Nathan & Michelle Staples Family

From Russia With Love!! (Aug. 2009) -- Nathan's big trip overseas with his Voices In Harmony Chorus

2010-01-05T18:37:00.000-08:00

Zdravstvujtye!!

Nathan's chorus, Voices In Harmony, was invited to perform in the Russian/St. Petersburg's huge acapella Choral Festival in August. It was a Fantastic Time!!! And my first time ever overseas! The highlight were our several performances of "Polyushko Pole", a traditional Russian song. The song is a solemn but very proud battle hymn about Russian soldier heroes riding across the fields and off into battle, leaving their sad families behind in the villages. I stand front row, to the audience's right of center, most of the time.

You might notice we made a brief stop in Paris! We also toured many sites in the St. Petersburg area, including DOZENS of fantastic Royal Palaces (Catherine the Great's Hermitage/Winter Palace, and Peter the Great's Summer Palacial estate, Petergof being my two favorites -- with fantastic fountains and gold sculptures), and gorgeous churches and Cathedrals (Church on Spilled Blood/Resurrection Church -- entirely marble and tiled with mosaic religious scenes, and St. Isaac's Cathedral were my favorites). We had performances in these Royal halls and Palaces, mainly Peter the Great/Catherine the Great's Capella Hall, St. Petersburg Russia. 8/18-24/09.

The audiences truly treated us like Rock Stars!! Read my friend Ed A.'s description for the SECOND video -- I wrote part of it. I also have included a few reduced versions of my very favorite pix from the trip. About 400 are uploaded on my Facebook site. I took 2800 pictures!!! (and 1800 in Hawaii a month earlier!) As Mom passed away just two weeks before our trip, I felt her presence strongly with me throughout the whole trip. I was glad she was able to join me. :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBZc03-i3nM – Capella Hall – “Polyushko Pole”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GTZIOQKVDU – Rose Pavilion/Pavlosk (Czar Paul I’s Ballroom) – Polyushko Pole
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gq5j7jMlHDA – Theater of Musical Comedy – “California Dreamin’ “ (8 part, with Pride of the Pacific)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDAEkRM0YUg – Capella Hall – “Little Boy Lost”
https://mail.smccd.edu/owa/redir.aspx?C=9674f9039a6c4396b606dccbd2b579fc&URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.youtube.com%2fwatch%3fv%3dmR9SMbQOqYc – Theater of Musical Comedy – “Tribute to World Peace”

Enjoy!! Nathan

Samson Statue/Fountain at Petergof!!

St. Isaac's Cathedral -- hundreds of MASTERWORK paintings on the walls and ceilings inside.

A 5-hour stop in Paris on the way to Russia!!

Performing at renowned Capella Hall!!

My favorite church in Russia: Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood. Not an ounce of paint in the church -- all elaborate mosaics of tiles, and marble floors and columns.

Catherine The Great's Hermitage: The Winter Palace -- hundreds of thousands of great works of art inside. I got to see Michaelangelo's, Da Vinci's, Titians, Rembrandts, etc..... Wow!!

Free-standing!!! Alexander Column in the Hermitage Courtyard!!

Entering Petergof Palace Grounds

Our Festival Poster!! With our own Dr. Lyne at top.

View of the world-renowned golden fountains from Petergof! Peter the Great's Summer Palace. We sang in a pavilion just off to the right. Ready to perfrom at Petergof!! The FIRST AMERICAN group to do so!!
I just LOVED this view!! And it was our view during our performance too! The Samson statue/central fountain is AWESOME!!
After performing at Paul I's Rose Pavilion.
Pavlosk, Paul I's palace.

Summer of Travel!! 2009: Disney, Hawaii, Seattle!!!

2010-01-05T17:37:00.000-08:00

The International Barbershop Harmony Convention was in Anaheim this year -- which made our annual Disney visit very easy -- and the crowds were actually not that BAD on 4th of July Weekend! You can see that the kids were quite DONE by the last night at the parks!

Their traditional Pooh-Bear Honey pots shot!!

Lightening and Mater!

Last night at Disney!! -- luckily!!!!

Just a week or so later, thanks to Gma and Gpa Androvich, we were able to have a fun and HUGE trip to Oahu and Maui!! We enjoyed luaus, snorkeling, swimming, tubing the waves, kayaking, hiking Haleakala crater and Diamondhead crater, etc... And got to stay in very nice Hyatt Regency Hotels too -- with great pools, slides and food!!

