Eleven!

Our eldest child turned 11 yesterday - sigh! He really is a joy to have around and it was fun to celebrate him yesterday.  He got to enjoy lunch with both of his parents and then needed to wait for our little family celebration at the end of the day.  His teacher also helped make it special as well as a favorite treat sent to school with him.

I've heard parenting is not for the faint of heart and I totally agree.  However, there are rewards along the way that just possibly show they are growing into the young person God would have them to be.  Yesterday was one of those glimpses.  I never expect anything in return as I wrap and make their cakes.  However, yesterday Luke was just super excited about his birthday and what might await him under the wrapping paper along with Little Caesar pizza (a favorite for him) and his requested ice cream Kit-Kat cake.  However, when it was all said and done, Luke more than once, thanked us for his gifts and his birthday and told us how much he liked it.  It was all unprompted and it completely warmed my heart.  So thankful for this even-keel, construction-loving, Lego-builder, reader that God has gifted to us.

A Lady Unrivaled - Book Review

A Lady Unrivaled is the third installment of the Ladies of the Manor Series.  If you really enjoy some mystery and adventure mixed with a bit of Downton Abbey, this book is for you.  I have thoroughly enjoyed this series.  The time period is intriguing, the characters are captivating and the mystery will keep you turning the pages. The author does a wonderful job of painting the scenes and the characters to be believable and just a bit amazing.  They make you want to get to know them better.  It was also interesting how she weaved the mystery throughout all three books.  She does put an end to the "fire eyes" in this book and we are happy to assume that these three families live happily ever after.

I received a complimentary copy of A Lady Unrivaled by Roseanna M. White from Bethany House Publishers.

Kickoff to Football Season

Football season has officially (and finally) gotten started.  It just couldn't come soon enough for one of my boys!  After a week delay due to an abundance of rain, the season got off to a rather soggy start.  Yes, the second try was still wet, but not nearly as bad as the week prior.  They both did a great job of playing defense, scoring, making interceptions, etc.  However, there are always lessons to learn...how to be part of a team, how to not make excuses and blame others, how to be a good sport, etc.  They love learning the sport, running around, being with friends, but these character lessons are the heart issues that are molded and formed during the season.  We are thankful for a good and safe organization for them to learn these life skills.

 Luke (#14) plays on the Titans.  His favorite positions are quarterback and running back/receiver.  I know I'm a bit biased, but I think he does a pretty good job in those positions as well as some flag grabbing on defense. 

They rotate the kids through the positions, but here Luke is playing quarterback.

 Andrew (#4) plays on the Falcons.  His favorite position is running back/receiver and he also does a great job on defense.  He is my little football lover.  It's a good thing we don't have cable or this kid could watch football 24/7.  He watches more than enough the way it is....

 Andrew catching a pass and ready to run.

 Andrew took a bit of a tumble on a play and needed to check out the damage.  He doesn't really like to get dirt on himself....

 Hannah was there and did a great job of entertaining herself for much of the time (thankfully, one of Luke's teammates has a sister she really enjoys spending time with).  I don't really know what these two are doing, but they seemed to be enjoying themselves.

Just a token picture of Andrew with one of his best buddies.  These two love sports.  They have been in class together the past two years, but this year they are not.   It was a very sad day for both of them when they learned that would not again be the case this year.  They still enjoy spending time together, though, and swapping those sport stories!

Let the Fun Begin!

It seems like 5th grade has ushered in a variety of new activities for Luke to enjoy.  One of those is band!  That's right, our home is going to soon be filled with the sound of our newest and only trombone player.  When we went to the instrument selection night, Luke said that the trombone just felt "right".  Despite the fact that he was somewhat less than enthusiastic at wanting to be a part of band (we told him he had to try it for a year), he has been super excited since selecting his instrument and getting it.  After his early morning practice today, he told me when I needed to leave to get there in time to "talk to those that sit around me."  He is not my overly social child so that was fun to hear!  We'll see what happens in the months to come....

Yesterday, they introduced the kids to the instrument along with the parents.  Chris went with Luke.  We both went to smaller high schools so we are somewhat overwhelmed at the number of just 5th graders in band currently.  There are somewhere around 190 kids just for his class drawing from about five elementary schools.  I can't even begin to imagine what it is like to teach around 25 new trombone players the basics.  That is why I don't teach band!  ( As a side note, another parent told me that they had 19 french horns...what do you do with that many?!) It also makes me curious as to what the retention rate is.  They have a large, nationally recognized band at the high school level, but it isn't that big!

Farewell...

 Chris's departing shot with his (mostly) faithful car....

We bought this Saturn used just weeks after we were married.  It was to replace my car that I had wrecked just 2 1/2 weeks before we were married (again, another story for another time!)  Chris told me when he brought it home that  he hoped it would last us 5 years.  That was 14 years ago nearly to the day!  This Saturn has been such a good car for us.  It made every single military move with us, saw the birth of all three of our kids (however, they didn't ride it in much then because car seats just didn't fit well), sat for weeks on end through deployments, taken us on date vacations and served as storage for an assortment of Chris's tools just in case he needed to work on said car.

However, this era of our lives has now ended.  After its latest incident during a multi-state trip, we decided it was time to move on to something a bit more dependable that can be taken out of town.  Chris mended it back together and we passed it on to its next season on life.  It had manual transmission and will service a teen in learning that nearly lost art.

I think Luke was hoping it would last another 6 years until he could get behind the wheel.  He was a bit disappointed.  He seemed consoled with a picture.  Hannah on the other hand, saved a piece of a part that Chris replaced and saved it so she could "remember the Saturn."