Of Cupcakes, Concerts, and Crackers {Weekly Wrap-up 10/11/12}

a post by Jenni {aka Mom}

(Pssst! I'm part of this week's WeeklyWrap-Up over at Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers! Click over to check out all the other posts, full of tips and tidbits that work in real life.) 

Ok, so this post isn’t exactly a weekly wrap-up. It’s more like a monthly wrap-up (or so…). Things have been a bit chaotic over here, off and on, and in the mundane times I’ve had to try and catch up on “normal” tasks. Allow me to throw out a few highlights from our last several weeks:

CONCERTS!

In September Rooster & Bird were privileged to attend a free lunchtime concert during a local Chamber Music Festival. In the beautiful, historic local theater, we were treated to works composed by Mozart, Beethoven, and Schumann (love Schumann!), as well as Carl Maria von Weber whose music we were introduced to for the first time. Weber’s Quartet performance was definitely my favorite, although Schumann’s Märchenbilder (Fairy Tale Pictures) was a very close second. We each had a different favorite “fairy tale” movement.

The musicians who performed had so. much. personality! I don’t think I’ve ever seen such animated characters in a string quartet (or in daily life)! It was wonderful, because it really captivated the boys’ attention. Our whole family is really looking forward to more concerts in the future, and Bird is chomping at the bit to begin violin lessons (he just has to reach a certain milestone in piano first -- almost there!).

CUPCAKES!

Last Saturday was my maternal grandmother’s 75th birthday. My mother, brother, and other family gathered from near & far for Granny’s party. We began the day at the family cemetery, and Granny recounted tales of our relatives there. What a treasure to hear those stories firsthand! Later that day we played miniature golf, and then we all gathered for Granny’s party together. It felt somewhat like a way-too-short-with-not-enough-quality-time-with-each-loved-one type of visit (everyone else had festivities on Friday as well, but we only drove over for the day Saturday), but nonetheless it is always nice to squeeze in a quick visit whenever you can! :)

 

 

CRACKERS!

As part of the ambiance of our Civil War unit study we’ve been enjoying period music in the background. The boys’ favorite is the camp music of the 2^nd South Carolina String Band, and we’ve been listening to their CDs a lot. No, really, a lot. While I do enjoy the period feel, I have to complain that these catchy camp songs are, well, catchy. They get stuck in our heads now practically all the time! The other day, even when one of us finally rid our mind of a song another family member would start softly singing one to themself -- or start belting it out! They have begun to have the emotional effect of Christmas Carols in late January. Probably the most notable song is “Hard Crackers”, in which soldiers lament having to eat HardTack meal after meal. Catchy, catchy tune…*sigh* and there it is again…
Seriously, though, if you ever do a unit study on the Civil War era, the music produced by the 2nd South Carolina String band is a top-notch must-have!

Well, that's not exactly a weekly wrap-up, but it's a decent abridged catch-up, at least! :)