This week's artist is Jake, or Jacob as he prefers to be called now, and his high school marching band. After a few years of a dry spell they earned the much desired "superior" rating at the state level assessment, which is a very big deal.
The band has been working very hard and this is the best show I have seen. During their first assessment this year they just missed the superior rating by half a point. Inspired, the band redoubled their efforts and were able to pull it off at their last competition of the year.
It's been a good year for the marching band and if they are able to garner another superior rating with orchestra this winter they will be a State of Virginia Honor Band. So keep of the good work, you have done something to brag about.
Showing posts with label Jake. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jake. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 07, 2012
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Artist of the Week: Flag
This week's artist is Jake.
He really doesn't like to be photographed so I have to sneak up on him. I'm only allowed a few pictures of his face, so the rest have to be on the sly. I took this picture while we were up in Vermont last month while we were near my old swimming hole. He never knew I was behind him as he was walking along. Times like that are why I turned off all the extraneous beeps and such that my camera makes. A brief click when I press the shutter release and the low whine of the motor that moves the lens are all that can be heard.
As for what boy did to deserve the honor, well it is a combination of idea and an execution too small (and long since lost) to picture. Both were done for the last day of soccer camp which I already mentioned at the beginning of the month.
A few weeks ago I mentioned in the post featuring Max there were contests concerning the teams' flags. Largest, smallest, and most creative were recognized. Jake didn't win for largest, but he did garner smallest and most creative.
The smallest flag he quickly knocked out on a piece of paper the size of a couple of grains of rice. It was placed in a recloseable plastic bag so that it would not be lost (or course it did disappear once we were done). The most creative, as you can see, was John.
Jake didn't do the actual hair spraying, but it was his idea. So I have to give him credit. Amusingly when the results were announced the camp counselors made Jake go back before calling his name again.
He really doesn't like to be photographed so I have to sneak up on him. I'm only allowed a few pictures of his face, so the rest have to be on the sly. I took this picture while we were up in Vermont last month while we were near my old swimming hole. He never knew I was behind him as he was walking along. Times like that are why I turned off all the extraneous beeps and such that my camera makes. A brief click when I press the shutter release and the low whine of the motor that moves the lens are all that can be heard.
As for what boy did to deserve the honor, well it is a combination of idea and an execution too small (and long since lost) to picture. Both were done for the last day of soccer camp which I already mentioned at the beginning of the month.
A few weeks ago I mentioned in the post featuring Max there were contests concerning the teams' flags. Largest, smallest, and most creative were recognized. Jake didn't win for largest, but he did garner smallest and most creative.
The smallest flag he quickly knocked out on a piece of paper the size of a couple of grains of rice. It was placed in a recloseable plastic bag so that it would not be lost (or course it did disappear once we were done). The most creative, as you can see, was John.
Jake didn't do the actual hair spraying, but it was his idea. So I have to give him credit. Amusingly when the results were announced the camp counselors made Jake go back before calling his name again.
Wednesday, August 01, 2012
Artist of the Week: Soccer Camp
This week's artist is Jacob for his performance at soccer camp.
The one thing Jacob truly misses is soccer. His schedule is full, dare I say overflowing, with all his commitments in marking band, pep band, show choir band, robotics, and chess. He would love to play for his school, but there is no way he can shoehorn it in to his packed days.
And so we enroll him in a week long soccer camp every summer.
The organization we use is Challenger Sport's British Soccer Camps. The style of play taught by the coaches meshes well with how Jacob plays soccer and it is just plain fun. Jake has show some very clear leadership skills during this session. Admittedly his biggest goal was to convince his team to select a country that would have a white jersey, the campers are divvy up into teams that are named after different countries. The kids are then to wear the color associated with the country's world cup uniform. Jacob got his team to agree to be South Korea and garnered the color white.
His soccer skills are also worth noting. Even though he only gets to play once a year, he can still give good game. Heck he even bowled over one of the coaches today. Coach Dave was equal parts stunned at being knocked down (I'm so out of shape, I'm getting knocked over!) and being highly amused.
I'm hoping I can find a young adult league for Jacob to play in next year. It'll do him good.
The one thing Jacob truly misses is soccer. His schedule is full, dare I say overflowing, with all his commitments in marking band, pep band, show choir band, robotics, and chess. He would love to play for his school, but there is no way he can shoehorn it in to his packed days.
And so we enroll him in a week long soccer camp every summer.
