Ashley Update

Ashley is in choir again this year and had her first concert in November.  She also auditioned for a solo and was selected!  We were a little surprised because the director tries to give a lot of different kids opportunities and since Ashley had a solo last year, she wasn't expecting to be chosen again.  Needless to say, she was excited and a little nervous.

The theme of this concert was African spirituals.  The 7th grade choir is very small this year, so they have to really work hard and project.  They sang some songs I was familiar with as well as some that I had not heard before.  My favorite song was called, "River in Judea."  It really was beautiful.

Ashley's solo part was in the song, "Rock-a My Soul."

She also went to her first Young Women in Excellence night at church.  I am really enjoying being a Young Women's leader at the same time Ashley is in the program.  It gives us the chance to learn and grow together as well as spend some quality time together.  The theme of the evening was "Be Your Own Kind of Beautiful" based on this Mormonad:

We decorated using lots of flowers and mirrors.  We also asked the parents to select a flower that reminded them of their daughter and then present that flower to their daughter that night.  It was really very sweet to hear the parents talk about their daughters--and very good for their daughters' to hear what makes them so "beautiful."  For the record, Dave presented Ashley's flower and as an awesome public speaker did a great job.  We picked a pink Gerbera Daisy for Ashley, because a daisy represents happiness and is cheerful.  The Gerbera daisy is also bigger, bolder and bright in color.  It's got a little flair, just like Ashley.

For her project, Ashley sewed a pair of pajama pants, under the value knowledge.  They turned out very cute and she did a good job.  I keep telling her that she should sew pairs for me and Paige for Christmas!

One last bit of news for this super-achiever.  Ashley applied and was accepted into an engineering program for middle school girls.  It is sponsored by Northern Illinois University and supported by Motorola and the Girls Scouts of America.  It basically consists of engineering workshops two Saturdays a month and a summer camp.  The girls work in small groups with the assistance of mentors under the supervision of female professors of engineering.  Her math teacher recommended her and we think it will be a great opportunity for her to apply her math and science skills in a practical setting as well as help her to see what career options are out there in the field of engineering, if she is interested.  This is a new experience, but the program has come highly recommend so I'm hoping Ashley enjoys it.