A Beautiful Smile

Savannah's orthodontist partners with a local photographer to obtain pictures for the gallery on his website and to decorate his office.  Savannah was very excited about this mini-session because we paired family pictures with the cousins with our own session this past summer just a couple of weeks before her braces were removed.  We were in a time crunch then.  I promised I would let her get some pictures after her braces were removed, and this mini-session provided the perfect opportunity for that.  Because we have traditionally had her portraits taken close to her birthday in the spring or summer, she also really embraced the idea of pictures with fall clothing.  I let Savannah choose her favorites, and we purchased two digital images. I am a sucker for photographs, so if money were no object, we would have purchased the whole lot so that I could have my favorites too.  Oh if I could only take pictures like this!  I have much to learn.

We did receive a framed 5X7 that just happened to be my favorite image.

I know I am subjective, but I think she looks stunning.  Two photographers have reached out to her to be senior reps for them.  I am not sure we will be able to afford either of them, but we will see. I cannot believe that we are already here where we will soon make a decision about senior pictures.  

Savannah now wears her hair just to her shoulders.  She misses her long hair when looking at these photos, but I love the shorter hair on her.  It is fun and frames her face so nicely.  I am sure that it is also a bonus that her hair is actually dry in the morning if she washes it at night :)

Photos by Adele Reding Photography, smile by God and Dr. Tran - likely brightened a bit by photo editing.

On My Education Soapbox Again

Here I go again on my soapbox.  Feel free to skip this post if you do not want my rant.

Yesterday during my quiet time, I came across this principal called the "broken window theory." This take on it was new to me, but it reflected a conversation I had just had with Andy.  It comes from law enforcement, and the basic premise is that if windows are broken/vandalized on a vacant building, and nobody fixes them, the invitation is open for more vandalism and crime in the area.  "The driving philosophy behind this theory is that quick prosecution of minor crime decreases major crime."

Shirer, Priscilla. "Week Four: Total Recall." Breathe. Nashville: LifeWay, 2014. 100. Print.

This reflects exactly a conversation I just had with Andy.  We are discussing school options for Julia, and I mentioned that one of our choices for high school lets small discipline issues such as dress code violations slide.  Recently, they let a small theft situation slide. (I don't even want to get into the argument that ensued because one staff member thought the item should have just been given to the student.) I pointed out that when the small things are no longer addressed, big offenses follow, and the school is headed quickly in the wrong direction.  This creates a school setting that puts every student in jeopardy of danger at worst or trying to learn in an environment that is not conducive to learning at best.  It starts a slippery slope, and I have seen this in action.  As a result that high school option is obviously off the table at this point.  Granted that can change in the three years we have before making a high school choice for her.  Wyatt is closer to high school, and we originally thought this would possibly work for him though we had other concerns that have to do with Wyatt more than the school itself, but this changes the discussion for him too.

We live in a time where school discipline, particularly in the public school system, is dictated by the parents and the press, and this is exactly why these seemingly small offenses go unchecked. They become a paperwork and conferencing nightmare for school staff.  I am absolutely not advocating some police state within the schools or lack of reason such as disciplining a kid if his peanut butter sandwich looks like a gun. I agree that is ridiculous.  I am, however, talking to the parent who is shaking her head over a kid missing class per school policy because he did not wear his belt as required by the dress code.  I get that some mornings are crazy, and sometimes things are innocently forgotten.  I get that sometimes grace should be applied in these situations.  However, more often than not the dress code violation has nothing to do with a challenging morning, and it has everything to do with a rebellious heart.  Left unchecked, that seed of rebellion can grow into something really ugly for the school, parents, and the community.

So when you are that frustrated parent because the detention falls on Saturday morning, and your kid can't drive, and you are saying, "who is being punished here?"  Remember that we discipline because we love, and minor offenses left unchecked become big problems. Remember also, that you likely chose this environment because it is a disciplined place.  It's kind of like the cute two-year-old who claims everything he wants is his.  Even if he can't understand sharing and ownership, you start the conversation and discipline the actions because that kind of selfishness isn't cute at sixteen, and stopping that behavior at sixteen is nearly impossible.

Okay, now I will do what I should be doing and clean the house...well, maybe :)
First, I must indulge in a salted caramel turtle.  I thought my love language was acts of service.  Maybe I was wrong, it might be salted caramel turtles.  They do make me feel loved.

