Embrace the Camera: October 28

I got an email the other day in regards to Thursday’s session of Embrace the Camera and it got me thinking. Jason would say that this can be very dangerous. If my brain starts turning, he usually gives me that look that says "great what am I in for now" :-) Anyhow, I got a request to put a few more pictures of Jason and myself on here. I started looking through pictures and I have to say that since our big move to the south, we haven’t really taken to many pictures together. Every now and then one of the kids will snap a shot of the two of us together, but usually I am busy trying to capture their moments so that I can be sure to share them with all of you.

I started going through pictures and I came across some that were taken last year around this time. Jason and I went to Yosemite with a hiking class last October. We had the most amazing time exploring the sights and sounds of the valley. I thought I would share a few of my favorite shots of just the two of us as we ventured through some of the most beautiful trails in the world.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Happy Thursday!

Pumpkin Light Night

Last night the school held their annual Pumpkin Light Night. Let me just begin by saying that we had no idea how big of a deal this event was going to be. It was absolutely incredible to see just how far the school goes in order to support its students. The school closed down the parking lot for the evening. The Bossier City Police Department directed traffic. The kids got to dress up in their Halloween costumes. Families spent their time visiting with friends, eating pizza and ice cream and watching their kids perform, run around, and jump in their choice of 12 different bounce houses that were set-up around the parking lot. And just think this year was a low key year because of all of the construction that is going on at the school right now. :-)

There are so many things that I have come to love about Stockwell Place. A few of those things include the parent and teacher involvement that takes place at our school. Every event we have been too has been packed full of parents and sometimes even grandparents. It is amazing to me to see so many active family members. The teachers are just as supportive. Last night teachers lined up in the gym with video cameras in hand to watch their students perform.

The evening included performances by the middle school and the high school dance teams. The Stockwell Place Cheerleaders lead the night with their spectacular performance. Grades first through fifth each had a chance to show off their vocal skills by performing special Halloween songs. It was really neat to watch the kids perform silly songs in front of a gym full of family and friends. Coming from California, music is one of the first extracurricular activities that tends to be lost due to budget cuts. Being able to participate in an actual music class is something that is new for the kids and they are absolutely loving every minute of it (especially Kalyssa)!!

The highlight of the night was being able to walk around the walking trail to look at all of the pumpkins. Due to all of the construction, the school decided to do things a little different this year. Normally, each class would put together a theme. Each child would get to make their own pumpkin to add to the class theme. From what I was told, it is very competitive so it becomes a pretty big deal. This year space was limited so the school decided to have families enter individual pumpkins instead. I have never seen so many creative pumpkins in my life. I am so glad that I wasn’t a pumpkin judge this year! There were too many that I wanted to keep for myself.

All of the funds that were raised during this event will go directly towards the fifth grade graduation fund. I am pretty sure that they have an excellent start for the end of the year activities :-)

~ See-Ya Later ~

~ Wacky Halloween ~

~ 5th Grade Choir ~

These are just a few of the Pumpkins that were on display

P.S. I apologize for the blurry images. We WILL be investing in a better camera before Jason deploys :-)

Until next time....

A Little Dose of Reality

I’m sitting at home today with my oldest daughter because once again these dang germs WON’T stop invading our family. My house is clean, dinner is in the crock pot and all of my laundry is caught up. So, what do I do? I blog :-)


My mind has been whirling in circles the past few days. Over the weekend, Jason and I started talking about the holidays. Halloween is only 5 days away which means that Thanksgiving and Christmas are patiently waiting to make their annual appearance. This is usually my favorite time of the year. I love the change in the weather. I love to be able to get together with family and friends. I love to decorate our house for each of the different holidays (of course Christmas is my absolute favorite). This year the holidays will be a little different for our family. We won’t be having our typical massive family get-togethers; however we will be having some special guests in our new home for Thanksgiving and for Christmas. I’m sure I will have plenty to share about these visits when the time comes!


This year we will be celebrating Christmas twice, once with daddy and once without. In just over a month, Jason will be deploying to Iraq. This will be our second Christmas apart since he joined the military. I have to say that we have been very fortunate as a military family. In January, Jason will hit his 12 year mark. WOW, that's a little hard to believe!! In those 12 years, our family will have only been separated twice. For a lot of military families, this is almost unheard of. We have been extremely blessed to have had our family complete and together especially during the past 9 years.


