4.0 Recognition

Every year at Ashley's school they have a recognition reception for 4.0 students.  In the past it has been a dinner for students and parents.  This year, with a new principal, he wanted to recognize the students but also make it more public so that the rest of the school community could see the students and aspire to a 4.0.

Part of the new program was inviting parents to the Friday afternoon Homecoming Assembly where all the students were called down to be recognized.  There was actually a pretty big group of kids.  Homecoming week is a big deal at Ashley's school.  They have lots of activities and events every day of the week.  It was actually kind of fun to step back in time to high school and see the assembly and all the student enthusiasm.

This is the best picture I could get of the 4.0 students from by obstructed view

Decades Day.  Last year she did 80s, this year  she went
for 50s with a poodle skirt.  It was a good choice because
lots of guys dressed 50s and so she had a number of boys
hitting on her all day!

Class color day.  Each class is assigned a color.  The students decorate their hall
in that color, wear it head to toe with custom t-shirts and
have class competitions.  Sophomores were green.  This is Ashley
with her friend Maeve who is a Junior.

Following the assembly was a reception for students and parents which included all kinds of appetizers and desserts catered and donated by local restaurants like Buffalo Wild Wings, Chick-Fil-A, pizza shops, Costco, etc.  The kids were also given their Academic letters and certificates of recognition.  They also had a prize drawing and Ashley won an iTunes card.

Ashley and her really good friend Simi.  Love these girls!

Ashley with her friends (l-r) Nathaniel, Ashley, Simi, Miranda

Parents were also given tickets to the Homecoming Football game where between quarters all the 4.0 kids and their parents were announced and got to walk onto the field.  Dave couldn't get off work in time to be there, but I went.  It was a super cold night, so I admit, after we were announced Paige and I left, while Ashley stayed to watch the game with friends.  Part of my decision to leave was that the team was getting blown out.  Ironically, the Oswego East Wolves had a huge second half comeback and actually won the game.  I didn't believe Ashley when she got home and told me they won.  I guess that's what I get for being a doubter!

General Conference, October 2014

Our conference traditions this year were a little different with little bit of the same.  The same is that we watched as a family on Saturday with lots of fun food.  This year we did fondue.  I made a big pot of cheddar cheese fondue and we dipped all kinds of veggies, bread, fruit and even meats.  It was fun.

Paige also made herself a big fort in the basement from which to watch conference.  Everyone in the family had to take their turn in there to visit Paige.

Some things that were different this year.  First off, we didn't do a puzzle.  No reason why, we just didn't set one up.  We also didn't have the Griffins with us this year.  They just found out they are moving and so they were busy trying to get their house ready.  We did however, have another family come over on Sunday, Rachel and Megan Bodily.  We had a homemade pot roast dinner and enjoyed their awesome company.

One last, new thing this year--I worked on a craft during one of the Saturday sessions!  What?!  I haven't done a craft forever.  Ain't had much time for craftin' around here lately.  Anyways, I signed up for a Relief Society craft the day before and of course, I didn't finish it at the activity.  I had to bring all the supplies home, but instead of stashing it in the pile of good intentions, I decided to make it a priority and finish it while I was watching conference and with a little help from Paige I did it.

Here it is---a coffee filter door wreath.

Yep, I folded and glued hundreds of filters onto this wreath.  I just need to add a ribbon.  Who knows when I'll get around to that, but at least it's finished enough to hang!

As for Conference, some favorite talks were
Approaching the Throne of God with Confidence
By Elder Jörg Klebingat


Are We Not All Beggars?

By Elder Jeffrey R. Holland
Stay in the Boat and Hold On!By Elder M. Russell Ballard

CATS

Remember when I mentioned earlier that we bought season tickets to the Broadway Series at our local theater?   Well, show number one was CATS.  I was actually looking forward to this one the most because it is so famous and I had never seen it.

We bought tickets with a group of friends so we all met each other at the theater.  About half the group had seen CATS before, the other half had not.

I honestly, did not know what to expect, I kind of just went in blind.  I knew what the costumes would be like and that they would be singing "Memories" but that was it.

So what is my review?  I actually liked CATS.  Dave said once you catch on that there really isn't a plot or storyline to follow, that you are just watching a bunch of cats doing their thing then you can enjoy the show more.  I couldn't agree more.  The performance was actually very good.  The music was great and the dance/acrobatics were fabulous.  I actually wish I would have bought tickets for the girls.  I think they really would have liked seeing all the dancing, etc.  To me CATS is one of those shows that you really only have to see once, however, I would go again just to take the girls.

