Tonight we went to watch "One Act Plays" at Gresham H.S. There were five of them and they were all pretty good (but we, in our unbiased way, thought the one she was in was maybe the best). We were impressed with the acting all around and the student directors.
At the end of the night, they gave out awards (they had six judges). The gave out about 8 or so awards for honorable mention actors and then five or six "Superior Actor" awards for the night and Hannah got one of these! We were so proud! There were lots of talented kids -- probably about 70 or so total actors -- and this was kind of a first real acting role for Hannah. They gave one overall top actor and one top actress award (which one of her friends got). Anyway, it was a fun night of performances and a special honor for Hannah!
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In other news, Lani and I were finally able to go to the "Membership Class" at Abundant Life Church and so now I guess we are real, full-fledged members. There were about 75 people at this class -- lots of new folks coming all the time.
Also, I coached Caleb's YMCA team in their first game today. Caleb had fun and got several rebounds and shots (but no points). We lost the game 10 to 12, but it wasn't too bad for our first outing. I got to see who the "gamers" are and what we need to work on in practice this week.
Saturday, January 27, 2007
Saturday, January 20, 2007
What a week!
We had a holiday Monday for Martin Luther King Day, then out of school on Tuesday and Wednesday for snow days, then a 2-hour late start on Thursday. . . finally yesterday we had to get up and go to work & school on time!
Today the cold weather has left and we're in the upper 40's. More snow would be nice, but they're forecasting highs in the mid and upper 40's for the next 10 days.
I'm coaching both Levi and Caleb's YMCA basketball teams and this morning had my first practices with both of them. Seemed like a lot of nice kids. I have no idea how skilled we are compared to other teams, but it should be fun for my kids and everyone. We get one more practice and then have our first game! I'll let you know how things go.
Today the cold weather has left and we're in the upper 40's. More snow would be nice, but they're forecasting highs in the mid and upper 40's for the next 10 days.
I'm coaching both Levi and Caleb's YMCA basketball teams and this morning had my first practices with both of them. Seemed like a lot of nice kids. I have no idea how skilled we are compared to other teams, but it should be fun for my kids and everyone. We get one more practice and then have our first game! I'll let you know how things go.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Snow play!
Here are some pictures of all our boys and Molly playing in the snow this morning at Hollydale Elementary School. There were 25-30 people there all the time we were playing, with some leaving and more coming all the time. Fun, fun, fun!
There are more pictures downloaded to my Flickr Photo page too!
There are more pictures downloaded to my Flickr Photo page too!
Snow day!
Hey! It snowed this morning -- and is still snowing pretty hard as I type this! There wasn't a single flake at 6:00 when I first looked out and so most schools were going ahead with plans to open. Then within a half-hour it started snowing and has just kept going. My district finally called at about 7:40 to say that we were going to open 2 hours late (and many teachers and some students were already at school); then, within 15-20 minutes they decided to just close for the day (along with almost every district in the Portland metro area).
Here are a few pictures looking out our windows a few minutes ago:
Maybe I can post some more pics later after we go play outside!
Here are a few pictures looking out our windows a few minutes ago:
Maybe I can post some more pics later after we go play outside!
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Snow!
So, my phone rang at 6:10 this morning and it was part of our school "phone tree" calling to tell me that my district was on a 2-hour late start. Yea! I reset my alarm and went back to bed (after looking out the window and not seeing any snow, however). Then when I got up around 8:00, it was really snowing hard. Within a half-hour my district decided to just stay closed for the day! Woo-hoo!!! So I had a nice day, getting to read the whole paper, do the crossword, clean up some of my garage, do a couple of little home projects, and go for a nice run in the afternoon.
Levi is feeling better, but still on meds. We'll see if he goes back to school or not in the morning. Caleb, on the other hand, is still not well at all and was still throwing up and feverish tonight. I guess we'll take him to the doctor tomorrow.
Lani's mom, Gladys, got here tonight -- coming over from Montana. She said there were a few slick patches, but no major problems.
Hannah goes to All-State Choir tomorrow. We had eight of the girls at our home tonight and I rehearsed their music with them (they get tested in quartets when they arrive there tomorrow).
Well, I guess I'll probably have to go to work tomorrow, so I'd better head off to bed! :~)
Levi is feeling better, but still on meds. We'll see if he goes back to school or not in the morning. Caleb, on the other hand, is still not well at all and was still throwing up and feverish tonight. I guess we'll take him to the doctor tomorrow.
Lani's mom, Gladys, got here tonight -- coming over from Montana. She said there were a few slick patches, but no major problems.
Hannah goes to All-State Choir tomorrow. We had eight of the girls at our home tonight and I rehearsed their music with them (they get tested in quartets when they arrive there tomorrow).
Well, I guess I'll probably have to go to work tomorrow, so I'd better head off to bed! :~)
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Ups & Downs today
Up: It was supposed to snow today, so everyone was kind of excited!
Down: Mostly, it never happened.
Up: While eating dinner tonight, we looked out the back patio door to see HUGE white flakes coming down! It looked cool!
Down: It only lasted about 10 minutes, leaving just a trace amount on everything.
Up: I stayed home from work today.
