Time to Shine

December was filled with opportunities for several members of our family to take turns under the spotlight. There were performances of different varieties, and I loved watching my boys be the shining stars of their musical concerts, piano recitals, poem readings, and class plays! I also had the opportunity perform on stage myself!

At the beginning of December, I played "Marley's Ghost" in our ward's rendition of "The Christmas Carol" at the ward Christmas Party. My friend John played the part of "Scrooge", and my friends Kimi and Hailey were also in the play. We had a great time being together backstage (and onstage too)! I'm grateful to belong to a ward that is filled with people who I love! I liked being on the stage again under the lights, and I forgot just how much I used to truly love it when I was a teenager!

I teach piano lessons, and this is the first year I decided to have a winter recital for my students. My two current students, Ammon and Wyatt, did a fabulous job with their three pieces. They each played a church song, a Christmas song, and a duet selection with me. The best thing about having two students is the recitals are super short--it was done in 10 minutes and then we had treats and chatted for another hour!

Ammon is a first-year band student. Since the 5th graders attend the middle school, they have the option to attend band class. Ammon is playing the trumpet--just like his dad did when he was in school. In fact, it's the exact same trumpet his dad played! His little band class did a great job at the winter music concert with their 3 holiday pieces. I loved listening to him produce Christmas music--it really helped me get in the spirit of the season. We are so proud of Ammon and his musical abilities!


This is during the performance. He is at the far right blowing his trumpet.

Jonah and Micah's 1st grade class performed a little play with several pre-show skits in their classroom. I volunteer each week in their classroom, and all the kids were so excited for their upcoming play! They made all the decorations and costumes, and they practiced and practiced so they'd get it right. Jonah was in multiple skits as well as a participant in the play, but Micah opted to have only a small part in the play. They both got to be the part that they had wanted to be in the play--Jonah was the clock, and Micah was a reindeer. Neither one of them likes to be in front of a group of people, and I was so nervous for them! In fact, the reason why Micah wanted to be a reindeer was because after perusing the whole script initially, he knew that would be the smallest non-speaking part!!! Jonah did a great job with all of his parts, and I was so thrilled! Micah's part was at the very end of the play, and he did a great job being on the sidelines until it was his turn to go on. I enjoyed every minute of watching their 1st grade class--they just grow up too fast! They don't stay so little and cute forever!

Seriously, they are all just too cute!!! Their class performance was one of the highlights of my Christmas season--I was just bubbling with excitement along with them!