I also had a little extra entertainment sitting next to Dave.  I couldn't help but chuckle to myself as I wondered what Dave was thinking as we were watching cats dancing in underpants, etc.  To Dave's credit he was a great sport, he didn't complain, look bored or act annoyed.  In fact, I think he went out of his way to show that he was enjoying himself.  What a good date!

Our next show is in December and it's Mary Poppins.  I have seen it before but Dave hasn't.  It's a great show and I'm sure he'll really like this one!

Six Flags

One perk of Dave going back to work at Deloitte is the friends and family day at Six Flags.  This is a day that Deloitte buys out the whole park.  We had to pay $15 per person to go but it's only about a 1/4 of the regular ticket price and their are no lines in the park, so it's totally worth it.

This year, the girls both invited a friend to come along.  It helps so that everyone has a riding partner and can ride at their own pace.  We did have a forecast of rain but fortunately the weather held out until late afternoon.  We did get one serious downpour that lasted about 30 minutes then it was done and we were able to start riding again.  (Not too bad considering it could have rained all day.)

It was nice that the girls had friends to ride with so I didn't have to go on everything.  I could pick and choose which rides I really wanted to go on and skip others.  Also, this year Paige was officially tall enough to go on every ride, even the big scary ones like Superman.

The newest ride at Six Flags Great America is Goliath, "the world's largest and tallest roller coaster."  There was a line to get on this one.  Ashley and her friend waited to do it.  When Paige and I got in line later in the day, it started to rain and so we ended up not riding it, but I'm sure we will get the chance another time.

Goliath

2014 Boosterthon Fun Run

After 9 days of pep rallies, team meetings, and gathering pledges the 2014 Wolf's Crossing Boosterthon Fun Run arrived.

All the classes came up with team names and a list of incentives.  The PTA also purchased t-shirts for every student.  We got a new school mascot uniform so "Wonder the Wolverine" could come and cheer the kids on.  (Thank goodness, I didn't have to wear the costume!!)

And best of all, the kids, parents, and the whole school community stepped up and we reached our fundraising goal!

Here are some pictures from the Fun Run.  The music is blasting and the kids run through an inflatable tunnel onto the running track.  Every kid ran about 30 laps or over 1 mile.

Paige and her friend Beliah
(Beliah is a cancer survivor - so good to see her running
the race with her hair all grown out!)

Here is Paige and her friend running laps

Paige's class after the Fun Run

School Pictures - 2014

Long Days

This is what happens to you as you are trying to adjust to early morning Seminary followed by a long day at school, evening activities and lots of homework---you end up crashing the second you sit down.

Fundraiser Committee Chair

Well, well, well.  This was the year that I wasn't going to be doing so much PTA stuff at the elementary school.  That's why I am the Fundraiser Committee Chair.  Yep, I'm a fool!  We are just doing one big project so I'm comforting myself in that this is a one and done.

The fundraiser the school is doing is the same one as last year called a Fun Run.  We actually hire a company to run most of the program for us, so my main responsibility is advertising, parent communication and coordinating between the Fun Run team and the school.

I know it is going to be busy but hopefully it won't be too overwhelming and it would be nice if the fundraising drive was a success.  Our goal is to profit $22,000 which means we have to raise $40,000.

We kicked off the fundraiser with a big Pep Rally.  The theme was "Rock'n Town Live."  Here are some pics from that as well as some of our decorations and advertising.

The Principal and VP

the information table at back to school night

 a little fence art

the Pep Rally

a little blurry, but Paige and her friend at the Pep Rally

Ashley's Good Week

Ashley had a pretty good week.  First off, she auditioned for the extra-curricular Pop a cappella group at her school and made it!  These groups are not easy to get into; there are many more applicants than spaces.  She had to prepare to sing a selection from a pop song, sing scales, etc.  The audition process is enough to scare me off.  This year, she originally didn't have room in her schedule for choir, but she ended up changing her schedule around for the very purpose of wanting to be in one of these singing groups at school.  Anyways, she is now officially a Soprano 2 in Voice Activated (Blue) a cappella group at her school.  She has rehearsal twice a week after school which will just add to her already busy schedule but it makes her happy, so you do what you do.  (Although I will say it would be nice if she could drive herself back and forth from the school all the time!)  I'm looking forward to their first performance, they are singing Landslide by Fleetwood Mac, Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol, and Fly  by Nicki Minaj.  Should be fun.

