Ya-hoo for hymns with Latin subtexts.

I finally got my i-tunes copy of Vocal Point's "Nonstop" that has the best arrangement of "Nearer My God to Thee" I have ever heard. So that's what Gibbie and I have been listening to for the last couple months since Demya's uncle Curtis let us listen to it back in July.
Sooooo, I've been bad about the blog, again, but I do have a reason. I haven't been home much, or had internet access for several weeks. Here are some pics of Rollie for everyone. All have been taken by either Jessica or Jeff, so many thanks to them.

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The new school year is off and running a little slower than Rollie. He is now imitating animals and people and is trying to leave toddler-hood as fast as he can, while being cute about it, of course.
I'll try to update more often, and if i haven't posted in a while write me a note or comment and I'll remember to let you know what is going on over here.

Time Flew With the Coup

Hello once again. Demya is at band camp for the rest of the week so I thought I better take a little time to update those who read this unfortunately inconsistent blog.
Time has just performed a coup d'eta on this summer. Two months ago school was in and Rollie was running around playing with swords and daggers and just starting to express himself with a combination of signs and words. Now he is requesting which songs we lullaby him with (excellent use of a noun as a verb if I say so myself), singing to his doll, monkeys and Cady, and throwing honest-to-goodness, full-out temper tantrums when he doesn't get his way. He is no longer just a toddler, he's turned into a little boy over the last two or three weeks. Two nights ago he stopped us in the middle of dinner to pray again, He pushed his plate away, folded his arms and said "pray." Demya then helped him say a prayer over the food and he was trying to repeat what she was saying.

Demya has begun working with the "North Fork Marching Band" and it is going well so far. This is going to be an interesting experiment in the area. They are performing selections from the "Rocky" soundtracks and it is sounding pretty good already.



July has been insanely busy and somewhat stressful. Jessica and the "Kid-O's" have spent a few weeks with us while Allen has been studying for the bar exam. It has been great having them here but there isn't quite enough room for all the energy that is in the three runners (Riley, Emma, and Rollie). While they were here this last time we decided to look into another rental property, soooo, once again we are moving. We found an extremely pet-friendly house (3 bedroom, 1 bath with big yard, basement, and separate family and sitting rooms) for rent in a neighboring town (Cedaredge) at a fantastic rate. Demya will have a longer commute to school than she did this year, but I'm closer to more guitar students and the local guitar shop (It's the only guitar shop within 60 miles) so the lesson business should pick up for me which will help us get into our own home in a few years.

Here is a picture of the house.

*All photos in this blog are courtesy of Jessica.

School's Out... (continue '80s rock song here)

So, as I was sitting here eating my granola (because no-one else eats it)I remembered that I needed to update the blog at least one more time before the end of the month. School is officially over for Demya for the next 2 1/2 months except for the mandatory work-day next week, band camps this summer with the "North Fork Combined Band" (Hotchkiss and Paonia High Schools combined marching bands), and possibly a few classes over the summer.
This week Rollie decided to start blowing his own nose. He points at the tissues then starts sniffing and snuffing his nose until he gets the tissue. He wipes his nose with everything he can get his hands on.
We have been enjoying Glee on hulu and so we decided to get the 1st season on dvd last night so we could watch all the episodes we missed due to our lack of tv stations. We have one fuzzy analog channel that happens to be CBS.
Well off we go to do summer-time things now that it feels like summer and not early spring.

Has it really been a month?

Soooo, I've been shirking my duty to inform all interested parties of the happenings of the Gibber-monster. This weekend we took him to watch the 7th Annual Stock-dog Trials here in town. (Think of "Babe," the movie of the sheep pig.) He loved the "Cadys" and I think he was secretly rooting for the sheep. He discovered dandelions and the act of blowing the seeds to the four corners of the yard. Gibbie and Cady are being best friends for the moment and she lets him climb all over her and give her huge hugs and head-butts.
Demya is finishing up the school year by auditioning students for her show choir and for drum major for this next year's marching band. We are performing an experiment with the Paonia marching band by combining the two bands, which are tiny, into a larger small band that has a larger selection of students in each section. We hope it will be a success and will allow us to be more competitive with the other bands in the area.
I have a new guitar student that will be starting in the next few weeks. I bought a Wales rugby ball that Gibbie and I have been tossing and kicking around for almost a week now. He thinks it's a great toy because he's never quite sure which direction it will bounce when he throws it. He constantly tries to share our new ball with Cady. Fortunately she is not interested in it or it would not have survived the week.
I will attempt to keep this blog updated in the coming months of vacation. 'Til then, Bye.

Easter

So this has been a really busy week for us. Benson has been involved in a community production of "Nunsence". The musical has run from Thursday to Sunday and I think that he is very ready for it to be over. I played my horn at church on Friday. We had an Easter musical devotional, I had to be a part of it so I took Rollie and we attended that while Benson was performing at the theatre.
We went to March for Mutts this weekend with Cady. She really isn't getting around very well any more, but she managed 4 laps. She almost gave up at 2 but when we told her that she was being sponsored and that the money was going to rescue dogs like her, she managed a 3rd and 4th lap. There were prizes for this event and Cady, believe it or not, was named the most obedient. She even got a beautiful ribbon that she strutted around with for more than an hour before she let us take it off and put it up. Here is a picture.


Rollie enjoyed his Easter. We went to March for Mutts rather than an Easter Egg Hunt. I think that he enjoyed the dogs more than he would have with the Easter eggs. Here are some cute photos of our weekend.

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Rollie growing up

This is Demya. I have high jacked the blog in an effort to get my mind off of the dessert show that I'm putting on tomorrow. This week Rollie really began fitting into his 18mo cloths. We are really happy about that because most of the cloths that we have for the little guy are 18mo including this amazing 3 piece suit just in time for Easter. We decided to put him in it on Sunday to rave reviews at church.
I thought that he was SOOOO cute that I had to snap a picture or two to share. He kinda resembles a line backer.

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"Hen Wlad fy Nhadau" or "Sunshine and Spring Weather at Last"

Yes, that is a real title for a song and no the latter is not a traslation. Hen Wlad fy Nhadau is the Welsh National Anthem and is more correctly translated as "Land of Our Fathers" and Gibbie and I have been listening to it and other Welsh songs because they keep the Gibber-toss's attention longer than english, spanish, and italian lyrics.
We've been able to start our walks again and have enjoyed rather mild weather in our neck of the mesas.
Now for what everyone has been wanting... pictures of Rollie.

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