Rockin' the 80's Child Style

This year, our Broadway Bound theme was "Rockin' the 80's We had great songs like "We built this city" "I love rock and roll" "Stray Cat Strut" and "We are the world" to name a few.




We all had a blast getting ready for this show. Complete with crimped hair and blue eyeshadow! It was a great night and such a fun show!!!!

The Family that Plays together, Stays together...

We have had a very busy Summer (as usual) but a very fun Summer. The entire family was cast in Kudzu's productions of "Bye Bye Birdie"




Stephanie was cast in the lead role playing Rosie, along side with her real life boyfriend Derek Preusch playing Albert. They had great chemistry together (go figure) and did a great job!




I was not only cast in the show, but was also the choreographer!




Our favorite scene in the show, had to be the Shriner scene! It was a real show stopper, and got a laugh from everyone in the theatre thanks to our friends Chris Wade, Shane Childers, Norm Arent, BJ Jackson, Jack Nicholes and JT Taylor. They were so much fun to work with and really brought comedy to every scene they were in!





Brittanie played Alice, one of Kim Macafee's friends and was able to sing in a quartet singing "One Boy" Great job Brittanie, she was a perfect Alice! Kyleigh was cast as a teen in "telephone hour" and Kameron was cast as Randolf Macafee, Kim's younger brother. Everyone did a great job!!!!

Let me share this whole new world with you

This Summer, Kidzu's camp show was "Aladdin" We had a great turn out, and a very talented group of kids! Brittanie played a Narrator, Taylor played a villager, and Kameron played one of the ding dong guards. Kyleigh decided that she, like her momma likes the "behind the scenes" kind of work.





We had a fantastic young lady, Ireland play the Genie, and really took over the role! She even let me put blue stage makeup on her for the "full effect"




As the director, its always nice to have a great team! This year, I was able to take a break from doing the choreography as well as directing. Although I do love to just do it all myself, this year I really welcomed the break from a local dancer! It was so nice! ;)



Kameron and his best bud, Philip were both guards and played off each other very well! Very funny!!!


In our camps, we not only put on a fun show, we allow the kids to learn all areas of the Theatre. They learn not only Blocking, Acting, Stage direction, and choreography, they build their set as well. This year I had a fun idea to actually have a flying carpet that flies! I know right!!! The kids all took turns taking a ride on the magic carpet, while our dear crew took turns running the fly! It was sooooo heavy with the kids on it! We love you Richard! ;)

Broadway Bound Performance

A New Year

Okay, so I haven't been the best at keeping up with our blog (and honestly haven't told many about it because I've been such a slacker on it) But... one of my goals this year is to update more often. Since being on facebook, I find that I am keeping up with a few friends but failing to include others that may be interested as well. SO, I thought I would start of my first blog of the year with an update as to what the child family has been up too.

So many changes in our home this past year! And so many trials for Kery and I to go through as parents of teenagers! Not only did our oldest graduate from High School, she moved out and is living on campus for her first year of college. A HUGE adjustment for us both. Not only did she move out (coming home on weekends to visit) she met and is now dating her first real boyfriend Derek. Which, Okay, thats all normal teenage stuff right... but to get the wammie of having all of this happen at once! I think that I am handling it all pretty well. Kery on the other hand...NOT so much. I was more worried about her living on campus, far away from home! (okay, so its 30 minutes... but seems like forever when its your child) Kery is more worried about the Boyfriend! I think that the both of us have more gray hair in the past 4 months than we have ever had!!! And poor Derek! He's probably wondering what he has gotten himself into with all of this! To give him some credit, he is really good to Stephanie and seems to adore her (and she adores him) And he is really good with the kids. Even seems to enjoy spending time with our family, which I remind Kery all the time is a "good thing" It's the boys (like a few that I dated) that dont feel comfortable around the family that you have to worry about! ;) And I thought it was supposed to get easier as they get older!!!!!

