Great America, here we come!

Superman is the roller coaster closest to the entrance so of course, our squad wanted to ride it first.

I rode it last year and that was enough. Hurtling through the air on my belly watching the ground below me speeding past was too much for my fear of heights.

Teacher was game though; he’ll ride anything. Goodbye Sweetie – come back to me alive and in one piece!

After Superman they wanted to ride the swings. There’s my handsome man again. I never get tired of taking his photo.

 
When we got off the swings I stowed the camera so I could concentrate on riding rides and having fun.

Around 4:30 the buses were opened so we could get coats if we wanted, and for snacks provided by the Music Parents. It was nice to take a break and sit down in the shade of the bus for a while.

I wish the snacks were healthier, but that didn’t stop me from eating some Sun Chips and a Snickers bar. Oh yeah, and two of the amazing chocolate chip cookies from the hotel. Chocolate chip cookies are my all-time favorites that I can never resist. Good thing we’re doing so much walking today!

BTW, unless you’re a fan of artificial coconut flavor, skip the coconut M & Ms; they’re nasty!

By the time we were done with our snack we had just enough time to trek across the park to meet in the auditorium for the 5:30 Awards Ceremony.

Look at all of those trophies…I wonder which one is ours?

Music in the Parks is both rated and competitive. Each group is receives a rating of “Good” “Excellent” or “Superior” depending on how many points their performance earns. The thing I’m not crazy about is that each group is also awarded First, Second, Third, Fourth or Fifth place, depending on how many other groups are in your category and how well you perform compared to them. So if there’s no-one else in your category and you really sucked you could still get First Place, but with a rating of “Good.” On the flip side, if you played amazingly but another band or two really rocked and got a few more points than you did you could receive Third Place with a rating of Superior. In my book that is SO not fair.

Throughout my childhood my mom’s favorite saying was “Life isn’t fair; only interesting.” I always hated when she said that because she was always right.

But it’s still not fair.

And the results are …

The band received Second Place with a rating of “Excellent!” We missed “Superior” by just ONE point, bummer, but we earned five points more than we had last year (when we received First Place – see, it’s not fair) which means we performed better overall. The First place band blew us out of the water; they were 9 points ahead of us and only missed a perfect score of 100 by four points.

The strings received Third place, also with a rating of “Excellent,” which was fantastic considering the strings program is only two years old and this was their first time competing in Music in the Parks.

I am SO proud of my kids I could burst!

The rest of the day flew by and it wasn’t long before daylight began giving way to night. I love how magical all the rides look when they’re all lit up; especially the carousel.

Finally it was time to head back to the buses for our trip home. Everyone was exhilarated and exhausted – mostly exhausted, me included.

It’s been an amazing two days but I’m SO ready to go home to my own bed.

At the same time I can’t wait for next year’s trip!

We followed Bus One through the misty dark to the hotel. The kids were much quieter and more subdued than they were when we started the day over sixteen hours ago.

When we arrived at the hotel Teacher and the other official Bus Packers unpacked the luggage and snacks.

Once the luggage was ready, room keys were handed out to chaperones and last-minute instructions were given. As the kids filed off the buses they seemed to get their second – or third – wind. Bummer, I was hoping our group would want to go straight to bed.

We arrived at the hotel a little later than planned so it wasn’t long before the pool was closed and it was time to usher the kids to their rooms.

The halls are empty – finally we can go to bed!

Teacher and I were more than ready for a good night’s sleep!

To be continued…

Seeing the low clouds enveloping the top of the John Hancock Tower I wondered if we’d still go up or not. It’s not much fun to be on the 94th floor if you can’t see anything.

Again with the waiting – no matter how well a trip is planned, there’s always quite a bit of waiting when you’re in a big group. No-one really seems to mind though.

It’s been a loooong day for all of us, and M looks the way we all feel: very tired.

I thought this representation of Chicago yes, the skyline again was really cool. To me it looks like the whole city is dancing.

Visibility is at 0%, but we’re going up anyway ; we’ve already purchased the tickets and there’s no refunds so we might as well. After a long escalator ride down we form a long line and snake our way across the floor to the elevators.

Along the way is a Lego sculpture of the Hancock Tower. I can’t even begin to imagine how many hours it took to build it!