The organization we use is Challenger Sport's British Soccer Camps. The style of play taught by the coaches meshes well with how Jacob plays soccer and it is just plain fun. Jake has show some very clear leadership skills during this session. Admittedly his biggest goal was to convince his team to select a country that would have a white jersey, the campers are divvy up into teams that are named after different countries. The kids are then to wear the color associated with the country's world cup uniform. Jacob got his team to agree to be South Korea and garnered the color white.
His soccer skills are also worth noting. Even though he only gets to play once a year, he can still give good game. Heck he even bowled over one of the coaches today. Coach Dave was equal parts stunned at being knocked down (I'm so out of shape, I'm getting knocked over!) and being highly amused.
I'm hoping I can find a young adult league for Jacob to play in next year. It'll do him good.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Artist of the Week: Sand Castle
The artist, or rather artists, of the week are Jake, Nate, Max, and Rebecca. It was a real pleasure watching all four of them working so well together during our entire time on the beach. They were very happy to help each other build various structures in the resulting sprawling complexes they created.
In the top picture you can see all four working away with the Lost Pearl in the background. I couldn't resist taking this picture of the pirate party boat in the background. It gives the fortification a little more meaning.
In the next picture, featuring Miss Rebecca, there is a close up picture of one of the many bridges. The kids found the sand to be ideal for building all sorts of ambitious structures. No internal drift wood supports were needed. The sand was just wet enough to hold together and form almost any shape. They didn't need buckets of water to keep the structure from crumbling away. The biggest threat was stray toddlers (of which there were mercifully few with the notable except of two cuties that were well corralled by their doting father) and the advancing surf.
The kids were careful to erect the main body of their fort high enough on the wash to lessened the danger of advancing waves, but not where the sand was too dry to stick together.
In the third picture you can see Nate and Rebecca working on the details of the fort. They discovered that the sand could hold a squared edge and as a result they made small houses throughout the structure. Near Nate you can also see a few more of the bridges. Nate was the main bridge builder and was in fact the one to request documentation of their efforts.
Anyhoodle as you can see the whole thing did sprawl out over a large area. The beach wasn't terribly crowded, which may have been been due to the fact it was early in the day and rain clouds were sweeping in. Either way the kids could build to their hearts content until it was time to go.
Now at the water's edge Jake made a sturdy structure with dribble castles on top. He had help from his siblings to create what was initially a thick wall to repel the waves. Then it evolved into a squat tower. It got washed over a few times,but that didn't deter Jake. He would repair and replace as needed. Max was more than happy to help out with the connecting wall.
Max, in fact, was happy to help out wherever he was needed. His siblings would remain working in one area, while he bounced about.
Here is one final view. Again it is looking out towards the ocean, but as opposed to the top picture it is down by the tower. I like how the breaking wave gives a note of impending mayhem.
It was a good weekend at the beach.
I am particularly proud of how well the kids got along and even went so far as to invite others to join in on the fun. On Saturday (these pictures were all taken on Sunday) two boys roughly the age of Jake and Nate helped work on the day's sand castle. For a brief moment I had six children and all was good in the world.
In the top picture you can see all four working away with the Lost Pearl in the background. I couldn't resist taking this picture of the pirate party boat in the background. It gives the fortification a little more meaning.
In the next picture, featuring Miss Rebecca, there is a close up picture of one of the many bridges. The kids found the sand to be ideal for building all sorts of ambitious structures. No internal drift wood supports were needed. The sand was just wet enough to hold together and form almost any shape. They didn't need buckets of water to keep the structure from crumbling away. The biggest threat was stray toddlers (of which there were mercifully few with the notable except of two cuties that were well corralled by their doting father) and the advancing surf.
The kids were careful to erect the main body of their fort high enough on the wash to lessened the danger of advancing waves, but not where the sand was too dry to stick together.
In the third picture you can see Nate and Rebecca working on the details of the fort. They discovered that the sand could hold a squared edge and as a result they made small houses throughout the structure. Near Nate you can also see a few more of the bridges. Nate was the main bridge builder and was in fact the one to request documentation of their efforts.
Anyhoodle as you can see the whole thing did sprawl out over a large area. The beach wasn't terribly crowded, which may have been been due to the fact it was early in the day and rain clouds were sweeping in. Either way the kids could build to their hearts content until it was time to go.
Now at the water's edge Jake made a sturdy structure with dribble castles on top. He had help from his siblings to create what was initially a thick wall to repel the waves. Then it evolved into a squat tower. It got washed over a few times,but that didn't deter Jake. He would repair and replace as needed. Max was more than happy to help out with the connecting wall.