Brittanie and Kyleigh are both in middle school this year. And have grown up so much the past few months! We have 2 more teenagers in the house now! Brittanie has now moved into Stephanie's room and was very quick to "help" her pack her things when leaving for school. Although she has to share on the weekends, she is enjoying her "own room" during the week. Im just trying to gather the energy to get upstairs and really make the rooms their own. 3 bedrooms upstairs need to be re-modled, re-painted and re-decorated. One of these days I will get to it. (thats what I keep telling them anyway!) Both the girls are playing in the band. Brittanie the Trumpet and Kyleigh the Baritone. (which was totally her choice and so funny to watch her try to carry to the car everyday! Its as big as she is!!!)

Kameron has taken on playing the piano this year and is doing very well! He HATES that he just cant sit down an play like a pro (a trait that he gets from his momma) He wants to be the best at everything he does and it hating the fact the he actually has to practice to get better. *but we are working on that He is involved with the scouting program at the church and looks forward to Wednesday nights when he has a meeting! Right now we are working on the "pinewood derby" which is so new to me! Im the clueless Mom at scouts!! (poor Kameron) Derek has told Kameron that when he was in scouts he won 4 years in a row, so Kameron is looking forward to cleaning up at this years derby! ;)

Taylor is enjoying her first year in Broadway Bound. (A group that teaches the kids about theater) She will be in her first Broadway Bound show in just a few weeks and getting pretty nervous about it. Her BFF Alexis is in the class with her which gives her a little more courage, but we shall see!!! She is now in the 1st grade and doing very well! I love to hear all her stories of what everyone did that day at school. Quite the little know it all that one! I had to laugh earlier in the week when she brought home her Newsbook where she wrote a letter to Kery and I that said "I love yoll sooooo much" My little country girl trying to sound out "Ya'll" She makes me laugh everyday, that crazy girl!!!

Kery and I are keeping busy trying to keep up with busy kids!!! I am working at the school during the day and still trying to pick up some at Fridays on the weekends. Im also teaching Broadway Bound as well as trying to keep up with the lastest show's going on with Kudzu/Kidzu. We are getting ready for auditions for our next show "Charlotte's Web" next month. As crazy as it all sounds, I dont know what I would do without all of it!!! I guess I wouldn't know what to do with myself if I wasn't crazy busy! Kery is a great help and my back up! Always there to help out where needed! And thank goodness he is here to help with homework (when did that stuff get so hard???) lol

So that's just a quick update on the crazy Day in the Life of a Child!

Our Family

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How fast a year goes by!

Okay, So I haven't been the best at updating my blog. Actually, I had forgotten about it since discovering facebook. But I have enjoyed reading others' blogs and thought I should update ours.

So much has happened in the Child home this past year that it would be impossible to try to catch you up. So I've decided to just write about a few of our year highlights!

Stephanie graduated from High School in May and is now away at College. This has been an adjustment for us all. Although I'd have to admit, it was easier than I thought it would be. The hardest part was having a child in my home for 18 years that was asleep in her bed almost every night in our home. I knew where she was, what time she got in, and who she had been with. Its so hard to cut those strings and allow her to experience life as an "adult" and to give her that freedom to make the right choices. As parents, we are to lay the foundation and let them build on it, but its so hard to stand back and watch. We are proud of her accomplishments and are looking forward to see the direction that she takes her life.

Brittanie is in the 8th grade now and will be in High School next year. She has stepped into the role of "the oldest" in the house rather quickly. She was nice enough to "help" Stephanie pack her things for school, while moving in her things right behind her! She has grown up so much this past year and has turned into a teenager over night. She is still playing the trumpet in band and doing a great job. Brittanie just play a great role in a production of "Mulan" at Kudzu playhouse this past fall. She played one of the ancestors of Mulan (one of the best parts if you ask me) She has really found her own on stage now and is doing well. Brittanie was always the shy one of the family (she gets that more from the Child side) and its been fun to watch her grow while on stage.

Kyleigh is now in Middle School! I cant believe that! She also is playing in the band and was giving a choice of what instrument she would like to play. At first she was told the trumpet, but I like for the kids to each play a different instrument, so they told her she could pick a different brass. Kyleigh chose to play the Baritone. Which is hilarious to watch her carry, its almost as big as she is. She is really enjoying it and we love that she found something that she enjoys so much! Kyleigh is doing really well and has been seizure free for 2 years now. She is doing so much better in school and really turning into a beautiful young lady!