“We have to take our shoes off?!” one of the kids exclaimed as they spied this sculpture. It’s a huge globe with colorful oceans and black gooey-looking continents covered with shoe prints and surrounded with two rows of worn shoes. The concept is that we all need to walk more and drive less to benefit the Earth. I totally agree!

Teacher and I are among the last ones in line so most of the group is already in the observatory when we get there.

Pardon the poor focus – I normally wouldn’t post such a fuzzy photo but I love how the kids are silhouetted against the blue fog. There really is ZERO visibility!

Here’s the view the kids are looking at. It’s kind of pretty, but not what we’d expected to see.

As the sun sets the light outside changes. Looking down you can see the light streaming up through the fog.

I think I changed my camera settings too, but don’t remember exactly.

Another cool picture of the lights and buildings through the fog.

I think the buildings shrouded in the fog are gorgeously magical and ethereal.

The outdoor observation deck is new since last time we were at the Tower. It’s a gorgeous night to be outside; the cool, moist breeze blows my hair as I listen to the faint hum of the city way far below.

The fog cleared out on one side of the Tower so we could finally see something! If you look closely on the right of the photo you’ll see some fog still hanging around. What a gorgeous view – just before we have to leave.

Once more we’re waiting for the bus, and what a welcome sight they are! We’re all tired and footsore, and ready for a good night’s sleep… after the pool closes.

To be continued at the Hotel…
Are you feeling like this trip will never end? So are we!

Teacher and I took many trips to Chicago during our college years: field trips to art galleries for his art classes, road trips for Blackhawk games, fraternity formals, etc. We discovered Giordanno’s on one of our trips, and it’s been a favorite ever since. In fact, when we lived in St. Louis one of Teacher’s friends sent us a frozen Giordanno’s pizza, packed in dry ice, for our anniversary. No pizza has ever tasted better than that special one did.

Everyone in our group loves the pizza; who wouldn’t? I was still full from lunch, but I managed to make it through two pieces. Nom nom nom nom – I hope there’s some leftover for tonight at the hotel!

Teacher’s checking the time but stops to give me a smile.

Time to go! Look out Navy Pier, here we come!

We’re getting closer – can you see it in the distance?

Yippee, we’re here!

One of the main attractions at Navy Pier is the ginormous Ferris Wheel. It had poured while we were in Giordano’s so the Ferris Wheel was temporarily closed for a while. They were just getting it going when we arrived, but we had to wait twenty minutes for it to be ready to ride.

To pass the time we browsed the shops. Several of the kids in our squad are bound and determined to spend a good chunk of change on souvenirs.

The twenty minutes passed quickly and soon we were all gathered near the base of the Ferris Wheel waiting for our turn.

While we waited I snapped a couple of photos. The Chicago skyline is always one of my favorite subjects.

Across from the Ferris Wheel is a boat that’s often used for proms or weddings. Teacher and I always enjoy watching prom groups and wedding parties walking around the Pier.

I wonder if these girls are planning to ride the Ferris Wheel too, or if they’re just waiting for prom.

The scent of lilacs fills the air where we’re sitting. The walkways are lined with “Miss Kim” lilac bushes – I know this because we have a “Miss Kim” in our front yard. This variety of lilac seems to be especially fragrant; which is one of the reasons I love it so much.

The hot air balloon rides are new this year; I don’t remember them from last time we visited Navy Pier. It looks like fun!

Finally it’s our turn to ride! The Ferris Wheel is huge and has a fantastic view from the top.

Out in the lake you can see a lighthouse, and often we see huge barges waaaaay off in the distance. There weren’t any in sight this year though.

Looking back toward the city, the sun is peeking through the clouds to light up parts of the skyline; it’s so pretty. Every time I see the skyline I get a warm fuzzy feeling because I have so many happy memories of being with Teacher in Chicago.

Whee! Look how far up we are! Navy Pier is pretty deserted because of the rain, but if you look closely you can see a little red-shirted man in a blue rectangular sidewalk-sweeper. He’s sucking up all the puddles on the sidewalks.

Here comes our group! It must be time to go back to the buses for a quick ride to the John Hancock Tower.

