February Update

Clara at 22 months-Dress made by Aunt Christy!

Dear Family and Friends,
We hope you have had a good February. We are doing well here in Stonington. I will give you a few quick updates and then end this post with a summary of what Clara is up to these days.

Valentines Day 2013

At the beginning of the month, Connecticut was hit with winter storm Nemo. I won't go into it in too much detail, since I already did a short post about it with pictures a few weeks ago. Since we didn't lose power for very long, it was actually kind of enjoyable. Clara had fun sledding for the first time, we enjoyed being snowed in together as a family, and watching the snow fall is always a beautiful experience. We were just sorry that so many other people were suffering and cold due to loss of power. Big snow storms are only enjoyable when you can be warm and cozy in your home. Calvary Church always holds services, regardless of the weather. We had about 40 people at the 10am service, including one person who chose to ski to church. I would have given anything to have my camera out that morning, since Joey informed me that there was a pair of skis stuck in the snow outside the church during the service. Our rector was unfortunately stranded in North Haven with his wife, where they have a home, and was not able to make it for services. Our wonderful curate Emily filled in for him and led worship. 

We have felt a bit trapped in the house the last couple of months. We have avoided public places because we are so worried about Clara getting the flu. State flu reports continue to show flu as "wide spread" in Connecticut, and so we are still trying to be careful about extra hand washing and avoiding sick people. Since both Joey and I work with children, this is sometimes difficult. I have always told my students not to come to lessons sick, but they don't always listen. As the weeks go by, we hope the risk for flu will continue to go down. We are definitely ready to be finished with winter and move on to Spring. 

Things are going very well for Joey at Calvary Church. Joey is in charge of the concert series at Calvary and is extremely excited that Calvary Church will be hosting the famed St. Thomas Boy's Choir from New York next Friday, under the direction of John Scott. Joey has worked hard to find host families for the boys and staff and is working with the Calvary music guild to make sure everything runs smoothly. Mr. Scott has asked Joey to accompany the concert at Calvary, as well as another concert the boy's are giving in Greenwich, Rhode Island the following day. I am working hard to try to find a sitter for Clara on the night of the concert, because I have never heard the St. Thomas boy's choir live. If we have to, Clara and I will sit in our living room with the window open in order to hear them. Haha! It should be a wonderful concert. Joey's choirster program is also going well. The choristers now sing one Evensong service a month and lead worship one Sunday a month. They are really growing musically and are becoming confident singers and leaders. 

Our little helper

Last Saturday Joey, Clara and I made a trip to Boston so that I could purchase a new violin bow. It all started when, several weeks ago, I dropped my bow while teaching a lesson. I have dropped my bow many times over the years, but this time it broke. When a bow breaks, it automatically loses most of its monetary value, even after it is repaired. Fortunately, I was not planning to ever sell the bow, and I was also in the market for a better quality bow. The insurance settlement covered most of the value of the loss from my broken bow, and I have had it fixed. It plays just like it did before. I took my bow to a Boston bow maker to have it repaired and at the same time tried out about 10 bows in his shop. I narrowed my choices down to two bows that I really liked and brought them home to try while my other bow was being fixed. After playing both bows at home in different acoustics and for other people to hear, it was clear which one I wanted to purchase. So with the insurance money from my original bow, and a generous financial contribution from my mom, I was able to get a new bow.  It is a French bow, circa 1930, made by Louis Morizot (the father). I will keep my old bow for occasions when I don't want to use my new bow (outside wedding gigs, teaching etc.) I really love my new bow, and it makes my violin so much more enjoyable to play. Thank you Mom for such an incredible gift!

And now for your monthly Clara update: Clara is now 22 months old. She is an amazingly energetic and athletic child. She has such a passion for dance, ballet in particular, although she will dance to anything that has a beat, including our washing machine when it is off balance. She can sometimes be shy with people she doesn't know, but when it comes to dancing she is happy to show just about anyone her moves. She is also talking up a storm. She makes two and three word sentences most of the time. Unfortunately her favorite word right now is "NO." It's not that she refuses to do things or misbehaves all of the time, she just likes saying the word when asked to do something. She will say no and then go ahead and follow the direction she was given. It's actually really funny. She has also started saying "sorry." If she drops a crayon, she will say "sorry crayon," or if she steps on the cat's tail by accident, she will say "sorry kitty." She loves to draw and does much better now when going out to eat, since she remains content with crayons and paper. She pretty much copies anything she hears, so Joey has to be a bit more patient when he is driving these days. Hehe! She is learning to clap different rythms and play them on the piano. Clara is very loving and gives sweet hugs around the neck and says "love you mamma and daddy" before she goes to bed. What an incredible gift she is. Now let's hope we can survive the "terrible twos," since she will be two in less than two months.

I would like to take a moment to reflect on two notable losses to the classical music world this past week. On February 26th, the famous French organist Marie-Claire Alain passed away. She was a world-famous and much-loved organist and teacher, as well as a sweet and caring person. Joey had the pleasure of meeting her and playing for her back in 2005, while he was a student at the University of Kansas. On February 27th, the world-renowned Texan pianist Van Cliburn passed away. By all accounts he was a wonderful, generous person and was a passionate advocate for classical music and music education. Their profound example and influence will endure. 