Max, in fact, was happy to help out wherever he was needed. His siblings would remain working in one area, while he bounced about.
Here is one final view. Again it is looking out towards the ocean, but as opposed to the top picture it is down by the tower. I like how the breaking wave gives a note of impending mayhem.
It was a good weekend at the beach.
I am particularly proud of how well the kids got along and even went so far as to invite others to join in on the fun. On Saturday (these pictures were all taken on Sunday) two boys roughly the age of Jake and Nate helped work on the day's sand castle. For a brief moment I had six children and all was good in the world.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Artist of the Week: Fountain
This week the whole crew is Artist of the week, mostly because I don't know who got the original idea and I don't have the patience to listen to all the arguing if I ask the kids.
But I do know it was either Jake or Nate that started the whole fountain business. There are water jets at either end of the pool and we brought with us our hollow swim noodles. Somebody (or bodies) noticed that the noodles hole fitted very nicely over the jets. With a little bit of effort the water could be forced out through the length of the noodle, as demonstrated here by Jacob.
Nate and Max wanted in on the action and they teamed upat first on the other end of the pool. Since it was the deep end it was a bit tricky and required one person to keep the noodle in place and a second to direct the flow. They ultimately moved down to the shallow end where it was much easier. They had a blast working together and spraying their siblings.
At one point they had quite a battle going on with the pool floats (the green floating mats) being used as barriers. The kids even draped a mat over themselves and sprayed out from beneath. I got a few pictures, but the cell phone didn't do a good job in capturing what was going on.
Anyhoo, they all had fun and even Rebecca got to man the hose.
I particularly like this shot since I have all four kids in the picture and the fountain is arcing up and over Nate and Max. It was a pretty neat effect and I'm glad I had at least my cell phone's camera. I had forgotten our "real" camera, but I wasn't too worried being stuck with just a cell phone. It takes surprisingly good pictures, it's main failing is the lack of optical zoom.
But I do know it was either Jake or Nate that started the whole fountain business. There are water jets at either end of the pool and we brought with us our hollow swim noodles. Somebody (or bodies) noticed that the noodles hole fitted very nicely over the jets. With a little bit of effort the water could be forced out through the length of the noodle, as demonstrated here by Jacob.
Nate and Max wanted in on the action and they teamed upat first on the other end of the pool. Since it was the deep end it was a bit tricky and required one person to keep the noodle in place and a second to direct the flow. They ultimately moved down to the shallow end where it was much easier. They had a blast working together and spraying their siblings.
At one point they had quite a battle going on with the pool floats (the green floating mats) being used as barriers. The kids even draped a mat over themselves and sprayed out from beneath. I got a few pictures, but the cell phone didn't do a good job in capturing what was going on.
Anyhoo, they all had fun and even Rebecca got to man the hose.
I particularly like this shot since I have all four kids in the picture and the fountain is arcing up and over Nate and Max. It was a pretty neat effect and I'm glad I had at least my cell phone's camera. I had forgotten our "real" camera, but I wasn't too worried being stuck with just a cell phone. It takes surprisingly good pictures, it's main failing is the lack of optical zoom.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Artist of the Week: Driving
This week's artist is my not so little Jacob.
For a while his feet have been bigger than mine and that was not problem for me. Just this year he has gotten taller than me and that, well... was a bit disconcerting. The biggest milestone in his growing up, however, happened at the end of spring break.
My baby boy got his learners permit.
He breezed through the test and was issued a paper permit. A few days later his official learners permit arrived in the mail. In seven months he needs to get 45 hours of driving under his belt with a good chunk after sunset.
Then we'll have three drivers in the house.
I can't believe it's happening already. He's gone from playing with cars, to bumper cars, and now the real thing. He can't be that old.
For a while his feet have been bigger than mine and that was not problem for me. Just this year he has gotten taller than me and that, well... was a bit disconcerting. The biggest milestone in his growing up, however, happened at the end of spring break.
My baby boy got his learners permit.
He breezed through the test and was issued a paper permit. A few days later his official learners permit arrived in the mail. In seven months he needs to get 45 hours of driving under his belt with a good chunk after sunset.
Then we'll have three drivers in the house.
I can't believe it's happening already. He's gone from playing with cars, to bumper cars, and now the real thing. He can't be that old.