To be continued at the Hancock Tower…

The El is definitely a new experience for the kids; and many of the adults too. This year we were riding the Orange line around the Loop to the Art Institute. Even though we’ve ridden the El almost every year I’ve gone on the trip, I’m always worried that someone won’t make it on or off the train with the rest of our group.

Obviously El stations aren’t designed for large groups; we filled this one to overflowing. This year entry to the station went smoothly, except for the kids who weren’t paying attention to which way their cards went and couldn’t figure out why they couldn’t get through.

One of the past years was a huge disaster; we always pre-purchase the El tickets to save time at the station, but that particular year the fare went up in between purchase and our trip so everyone was short .50. Everyone was rummaging around in pockets and purse bottoms to find enough change to get our whole group in. With this trip you can count on a new adventure every year!

This poor woman chose the wrong time to ride the El line. Right now she’s probably texting someone, complaining about all the loud kids who intruded on her quiet afternoon. Sorry!

The El is so much more fun than our city bus – with all the sudden movements it’s almost like a roller coaster!

“Pretty cool, isn’t it, guys?” S (in the hat) is one of my trumpets and B (brown sweatshirt) plays bari sax – a very cool instrument – in Chuck’s band. Behind S is A; one of my trombonists.

We all made it off the El at the right stop and took a short walk to the Art Institute. Then we took a looooooong walk all the way around the Art Institute to reach the group entrance.

Teacher pointed out the manhole covers because they were manufactured in Neenah – just a bit south of our hometown. Of course I had to take a photo. Me = Dork.

The kids thought it would be fun to ride the double-decker bus; on the top of course. We don’t have anything like this back home.

Look – the clouds are breaking up maybe the rain will stop and it’ll be sunny the rest of the day!

Ummm, maybe not. It’s starting up again as we’re waiting to go in the group entrance. Hurry; I melt in the rain! That’s because I’m like either the Wicked Witch or sugar but I won’t say which; you can draw your own conclusion.

Our squad moved pretty quickly through the exhibits but when I fell in love with the shape and color of this bowl I had to stop and take a photo.

The staircase is gorgeous; obviously original because modern buildings aren’t anywhere near as beautiful.

Frank Lloyd Wright is one of my all-time favorites!

Teacher and I both adore the Arts and Crafts style, and want to bring more Craftsman style back into our home. It was built in the 1920s, but sadly a previous owner remodeled it in the 1960s and replaced all the gorgeous ’20s features with “modern” ’60s ones. Ick.

Our walk through the Impressionist painting gallery left me speechless. I’d seen many of the paintings in print or on TV, but never in person before – it was just amazing for me to see them up close.

All too soon it was time to leave the Art Institute. Teacher and I were sorry to leave; we could have spent days and days exploring and enjoying every inch of the Institute. Maybe someday we’ll take a family trip there; I know the older kids will love it.

Believe it or not, it’s time for supper! We’re still stuffed from lunch, but we’ve got a schedule to keep…

To be Continued at Giordanno’s and Navy Pier…

After our pre-dawn bus ride and intense clinic at VanderCook we were all hungry and ready to eat. The sign welcoming us to Chinatown is a welcome sight; we’re almost there!

I remember the first time I had Chinese food. It was the summer after my Freshman year of high school, and I was working as a nanny for a Chinese family who were chemists in a local paper mill as well as managers of a local Chinese buffet.

Are we there yet?

Entering Chinatown is entering a new world, full of unfamiliar sights and smells. As we followed Bus One down the street Teacher and I chatted with the kids near us, sharing our excitement over the upcoming meal. Many of these kids have never tried Chinese food so this will definitely be a new experience for them, and we wanted to get them excited about it from the beginning.

Not only are Teacher and I looking forward to our Chinese lunch, we’re also hoping for a little free time to shop for souvenirs. Angel Face requested a giant bag of fortune cookies and Jo-Bear wants a wooden snake to replace the one we got him two years ago that recently broke.

The restaurant isn’t quite ready for us so we’ve got fifteen minutes to browse the shops- hooray! This sign is in a storefront near our restaurant. Chinese characters are so beautiful that a simple sentence is a work of art.

I had to stop to take a picture of the beautiful sidewalk details; I wish sidewalks everywhere were as pretty.

