Bowling with Santa

Saturday was bowling with Santa and of course Evie and Allard got to go. The pictures are courteous of Lizzy. Evie got to bowl with 5 other boys and so she bowled 2 games and Allard was with one other boy and he bowled 7 games. They both bowl on Thursday afternoon and Saturday mornings and are getting quite good. Lizzy bowls with them on Saturdays.

We also took time this week to try and get a picture with the three kids for our christmas card. Allard tried not to smile, but I got one that will work as well as can be expected. I have spent my days off lately cleaning and baking and we did get the tree up this week. It is up a lot later this year and everything seems to be taking longer to put together and yet the days are not. Before you know it will be time to put it all away. I missed Allards concert at school this week as the car is in the shop. We expect to get it back by Monday or Tuesday.

Swim Season Is Really Over

Well today was Lizzy's swim banquet, so the swim season for 2008 is officially over. All the girls get to wear their homecoming dresses for a second time so they really get their monies worth. Except for Lizzy, as the previous entry shows Lizzy wore a long dress for homecoming and so she wanted a short dress for the banquet. Luckly, we had seen a dress that she liked at Deb's, a hip girls store, that was on clearence so she waited for three weeks and we went and got it. It was still in her size and still on clearence because it was a spagitti strap short dress. Of course then we had to go shoe shopping yesterday. Try taking a teenage girl shoe shopping, it was not a pretty site and I really don't want to do it again. I go in and look for a pair that fit and are usually black, takes two minutes and I am out the door, Lizzy has to try on twenty pairs and then go to another store because she is not sure the first store has anything better then the second.

We knew about this banquet two months ago and paid our fee to attend, and wouldn't you know it but Allard brought home the winter orchestra concert schedule last week and of course he was playing tonight also. So Jeff and Evie went to Allard's concert. Today however he informed me that I was going to miss him in his first solo on the violin. It just figures you can not win sometimes. Thankfully they are going to repeat the concert during the school day on Dec. 12th for the students and teachers to see, so I told him I would have to make his concert that day.

Happy Thanksgiving

Well dinner will be early as I have to work this evening, but I know it will fabulous. Jeff always makes a great dinner. We will be having dinner with just us and the kids.

Allard has lost two of his twelve year molars this week. Unfortunately, I was cleaning the house and putting out the Christmas decorations and unknowingly threw away one of his teeth, so he has to write a letter to the tooth fairy explaining why he should really get paid for two teeth when he only has one under his pillow.

I hope everyone of our friends will have as very special Thanksgiving.

Where in the World is the Tooth Fairy

The Tooth Fairy has been late coming to our house. Evie and Allard thought she would never get here, and just after she left, she has to come back again.

Allard lost his tooth a couple of weeks ago at a boy scout camping trip and Evie lost hers the first week of November, but the Fairy didn't get here until Thursday of last week. On Saturday Lizzy had her friends over for her birthday sleepover and Allard decided to bite into a sucker and broke his molar out. Luckily, when I looked in his mouth the adult molar was there so it was already pushing it out to begin with, and he just happened to help it out. Lets see how long it takes the Fairy to show up this time. HAHAHA

Fall Product sales are over here, and both my girls were their Troops top sellers. Which is not hard for them. They smile alot and talk to every person that came out the doors they sat at. Evie gets all the gift incentives plus a $20.00 gift card. Lizzy's Troop declines the incentives so they get more money per product they sell and the money is given back to them to use on future girl scout outings. This system really helps to pay for the expensive trips they want to take, so she will pocket $100.00 for her Canada Trip this summer. (Now I just have to get her a bridge card or passport.)

We had conferences this past week, and all the kids did really well. Lizzy has low A's and high B's while doing swim team, and now that it is done she should be able to bring her grades back up to all A's. Allard had A's and B's in all classes except for Science. He had a D- and so when we went to conferences his teacher asked him why his grade was so low, and he said I don't know, and she asked do you study for the tests and he said NO. Always helps to take your children with you to conferences once they reach middle and high school. This way they get to hear what the teachers will say about them good or bad. And in this case, they fess up pretty quickly. I had been asking him what he thought the problem was and saying maybe he might need a tutor until he confessed in front of the teacher that he wasn't studying.

The kids are really excited they only have two days of school next week due to Thanksgiving. The holidays are approaching too quickly this year, and I am not ready for them.

Vacation is almost over

Boy, it is really bad when you have to go back to work to get a vacation. I have been so busy this week with the kids and girl scouts. I finally get to sleep in tomorrow and Allard is making me breakfast. He wanted to make it last weekend on my first day off, but I had to get up early every morning to sell at booths or go to field trips or swim meets.

Lizzy finished swim this weekend and know we just have Banquet to look forward too. BTW she is looking forward to coming home from school and having the afternoon to herself instead of swimming until 8-9 and then trying to get homework done. She was very excited this week because of course she had a birthday and it happen to fall on the League swim meet. Her swim sister gave her a little cake with fifteen candles for her to blow out. But she was preparing to get her monthly visit and so she was crampy and did not get her second varsity time, so no letter this year.

Allard was sick most of the week with his croupy cough and a fever. Just as he got better though, Evie came down with it. She is spending the weekend in bed on meds and the vaporizer. She and Allard always get the croupies when they get sick so I have to watch them to make sure that their cough doesn't stay in their lungs and develop into something else.

Homecoming

Lizzy went to her first Homecoming Dance this weekend. Doesn't she look so grown up. She got the dress second hand which really helped. But there was still costs for tickets, dinner before the dance and of course you can't go to a dance without having your hair done. She says she wants to use this same dress for Prom too.

Evie and I had our first girl scout meeting for this year last Monday. We went from 5 girls to 3 and are now up to 16 girls. Of course, I am now doing a troop of Brownies and Juniors. So the Brownies make out really good, because I am not going to reteach the same activities once they bridge to Juniors, so they will not only earn a Try-It but also the Junior patch that is the equivalent.

Fall is Here!

Well fall is here in Michigan. The trees are changing colors and we have started to put up are Halloween decorations. The neighbor boy came out and said "gee, my parents don't put out decorations." I told him wait until Christmas.

Lizzy 's having fun with swimming and the season is almost over. She says she is going to start babysitting more after so she has more spending money. She is getting ready for her first homecoming this weekend. She didn't want to go last year, but changed her mind at the last minute and it was too late, so this year I have been preparing her earlier. I knew she would want to go.

Allard was elected star of the month for sixth grade at school. Six teachers get together and vote and three students are honored each month. He gets is picture on the board by the front office for the month, and a front of the line pass for lunch and ice cream. He will receive an award at the honors assembly in May with any others he might earn thru the year. But what was most impressive was the letter sent home telling us that he was elected because his teachers thought he came to class prepared and on task, is friendly and kind to others. His English teacher said he is a joy to have in class and a leader to the others. I of course was pleased. And then wondered "Are we talking about the same kid?" The kid who thought he did enough work in school that he should not have to do homework in third grade.

Wonders are all around. HAHAHA