Thursday, March 29, 2012
DC FIRST
For the second week in row things will be a wee bit quiet around here this weekend.
Last weekend Jake was away Friday night through to Sunday afternoon at a show choir competition and sight seeing trip down in Williamsburg. He is in the band that accompanies both show choirs and as a rsult was invited along on the boat trip planned on Sunday. He had a great time, even with the epic thunderstorm Saturday night.
This weekend he has headed off to DC with his Robotics team. They are competing at the DC Regional FIRST Robotics Competition. A few weeks ago they came in second at the competition in Richmond hosted at VCU. The team has high hopes winning this weekend, if they do win the team qualifies for the big national competition in St Louis at the end of April.
Unfortunately we can't be here to watch the competition. Between, school, soccer, and lacrosse we can't just duck out to DC. Which is a bummer. Jake, however, is fine with that and I'm sure he's having a great time.
Last weekend Jake was away Friday night through to Sunday afternoon at a show choir competition and sight seeing trip down in Williamsburg. He is in the band that accompanies both show choirs and as a rsult was invited along on the boat trip planned on Sunday. He had a great time, even with the epic thunderstorm Saturday night.
This weekend he has headed off to DC with his Robotics team. They are competing at the DC Regional FIRST Robotics Competition. A few weeks ago they came in second at the competition in Richmond hosted at VCU. The team has high hopes winning this weekend, if they do win the team qualifies for the big national competition in St Louis at the end of April.
Unfortunately we can't be here to watch the competition. Between, school, soccer, and lacrosse we can't just duck out to DC. Which is a bummer. Jake, however, is fine with that and I'm sure he's having a great time.
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Artist of the Week: Pre-Festival Concert 2012
This week's artist is Jake along with his fellow members of wing symphony. This was recorded back on March 1st. The concert was a sort of pre-assesment warm-up. The following week they performed for a panel of judges. They did a bang-up job and got top marks from the judges. However, they were not done.
They not only played the three pieces here, but also did a sight reading with an unfamiliar piece. The director was given 15 minutes to organize her students, then they had to perform for the judge. Again they scored top marks. It was a proud day for all the students and their parents.
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Artist of the Week: Minecraft
This week's artist is the now camera shy Jake.
He really does not want anybody taking his picture now so I have to settle on a back view from way back in August. The more recent pictures I have are from band performances and I have already featured them. He'll eventually come around, I just have to give him his space. He is very much 15.
Anyhoodle I'm featuring him for what he has done on Minecraft. For those not in the know, Minecraft is a video game where you create everything from different textured cubes, for a better run down click here. It looks very interesting and Nate very much wants me to play, but I have demurred so far because I can see it can become a very big time sink. Case in point Jake.
He is currently the mayor of a town on one of the servers. Along with a few other co-mayors, he shapes how the town grows. He has his own buildings and has created some wonderful structures, one of which is a Spleef stadium (Spleef is a game within the game). Jake has created a neat little world and I wish I could show it you.
He really does not want anybody taking his picture now so I have to settle on a back view from way back in August. The more recent pictures I have are from band performances and I have already featured them. He'll eventually come around, I just have to give him his space. He is very much 15.
Anyhoodle I'm featuring him for what he has done on Minecraft. For those not in the know, Minecraft is a video game where you create everything from different textured cubes, for a better run down click here. It looks very interesting and Nate very much wants me to play, but I have demurred so far because I can see it can become a very big time sink. Case in point Jake.
He is currently the mayor of a town on one of the servers. Along with a few other co-mayors, he shapes how the town grows. He has his own buildings and has created some wonderful structures, one of which is a Spleef stadium (Spleef is a game within the game). Jake has created a neat little world and I wish I could show it you.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Artist of the Week: Winter Concert
This week's artist is Jacob along with the high school band and I must state he looks incredibly handsome in his tuxedo. The shaggy hair adds to the whole musician esthetic, he definitely looks like his brother Nate in this particular photo.
Last week was the winter concert and as always, holiday themed music was on the program. In the following video the first and last songs performed by the band are showcased.
The first one is "Jingle Bells Fantasy" by James D. Ployhur, the same fellow that wrote "Pomp and Circumstance." I think the band did a great job playing this song, I just wish my filming skills were a bit better to do the performance justice.
The next song in the clip below is "Sleigh Ride" by Leroy Anderson. In addition to Jacobs band, the school's symphony orchestra are preforming as well. There wasn't close to enough room onstage so the strings had to play off the stage and down in the orchestra pit. The combined pseudo symphony orchestra did a bang up job. This was the first time the Orchestra and band had ever been combined and I think they did a bang up job.
