An Exciting New Year! Welcome 2014.

Lucy had a nice Christmas too!

Dear Family and Friends,

As promised, here is my very delayed Christmas/New Year's update.

We had a very nice Christmas and New Year's Holiday, in spite of the fact that we were dealing with some health issues. A few days before Christmas, Clara became ill with a cold which included stomach upset, fever, bad cough and lethargy. She was really miserable for several days, including the day we had to rehearse and perform the Messiah. Fortunately my parents arrived for their visit the day Clara became sick and were able to be with her during what was a very busy weekend for Joey and me. She recovered in time for Christmas and was feeling much better Christmas day, but the rest of us, including my parents, came down with bad colds a couple of days after Christmas. Needless to say, we were all feeling a bit under the weather during the majority of the holiday, although we still managed to have a really nice time.

Playing with the crumbly cookie dough Momma tried to make.

Making cookies out of the good dough Daddy made.

 On Christmas eve, Joey played a 4:00pm Christmas pageant service in which Clara was supposed to have been a sheep, but was unable to do so because of her illness. In between the 4:00pm and the late service, Joey prepared a nice dinner at home. At the 11:00pm service, I played my usual "Silent Night" descant. The late night service is always very special and beautiful. The church was full, and the lighting of the candles at the end of the service while the congregation sings "Silent Night" is always so moving. Our rector Alfred Tisdale never fails to give moving and inspiring sermons. We feel blessed to be part of such a wonderful church community.

Christmas Eve dinner 2013.

We were all pretty tired on Christmas morning, since we had been up late with the Christmas Eve service. Clara woke up around 8:00AM and immediately went running into the living room to see whether Santa had brought her anything. She had fun opening her presents and was especially excited about her new art easel. After breakfast and presents, we all attended the 11:00AM Christmas service. We spent the rest of the day resting, and poor Joey, who had been busy playing services, still managed to cook a wonderful Ham dinner on Christmas evening.

Grandad reading "The Night Before Christmas" to Clara on Christmas Eve.

The cookies and milk are ready for Santa!

After Santa arrived.

Christmas morning!

Boxing day was spent with our dear friends Lois and Rich. Lois, who is a wonderful cook, prepared a delicious meal for all of us. Unfortunately, Clara was still not back to feeling her best, and we had to leave a bit early due to her fussiness. We spent the rest of the day packing and preparing to leave for our trip to Alexandria, VA to spend the New Year with my Aunt Gay and Uncle Harry.

Decorating ginger bread houses!

We really enjoyed our visit to Alexandria. We got to spend a lot of time with my aunt and uncle as well as my cousin Adam, who recently became engaged to his beautiful fiancée Natasha. We also spent an evening with my long time friend Megan and her husband and three children. We attended Sunday service at the Washington Cathedral and got to say hello to one of Joey's former Yale classmates who is now one of the organists there.

Clara loves Natasha!

She loves Adam too! 

One of the highlights of the trip was our New Year's Eve celebration. As a Christmas gift, my aunt and uncle bought us tickets to a New Year's Eve dinner and dance at the Carlyle Club. (See link) (http://thecarlyleclub.com/) We enjoyed a wonderful meal and great live band and vocal music from the 1920's to the 1960's performed by the Doc Scantlin Band. We had a great time listening to the music and dancing. My parents stayed home with Clara, so we were able to enjoy an evening out with my aunt and uncle. Thanks again GG and Uncle Harry!

On our way to the Carlyle Club! Whose face is peeking out at the bottom of the picture?

While we were in Virginia, Joey and I decided to start 2014 with something new for us. We bought a new car! We got a great deal on a brand new 2013 Honda Pilot. It is very spacious and it was rated no. 1 in safety in 2013. Because our Dodge Caravan was having some work done, my parents rented a car to drive to Alexandria. They were able to return the rental once we purchased our car, and we drove our new car home. We are really enjoying the new car and we plan to keep the Dodge Grand Caravan for short trips and occasions when we need two vehicles.

And now we are back to our busy routine. Clara is enjoying being back in ballet class, going to story-time at the library and having play dates with other local children. She has graduated to a big girl bed and is doing great with it. We have been trying to do some beginning potty training, but we plan to get more serious about it this month. Joey and I have been preparing for a violin/organ recital at the "House of Hope Prebyterian Church" in Saint Paul, MN on February 2nd. We have been invited to perform on the Elizabeth Chapel Organ Recital Series. We fly to MN in the morning. It will be a quick trip to MN, but we look forward to seeing our family and hopefully some MN friends! See the following link for more information: http://hohchurch.org/concerts-and-recitals 

The best Christmas present!

Finally, we have some very exciting news about Calvary Church. Calvary Church is getting a new pipe organ! It is going to be built by the Richard-Fowkes company of Ooltewah, TN, one of the premier builders of Pipe Organs in the world. I will write a more extensive blog post about the organ soon, which will detail the process Joey and the organ committee went through in finding the right builders. The official announcement was made to the church congregation this week, so we are excited to share the wonderful news. Please click on the following links to read more about the organ project. As you can imagine, Joey is extremely excited about the ways in which this instrument will enhance the musical worship at Calvary Church as well as provide performance and educational opportunities for Calvary Church and surrounding communities. 

