First week of school

This past week marked Joey's first week of school. It was a hectic start, but by the end of the week, everything had fallen into place.

Earlier this year, Joey took a test to see if he would qualify for a spot in the Gifted and Talented program that is offered at a few NYC public schools. We were sent a letter stating he had qualified. We applied to several schools. All we had to do was wait and see if he got accepted. At the end of June, we were informed there were no spots for him and he would be put on a waiting list. I must admit, we were a little upset, but we decided it's okay. His current school was a five minute walk from us, he had plenty of friends, and the staff worked so well with the kids. Well, a week before he was to start school, we got a letter in the mail stating a spot has opened up in the Gifted and Talented program. We had a week to decide whether or not to enroll him in this new school. Tony and I decided to give it a shot. If we didn't like this school, we could always transfer him back. I was unsure of our decision, but I went ahead and registered him. He would start that Monday. We went through the rest of the week preparing for school.

The night before school, Joey could not sleep. His nerves were keeping him up. I was starting to get nervous. What if it's a repeat of last year? (click here for last year's story) I don't know if I could handle it again this year. Over the course of the last week, I did everything I could think of to calm his nerves. I went over what he should expect the first day.  I told him it was going to be hectic on the first day, but it would get better. We said a little prayer and he soon fell asleep.

The next morning, Joey had a breakfast of buttered toast and water. Not the most energy boosting of foods, but it's as bland as you can get, and it's the only food he wanted. We packed up and left for school. We got to the school yard and it was packed with parents and students. I found his class and waited with him until his teacher came. I could tell Joey was nervous. He kept sipping his water and I was preparing for the worse. Most of the kids in his class knew each other and were chatting away. It was the same with the parents. For a minute, I knew how Joey must have felt. Being in a new school with no friends is always a tough transition. Soon, it was time for the parents to leave, I said bye and watched him walk inside. No tears. No vomit. I was so relieved. .

As the week went by, everything seemed to settle and things got easier. I like his teacher and the school staff. Dropping him off is a breeze. However, pick up is still chaotic. The school is still trying to find a release system that works. His new school is further away. and I drive him to school. I plan to alternate between driving and walking. It's a twenty five minute walk and I think the stroll would be good for us. Joey has made friends in his class. His nerves are gone and he tells me he likes this school. I am so happy the transition has been easy. He will be at this school with the same classmates for the next few years.

I went to a meet and greet with Joey's teacher. She explained the curriculum and what to expect. He will be doing spelling, reading, math, social studies, and science. He also goes to music, art, gym, and the library. He has daily homework in reading, spelling, and math. He had his first spelling test on Friday. He does a lot of writing, which is good. Homework load is a little bit more than last year, but that is to be expected. I am excited to see how much he will learn and grow this year. It's going to be challenging, but I know with a little effort from all of us, he will excel.

New Mexico trip

Our Washington trip lasted a week. We took one day to rest and recover. We slept in and spent a leisurely day in town. My mother-in-law and Tony were flying back in under a week. Tony still wanted to show his mom the local sights. We made a short list of the places we would visit. Among them were: Four Corners Monument, Mesa Verde National Park, and Durango, CO. We managed to check them off our list over the next few days. Soon, it was time to drive them back to Albuquerque for their early morning flight.  My mother-in-law enjoyed her vacation. Once home, she told Tony, "It feels like a dream and I am back to reality". Don't we all feel that way after vacation? I am glad to she had a great time. Next year, we hope my father-in-law will join us. Another adventure awaits.

With Tony back in Brooklyn, and the sightseeing over, we had no itinerary. Our schedule was completely open. I managed to have lunch with a few close friends. We are all very busy, but I am thankful we were able to see each other and catch up. I just wish I had more time to spend with them. The rest of the time was spent with my family. Joey went to feed the cows and horses with my dad. He played with all his cousins. I spent time with my mom and sister. My two younger brothers came back for a visit (They live and work in North Dakota). Joey spent time with both his uncles. We had family dinners, birthday parties, and even a volleyball party. The two weeks flew by and next thing you know, Joey and I were making the long drive to Albuquerque for our flight back to Brooklyn. We were gone for almost the whole month of July.

I took very few pictures the last two weeks of my visit. Looking back, I really wish I did. They were filled with so much fun and joy. Everyone was happy and enjoying the time we spent together. It was like the calm before the storm.