Down: It was because Caleb & Levi are both sick. Both are running some fever (101-102). Levi has conjunctivitus (pink eye) and impatigo (like staph in his nose) and is on antibiotics and eye drops; Caleb threw up in our room last night, necessitating a 4-something a.m. cleaning of a dresser, carpets, and most of the bathroom floor and fixtures.
Up: Lani gets to stay home tomorrow.
Down: It's because the guys are still sick.
Up: It's finally getting a little wintery!
Down: It doesn't appear that there's enough snow or ice to close schools! (although maybe something could happen overnight)
Up: Lani's mom is coming tomorrow from Missoula.
Down: The roads may be bad, so pray for her safe trip.
Up: I'm going to sign off and hop in bed by 11:00 (a rare occurence indeed!)
Down: I'm exhausted and have an official "observation" tomorrow.
Down: Mostly, it never happened.
Up: While eating dinner tonight, we looked out the back patio door to see HUGE white flakes coming down! It looked cool!
Down: It only lasted about 10 minutes, leaving just a trace amount on everything.
Up: I stayed home from work today.
Down: It was because Caleb & Levi are both sick. Both are running some fever (101-102). Levi has conjunctivitus (pink eye) and impatigo (like staph in his nose) and is on antibiotics and eye drops; Caleb threw up in our room last night, necessitating a 4-something a.m. cleaning of a dresser, carpets, and most of the bathroom floor and fixtures.
Up: Lani gets to stay home tomorrow.
Down: It's because the guys are still sick.
Up: It's finally getting a little wintery!
Down: It doesn't appear that there's enough snow or ice to close schools! (although maybe something could happen overnight)
Up: Lani's mom is coming tomorrow from Missoula.
Down: The roads may be bad, so pray for her safe trip.
Up: I'm going to sign off and hop in bed by 11:00 (a rare occurence indeed!)
Down: I'm exhausted and have an official "observation" tomorrow.
Monday, January 08, 2007
First Week of January thoughts
Lots of interesting things this week. . .
Sunday at Abundant Life Church we must have had about 50 baptisms! The first Sunday of every month is always a "Baptism Sunday" and there were probably a dozen or so of these planned ones, but then after both the 2nd & 3rd services there was just a spontaneous response to the lesson and invitation and people just kept coming and coming! It was exciting (and also threw the schedule way off!)!
I signed Caleb & Levi up for YMCA basketball and indicated that I'd be willing to be a head coach. So, last Friday in the mail I got a letter saying I needed to show up Saturday for a mandatory coaches meeting. Turns out that I'm head coach for both of their teams. Should be a busy and fun season coming up!
Tonight it was back to regular rehearsals for Portland Symphonic Choir. I've been carpooling with my friend Phill Hurley and tonight we added another former college friend to our carpool as Lois Maxwell auditioned and made the choir. Hey, I know some more of you singers out there that might enjoy doing this too! A select group of us (32 of the 120) are singing this Monday for a special MLK community event. This should be a good experience.
The hopefull buzz in the area among kids (& teachers!) is that we might get some snow here this week! Who knows, really, but we'll all be watching the weather and the skies starting tomorrow night and all day Wednesday!
OK, sports fans. Anyone see this coming? In football, Florida totally spanks Ohio State! Sorry to my Texas friends, Rick & Dawn, who are huge Buckeye fans and were at the game. Hmm. . . that means that Boise St. is the only undefeated Div. I team! And way to go Oregon Ducks in knocking off #1 UCLA on Saturday in college basketball; if they only hadn't lost to USC two days earlier. Then there were the Cowboys blowing the game against the Seahawks; those are my two favorite NFL teams, so I guess I'm happy with either one winning, but Tony Romo will probably have a long off-season thinking about what could have been.
Well, that's enough for now. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!
Sunday at Abundant Life Church we must have had about 50 baptisms! The first Sunday of every month is always a "Baptism Sunday" and there were probably a dozen or so of these planned ones, but then after both the 2nd & 3rd services there was just a spontaneous response to the lesson and invitation and people just kept coming and coming! It was exciting (and also threw the schedule way off!)!
I signed Caleb & Levi up for YMCA basketball and indicated that I'd be willing to be a head coach. So, last Friday in the mail I got a letter saying I needed to show up Saturday for a mandatory coaches meeting. Turns out that I'm head coach for both of their teams. Should be a busy and fun season coming up!
Tonight it was back to regular rehearsals for Portland Symphonic Choir. I've been carpooling with my friend Phill Hurley and tonight we added another former college friend to our carpool as Lois Maxwell auditioned and made the choir. Hey, I know some more of you singers out there that might enjoy doing this too! A select group of us (32 of the 120) are singing this Monday for a special MLK community event. This should be a good experience.
The hopefull buzz in the area among kids (& teachers!) is that we might get some snow here this week! Who knows, really, but we'll all be watching the weather and the skies starting tomorrow night and all day Wednesday!
OK, sports fans. Anyone see this coming? In football, Florida totally spanks Ohio State! Sorry to my Texas friends, Rick & Dawn, who are huge Buckeye fans and were at the game. Hmm. . . that means that Boise St. is the only undefeated Div. I team! And way to go Oregon Ducks in knocking off #1 UCLA on Saturday in college basketball; if they only hadn't lost to USC two days earlier. Then there were the Cowboys blowing the game against the Seahawks; those are my two favorite NFL teams, so I guess I'm happy with either one winning, but Tony Romo will probably have a long off-season thinking about what could have been.
