Today Megan received the Principal Pride award. It's the same award as we called Student of the Month in our previous school.
Sorry the pictures are so small - I was half way to town when I realized that I'd left my camera at home - so I had to rely on my trusty cell phone camera. Considering I took these pictures from clear across the gym, they're not bad.
Megan shaking the Principal's hand.
They also had a fun reward for the kids - one of the local grocery owners, Jeff W, had some contest going with the kids and apparently the kids won because Jeff got a pie thrown in his face at the assembly. What a good sport! The kids loved it. You should have heard them chanting, "Pie in face, pie in face..."
Again, sorry everything is so small this time. It was the cell phone or nothing...
The video has nothing to do with the Open House - just with the "school lunch" dinner they served everyone in the cafeteria. For some reason, dinner served on styrofoam plates with ketchup packets is always my kids' favorite...no matter WHAT it is! Jared is loving 2nd grade. He has a fun teacher that he really likes.
We sure do enjoy seeing our boys do so well in Scouting. Last night, Jacob had a Pack Meeting and was awarded, along with several Activity Pins, his Webelos badge.
He really likes being in a den with so many boys. Before we moved he really only had a handful of boys that met each week. It's nice to be a part of a big, functioning group like this!
And this one is just because I caught him being cute!
I keep saying I'm going to do better at keeping this updated - ugh! Things just happen so fast around here, it's all I can do to keep up, let alone write about it all!
Jacob started band this week - he decided he wanted to play the saxophone, which of course is the most expensive band instrument! LOL He's already doing well at it - he says his "years of playing the recorder help" - :)
My parents stopped by to visit last night. Dad is doing so much better. He says he's feeling great. Not quite ready to head back to work yet, but he's getting there. The kids were sure happy to see him. I told them he was ok, and like I mentioned before, we don't sugar-coat things with our kids - so they know that if we say things are ok, then they don't have to worry...but it was still a relief to have him in our home where the kids could see for themselves that he's doing great!
I don't even know what to say about this video really - other than I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen it w/ my own eyes! My little girlies went through a phase of being afraid of EVERYTHING when we first moved out here - spiders, flies, kittens, puppies, fish in tanks...everything! Now look at them! (Oh, and they look like orphans b/c I had them in the house to take a bath and before I got the water drawn, they got dressed and went back outside - hence, no pony tails...ALSO...regardless of what it looks like at the end of this video, no animals were harmed in any way, shape or form!)
We got a lot done on the house this week. Well, Brandon and his brother Brian got a lot done, I kept kids out of the way...which I realize is helpful, but I don't feel like I can say "I" helped on the house.
The plan was to pour concrete for our garage and sidewalks on Monday - so all last week, Brian and Brandon leveled out the front yard and made forms for the sidewalk and the garage. It was great fun having Brian around - and it's always fun to have dad home from work, even if we just watch him through the window most of the day. We did sneak out and visit a few times - and even got to ride on the bobcat!
The goal is to get a real deck built and stop using our Tiny Tykes Ankle Twister porch as soon as possible! :)
By Saturday night, everything was ready - which was good because that's the same day that Melanie had contaminated the family and I was down all day with the flu - that night, Brandon was hit with it. He was out all day Sunday and probably still felt like garbage on Monday - but you could never tell by how hard he and his brothers worked on the concret.
Like clock-work, Brandon's brothers showed up Monday morning to help. I don't know what we would have done without them, not just this week - but throughout this entire house building experience! Whenever we need someone, they're always there.
Here they are, Carson, Courtney, Brandon & Brian...and don't miss Jason who got to stay home from school to help.
Here is the cheering squad. Megan and Jared wanted to watch too - I'm kind of a push-over that way. Maddie and Jacob want to try for 100% attendance this year at school, so they didn't stay to watch.
Brandon and Courtney working on the sidewalk.
Brian working on the sidewalk's finishing touches.
Brandon goes back to work tomorrow - he got a lot of landscaping done with the bobcat. A lot of leveling and smoothing out of the yards - oh and there was this one little mishap - fear not, he walked away unscathed. I think he may have even enjoyed it a little.
His first heart attack was confirmed, thankfully however, he was medicated and treated and able to avoid a second that they feared was on his near horizon.
