Holiday Surprise

We had two family events planned long ago that we knew would have us traveling to New Jersey two weeks apart...Uncle Joe and J.R.'s commitment celebration and Danielle's Sweet 16.  Thanksgiving weekend was sandwiched between those two events, and for a long time I insisted we wouldn't be traveling.  But something pulled at me, and it was hard to turn down a quieter, intimate family get-together just to stay home for the holiday.  Decisions, decisions...even a few days before, we were not sure what to do. I've said lately that being close is a simultaneous blessing and curse because now we can procrastinate the decision until the very last minute if we want.  Being close also has its advantages though, and we can have the best of both worlds...a Thanksgiving with family, and a normal weekend at home.  So that's what we did, but not without some fun surprises!

I set the stage by telling only Aunt Gail we were coming to their house for the day, and we didn't tell Nana, Papa or Annie.  I'm not usually a good liar, but it was actually pretty easy.  Being in New Jersey the weekend before and after was reason enough for us to want to stay home, and that's the story I used.  We arrived at Aunt Gail's before my parents and Annie, and parked the car down the street a few houses to keep the ruse up until they walked in the house.  Annie arrived first, and Keely ran up to her.  Boy, was she shocked to see the kids and then James and I.  We even got a few happy tears :)  Nana and Papa were last to arrive, and when they got there we were out back talking and enjoying the lovely sunshine.  Quinn got so flustered and started running the opposite way, so I turned him around and told him to run towards them.  They were shocked to see the kids, and then us...just like Annie.  It was great, so much fun and then we were all together to celebrate the holiday.  Amazing food, lots of laughter, fun games, singing and dancing, and so much more. 

So many holidays we weren't there.  So many times I've seen pictures after the fact.  Always wishing I could have been there to experience it firsthand.  Wishing we were close enough to be part of the fun times.  Wishing no more, we are now close enough to be there for most holidays and celebrations.  We're there three weekends in a row, and if we were living across the country we would have had to make a choice.  How hard, knowing we would miss one or more of the family gatherings.  But it was not like that, because we're here and we're there for each and every event.  It may be a bit tiring, as we build up miles on I-95 but I honestly wouldn't trade it for anything.  We're young, and we're blessed to have the ability to do it...and for that, I am thankful.  I am thankful for my family, for my kids to have fun with their cousins, aunts, uncles...for them to know the big family that I know I couldn't live without...to spend time with not only one set, but both sets of grandparents.  It's precious time, and worth every minute.

First Quarter Update

The first quarter of school is in the books.  We haven't received report cards yet, but we did have parent teacher conferences last week. 

Keely is doing very well in her class.  Her teacher couldn't find anything bad to report on her academics, she is at or above grade level and often ahead of her classmates in most of her subjects.  She will help other students with their work when she finishes early.  I try not to compare, but it was very similar to the report we received when Quinn was in 3rd grade.  Her writing is something she can work on more, to be more expressive.  As her teacher said, Keely loves everything when she writes...so he is working to get her to be more descriptive and specific in her writing.  The only other thing she needs to work on is her self-control.  She tends to get caught up in silliness and antics with other students and that can be distractive to the class.  She also always wants to be called on when raising her hand...and is often expressive (not in a productive way) when not called upon.  This was not a surprise to us, and is consistent with what we have been stressing at home...an inside voice for things that not everyone needs to hear.  We discussed her academics as an indicator to being a candidate for the AAP program, and at this rate she is a possibility for 4th grade.  However, with 22 kids in that advanced class and only 15 in her class, I'm happy where she is and feel that she's getting the best education right now.  We had her re-tested a couple of weeks ago, and will see how her test scores come in this year before deciding to put together a packet for acceptance into the AAP program in February.  Her motivation is purely social, as that's where all of her best friends are but we feel that not being in class with her best friends is most likely helping her academics and concentration...and we would like the recommendation to be from her teacher and her test scores.  I'd say she's on track, but we will wait a few months to decide.

Quinn is also doing very well in class.  It was a bit funny at first when the teacher said she had to tell us something that she was telling each parent - please have your child wear deodorant every day!  The onset of puberty makes for an unpleasant smell in her classroom...we'd asked Quinn to start wearing deodorant earlier this year (March or so) but I don't think he's consistent.  You can just imagine the combined smell of 15 boys not wearing deodorant!  Hygiene aside...he is doing well in class.  His only problem is being concerned more with his friends and being social than his work sometimes.  It's not a problem...yet but could become one if he keeps letting the social aspect of school distract him.  This is very important as we inch closer to middle school.  The demands next year will be much higher, and time management is critical.  It's important to set good habits now.  That said, Quinn is mostly on the straight and narrow.  He is most likely on track to take the 6th grade math SOL (state test) and we talked a good deal about their current writing project, NaNoRiMo.  I'll likely dedicate an entire post about that project at the end of this month, but basically each child is writing a novel in one month's time.  Quinn has set a goal of 17,000 words, and as of right now has almost 6,000 written.  They are typing it too, so not only is it good for their writing skills but their typing skills as well.  Most of their writing is prescribed this year since they are preparing for a state test, so their teacher wanted to give them something they could control and decide.  It's been quite energizing for Quinn and we have not had to nag him at all...he writes every day in school for 45 minutes, and also at home each day - even on weekends. 