Kameron and 4th grader now is still on the Honor Roll and Principals list. He started taking piano lessons this year and is doing really well! I love to watch him play (he reminds me so much of myself when I was his age) He doesnt have the patience to sit and practice, he just wants to be awesome right out the gate! (as with everything he does) He is also very active with Scouts, which he LOVES! Im not sure if its the actual program or hanging out with his "guy friend" that he loves more. Kameron also played in "Mulan" this past fall and had one of the lead roles. He played Yao, one of the soliders that befriends Mulan. He did a great job and we were so very proud of him. I was very impressed about his growth as an actor and how well he was able to take direction already! If he contunies with it, he will be a star one day! :)

Taylor, a 2nd grader this year is our funny girl still!!! You never know what that girl is going to do. We had a friend stop by the other day to pick up some things from us and I heard Hannah Montana playing (rather loud) from the other room....next thing we knew, there was "Hannah" aka Taylor standing there in full costume puttin' on a show. When we didnt notice her at first, she went to the other room, turned up the volume and proceeded with her show for us all!!! That girl is a mess!

Some of the highlights of this past year:

Disneyworld for Spring Break with Grandma Child

We spend 9 days in Orlando and were able to fly Grandma Child out there to join us for a few days. We spent 6 days at the parks and enjoyed swimming at the Hotel pool.

Wicked at the Orpheum:

We were lucky enough to get to see Wicked this Summer and had amazing seats! It was such a fun experience for all of us and one that we will never forget. After the show, we met Marcie Dodd,( the girl who played Elphaba) at the stage door! What a fun night!

Broadway Bound:

We did a 70's show for Broadway Bound in January and had so much fun!!! The kids all dances to popular songs of the 70's and each of the kids had a chance to have their own solos!

Christmas 2008:

We we able to spend Christmas with the Howell family in Indiana and had a great time with the cousins! We drove up their Christmas day and spend 4 days with them. All had a great time, until the last day....I got really sick (flu) and had to make that drive home. It was miserable!!!! Nice that that was the only downer! Kimberly made the best cookies for us all while we were there too....one of the things I will miss this Christmas!!!

Mulan:

The entire family was able to take part of this show in one way or another! Kameron and Brittanie were named characters, Taylor had a fun, brief little bit and Kyleigh, Stephanie, Dad and I were able to work backstage. Good times had by all!

Our New Puppy TaLuLa

We are so excited to add TaLuLa to our family. She was an early Christmas present for me. I was actually looking at Cocker Spaniels, and was back and forth for weeks. Cockers are not the best dog for kids. But then we found a breeder in Arkansas that had Mini Schnauzers and feel in love with this little girl.





The first few days we thought that she was so sweet, quiet and a little lady. But she has since warmed up too us and she is pretty active. She loves to chase the kids, but isnt quite used to our wood floors, so just as she picks up speed... she slides across the floor into whatever is in front of her.

Klansie and Gabbie are not too happy with me right now, but Klansie is coming around. She thinks she has a new baby, which will help me out! We have been really lucky that she doesnt cry at all at night! She is such a sweetie!

Reading Fair

A special thanks to Stephanie for helping the kids put together their Reading Fair projects! Once again, she saved the day with her amazing talent!




Kyleighs' project was "James and The Giant Peach"


Kameon picked "Charlottes web"

Although they didnt win, both did a great job. I had a chance to see the winners, and all I can say is that Im glad I wasnt a judge. They were amazing!

Another Teenager in our home!

Brittanie turned 13 on November 8th, so we now have two teenagers in our home! She decided to have a skate party with her Best Friend Katie, who also just turned 13 this past month. So they invited 50 of their friends and we had a private skate party for them!

The kids all had a blast, as well as the adults!!! A few of us got out there with the kids, just like we were teenagers again ourselves!



Lucky for us, we all survived with nothing broken! It was a fun night for Everyone. HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRITTANIE!!!!!

Birds of a Feather

Yesterday we spent the day as a family at a park behind our new local library. It was a beautiful day to spend outside and we soaked up about 4 hours of it!