So sit back and listen to a little holiday music.
Last week was the winter concert and as always, holiday themed music was on the program. In the following video the first and last songs performed by the band are showcased.
The first one is "Jingle Bells Fantasy" by James D. Ployhur, the same fellow that wrote "Pomp and Circumstance." I think the band did a great job playing this song, I just wish my filming skills were a bit better to do the performance justice.
The next song in the clip below is "Sleigh Ride" by Leroy Anderson. In addition to Jacobs band, the school's symphony orchestra are preforming as well. There wasn't close to enough room onstage so the strings had to play off the stage and down in the orchestra pit. The combined pseudo symphony orchestra did a bang up job. This was the first time the Orchestra and band had ever been combined and I think they did a bang up job.
So sit back and listen to a little holiday music.
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Artist of the Week: Up and Coming
This week's artist is the very affable Jacob.
This was taken at the county fair. I'm not exactly sure who he is waving to, I do know that he was chatting with Max. It could be a sort of Mom-has-the-camera-let's-wave-and-make-her-happy sort of thing. I'll never know, teenagers are mysterious creatures.
Teenager.
That is a scary word and I still can't get over the fact that I'm the mother to one and soon to be two. Even scarier is that Jacob is taking driver's ed at school. I think I need to stop with the scary thoughts and move onto happier things, like Artist of the Week.
Which brings us to marching band. This past week Jacob's band got to perform at a local University during a football game. It was very exciting, however... Jacob was a bit disappointed that the band could only play music when the ball was dead or halftime. As he put it, "It was hard to get pumped up when you can't play." So his solution was to dance.
He turned out to be quite a dancer. Another band member joined in and color guarded cheered him on by chanting "Go Jacob! Go Jacob!" So not only does he play the trumpet, Jacob is an up and coming dance sensation. I wish I could have been there, this was all reported to me after the fact by Jacob and his father. It sounded like a good time.
This was taken at the county fair. I'm not exactly sure who he is waving to, I do know that he was chatting with Max. It could be a sort of Mom-has-the-camera-let's-wave-and-make-her-happy sort of thing. I'll never know, teenagers are mysterious creatures.
Teenager.
That is a scary word and I still can't get over the fact that I'm the mother to one and soon to be two. Even scarier is that Jacob is taking driver's ed at school. I think I need to stop with the scary thoughts and move onto happier things, like Artist of the Week.
Which brings us to marching band. This past week Jacob's band got to perform at a local University during a football game. It was very exciting, however... Jacob was a bit disappointed that the band could only play music when the ball was dead or halftime. As he put it, "It was hard to get pumped up when you can't play." So his solution was to dance.
He turned out to be quite a dancer. Another band member joined in and color guarded cheered him on by chanting "Go Jacob! Go Jacob!" So not only does he play the trumpet, Jacob is an up and coming dance sensation. I wish I could have been there, this was all reported to me after the fact by Jacob and his father. It sounded like a good time.
Friday, August 26, 2011
MCP Project 52: Connections
Marching band camp is all about making connections. You need to connect with your band mates, the music, and of course the drill patterns.
I life has been pretty much dedicated to band camp this week. I volunteered to help with handing out lunches (during the second full week the band boosters offer a different lunch each day for the kids to purchase), sit outside and keep an eye out for heat exhaustion, and help fit kids in the uniforms. As a result I've barely been home.
But all the hard work and time spent is well worth it when I see my boy making all the right connections.
I life has been pretty much dedicated to band camp this week. I volunteered to help with handing out lunches (during the second full week the band boosters offer a different lunch each day for the kids to purchase), sit outside and keep an eye out for heat exhaustion, and help fit kids in the uniforms. As a result I've barely been home.
But all the hard work and time spent is well worth it when I see my boy making all the right connections.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Mister Toad Wishes a Happy Birthday to Jake
Today I didn't take any pictures or drive anywhere with my children.
Instead I let my newly minted 15 year old laze about the house and watch too much TV. Meanwhile, I made his favorite dinner, beef ribs with the added bonus of hand cut french fries. As for his birthday cake, it was a decadent cheesecake I had whipped up Monday night.
It wasn't terribly exciting, but it was a nice way to spend the day.
As for the toad, Jake and I agreed he needed a hat and cane. Thus for my very silly boy, who has grown and matured so much this year, I made it so.