Well, that's enough for now. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!
Monday, January 01, 2007
2007 Resolutions
Here are things I'd like to do this year:
Read the Word daily.
Invest time with my kids -- daily, if possible.
Sleep when I should! At least seven hours nightly on weekdays.
Exercise at least three times each week.
Be a servant and encourager to those I work with and live by.
Manage my finances better.
I could list more, but some of these are biggies for me.
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And now for a sports note: How about those NW college football teams?!!!
It was thrilling the other day to see Oregon St. win their game with the gutsy 2-pt. conversion, but then tonight's Boise St. win over Oklahoma was just incredible!
Read the Word daily.
Invest time with my kids -- daily, if possible.
Sleep when I should! At least seven hours nightly on weekdays.
Exercise at least three times each week.
Be a servant and encourager to those I work with and live by.
Manage my finances better.
I could list more, but some of these are biggies for me.
--------------------------------------------------------------
And now for a sports note: How about those NW college football teams?!!!
It was thrilling the other day to see Oregon St. win their game with the gutsy 2-pt. conversion, but then tonight's Boise St. win over Oklahoma was just incredible!
Happy New Year!
Just thought I'd make my first post of 2007 and wish you all a Happy New Year!
I'm thinking some of my goals/resolutions for 2007, but don't think I'll take time to list them right now -- except that one goal for certain is to get back into regular Bible reading. More later. . .
We enjoyed a nice evening out with friends and family members - eating, playing games (I even played Pinochle for the first time in a long time), visiting, and toasting the new year!
I'm thinking some of my goals/resolutions for 2007, but don't think I'll take time to list them right now -- except that one goal for certain is to get back into regular Bible reading. More later. . .
We enjoyed a nice evening out with friends and family members - eating, playing games (I even played Pinochle for the first time in a long time), visiting, and toasting the new year!
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
2006 Christmas Letter
Greetings to friends & family near and far!
I had good intentions of writing a “Christmas letter” earlier than this, but here I am late on Christmas Day finally getting it done. We’ve enjoyed a nice family time today in our own home and then shared Christmas dinner with Lani’s sister’s family, Troy & Shauna Wagner and their kids. Last week we drove over to Idaho and spent a few days with my folks in Meridian (near Boise). We got a nice snowfall there the last day of our visit, so that will have to count as our “white Christmas”! Tomorrow our Montana relatives arrive.
As most of you know, this was a year of change for us in lots of ways. We’ve had job changes, moved back to Oregon after nearly six years in Texas, and of course had new schools for our kids. Looking back, we are incredibly grateful for all the prayers and support that carried us through these times of upheaval and change. Change is always hard, but I think we’re all doing pretty well in our new circumstances.
I won’t write a long letter full of the details of each of our lives, but I should mention a few things. Hannah has gotten quite involved with music & drama at Gresham H.S. and recently was selected for both All-State and All-Northwest Choirs. Micah is playing in band and also singing in choir in his freshman year. Caleb and Levi attend school at Hollydale Elementary where I teach music (we live less than two blocks away and walk together each morning!). Lani is teaching TAG half-time and subbing on her open days. I am enjoying singing as a staff singer with the Portland Symphonic Choir.
We have a new church home – after much visiting around the area – at the Abundant Life Church (you can check out their website at www.coolchurch.com). Our kids really enjoy the programs there!
We’ve spent a lot of time and effort these last few months working on remodeling and updating our home. Most of the major things are finished now and we look forward to having friends and family visit! Here’s all our new contact information:
(Information edited from this blog post, but included in actual letter)
May God bless each of you in this new year!
The Dalzells – Dan, Lani, Hannah, Micah, Caleb, & Levi
I had good intentions of writing a “Christmas letter” earlier than this, but here I am late on Christmas Day finally getting it done. We’ve enjoyed a nice family time today in our own home and then shared Christmas dinner with Lani’s sister’s family, Troy & Shauna Wagner and their kids. Last week we drove over to Idaho and spent a few days with my folks in Meridian (near Boise). We got a nice snowfall there the last day of our visit, so that will have to count as our “white Christmas”! Tomorrow our Montana relatives arrive.
As most of you know, this was a year of change for us in lots of ways. We’ve had job changes, moved back to Oregon after nearly six years in Texas, and of course had new schools for our kids. Looking back, we are incredibly grateful for all the prayers and support that carried us through these times of upheaval and change. Change is always hard, but I think we’re all doing pretty well in our new circumstances.
I won’t write a long letter full of the details of each of our lives, but I should mention a few things. Hannah has gotten quite involved with music & drama at Gresham H.S. and recently was selected for both All-State and All-Northwest Choirs. Micah is playing in band and also singing in choir in his freshman year. Caleb and Levi attend school at Hollydale Elementary where I teach music (we live less than two blocks away and walk together each morning!). Lani is teaching TAG half-time and subbing on her open days. I am enjoying singing as a staff singer with the Portland Symphonic Choir.
We have a new church home – after much visiting around the area – at the Abundant Life Church (you can check out their website at www.coolchurch.com). Our kids really enjoy the programs there!
We’ve spent a lot of time and effort these last few months working on remodeling and updating our home. Most of the major things are finished now and we look forward to having friends and family visit! Here’s all our new contact information:
(Information edited from this blog post, but included in actual letter)
May God bless each of you in this new year!