While we were talking about the holidays, Jason asked me what I wanted for Christmas. He usually starts asking questions around this time of year. I think he likes to get a head start because apparently I’m hard to buy for (I don’t see how this is possible) :-) I told him that there isn’t anything that I really want for myself this year because honestly I’d rather save the money to do something special when he gets home from deployment. He told me that there was one thing that he wanted to get me before he left. When I asked him what, he said a chain so that I can wear his wedding ring around my neck while he is gone. First let me just say that I am semi new to the world of deployment. I have watched loved ones leave. I have welcomed loved ones home. I have done my best to be there for my family and friends as they have had to say their goodbyes. Truth be told, this is new territory for me. I have only had to say goodbye to my husband once and that was 9 years ago. When he said those words to me, my stomach dropped. I could feel my eyes start to burn. The reality of my husband leaving our family really hit me for the first time. I looked at my wedding ring and then I looked at his. He hates to take his off even though his job requires him to remove it every day. He told me that he doesn’t want to take it with him and that he would really like me to wear it while he is gone. My thoughts immediately flashed to our very best friends Kristin and Erik (who in my eyes represent the true meaning of a military family). I remember watching Kristin shortly after Erik deployed to Iraq. This was right after September 11th. She had his ring safely around her neck. She guarded it with everything she had. I remember sitting with her on several occasions during that deployment with tears in our eyes because we were all so scared then. I remember watching Kristin hold Erik’s ring close to heart every single day. I knew that all she could think about was her husband’s safe return home.


I know that things are different now. I don’t have to worry about the things that Kristin had to worry about. I know why Jason is going to Iraq. His mission is different. I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t scared because I am. More than anything, I am sad. I am sad that he will be missing out on so many things with the kids. I am sad that the kids won’t be able to run up to him every day when he walks through the door. I am sad that he won’t be here to say goodnight and tuck them into bed. I am sad that he will miss family dinners and our family walks at night. I am sad that he will miss Bryanna’s 5th grade promotion ceremony and Travin’s kindergarten graduation. I am sad that he will miss Kalyssa turning 7 in March. I know that I could keep going. I’m sure this list would be endless.


Last night, I was curled up in bed reading. Jason was lying next to me sound asleep. This has always been one of my favorite moments. I have always felt so safe and so warm just having him next to me. For the first time in a long time, I wondered what it will be like without him. I don’t think about my days because unless I have a sick kid at home, I usually don’t have a moment to just sit and do nothing. But, what exactly will happen at night when he is not here? 

Over the past few weeks, I have heard all about different types of training events, pre-deployment briefings, and I have had to look at bags full of newly issued deployment gear. I have let things slowly sink in but for some reason when Jason asked me to wear his ring around my neck, reality became all too real.

Three T*E*R*R*I*F*I*C Kids

I’m trying to figure out where exactly the month of October has gone. I know that our household was busy battling the flu bug, strep throat, and those pesky allergies, but how exactly did a whole month almost pass us by?

The kids just finished up their first 9 week grading period. Report cards came home last week. Let me just say that we are extremely proud parents!! Report cards are a little different for us this year. This is the first year that Bryanna is receiving actual letter grades. I didn’t know how big of deal it was going to be for her until we got the invitation for the honors assembly. This is the first year that Kalyssa is able to understand the full meaning of a report card. As a big first grader, she gets to learn to appreciate what it means for her when she works hard in school.

The girls were so excited when they got off the bus the other day because they already knew exactly what they got on their report cards. Bryanna was extremely excited because “Daddy can’t tease me about my report card anymore. Remember how he would always say we need to talk about your grades? Well, he can’t do that anymore because I get to look at it first” Let me just add that she was laughing the whole time she was saying this. She is getting very good at keeping up with her daddy’s sense of humor. Kalyssa was so excited that she couldn’t stop jumping up and down.

Jason and I were invited to attend the honors assembly at the school for both Bryanna and Kalyssa. The girls both made all A’s in their first 9 weeks at Stockwell Place. I can’t put into words how it feels to watch your children receive recognition for something that they worked so hard to achieve. The girls were beaming with pride as they stood on the stage. Of course our pride was shining right alongside with theirs.

Bryanna and one of her really good friends were the only two in their class to receive the all A honor roll award. Fifth grade hasn’t exactly been a walk in the park. There have been many nights where Bry has been up until 9 or 9:30 at night studying for a test or finishing up homework. She usually has homework in each of her subjects and every class has its own specific goal they are trying to meet. She is one of the few kids that I know that loves to work on extra credit assignments just because “they are fun.” She works very hard every day to keep her grades up so, yes I do get a little emotional when I watch her stand up on stage with an award in her hand and a smile on her face.

