Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing you all a wonderful Thanksgiving!

The 2nd grade was asked to write persuasion papers about turkeys. We thought you would enjoy them as much as we did. Aside from the few words added in parenthesis, they are typed as they were written!

Ellie's Persuasion Paper

Save the Turkeys!

Don't you feel bad for turkeys this time of year? Well maybe you should eat something else. First of all turkeys are relly hard to find. What if you were hunting and a turkey bit you relly hard? Another reason is inside of the (turkey) after you cook it. The insides of the turkey is relly hot and dry like a desert. You could also eat a feather and get relly sick. Finally turkeys have sick wilderness germs. If you shoot a sick turkey (and) eat it all of you could get sick. So that's why you shouldn't eat (turkey) this year.


Abby's Persuasion Paper

Once-a-pon-a-time a Thanksgiving hunter spotted me for Thanksgiving. I'm a turkey and my name is Skywalker because I skywalk a lot. The hunters came over and I stopped them died (dead) in their tracks and said something they couldn't hear. Then I said you don't want to eat me because I'm not fat enough. You don't want to eat me up because I'm not a juicy turkey! Do you think I have too many f-feathers to pluck? I th-think I do. I stammerd. I also think I gotten a disease and I don't want to get you sick. Besides turkeys are a big bust! Why don't you try enchiladas? Enchiladas are great! Can't you try butternut squash soup? It's my favorite soup! Or you could eat ham sandwiches. Maybe you could have chicken! Mmmm chicken. Turkeys are boring to eat. You can always surprise your guests with new things. I want you to have something new for Thanksgiving this year. Good luck! By Abigail

Field Trip Time

It's that time of year! Spencer's preschool class went on a field trip to a pumpkin patch/farm and Abby & Ellie's class went on a field trip to the Children's Museum.

The moon and stars all aligned and both Carie and I got to go on Spencer's field trip. We were also successful in taking pics that I'll post below. While it was a little chilly on the day of the field trip, we all had fun! And since I'm a veteran field trip goer, I knew that we needed to bring our winter gear. As we were walking out the door I'm not sure Carie believed me. But once we got to the farm she understood and wished she had grabbed her warmer gear.

A week later, the day of Abby & Ellie's field trip was incredibly crazy but we somehow made it possible for Carie to go along. Carie had every intention of taking pics but unfortunately the camera got left behind. She felt bad and wished she was able to get a pic of Ellie as she was a volunteer in the science exhibit. The photo op was when she practically got swallowed by "Stuffy"... a giant 7' tall stuffed person with a zippered in his chest... as she was trying to locate his lungs.

At the farm... Spencer was thrilled to be able to hold many many little friends, hang out with his hands down most favorite teacher (out of the 7) Miss K, play in the corn, mooo at the cows, ride on bikes, and his favorite thing of all was to swing in the tire swing.

First Day of Second Grade

For the first day of school they literally rolled out the red carpet. Drop off was very much a party atmosphere with balloons, music, and the red carpets. Students met up with their teachers and new classmates outside in front of the building. Once everyone had been gathered, each class danced (some much more than others) their way into the building. It was a lot of fun and a great way to kick off their first day.








































The girls were, again, super excited for the first day of school. We are thrilled that they continue to love school and look forward to all that it has to offer. Several days before school started we heard "I wish today was Tuesday so tomorrow could be our first day!"

After school today Abby said "I wish today was Thursday because we don't have homework on Wednesday!" Yes, you read that right. Our child was wishing for homework! Judging by the communications we've had thus far and reviewing their "assignment book", I think her disappointment will end very very soon.

Today is our short day/early out day. Our house is now buzzing with the excitement of 6 kids just completing their first day of the new school year + Spencer who can't wait for his first day tomorrow. They've had a delicious snack and now they have transformed into Backyard Kids who are rescuing animals.

I took today and tomorrow off! Between transportation stuff this morning, appointments in the middle, an early out day, and transportation this afternoon it didn't make any sense to try and go into work. More of the same tomorrow except it is a longer day for the bigger kids. In theory Carie and I have a couple of hours to hang out, kid free and appointment free, tomorrow afternoon. My first thought was... movie! However I’m sitting here in front of a huge pile of PTA papers and work that needs to be organized. We’ll see what wins!

OH... and we had first day of school outfits chosen for the girls. However, they had their own ideas. It didn't matter if it was going to be 90 degrees in the afternoon, Abby was wearing those pants. It didn't matter what we chose for Ellie, if it wasn't all pink it wasn't going to be worn. As soon as she found out that her 2nd grade teacher's favorite color was pink they bonded instantly and the girl was going to wear as much pink as possible.

Anxiety

There are more stories and certainly more pictures of our summer adventures.

I even got super lucky that my camera was spared after I left it outside to endure a torrential downpour last weekend. At the time I thought it would be great to get pics of (most of) the kids after they rolled around in the mud that used to be our yard. Thanks slip-n-slide! They had such a blast and it was hilarious to watch. Everyone had to have a quick hose down before they were allowed to enter their cars or our house. Other parents rules, not ours. But yeah, they were that dirty. And then somehow I was distracted and the camera got left outside.

For now, all that will all have to wait.

Our focus is on what is ahead of us.

