*1*
Francie- She is a little homeschool sponge. She does everything with Pete and I... in Math, she plays with the little manipulatives and helps us count our days during calendar. In Bible, she blurts out answers that even Pete doesn't know, she colors pictures, plays with shaving cream, cuts, glues, sings, cooks. The great thing is that she does it all of her own free will with no pressure from me- I will remember this as a very precious time.
*2*
Pete- He is so excited about going to the Pumpkin Patch on the 17th... we've marked it on our Math calendar and he faithfully counts down the days. He tells Francie daily about the maze and painting pumpkins and the train and the horsies while she listens enraptured. This is another precious time, because Mitch takes a half day off to come with us.
*3*
Christine- She is loving her last year of "lower" elementary school. She chatters on about DARE, science class experiments, Accelerated Reading rivalries, Challenge Lab, and so many more 5th grade goings-on. While this is her 7th (!) year at this school and she is ready to move on, it will be sad (for her AND I) to leave the familiarity and comfort of the school of her little-kid-hood for the madness of middle school.
*4*
Andrew- He is recovering from a severe cold and today was his first day back at school. Poor kid, he is skinny and pale on the best of days, but when he gets sick, those gray eyes just become huge in his drawn little face and he feels like he would break if I squeezed him a bit too hard. So he had a rough day, especially with cross country practice after school and a good-sized stack of make-up work due tomorrow.
*5*
Jay- He is sophomore class president this year which is providing me with plenty of opportunities to let go and allow him to be more independent. For example, he is responsible for the sophomore float for the homecoming parade next Thursday. It is taking HUGE amounts of effort for me to keep my mouth shut and my opinions to myself, especially when he informed me that the FIRST meeting for float building is going to be on the TUESDAY BEFORE THE PARADE! If the class of 2014 has a lousy float, then the blame is on him. That could jeopardize his re-election efforts which makes me crazy! But I suppose I can't hover over him forever.
*6*
Kerri- I love Fall and we are finally getting some relief from the relentless, oppressive heat that began in MAY. It will still be 92 degrees tomorrow, but the mornings are chilly, I can comfortably work in the flower beds up until about noon, and the babies can actually go out to play during the day. I have that annual urge to buy pumpkins, but the drought has made them so expensive! It's hard to justify spending large sums of money on a decoration that will rot in a few weeks. I will have to content myself with making pumpkin desserts, I guess.
*7*
Mitch- I don't know what is holding this guy together! In the past few months he has given up tobacco and beer, battled insomnia, and continues to toil away at a hugely stressful and demanding job. Maybe wifely prayers? Three years ago this week, he had his bad accident, and I still believe his guardian angel supported him during the fall and greatly lessened the impact of his HEAD with the GROUND, thus sparing his life. Hopefully, I will make it to Heaven and actually KNOW what happened that day :^)
