Anne of Green Gables

For a fun read aloud in our homeschool, we have been reading Anne of Green Gables (*affiliate link). The book was written in 1908 by L.M. Montgomery.  It is a children's classic but I had never read it.  We all enjoyed it.  It is about an 11 year old little orphan girl who seems to have a knack for getting herself into trouble.  We took several months to finish it.  I read aloud to them and at the end of each chapter they would take turns narrating to me what had happened and then tell me their thoughts on the story.  Unfortunately, we didn't have time in our schedule to read it on a regular basis like I would have liked.  We would have gotten through it more quickly if I had but that's ok.  It worked out perfectly because we finished it up just as the Artisan Center Theater was producing their Anne of Green Gables play!

As a special treat, we were able to get tickets for a weekend performance so Daddy was able to come with us.  He doesn't usually get to come on homeschool field trips with us so this made it especially fun.

The performance was great!  I may have gotten teary a time or two.  Afterwards Rachel was excited to get to meet the girl who played Anne.

We are working on picking out our next read aloud book.  There are just so many great books I want them to read!!!  We love reading aloud together.  It's a great way to experience the story together and we enjoy being able to discuss it and share in the excitement together.  For a great resource for inspiration for reading aloud with your family and even some great booklists, check out Sarah MacKenzie's Read Aloud Revival site.  

*This post contains an affiliate link to Amazon.  If you purchase the Anne of Green Gables book through this link I will get a very small payment that just goes to pay for this blog.  It will not affect the cost you pay for the book.

Christmas in DFW: A Charlie Brown Christmas {Dallas Children's Theater}

Charles Schulz’s animated television special, A Charlie Brown Christmas, just celebrated its 50th anniversary last year and we got to see the show come to life this week at the Dallas Children's Theater.

A Charlie Brown Christmas was an adorable performance that follows the classic story about the characters' friendships as well as the true meaning of Christmas but there were also a few surprises for us including a three piece combo band to play that lively theme song! The actors were fabulous and perfectly chosen for each of their roles.  My favorite was Linus!

Performance Dates and Times:

-              Saturday, December 17, 1:30 PM

-              Saturday, December 17, 4:30 PM

-              Sunday, December 18, 1:30 PM

-              Sunday, December 18, 4:30 PM

-              Tuesday, December 20, 10:00 AM

-              Tuesday, December 20, 12:30 PM

-              Wednesday, December 21, 10:00 AM

-              Wednesday, December 21, 12:30 PM

Ticket Prices: $17-$30.

Weekday Student Matinee shows also available Tuesdays through Fridays.  Please call ArtReach Booking at 214-219-2049.

The Dallas Children's Theater is located in the Rosewood Center,
5938 Skillman in Dallas.  For more information about the theater and their performances, please call them at 214-740-0051 or check out the DCT Facebook page.

The {Somewhat} True Tale of Robin Hood

Nicholas just completed performing as a Merry Man in The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood at the Actor's Conservatory Theater.  This was his 6th main stage production at the ACT.  This show was a little different than usual.  The ACT historically has always produced musicals but this show was a regular play.  Nicholas especially enjoyed this one because he doesn't like the singing and dancing required in musicals.  He just wants to act!

This show was especially fun because we have just completed our studies of the middle ages for Tapestry of Grace where we studied the legend of Robin Hood.  We read aloud the book and I even found a DVD at our library of the 1938 movie, The Adventures of Robin Hood, starring Errol Flynn.  I love old movies and the kids laughed out loud at this one.

My kids love dressing up in costumes, even when they are just hanging around the house doing their school work.  The ACT encourages kids to come to see their shows in costume so Rachel went to the show dressed as Lady Marian and she wore her medieval times princess costume.

The next production at the ACT will be Elf Jr.  Be sure to get your tickets at www.getintotheact.org.  It is a great way to introduce your kids to live theater.

Tour of the MCL Grand Theater

Both kids are taking homeschool classes at the School for Dramatic Arts at the Actors Conservatory Theatre.  Rachel is taking Imagination Station II and Nicholas is in Introduction to Theatre.  Today all of the classes got together for a tour of the MCL Grand Theater in Lewisville.

