M & M's

Not only are M & M's one of my favorite candies, it is also the first letters of my two middle children, Marissa and Matthew who have birthdays this week. We jumped the gun a little because of our schedule this week and gave both of them their presents yesterday. Marissa got a new adult-size purple bike and Matthew got to go to a really cool store (http://www.ridemakerz.com/) and build his own car. It was a really fun day.

Marissa, as those of you know her can testify, is a sweet girl. She is generally our peacemaker and all of her brothers adore her. She can be silly and fun and also serious. She loves animals, especially horses and loves to be outdoors. However, she also has another side. She is an extremely motivated hard worker who is also very smart and curious. She blows us away with what she is doing at school. As Lee's mom says "How does it feel to know that your kids are smarter than you?" We expect to see amazing things from her someday.

Matthew is our passionate child. He feels every emotion deeply. I love the way his whole face gets involved when he smiles. He can also be our "absent-minded professor" who can't find his shoes when they are right in front of him. He and Seth spend hours making up elaborate characters and story lines which they plan to make into a movie someday. He has an amazing memory for details which is almost freaky. He puts his whole heart into things that he loves and it is inspiring.

Marissa

Marissa recently received the honor of having her picture displayed in our school district's food services building for the next year. She was the only one selected from her school so we are proud of her and her accomplishments. Remember - Food is Fuel!

The Election

I am not going to get political, but I hope you are all voting and making your voice heard. It is the blessing that we have of democracy that allows us this privilege. Even if we feel our choices are limited, it is still our choice to make.

Halloween!

We had a fun Halloween night going to "Trunk-or-Treat" at church. The kids got plenty of candy, although not as much as they would have liked. Lee was a "Goth" guy, Andrew a mad scientist, Marissa a cowgirl, Matthew was our "green" costume, made from recycled parts of old costumes, and Seth was a deputy riding a horse. I was a busy mom. I did manage to turn my hair blue helping to make cotton candy at the party.

News Flash!

I am an aunt yet again! Jacob and Jennifer had their first baby, Addison Louise, last night at 11:50 p.m. Jacob sounded like the proudest papa on the planet. I am really happy for them.

Parent Teacher Conferences

Okay, so I have to admit I was dreading some of the parent/teacher conferences this time around. This is Matthew's first year at his new school and he started with the "deer-in-the-headlights" look after the first week. Seth was, and is, our "drama king" and I was not sure how his new teacher would take it. We are just happy that Andrew survived the first nine weeks of school without failing any of his classes. The only one I knew that I would enjoy was Marissa's.

However, overall, things went really well. The kids are doing fine for the most part and they are liked by their teachers. Andrew's homeroom teacher gave him a little lecture about maturity and responsibility (and not reading during class instead of completing assignments), but he also talked about how Andrew had a special place in his heart because he was the one who alerted us to Andrew's health problems and who may have saved his life. I think Andrew really was touched.

I really appreciate the time that teachers make to talk to us as parents not only at conference time but throughout the year. I want to be an involved parent and most seem to welcome it.

It's Fall

Here I sit in my sweat pants (yes, pants) and I am still feeling a little cool. Our temperatures took a big drop yesterday and we are down into the 70's for highs. I know that it will be back up in the 90's later in the week, but for today I am going to enjoy it. I think I might even make cookies later today and enjoy it.

We are not doing anything special for the holiday tomorrow. I will be working and our kids have homework and school projects to keep them busy. Lee is enjoying his time off (I think) and we have been able to do some things together, like go to the temple, that we don't normally get to do.

Andrew and Lee went on a scout campout this weekend and an 18 mile bike ride. I was really nervous and would not let Andrew go without his dad because we are still trying to figure out his blood sugars, etc. but he did really well and stayed right up with everyone. He even sang at a boys choir thing last night after they got home.