We have been inundated with first day of school preparations! To say that we are a bit overwhelmed and anxious with the fact that tomorrow is Abby & Ellie’s first day would be a gross understatement. It wasn’t supposed to be that way this year. After all they are going into 2nd grade! We have a great school, a great support system at school, we love the teacher assignments, and the kids are excited! What more can ya ask for? But thanks to the accident, it is a bit nerve wracking. We now know anxiety like we’ve never known before. I think we’ve done everything possible to prepare everyone for tomorrow morning. Nine more hours till the bell rings!

Spencer’s first day of his last year of preschool begins on Thursday. We are more excited than nervous about this transition. I guess we’ll see what Thursday afternoon brings!

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A couple of quick stories that stand out…

Abby has been on this kick lately that she is not a “kid”. Anything relating to being a “kid” is beyond her. Heaven forbid she use colors at a restaurant because those are for kids. Heaven forbid she has a “kid cone” from McD’s because clearly mom, it is a “kid cone”. The name says it all! And we are horrible terrible parents because we won’t allow her to walk down to the park by herself. I mean really! She is almost 8 years old and 8 year olds are “young adults” ya know. What a great opportunity to remind her that she has TEN MONTHS to go before she actually turns 8. Let’s enjoy 7 for a while, shall we!

Ellie, our sweet sweet Ellie. Unfortunately I can’t go into all the specifics. Let’s just say that she’s been paying attention at our appointments and she is taking her role very seriously! Sunday afternoon we were at CoCo Key, our last big hurrah of the summer, and Ellie recognized a scenario that she felt she ought to talk Abby through. It was super sweet and hilarious all at the same time.

Spencer, boy oh boy. Yesterday after one of our many appointments it was very much lunch time. So I suggested we all (Carie and I + our 3 kids + 2 daycare kids) go get some lunch. You read that right! 2 adults + 5 kids ages 4-7 at a doctor's appointment... and it was a success. It really can be done! We are sitting at the table enjoying lunch when Spencer (sitting between Carie and I) pipes up loud and clear (to Ben who is sitting across from him). “Hey, Ben has a penis! I have a penis! We are best friends!” I sure hope he enhances his criteria as he ages!

Oh and Spencer's new name seems to be Buddy or Bud. Sure, we sometimes call him bud, buddy, or dude. Like hey bud, how are you doing? But we never meant for it to replace his given name. As of recent it seems that the kids only call him buddy. Last night we were at Open House and the kids got the Principal on board to calling him buddy. Then this morning I asked the kids whose turn it was to play the Wii. In unison all the kids respond "Beth's & Buddy's".

Two Weeks

This afternoon at 3:50pm marks 2 weeks since "the accident"... ONLY 2 weeks.

It feels like it has been longer, much much longer!

I haven't publicly written much at all about Abby's accident. At first there simply was no time. All of our focus and energy was on taking care of our children. It felt like it took all we could muster up to make that happen. Thanks to some incredible friends, we were able to make that happen! And now while things are just starting to settle down (except for the numerous doctor appointments!), we are still constantly going trying to keep up and keep things as normal as possible for our kids.

I have started a private journal to get it all out and dump my experience, thoughts & feelings onto paper. That is proving to be hard, but I think it will be really beneficial in the end. I’m hoping that Carie will be able to do the same.

We didn't personally take any pictures at the hospital. We discussed it and decided we just couldn't do it. We didn't want those visual memories. We also didn't keep "the dress". Again, didn't want to ever see it again. That may not have been the best decision, but it is what we needed to do at the time. The physical memories we want to keep are all the cards, letters, balloons, gifts, etc... you name it, she got it. The outpouring of love and support has been phenomenal... absolutely phenomenal. It has kept us going!

School is officially out as of last Friday. Abby & Ellie are way excited to be 2nd graders! We've just received their test results and their report card and are beyond pleased and proud with both. Spencer is excited to go to his 4yo preschool! But first, we get to enjoy a couple months of summer!

Abby & Ellie's 7th birthday is tomorrow. We celebrated with family and friends all last weekend. This weekend is all about us. Unfortunately our b-day plans (a whole day at CoCo Key!) have been derailed due to the accident. But we've promised to celebrate their b-day again in a few weeks when she is (hopefully) cleared by the Orthopedic.

In the mean time, we are coming up with alternate FUN b-day plans for their actual day. The celebration starts tonight with a fire in the fire pit and s’mores! If it rains earlier than planned, we'll start a fire indoors in the fireplace... nothing like running the AC while enjoying the fireplace! We haven’t settled on anything specific for tomorrow, we first need to see how this afternoon’s doctor’s appointment goes!

We'll do pretty much whatever they choose, as long as we can physically pull it off. Heck, given what they've been through recently I would seriously consider buying them a pony if they asked for it. But don't give them any ideas! LOL



OH... and things come in three's, right???? As long as we are all covered by our neighbors’ experiences, I think our entire block is safe for the rest of the summer!

Abby's accident happened right in front of our house... from our driveway to 5 houses down the street.

A neighbor 2 houses up... his car fell on him while he was changing his brakes. Of course he was home alone! Thankfully it happened to land "just right" and he was able to get out and our neighbor took him to the ER. If it would have fallen any other way, it would have been really really bad.

At this point, the neighbor in between us chose to lay low on his projects, worried that he would be the 3rd victim.

Then... The family across the street, their son (middle school age) and his buddy were hanging out and riding bikes. Of course the friend was riding his bike carelessly... but remember, pre-teen/teen aged boy. Basically he fell and shattered his jaw.