Old Lahaina Luau!!
Kayaking (the kids did it a bit too!) on Maui!!

Iao Needle, Maui

Samoan Fire dancing at the Polynesian Cultural Center, Oahu

Haleakala Crater, Maui

We finished July and started August in Seattle for niece/cousin Alyssa's wedding to Johnny. Unfortunately, that was also when we got news of Nathan's Mom passing away -- Dad called with the news just after we landed in Seattle. Still, it was a GREAT wedding, and we were able to go up in the Space Needle too!!

Lyssie and Johnny!

Space Needle and park, Seattle, WA

Very late update on Kids' Spring/Summer Sports 2009: Baseball/Softball and Swimming

2010-01-05T15:33:00.001-08:00

These updates are coming later and later -- I wish we could just get ALL of our friends and family on FaceBook -- everything is much easier and is updated weekly there! That means YOU! :-) Our big summer trips and fall/winter activities will come soon too -- I'm just keeping it very brief now. :-) More details on http://www.facebook.com/.

Matt did great his first time in baseball, hitting well (1 homer and several doubles!), but made the most progress on catching and throwing. At the end of the season, he used his trademark speed to actually WIN the Farm League baserunning championship!! I'll see about posting the video....... OK...... It's now at the posted video below: Matt's Baserunning Championship Video!!!

Matt's Farm League Base-Running Championship Video!!!

Sarah joined friends on a very strong girls' softball team, the Lightning, who were undefeated this season. She did great at hitting and catching. Throwing is where she needs the most work, but she made several plays from 2nd and third base, and spent a lot of time playing a very good catcher position! She finished the season by smacking a big TRIPLE past center field her last time at bat!! :-)Finally, both kids continued to advance in gymnastics over the summer/early fall. Sarah can do walkovers and back-standups (I think you call them -- looks cool and freaky!). Matthew is getting REALLY good at handstands, cartwheels (both sides!), and even walks a bit on his hands. Sarah and Matt made HUGE progress in swimming this summer though: Both making it to level 6 on the first try, and Sarah passed level 6 on her first try! Both kids will be ready for swim team/safety training next year, or maybe even diving.

Catching up on Late Winter: Jan.-Feb. 2009: Matt and Sarah dominate the courts in Basketball (Really!), and Baseball/Softball Preseason

2009-06-22T17:54:00.000-07:00

Matt and Sarah took their grade-level classes in Basketball at the local Community Center after a year off. Matt's been shooting and playing with me so much, that once he developed some confidence after the first couple of weeks, he dominated with great speed, ball-handling, defense, and shooting for the last six weeks of the series.

Matt FLIES down the court even when he's just going for a drink at the faucet!!......

Sarah's not as quick as Matt, but has solid ball-handling and very good shooting skills. She too played point guard most of the time, and was sure to make a fashion statement on the court as well!! :-) Her coach, a high school young lady, called Sarah her MVP, because of her scoring and leadership!! :-)

(Below: Sarah and Michelle with pre-game warmups for Sarah!! :-) )

We also had a family visit to the Santa Barbara Zoo and Solvang for the New Year -- What a flash-back to our 11 years in Santa Barbara!!!

Matt and Daddy had a great time making Matt's first Pinewood Derby car for cubscouts. Of course, Matt had a cool design (inspired by the FLASH, as usual), and named his entry "Fast Bolt".

Nathan enjoyed quartetting and delivering Singing Valentines for the first time in at least 5 years!!.. With great success in supporting the Voices In Harmony chorus -- 16 heartfelt, happy, and often tear-bringing deliveries! It also included delivering a Valentine to my own lovely wife!!

Both kids also started practicing for their first seasons in Baseball (Little League, Farm division for Matt), and SoftBall (Police Activities League, farm divison for Sarah). Both kids were Drafted!! Matt for the Nationals, and Sarah for the Lightning. More to come with game updates and lots of baseball/softball pix in the next blog.

As always, find more frequent updates and more pix by connecting with Michelle's and Nathan's personal accounts on FaceBook!! :-)

Dec. 2008: Christmas at our Own Home! Gymnastics highlights, and Lakers Game!

2009-03-15T17:59:00.001-07:00

December was very busy and fun this year! Finishing their second full-year of gymnastics, School Christmas performances, Daddy's holiday concert with Voices in Harmony, and decorating our own House and tree for the Holidays kept us very busy, and made for a very exciting time! The kids loved having Santa come to OUR OWN HOUSE for the first time this year!!

