2017 Life Logs, Day 340: Jonah’s Elementary Chorus Concert
2017 Life Logs, Day 340: Jonah’s Elementary Chorus Concert
Date: Wednesday, December 6, 2017
Weather: Partly Cloudy; High Temp 57, Low 35 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio, Falmouth, MA
It was another one of those days that just seemed to slip right through my fingers. I went to the gym to the Wednesday morning Tabata class. This is the toughest of the classes that I attend. It really challenges me, but I survived another one! I came home with the intent of working on Christmas for the Goldstones, but ended up decorating the Christmas tree and finishing my online shopping for Justin and family instead. I did some prep for tomorrow’s lunch as I have a friend coming that I met through Newcomers. We got into a conversation over lunch when we went to the Harvard Museums and tomorrow’s lunch will be a continuation of that. Then it was time to get ready to go pick up Jonah and deliver him to the high school for a district-wide 3rd and 4th grade chorus concert. Heather was on the air fund-raising until 7 pm, so I offered to take Jonah to the 5:30 pre-concert practice with the other schools while Jed, Sam, and Ollie had dinner. I dropped Jonah off, ran some errands, and then came back to attend the concert. Jonah loves to sing, and he looked so handsome tonight in his blue button-down shirt. He was in the second row and Molly, the ‘girl next door’ was in the first row in red.
It was a fun concert. It started off with the combined schools singing ‘Simple Gifts’. This has been sung to the Goldpebbles since birth, so the concert began on a most familiar note.
I think the highlight for Jonah was when the high school acapela group sang. As soon as the concert was over, he wanted to go out into the hall to buy one of their CD’s.
When I got home I hung a new grow light over the plants I brought in recently from the deck. They were in desperate need of light. In doing this, I realized that the parsley plants needed to go back out on the deck. They have an infestation of what I think is fungus gnats whose larvae destroy the roots of the plants and the gnats are extremely irritating to adults. Last year I tried recommended vinegar and soap remedies, but nothing got rid of them. I finally sterilized the soil and was hopeful that they wouldn’t return this year. But they have. If anyone has a remedy that works, please let me know. For now they will stay out on the deck until it gets too cold for gnats or the parsley freezes.
I can’t believe he is old to read, but he is, indeed. The Auditorium was packed and the concert was delightful.
Well done! Sam plays drums this year along with eight other 5th graders and they kept the beat perfectly throughout the two songs performed by 5th graders. Then the 6th graders performed, followed by the 5th and 6th grade jazz band. I was impressed with each presentation. It is obvious that the music director, Mr. Borning, not Boring as Oliver pointed out, does a great job with these kids. The songs they played were enjoyable. But the thing that struck me the most is that my oldest grandchild and his friends are growing up right in front of my eyes. As a drummer, Sam was in the back row right in the center. In front of him and to his left were two of his soccer friends, Gus and Sebastian, who play saxophone. Sam and Sebastian attended the Woods Hole Day Care together, so they have been together since they were two. In front of Gus and Sebastian was Talia. Heather and Talia’s mom were in a breast-feeding support group together, so Sam and Talia have been friends for ten years. I first met Talia when Mark and I came home for Sam’s first birthday in 2008. It was just a coincidence that from my camera vantage point, these friends were in the photos I took of Sam. But seeing how grown up they look was a stark reminder of just how quickly the years pass.
It really does seem like it was just yesterday when they were toddlers. I think that big, gorgeous moon tonight was in celebration of these friendships.
Yesterday, Heather and Jed got my Christmas tree standing. I just couldn’t get it to stand upright in the stand I have, and it made me feel a little better to find that they were having some of the same problems. We finally used fishing line to tie it to the ceiling! This morning, Sam helped me get the lights on the tree and he, Jonah, and Ollie made a good start on putting the ornaments on before it was time to leave for the Falmouth Christmas Parade. Heather and Jed came and Jed took Sam and Jonah to their designated meeting places . . . Jed for Scouts, Sam for Morse Pond Band, and Jonah for the Falmouth Soccer Club. Heather, Ollie, and I waited a bit and then drove downtown to try and get front row seats. We look my beach chairs and set them next to the curb in front of the Public Library. Today Ollie decided to go as Santa Claus, so he carried all of the things he had brought to my house for the weekend in a sack pretending that it was full of toys.
There were very few spaces left by the time we got there, but we found our space and enjoyed watching the parade. The first group to come by each year represent the local government and are dressed in period costumes declaring, “Hear Ye, Hear Ye, the 54th Annual Falmouth Christmas Parade is about to begin.”
There are floats,
bands, clowns, horses,
dogs, and lots of kids and adults from local organizations in the parade. We saw Jed walking with the Scouts
and Jonah walking with the Soccer Club.
