The two moms and I had our third Art Vistas lesson with Connor’s class on Monday.  With a group effort this year, my prep time for the lessons has been a lot easier than last year.  I looked through the syllabus briefly on Sunday, then one of the moms and I prepared the materials and cut out the clays on Monday after drop off in the morning.  By 10am, our kindergarteners marched into the cafeteria to join us.  Connor came give me a hug, then sat down with the class.  I started the introduction and briefly reviewed the few new vocabularies for this lesson, foreground, middle ground and background.  Then between another mom and I, we used four paintings to discuss the new vocabularies and review some previous terms, ie shapes, lines, colors and textures.  The kids were attentive and eager to answer questions, but we did take a bit too long as I realized that they were getting more restless by the last painting.  We quickly wrapped up to allow the third mom to go over the hands on project “clay animals” with them.  The kids returned to the tables and started working with the ball of clay we prepared for them.  We assisted them to use a wooden tool to roll out the clay, then they chose an animal template to cut out the clay animal.  At last, they used some tools to add textures and designs for the animals.  As soon as the children were mostly done, the moms and I tried to quickly take the artwork and the tools away before they had a chance to overwork the clay.  Finally the teacher led the kids back to their classrooms while the moms and I took the artwork to the Kiln room and cleaned up.

     We had signed Logan up for a tennis lesson which was supposed to begin last Saturday, but unfortunately the class was cancelled due to rain.  We ended up taking it easy at home the rest of the day.

    On Sunday morning, two of Logan’s friends came over to play.  Maxim joined Logan and Connor running around the house playing with whatever, while Lucas sometimes preferred to just sit down using the school computer program Dreambox or making origami.  Logan and Maxim also played with the remote controlled cars for quite awhile.  Later Lucas suggested playing a game of chess; Connor was happy to join him.  They were playing quietly with each other, and Connor appeared to be making all the proper moves every time I walked by.  Even though Connor was down to the King, he seemed to be proud of what he had accomplished.  Later, Logan also played a game with Lucas too.  All the boys enjoyed popcorn for snacks and sandwiches for lunch.   They had a good morning, and Connor had fun hanging with them.

     In the evening, it was my turn to hang with my girls.  I left Stuart and the boys at home while I went for a dinner with Kathy, Michelle, Robyn, Julie and Theresa to celebrate Kathy and my belated birthdays.  It was a yummy dinner, and as always, we had a great time chatting with each other.  By the time I returned home, the boys had just gone to bed.  I went into the rooms to check on them.  Connor woke up shortly after I stood there staring at him; he held my hand and whispered Mama to me before I tucked him back in.  Logan was sleeping comfortably with his head on one of his stuffed animals.

     Connor always loves dress up, and lately he is transforming into someone else everyday.  He loves to be a superhero; he alternates between being a Batman, Captain America and a ninja.  He would love to wear it out to the stores if we would let him.  Sometimes he will surprise us with a visit from the doctor too.

     Just remembered now to post some of my favorite photos from the photo session back in October at a little park in Hayward.

    It was a cloudy and rainy day yesterday, so we just stayed home and be lazy on my birthday.  We played games and both kids also worked briefly on their projects.  Stuart has been assisting Logan with his American Hero project which he is writing about Neil Armstrong.  Connor and I were trying to brainstorm and make something for his 100th Day of school using one hundred pieces of an item.

    In the afternoon, we got ready to go to an early dinner at a Brazilian BBQ restaurant.  We arrived before our reservation time to allow us a walk around Santana Row. The boys were excited to see the huge chess set that was displayed in the outdoor area.  They first put the pieces in the proper places and then started playing a game.  Recently Connor has learned the game well; he knows where the pieces go and made the appropriate moves against Logan.  A few minutes later, other kids came by and since it was almost time for dinner, we moved on to let others play.

    The dinner was nice and we all enjoyed it.  We started with the salad bar; Stuart, Connor and I went out to the bar to pick our selections while Logan stayed at our table.  Next was the fun part.  The boys liked the idea of flipping the cards when we were ready for the waiters to bring by the BBQ meats.  Logan loved the drumsticks and did not care to try other meats.  He kept eyeing for more coming around in the dining hall and he had at least 5 of them in total.  For some reasons, Connor did not care for the meats; he enjoyed the salads and cold cuts he selected, and later loved the shrimp cocktails.  Stuart and I had the opportunity to try different meats and cuts.  We both enjoyed beef the most (ribeye, prime ribs, sirloin and filet mignon).  It was a very pleasant dinner, and we were all very stuffed at the end. 

     The boys wanted to return to the chess game and we all welcomed a walk again.  This time they finished a whole game and Connor took the win as Logan had his back to the King and lost track of it.  We picked up a cake for me at a bakery at the end before we made a walk back to the car.  At home, Connor and Logan set up the candles and they sang the birthday song to me.  Connor also decided that we should continue to celebrate my birthday for another day, so I apparently can decide what we should do today as well. 

     This past week was a memorable one.  I applied for a position at the nearby Kaiser right after New Year, and I was given an interview on Monday.  It had been so long since I had gone to an interview and I had to dig out my over 10 years old suit for it.  The interview went well and I was told that they would let me know the decision next week.  But I received a call on Tuesday that they had decided to offer me the job, then everything afterward became fast paced.  Stuart and I talked, and I slept on it; this was a good opportunity that I could not let pass.  So on Wednesday, after I had a chance to let my current boss know, I accepted the position.  There were a few adjustment and surprises regarding my start date and my upcoming vacation bids, but we ultimately settled down my transfer plan.  The rest of the week, as I was still overwhelmed with the idea of leaving the workplace where I have been for 14 years, I had to continue to work while starting to share the news to my other bosses, colleagues, physicians and some patients.  On top of that, I was assigned to train a new pharmacist on Friday  I imagine my remaining four weeks there will go by quickly and I look forward to facing a new challenge very soon.