Days with the Dorans

So Joe was ABOUT to quit piano... mainly because I was sick of paying for him to have lessons when he refused to practice. Well, I finally put my foot down and started sitting in the room with him as he practiced to MAKE SURE he did what he was supposed to. Just my presence made a HUGE difference! Last week, Joe's teacher told me that she is amazed that where he once struggled with "easier" scales he is now "breezing through" difficult lessons that "should take him weeks'! Joe is also realizing that a little practice goes a long way!! I still can't get him to play much trumpet for me (athough he is doing Jazz band) and I haven't heard him strum a guitar in a while but I am TOTALLY digging his tickling of the ivories. You can click HERE to have a listen (and hear my boys changing voice!!) Yikes!!!

Sean was pretty excited for Jump Rope for Heart. Zach wanted to do it too but Sean was the one that was all about raising money (for the pup key chains is my guess). I feel like every two seconds I'm turning around sending money to school for charities etc. I usually don't like asking other people for money since everyone is in the same boat but we did anyway. HERE is the video that Sean made. I was excited to see a few people outside of our family circle donated too. The event was an after school thing so I was able to see a few things they did! Way to go, boys!

I was soooooo excited to finally go to see The Lion King! Jeff got me tickets for my birthday and I promise you it was well worth the wait! We started our night at the Detroit Beer Company! It was perfect because it is RIGHT across from the Opera House (where the show was) and we could see everything from our table! We split a nacho and a margarita pizza and because it was a cold night we were able to take leftovers back to our car! We also, of course, had some beer! I had the Radler which was SOOOOO yummy!  The Opera House was packed (obviously) and a marvelous place to people watch! There were people in gowns and people in jeans and everything in between! Despite it being so packed, I was amazed at how fast the lines to the bathroom went during intermission (the things that I notice...). The show itself was outstanding! I am still in awe of how they were able to pull off such a show. The creativity was breathtaking and I found myself (literally) at the edge of my s...

I love how much Papa loves my kids! From his "Best Buddy," to his "Little Buddy," "The Princess" and "Joe Cool" he has a way of making them all feel special and I love that he takes them on dates! This time he took Joe to cheer on his wolverines and they had a great time! Joe isn't usually a fan of these games but this time he was! I'm thinking it had more to do with the company than the game itself though he leapt to his feet with the rest of the fans as Michigan beat Purdue! The great time may also have a little to do with the after-game meal of choice... Joe's favorite... WINGS! GO BLUE!! (and thanks for being awesome, dad!) 

 Loved being able to get together with my Caps for a fun lunch and to surprise our friend, Matt! He was the Teacher of the Year for his school but since we had our own Teacher of the Year at our school to celebrate, we couldn't hang with him... So we made him a little surprise! I hope he liked it almost as much as we love him!

I don't know what's going on with the weather, but I can't complain. We had our mid-winter break but I wasn't TOO jealous of my folks (in Florida). We've had spring-like temps! Kids have been hopping on bikes and taking off, I've been walking Marty in just a sweatshirt (or Tee) and even spent a lot of time on the deck reading or having a drink and just hanging out! Our midwinter break was short this time so we didn't do anything "special" but sometimes doing nothing can feel even better! We did have an impromptu gathering with the Gearys and Cosmans! It was perfect! Throwing together whatever food we had, drinks and laughter and kids playing "Ghosts in the Graveyard"~ felt like summer!! Feels like summer is just around the corner (though I know we aren't quite there yet!!).

No words needed...

It's so great to see Jeff happy again! His work is incredibly stressful (I think it is for most teachers) but he's been fighting that (and kind of winning) with disc golfing and playing music! He's been getting together with the Daves (as in our neighbor Dave Coz who we love and spend lots of time with and the awesome Dave D. bass player from our church) to play music together. They went and took in some open mic nights and finally went out and did it! They had a blast!!! They played four songs~ two originals (one by Jeff and one by Dave Coz) and two covers. During the Jackson 5 cover Jeff said a lady got up and started moon-walking which was pretty cool! You can hear the end of that song and the other cover they did (Old Apartment by BNL) by clicking HERE . Jojo (Dave Coz's wife) and I couldn't make it but Dave D's wife did and got a little video for us! We're hoping to make one of these nights (though with kid schedules it'll be tough... I h...

