Free Concert

After a full day of berry picking and pie making and general running around with our homeschool group, it was time for naps. I gave Sparkle special permission to take a nap, and told the girls that if all three of us got good naps, I'd take them to the free concert this evening. Sparkle obediently fell asleep in the car during the hour long drive home. It took Glitter a bit longer to fall asleep because she was in a chatty mood. I tried my darnedest to stay awake until we got home and mostly succeeded.

I conked out as soon as I unload the car and put Glitter in her bed. I saw Sparkle wandering around with a book before I reached complete unconsciousness. Sparkle was also up and about when Wander got home and hugged me awake. He was exceptionally wonderful and offered to make supper.

After eating, I gathered up the girls and headed to the pavilion. Wander had to prepare for a class he's teaching tomorrow, so he couldn't come with us.

I'm not sure if we had a good time or a bad time at the concert.

On the bad side: It felt like I spent two hours sh-ing the girls. We started out on the lawn, hoping some of our friends would join us, but we didn't see anyone. It wasn't crowded and Sparkle was having fun running around when a man with an official blue "staff" shirt told me to tell her that running wasn't allowed. Bummer. The girls started squirming around on the mat. I told them they'd have to be quiet once the music started. No such luck, something silly would cross Glitter's mind and she would start giggling and making faces and squirming against Sparkle. Sparkle would then tickle her and make funny faces in return. I'd separate them and they'd be quiet for a few minutes, but then they'd be right back at it. After intermission, I switched us to the regular seats, instead of the lawn, hoping that the formality of chairs would calm the girls down. No such luck. I felt really bad when the couple in front of us got up and left in the middle of the show because the girls were so obnoxious.

On the good side: The music was really good. The weather was perfect. Both girls had enough energy to walk the long path to and from the car. I wasn't loaded down with stuff - no purse or bag. I had to carry only the lightweight mat, and the girls carried their sippy cups and snack bags. The lawn was well cared for and there were no bugs. The girls enjoyed the music during the brief moments when they actually listened instead of played.

On the really good side: The very last song was Respighi's "Pines of Rome" and as soon as the first few bars were played, Sparkle recognized it from "Fantasia 2000." (She didn't know the name, but she recognized the music.) She sat enraptured and paid much more attention to that song than to any of the other music. She noted that the pictures were different from the whales in "Fantasia" and enjoyed describing some of the scenes to me on the walk back to the car.

Sigh. How can I get my children to shut up and keep their hands to themselves?