The Dalzells – Dan, Lani, Hannah, Micah, Caleb, & Levi
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Mid-December update
Life is busy and it seems I hardly ever have time to blog (that is, check in on friends' sites or write anything on mine).
Tonight I'll just throw down a quick update:
I switched over to the new Blogger beta just a few minutes ago. I'll see if it works any smoother in my Safari browser; the old one didn't allow me to use most of the editing features (as I'm glancing up in the window here, I'm not seeing the buttons there for bold, italic, etc., just one for spell check and one for pictures. Hmm. . . So, looks like I'll have to remember to use IE or Firefox on my Macs.
My program last week went pretty well. Our school gym was standing-room only as the 2nd & 3rd graders did there musical and the 4th & 5th grade choir sang. It was a successful first program there, I believe.
We went last Saturday morning to cut a Christmas tree -- and ended up cutting two! Our new house actually has a large window upstairs in the living room and a matching one below in the family room, so we have two trees. I put up a few lights outside, but nothing like usual and I don't think I'll have time to worry about putting up any more. It was nearly nice to return to our old tradition of going to a Christmas tree farm and choosing our own tree; and we went with the McDonald family, just like old times!
I've got three rehearsals this week with Portland Symphonic Choir before we do our double-concert day on Sunday. Anyone in the area that might enjoy hearing us, let me know and I'll pick up some tickets for you. Lani and several friends are coming to the 7:30 p.m. program, but we also do it at 2:00 p.m. -- that's on Sunday, Dec. 17 at St. Mary's Cathedral (between NW 17th & 18th just a block N. of Burnside). Should be a lovely program (and I'm doing a solo!).
Lani has either the flu or food poisoning -- yuck! She was up in the night last night throwing up, etc. and stayed home today. We went to my staff Christmas party last Saturday night and apparently a whole lot of people from there have come down ill (we had 13 staff out yesterday and 10 out today at work -- all with the same stomach ailment).
Brian & Eryann Maki (Lani's brother & wife) have been staying with us since last Friday and leave in the morning. They came over from Missoula to help Troy & Shauna with moving and construction in their new home's basement. We all helped over there on Saturday & Sunday this last weekend, with much more work still to go.
Three more school days until we're on Christmas vacation! My choir has a field trip in the morning and I'm also supposed to play the piano and sing in the school lobby before school. Should be a fun day!
Tonight I'll just throw down a quick update:
I switched over to the new Blogger beta just a few minutes ago. I'll see if it works any smoother in my Safari browser; the old one didn't allow me to use most of the editing features (as I'm glancing up in the window here, I'm not seeing the buttons there for bold, italic, etc., just one for spell check and one for pictures. Hmm. . . So, looks like I'll have to remember to use IE or Firefox on my Macs.
My program last week went pretty well. Our school gym was standing-room only as the 2nd & 3rd graders did there musical and the 4th & 5th grade choir sang. It was a successful first program there, I believe.
We went last Saturday morning to cut a Christmas tree -- and ended up cutting two! Our new house actually has a large window upstairs in the living room and a matching one below in the family room, so we have two trees. I put up a few lights outside, but nothing like usual and I don't think I'll have time to worry about putting up any more. It was nearly nice to return to our old tradition of going to a Christmas tree farm and choosing our own tree; and we went with the McDonald family, just like old times!
I've got three rehearsals this week with Portland Symphonic Choir before we do our double-concert day on Sunday. Anyone in the area that might enjoy hearing us, let me know and I'll pick up some tickets for you. Lani and several friends are coming to the 7:30 p.m. program, but we also do it at 2:00 p.m. -- that's on Sunday, Dec. 17 at St. Mary's Cathedral (between NW 17th & 18th just a block N. of Burnside). Should be a lovely program (and I'm doing a solo!).
Lani has either the flu or food poisoning -- yuck! She was up in the night last night throwing up, etc. and stayed home today. We went to my staff Christmas party last Saturday night and apparently a whole lot of people from there have come down ill (we had 13 staff out yesterday and 10 out today at work -- all with the same stomach ailment).
Brian & Eryann Maki (Lani's brother & wife) have been staying with us since last Friday and leave in the morning. They came over from Missoula to help Troy & Shauna with moving and construction in their new home's basement. We all helped over there on Saturday & Sunday this last weekend, with much more work still to go.
Three more school days until we're on Christmas vacation! My choir has a field trip in the morning and I'm also supposed to play the piano and sing in the school lobby before school. Should be a fun day!
Monday, November 27, 2006
Post-Thanksgiving Thanks Giving
OK, I really wanted to post something on Thanksgiving Day, but then I just got so busy with working on the kitchen and then hosting family & others for the big meal and then we played games and such and soon the day was done. However, we did give special thanks around our table. I asked each person (at least those around the adult table -- kids had their own table downstairs) to share something they were thankful for as they looked back over this last year, and then the whole table would respond after each one with "Thank-you, God" (or some other similar sentiment). It was pretty cool to hear everyone's thanksgivings and then to give praise to God for these things He had done!
So. . . here are some things I'm thankful for:
My family -- we're all doing well and have been cared for and blessed throughout a year of big change.
My wife! We're still good friends and in love!