.... Oh, and Matt lost his first tooth (surprisingly!!) early in the month. We're STILL waiting for a second tooth to loosen!....

After Christmas, it was off to Los Angeles county to visit G'ma and G'pa Staples for their 61st Anniversary, and to see Aunt Nancy, Uncle Brent, cousins Alyssa and Corrynn, and of course little cousin/grandnephew (!) Tucker!

Daddy and Matthew went to Matt's first LAKER and first NBA game at the STAPLES Center (where else!!??), and Matt had a GREAT time seeing Kobe, Pau and Derek!! Andrew Bynum was still healthy too, and had some big dunks against the Warriors. It was also great to see former Laker, Ronny Turiaf, now on the Golden State Warriors (close to where we now live!).

We finished December with Daddy's "Iron Man" Birthday party and lots of family fun at Aunt Nancy's house and the nearby park. It's very humbling when a SIX-year old like ours can make you run your rear-end off just to keep a lead! I sure hope he joins the track team when he's older!

Oct.-Nov. 2008: Lots More Soccer, Halloween, and Matt begins Tiger Cubs!

2009-03-15T12:41:00.000-07:00

Lots of soccer activity continued through November! Soccer season ended with Matt's sharp and athletic team going 13-1, and Sarah's team playing hard and having lots of fun in a very tough division with many older teams.

Matt's brand-new Tiger Cub den got started too! It all begain with "Tiger Cub Safari" in the Santa Cruz mtns., where the scouts learned BB-gun shooting and archery! Den and pack meetings have been great fun too, and a good way to get to know the other parents in Matt's first grade class. Tiger Safari was WAY COOL and WAY FUN, for Matt and for his akela, AKA: Daddy.

Oh, Yeah! We had a great Halloween with THREE parties too!!!

November ended with a wonderful time at Thanksgiving with G'ma and G'pa Androvich, and lots of playing Rock Band at Uncle Mark and Aunt Gigi's hourse, with cousins Wil and Lizzie.

Aug.-Sept. 2008: Swimming, Camping, and Soccer begins again!

2009-03-15T11:41:00.000-07:00

The kids did GREAT at swimming this past summer, both advancing to Level 5 -- just one level short of Jr. Life Guard! (which they're not actually old enough to achieve yet.). They showed off their advancing swim skills a lot at G'ma and G'pa Androvich's house too, while Michelle celebrated her 20th High School reunion with old friends!

We also made a trip with our church family group to Big Basin, Santa Cruz, and had a great time among the gorgeous redwoods and a comp site between three huge Giant trees! Many trees in the area were burned hollow at the base by past fires, and made great play areas and hideouts! Banana slugs were abundant too!

Both kids started great second soccer seasons: Sarah on the purple "Wicked", and Matt on the blue and flamed "Blue Lightning!", both with most of their previous teammates, and same coaches as last year.

We said hello to fall and goodbye to summer with a wonderful long weekend trip to Yosemite at the end of September! Gorgeous views from Glacier point, and from the Valley, and lots of wildlife!

Nate & Misha's July Adventures: International Medalist!

2008-10-12T15:13:00.000-07:00

July was busy with more swimming for the kids, but the big news was Nathan & Michelle's trip to Nashville: Music City USA for the International Barbershop Harmony Convention and Competition! Nashville was great, and Nathan's chorus, Voices In Harmony, came home with the 3rd place Bronze Medal!!! What a rush up on stage in front of 10,000 people at the Sommet Center! The videos are no longer posted online, but some great pictures of our action-packed performance can be found here (in the red Zoot Suits!): http://public.fotki.com/danp2000/bhs/2008/international/chorus-2/page3.html.

We also enjoyed some sight-seeing: the Grande Ole Opry, Andrew Jackson's Home - the Hermitage (fascinating and rich history of a Southern icon!), the Parthenon replica, and of course plenty of BBQ food and street music!

Being back in the midwest/south sure made us miss visiting family in Illinois and Kentucky! Michelle did get a chance to meet up with BFF Coleen in Louisville, KY, and we made sure to visit a Stake-N'-Shake and watch some fireflies!

After returning home, we enjoyed a family weekend of camping in Henry Coe Redwoods, Santa Cruz mountains. We also visited the beach and boardwalk -- and somehow, Matt was swallowed by the sand!!....