We viewed some mixed media art work in the hallway.  Since Nicholas is always catching bugs in jars, I fell in love with this piece called Turned Tables.  So creative!

In the painting gallery, Rachel picked the Roadrunner as her favorite piece.

Nicholas liked this painting of a tree from the perspective of someone looking up from the ground.

We got to tour some of the different performance theaters and learn about lighting.  The kids loved the disco ball!

We learned how the tiles on a ceiling can affect the acoustics of the performance.

This theater is the Black Box.  It is completely scaled down with black walls and black floor.  Productions can use it in any way they like - the stage and audience where ever they want them to go.

Rachel fell in love with the dressing rooms!

....and being on stage.  What a ham!

All the kids had fun in the locker rooms.  Who knew lockers were so exciting.  They climbed in and out of them over and over.  We eventually realized that as homeschool kids, lockers were a new experience for them.  :)

Grandmother Came to Visit!

The kids are so excited to have their grandmother come to visit them and watch them in their play, Beauty and the Beast Jr.  She almost didn't make it though.  Because of the snow and ice, her flight for Saturday morning was cancelled and no other flights with that airline were available.  I tried to find some flights with other airlines but no luck!  Then Steven checked Southwest.  Yay for Steve!  He found a flight for her that involved an hour drive to get to a different airport to take off and about an hour drive for us to pick her up at a different airport once she arrived but it all worked out!  She made it for Saturday afternoon!!

The kids were already at the theatre when she arrived.  Stuart picked her up and they spent the afternoon at Dallas Makerspace where Stuart made her models of the Eiffel Tower and Louvre Pyramid on their 3D printer.

Stuart and his mom came to the theatre for the Saturday evening performance.  I'm so glad she got to see them perform in person.

We all watched the Sunday show as well which was the final performance.  It's always a bittersweet performance.  The set of the Beast's library contained books that incorporated the name of each actor in them.  We had already seen Nicholas' books but we finally found Rachel's book!

The kids enjoyed taking their grandmother around to do fun things but I think they most enjoyed the down time with her at home.  She is always great at getting down on the floor and playing with their toys.  And she's pretty good at their favorite card game too - Spot It!

Beauty and the Beast Jr. Opening Night

It's opening night for Beauty and the Beast Jr. at the Actors Conservatory Theatre!

I had to put Rachel's hair up into a ballet bun.  I'm pretty sure a true ballet instructor would frown on my sad attempt but Rachel thinks its cute.

This is the first night she has had to go in the makeup line at the theatre.  She was a bit nervous but she made sure she was in line where our sweet neighbor was doing makeup.

Wow! 

Rachel ran over to a mirror to take a look at herself.  She tried to look her eye shadow but couldn't figure out how to see her eyelids!  She's so cute!

Here's our little tea cup in her costume.  I am so impressed with how the costumes turned out.  They are just plastic planters with the bottoms cut out, straps added, a little paint, and a gold duct tape wrapped piece of foam added for a handle.  There are some amazingly creative people in the theatre!

Rachel sat down in the Beast's chair that was back stage.  She giggled and said sneakily, "I'm sitting in my master's chair. Hee hee hee!"

Nicholas is an enchanted knife.  The flatware headpieces were quite a feat to create. It was hard finding just the right way to keep the headpiece stable on their head AND comfortable for them to wear.  There were multiple things tried but eventually they turned out great!

All of the knives are boys so some of the parents were a little concerned that the boys might try to have a sword fight while wearing their headpieces....because that just seems like the natural response when two boys are wearing giant foam knives on their heads.  But so far they have maintained their composure quite well and I'm happy to say that all of the knife headpieces are still in one piece.

Each knife has a corresponding spoon and fork to make a complete utensil trio.  Nicholas has entertained us with his stories after each rehearsal about how "annoying" his spoon and fork are.  They mess with him and poke him and act silly around him.  He thinks they are annoying but they all seem to smile while they are messing with each other.  It's cute :)

Before going on stage, the cast does a few warm ups for their vocal chords as well as their bodies then they all say the Actors Prayer.  I love this part!