The fluid around his heart is decreasing and nothing in his echo showed a need for surgery.
He's still taking antibiotics for pneumonia. He still has a pretty high fever - the shakes and sweats. He'll have medications to take for his heart, probably for many years to come. But what a small price to pay to be alive.
I had a good visit with him tonight. He looks so much better than he did last night! I didn't realize how poorly he looked last night until I saw him tonight.
He'll be in the hospital here for a few more days - then home to rest for a couple of weeks - then if the meds do their thing and his check-ups go ok, rumor has it he can go back to work. (Of course I wish he'd just move into a safe little plastic bubble for the next few years, but nobody ever listens to MY ideas!)
Thank you all for your love, prayer and support. It means the world to our family.
We've been down with the flu the last couple of days. I was pretty sure I was going to die Saturday afternoon. Aches, chills, nausea, fever - everything Melanie had had the day before. Madilyn came down with a lesser version of it that afternoon too. Around 3pm I ran a bath. I figured either the warm bath would make me feel better - or if I were lucky, I'd become unconscious and slip under the water and drown! Well, just before either one happened, my sister called.
L: Hi, are you coming up? (She was at my parents' 1hr away) Me: Uh, no, why? L: For dad. Me: (Truly clueless) Dad's what? L: He's in the hospital, didn't mom call you? Me: Doy, no!
Dad was sick with the flu a couple of weeks ago and never really got better. He took a week off work, which should have been enough for us to insist that he see a doctor as he's never missed a day of work!
Long story short, he became ill again Friday night and Saturday morning my mom told him she'd had enough and he was going to the doctor.
They did find a spot of pneumonia on his lung (which he suspected) but they also found that his heart has a large amount of fluid around it - his blood pressure drops far too low - his enzyme levels are off - they suspect he had a heart attack back when he thought he had the flu - and they suspect he's likely to have another one soon if something isn't done.
The plan was to keep him in the little home-town hospital until Monday when there would be a tech to do an echo-something test - but apparently he had a "bad night". Ran a high fever, shakes, sweats - and Dr. Quinn decided he'd better go to the "big city" hospital. An ambulance is bringing him down as I type. I went and saw him last night - wearing a very attractive surgical mask and all! He looked tired. He looked a little scared. But he was trying so hard to make us all think he's blowing it off, "no big deal". It was just all so familiar of being at the hospital with Brandon's dad. There is just something about seeing the strongest, most important men in your life as a patient in a hospital.
I'm selfishly asking for prayers for my dad. We haven't told the kids anything yet. I don't want to tell them that it's ok if it's not - and I don't want to tell them it's worse than it really is either. Our kids truly do better with the truth - no sugar-coating! I hope to have some answers in a few hours - and I pray they are the answers we want to hear.
I promise we're all still alive - and I promise a ton is happening...I just haven't gotten anything blog presentable.
The kids all survived their first week of school - well, first "week" that included a 3 day weekend...whatever. Jared did manage to miss the bus home the first day - because I used to pick him up last year, the school thought I would this year too, so they told him he was a "pick up" and didn't put him on the bus. They called me at 3:45 and said, "Hi, we have Jared here waiting to be picked up." And I said, "That's what the school bus was supposed to do!" Luckily, dad was on his way home from town and was able to stop and get him! And thankfully, Jared was none the worse for ware!
We signed the final papers on our little house last night - hopefully we'll see a large deposit in our bank account by 4pm tomorrow! It'll be so nice to have this little adventure of selling a house behind us!
Now we're moving on to our siding, decking and concrete - oh and driveway - here at our new place. Brandon's brother Brian is here for one more week before he leaves for school and I believe the plan is for the two of them to get as much done before he leaves as possible.
I'm sure there's so much more I could share - I'll throw in the part about my sinus cold and maybe y'all'll understand why this is such a disjointed entry!! I'll do better! I'm sure we'll do pictures of the changes to the outside of the house this week. In fact, I swear I'll go out and take pictures before they get started today, just to have a starting reference point.