My job -- I am enjoying teaching and have been blessed with a wonderful principal and staff and parents and kids.
Our home -- it's consumed a LOT of my time and energy these last few months, but we're blessed to have a nice place to live.
Singing -- I'm enjoying singing with Portland Symphonic Choir and we've been singing a lot this Fall!
Living in Portland/Gresham -- it's been good to be near family and friends again.
I guess I could go on and get more specific, but really I just feel very blessed by God as I look back over this past year. I'm thankful for friends in Texas who supported us and helped carry us through a time of uncertainty and upheaval and for friends here who have welcomed us back to Oregon. I searched out many possible paths for where to work and live, but this is the way that seemed blessed by God. It's not all that I dreamed of, but it is good.
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And a closing note: if you live in the area, you should come hear the Portland Symphonic Choir's "WinterSong" concert on Sunday, Dec. 17. There is a 2:00 and a 7:00 performance and these are in the gorgeous & acoustically wonderful St. Mary's Cathedral in downtown Portland. We will be doing some familiar carols, some other beautiful music of the season, and a special set of Spanish carols. I learned earlier today that I got a solo that I had tried out for too! Let me know if you need tickets. This program will be fun and is probably our most popular of the season.
http://www.pschoir.org/Season2005/Programs.shtml
So. . . here are some things I'm thankful for:
My family -- we're all doing well and have been cared for and blessed throughout a year of big change.
My wife! We're still good friends and in love!
My job -- I am enjoying teaching and have been blessed with a wonderful principal and staff and parents and kids.
Our home -- it's consumed a LOT of my time and energy these last few months, but we're blessed to have a nice place to live.
Singing -- I'm enjoying singing with Portland Symphonic Choir and we've been singing a lot this Fall!
Living in Portland/Gresham -- it's been good to be near family and friends again.
I guess I could go on and get more specific, but really I just feel very blessed by God as I look back over this past year. I'm thankful for friends in Texas who supported us and helped carry us through a time of uncertainty and upheaval and for friends here who have welcomed us back to Oregon. I searched out many possible paths for where to work and live, but this is the way that seemed blessed by God. It's not all that I dreamed of, but it is good.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
And a closing note: if you live in the area, you should come hear the Portland Symphonic Choir's "WinterSong" concert on Sunday, Dec. 17. There is a 2:00 and a 7:00 performance and these are in the gorgeous & acoustically wonderful St. Mary's Cathedral in downtown Portland. We will be doing some familiar carols, some other beautiful music of the season, and a special set of Spanish carols. I learned earlier today that I got a solo that I had tried out for too! Let me know if you need tickets. This program will be fun and is probably our most popular of the season.
http://www.pschoir.org/Season2005/Programs.shtml
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Nov. 8 Entry
November is rolling right along! We've had huge amounts of rain the last few days in Oregon, but it has lightened up now to just the normal kind of drizzle. I hear the mountains will be getting a bunch of snow the next few days as the freezing level has finally dropped.
My mom and dad got into town tonight and will be around until Monday. Dad is here to help with my kitchen cabinet installation, plus my folks will get to see Hannah in her musical (which opens tomorrow), and then hear me sing with the Portland Symphonic Choir this weekend. Hopefully, we'll get all the upper and lower cabinets installed over the next few days!
My 2nd & 3rd graders are preparing a musical called "The Littlest Christmas Tree" and it's been pretty fun working on the songs and choosing the leads. The performance is on Dec. 5 (wish I had another week or so with them) and I've really got to work to get the staging blocked, costumes & sets ready, and songs choreographed. Still, this is nothing like the busyness of when I taught H.S. choir!
I guess this is enough of an update for now. . . bedtime now.
My mom and dad got into town tonight and will be around until Monday. Dad is here to help with my kitchen cabinet installation, plus my folks will get to see Hannah in her musical (which opens tomorrow), and then hear me sing with the Portland Symphonic Choir this weekend. Hopefully, we'll get all the upper and lower cabinets installed over the next few days!
My 2nd & 3rd graders are preparing a musical called "The Littlest Christmas Tree" and it's been pretty fun working on the songs and choosing the leads. The performance is on Dec. 5 (wish I had another week or so with them) and I've really got to work to get the staging blocked, costumes & sets ready, and songs choreographed. Still, this is nothing like the busyness of when I taught H.S. choir!
I guess this is enough of an update for now. . . bedtime now.
Monday, October 30, 2006
Halloween
So, it's Halloween tomorrow and our kids have all carved pumpkins to put out on our steps. We decided that I will stay home and answer the door tomorrow night and Lani will take the kids out trick-or-treating. I'm thinking that quite a few of my students will probably come by throughout the night, so it might be nice to be here and greet them.
It's been cold lately! Several nights this last week with frost and tonight is supposed to be a little below freezing again. Fall is definitely here and Winter is around the corner! It's been nice to enjoy all the Fall colors.
We're singing a Stabat Mater in Portland Symphonic Choir right now and will be performing on Nov. 11 & 12 with the Vancouver Chamber Orchestra. The traditional text is basically about the grief that Mary, the mother of Jesus, feels. This setting is by Salvador Brotons and has a lot of dissonant, modern harmony. It's tough to sing and not terribly enjoyable really. I'll be glad when we're working on our Christmas program music!