The assembly was a first for Kalyssa. She has never participated in an awards assembly before so for her, this event was extra special. As I mentioned before, Kalyssa also received an all A honor roll award. I don’t think she knew what to expect when she walked up on stage. She thought it was pretty neat that she got to shake the principal’s hand. Kalyssa has reached a few extra goals during these past 9 weeks. She has been working very hard in and out of the classroom to meet weekly goals. She was one of nine students in her class to meet the first Accelerated Reader (AR) goal. She has found a passion for reading on her own. It is absolutely amazing!!! She was also surprised by her teacher with the Terrific Kid award for demonstrating a positive attitude, good character, and responsible citizenship.

Travin is graded a little differently than his sisters. As a kindergartner, he doesn’t receive actual letter grades. His report card is broken down into seven different standards that he is supposed to master by the end of kindergarten. His progress is measured by a performance scale. Right now it’s not as exciting for him as it is for the girls. He doesn’t understand what he is looking at or what any of it means. We have had so many ups and downs with the start of kindergarten. Things are slowly getting better in his class but we still have a long way to go. We are taking things one day at a time. My son is teaching me a lot. One of those things is to think outside of the box. There are many things that I feel he isn’t getting in class therefore, it is my job to make sure he gets those things at home. I am doing what I can to help him reach his weekly goals by adapting to his learning style and needs. I can say that in the past month he has come a very long way and for that, he to deserves a little recognition.

We are extremely proud of all three of our kids! All we have ever asked for from each of them is that they always try their best. They each have their own way of doing things and they always go above and beyond. They all have been working really hard and their efforts have shined beyond a doubt.

Until Next time......

Embrace the Camera: October 21

One of my favorite FALL activities, visiting a pumpkin patch and enjoying a hay ride out to a field full of pumpkins.  

Happy Thursday!!

Down On Papa's Farm

Last Friday, Jason and I were able to join Kalyssa on her first field trip of the year. The first graders from Stockwell Place had the opportunity to experience life on a real farm. We took a trip to Papa Simpson’s farm in Arcadia. The farm provided the kids with a real hands-on learning experience. It was really neat to be able to watch the kids. They were all so excited and eager to learn about the animals.

We spent the day walking around the farm and learning about several different animals. Kalyssa got to hold a baby chick and a piglet. She was a little scared to hold the baby goat (or rather kid, she would correct me if she read this). The goat was a little frightened and a bit more vocal than the other two animals. Although she decided not to milk the mama cow, she did get the chance to bottle feed one of the baby cows.

Kalyssa got the chance to plant her very own corn kernel. The farmer explained to the kids how corn is planted and how it is picked. She also got to take daddy on a journey in search of the perfect little pumpkin.

This was Jason’s first official field trip. It was nice to be able to share the day together. I know that it meant a lot for him to be able to be there for Kalyssa. We had a lot of fun with Kalyssa and her class. I know that I’m a little biased, but I happen to think that Mrs. Everage has the BEST set of first graders around :-)

This isn’t the last of Papa Simpson, Jason and I will be heading back down to the farm in a couple of weeks to join Travin and his class on their farm field trip. More pictures to come very soon!

My Kind of Fall

I am still learning a thing or two from living in the south. One of my favorite things so far is FALL!! I absolutely love the fall season here in Louisiana. And yes I can call it a season because things actually change. It might not be freezing cold outside but it is a bit of a change from the steady 68 degree year around temperatures we were all too familiar with.

Here are a few of my favorite things about the fall. Please feel free to share some of your fall favorites with me :-)

~Pumpkin Spice Lattes
~Caramel Apples
~Apple cider
~Pumpkins, Pumpkins, Pumpkins...pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, pumpkin cream cheese, pumpkin muffins (I'm sure there are a few I'm missing)
~Fall Scented Candles...pumpkin spice, apple orchard........
~Fall Decorations
~Fall Fashions...especially cute sweaters and boots
~Fall Festivals
~Leaves Changing Colors
~Pumpkin Patches and Hayrides
~Halloween Costumes
~Trick-or-treaters
~Soup!! Soup in a bread bowl...even better!!!
~Crisp Morning Runs
~It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
~Cooler Weather (as in not in the 90's/100's and NO humidity)
~Thanksgiving Dinner
~Planning for Christmas

Everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn.

~Elizabeth Lawrence

Embrace the Camera: October 14

This week has been a bit of rough one for us. The cold season hit our house pretty hard and doesn’t seem to want to let go. We have all been feeling a little under the weather so needless to say, posing for pictures was the last thing on everyone’s mind :)

I thought it would be fun to share some pictures that were taken last year during Halloween.

We definitely try our best to capture the “spooktacular” spirit of trick or treating.