Throw Back Thursday

Beach Bound!!

That's where I'd like to be today on this record-breaking cold day in our city. For the first time in a week, I am wearing make-up and have my hair fixed.  It is time to leave this house.  I did go out yesterday to drop some stuff off for Julia as she stayed the last two nights with a friend.  Savannah went with me, so we stopped by the mall to see what formal dresses we may want to target for the clearance sales.  We found a dress that was truly stunning on her, so we will watch the price on that one.  We also found a great summer dress that will work nicely under her graduation gown next year and may be a contender for senior pictures.  We are also watching this one, but I doubt we will see a better price than the current one.  She really wants a yellow summer dress for her senior pictures, so I will leave this house today to see if I can find one she found online.  I will also look for gloves.  Mine have a hole in them, and Wyatt has lost his.  I am not holding out much hope that I will find gloves today, but it gives me an excuse to get out of this house.

Beach Bound 2008

St. George's beautiful island, July -2010

What's up at our house?

Since I last posted, we celebrated Valentine's Day and got pummeled by a snow storm.  Here's a peek at our last week.

I spent much of a work day wrapping books for our Blind Date with a Book event.  The students and teachers check out a book from the library that is completely wrapped.  They have no idea what they are getting.  They just need to return the book and their Rate Your Date Sheet (super cute) by the due date to potentially win a prize.  Of course we stole borrowed this idea from other librarians across the nation.  Who gets to have this much fun at work?  The students and staff are loving it!

Julia celebrated her last Valentine's day of elementary school, and we have spent the last couple of weeks wrestling over a school decision for her.  She starts middle school next year, and we can no longer afford to keep her at the school where she has been since she was two.

I want her to stay for all the wrong reasons. She has incredible friendships there and is truly grafted in to a great community.  She loves her school.  Next year was to be the first year in a long time that everyone would be going to school and coming from school at the same time and in the same place, so I was ready for that breather. I can't imagine that middle school can be done better than our school does it. We expect her to return, so it seems wrong to disrupt the flow for a year or two.  I want her to be a lifer there and be honored as such at her graduation.

Our other options include a home school co-op that Julia really likes, but I am not so sold on it.  She has also been accepted into a great public school. They have a talented and amazing cheerleading team.  Julia landed her back tuck solo this week and will definitely need it for this team.  It is a draw to have her get some experience with such a great program.  

I am ready to maybe afford a family trip again.  Maybe we could even replace our sad couches or paint our trim.  We may not be able to do any of that even if Julia goes to a cheaper school, but we may be able to knock out some debt without my breath being knocked out every time I pay the bills.  I would like to be able to let the kids participate in sports again or clinics for their sports.  

Julia celebrated her last balloon day until high school.  The seniors do this as a fund raiser every year, but the middle school does not get to participate.  Savannah will not be able to send balloons to Wyatt and Julia next year when she is a senior.

Julia won third place in her class for her Valentine's box.  She covered and decorated a cereal box with (you guessed it) duck tape.  The cereal box was required for the project. The kids had total freedom with creativity other than that.  Julia made hers look like a mailbox complete with a flag.  Did she get any help from anyone else in this family?  No.  She's truly that creative.

We had a mishap with our annual cupcake decorating for Valentine's day.  Because Julia was headed out of town with a friend, we celebrated early. I baked the cupcakes while everyone was out of the house on Wednesday night.  I used a boxed mix.  Savannah had popped popcorn earlier using my favorite mixing bowl which also happens to be our favorite popcorn bowl.  We always use an air popper because our microwave shoots sparks whenever we try the microwave kind, and air popped popcorn is better anyway.  Anyway the bowls were sitting side by side on the counter, and I poured powdered batter into the popcorn.  I sifted it out.  Chocolate cake batter on popcorn isn't so bad, by the way.  Even so, we did find an occasional kernel in the cupcakes.  No, I do not belong in the kitchen.  This is just one of numerous examples.  The cupcakes were okay, but once you've had Savannah's homemade chocolate cake, boxed chocolate cupcakes just don't cut it.