Our fifteen minutes flew by and we only got into two shops; neither of which had the fortune cookies or snake we were looking for. Hopefully we’ll have time after lunch for more shopping!

Are you girls ready to eat? Me too!

None of these girls are in my band this year, but they have been at one time. A (green shirt) and V (brown shirt) both play French Horn while C (blue hat) plays trumpet and baritone. Mr. B (red striped shirt) is V’s dad and director of the percussion section. He’s a tremendous help on Saturday mornings because percussionists are notoriously disorganized.

There are huge tanks of crustaceans in the front window of the restaurant. “Yum!” Teacher and I say to each other, but I notice many of the kids are looking at the tanks with apprehension.

This stunning light fixture is hanging in the entryway near the shocking green staircase that curves its way up to the private dining room where our lunch will be served.

In the spacious room a beautiful – albeit plastic-covered – mural covers the long side wall and bright fabric banner hangs on the entry wall. Large round tables are set for eight diners; a glass “lazy susan” fills the entire center of the table.

M (grey shirt) and J (blue shirt) are both in Teacher’s squad so we’ll be spending most of the weekend with them. M plays baritone and J plays trombone; both in my band this year.

First they brought out pot of tea. After letting the tea steep several minutes Teacher and I each poured ourselves a cup. The other members of our table watched us carefully.

“What’s that?”

“Well, you could cuz they’re just leaves like basil or like cinnamon is bark from a tree, so they won’t hurt you. But generally they sink to the bottom and you leave them there.”

The kids seemed satisfied with our answers, but no-one poured themselves any tea.

The server placed a plate with eight egg rolls on our table.

“Mmmm, egg rolls! They have the best egg rolls here!”

Teacher and I took an egg roll, then demonstrated how to pass the dish using the lazy susan. I was ready for one of the kids to spin it too quickly and send the food flying, but they were all very careful. Everyone at our table took an egg roll; some pulled them apart to see what was inside, others nibbled gingerly at the crispy outside.

M was convinced that the shaved mushrooms inside were seaweed. I didn’t know if it would help or hurt our cause to say what they were, but he was so obsessed with the seaweed idea that we had to say something. Ironically the boy next to Teacher had been poking at his egg roll until he heard it had mushrooms in it. “I love mushrooms!” he exclaimed, and ended up eating the whole thing.

Next up were “pot stickers,” a large version of the first Chinese food I ever had. Again, each of the kids took one and tried it. These were delicious, with a delicious ginger flavor that I loved. Some of the kids liked them but others just ate the outsides.

While we were waiting for the next course the other chaperone at our table poured herself some tea, then one by one the kids all did too. I was very excited to see them trying so many new flavors!

The “real” food began arriving. First was a noodle dish with shrimp, beef, chicken and various Chinese vegetables. This was my favorite dish, not counting the egg rolls, pot stickers and fried rice. All of the kids found something on the plate to taste, and most seemed to like what they tried.

Sweet and sour chicken followed the noodle dish. I’ve never been a fan of sweet and sour anything, but wanted to be a good example for the kiddos.

“I’ve never liked sweet and sour, but this looks good. I’m going to try some.”

“Basically it’s fried chicken with a sweet and sour sauce. It’s really good” Teacher answered.

“Woah! The pineapple is HOT!”

“I’ve never had hot pineapple before, but I like it!”

Baked chicken with lemon was next. We’d had the same dish the last time we were at this restaurant and I figured all the kids would like it; it was just plain chicken after all. However, unlike American chicken which is cut into thighs, drumsticks, breasts and wings, this chicken looked like it had been hacked into equal pieces willy-nilly. I was concerned that the kids would be put off by the irregular pieces and bone ends sticking out, but they were more suspicious of the panko breadcrumbs on top.

I was surprised that beef and broccoli turned out to be our table’s favorite. As the server approached our table the kids craned their heads to see what was on the platter this time.

Yum – broccoli!”

“I love broccoli” They dug in with enthusiasm.

“Oh, try the beef; it’s delicious!”

“It really is! This is the best beef I’ve ever had!” Teacher and I watched them chow down on the beef and broccoli with fond amusement.

Those of us who liked Chinese food were pretty full by now, and small groups of students and adults were drifting off to the bathroom. Suddenly the servers appeared with another platter; fried rice!

