After dinner the boys randomly decided they wanted me to teach them to play the piano. Simple, no? So I taught them how to hold their right hand over the keys and play a note with each finger, C to G. They weren't that impressed and thought they sounded better on their own. Then I asked them if I could play a few of their favorites to sing along with and that idea passed with flying colors.
By this time, Morgan has climbed up into my lap and I've got one boy on each side. My neighbors must have loved our "music" as the kids tried to remember to play with a finger at a time and not a pounding fist. It was a hard one to remember when you can't distinguish your playing unless you play louder than the others! We started with "Follow the Prophet" which Easton loved singing/reading along with the different verses while McKay thought the tune he played sounded more authentic than the mere notes on a page I played. I know because he told me so.
Next we went for Easton's fave, "Teach Me to Walk in the Light," and I had to chuckle because Easton said that one makes him sleepy every time. It was his lullaby from our first day getting acquainted. The heat began to rise between Morgan and McKay so I decided to step up with a rousing crowd pleaser.
Easton heartily sang "Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam" while the other two played, fought and sang along intermittently. As we started the second verse though, things took a turn for the worst, yet has had me smiling all night. Here's verse #2:
Jesus wants me to be loving
And kind to all I see,
I notice McKay and Morgan have a death grip on one another over my left arm/hand and a tug of war ensues.
Showing how pleasant . . .
They are now screaming at each other while Easton sings away and I play on.
. . . and happy His little ones can be.
Morgan loses the tug of war and plops dramatically into the keys with a wrenching, high-decibel screeeech. I was positive our windows would shatter! She really knows how to loosen the jaw and fling it wide open to allow all the sound those lil' lungs can muster! It's impressive for one so small, yet as welcome as fingernails on a chalkboard. I'm sad to report she practices it often to demand what she can't have. It's not my favorite.
And then all is right with the world because we've hit their favorite chorus:
A sun-beam, a sun-beam,
Jesus wants me for a sunbeam.
McKay can't decide whether his hands should explode into a sunburst on the piano keys or in the air like usual, so he mixes it up and does both each time. Why limit yourself, right?!
Easton's too intent reading the words to remember any other body movements.
And Morgan, well she redeems herself. She characteristically throws her little fists to her eyes and does the peek-a-boo signs which are her sunburst movements, completely forgetting she was in the depths of despair just a nano second ago.
A sun-beam, a sun-beam,
I'll be a sun-beam for him.
Ah I get such a kick out of these guys!
Ryan and I are off to explore Stockholm Sweden the weekend. He was going to run their marathon, one of the very few run on a Saturday, but our intense travels with my parents a bit ago deterred his training. We're just going to eat our way through the city instead. Stockholm is having their food festival and National Day this weekend so there will be plenty to do, see and eat! I love eating without my children. It's a whole new level of happiness I never knew existed before having the cute, pint-sized, demanding, opinionated eaters!
I should note that Ryan has still kept up his running and now plans to supplement with biking. I think the kids flying down the hill in front of our place reminded him of how fun it is. That was at least a week ago though, when we last saw the sun make a brief appearance.
Today Ryan up and decided (or more accurately, let me in on his plan) to ya know, just run home from work tonight. "Why not?!" I thought skeptically, "It only takes 20 minutes to drive so perhaps I'll see him before bedtime!" I know there's all sorts of hidden trails and a more direct route between our place and his work, but after I knew he'd been running at least an hour with hills I packed up the kids to see if we might happen upon him if he needed us. He's not prone to carry water with him, but perhaps the sheer moisture in the air is taken in by osmosis?
We got home after an unsuccessful venture out but I circled our neighborhood a second time to ensure McKay had sacked out to my favorite Eva Cassidy song, "What a Wonderful World." Even better on repeat! Ryan was home! All sleepy heads were now revitalized with their personal jungle gym sitting before them! [Insert inner groan.]
When I asked what prompted the run home, Ryan just said he wanted to scope out the trail for his bike rides to/from work. Man, I love him! And he changed Morgan, put her to bed and did the dishes! He knows the way to my heart!