"Like" the church organ blog on FB or follow it on your own!

http://www.calvary-music.org/richards-fowkes-opus-23.html

Richards-Fowkes official announcement: http://www.richardsfowkes.com/

Enjoy the start of the New Year!
Until next post,
Joey, Erin and Clara

This photo shows the current 1964 Wicks organ.  

December 2013 Update!

CLARA DEC. 2013

Dear Family and Friends,

Is it really January 9th? I can't believe how quickly the holiday flew by. We hope you all had a wonderful celebration with family and friends. I am going to do two separate blog posts. This one will cover the month of December, leading up to Christmas, and the next one will cover our Christmas and New Year's holiday.

December was extremely busy for us. I think it was one of the most scheduled December months we have had in many years. It seemed there were things going on every weekend, and because Joey had to lead rehearsals on Mondays for the Messiah, it felt as though there was never any down time. That being said, many of the things we kept busy with were very enjoyable.

Joey and I spent the beginning of December preparing for a rather challenging solo piano and violin recital at the La Grua Center in Stonington. The La Grua Center is only a few minutes drive (or walk) from where we live. It is a space used to host concerts, lectures, art shows and classes, among other things. On the day of our concert a fairly decent snow and ice storm hit our area. Fortunately most of the really bad weather came later in the evening after our concert, but we were not sure until about 1pm whether or not the event would be cancelled. We are happy that it was not cancelled because, in spite of the weather, we had a large crowd, and we felt very good about our performance. We enjoyed playing at the La Grua Center and using their newly acquired grand piano. We hope to perform there again sometime in the future.

The day after our recital, the Calvary choir and choristers, under Joey's leadership, gave a service of "Candlelight Christmas Lessons and Carols". It was a beautiful service, and it was wonderful to see and hear how much the young choristers have matured in their singing and leadership skills over the last couple of years. The church was full and looked beautiful, and a wonderful reception was given following the service. It was a great weekend, and I was proud of Joey for being able to pull off a recital one night, followed by a huge choral service the next day.

A week after our recital, Calvary Church presented their third annual "Messiah Sit and Sing" concert. This year Joey decided to add a string quartet to accompany portions of the Messiah, so I was able to participate as first violinist of the group, along with a wonderful violinist and violist from Hartford, both of whom I had known while studying briefly at the Hartt School of Music. The cello part was covered by our talented CMS cello teacher Carly Fleming, also a Hartt alum. We had beautiful vocal soloists, and our good friend Andrea Kotylo played the organ. Joey conducted and played from the harpsichord. The "Messiah Sit and Sing" is always such a festive event, and the audience really loves being able to participate by singing the choruses from the pews. 

Clara enjoyed all the festivities of the season, but there were two events in particular which seemed to really make an impression on her.

"Ballerina Birthday Party!"

Ballet practice!

The day after our recital, Clara and I attended the birthday party of one of her ballet friends. It was a "Nutcracker" themed ballet party, and it was held at the ballet school where Clara takes classes. The first portion of the party was led by one of the dance teachers, and the kids got to do various movements and physical activities to Nutcracker music. After the dancing there were cupcakes and "Nutcracker" themed juice cups and party favors. Needless to say, it was pretty much Clara's idea of heaven. She was so excited about the party that she couldn't take a nap that afternoon. We are attending another "ballerina birthday party" this Sunday, and she is really excited about it. 

"Santa Clause!"

Santa Claus was a big deal for Clara this year, and, for the first time she was not afraid of him. We registered to see Santa at the Stonington Library. When we arrived, the kids were given a craft to do by the elves, and after that Santa and Mrs. Claus read "The Night Before Christmas" to the kids. Clara was so excited to see Santa and had the cutest smile on her face while waiting in line. When she finally got her turn with Santa, she gave him big hugs and such sweet looks. Santa gave her a book and candy cane, and she was thrilled about tasting a candy cane for the first time. 

Joey and I finished our Calvary Music School lessons at the end of December, and our students performed in a solo recital along with other CMS students. They all did very well, and we are proud of the good work they are doing.

Looking out the window on a snowy day.

Although this past December was incredibly busy, it was also a wonderfully rewarding month full of beautiful music, the excitement and energy of a little girl, precious time with friends and family, and the joy of the Christmas season.

Stay tuned for my next post, which will cover our Christmas and New Year's holiday. As you can see, this post is already really long, so I think my decision to split them up is a wise one. We still have yet to send out any Christmas cards. I guess they will have to be Epiphany cards at this point. That was one negative aspect of being so busy last month. Please forgive us!

Enjoy the start of this new year!

Joey, Erin and Clara

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Dear Family and Friends,

Our cards are going out late this year, so we want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas! 

With Love,

The Ripkas,

Joey, Erin and Clara

Clara and Santa, December 2013

“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