Winter Band Concert

We always appear to be late in finding out about Tony's band concerts, but I think we are ahead of the game this time. The Winter Band Concert is at his high school on Wednesday, March 3rd at 7pm.

Halloween Fun

I wanted to share some pictures from Halloween. Emily went as Hannah Montana, Vinnie went as Captain Kirk. Kristen even dressed up as a baseball player to pass out candy. And Brian got into the action with is Spock shirt. It was a fun night! We don't have any pictures of Tony, but he was there. He passed out candy and had some friends stop by to help him out.

Here is a link to some photos: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=156097&id=657663199&l=ca543261b7

Also, here are some photos from a few weeks ago when I took Emily and Vinnie to the pumpkin patch: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=150329&id=657663199&l=a46a08489c

Soccer Season Coming to a Close

Fall soccer season is nearing the end. Emily has a game the 24^th and the 31^st and then her season is complete. Both games are in Dublin at the fields that are walking distance from our house.

Tony and Kristen appear to have a game on Sunday somewhere near Easton at 2pm? That is the information that Tony gave me last night when I spoke to him briefly. He said that is what the coach told them at the end of the game last week. We do not have any more details than that.

They also have a game in Dublin on Sunday, November 1^st. I suspect that this will be their final game. I do not know if their team will play in any tournaments, but we leave for Disney that next weekend so they would probably miss the tournament.

So, if you were looking to get to a game this season, those are your remaining options.

Band Performance

Brian went to Tony's band performance last night and video taped it. I have uploaded it for anyone that wants to see it. (If you get these updates emailed to you, you are going to have to visit the website to see the video http://www.donatokids.com/blog)

Tony points out that this is not their entire set as they still have another song that they are working on and will add.

At the beginning Brian has no clue where Tony is, but he eventually finds him.

Dance Machine!

Tony's marching band finally got to perform for the first time last week. The first game was cancelled due to the weather (actually, it was played on a Saturday, but the band did not play). As part of their performance, they put down their instruments and have dance moves to perform. I haven't seen it yet, but it reminds me of the OU band doing their dance moves. Brian went to the game last week and did capture a picture of Tony doing the dance moves.

This Friday the game is away and they perform in full uniform for the first time this season. We are not traveling to this game as it is a ways away.

It is fun to listen to Tony get excited about band this year. He purchased a new (better) trumpet and is taking lessons from one of the band assistants after school one day per week. Just this week, he practiced and tried out for a "stand out" part (like a solo, only it is a group of them that stand together and perform). He did not get it, but the fact that he worked hard and attempted it was an inspiring change. And his attitude after he learned that he did not get the stand out part really shows how much he has matured recently.

Kid Updates

Just thought I'd give a quick update on the kids.

Tony: Just returned from a week at band camp and the strangest thing is happening ... he is enjoying band this year. Like really, really, really enjoying band. He had a ball at camp and has nothing but positive things to say about all things band. It is confusing, but good to see. I sent a schedule of his football game performances to many. If you want a copy, please email me.

Kristen: Finally got the all clear on her foot last week when she went to her follow-up appointment. She is cleared for all physical activity, so bring on soccer. She and Tony should be playing on the same soccer team this year and games will be on Sunday afternoons. We will keep you updated as soon as we know the schedule (although, this league isn't always forthcoming with details).

Also, Kristen got her stitches out on Friday and her finger is healing well. Hopefully we can keep her in one piece for the remainder of the year.

Emily: Emily is wrapping up summer camp. I can tell that that novelty has wore off. She started off the summer by wanting to go to camp every single day, even if I was home from work. That isn't the case anymore. I can barely get her there on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesdays. I think she is ready for the change of pace and for school to start.