That's it for now. We wish you all good health and warmer weather!
Till next post,
Joey, Erin and Clara

"Music is such a part of life,” Cliburn said in a 2008 interview. “It’s like breathing, like nourishment. And the classics are so important, because within the realm of classical music you have eternity and infinity, and mathematics and architecture, and spirituality and wonderment — so many things.”  

Inspired by a new pink tutu!

Winter Storm Nemo

Dear Family and Friends,

Since some of you have been wondering how we made out in the storm, I thought I would do a quick blog post to keep you updated, especially for those of you who do not use Facebook. At the moment we are completely snowed in. About 18 inches of snow fell here. Other parts of the state had over 35 inches. We lost power at 9:50pm last night for about an hour. We thought it was going to be a long, cold night but were pleasantly surprised when the lights and heat came back on and remained that way the rest of the night. Many people in the state are still without power, so we were very lucky. Clara had fun playing in the snow for the first time before the storm started to get really bad.  Joey made enough chili on Friday to last us a week, so we will not starve. Since we live right next door to the church, Joey will be there tomorrow morning providing music for the service. The questions is, will anyone else be there? We hope you are all warm and safe.
Enjoy these snowy pictures!

Joey, Erin and Clara

"I finally get to wear my snow pants!"

Going for a ride!

A Clara size snowman.

Snow is fun.

"Daddy, it's getting cold!"

Let it snow!

Throwing snowballs!

Post-Storm Photos!

Our car is covered in snow

Nursery School Playground

Beautiful Calvary Church, Stonington

Parish Hall, Calvary Church

Attempting to get from our house to the church.

Taking it all in.

Joey was determined to practice!

Happy New Year! 2013

Merry Christmas 2012!

We had one beautiful snowfall during the holidays!

Dear Family and Friends,

A lot has happened since my last blog. Christmas has come and gone, and we have welcomed in a new year. We hope that you all enjoyed a nice holiday break.

Clara's Christmas portrait

Overall we had a very nice Christmas and New Year. My parents were here for a couple of weeks, and we also enjoyed visits from my aunt and uncle from Michigan, my cousin from Massachusets and her husband, my cousin from Texas and my aunt and uncle from Virginia. It was great to see everyone. We missed seeing Joey's family, but we were able to have some nice Skype sessions. It's not the same as being together, but Skype really is a wonderful thing when you have to be apart. 

Clara was much more aware of Christmas this year. She knew that Santa would be coming down the chimney, and she would say "ho ho ho" whenever she saw a picture of him. I think the true story of Christmas is still over her head. When we ask her where God lives, she points up and says "sky," but that's about the extent of it so far. We had a beautiful Christmas Eve service at Calvary Church; it was even snowing a little bit during the service. Joey, of course, led the music, and I played my violin on prelude music, as well as a descant on "Silent Night," which my dad wrote. The church was full, and it was a beautiful service. I always find the late-night Christmas Eve service to be so magical.

Joey and I won 1st and 2nd place in the Calvary Church "Ugly Christmas Sweater" staff party!

Clara was not interested in sitting in Santa's lap, so I had to help out.

Santa did come visit Stonington and left a lot of nice things for Clara. Unfortunately, we were also visited by illness. Shortly after my dad arrived, he came down with a cold. He started to feel worse and worse and complained of difficulty breathing. At that point we insisted that he visit the ER, and it's a good thing we did, because he was diagnosed with the early stages of pneumonia. He was put on antibiotics and slowly, over the course of his visit, started to feel better. After the new year Clara, Joey and I developed colds. Clara and Joey had relatively mild colds, but mine turned into some type of stomach upset which left me unable to eat and exhausted for several days. We are all feeling much better now and are hoping to keep well. The amount of flu going around this year is pretty scary. We are washing our hands a lot and trying to stay home more and avoid crowded places. We hope that you have not been touched with illness, especially the flu. We are praying for my brother, sister-in-law and their three children in Wisconsin, because all three children have the flu right now. We hope that they do not suffer too much, and that they recover quickly.

Family

Santa's little helper

Clara with her Godparents

Joey and I are back to working, performing and teaching. Joey broke his toe and sliced his finger over Christmas break. He tripped on a rug in our hallway and somehow broke his toe, and he sliced his finger while preparing his annual New Year's Eve fondue dinner. Fortunately, both the toe and the finger seem to be healing ok, but it was a little scary since we rely on both his fingers and his toes for our livelihood!

"Is Santa there?"

The holidays are exhausting!

Clara is growing and changing all of the time. She loves to learn. She recognizes and can say all of her alphabet letters and she can count to 10. She talks a lot and knows many words. She has started using two and three word sentences such as "Mommy up please" and "cracker on please." "Cracker on please" means "turn the Nutcracker ballet DVD on please" We hear that multiple times a day, since dancing to the Nutcracker is still her favorite activity. The first thing she asks for in the morning is "tutu on please" because she is ready to dance. As you can see, she is very good about saying "please." "Thank you" is a little bit more difficult to say, but we try to encourage it. She is such a happy girl and has a really silly sense of humor. She likes to make faces in order to make people laugh. We have so much fun with her.

Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Ripka!

Thank you Santa!

Well, that's the news for now. We hope you have a happy and healthy 2013!

Until next post,

Joey, Erin and Clara

Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time.

 Laura Ingalls Wilder