Hannah will be performing soon as Rapunzel in the Gresham H.S. production of "Into the Woods". If you're in the area, come see her and an excellent cast Nov. 9-12 and 16-19. Let us know if you need tickets!
It's been cold lately! Several nights this last week with frost and tonight is supposed to be a little below freezing again. Fall is definitely here and Winter is around the corner! It's been nice to enjoy all the Fall colors.
We're singing a Stabat Mater in Portland Symphonic Choir right now and will be performing on Nov. 11 & 12 with the Vancouver Chamber Orchestra. The traditional text is basically about the grief that Mary, the mother of Jesus, feels. This setting is by Salvador Brotons and has a lot of dissonant, modern harmony. It's tough to sing and not terribly enjoyable really. I'll be glad when we're working on our Christmas program music!
Hannah will be performing soon as Rapunzel in the Gresham H.S. production of "Into the Woods". If you're in the area, come see her and an excellent cast Nov. 9-12 and 16-19. Let us know if you need tickets!
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Oct. 15 and I really need to post something!
I know, I know. It's been a long, long time since I wrote anything here.
Well, life is good and life is busy! I often think of things I'd like to share here, but seldom have the time to actually go do it. Anyway, here are some recent things of note:
We have finally decided on a new church home. It's been hard and no one place met every family member's criteria, but we are going to be a part of the Abundant Life Church. They have great children's and teens' programs, dynamic preaching, very lively worship, and are really growing alot. They seem to have lots of good ministries to hurting and recovering people, they offer many service opportunities, and they are baptizing 100-200 people each year. You can see their website at: www.coolchurch.com
I sang in my first concerts with Portland Symphonic Choir this weekend. We get really busy during concert week! This past week we had evening rehearsals on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Friday, & Saturday nights and then did an afternoon and evening concert today. Whew! Tomorrow night we're back to just our regular Monday night practice time until the second week of November when we'll do the concert-week schedule again (and then again the third week of December). We shared this program with Seattle Pro Musica, each doing a section alone and then two pieces together to conclude. Saint Mary's Cathedral was a gorgeous and reverberant place to sing and both choirs performed at a pretty high level. You can see what we're singing the rest of this season at: http://www.pschoir.org/Season2005/Programs.shtml
Saturday, while Lani was out of town at a TAG conference in Bend, I rebuilt our front steps. Like any project, it took more than I thought to do what I was attempting. As I tore off the old step boards, some of the framing and stair risers broke apart and couldn't be reused. I ended up having to cut two new stair risers and reinforce both side risers that I could reuse. I got the steps done finally, but don't have a railing back up yet. It's wider now and does look nicer!
Hmm. . . there are probably plenty of other things to say, but I'm ready for some rest. Brian & Eryann Maki -- along with Lani's mom -- are coming from Missoula this Thursday and staying through the weekend. We may try to go to the Oregon coast, or a local pumpkin patch, or do something else special. Looks like we'll be here during Thanksgiving and then make a trip to Montana during Christmas break. We've ordered new kitchen cabinets (to install ourselves) which should arrive in early to mid-November, so we'll be working hard to get those all done before Thanksgiving break is over. I started up a choir at my elementary school and have about 62 kids in it so far! It's cool and rainy today; the weatherman says that we may have had our last 70-degree days for this year. The leaves are turning lots of beautiful colors too!
Well, life is good and life is busy! I often think of things I'd like to share here, but seldom have the time to actually go do it. Anyway, here are some recent things of note:
We have finally decided on a new church home. It's been hard and no one place met every family member's criteria, but we are going to be a part of the Abundant Life Church. They have great children's and teens' programs, dynamic preaching, very lively worship, and are really growing alot. They seem to have lots of good ministries to hurting and recovering people, they offer many service opportunities, and they are baptizing 100-200 people each year. You can see their website at: www.coolchurch.com
I sang in my first concerts with Portland Symphonic Choir this weekend. We get really busy during concert week! This past week we had evening rehearsals on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Friday, & Saturday nights and then did an afternoon and evening concert today. Whew! Tomorrow night we're back to just our regular Monday night practice time until the second week of November when we'll do the concert-week schedule again (and then again the third week of December). We shared this program with Seattle Pro Musica, each doing a section alone and then two pieces together to conclude. Saint Mary's Cathedral was a gorgeous and reverberant place to sing and both choirs performed at a pretty high level. You can see what we're singing the rest of this season at: http://www.pschoir.org/Season2005/Programs.shtml
Saturday, while Lani was out of town at a TAG conference in Bend, I rebuilt our front steps. Like any project, it took more than I thought to do what I was attempting. As I tore off the old step boards, some of the framing and stair risers broke apart and couldn't be reused. I ended up having to cut two new stair risers and reinforce both side risers that I could reuse. I got the steps done finally, but don't have a railing back up yet. It's wider now and does look nicer!
Hmm. . . there are probably plenty of other things to say, but I'm ready for some rest. Brian & Eryann Maki -- along with Lani's mom -- are coming from Missoula this Thursday and staying through the weekend. We may try to go to the Oregon coast, or a local pumpkin patch, or do something else special. Looks like we'll be here during Thanksgiving and then make a trip to Montana during Christmas break. We've ordered new kitchen cabinets (to install ourselves) which should arrive in early to mid-November, so we'll be working hard to get those all done before Thanksgiving break is over. I started up a choir at my elementary school and have about 62 kids in it so far! It's cool and rainy today; the weatherman says that we may have had our last 70-degree days for this year. The leaves are turning lots of beautiful colors too!