Happy birthday Jake!
(I did try posting this Wednesday night, but Blogger went a little crazy and I decided to try again in the morning)
Instead I let my newly minted 15 year old laze about the house and watch too much TV. Meanwhile, I made his favorite dinner, beef ribs with the added bonus of hand cut french fries. As for his birthday cake, it was a decadent cheesecake I had whipped up Monday night.
It wasn't terribly exciting, but it was a nice way to spend the day.
As for the toad, Jake and I agreed he needed a hat and cane. Thus for my very silly boy, who has grown and matured so much this year, I made it so.
Happy birthday Jake!
(I did try posting this Wednesday night, but Blogger went a little crazy and I decided to try again in the morning)
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Butternut Racer
When Jake was making his edible race car he started out with a butternut squash. It was heavy and carvable, a good candidate for the project.
I suggested that we cut into the bottom end of the squash and create two wheel wells. The narrower top would serve as the other end of the vehicle and have only one wheel. Hard candy sticks would act as the axles and rutabaga slices would be the wheels.
The final design was pretty cool. The vehicle had a very organic look to it. Sadly it did not roll very well. Forwards or backwards the wheels would rub and the vehicle would careen about.
Also we discovered that the candy sticks would melt after prolonged contact with the squash. There was just too much moisture in the squash and the sugar would start to dissolve, creating a sticky mes and a broken axle. So in the end Jake decided it was a dead end and moved onto his far more successful parsnip racer with cinnamon stick axles.
I suggested that we cut into the bottom end of the squash and create two wheel wells. The narrower top would serve as the other end of the vehicle and have only one wheel. Hard candy sticks would act as the axles and rutabaga slices would be the wheels.
The final design was pretty cool. The vehicle had a very organic look to it. Sadly it did not roll very well. Forwards or backwards the wheels would rub and the vehicle would careen about.
Also we discovered that the candy sticks would melt after prolonged contact with the squash. There was just too much moisture in the squash and the sugar would start to dissolve, creating a sticky mes and a broken axle. So in the end Jake decided it was a dead end and moved onto his far more successful parsnip racer with cinnamon stick axles.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Artist of the Week: Parsnip Racer
Or alternatively: Pimp My Parsnip.
This week's artist is Jacob and what a busy final three weeks of school it has been.
During the first week of June the high school had its various awards functions. Freshmen and Sophomore awards were combined while the Juniors and Senior each had their own ceremony. We had gotten notification from the school that Jacob would be receiving some sort of award, but for what was not mentioned. We all went to the ceremony and found out that Jacob is now a member of the Junior Honor Society. He also got recognized for his participation in the robotics club.
The following week was the big band dinner and awards and Jacob was recognized for being among the most improved freshmen. His playing has really progressed this year from the combined efforts of his band teacher and trumpet teacher.
Which then brings us to the last week of school.
The last week is dedicated to finals for the underclassmen. Jacob, by getting perfect scores on his two SOLs (one of the more unfortunate acronyms) was exempted out of two of this finials, World History and Geometry, and band was a combination of performing for graduation and returning his tuxedo dry cleaned.
The rest were mainly written exams with one notable exception. In one class, Honors Engineering Foundamentals, he had to design and build a car that was completely edible. The car also had to travel down a ramp with a slight incline and have a Lego person passenger/driver (the lego was the only inedible part).
After a couple of false starts with a butternut squash (looked great, but didn't roll) and cucumbers, he settled on a parsnip. I helped him with the electric drill, but the rest was his doing. The large wheels were cut from rutabagas, the small wheels from turnips, and the axils were cinnamon sticks (technically edible, but I certainly wouldn't want to munch on a whole stick). Interestingly enough we discovered that we have a drill bit that is the exact diameter of spaghetti.
In the above picture we have caramels holding things in place, but in the final entry Jacob switched to some rather large gumdrops. A bit of fruit roll-up stripes were added and a flag composed of spaghetti with a goldfish cracker. The resulting creation was quite jaunty and performed quite well. I wish I had snagged a photo before he took it to school, but at six in the morning I'm not thinking about my camera. At least I took a few photos of his first parsnip.
This week's artist is Jacob and what a busy final three weeks of school it has been.
During the first week of June the high school had its various awards functions. Freshmen and Sophomore awards were combined while the Juniors and Senior each had their own ceremony. We had gotten notification from the school that Jacob would be receiving some sort of award, but for what was not mentioned. We all went to the ceremony and found out that Jacob is now a member of the Junior Honor Society. He also got recognized for his participation in the robotics club.