One quick Emily story - last June we went to the the Dublin pool and we discovered that in order to go down the water slides, Emily needed to pass a swim test which was swimming in the area that the slides dump into. In June, she tried it twice and could not do it. I was surprised, but figured we'd do it again later. Due to the weather and the trip to Myrtle, we didn't make it back to the pool in July. We went back in August and Emily wanted to try to take the swim test again. We decided to try it on our own before the lifeguard test and I figured out what was going on ... there was quite a current in this area. Which I guess is why they require the test. But Emily did it twice and could not make it across. I figured she would give up the idea, but as soon as the whistle blew for break Emily announced she was going for the swim test.

I was hesitant to let her, but figured that I should let her go and let it play out. She went for the test and I was nervous for her and wondered how it would play out and if she would be disappointed. She started across and had no problems, but that was with the current. She started back across against the current and she kept going and going and going and going! SHE DID IT!! She made it across and got her wrist band so that she can go on the slide. I was so proud of her. (And so glad I kept my mouth shut and let her try.)

The kids start back to school on August 25th. I think Emily is ready. Tony is getting there with the band schedule. Kristen? This is going to be a complete shock to her system.

Happy Father's Day

We hope everyone had a wonderful Father's Day. We had a rather low-key day, but I hope that Brian enjoyed it. We tried to get a picture of Brian with the kids and I think we got a couple of good ones. We have some good outtakes too.

Last day of school

Tomorrow is the last day of school! I can't believe that this time tomorrow we will have a junior, freshman, 2nd grader and a Vinnie. Two years from now we will be celebrating Tony's high school graduation. It's going so fast, I'm afraid to blink!

Game, Set, Match!

As many of you know, Tony has made the tennis team for his high school. We are so thrilled for him. He has taken lessons and stuck with it since last year and his hard work has paid off.

We are waiting now to hear what he will be playing: varsity, jr. varsity or expedition. Those try-outs have been going on for the past week. He is hoping to hear tonight. He should also know if he will be playing singles or doubles.

We are on pins and needles and he is hoping to hear tonight. We will keep you posted.

Final Basketball Update

Tony's team played in the finals on Saturday. They went in ranked #2 and they played against #1.

Tony's team played well and can hold their head up high for taking 2nd place in the tourament.

Basketball

Today was Emily's last day of basketball. She did well today! It has been a bit tough on her as there are 3 2nd graders and 2 1st graders. The 2nd graders are all friends and ... well, they are better ball players, so those two factors led to the first graders not seeing the ball a lot which was quite frustrating to Emily. I can't blame her, but it was a good lesson for her. She still says she enjoyed basketball and she loves to dribble the ball around the house. We are shopping for a basketball hoop for the driveway now so that she can get in some more practice before next season.

Tony & Kristen have both wanted to get more practice in also and haven't been able to recently. We didn't realize how much the kids used it at the other house.

Tony & Kristen both are in the middle of tournaments now. Tony had his first tournament game today and they won!!! His team plays next Saturday, but Tony won't be in town as he is traveling with the Robotics team. If they win next Saturday, he plays again on March 7th.

Kristen's first tournament game is tomorrow at 1pm. We'll keep you posted.

Grades are in!!

Tony & Kristen received their report cards last week. Oh my goodness, they did so well. We are really proud of them.

Tony
English II - B+
Spanish II - C+
AP US History - B+
Biology - A
Chemistry - A-
Algebra II - A-
Band - A
GPA: 3.619

Kristen
Spanish I - A-
Algebra I - A-
Exploratory Art - A
Language Arts - A-
Science Seminar - B+
Social Studies Seminar - A-
GPA: 3.668

Pumpkin Carving

Tonight we carved pumpkins with the kids. We missed doing it last year due to scheduling, so it was fun to restart the tradition. Here is Kristen with her pumpkin.

I swear Tony was smiling before I asked him to look at the camera. Something has happened the past few years where Tony developed a not-so-rare condition where he is unable to smile for the camera. I guess as a teen you have a reputation to keep when it comes to family events.


Poor Vinnie did not get a pumpkin, but Emily shared her camera time with him. Maybe next year he can get a pumpkin of his very own.

Here is Tony's final result. He did a cool lion. Reminds me of a Lion King pumpkin.

