Peter and the Wolf

This week has been engulfed by errands (doctor and dentist appts. for Leah, car repairs, haircuts, and so on) and preparations for Natalie's birthday party on Sunday so we are officially taking a break from school this week. However, Natalie is studying Russia at Tidewater and so she has been bringing a lot of it home; for example, teaching her sisters to polka, which was cute to see. She's been painting onion domes and sewing matrushka dolls out of felt at school. Peter and the Wolf is the big obsession and she and her two younger sisters are constantly acting it out. Rebecca chooses to be the Grandfather most of the time and I think it's because all the parts about the wolf make her a little nervous. She likes to go behind the gate and close it and feel safe. But the other two love to be Peter, the Wolf, the Duck, and the Little Bird and always want me in on the game as well. Cat isn't popular, I don't know why. Maybe they just don't like the clarinet. :-) Natalie made a series of puppets for the characters at school and brought them home, which is how the whole thing got started. We read (of course) Peter and the Wolf -- I have the version trans. by Maria Carlson as does Natalie's teacher -- last night and then today we are listening to it in the car. I have several narrated versions including the one by Dame Edna which is a hoot.