Barron's Invitational 2011

Better Late Than Never

Wow - it's been a very long time since I've written anything...oops!

We've had a wonderful and busy fall. School started in August and I am Class Chair for the 7th grade, which doubled in size from last year, and have enjoyed meeting all the new families. Jake is having a good year, including working in 8th grade math. He will take the SATs in December to apply for a summer academic program at Duke University...kind of cool!  The biggest news with Jake is that he becomes a bar mitzvah in February.  My fabulous husband has been working with my friend Emily and planning the party and working with the Rabbi and Cantor and all sorts of other important stuff.  He's been amazing!

Anna is still heavily involved in gymnastics. She worked her behind off all summer and just recently got moved up from Level 5 to Level 6. She's very excited for the upcoming season, which starts in December. Anna is LOVING her teacher, Mrs. Waters, and is finding her groove with school, social life and gym.  It's been fun watching her find her way.

It's amazing to me to see the growth in both of my kids - they are strong, determined and loving kids...who sometimes make me completely crazy! :D

MICDS Class of 2020 - Taken by Debbie Higgins, MICDS Communications Dept.

At my parents' 50th anniversary party - Jake had a separated shoulder from 7th grade camp

Camp Sweet Camp

There are a few things a mom knows...just because.  1. When your children are away, they may or may not choose to bathe on a regular basis; 2. they may or may not choose to change their underwear; and 3. there will be LOTS of laundry to do when they get back, whether they wore the clothes or not.

Jake and Anna came home from camp today.  Jake was at Camp Lincoln in Minnesota for 3 weeks and Anna was at the sister camp, Camp Lake Hubert, for two weeks.  When we got back from the airport, I got to go through their dirty and no-so-dirty clothes.  Hmmm...two weeks at camp and there were more clean clothes than dirty in Anna's bag.  Why did I wash them, you ask...because when you put a damp towel in with clean clothes, things start to smell just a bit.  Three loads of laundry down...two or three to go.

When asking my children questions about camp, I got very vague answers.  Other than, "I had a great time," I wouldn't really know what they were doing if there weren't pictures...(by the way, these are NOT necessarily in chronological order)

Arrival at Camp!

Jake narrating his cabin's skit

Archery King

Movie Night

Jake played LOTS of Frisbee Golf!

...and some baseball

...and some basketball

but mostly frisbee golf. 

 

 

4th of July Sibling Lunch

He stepped out of his comfort zone and tried the low ropes course!

 

Texas Hold 'em during Casino Night

Anna and Kendell

Happy Hollow Cabin

Anna doing martial arts

Receiving an award for riding her bike around Lake Hubert

Making a lanyard

Color Wars...Anna was on the green team (in case you couldn't figure that out)

Checking in to camp

Going to the lake

Jake is On Par

Jake competed in his first golf tournament today at Pheasant Run Golf Course in St. Charles. He is playing Gateway PGA Junior Golf - they play 9 holes at different courses around the Metro St. Louis area. He shot a 38 on a Par 28 and finished in the top 10. PRETTY COOL!

They May Get Older, But Not Necessarily Bigger

I may not get the Mother of the Year Award this year, but not for lack of trying...I mean, Anna did have a broken leg for a month before we actually knew anything was wrong...and I was about 4 months late on getting Jake in for his 12 year old doctor's appointment. Oh well...maybe next year!

So, they both had their check-ups about 2 weeks ago. They are both extremely healthy (other than Jake knocking his head against another boy's head at school). Jake weighed in at a whopping 67.4 lbs and is 56.25 inches tall. For those of you, like me, who lack the quick math skills, that's a little over 4'8". In percentiles, Jake is in the 20% for height and the 5% for weight. Considering the size of his classmates, I am NOT surprised!

Anna weighed in at 50.4 lbs. and is 50 inches (4'2"). She's on the charts (5th percentile or over) for height, but not for weight. I have joked for as long as I can remember that Anna is going to have to learn how to drive out of her booster seat.

They may be small, but they are mighty!

Some Snippets of Jake's Chess Championship Win!

Thanks Mr. Fitz!

Home Sweet Home?

In the 18+ years that Andy and I have been together, we have lived in 5 houses, 1 townhouse, and we each lived in apartments when we met.  We have owned 4 of the 5 houses and are now jumping back into home ownership after living in a rental home for the past 18 months.

It's been an interesting journey...our FABULOUS agent, Beth, took us to a number of houses starting in January.  Nothing really caught our eyes.  We continued looking a put in a VERY low-ball offer on a house.  They rejected the offer...we were glad.  Then we put in an offer on another house and everything was going very well until they discovered termite damage...not fun!  When it came down to repairs that we requested, they didn't seem very interested, so we walked away from that house.  The hunt continued...unsuccessfully for a while...and then we found THE house.  It will be our third house within a stone's throw to an elementary school that our children will not be attending. 

The inspection was today and went fairly well.  We'll submit our request for repairs and cross our fingers...I'll keep you posted.