And we saw the back of Sam’s head, identified by the green, not red, Santa’s hat,
as he rode by facing in the opposite direction playing drums in the back of a truck. As always, Ollie’s favorite was the Brian Boru Pipe Band.
Mine, too. But this year a local building company had a float featuring bathtubs and toilets. The toilets were decorated to look like reindeer . . . the most creative thing I saw today!
After the parade, we invited her to join us for lunch at Crepe Cod, a new restaurant in town this year that we have all wanted to check out. They offer sweet and savory French crepes with a Moroccan twist. Delicious. The savory crepes are made with buckwheat which makes them gluten-free. Love that. But I have to admit that Jonah’s sweet crepe made with traditional white flour looked absolutely yummy.
I’m not much of a restaurant person, but I’ll return there again. The food is good and is personally delivered by the chef. Bon appetit! 
Just like last year, Jonah has no interest in dressing in holiday fashion, but Ollie was all into that today. When I picked the boys up yesterday, Ollie came up with a Rudolph costume that worked great. He got out his brownish tan overalls and he borrowed a brown long-sleeved shirt from Jonah and picked out a white t-shirt to wear over the brown. “You know, Oma, deer have patches of white.” Yes, they do. He added a winter hat that matched the color of his overalls. With the addition of a pair of light-up antlers that fit over the cap, he had the perfect costume. He was a little slow getting dressed this morning, but we finally got Rudolph out the door and he and Jonah enjoyed their run. After the Elf Run, Jed, Jonah, Ollie, and I drove the van back around the harbor to my place so we could watch the Jingle Jog. Sam started calling it the Jingly Jogidy yesterday and we have all adopted his terminology. He ran in the Elf Run last year, but this was his first long distance run. It was only three miles, but that’s long distance to me! As rang jingle bells as we watched the Jingly Joggers. Sam come by first with Heather close behind him.
And when we walked down the street to watch them on their return loop, Sam was still in front and doing great and Heather was right behind him, where she intended to stay until the end of the race.
After they passed our return watching spot, Jed, Jonah, and Ollie headed to the finish line and I walked back home to get second breakfast started. They all arrived back on this side of the harbor in time to watch Santa arrive on the other side. The boys had requested bacon and hot chocolate, so they had that while Heather, Jed, and I had a mushroom and spinach omelet. Then we parted ways. Jed went home to work on an outdoor project. Heather and Sam went home so Sam could practice on his drums for tomorrow’s parade and then went on a shopping trip to look for new running shoes for Sam and a winter coat. Jonah, Ollie, and I headed to Highfield Hall to meet Santa
and to see the Christmas decorations. There were craft projects for kids and train displays that they both loved.
And the room-sized Victorian dollhouse was of interest as well. As we walked back the beautifully decorated staircase, the highlight of my holiday season happened. Some started playing Christmas carols on the grand piano on the first floor. Jonah and Ollie both stopped immediately to look down on the piano. They were both mesmerized by watching the very grandmotherly looking woman play. She looked up at them and mouth “Rudolph?” The both shook their heads and as she started playing, normally shy Ollie quietly sang along. It was like magic.
Everyone on the first floor watched him singing and then applauded when the song was over. Jonah is usually the singer, but today Ollie stole the show. It was a truly magical moment that was enough to melt this Oma’s heart. But with little boys, magical moments are just that. We were on to the next activity which was rolling down the hill in front of Highfield and on to the Village Green to check out the displays. Then to the Goldstones to work on a craft project Jonah is doing for his third grade craft fair. We also picked Sam up and then headed to the British Beer Company for dinner and after that, back to the Village Green to sing Christmas carols under the holiday lights that came on at 7 pm tonight.
I think we are all exhausted, but it was a great day. The boys are spending the night again as Heather and Jed are attending a holiday party. But tomorrow morning, we gear up for the Falmouth Christmas Parade. Sam will be on a school float playing drums to accompany Christmas carols. Jonah will be walking in the parade with his soccer team. And Jed will be marching with the Scouts. Usually Sam and Jonah would be marching with the Scouts as well, but this year, there was too much competition. That leaves Heather, Ollie, and I to watch. So we will enjoy! 
It is usually really chilly, but tonight the temperature was mild—no hats and gloves needed. After the first couple of carols, some of Sam’s friends came to get him to go run in the field. Jonah loves to sing, but a couple of carols later, the lure of playing with friends became too much and he took off as well. That left Jed and I with Ollie. Ollie was the picture of Christmas wearing a green elf hat and his red winter coat. And he was totally fascinated by the singers leading the carols.
He asked me to point to the words in the printed program and even though he can’t read, he mouthed the words and conducted with his hands. There’s no way to capture such precious moments. I just feel lucky to be able to be there to watch. 