“I am m SO full, but this looks so good I’ve got to try some.” I put a spoonful on my plate and passed the dish to Teacher. Everyone at the table tried the rice too, but obviously didn’t like it as well as the beef and broccoli.

After the obligatory fortune cookie dessert we made our way down the staircase and were on the move again.

I had to stop to take a photo of this decorative corner block – simply gorgeous!

We walked several blocks to our buses for a short trip to the El station and another adventure.

To be continued at the El and Art Institute…

I thought I’d awaken groggy and bleary-eyed at 3am Friday morning, but an overabundance of adrenaline and worry that I’d forgotten to pack had me bouncing staggering out of bed more awake than I’d anticipated.

At 3:45 am the streets in my town are dark and quiet. My camera isn’t a “morning person” either and didn’t want to focus; you should see the shots I deleted.

The first order of business is claiming a seat on the bus. We used to have assigned seats but last year they let the kids pick their own seats and it worked out OK. Not surprisingly the boys ended up in the far back, the girls in the middle, and the adults in the front.

After claiming a seat it was time to wait in the commons for everyone to arrive. While we were waiting the official Bus Loaders packed the luggage under one bus and instruments and snackies! under the other bus.

This year everyone arrived on time so we didn’t need to make any phone calls. The kids were both sleepy and excited about the trip. The adults were mainly sleepy.

There’s my honey across the Commons! XOXOHe’s one of the Bus Loaders again this year, so if he’s inside it means the buses are all packed and ready to go.

After a brief devotion and last-minute announcements it’s time to go. Oops! I just realized I forgot my pillow. Bummer!

It’s OK, I’m a big girl; I’ll survive.

This was on of those “hold the camera over your head and take a photo in the dark” pictures that we all loved taking at camp and sleepovers. Is everyone ready to go?

“Good morning everyone, I hope you’re ready for a great trip this weekend! As we get started I’d like to remind you that we are guests on this coach and need to act as such. Please be sure to keep your area cleaned up; I will send back the garbage can every so often to help with that. I am the “Bus Nazi” and will NOT be cleaning up hour messes – neither will the driver or the chaperones. When we get to a destination you will be allowed to leave the bus when your area is clean; chaperones, please keep an eye on your your squad’s area. Thank you.”

The bus driver loved me for that.

At 5:00 am we’ve been on the road for about half an hour. It’s still dark our, and beginning to rain. I sure hope it’s not raining in Chicago; the first year I went on the trip it rained and was totally miserable all day Friday.

By 5:45 am it’s beginning to get lighter, but the rain hasn’t let up a bit. Rain, rain go away!

Look – it says Chicago! At 7:30 am it’s definitely getting lighter out, but the skies are nothing but grey. Good thing I brought my umbrella.

Can you tell we’re getting into the city? Morning rush hour traffic; gotta love it. I’m just glad I’m not driving a giant bus through it.

“There’s the El!” The kids were excited to pass the El on the way into the city. I think one of the most valuable benefits to this trip is exposing the kids to new experiences. Many of them haven’t been out of state, or even further than 30 miles from their homes before. This will definitely be a new experience for them.

It’s incredibly foggy today. If you look closely you can barely see the Chicago skyline in the distance right above our other bus. We’re in Bus Two which is fine with me because all we need to do is follow. Bus One has the hard job of navigating and finding places to park.

I recognize this corner! This is where we turn off to VanerCook College. Time to make sure everyone is awake and ready to go.

Since Teacher was on the aisle he made the announcement that we were almost at VanderCook and once we arrived the kids would stay on the buses while the adults unloaded instruments. I’m highly allergic to microphones and only use them when it’s vitally necessary.

This is Chuck and Stacy Larson, our clinician. The three of us met briefly in Stacy’s office while the kids and chaperones were getting everything ready for our clinic. It was her birthday on Friday – Happy Birthday Stacy!

It looks like the kids are all ready… is the room ready? Thank heavens it stopped raining – rain is not good for instruments, and the entry to the music building is too small for all of these kids. We’ve crammed them all in there before, but it wasn’t pretty.

All right guys, time get settled – it’s showtime!

The percussion section easily my favorite is ready to go.

