Monthly Archives: February 2012

Snowman

It was mid-20s outside, but very sunny. It rose to 77 degrees in the living room. Eric and I decided to go outside and build some snowmen. Conditions on the south facing lawn next to the garage were perfect. The eyes and mouth were made of stones. Eric shaped the smile. We used honey locust seed pods for the hair.

Studio Janelle

Saturday night we went to dinner at Wendy & Stan’s house with a bunch of their friends.  Janelle (14), Hannah and Olivia (9) were really wanting a customer for a manicure/ pedicure.  Joe declined, but Eric and I agreed they could paint our fingernails Syracuse orange and blue. We each got one hand blue with an orange ‘party finger’ and one hand orange with a blue ‘party finger’.

I got my fingernails cleaned up on Sunday, but Eric has decided to keep his colors for a few more days.

Eric’s Beethoven Pizza Box Biography

Eric had to do a biography of a famous person and he chose Ludwig Von Beethoven. The biography had to be presented as a pizza with each slice of the pizza describing a different aspect of Beethoven’s life.

Ludwig Von Beethoven born December 16, 1770 in Bonn Germany; died March 26, 1827 5:45pm

  • Childhood – His father was mean to him. His father was very strict about making him play music. His father had brutal teaching methods. At the age of 7 he appeared in public to play music. Before he was 12 he played as an organist in the King’s Court.
  • Education – He had limited schooling, he only learned about music. His first teachers were his father and Christian Gottlob. He later studied with Haydn for one year, another famous composer.
  • Adult Life – He was 17 when his mother died. After his mother died he had to take care of his two brothers and sister because his father was an alcoholic. His job was a music composer. When he was 31 he started to become deaf.
  • Accomplishments #1 – Before he became famous as a composer he was famous as a pianist. He was the first composer to work for whoever he wanted to, not just one person. He did nine symphonies. Symphonies are complicated stories in music played by a full orchestra.
  • Accomplishments #2 – He was a hard worker. Beethoven rose at day break, no matter what the season, and went to his work-table. Some of his most important works were composed during the last 10 years of his life.
  • Influence – He composed musical combinations in a new way. People got to enjoy his music. Many babies grew up listing to Baby Beethoven.
  • Fun Facts – No one knows the exact birth date but they do know when he was baptized in the church. He moved from home to home 52 times. He was 5’11”. He was moody, grumpy and didn’t mind how he looked. He died at age 57 alone in bed during a big thunderstorm.

His 3D clues included a stein (representing his birth in Germany), a composer’s wand, an old pencil for recording his compositions, a megaphone to assist his hearing, a song, a lego’s house indicating how often he moved, and a CD cover from Baby Beethoven.

Open Winter

We have had an extremely open winter.  Rain rather than snow.  As of early February we have only had two snowfalls requiring our driveway to be plowed.  We have shoveled / scraped snow off our deck maybe 6 times in total.  The streams and ponds are full and covered with some ice – but not enough that I would walk on them.

It has not stayed cold enough that HP has been able to keep an ice skating rink in the park.  Kathryn has gone XC skiing twice with the snow fall being washed away by rain immediately afterwards.  Eric’s Wolverine Ski Club has only met once.