I am a hard one to beat (I know that) but Jeff beat me!! He must have gotten up after I went to bed (I'm always up later). I woke to THE BEST HEART ATTACK EVER!!!! I was in our bathroom laughing out loud~ and sighing (happily)~ and just beaming from ear to ear reading all the reasons he loves me! I mean I knew I had the best husband ever but this put him over the top!!! (Better than roses or jewelry and it cost nothing but time!)  He also wrote me a little message on the mirror (I often write him notes on the mirror so this also made me smile!).  As if that wasn't enough, I got in the car to go to work and the "Love" channel was on my radio. I don't normally listen to this channel (but who doesn't love "All I Need" by Jack Wagner????). I called Jeff to see if he changed my radio station and he did! EVERY DETAIL!!! And I loved and noticed every little thing. I'm the luckiest girl on the planet! That I know!!! And bonus~ later in ...

 I LOVE LOVE LOVE Valentine's Day! Not because of the lovey stuff~ but because I get to give my traditional heart attack to my favorites! Jeff picked up some of their favorites so they got an extra special treat too!! I have lucky kids!! I love the tradition of writing those many little specific things I love about each and every one of them. I was super bummed that I had an early staff meeting so didn't get to spend time with them before school! I am blessed and I know the kids love this tradition almost as much as I do (especially my sweet Joey who has saved many of his hearts from previous years).

 And then there were two... the Littles were the only two left to have to make Valentine's Day cards and the awesome thing is they don't make them~ they are cool with store-bought variety. And bonus- they made their own boxes too! Of course they picked out Valentines with candy. I laughed at Z's because any Valentine that gave a hint of "love" he covered over with a sticker! He's hilarious!! One day he'll be happy to give someone a Valentine~ until then... He'll be MY silly Goosie Valentine!

Although the kids are getting older, they still get so excited when that box shows up on the porch from Grandma! She sent some of her homemade goodness (which was gone MUCH to quickly), McDonald's gift cards and the movie, "Trolls" which I was told was super cute though I slept through most of. I'm going to blame it on my exhaustion and not the movie... I'm sure I'll be able to watch it again! How lucky these kiddos are to have such awesome Grandmas!

Sometimes I take pictures and there isn't a ton of story behind them but I want them in my book anyway... We noticed that both Bigs are now taller than Nana! I've still got Ali beat and Joe and I are REALLY close. He'll get me soon! Al wrote a great piece of fiction! Not only was there a shout out to her Polish heritage, it also had a girl-empowerment thing which I found especially awesome in THIS time in history! I was so proud of her writing and her teacher must have liked it too! It was chosen as one of the best and earned her a free candy bar from her teacher! And then there's this guy... He fell asleep like this and I had to snap a picture! I am pleased to say now that although I don't feed Marty, he IS a mama's boy! I think it's because I walk him every day~ even though on the dark winter nights I did so with a flashlight on my head! I'm so glad the days are getting longer again!

 Sean first told us he had a loose tooth a week ago. I figured it would be quite a while (if memory served me right with the others) before it actually came out. He was avoiding eating his favorite (green apples) and I didn't see him wiggle it really at all! We were having a family movie night (Finding Dori) when Sean jumped up and said, "I LOST MY TOOTH!" That was it! No blood or work! He put it under his pillow (or next to his bed actually) and the tooth fairy brought him $5!!! That's what the Bigs got for their first tooth too! What a lucky kid!!

I've never seen any kid as excited for homework as Sean was this week. Not only did he get to do a timeline, he was also was the first grade "Sailor of the Week." Both projects were given a week to be done but he insisted we get to work right away on both~ and whatever Seany wants... Seany gets! His timeline was hilarious! Not only did his picture turn out awesome, what he wrote was equally funny. My Michigan shirted, goatee kid said, "In the future, I will be a teacher called Mr. Doran. I will teach big kids like my dad. I will have a beard and mustache. I will live with my mom and dad." "Math Teacher Book" 1/1=1 100+100=200 We hate to be dream crushers, so aren't telling him yet that... 1. He can't be a teacher. and 2. He can't live with mom and dad. I love that kid! Maybe he can live with us for a little while...