Kristen, always the creative one, did not use a pattern and freehanded her design and then carved it.

Emily did a spooky pumpkin carving.

Now the neighborhood hooligans that have been smashing pumpkins late at night had better leave our pumpkins alone or we are going to have some upset kids on our hands. They put a lot of work into these and did a great job!

D.S.P.N.

Donato Sports Programming Network - D.S.P.N.



Today was Emily's last soccer game for the fall season. She scored a goal and got a medal for participating. She had a GREAT 4th quarter to end it all. When they blew the whistle to end the game, I wanted them to keep going. It was fun to see her so engaged.

Tony's last soccer game is tomorrow. He is enjoying soccer this year and is even talking about finding an indoor league to play in.

Both Tony and Kristen are taking tennis lessons. Kristen had her first ever lesson last week. She immediately retracted her "tennis isn't a real sport" comment that she had made to Tony earlier. I guess she figured out it wasn't as easy as it looked and it took a bit more ability. She said she was tired after lessons and I overheard her complaining to her Dad about her arm hurting her. Emily is going to start up tennis lessons again during the next session which will be right after Thanksgiving.

Also after Thanksgiving Tony and Kristen will start basketball. They are playing with the same league as previous years. We won't have schedules until right before the season (as they wait to form teams until the school teams are formed). We will distribute schedules as soon as we receive them and their first game will be December 6th.

We also got word that for the first time ever they will start a basketball league for 1st and 2nd graders in January '09. I asked Emily if she was interested and, surprisingly (at least to me), she got really excited about playing. So, we might have basketball games for Emily too.

So, if anyone is bored out there, just give us a call and you can help shuttle these three kids to basketball, tennis, and indoor soccer.

Pumpkin Patch

Last Thursday Emily's school had a family night at a local pumpkin patch. It ended up that we got there late and had to leave early but we tried to make the best of it. Vinnie just hung out in his wrap and checked it all out.

Kristen tortured Tony - which is what she enjoys the most.

And Emily did the zip line:

Run Away

Tony's last cross country match was last Saturday. He was excited as he broke his P.R. (personal record, for the unhip LOL). He crossed the finish line at 21:26.

Keep in mind that his first match he ran the same distance in almost 24 minutes. So he really, really worked hard and improved his time.

And the good news is that he enjoyed it and wants to keep up the running. He is asking Brian to keep hound him about getting out there and running, so I'll open it up to the lot of you to do the same.

Grades are in!

It is time for the interim grades to come home for the kids. We are proud as all of the kids are doing well this year.

Tony has taken a heavy load this year and is learning a bit more about having to work for grades. Nothing wrong with that lesson.
Algebra II - B-
AP US History - B
Band - A
Biology - A
Chemistry - B+
English II - C
Spanish II - B+

Kristen is continuing to show that she is quite the little student!
Algebra - A
Language Arts - A
Science - B+
Social Studies - A-
Spanish - B

We had Emily's parent/teacher conference last night, but I am running out of time so I'll try to come back later and update.

Sports Update

Emily is enjoying soccer this season. She still runs hot & cold with her attention during the games, but she is having fun so I am trying to relax a bit about when she starts wandering around the field.

The Saturday before last she had a great game and scored 3 goals!! I hope to get the pictures uploaded soon. Her next game is this Saturday at noon.

Tony's soccer team won yesterday. He is having fun playing this year and has commented that all of his cross country running is helping his soccer playing. He has energy to spare and when other kids are coming off winded, he is still ready to go!

His cross country is going well and he is enjoying it. He does better when it isn't so hot out as seen by his times on Saturday. He said that the heat took it out of him, plus there were a lot of hills. He only has a handful of matches left. This Saturday it appears that he is traveling out Andrea's way for a meet. He is at the Community Center in her town.

It sounds like Kristen is going to give tennis lessons a go and see if she likes it! I am glad that she is trying something and going to get active again!

Tony's Soccer Schedule

I have emailed out Tony's soccer schedule. If you have not received it and want a copy, please email me.