Emily played with the Shawnee Mission South Concert Band last night. Their final piece was “Trail of Tears” by James Barnes, written in commemoration at the 150th anniversary of the forced movement of the 5 civilized Native American tribes to Oklahoma and Arkansas.
As is our usual custom during spring break, we loaded onto a plane in cooler Kansas City and jetted our way to warmer climates south of the border – once again in Puerto Vallarta. This is our 5th trip to this resort city, all while staying at different resorts.
We chose Fiesta Americana this year because it was only an 8-minute drive from the airport. Additionally, it gave us something we’ve never had before – adjoining rooms so the girls could have their own room (i.e., Linda and I could have our own room).
The view from our balcony was gorgeous.
The grounds were also beautiful.
We often try to attend the evening shows while we are on these vacations, but we only attended the show during our first night there. It was a Hispanica dance show that was truly engaging. Here’s a short clip:
We mostly laid around and enjoyed some peace and quiet. Lots of reading and napping were accomplished. The meals were good and drinks were always easily acquired. Anna and Emily just can’t get enough virgin strawberry daiquiris. Of course, it’s also nice for me to be able to walk up and request a refreshing glass of amber lager as often as I wanted (plus some premium tequila if you ask nicely).
This was our view for the few days we were there:
Anna and Emily got to hang out and reconnect.
Unfortunately, we didn’t plan this well because it was assumed that the college and high school spring breaks coincided – they didn’t. Anna was missing class to join us, so this is how we spent some of our time – doing homework in bar…
And most unfortunate, Anna had to leave 1 day earlier than us to get back for a class she was not allowed to miss. I rode the taxi with her back to the airport; it almost broke my heart seeing her leave, knowing that we were getting 24 more hours of fun and sun.
The good news is that spring break will be easy next year since they’ll both be at K-State. We just need to make sure we stay longer next time!
As promised, here’s video of my quartet singing the National Anthem before the ISU-OSU game on March 9, 2017.
I’m joined by Craig Zernickow (tenor), Kristy Lambert (soprano), and Bettye Hubbard (alto). What a great group!
EDIT: Here’s the version that was on the big screen overhead while we were singing:
Being involved with the Kansas City Symphony Chorus can sometimes have its perks – including getting asked to sing the National Anthem as a quartet before one of the Big 12 Basketball Tournament games.
I met with 3 of my fellow Chorus members early on the morning of March 9 at the Sprint Center. We were escorted down to the floor for sound check and figuring out where we would be standing. We then spent the next hour in the actual Green Room – the one used by performers when they’re at the Center for big concerts. After hanging out a while, waiting for the Iowa State and Oklahoma State fans to fill in the arena, we were summoned to mid-court along with a Color Guard from the KC Police Department. We performed a wonderful 4-part harmony rendition of The Star Spangled Banner, followed by a rousing applause upon its completion.
We’re working to get a copy of the Jumbotron footage and audio; so, hopefully I will be able to post that here soon. In the meantime, here’s a picture of us at mid-court before the teams and crowds arrived.
Once we were done singing, we were able to go sit in the front row right behind the OSU band. This was our view as the game started – with the players on the other end of the court.
After the first game (which Iowa State won), we sang God Bless America for the crowd before the Kansas-TCU game. I didn’t get to stick around for that game because I had to go to work, but it would’ve been a fun game to watch.
Big News: The blog is MOVING to a new site.
featherstonbill.com featherstonbill.com featherstonbill.com
It’s the same blog and same posts, just a new site. The intent of “FeatherstonsInKansas” was to be a place where Linda and I could post things about the family. However, after all these years, it’s only been me posting. Additionally, because it was really meant to be a blog about family happenings, I refrained from posting random thoughts. However, since I’m the only one posting, I’m going to make the blog what I want it to be – family updates AND my thoughts. Therefore, the blog will be moving over to MY site, featherstonbill.com.
So, update your bookmarks – all eleven of you that subscribe to this page; be sure to update to featherstonbill.com
Emily turns 18!
Wow, the youngest child is now an adult. She’s been telling us regularly over the past month, “You only have ‘x’ days left that you’re legally responsible for taking care of me.” Frankly, I’m still quite happy to take care of her – but she is clearly not the little girl that she used to be.
Happy birthday, sweetheart. We love you.
Emily is about to turn 18 years old. Anna came home from college to celebrate. Linda surprised Emily with a small gathering of her friends at a local restaurant for some decadent desserts.
Emily was truly surprised and it was fun just sitting around and talking.
Emily was selected to play for the KMEA All-State 5A and 6A Band. What an honor and a testament to the hard work she has done with the flute. The whole family was there to listen – Linda was there for professional purposes already, Anna drove down from Manhattan, and I drove down from Kansas City. Additionally, Linda’s parents drove down from Topeka. It was great having the whole family there to listen to Emily and the rest of the All-State Band.
Unfortunately, we were unable to record any of the concert, but I have a nice picture that was taken during the final bow.
