Back to School

Good Bye Sweet Summer.....
                                     Hello Busy Fall!

2015 Children's Church

I'm so happy to go into the year with the Armor of God.  How could we do it otherwise?

Ephesians 6:10-18

Weekends have started with the four Ps:  pizza, pajamas, paperwork, and pants (aka. laundry but it doesn't start with a P).

Every school year is a box of chocolates.  

You never know what you are going to get.

Getting organized is a good way to start any year. I love putting a mess into organized sections because it really soothes me.  
If only it would stay that way.

This year I still have my my dearest pal Mrs. E. and a new pal Mrs. C.!   
Once again, God has blessed me with two people who are so enthusiastic about our classroom.  #answeredprayers

This year also brings new challenges but I'm so excited about it. 
I've already started to learn the braille alphabet. My field is unlike any other.  I am forced to learn new techniques, and as a result I have really grown as a person.

Speaking of growth... do you recognize the baby of the family?

Carlee has already moved from the nursery to joining children's church with me.  
She is such a big girl.

We even turned her crib into a brand new BIG GIRL bed.

Dad is still growing.

BIG 40 this Year

Do you recognize this handsome fourth grader?

In case you want to know... 

Connor's favorite school memory in four years is 'the last day of school'.  His favorite school assignment is 'recess'.

And, I think that is all we have to say about school.

For the first year we have become a football family.  I say football family because all hands on deck are needed to keep up with the commitment of little league football.

100% a learning year.  
Go #32

two hour practices

It is hard but there are so many great lessons to be learned by making a team commitment.

We are cheering him on all the way!!!  #family

Happy Back to School

Book Unit #2: Because of Winn Dixie

We just wrapped up our second book unit.
We are still shooting for three out of four before summer end.  (Book Unit #1).

Book Unit #2

Because of Winn Dixie

Connor gives this book an 'ok' (out of good, bad, ok) because "it had some really good parts but some of the story went on and on".


Candy Store:
Littmus Lozenges are a huge part of the story.
They taste 'sweet with sorrow'.
We took a trip to the candy store, where I asked the kids to come up with their own name and action for a candy they picked out.

Baby Bottle- for making the baby happy.

Tobacco Taste & Toothpaste Taste

"healthy tobacco and toothpaste that tastes like JOY."

Book Report:

Opal listed 10 things she remembered about her mama and Winn Dixie.

Connor made a list of 10 things about the book.

1. The Ending

2.  Opal made Friends

3.  I like how the Littmus Lozenges made people feel.

4.  Otis Pet Store

5.  Dewberry boys turned nice.

6.  I liked Gloria Dump's mistake tree.

7.  The Library Stories

8.  Grocery Store Church

9.  Winn Dixie was scared of thunder.

10.  It's OK to be afraid or sad.

Coloring Dog Pictures for Decorations

Dog Collages

Glitter and Floor Polish....

 to make the glitter stick inside the bottle.

Movie Afternoon:

Because of Winn Dixie is such a sweet movie but there are a lot of differences in the movie and book version.

 


We decided to throw a Dog Party at the end of our book.
I was afraid it was doomed from the start.  We barely finished the book on time.  
The day of the party everyone had to cancel due to summer plans/ work/ car conflicts.

Out toilet seat broke and then two boxes in the basement came crashing down while I was rushing.

However, some people decided you should dress up no matter what kind of party is happening.

On with the Party!

More Party Favors for Us, Right?

Because of Winn Dixie Menu:

Decor:

We added lights like Opal and Gloria Dump did when they planned their party.

We did have one special guest arrive- NANA!

Connor gave an A+ book report.  I was proud of him.

Nana did her homework and brought a special dog picture and story.

RIP Buddy and Belle

Afterwards, I asked Connor to play the guitar like Otis did in the story.  He decided to substitute that scene with a BMX bike show.

(Hey you can only push literacy so much.)

Carlee enjoyed it!

He called this the 'Criss Cross Danger Sauce'.

In the end, we had a fun party!

Even Buddy enjoyed our dog party.

"Dear God, thank you for warm summer nights and candlelight and good food.  But thank you most of all for friends.  We appreciate the complicated and wonderful gifts you give us in each other.  And we appreciate the task you put down before us, of loving each other the best we can, even as you love us.  We pray in Christ's name, Amen."  -Gloria Dump, Because of Winn Dixie  

FaM Fest Weekend

Tuesday afternoon I ordered myself a little Chinese.  

(I have to get my favorites in before I have to brown bag it.)

My fortune cookie said... A short vacation is order for you.

Lo and Behold, that evening Darren decided we would go on a short vacation. 

ha. ha.

See China 1 for all your future needs.

We decided to go to the big city for the NC Panthers Fan Fest.

Carlee called the buildings 'castles'.  She wanted to know if we were visiting all the castles.

You know these two have had such a tiring summer, they just needed to relax by the pool.

Even if they are a lot of work, 

they were so cute and so excited to be at a hotel.

We were 30 minutes from the stadium by foot, so we decided to walk.

I was so out of shape, the kids kept encouraging me like I had no legs finishing a 10K or something.

 At one point, while I was taking pictures we lost track of Connor.

Do you see him in the picture?

A security guard came up to the window, and we could see him within inches of dropping into the fountain.

My time with Connor is divided into two ways  

a. pure laughter  b. yelling NO!

It was a beautiful day.

Connor had never been to a NFL football stadium before this weekend.

We were barley able to get a photo op with Sir Purr.

He was one busy cat.

No worries, 

the Top Cats were available.

They let me borrow one of their outfits for Open House next week.

I can't wait to wear it.

Go Panthers!

Top Cat Performance

About an hour into the practice, 

the stadium had to open the top tiers so people could sit.

Connor made his way to the front.

He wasn't afraid to be alone,

 and he got up close to all the players including Cam Newton.

See him on the railing in this picture?

I was waiting for security to call him down.

I would tell you about the practice, but I had no clue what was happening. 

Carlee and I weren't really into the actual football part.

The funniest moment was looking up and watching Connor on the Jumbotron.

Front and center he was giving a show.  

We laughed and laughed.

I only wish I had recorded it.

We had to leave before the fireworks.

The walk back was lovely.

Even if I did almost have a heart attack.

#futuregoaltowalkdaily

Our hotel roomed faced the stadium, so we did see some of the show through our hotel window.

The next day, we did a little shopping.

Carlee really wanted this Cinderella wig.

I didn't get it because it was just a little too Toddlers and Tiaras for me, but she really wanted this wig!

We also hit up an aquarium.

Although overpriced, our local friend Ms. L.   (I miss her so much) texted us some coupon locations.

It was a beautiful aquarium.

Our last night, we returned to the hotel and rushed to the pool.  An employee told us we couldn't swim because they were closing early.  

I argued with him for a few minutes because that is NOT what the front desk told us (I mean does this guy know how long it takes me to get back into a wet bathing suit?!?)

My argument got me nowhere.

The kids started to cry and we walked back to the elevator.  The next thing I know, we were stopped by two managers apologizing and they kept the pool open for us an extra hour.

It was a great swim.  We almost had the place to ourselves. 

It certainly made up for all the football Princess Carlee had to watch.

It was a great FaM Fest Weekend!