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
House of Hope
Last Saturday night Lani & I attended a dinner for the Hope of Hope - Portland. I want to encourage you to learn about House of Hope (they may have one in your community too) and to consider supporting them. They offer support, counseling, intervention, and (eventually in Portland) residential treatment centers for troubled teens. My brother-in-law, Troy Wagner, is now serving as the Executive Director for House of Hope - Portland as they build a base of support and begin to offer services in the Portland area.
You can see their website at: http://www.houseofhope-portland.org/HofH/House_of_Hope_Portland.html
Of course, at the banquet they asked for everyone's support and took up a collection and pledge cards. I wasn't able to give a whole lot there, but started feeling convicted about how much stuff I have -- just plain EXTRA stuff that I can't even use -- and decided that all the things I'd decided to list on Craigslist could just go to benefit House of Hope. Now, I'm not telling you this to say how good I am or anything (I'd much rather not let my right hand know what my left hand is doing here!), but I want to encourage you too to see what resources or stuff you might be able to let go of which can then benefit a good cause like this. It's been pretty cool. We've sold about five things so far and collected more than $300 and still have more items to go. It's a win-win-win situation too because I'm getting rid of things I don't really need, House of Hope is going to benefit, and other people are also picking up stuff they can probably really use. It also makes you feel good to be a part of reallocating God's resources for use somewhere else (it's all HIS anway, right?)!
So, what could you let go of and bless others with?
You can see their website at: http://www.houseofhope-portland.org/HofH/House_of_Hope_Portland.html
Of course, at the banquet they asked for everyone's support and took up a collection and pledge cards. I wasn't able to give a whole lot there, but started feeling convicted about how much stuff I have -- just plain EXTRA stuff that I can't even use -- and decided that all the things I'd decided to list on Craigslist could just go to benefit House of Hope. Now, I'm not telling you this to say how good I am or anything (I'd much rather not let my right hand know what my left hand is doing here!), but I want to encourage you too to see what resources or stuff you might be able to let go of which can then benefit a good cause like this. It's been pretty cool. We've sold about five things so far and collected more than $300 and still have more items to go. It's a win-win-win situation too because I'm getting rid of things I don't really need, House of Hope is going to benefit, and other people are also picking up stuff they can probably really use. It also makes you feel good to be a part of reallocating God's resources for use somewhere else (it's all HIS anway, right?)!
So, what could you let go of and bless others with?
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
They grow up so fast!
I'm not even talking about my own kids! Yesterday, our very good friend, Jennifer Hamilton and her daughter, Olivia, stopped by our house. They are on their way up to Seattle Pacific University where Olivia is about to begin her freshman year! It was great to visit with them for a little while -- along with Bruce & Shirley Hamilton and Molly House (Jen's mom) -- but what a reminder of how fast all our kids are growing up! They gave us a picture of their son Lukas in his football uniform and he was looking like one tough, grown-up dude. On the flip side, our guests all commented on how much bigger and older our kids looked too.
All of this is just reminding me that I really need to cherish and enjoy the time I have with my children now, because sooner than I think they'll be out the door and off to college or work or who knows what.
Love your kids today!
All of this is just reminding me that I really need to cherish and enjoy the time I have with my children now, because sooner than I think they'll be out the door and off to college or work or who knows what.
Love your kids today!
Friday, September 15, 2006
End of the week update
Well, the second week of school is complete and I'm starting to settle in a bit. I'm also exhausted after staying up too late this week working on the downstairs bathroom at night. Good news there is that it's mostly finished and looks pretty nice!
Hannah got a part in the Gresham H.S. musical!!! She figured yesterday that maybe she wasn't going to be cast, but found out today that she'll be Rapunzel in the show, "Into the Woods". It's really cool because this show has a very small cast and being new and up against alot of other kids, the odds seemed stacked against her landing a part. She'll be really busy for the next couple of months. Shows are the two weeks prior to Thanksgiving.
I'm attending the Portland Symphonic Choir retreat this weekend -- Friday night and daytime Saturday -- and then going to see the musical "Wicked" Saturday night. For a couple of days, no working on the house!
Hannah got a part in the Gresham H.S. musical!!! She figured yesterday that maybe she wasn't going to be cast, but found out today that she'll be Rapunzel in the show, "Into the Woods". It's really cool because this show has a very small cast and being new and up against alot of other kids, the odds seemed stacked against her landing a part. She'll be really busy for the next couple of months. Shows are the two weeks prior to Thanksgiving.
I'm attending the Portland Symphonic Choir retreat this weekend -- Friday night and daytime Saturday -- and then going to see the musical "Wicked" Saturday night. For a couple of days, no working on the house!
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Trying to find time to blog!
Life has been busy!!! And to any friends or family watching here for updates on life here, I'm sorry that I haven't had time for posting much on my blog.
I'm now into my second week of teaching at Hollydale and starting to get a feel for my schedule and the people here. I probably know only 10 or 15 student's names at this point and am trying to figure out who everyone is and what I'm to teach them. There are 18 classes of students in our building and I see most of them twice a week.
