I have to go backwards and start this week’s photos with an event from the end of the week, because it was an event that basically consumed me for the entire week: Ella’s violin graduation recital.
Ella has been taking violin lessons since she was 4 and a half years old, and a couple of months ago she reached the end of Suzuki Book 1. Now, I studied violin using the Suzuki method and I never had to do this, but at Ella’s music school (and I suppose at most Suzuki schools?) when a student reaches the end of a book they perform a solo graduation recital. This meant that Ella had to perform every single song in the book straight through (17 pieces in total, starting with Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star and increasing in difficulty to the final piece, Gavotte by F.J. Gossec); a performance almost half an hour long. It’s sort of like the Twinkle Graduation she completed two years ago, but on steroids.
When I first heard about this graduation recital, I honestly didn’t think Ella could do something like that. I didn’t think any barely turned 7-year-old could honestly be expected to do something like that. But I quickly realized that there was no escaping it, and Ella and I got to work preparing. We practiced together harder than we have ever practiced before. I would push her when I didn’t think she was working hard enough, and then feel terrible when she would break down in tears telling me she was scared of getting up there and forgetting everything. To say I was stressed would be putting it lightly, and there is no doubt that I passed some of that anxiety on to my innocent first grader.
Last Saturday was the big day, and you know what? She did it. She stumbled a bit on one of the early songs and lost some steam at the end, but she did it. She played for almost 25 minutes straight. Her teacher and I stopped her towards the end and encouraged her to take a little break, but I think she was more annoyed than anything by that. She just wanted to keep playing and get it over with (I can’t blame her).
To say I was proud of her accomplishment would be an understatement. I may have put in hours and hours practicing with her, but she’s the one who had to get up there on her own and perform. She showed me in that moment that she is capable of doing hard things. Things I didn’t really think were possible. It was a humbling lesson for me about not putting limits on what I think my children can achieve. So yes, I’m really proud of this little girl. (And also really, really happy it’s over.) And what makes it even better is that I can tell she is really proud of herself too.
One happy girl after her recital.
Ella with her violin teacher, Dr. Andrew. He gives all of his students a cupcake when they graduate.
Ella was also the star student in her class this week. Finally. She has literally been waiting the entire school year for her turn. (She asked me why she always has to be last at everything. I told her that with the last name Woodbury she will probably have to get used to it.) She was so excited to complete this poster, and she also got to bring in a bag with a few special items to share with her class. The items she chose were: one of her karate belts, a stuffed monkey, her toy taxi, a Henry Huggins book, and a picture of her playing the violin.
Now that Lucy is almost two, she thinks she is too grown up to sit in her booster seat at meal times. Heaven help me and my dining room rug.
Homework time.
If you zoom out a little bit, you get a more accurate view of what homework time looks like in our house. One little sister (Claire) doing some sort of craft project on one side, and another little sister (Lucy) driving a car on the table – complete with sound effects – on the other side. Ella’s wish for any future house we may have? A bedroom with her very own desk.
Ella and Claire got to pet a lamb at our local nature center’s “Spring on the Farm” event over the weekend. Our entire family was mesmerized by the sheep shearing demonstration.
On Saturday we said goodbye to our Volvo and hello to our new GMC Acadia. I loved my XC90 and was sad to have to give it up, but since Volvo refused to make a bigger car despite my wishes, we had to find one elsewhere. I will admit that it’s really nice not to have to scrunch all three kids in the backseat anymore. And the fact that we can now accommodate additional passengers without making them crawl through the trunk is just an added bonus.
I think Lucy likes the new car, especially since we finally turned her car seat forward-facing now that her second birthday is just days away.
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