T, on the far right, has been in my band for two years now and is one of my favorites. (Shhh, don’t tell; teachers aren’t supposed to have favorites!) I love all of my band kids, but some touch my heart more than others. Third from the right is A, another of “my” kids. The other percussionists were in my band last year or the year before.

“Snake Charmer” is the piece Chuck is directing. It’s a great piece, but sounds more gypsy-ish to me. It’s definitely more difficult – and more interesting – than the piece I’m directing.

Stacy does a fantastic job with the kids; she really knows how to reach them. I always take tons of notes during these clinics. Since I’m not originally a band person there’s lots of tips, tricks and little nuances that come naturally to a band person but I don’t know.

Every year I learn something new I plan to incorporate into my teaching next year. This year I learned that a French Horn player’s hand should be against the wall further from their body, not the one close to their body. Now I have something else to watch for next year!

Once the clinic is done it’s time to pack all the instruments back onto the buses. There’s usually another school buses are in front of the music building so our buses have to park around the corner.

Percussion is always the hardest to pack. Each band member packs their own instrument into its case, but percussion has many more instruments per percussionist. Luckily we’ve got great parents who all lend a hand so it goes much quicker than if the kids did it alone.

The buses are packed, the kids have boarded, and it’s time for lunch at Chinatown. Let’s get going – I’m hungry!

To be continued in Chinatown…

At the time this post is published Teacher are I have already been careening down the highway in a coach bus filled with middle school band students for an hour and a half. It’s our annual middle school band trip to Chicago for the Music in the Parks competition.

The middle school band has been going to Chicago to participate in Music in the Parks for about 12 years, but Teacher and I have only been going the past 7 years. Actually, I think the first year Teacher stayed home with the kids. It’s a lot of fun, but you don’t get much sleep.

The torture begins at 3 am – the time we need to wake up to be at school at the also-ungodly hour of 4 am. The bus leaves at 4:30 sharp and there’s a lot to do beforehand so we can’t be late.

On a positive note, I am so NOT a morning person, so my body may be up and moving but my brain will remain comatose for several more hours.

Luckily I’m able to function with a comatose brain; I do it frequently… and sometimes it’s not even morning!

Each year our first stop is VanderCook College of Music, Chuck’s alma mater, for a clinic with one of the music faculty. The first several years we had Charlie Menghini, but the last few years we’ve had Stacy Larson. Charlie is a wonderful musician and director, but I love Stacy because she taught middle school band for many years and really knows how to connect with our students.

By the way, Chuck is the middle school band program coordinator and director of the advanced band; I teach the intermediates and Bob teaches the beginners. I started out with the beginning band but after several years Bob wanted to switch, which was fine with me. Although I miss the excitement of seeing the students progress from not knowing anything to being able to play a whole song, I get to direct fun pieces like the Chronicles of Narnia or Pirates of the Caribbean. But I digress…

Ah yes, VanderCook.

We generally arrive around 9 and have the clinic from 9:30-11:00, then we break for lunch. Some years the Music Parents our support organization pack subs and stuff for a picnic in the park which is fun except for the year that it absolutely poured the entire day, but this year we’re eating at a restaurant in Chinatown. I can’t wait; Chinatown is amazing and I love Chinese food!

After a little bit of free time in Chinatown we’ll hop on the El – we ride it almost every year. The first year I was terrified; I worried that someone would fall off the platform, someone wouldn’t get on the right train, someone would miss the stop, the train would break down, etc, etc, etc. If there’s anything that could go wrong on the El I worried about it, then I worried that I’d missed something on my list of potential catastrophes.

After that first year I haven’t worried as much, but I’m still nervous when it’s time to board and disembark, and I’m not happy until we’ve done a squad-check to make sure we have everyone.

Since the kids are getting out of school for the trip Chuck always schedules something educational for Friday afternoon. We’ve attended a Chicago Symphony performance, visited Shedd’s Aquarium, the Museum of Science and Industry, and other places that I can’t remember. This year we’re spending a couple of hours at the Art Institute before hitting Giordano’s for dinner.

Giordano’s (warning – the website has sound) is one of my very favorite places in Chicago, and a perfect place to take a bunch of middle-school kids. Of course the kids love pizza, and not only is Giordano’s pizza delicious, it’s also very filling. Chuck always seems to worry that the kids won’t get enough to eat on the trip so he plans tons of food. I’ll probably gain five pounds in these two days!

