring before their birthday. I hate to make it so matter of fact and would love to comment more and share what I thought about some of the things we did, but I’ll never get up to date. I really, really, really want to record more of our unschooled life to look back over through the years and to share with other families, so I have to figure a way to be more efficient at this and hopefully improve at making my posts more interesting to read as well! I hope to very soon post pictures because I love reading other blogs that post pictures along with what they are posting about.
So, here going our fall highlights:

Playing in the leaves

Making a dough sculpture by sticking leaves, sticks and rocks in the dough and letting it harden

Reading Blueberries for Sal and then eating blueberries for the first time, making blueberry muffins from scratch, and counting our blueberries

Carving pumpkins and lighting our pumpkins every night a week before Halloween while singing Happy Birthday, pumpkin (they came up with that entirely on their own!)

Reading Make Way for Duckling, Lentil, Frog and Toad series

Halloween costumes – Jared, pirate, and Alexa, pirate princess – trick or treating will all the grandparents, great-grandma and Aunty Cheryl and Uncle Zach

Museum of Science and Industry trip – climbing inside the combine, the Idea Factory, the Plane and Train exhibit – and watching the baby chicks hatch

Blackberry Farm – Riding the carousel, riding the train, painting pumpkins, looking at the farm animals

Cooking – Alexa helping me by cutting carrots, garlic and onions on her own, Jared stirring and mixing

Annie obsession – Watching the movies about seven or eight times, singing Annie songs while at the dentist where everyone in the waiting room could hear!

Music we loved listening to – Glen Miller Orchestra, Andrea Bocelli, James Taylor, Credence Clearwater Revival, various classical CDs

Garfield Park Conservatory trip – splashing in the puddles in Monet’s Garden, watching the fish in the coy pond.

Naming different countries and states – they can locate dozens of countries and can locate most the states

Puzzles – Jared stated to really love doing puzzles. We have a forty-eight piece United States puzzles and within two weeks he could put the entire thing together without any help

Rolling trucks down the hallway

Walks in the Cermak Woods – getting within fifteen feet of a family of deer, throwing stones in the pond, running through a flock of almost a hundred geese.

Bounce City – celebrating cousin Owen’s first birthday

Music – playing on guitar, lots of singing, playing on Steve’s guitar, playing the keyboard

Wonder Works trip – Riding the floor vehicles, “digging for dinosaur fossils” by finding pretend dinosaurs buried in clay, exploring the wigwam, playing in the tree house