As usual, one quarter of a school year has come and gone pretty quickly - but it looks and sounds like 5th and 3rd grades are going well for the kids.  They have settled nicely into Beech Tree, and we feel fortunate to have a great school with great teachers. 

Camping

Last weekend, we ventured out to Shenandoah National Park to camp for one night with Quinn's Boy Scouting den.  The den only consists of two boys, Quinn and his best friend Jack so the group consisted of our two families.  It really works out perfectly that their family has a boy Quinn's age, and a girl Keely's age...and that the kids get along so well.  Only problem is that we don't have a 13 year old to pair up with their oldest.  Oh well, John's a good sport and had fun anyways.

We had so much trouble planning a weekend for this one night trip.  The only weekend that both families could find time in our busy schedules was early in November, and then it was so late in the season we worried about snow, and cold temperatures.  Luckily, we didn't have any snow but it was cold...highs around 50 and low in the upper 20s to low 30s.  It was also 'fall behind' weekend so we had an extra hour in those cold tents :)

We left after the girls' soccer game on Saturday and arrived at our destination, Andy Guest State Park around 5:30 PM.  A little later than I would have liked, only giving us an hour or so of daylight to set up camp.  The boys were supposed to do everything themselves to continue their boy scout training.  They set up their tent with a bit of help, and started a fire (again, with a little help).  They made a really good oven out of a box and aluminum foil...and using charcoal, it heated to more than 350 degrees (judging by how quickly things cooked while in it) and made biscuits to accompany dinner and cinnamon rolls to accompany breakfast.  Our main course for dinner was foil pockets...and the boys made all 9 of them, cooked to order with trimmings.  They consisted of ground beef, mushrooms, onions, green peppers, potatoes, salt, pepper, and whatever flavorings you wanted - BBQ sauce, white wine, ketchup, etc.  These are so simple...put all of the ingredients on a piece of foil, wrap it up like a tent, and put it on the fire for 20-25 minutes.  I was a little skeptical at first, but they were delicious!  The boys also made some desserts...including s'mores, bananas with marshmallows and chocolate, and apples with cinnamon and brown sugar.  I was so stuffed...for campfire meals, this was by far better than my usual standby of hot dogs and mac n cheese (though we did have some of that on the side).

Night arrangements found the boys in their own tent, and Keely wanting to sleep with Julia so that left me and James to our tent.  It was super cold...my feet were cold most of the night despite having wool socks on, and my nose never warmed up.  It wasn't the best night's sleep...oh, and also was interrupted by Keely and Julia needing me to accompany them to the bathroom at 1 AM (because they were afraid of bears). 

In the morning, we had bagels toasted on the campfire and the aforementioned cinnamon rolls.  We broke down the camp...honestly, so much trouble for just one night...and then ventured out for a hike to complete the Outdoorsman badge.  It really is beautiful out in that area, even though the leaves were past their prime.  I forget how beautiful, but it inspired me to get out in the mountains more often.  We were so spoiled having them so close in Utah, that I often forget we are still relatively close to mountains here in Virginia.

It was a fun one night trip camping, and I'm sure we will do it again sometime soon...hopefully in a bit warmer weather. 

Happy Halloween

Another Halloween has come and gone.  Quinn made his costume this year.  He changed his mind a few times, and didn't decide until the day before Halloween that he would be dressing up as a Rubik's Cube.  His first idea was a 'Cereal Killer'...a box over his head decorated like a big box of cereal, with a knife sticking into the side.  That was witty, yes but I'm glad he changed to the Rubik's Cube.  He used one of our old moving boxes, construction paper and black electrical tape to make what he called the "Qube".  Pretty cool, and it was a pretty easy costume to make.  He got lots of compliments while trick or treating.  

Keely was a tutu mummy, purchased by Annie for her birthday gift.  It was basically a dress looking like a mummy, with leggings and some arm covers to complete the mummy look.  She also wore vampire teeth...for what reason I have no idea, except that Annie bought her new teeth while we were Halloween shopping.  

We trick or treated in fairly cold weather for almost 2 hours!  Thank goodness the rain ended, the hurricane was over and we didn't get rained on.  The kids have so much candy...they laid out their haul on the floor when we got home and I couldn't believe the volume.  They've been graciously donating 10 pieces each day to my co-workers :)  Trust me, there's still plenty of candy left for them too even after the donations!