[talk: My Little Drummer Boy]

I'm not really sure EXACTLY when it started - but as long as I can remember, Mattias has been drumming. We would keep him occupied in restaurants by turning over glasses and giving him straws to hit them with.

For his first birthday, we gave him a single drum and by Christmas the same year, he had a little set with 2 toms and a cymbal. He played them so much, we had to use paper plates to repair the "skins" of the toms. Then - for Christmas, as the age of 2 - we got him a miniature kit including bass kick, high-hat and snare. It only took about 2 months for him to establish a simple 4/4 rhythm and play along with me as I played the piano & sang.

This year, at preschool, he brought his kit to class for "Show & Tell". It was a HIT ... it even brought in staff from around the building. One lady came up to me later and told me she had a jr. kit with real skins and wanted to know if I'd be interested in borrowing it. UM. YES!! So - Tias has 2 kits put together now, has a cow bell, and a Sabian Cymbal that he got for Christmas.

I'd be lying if I said he played everyday now. He doesn't. Mainly, it's my fault ... he used to play for an hour or two during the day, but with Josiah sleeping - I've had to curb that. And with the sunshine out - he's really not interested.

In the fall, he'll be in a 10wk music program with a focus on percussion. If he enjoys it, and I can handle Josiah through it, we can continue in 10wk classes.

Here's a video from that day at preschool. If you're interested in seeing more, go to www.youtube.com/taniakiwi . There are about a dozen or so there.