Today begins another year! I can't believe summer is over already! Didn't it just start yesterday? The kids are all very excited to get back to school and see their friends and teachers again. They didn't want me to drive them today - this is the first time I haven't taken them on the first day. Jared didn't want me to take him because "It's too sad when you leave." How cute is that! So, I walked them to the bus stop, did hugs and pictures and last minute mom reminders. I waved good bye to them as the bus pulled away, and then I bawled all the way back to the house. Ok, not full on bawling - but I will admit I cried more than anyone else did this morning - and that includes Joseph!
Here's the gang...I can't believe how big they're all getting to be!
Maddie - 6th Grade
Maggie - 3rd Grade
Jacob - 5th Grade
Jared - 2nd Grade
Jason - 8th Grade
*sniff*sniff*
I'd include pictures of the stay-home-kids, but Malorie is still in bed and Melanie and Joseph are still in jammies watching Wonder Pets - we're heading in to McDonald's Playland to meet some friends in a little bit - maybe I can get some pictures there.
Jason is doing so well in his new troop! (And I have to admit, I'm sincerely enjoying being the Committee Chair for the unit also!)
He had a Court of Honor this last week and was awarded: First Class Rank Advancement and Scholarship, Leatherwork, Swimming, Rifle, Citizenship in the World, First Aid, Orienteering, Emergency Preparation Merit Badges. He's very anxious to complete his Star and has his Eagle all planned out - he's shooting for Christmas time 2008! If he stays as enthusiastic about scouts as he is now, I don't doubt that he'll make it!
Jason with Mom & Dad receiving his 1st Class Rank Advancement!
Later receiving his Merit Badges - (Lucky for mom, they make a cool sticker stuff to attach these puppies to his sash so she doesn't have to sew them ALL on!)
Maddie and Maggie entered some things in the Community Fair this weekend and surprised themselves by how well they did. I spent the last few days leading up to the fair reminding them "this is your first fair" and "you're both just kids"...I didn't want them to get their hopes too high - of course, we knew they'd place, we just had no idea how great they'd do!
Madilyn - Grand Champion Award on a skirt and vest that she sewed in her sewing class with our dear friend Shirley.
Madilyn - Blue Ribbon on her decorative pillow.
Madilyn - Blue Ribbon on her tied quilt.
Madilyn - Blue Ribbon and White Ribbon on pictures she took at Grandma Janet's house.
Megan - Blue Ribbon on her decorative pillow.
Megan - Red Ribbon on her tied quilt.
We're so proud of the girls! This is Megan's first year of sewing. Madilyn has been doing lessons for three years now and she just keeps getting better and better! It's a cinch they couldn't have done any of this without Shirley and Grandma Janet!
Yesterday, we spent the day at Silverwood. It's a great little theme park that we affectionately refer to as "Earl's Disneyland". It was great fun. We spent hours at their waterpark and then hours running from ride to ride. There are a lot of pictures - and even a few videos. Don't feel obligated to view them all.
We weren't sure WHY Jared liked sitting under this waterfall, but he did.
Wow, I think if you look closely, you can see clear to her toes!
Melanie stayed close to mom, but had a great time.
See, she ventured a few steps away from me now and then.
Joseph and Maddie waiting for the antique car ride.
Jason, Megan, Jared & Jacob on the bumper cars.
I forgot what this ride was called...
Oh yeah, it was the "Not for mom's" ride!
Megan and the girlies had a great time in the helicopter.
Jason, Maddie, Jacob, Megan, Jared & Marilyn on the Corkscrew!
Yes, I realize this isn't a flattering picture of me (very few are), but I did want it documented that I WAS there! LOL And so was our friend Marilyn - she takes care of our kids like a mom, spoils them like a grandma, and does all the cool things with them like an aunt...what more could we ask for??
Ferris Wheel Cam
Mom stuck to the sissy rides this year - I'm turning in to MY mom! LOL
This is Marilyn, Megan, Jacob, Jared, Jason & Madilyn. Malorie and Marilyn coming down the log ride - they got SOAKED at the bottom!
And, not to be out done, dad and Melanie also got soaked at the bottom!
This innocent smile and wave was about 2 seconds before the water cannon fired and SOAKED him! I sure do love him...even when he's soggy -
- maybe even more!
I know this is a blurry picture - don't forget our little camera is on it's last leg. But it's funny because the girls and I rode that Merry-Go-Round 3 or 4 times IN A ROW and they would have gone more! Luckily some other people finally came and got in line so we "had" to get off!