The following week was the big band dinner and awards and Jacob was recognized for being among the most improved freshmen. His playing has really progressed this year from the combined efforts of his band teacher and trumpet teacher.
Which then brings us to the last week of school.
The last week is dedicated to finals for the underclassmen. Jacob, by getting perfect scores on his two SOLs (one of the more unfortunate acronyms) was exempted out of two of this finials, World History and Geometry, and band was a combination of performing for graduation and returning his tuxedo dry cleaned.
The rest were mainly written exams with one notable exception. In one class, Honors Engineering Foundamentals, he had to design and build a car that was completely edible. The car also had to travel down a ramp with a slight incline and have a Lego person passenger/driver (the lego was the only inedible part).
After a couple of false starts with a butternut squash (looked great, but didn't roll) and cucumbers, he settled on a parsnip. I helped him with the electric drill, but the rest was his doing. The large wheels were cut from rutabagas, the small wheels from turnips, and the axils were cinnamon sticks (technically edible, but I certainly wouldn't want to munch on a whole stick). Interestingly enough we discovered that we have a drill bit that is the exact diameter of spaghetti.
In the above picture we have caramels holding things in place, but in the final entry Jacob switched to some rather large gumdrops. A bit of fruit roll-up stripes were added and a flag composed of spaghetti with a goldfish cracker. The resulting creation was quite jaunty and performed quite well. I wish I had snagged a photo before he took it to school, but at six in the morning I'm not thinking about my camera. At least I took a few photos of his first parsnip.
Friday, June 17, 2011
MCP Project 52: Make It Tasty
This week's theme was "Make It Tasty" and normally this would be an easy theme.
But that would be supposing I could actually read. For some strange reason I read it as "Make It Trashy."
Oops
Fortunately I take food pictures as a matter of course and Jake saved the day.
Jake (or rather Jacob as he prefers to be called) was noshing on some left overs from his edible car project. He was about to eat a caramel cream when he noticed the heart shape of the cream center. He showed it to me and we agreed it was worthy of a photo.
So this week's picture is a tasty heart.
But that would be supposing I could actually read. For some strange reason I read it as "Make It Trashy."
Oops
Fortunately I take food pictures as a matter of course and Jake saved the day.
Jake (or rather Jacob as he prefers to be called) was noshing on some left overs from his edible car project. He was about to eat a caramel cream when he noticed the heart shape of the cream center. He showed it to me and we agreed it was worthy of a photo.
So this week's picture is a tasty heart.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Artist of the Week: Pink Panther
The artist, or rather artists this week is Jake and his high school band. Last Friday was their spring concert and one of their songs was "Pink Panther." A song, by the way, that is one of my all time favorites.
The concert was very enjoyable and the musicianship was great. I think they did a bang up job, none of the awkward moments that were all too common in middle school. We could tell that the kids had put a tremendous amount of effort and were definitely enjoying the music.
Not bad for a high school band.
The concert was very enjoyable and the musicianship was great. I think they did a bang up job, none of the awkward moments that were all too common in middle school. We could tell that the kids had put a tremendous amount of effort and were definitely enjoying the music.
Not bad for a high school band.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Picasso, Come And Gone
Today was the very last day you could see Picasso: Masterpieces from the Musée National Picasso, Paris at the only east coast exhibition of its seven city international tour. How a museum in a city the size of Richmond beat those in New York and Boston is a complete mystery to me, I'm just happy that I was able to go.
I have been mulling over a visit not long after the initial announcement. The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is not at all far and it would be silly of me not to at least try to see this rather landmark exhibit. Then a few weeks ago, out of the blue, Jake mentioned to me he would like to see the Picasso exhibit. A week later Rebecca saw a billboard and asked if she could go see Picasso.
Having two children independently request to see the show got me moving. The hard part would be coordinating their schedules. On my own I would in all likelihood go midweek in the morning, but that would not be possible with two school age children in tow. Which left us with the weekends. With only two left I decided that the penultimate weekend would be the better choice.
So we settled on Mother's day, sometime in the afternoon. I was able to buy the tickets in advance, guaranteeing us admission for when we wanted to go. And it was a good thing I had bought the tickets in advance, because the ticket holders line was ridiculously long.