At home, we're still trying to unpack the scores of boxes that are piled in the garage and in many corners of our house. We don't have room for quite a bit of the stuff we own and are really trying to let go of a lot of things. We've got a bunch of furniture that just won't fit in this house that I'll be craigslisting (when I have to time to photograph it and post some ads!). I'm also still finishing up many of the remodeling projects that we started. This week I should be able to put the downstairs bathroom back together now that I've finished grouting and sealing the slate floor (and painting the walls and wiring in new lights, etc.). We have painted every room in the house, put slate floors in the entry and three bathrooms, put new light fixtures in almost every room, and reworked the walls in the kitchen/dining/living room area. We'll replace the main electrical panel in the next couple of weeks and then totally gut and redo the kitchen sometime around Thanksgiving or Christmas. Ah, the joys of home-ownership!
Hannah and Micah seem to be adjusting to Gresham H.S. pretty well. Hannah has been driving them to school each day (at least for now). Hannah is trying out for their musical today. They're doing "Into the Woods". Micah is in band again and also got into a men's choir. Caleb & Levi go with me to Hollydale and we've been walking together since it's only about a block and a half. They seem to like their teachers and are starting to make new friends here. Lani is busy doing two jobs in the David Douglas School District: 2 days a week on a long-term sub/job share, and two and a half days a week teaching TAG. She's been very busy!
Well, I'd better go and get my plans ready for today's classes!
I'm now into my second week of teaching at Hollydale and starting to get a feel for my schedule and the people here. I probably know only 10 or 15 student's names at this point and am trying to figure out who everyone is and what I'm to teach them. There are 18 classes of students in our building and I see most of them twice a week.
At home, we're still trying to unpack the scores of boxes that are piled in the garage and in many corners of our house. We don't have room for quite a bit of the stuff we own and are really trying to let go of a lot of things. We've got a bunch of furniture that just won't fit in this house that I'll be craigslisting (when I have to time to photograph it and post some ads!). I'm also still finishing up many of the remodeling projects that we started. This week I should be able to put the downstairs bathroom back together now that I've finished grouting and sealing the slate floor (and painting the walls and wiring in new lights, etc.). We have painted every room in the house, put slate floors in the entry and three bathrooms, put new light fixtures in almost every room, and reworked the walls in the kitchen/dining/living room area. We'll replace the main electrical panel in the next couple of weeks and then totally gut and redo the kitchen sometime around Thanksgiving or Christmas. Ah, the joys of home-ownership!
Hannah and Micah seem to be adjusting to Gresham H.S. pretty well. Hannah has been driving them to school each day (at least for now). Hannah is trying out for their musical today. They're doing "Into the Woods". Micah is in band again and also got into a men's choir. Caleb & Levi go with me to Hollydale and we've been walking together since it's only about a block and a half. They seem to like their teachers and are starting to make new friends here. Lani is busy doing two jobs in the David Douglas School District: 2 days a week on a long-term sub/job share, and two and a half days a week teaching TAG. She's been very busy!
Well, I'd better go and get my plans ready for today's classes!
Monday, August 28, 2006
Summer is over!
Today was my first official day at work (actually it was "New Teacher Inservice Day" for both Lani and me in both our districts). So, Summer is now over! The kids start school next week after Labor Day weekend. The way it should be everywhere, you Texas friends!!!
We're still living amid lots of still-unpacked boxes and there are still lots of house projects not fully completed, but it's nice to be in our own home.
I found out tonight at Portland Symphonic Choir rehearsal that I will be a paid "Staff Singer", so that was cool news! Also, Hannah auditioned for choir at Gresham H.S. earlier in the evening and the teacher agreed to put her in their top big choir (she is the 97th person in the group and the principal had told the teacher to cap it at 90).
We have a working home phone now, but still no internet service. I'm back over at Troy & Shauna's tonight typing this. I can check my personal e-mail and my blog at work, if needed. If you'd like our phone number, e-mail me at DanDalzell@aol.com and I'll send it to you (along with our new address too). Lani says I shouldn't just post it all here publicly.
We look forward to having guests in our home soon, but if you come right away we may put you to work helping put things away and finishing something. We have realized -- far too late -- that we just have too much stuff! So now one of our goals is to get rid of furniture, clothes, toys and such that we don't need &/or won't fit in our new house. Pare down and simplify!
We're still living amid lots of still-unpacked boxes and there are still lots of house projects not fully completed, but it's nice to be in our own home.
I found out tonight at Portland Symphonic Choir rehearsal that I will be a paid "Staff Singer", so that was cool news! Also, Hannah auditioned for choir at Gresham H.S. earlier in the evening and the teacher agreed to put her in their top big choir (she is the 97th person in the group and the principal had told the teacher to cap it at 90).
We have a working home phone now, but still no internet service. I'm back over at Troy & Shauna's tonight typing this. I can check my personal e-mail and my blog at work, if needed. If you'd like our phone number, e-mail me at DanDalzell@aol.com and I'll send it to you (along with our new address too). Lani says I shouldn't just post it all here publicly.
We look forward to having guests in our home soon, but if you come right away we may put you to work helping put things away and finishing something. We have realized -- far too late -- that we just have too much stuff! So now one of our goals is to get rid of furniture, clothes, toys and such that we don't need &/or won't fit in our new house. Pare down and simplify!
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