Zach received his Valentine's at school.  He clearly needed that pick me up.  He thanked us again and again, and posted this picture on social media.  Zach is struggling to get as many hours as he needs at work while at school.  He returned resigned to stay until spring break.  I know he would like to come home more, but we can't keep filling his gas tank and paying his phone bill for him.  I had set aside a small amount of money to visit him and have some fun in a nearby city for our spring break, but Zach was unable to pay his Inter-term fees.  Therefore, I depleted that money to pay his fees, so our spring break family plans have been cancelled. We will still visit colleges with Savannah.  Zach will also visit colleges on his spring break as he will be transferring in the fall to someplace cheaper and closer to home. He will also be in a bigger community with more employment options, so that should help.

Our Valentine's Day

We planned to celebrate Valentine's Day on Friday evening.  At about 3:00 Friday morning, I was awakened by a sore throat- yep, it hurt bad enough to wake this sound sleeper.  Thinking it was a cold, I fought through my workday Friday with cold medicine.  That evening we met a group for dinner and then attended a marriage program at our church.  On Saturday I could not get out of bed.  My neck and back hurt so bad, and I was drained with what I now suspect is the flu.  I was out of bed by Sunday afternoon, but it is Tuesday now, and I am still sniffling and sneezing and depending on cold medicine.  UGH! We also got pummeled with a snowstorm on Sunday - eight inches, but in our neck of the woods, that's enough to shut down a city. We are still homebound with the snow.  As much as I hate giving up days of summer for being trapped inside by snow, I probably should have taken these days to recover anyway. Obviously, I have not been out in it. Neither have the kids.  Julia went out long enough to clear her trampoline of snow and came in hurting.  

Rumors are flying that we may be in for the week as the snow won't clear before the temperature drops to record lows.  We keep our house on 63 degrees because we cannot afford the higher bills when we try more reasonable temperatures.  I am grateful that I have gotten used to the temperature in our house, but I think that going outside will leave me chilled to the bone and bundled up for hours when I return.

Highs:  Andy brought me tulips and Sea Salt Caramel Turtles (oh my goodness! -best. candy. ever!!!)

Wyatt bought me a small heart-shaped box of chocolates - such a sweetheart.

I caught up on my TLC (aka train wreck channel -according to Andy) watching.  Have you seen Ben's proposal to Jessa on 19 Kids and Counting? Epic!  I am a practical girl, not a huge romantic, but I fell in love with that chapel. The scavenger hunt was sweet, but what really sold me was the simplicity of the proposal taking place in that chapel. If he had only done that, it would have been Epic in my opinion.  I told my girls that one of them has to get married there or someplace like it.  So beautiful!

Stay warm.  Spring will be here soon enough.

They keep coming!

Just a couple more pictures from the dance--rumor is that Andy was a dancing machine.  His motto: Go BIG or Go home!

An Enchanted Evening Part 2

Now that Andy and Julia are home, I have pictures from my actual camera and from the camera of my friend Sara who generously shared. Andy and Julia had a fantastic time, and Andy admitted that at the end of the night when they played Butterfly Kisses, he got emotional.  From that first dance to Butterfly Kisses with Savannah to this last one with Julia, time flew.  Childhood is indeed fleeting.

What a gift to have a picture of these precious girls under such an amazing sunset!

Everybody limbo! Oh yeah!  I almost won the limbo contest at my ten year high school reunion.  That's where Julia gets it.  Ha!

Check out their ride - a party bus!

We face another last tonight as Julia cheers her last game. I can't go as I am working in the nursery, but I will attend the banquet afterward.

An Enchanted Evening

Tonight, Andy and Julia attended their sixth annual Father/Daughter dance.  This was the 12th year in a row for Andy, and it is the last year for both Andy and Julia.

I picked Julia up from school and went immediately to my Dad's house where Tiffany met us and did Julia's hair.

We then drove to the restaurant to meet Andy.

The fifth grade girls and their dads shared a limo for this last hurrah.

It looks like they are having fun.

Fifth grade girls - I love so many of these girls. I don't know some of them.  I am sure I love them too.

Sweet friends have been texting me pictures throughout the night. This was the last slow dance to Butterfly Kisses -an emotional moment for Andy.

Fifth grade -where has the time gone?

Andy and Julia should be home within an hour, and I will hear all the fun details if Julia can stay up long enough to share :)