Sunday, November 13, 2011

Random Summertime Fun....

This is just to wrap up the last little bit of summer craziness, excluding the rest of our vacation though.  Here's some of our life in pictures.....
The cat surprised us all and snuck a dead bird into the house.
She just happened to drop it at the front door, right next to
the Wii gun Jett left out....

We thought about making a chalk outline but I didn't
want the bird in the house any longer than it already was.

Someone's practicing for Easter!

Trying to show us how to hop.

Just a cute picture.
And Haiden's foot is in the background.

When you can't decide whether to play outside
or go snorkeling...



Gives new meaning to the saying, "eyes in the
back of my head".

The profile shot.  I'm not sure what sticks out more,
the goggles or the belly.


This way he doesn't lose them...

Snorkel time!

"OH yeah"!


And when it's just too hot, share the dog's pool.

The dog looks put out.

Who needs a swimsuit!

Cold yogurt on a hot day.
Even better waist deep in ice cold dog water.

I think he's saying what I was thinking about summer,
"HEY, where ya goin'?"
Just to inform: I don't have favorites.  Haiden was out playing with friends and Hailey was doing what she does best as a teenager: hide out in her room.

On to winter......

Last Camping Trip....

We took our last camping trip of the year in August, right after the kids started school.  We packed up everything that six people might need and stayed for three days at our favorite destination; 11 mile reservoir.  We got a pretty good spot and after day 1 almost everyone left.  The kids had a blast!  I'd like to think these are the times we'll remember as we get older and hopefully my kids will want to recreate the same memories with their kids.  I'm sure somehow these little trips will get twisted into stories about what a rough childhood the kids had and how they had to forage for their food.  And now I'll share a few pictures of their uncivilized upbringing.

I love camping breakfast!

So does Jett.
"Gimme them eggs!"

Nothing' cuter than a boy and his food in the wild outdoors.

The crazies take a moment to settle down and eat.

I was asked by Hailey to remove this photo.
I reminded her that if I did, then I'd have
nothing to show at her wedding reception.

A rare photo of the "Camp Master".
At least, that's what he calls himself.

Poor folk lobster......aka, crawdads.

On the hunt....


Notice who's worried about getting wet.

Already has a good arm....

Takin' a little rest.

I just love the blue water and the blue sky...


Jett's new little friend...minnow.

I accidentally forgot to apply sunscreen.
Can you tell?

On the way out I had to yell, "Get'cher Ass outta the road!"
And then the donkey moved.
As much as I love the upcoming holiday season, I definitely miss the camping fun we seem to have every time we go.  Hopefully it's just a few short months until we can make new nightmares...I mean, memories.

Saturday, November 5, 2011

School Is Upon Us....

Really?  Over a month between postings??  That's horrible.  Ok, I'm going to catch you up on the rest of our summer vacation, just not yet.  I have a few little things I need to post about first.  Gotta get my writing chops back.  So, without further adieu.....

Ethan started Kindergarten!!  He just couldn't wait to start school this year and I'm so happy he loves it!  We had parent teacher conferences a few weeks ago and I'm still smiling at the news.  His teacher informed us that he's an amazing example to the other kids, he listens well, he doesn't have anything that he struggles with, and overall he's just really smart.

(If you're a K teacher and you say this to all parents to make them feel good, bite your tongue!)

I can't say that I'm shocked by this status report but I was a little surprised by her enthusiasm.  For the first month or so his daily report of his "new" teacher was usually taken care of by a single adjective...."Grumpy".  After a while it turned into, "Grumpy again".

It turns out she has a room full of little beasts that hadn't done preschool so this was their first experience in a classroom with rules.  Not to mention, it's all day instead of half day.

(May I take a moment to say thank you to all teachers out there.  I don't know how you fight the urge to beat them.)

Anyway, things have gotten much smoother.  Now, "it's just the naughty kids that get her grumpy", as Ethan reports.  So the really great news was his testing so far.  I know.  You're probably thinking, "What kind of testing does a K'er do?"  I don't feel like explaining that.  Just know, they do.

The testing was done at the beginning of the year just to see where the kids' starting points were on an individual basis.  In the first month Ethan tested at a middle of the year level.  This was a test relating to knowing phonics and first word sounds (or something like that).  Also his reading level was at 0.5.  (That's a K'er in the 5th month of school for those that don't know.)  Again, this was done within the first few weeks of school.  (I said "test" a lot up there.  I'll ease up on that.)

I don't want to toot my own horn here but, "Toot Toot!!!"  I'm sure Clint and I had something to do with this. Right?


Here's my little scholar on the first day!
He was a little nervous.

That's how a Valedictorian hangs his backpack.

Even she knew on day 1 she was standing with a sweet boy.
I really like her and so does Ethan.
I think he's made a mark as one of her favorites.

Getting off the bus for the first time.

He was so excited to finally get to ride with Haiden.
I'm just sad this is the only year he'll get to.

Since we drove him to school the first day, I had to get some
pictures of him boarding the bus as well.
These are the memory makers, people.

He's a natural.  Look at that form.
That's good.
I don't feel like driving him everyday.
I did that for preschool and it was not my best subject.
So there it is.  My little Ethan has turned into a big genius.  I think I'll help him start writing his acceptance speech for Class President.