The next bit of good news is that she was selected to the Student Leadership Initiative Program.  Each high school in the surrounding counties can send five students (Sophomores) to participate.  You have to be nominated to even apply, from there you have to complete a big written application with open response questions and be interviewed.  The school accepted 20 applicants this year and Ashley was one of the 5 selected.  This program looks really interesting.  Once a month she and other kids from other schools spend a whole school day doing service and leadership activities.  The purpose is to help the kids develop leadership and problem-solving skills while serving the community.  Anyway, very proud of her.  A good thing was that almost all her close friends were also nominated which in class of 600+ kids it tells me that she has the right kind of friends.  For her, it was a weird situation of being happy to have friends to go through the process with while at the same time competing against them for the available spaces.  

As Ashley, is getting involved in more activities, etc.  I am starting to see that one of her strengths is interviewing.  She's a talker and pretty comfortable speaking to adults which I think is what really helps set her apart from other kids her age.  Also, I am pretty sure that all the interviews, meetings and talks she gives at church has really helped her in this area and given her lots of practice.

The final bit of good news is that she also started her first ever paid job.  She is a referee for Wheatland Athletic Association.  She refs the youth recreational soccer games on Saturdays.  It's a pretty good gig for someone who is not yet 16.  She only does it on Saturdays during the Spring and Fall, which works perfectly because in the winter she will be busy with the bowling team.  Another nice aspect is that you give them the times you are available and then they schedule you based on that, so it's very flexible.  And the pay is more than minimum wage, another thing that's hard to beat.  She refereed 4 games as a  linesman and really enjoyed herself even though she got a sunburn on her face.  Anyways, it will be great for her to handle the responsibility of working and earning her own spending money.

Labor Day

Dave was working on Labor Day, but the girls and I got up and went to an old-fashioned breakfast sponsored by our Stake at church.  It was held at a beautiful/fancy farm about 30 minutes from our home.  We had breakfast, the kids played a few games, hung out with friends then we headed home to spend the rest of the day doing LOTS of homework.

Radio Show

Ashley performed in a radio play called "The Horrors of Spider Island."  Its a special kind of format where the cast meets together in the morning and spends the whole day rehearsing and then performs later in the evening.  She and a couple of her friends did it together and she had a great time.

Ashley was "Kate" one of the girls who is shipwrecked on an island then attacked by giant spiders.  The show was set in the 1960s and based on one of the campy horror features of the time.   It was a cute show and Ashley did a great job.

Ashley's Birthday

At one time, Ashley's birthday was in the summer.  Now with the earlier starts, she is actually in school on her birthday.  Here she is wearing a her birthday dress just before she leaves for school.

One advantage of being at school on your birthday is that your friends decorate your locker:

Her main gift from us was a new bowling ball:

She had a birthday party later that night.  It was pretty simple.  She invited a few friends to the Hollywood Palms Theater.  It is one of those movie places that serves you dinner during the movie.  She and her friends went to see the movie "The Giver"  After dinner and the movie they all came back to our house for a bonfire in the backyard.  It was really easy and I think they all had a fun time.

I found "Ashley" cokes for everyone to drink

She had an oreo ice cream cake too

2014 First Day of School

WOW!!!  School started so early this year - August 18th to be exact.  It still feels like summer to me.  In fact, I think we all just wanted to ignore the fact that school was starting.  We didn't really even do any school clothes shopping.  We did have a nice dinner and Father's blessings the day before school started but that was the only fanfare we could muster.

Ashley is a Sophomore this year!  Time is flying by.  I'm pretty sure she is going to be crazy busy, but it will be all good stuff.  Ashley likes high school a lot and I'm grateful for that.

Paige is in 5th grade this year.  The last year of elementary school.  Now, that is weird to think about!  

Another change this year is that with Riley's move and the fact that I'm not babysitting our neighbor's kids this year, she goes to the bus stop all by herself without the usual entourage.  Paige's friends at our bus stop where a year older than her, so they all have moved up to the junior high.   She's the only 5th grader at her stop with a bunch of kindergarten and 1st graders.  Fortunately, she does have friends who ride her same bus, so she just has to patient with all the little kids at the bus stop.

Anyway, both girls had a good first day and there is no looking back now!