Rebecca was a bit bored at first, the works at the beginning of the exhibit had a very muted color palette and were rather drab. About halfway through Rebecca started to perk as the the canvases became more. Jake meanwhile, is very much like me and we both carefully examined each work.
I wish I could share images of the exhibit, but photography was expressly forbidden in the galleries. So instead I have pictures of "Large Leaping Hare" by Barry Flanagan, a sculpture that was a big hit with Jake and Rebecca. You can see them silhouetted in front of the big picture window by the Hare in the top photo. The middle picture shows some of the details in the gilded bronze statue.
As for the last picture...
Rebecca requested that I snap a photo of her being menaced by the huge beast.
I have been mulling over a visit not long after the initial announcement. The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is not at all far and it would be silly of me not to at least try to see this rather landmark exhibit. Then a few weeks ago, out of the blue, Jake mentioned to me he would like to see the Picasso exhibit. A week later Rebecca saw a billboard and asked if she could go see Picasso.
Having two children independently request to see the show got me moving. The hard part would be coordinating their schedules. On my own I would in all likelihood go midweek in the morning, but that would not be possible with two school age children in tow. Which left us with the weekends. With only two left I decided that the penultimate weekend would be the better choice.
So we settled on Mother's day, sometime in the afternoon. I was able to buy the tickets in advance, guaranteeing us admission for when we wanted to go. And it was a good thing I had bought the tickets in advance, because the ticket holders line was ridiculously long.
Rebecca was a bit bored at first, the works at the beginning of the exhibit had a very muted color palette and were rather drab. About halfway through Rebecca started to perk as the the canvases became more. Jake meanwhile, is very much like me and we both carefully examined each work.
I wish I could share images of the exhibit, but photography was expressly forbidden in the galleries. So instead I have pictures of "Large Leaping Hare" by Barry Flanagan, a sculpture that was a big hit with Jake and Rebecca. You can see them silhouetted in front of the big picture window by the Hare in the top photo. The middle picture shows some of the details in the gilded bronze statue.
As for the last picture...
Rebecca requested that I snap a photo of her being menaced by the huge beast.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Life With a Teenager
Today I drove Jake to the train station for his big FIRST Robotics trip to DC.
He packed for his trip without and assistance from me other than supplying clean laundry. We had a very rational discussion of how much cash he should bring for meals. He asked if he should bring his laptop and I recommended no, it would be a pain to lug around and it would not be a good idea to leave it in the hotel room. Jake was a bit disappointed, but understood the reasoning (though was a bit surprised).
All in all he is becoming a very reasonable and responsible human being.
However he did end up leaving his camera in the car and I had to remind twice not to wander off from his luggage. So he's not quite there yet, but my boy is growing up.
He packed for his trip without and assistance from me other than supplying clean laundry. We had a very rational discussion of how much cash he should bring for meals. He asked if he should bring his laptop and I recommended no, it would be a pain to lug around and it would not be a good idea to leave it in the hotel room. Jake was a bit disappointed, but understood the reasoning (though was a bit surprised).
All in all he is becoming a very reasonable and responsible human being.
However he did end up leaving his camera in the car and I had to remind twice not to wander off from his luggage. So he's not quite there yet, but my boy is growing up.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Jake and Rebecca
The kids are really enjoying the Roku, Rebecca in particular. She has found a cartoon, Redwall, that is new to her and is working her way through all the episodes.
While Rebecca and I were watching Nate announced that his Latin teacher had declared the show as terrible and as a result he wasn't going to watch. Jake as opposed to Nate, was willing to give it a try and was charmed by the series. The two of them, oldest and youngest, started watching them together this weekend.
I caught the two of them curled up side by side on the couch sharing a blanket while watching the show. It was just too cute and I had to take a picture. The first shot was just plain awful, but the second one is a real keeper.
It's wonderful to see my children to be so happy together. For the most part they all do get along, but I feel like the day is filled with endless bickering. Moments like this tell me that deep down they do love each other.
While Rebecca and I were watching Nate announced that his Latin teacher had declared the show as terrible and as a result he wasn't going to watch. Jake as opposed to Nate, was willing to give it a try and was charmed by the series. The two of them, oldest and youngest, started watching them together this weekend.
I caught the two of them curled up side by side on the couch sharing a blanket while watching the show. It was just too cute and I had to take a picture. The first shot was just plain awful, but the second one is a real keeper.
It's wonderful to see my children to be so happy together. For the most part they all do get along, but I feel like the day is filled with endless bickering. Moments like this tell me that deep down they do love each other.
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