January/February 2014 Update

Calvary Church, February 2014

Dear Family and Friends,
We have been having quite the winter here in Connecticut. According to locals, we have had more snow this winter than CT has seen in recent years, and we have experienced unusually cold temperatures. However, Joey and I really can't complain too much. We both love the snow and get excited about impending snow storms. I guess it's because we both grew up in snowy Minnesota. Also, while CT has seen single digit temperatures a few times during the last couple of months, Minnesotans have been experiencing -30 to -45 degree wind chills.

Joey, Clara and I were able to experience some true Minnesota cold when we flew to Minnesota at the end of January to perform an organ/violin recital at the House of Hope Presbyterian Church in Saint Paul. We were supposed to perform in the small chapel as part of the "Elizabeth Chapel Series", but when we arrived the chapel organ was having mechanical problems. It was pretty much unplayable. Fortunately, the church is very large, and it has four pipe organs, so we were able to move the recital to the large Sanctuary, and Joey performed on the Fisk organ. We had to make some balance adjustments, and some of our repertoire choices would have been better on the chapel organ, however the recital went well. We had a good audience, which included a lot of family and friends, and people seemed to enjoy it. We were able to spend a short amount of time at both Joey's parent's house and my parent's house. It was a quick, four-day trip, but we had fun, and the travel all went smoothly. Joey has another recital booked in MN this summer, so we look forward to being back in July.

Picture following our concert in Minnesota.

Clara on her way to a Princess birthday party!

Clara is a busy girl these days. And, as sad as it is to admit, she is definitely not a baby anymore. Recently Joey was trying to put Clara's winter hat on, and she said "Please don't mess up my hair daddy!" Do we have a toddler or a teenager on our hands? Well, she will always be our baby, but her use of language and ability to express herself are more in line with a little girl now, rather than a baby. We started potty training Clara two weeks ago, and she is doing really well with it. She seems to know very clearly when she needs to go, and she always makes it to the potty in time. So far we have done the training at home, but we plan to start training outside of the home very soon. We have a little potty for the car and a travel potty chair that fits over an adult toilet. She is very proud of her potty training. In fact, we were at a resteraunt the other night, and when the owner came over to greet us, she announced proudly for all to hear, "I WENT POO POO ON THE POTTY TODAY!". Fortunately the owner had a good sense of humor.

Clara pretending to paint the wall.

Look at all of the snow Mamma!

Clara practicing her ballet.

Clara is enjoying ballet classes, and is going to perform in the Spring Showcase this coming May. We are not sure what character she will be in the ballet. She could be anything from a flower to a carrot! In January, the ballet school had a parent's week, and we were able to sit and observe the class. It was fun to see all the things Clara is learning, and since we were alowed to bring cameras, we have both pictures and video to enjoy.

Clara is such a sweet, happy girl. She will be three years old this Easter Sunday, April 20th! She recently got her acceptance letter from Calvary Nursery School, so she will be attending school two days a week beginning this fall. We think she is going to really love school. She enjoys being around other kids and keeping busy with projects and activities.

Clara's heart decorations displayed in the kitchen.

Clara's "Make A Plate" Art from the Library now hanging in her room.

Clara is a good helper. She always puts her laundry away when asked.

This time of year is challenging when you have a young child. It's cold and snowy, and there are not many activities to do unless you go somewhere indoors where you will inevitably pick up germs. We do visit the library pretty regularly, and I try to keep art and craft activities in the house. Clara had fun preparing for Valentine's Day by making heart decorations. We stayed home for Valentine's Day this year. Joey made a delicious dinner, and Clara had fun playing with her big balloon from daddy.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Joey and I are keeping busy with our work. I have added a couple of new students, and I have a nice lesson schedule that works well for Joey, Clara and me. We have our Mondays off again this semester, and we try to do something fun as a family on those days. Joey has several recitals coming up in March, along with a trip to Tennessee with members of the organ installation committee to see the shop where the new Calvary organ will be built. Joey will play some of the shop's completed organs for the shop concert, which is open to the public. During last summer and fall, Joey and the organ committee traveled around visiting different pipe organs built by some of the world's best organ builders. We also hosted a few builders at our house while they took measurements, came up with ideas for designs, and met with the organ committee members. Now that a contract has been signed with Richards Fowkes Company, it is exciting to learn more about the new instrument for Calvary, and it will be interesting to watch as the process of creating the instrument begins to unfold.

Lucy likes the snow too! 

Resting with daddy during a snow storm.

Joey's homemade Italian meatball soup for a cold winters night.

We hope you have stayed healthy and happy during these cold winter months. As much as I like snow, I am starting to get the itch for Spring. We had one 50-degree day this past weekend, and it was so nice for Clara to get outside and play on the playground.

Clara loves the snow!

Until next post,
Joey, Erin and Clara