Once Upon a Lily Pad

Nash had the very important role of Egret #3 in the second grade musical, Once Upon a Lily Pad.

Second graders sure are cute.

Of course I made Nash pose in his egret costume (and too small baseball pants).

Meanwhile, Finn rolled down the grassy hill over and over.

Crew and Finn enjoyed the play just as much as I did.

Wednesday Night Split

Blake and Nash both had big nights one Wednesday so Troy and I had to divide and conquer. Nash had a Blue and Gold Banquet for scouts which typically involves a cake contest. But this year, they decided to simplify and have a cookie contest instead. We made homemade Oreos and Nash constructed a tray out of LEGO bricks, with LEGO minifigures surrounding as guards. 

Blake missed out on the Blue and Gold Banquet because it was a requirement for him to enter the science fair as a member of the Robotics team. He poured a ton of time and effort into researching robotic roller coasters and based his science fair project on what he learned.

In addition to his trifold poster, he created a Google Slides presentation with video demonstrations of current robotic roller coasters.

It was a great experience for him and it pushed him to work hard on a project that was optional for most other students. 

I wish I could have been in two places at once but they both ended the night with some participation awards that they were pretty happy about. It is so much fun to see their ideas and creativity come to life.

Nash's Baptism Celebration

Nash had a beautiful, simple baptism service. Nash's friends, Reese and Elle, sang "He Lives and He Loves Me," one of our favorite songs.

Nash had a crowd of friends there to support him.

And of course, lots of extended family. Nash's grandma gave a wonderful talk about baptism.

We gathered back at our house afterwards for a luncheon.

You never know what you're going to get when you put all the cousins together.

Nash is such a sweet brother to Crew.

And a favorite cousin to Sterling who has a sea of girl cousins on the other side of his family.

We set up a hot chocolate bar outside.

I think the only hiccup in the day was when Crew and Finn giggled uncontrollably when Nash was immersed in the baptism water. I guess they haven't been to very many baptisms and didn't know what to expect. We'll work on the reverence for the next baptism. Nash had a memorable day and felt so loved by all those who traveled near and far to support him.

Nash's Baptism

I took Nash to the same hills where I photographed Blake in preparation for his baptism two years earlier. Two years flew by and I couldn't believe we were already onto our second child being baptized.

It's too bad Nash didn't show any personality...

Nash is Eight

We kept Nash's eighth birthday simple because his baptism and after party were the next day. We were lucky to have both sets of grandparents in town for the event and we celebrated with dinner and cake.

Eight things I love about Nash:

1. He is a true middle child. He doesn't demand a lot of attention and doesn't get ruffled when things don't go his way.

2. He is a voracious reader.

3. He loves hugs and asks me to snuggle him at night.

4. He is a good friend. Many kids are attracted to his cool, collected personality.

5. He knows everything there is to know about fictional fantasy characters and can remember minute details about them.

6. He loves to tease me about my disdain for cutting raw meat.

7. He is witty and comes up with quick one liners and jokes.

8. He is prepared for baptism. He understands the importance of making covenants and choosing the right.

Happy birthday Nash! 

Christmas Piano Recital

Nash joined Blake in piano lessons only about six weeks before recital time and he was brave enough to perform a simple version of "Jingle Bells" at his very first piano recital.

Blake performed his Christmas favorite, "Carol of the Bells."

He was also the recipient of a pretty major award. His teacher implemented a year long point system contest. Students could earn points for practicing, coming to lessons prepared, playing with metronome, finishing books, performing in recitals and memorizing music. Blake took this contest very seriously and did whatever he could to earn more points. He ended up winning first place out of 90+ students. It was such an accomplishment and I can't think of a better way to be rewarded than for hard work.

The trophy he was given was no joke.

Nash hadn't been participating long enough in the point system for an award, but he still earned a new student pin that he was pretty excited about.

We were so proud of both boys for pushing through discomfort to do hard things.