Two days after we got back to Brooklyn, we got the devastating news that my cousin's son Kee, had passed away. We just celebrated his 2nd birthday the week before. It was a blow that my family was not prepared for. He was my cousin's little boy, but he was our little Kee. I didn't see him every day, but it still hurts knowing, I won't see him the next time I visit New Mexico. I wish I squeezed him just a little bit longer the last time I saw him. Our family is still struggling with our loss, but I hope and pray that each day becomes easier for them. We find our comfort knowing he is with our Heavenly Father. He will always be in our hearts and I will always remember what a happy baby he was.

Our Kee

Another New Mexico trip is in the books. Every year, my visit gets longer and longer. Soon, Joey and I may just spend a summer there. Until then, I look forward to our next visit and to spend time with my family.

Washington trip: Part 2

We spent the next day in Seattle. Our first stop was the International District. Tony said, it was more like their version of Chinatown, since most of the writings on the buildings were in Chinese. We took a short walk around the neighborhood. We ended up in a small park, where Joey was fascinated with a man playing a string instrument called an Erhu. Meanwhile, I was following Tyler around the park as he explored and chased some pigeons. We took my parents and my brother Kirby to a cafe that served dim sum. From there, we decided to walk down to Pike's Market. It was about a mile walk, give or take. We were to meet up with my cousin and grandma later on. Pike's Market was super busy, but we got to see the famous tossing of the fish at the fish market. We bought delicious raspberries and cherries from the farmer's market. We took a stroll to the gum wall, where Joey got to place his own gum on the wall. It's gross, but strangely fantastic. Near the water, there is a huge ferris wheel. Being the tourists that we are, we bought tickets. My mother-in-law and Joey opted to stay firmly on the ground. The rest of us, got in line. It was fun and the view was incredible. Our last stop of the day was The Space Needle. It was cool, but one time will be enough for me. Although, it was fun to see my grandma and mother-in-law's excitement and awe. We drove back to Lacey and had a beautiful view of Mt. Rainier.

Beautiful Mt. Rainier

Our last day in Lacey, we decided to take it easy and relax. My brother took us to lunch at a very yummy Vietnamese restaurant. From there, we drove to the state capital and walked the grounds. It was a gorgeous day. After that, we went to my dad's favorite store, Cabela's. I have never been to one. It is awesome! We spent over an hour in there. I finally know what the fuss is about. We ended the day with a BBQ at my brother's apartment. It was a perfect way to end our stay.

Beautiful!

That's us. Down at the bottom.

Best store ever!

Inside Cabela's

Cousins

Sitting outside my brother's apartment.

We were up early the next day. We said our goodbyes and we started the trek back to New Mexico. We decided to take another route that took us right next to Mt. Rainier. We would come out by Yakima, WA, and merge back towards Idaho. Our goal was to reach Boise by nightfall. The drive through the mountains were absolutely breathtaking. I love driving through Oregon. I hope I get the opportunity to visit this gorgeous state again. We made it to Boise and stayed the night. Our goal was to drive straight to New Mexico. We made a stop in American Fork, Utah. We wanted to stop at this sporting goods store called Scheels and eat dinner. By this time, my dad and I were exhausted and a tad cranky (okay, I was very cranky. I'm sorry.) We decided it was too late to drive back and we opted to spend the night.

Mt. Rainier

family photo

Just around the bend.

Sunset in Idaho

Great view right outside of  Scheels.

Refreshed and ready to go, we ate a quick breakfast and started driving. We took a different route home, so we could show my mother-in-law Monument Valley We continued south and made our way to the Utah/Arizona border. Once we got there, we could see lightning and hear thunder. We could smell and see the rain. This drive was exactly the way I would have wanted it. It was so beautiful.

Goosenecks National Park

Tony's favorite, Mexican Hat

The rain was amazing.

From Monument Valley, we made our way back to my parents' house. This was an unforgettable trip. I am leaving out so many pictures and stories. My only regret is, I didn't take enough pictures. Oh, and I wish we had our regular camera. The whole trip was filled with spectacular sights. I am so thankful to have had this opportunity to travel and see parts of the U.S., that I never thought I would see. This is only a fraction of the United States. We truly are blessed to live in a beautiful country. I look forward to see where our next adventure will take us.