The Actors Prayer

There's magic in the theatre and the theatre is magic.

God bless those who create that magic.

Your talent is your gift from God.

The way you use that talent is your gift back to Him.

Amen.

After opening night, we often go out to dinner.  We let the kids pick where to go and of course, they pick Joe's Crab Shack.  Yum!  Nicholas ordered an adult steampot full of crab and a whole lobster.  We were a little concerned that he wouldn't actually finish it all but then we realized that we could just enjoy munching on his leftovers after he went to bed.  Unfortunately, he finished it all except for the potatoes and corn.  He said, "After opening night, you have to feed the boy heartily!"

Rachel got a kid-sized crab steampot.  She dug out her own crab meat like a pro and finished every last bite.  Her favorite thing was the melted butter.

I caught her dunking her fingers in the melted butter just so she could lick them clean.

I told her to stop doing that.  And she did.

But then I caught her drinking the melted butter straight from the cup!

Opening night was a huge success and I'm so proud of the kids!  Tomorrow is a long day though.  On Saturdays, they have to be at the theatre for 12:00 to get ready for the 2:00 show.  The show will run until approximately 4:00 at which time they will rush to get out of their costumes so we can meet up with the cast for dinner at Cici's Pizza Buffet.  Then we head back to the theatre for 5:30 to get ready for the 7:00 show.  The last show for the weekend will be Sunday at 2:00.  That's four shows each weekend and we do this for two full weekends.  It's exhausting and exhilarating all at the same time.  

A Sneak Peek

The kids are busy with rehearsals for Beauty and the Beast Jr. which opens at our local community theatre this week.  I can't take pictures or record video during the actual performances but I did get a few clips during rehearsal that I wanted to share with grandparents who can't travel to see them perform in person.

The basic story of Beauty and the Beast is a young prince refuses to help an old woman who comes to his castle door late one night.  The old woman is actually an enchantress who turns the prince into a beast as punishment.   She also turned all of the servants in the castle into enchanted objects like clocks, candlesticks, flatware, and tea cups.  The beast and his servants will remain in this state until the beast finds true love or until the last petal of a magical rose falls and the rose dies.

I'll skip ahead a bit and say that the beautiful Belle ends up being captured by the beast.  The enchanted objects who are the servants in the castle invite her to be their guest at dinner one night.

Here's their performance of "Be Our Guest" at rehearsal.  This was not a full dress rehearsal but you will see some people with larger costume pieces practicing in partial costume to help them get used to their pieces.  Nicholas is a knife wearing a gray jacket.  Rachel is one of the adorable little tea cups.


Later in the story, some angry villagers raid the beast's castle and try to kill him.  They are not aware of the enchanted objects who hide throughout the castle and attack the villagers as they defend their home and their master.


And the most beautiful song in the story is the finale.  My kids just line up along the bottom of the stage but I can't help but get distracted by the two little tea cups that get into an argument because their isn't enough room for their handles where they are sitting!



Opening night is Friday and the kids are so excited! The costumes, props, and sets are just amazing but the kids are what make the show so magical!

The Books

We've been busy working on making props and set pieces for Beauty and the Beast. I've worked on making headpieces for the enchanted forks, knives, and spoons, pitchforks for the angry villagers, and lots of lots of cardstock book spines to create the look of a library in the beast's castle.

We had the kids submit some of their favorite book titles to be included on the book spines that we made. Nicholas was so excited to see the four books he submitted.

We also included books that incorporated the names of each of the cast members.  I didn't not work in this stage of the book cases but I did find Nicholas' book, "Nicholas' Cages" - a take on name of the actor Nicholas Cage.  So cute!

I haven't found Rachel's book yet.  There are tons of these "books" to look through but I'll find it.