The kids had a blast feeding the geese and ducks!

We were able to do a little fishing as well. Although we didn't catch anything, the kids had fun throwing the line out then realin' it in!

After the park, we stopped at Baskin Robins for some ice cream then headed home for "Family movie night." It was a fun day to just spend together. Things get crazy around the house at times, and its nice to just take a day to chill out and relax together.

This is Halloween

Its the end of October! I cant believe it! Halloween!!! I love this time of year. The air is crisp, and the fall colors are beautiful! Although I have to admit... trying to trick or treat while freezing is no fun at all!

We started off the night with some pumpkin carving. (My least favorite thing to do on Halloween) Kameron and Taylor did most of the work while Stephanie and Brittanie helped.
Kameron had picked out his pumpkin while on a field trip to the corn maze. Kyleigh did what I wanted to be doing! She was able to grab a quick nap before trick or treating!


Taylor had a blast digging all the "gut" out of the pumpkin. Here she is seen stabbin' her pumpkin as it screams for mercy!

Brittanie was a little grossed out my the remains of the pumpkin while helping Taylor.

After the pumpkin carving, everyone was off to get ready for the night. They all picked out their costumes and began to transform!

Stephanie was dressed in her own creation. She was a marionettte complete with strings and all.

Brittanie was a "Dead Cheerleader"

Kyleigh was one of our favorite characters from "Wicked" Ms. Elphaba.

Kameron was a Zombie

Somehow we missed getting a solo picture of Taylor, but she is seen below in the group picture as a fairy. Kyleigh is holding Stephanie's strings.

Once we were all dressed, we headed off to the church for "Trunk or Treat." The kids made several trips around the parking lot to load up on goodies with all of their friends. We went on a hayride as well as to a haunted house. The local fire department has a pretty scary haunted house. Kameon, Kyleigh, Taylor, Dad and I had to sneak out the "woosie" door half way through, but Stephanie, and her friend Kyle, Brittanie and her friends Katie and Chandler we able to make it all the way through. Although we enjoyed seeing Brittanie and her friends running for dear life through the field from the man chasing them with a chainsaw...(as sick as that may sound!)

I too was able to have some Halloween fun. Stephanie and I had decorated the cafeteria complete with black lights and strobes. I dressed as a Hippie although the kids all thought I was Ozzy Osbourne! They all had fun while coming through the line asking us if we could do this every year! We played Halloween music and handed out candy as well. It was a really fun day for us all!!!

We are back in business!

We are back up and running! We had to delete our last blog and create a new one. Sorry! But I finally got a chance to slow down a bit and create our new blog.



Stephanie has been keeping busy with marching band. She is never home anymore and is really ready to slow down a bit, get a job and enjoy the rest of her Senior year!

Kameron is doing great in school and just brought home straight A's again! Way to go little man!!! He is enjoying being in Broadway Bound this year and is doing a fantastic job! He even has a solo singing part! :)

Kyleigh and Brittanie are both in Broadway Bound as well! Brittanie is in the Troupe which has had a couple of performances already. And Kyleigh is in the group called "Blast" Kyleigh too had a solo in the song "Don't go breakin' my heart!" Its been really fun but a LOT of hard work. We have our show in January and time is really starting to get away from us! We will be ready though.. the kids are wonderful!

Taylor is having a good time in Kindergarten. But she is getting in trouble because she is too much of a social butterfly! She wants to talk instead of doing her work! This didn't come to a surprise for us though... she has ALWAYS been this way!!! She just cant help herself! :) (I think she comes by it honestly!!!)

Kery is starting a new job tomorrow which has been very exciting and scary at the same time for us!!! He is really excited about this new job but nervous about leaving his comfort zone! We are looking forward to our future with the new company and all the challenges and possibilities that it brings!

I am keeping busy as usual! I am working for the school district as well a teaching 2 classes for Broadway Bound and picking up a few nights at TGIFridays. Although I have to admit, I need to let something go and it looks like Fridays' is in the lead! :) I am also so excited to be able to serve on the Board for Kudzu!(our local community theatre) I am excited to be a part of such a great team and I'm looking forward to working with all of them!!!