Our Washington trip: Part 1

Warning: This will be a long post filled with tons of pictures. We could not find our regular camera. These are all cell phone pictures.

We have been planning this New Mexico/Washington trip for almost a year. My dad and I made plans and we put a loose itinerary together. We bought our airplane tickets in March. We booked our hotel stays in May and in June, we booked our rental car. The fun part, my mother-in-law was coming with us! She has never been to the Southwest and we were excited to show her the sights. We left Brooklyn on July 3rd and arrived at my parents' house later that evening. We had a family BBQ. I seen family that I have not seen in years and to be honest, it was a nice surprise. We ate, talked, and watched the kids play. It turned into a late evening. We were leaving for our trip to Washington the next day. I don't know who planned it this way (me). I couldn't sleep that night. I was so excited. I woke up and could not go back to sleep. I finally got out of bed around 6:00. I got ready and started loading things into the car. We were going to follow my parents in their truck. My dad started loading up his truck and we set out around 7:00. The night before, I asked my grandma to come with us. She said yes!! I was even more excited. After we picked her up, we had a quick breakfast and we were officially on the road by 9:00. It was my mom, dad, grandma, and Joey in my dad's truck. My mother-in-law, Tony and I in the rental car. Wwe stopped at a kitschy little rest stop/gift shop a few miles outside of Moab, Utah. We stretched our legs for a bit and got back on the road. The drive through Moab was spectacular. I wish we took photos. I am not sure why we didn't. We kept going until we reached Spanish Fork, Utah. We stopped for a late lunch at Cafe Rio. It was delicious! We quickly ate and had to get moving. Our overnight stop was Boise, Idaho. We were still six hours away. The drive through Utah was lovely. Tony and I were amazed at how many churches we saw. We started a little game to see who could spot all the churches. That kept us busy. The most wonderful views were the temples. I loved seeing them right up against the mountains. The mountains were incredible! I had never been past Moab until we were on this trip. So, from here on out, the scenery was new to all of us. We finally reached Idaho and by then, I was starting to get tired. The last hour before we hit Boise was a killer. Finally around 10:00 p.m., we made it to our motel. We were all very tired and ready to get some sleep. 

Our route to WA

The next morning, I felt refreshed and ready to go. We had another long day of driving, but we would reach our destination by evening time. The drive through Idaho was pleasant. There were a lot of hills and fields. We were amazed by all the wind farms. We decided our lunch spot would be in Pendleton, OR. Along the way, we pulled over at a rest stop that marked The Oregon Trail. It was very cool to see we were on the route of the pioneers. We had lunch right outside Pendleton, OR. From there, we stopped to look at the Pendleton Mills wool shop. It is very pricy, but it was fun to browse. We set off and drove through the Oregon towards the coast. I thought it was one of the most beautiful drives I have ever been on. We saw Mt. Hood. Along the way, we stopped to see the Multnomah Falls. It was amazing! It was definitely worth a stop. From there, we drove straight in to Lacey. We checked into our motel and went to my brother's apartment. I finally met my nephew, Tyler. He is one and a half and very cute. It was awesome to see my brother and his family. We all went out to dinner. We had a nice time eating and chatting. By the end of our meal, we were all very tired. We decided to take it easy the next day and head out to see the coast.

Somewhere in Oregon

Pendleton, Oregon

Pendleton, OR

Mt. Hood

Joey and  Tyler

The next day, we drove to Ocean Shores, WA. It's a small coastal town. After a quick lunch, we drove onto the beach. Yes. We drove onto the beach. It was awesome! The day was perfect. The Pacific ocean is a completely different ocean from the Atlantic. I was surprised to hear how loud it was. The waves were huge. It was breathtaking. It was also the first time my Grandma has ever seen an ocean. She was amazed. It was sweet to see her kick off her shoes and walk on the beach and into the water. She loved it. Joey and Tyler were ready to jump right in. They both got soaked, but they had a blast. It was a great day. From there, we drove around the surrounding area and did a little shopping. My cousin Allison lives north of Seattle in Marysville. She drove down to meet us and she took Grandma back to her house for the night. We had a nice dinner at this yummy pizza joint. Joey got to meet his cousin, Ryan. They hit if off immediately and I felt bad that we had to leave.We would meet up with them the next day in Seattle.

To be continued...