By this time of the day the adults are eager to get to the hotel and crawl into bed but the kids will still be going strong; hopped up on sugar, caffeine and excitement. Tired kids don’t have enough energy to get into trouble so we keep them going until they’re ready to drop too.

After supper we’ll hit Navy Pier, then go 97 floors up in the John Hancock tower before arriving at our hotel around 10:00.

You’d think it would be time for sleep – sweet, blessed sleep – but it’s not. We can’t go to bed yet because our chaperoning duties aren’t over; the pool is open until 11:00 and lights-out isn’t until 11:30. From past experience I know I’ll be running on caffeine and sheer will-power about now.

Sometime after 11:30 pm our squad will be tucked cozily into their hotel room and we’ll finally, finally, finally be able to hit the hay.

Insert the Hallelujah Chorus here, but quietly – we’re trying to sleep!

We’ll have to “sleep fast” as my grandma always used to say because breakfast Saturday morning is at 6:00 am sharp.

*Yawn*

Point me toward the coffee – can I get an IV line please?

Fortunately by noon the competition will be over and we’ll be able to relax; our strings group performs around 9:40 and our band around 10:30. We’ll hit the food court in a local mall for lunch before heading to Great America for the rest of the day.

Aside from a 5:30 pm Awards Ceremony in Great America we’ll have nothing to do all day except enjoy the park and follow our squad from ride to ride. I hope our squad of boys likes rides; both Teacher and I do! We won’t leave the park until it closes around 9:00 and I can guarantee that it’ll be a quiet ride home; those kids will be tired puppies!

We’ll put on a movie for the bus ride home but there won’t be anyone to see it – almost everyone on the bus will be sleeping except for me and the driver. I never sleep on the bus. I have a pathological fear of falling asleep and drooling, or snoring, or farting, or something else totally embarrassing that would make the kids lose respect for me. Control issues, me? Nah; I don’t have any issues, as long as I’m in control.

I’m sure it’ll be close to 1 am before Teacher and I collapse into our bed at home, but in a cruel twist of fate we still won’t get much sleep; Sunday is Pentecost and the handbell choir will be playing in both services. By 6 am Teacher will be nudging me out of bed so I won’t be late for our 7:30 am warm-up.

To sleep, perchance to dream…

P.S. I’ll write about the trip and post photos next week; don’t miss it!

I was so excited about going to handbell festival this year. We hadn’t gone as a choir before, although I’ve attended some handbell workshops and several choir members had gone with other choirs, so we knew how much fun it is to ring with a huge group of people.

Saturday morning I arrived just in time to help set up. You may recognize that tall, handsome – although a bit blurry – guy in the middle as my dad. He plays our two biggest bells. Princess plays in the choir too, but I can’t convince Angel Face to join.

Our church’s balcony is used by many groups so we have to set up and tear down each week for rehearsal. Over the years we’ve streamline our system and have gotten really fast.

In no time everything was ready and the bell choir went in search of coffee and doughnuts while I headed to band. I wanted to stay with the bell choir but they didn’t need me as much as my band of middle-schoolers did. A room full of middle-schoolers with instruments and no director is a recipe for disaster!

About two and a half hours later I rejoined my bell choir, ready to grab some bells and start ringing. I can ring and direct at the same time, but I can’t do them both well at the same time, so I never get to ring unless someone is absent and there’s no sub. Unfortunately I arrived just in time to wait – they were rehearsing one of the two pieces our choir wasn’t doing.

Betty covers the top two positions by playing four bells in each hand. She’s been playing handbells longer than I have and is amazing to watch! She’s also a great teacher with tons of patience so I tend to put new ringers next to her. Clay is a wonderful musician and can play any position in the choir. He started the year out in the bass clef, then moved to treble clef to fill the position of another ringer who had to leave the choir after Christmas. His daughter is usually in the position next to him, but had marching band rehearsal so I covered her position. Is it time for us to play yet? I can’t wait!