June 2008 Review: Gymnastics, Swimming, Tar Pits and more!

2008-10-12T14:11:00.000-07:00

OK. So we got pretty behind in updating our busy summer activities. Matt graduated from kindergarten, and a few days later Sarah was off too for a long, fun summer at home with Daddy. Matt and Daddy went to visit G'ma and G'pa Staples, and went to visit the La Brea Tar Pits and Museum of Natural history in LA. Matt had a great time [except with the smell of the Tar Pits -- look at the expression on his face! :-)], and a couple of very close encounters with some very large prehistoric creatures.

Meanwhile, Mommy and Sarah had a great time learning to ice skate, and exploring and learning at the SF Exploratorium. Sarah was also finally old enough to go with Mommy to "bring your child to work day", and learn about lab research and DNA technology.

The Sarah and Matt had a blast as summer started, continuing gymnastics and taking swim lessons almost every day. Matt is learning to use the pommel horse (already doing leg-cuts!), and Sarah is working hard on her bar skills.

Catching Up on May: Sarah's First Communion and 8th Birthday

2008-06-17T08:04:00.000-07:00

May began for us with Mother's Day week: Matthew's Kindergarten had their annual "Mom's and Muffins" time with their mommies on Friday morning (Daddy was a helper). Matt and Mommy had a great time enjoying muffins and juice, and reading stories together. Then the weekend began.....

Sarah's big First Communion Mass was Saturday evening, May 10th (hey, wasn't that our 11th Anniversary too!??.... we hardly noticed). She looked gorgeous in her white dress, and posing with Fr. Jim (our Pastor Emeritus). We're very proud to have her as a more active participant in the Mass and as a more active member of God's community :-). Matt was pretty anxious to get out of the Church and run around outside.

Finally, Sarah had a very fun skating party on her birthday on the 31st. She had lots of friends (and their parents!) in attendance, and all had fun skating (or at least trying to skate) around the rink. Her cake was once again by Misha and Nate of NorCal (a Littlest Pet Shop-styled Peacock)....... :-)

Both kids continue to do well in gymnastics too, and we've all been excited to watch the Lakers in the playoffs.

We'll be back soon with June updates so far.....

Matthew's 6th Birthday

2008-04-06T23:51:00.000-07:00

Last night was Matt's 6th birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese. He and 10 of his kindergarten friends had great fun playing games, and goofing around in front of the stage-area video camera (which put them all on-screen!). He enjoyed the birthday theme of his favorite new cartoon (and Playstation video game), "Ben 10". His cake, showing Ben's alien-DNA-powered Omnitrix and a few of his alien hero alter-egos, was once again created by chef Michelle (AKA, Mommy) and confection designer, Nate (AKA, Daddy).

Today, we spent a fun afternoon as a family at California's Great America, just a few miles from our house (Daddy's first time, since we moved here almost 4 years ago). Sarah even went on a her first big, inverted roller coaster, The Demon! We also met Aang, from Matt and Daddy's favorite cartoon series, "Avatar: The Last Airbender" -- along with many other Nickelodeon characters.

** In other news: Matt is doing great, having fun, and reading well above his class level in kindergarten. He likes math too! Sarah continues to excel at the top of her class.

Sarah and Matt both will advance to the next level in Gymnastics this month. Sarah will begin level 3, and Matt will begin level 1 (advancing from "Tumbler" level 2). As we expected, Matt is a total natural, and could do everything his teachers asked him to do the first time he tried! He needs to improve a bit on steadying his hand stands, and has even begun work on the rings and pommel horse! Sarah is working hard on uneven bars, especially on her "back hip circles".

Well, here we are in the blogosphere!

2008-02-17T02:59:00.000-08:00

Just thought we'd try a new way to keep our friends and family informed on how and what we are doing, and hopefully meet some new friends along the way. We live in California's San Francisco Bay Area -- by way of Santa Barbara (where Nathan and Michelle met and lived for 11 years).
Michelle and Nathan were married in 1997, and added our great kids Sarah and Matthew in 2000 and 2002. We love God, science, nature, music, and each other very much -- and try to make the most out of each and every day together.
Recently, we took our first trip to the Chabot Space and Science Center in Oakland. Sarah and Matt LOVED pretending to be weightless in the space shuttle. More to come soon!