Making Cupcakes for the Cast Party

The Actors Conservatory Theatre hosted a cast party for the the kids tonight to celebrate a successful 8 show run of The Hobbit.  We decided to make cupcakes to bring and the kids were excited to help.  Nicholas tried out a new skill - breaking eggs with one hand.  He broke all three eggs perfectly like this.  Way to go, little man!
Rachel was begging, almost before we started, to lick the spoon when we were done.  Nicholas was hesitant to lick the bowl because he knew that there was raw eggs in the batter.  But after lots of "mmm's" from Rachel and her spoon, he couldn't resist.

Of course, he is officially an actor so he had to pretend like he instantly died from salmonella poisoning from the eggs.  What a ham!

We decided to make lots of mini cupcakes because we could make 36 of them instead of just 12 big cupcakes.  It called for a little more work to frost and sprinkle all the little cupcakes but my kids didn't mind.

We made a few big cupcakes for us to enjoy too.  Yum!

Rachel got a little heavy with the sprinkles and colored sugar.

But she usually just eats the toppings anyway.  She rarely even takes a bite of the actual cake inside.

The kids had a great time at the cast party.  Nicholas was given the Bifur dwarf doll that was used as part of the costumes on stage when he and the other dwarves were flying on the wings of the eagles.  It is super cute and looks just like him.

We are so grateful for the wonderful theater experiences the kids have had this year with Nicholas on stage and Rachel helping me with props as well as selling raffle tickets and flowers for the shows.  If you are in the Lewisville area, please check out some of the shows at the ACT.  If not, find a local children's theater in your town and take your family to see a show.  

Medieval Times in Dallas

We took Grandmother C. to the Medieval Times castle in Dallas for dinner and a show. Where else can you watch a great tournament and eat an entire meal with just your hands?  

We had reservations and got there before the doors opened.  However, there was already a line to get in.  Our 5 year old was not the most charming about having to be patient in the hot Texas sun!

But the castle is the perfect place to go for summer entertainment and dinner while enjoying the cool air conditioning!  We all donned our fabulous blue crowns and got ready to for a wonderful dinner and tournament.

No utensils are needed at Medieval Times - actually they aren't even available for you if you want them!  Your fingers are all that you need.  The garlic bread is perfect for dipping into the hot Tomato Bisque soup.  But my soup bowl must have had a hole in it because it was completely empty.  I wish they offered seconds!

The bisque was followed by chicken, rib, baked potato and dessert pastry.  The food is always delicious here.  And of course, napkins and wet towels are available to clean up with afterwards.

We watched the falconry performance and the beautiful Spanish horses as they danced around the arena.  Of course the jousts and sword fights were amazing too.  I just love the chivalry and pagentry of the performances.

Here is a quick video of one of the Blue Knight's battles:

Medieval Times is located at 2021 N. Stemmons in Dallas, Texas.  For more information, please call them at 866-543-9637 or check out their website at www.medievaltimes.com.  Tickets are $60.95 for adults and $36.95 for children but there are a few promotions going on now that you might be interested in.  

• Promo code SK39WEB, adults can go for $39.95 and kids for $29.95 through Labor Day weekend.
• Promo code 35WEB, all tickets are $35, Monday - Thursday only, through Labor Day weekend.
• Promo code KFWEB, kids go free with a regularly priced adult ticket purchased, Monday - Thursday only, through Labor Day weekend.

Puzzle, Play, and BBQ

We had a leisurely start to the day with a big homemade breakfast.  Grandmother got some fun play time with the kids.  She worked with Rachel on this 100 piece puzzle but she said that Rachel did most of the work.  We talked about how she and I would both try to work the corners and edges first but Rachel starts with the characters first.  She just has an amazing way of solving puzzles.  She's always been really good at puzzles.

We all went to the 2:00 show of The Hobbit.  Nicholas did great.  There was a little extra pep in all of the actors because this was the last show.

On Friday, Rachel had helped me as I volunteered at the flower table in the lobby.  She enjoyed explaining to Grandmother how the small, medium, and large bouquets should be assembled.

After the show, we headed to dinner at Hard 8 BBQ in Coppell.  I don't even use BBQ sauce when I'm here.  The meat is smoked to perfection and I think the sauce just makes it harder to taste the delicious sausage, brisket, or ham.