Diane shares a position with Melissa, who wasn’t able to come to Festival. They divide up Sundays and holidays and take turns coming to rehearsals, which works out great for each of them, and for me. I’d much rather have a part be shared than have good ringers quit because of the time committment. The blonde with her nose in a book is Betty’s daughter. Like Teacher, myself and our kids she suffers from chronic NIB: “Nose in Book” disease. She brings a book each week to rehearsal for “down” times. She’s been playing with us for four years, but both she and Clay’s daughter will be going off to college in the fall so we’ll have to find someone to replace them.

Clay’s wife, Johanna, is another wonderful musician who can play any position in the choir. Right now she’s in the middle, aka “the Battery,” which is a very busy spot. To do well in the Battery you have to be one of those people who can pat their head and rub their tummy at the same time. Princess is next to Johanna, apparently trying to hide behind her bangs. It’s not working, I can seeeeeee yoooouuuu. On the other side of Princess is Donna, who’s also been with the choir for several years. Her husband was instrumental no pun intended in getting the handbell choir started and setting me up as director. Thanks Ron, I’m so glad I was given this privilege! Next is Paula, who has also rung in the choir for many years and is a great partner to my dad, who is on the other side of her even though you can’t see him.

My nephew plays clarinet in “my” band and bells in both of his church’s handbell choirs. He’s very talented musically and I’m so glad to see him use that talent.

Auntie Lainie (far right) used to play in our bell choir until their family transferred to another church. My brother, Mike, didn’t start ringing until after they’d transferred. I’m not sure if that was just coincidence or if he didn’t want his sister as a director.

In any case I thought it was really cool that my dad, brother, sister-in-law, nephew, daughter and myself were all at the festival together.

It’s a good thing I decided to take some photos now, because once things got busy there wasn’t a chance the rest of the day. We rehearsed, we ate lunch, Princess and I made a cappuccino run, we rehearsed some more, we had a snack, we rehearsed even more, then the day was over!

On Sunday I left my camera with Teacher in case he wanted to take photos during the concert, but since it was considered a “worship service” he didn’t. The concert ahem, service flew by so quickly! Saturday I played with my choir because Clay and Johanna’s daughter wasn’t there, but she was there on Sunday so I covered a position in my friend Cindy’s choir. Cindy only had two ringers who were able to come to festival with her, but she still brought all of her bells and tables in case there were any “orphan” ringers who needed a place to play. I was in a position I’d never played before so I was sight-reading, which was an exhilarating challenge. One of the best things about ringing at festival is that if you miss a note or two there are other ringers playing the same part so no-one knows you didn’t play!

Thanks for being part of my life!

I’ve directed the handbell choir at our church since it began in 1999, but this is the first year we’re going to Festival.

In the past we hadn’t gone for various reasons: not enough ringers were free that weekend, it was too far away, there wasn’t enough money in the budget, not enough of the music were things I’d use repeatedly in church, etc, etc, etc.

This year Festival is being held almost in our back yard, the list of music was good enough to spend our meager budget on, and the ringers were interested in going, so we took the plunge and signed up. Over the past eight months we learned the music and performed it in church, but that wasn’t the end of our preparations.

Each choir is asked to bring a 5×3′ banner, but we didn’t have one. Luckily I know a handsome guy who was willing to design one for us. My husband SO rocks! After Teacher created the design we enlarged it on a SmartBoard, which is one of the coolest pieces of classroom technology I’ve seen in my entire life! Next I asked my mom to help me pick out fabric colors. She’s and avid quilter and used to working on large quilts while I’m used to smaller projects. The church had two huge boxes of felt and banner-making supplies so the only things I had to find were the gold lame and ribbon.

I started with the bigger elements, working from the bottom up. I’m not used to working on such a large scale but Teacher’s angular style made my job easier because I could use a ruler to keep my lines straight.

Z-Man helped make sure I didn’t miss any letters by matching the felt pieces to the design. He watched me cut out each letter and was able to guess what they were before I was done – he’s so smart!

I constructed the banner the same way I do all my applique work except I didn’t stitch the pieces on; I just fused them with the iron. Unfortunately, the shiny “outdoor” ribbon I’d gotten for the cross melted when it was ironed so I had to glue the ribbon and all the pieces that went on top of the ribbon. Live and learn – now I’ll know if I ever make another banner!

Teacher’s design is simple and eye-catching, and my mom’s color choices really make it “pop.” I think it looks fantastic!