apple stem day

Still catching up from September but this was a pretty memorable event even if the turnout wasn't as good as we had hoped for. 

The story: Alyssa is part of a STEM explorers group at her school. She joined as a 4th grader and loved it. I really mean loves it because she keeps signing up for anything and everything that Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Keener suggest for the program even when it means we stand in freezing rain and blowing wind, trying to keep a pop up canopy over our table or recently, choosing to partake in the Apple STEM day that our school was invited to participate instead of going to GS camp closing weekend at her all-time favorite Tomahawk!

And yes, she chose this Apple STEM day to be part of. The really cool thing that I didn't know about was that she and a few other kids were "invited" to participate as STEM mentors to the 4th graders. I had thought you could just sign up but I was informed that this small group of 5th graders were "invited" because they had shown exemplary leadership skills and had a commitment for the work they did and presented. That was pretty cool to find out!

She actually didn't pose for any of these photos for me, but it was for her teacher so I snuck a few in while standing next to Mrs. Potter.

Alyssa was the greeter.

This is her in action - she greets them and tells them a little bit about how the tour works and how to use QR codes before sending them on to the next station where we learn more about how their group has started or carried on efforts to be a "Green Star" school that produces little to no waste and conserve energy at amazing rates.

 And this is the group of "invited" 5th graders - only 7 out of the original 33 were asked to come back and be 5th grader mentors.

So proud of her and her commitments to the activities she enjoys. If I knew how to share her presentation (it's a PowerPoint), I would. She did a beautiful job with it!

L4L

This year is going to be hard... bittersweet hard. It is the last year for everything at our elementary school, and every time we come to a milestone, I am going to be thinking this is the last time I do this here with Alyssa. And some things, well, frankly, I am kind of glad it is the last time I will be doing it. 

Laps for Leadership, previously known as Harvest Hustle, Jog-a-thon, Spring Dash and I don't know how many other names there have been, is one of them. 

A few years back we shifted our focus on fundraising to our Hemophilia Chapter and the Hemophilia Walk - which thank you from the bottom of our hearts for supporting - we shifted because it is more inline with where we wanted to focus our fundraising efforts. 

Laps for Leadership is our school's version of the Hemophilia Walk but the fundraising goes back to the school. It's a good cause and we definitely support it but we don't go all out crazy especially ever since they moved it from Spring to Fall making it even closer to the Hemophilia Walk.

This year I was there. Alyssa didn't want me to run with her so instead I volunteered and was able to grab a few photos of her.

 It was a beautiful morning and her grade is first up so it was still nice and cool, and thankfully no crazy winds. She was happy, but her normal slow and not very competitive self. It's kind of funny to notice how different her and Jaiden are with certain things. He was always uber competitive and her? Not so much, but she's happy to be out there helping!

My favorite part was right as I was leaving all of the 5th graders lined up to high five the 3rd graders as they ran pass. Alyssa is right near the front yelling encouraging words and cheering on her 3rd grade friends and other 3rd graders!

So cool to see the older kids encourage the little ones.

sugar beet festival

Reminding me of parades... reminded me of this unfinished post from mid-September. 

Jaiden is the SPL or Senior Patrol Leader for his Boy Scout troop and it has turned out to be a fairly huge responsibility. He received an email from his Scoutmaster about an opportunity to lead the colors in a parade in a small town not far from here for their annual sugar beet festival. Jaiden liked the idea and immediately sent out an email to the troop and within just under a week, they (the Boy Scouts) prepared this...

oh wait but first a photo of this cutie waiting for the parade to start...

 And then at the start of the parade was the colors with Jaiden and his friends carrying the flags!

 They were so cute and serious!

And then many floats and cars later came one of our scoutmasters on his tractor...

 Pulling this super cool float...

 It's a little hard to see but it is an outdoor theme with a pole that has a boy in a harness swinging as if he is climbing, fake trees, a tent, a mini campfire and a canoe that hangs off the back of the trailer with scouts riding in the canoe and fishing!

 So very, very cool! It was really quite amazing not just how creative they were but that so many boys jumped in at last minute to really support their community and create a sensational float!

apples and more apples

When I say I should take a break... I really shouldn't! Actually, I found several posts started and unfinished - like this one from the beginning of September.

Loving this 3 day weekend! We so needed to lie low and hang with friends and do whatever we fancy including apple picking.

Dennis took Alyssa apple picking at a nearby park/ open space. It's a park in the loose sense that there is now playground structure and it's open space in the loose sense because there is a beautiful rose garden intermixed with lots of local grasses and a huge apple grove. They took the the apple picker pole that Dennis bought just before we lost our own apple trees.

 and picked bags of apples....

We are now making fresh apple cider and freezing apple-sort-of-sauce. It's my version of applesauce. Chunky apples simmered in water, cinnamon, allspice and cloves for a super long time. No sugar but pure goodness that especially Alyssa devours!

Happy Fall!

thursday folders

I was thinking I would take a break from posting so many posts lately until I saw what was inside Thursday's folder this week. 

I love Thursday folders, and I am sure I have shared a few of the treasures I find in Thursday folders in the past. Just in case I haven't, I will explain what Thursday folders are. At our elementary school, folders are sent home every Thursday. The folders contain flyers about upcoming events, announcements but the best part is the school work that comes home in them. It is the piece that gives me a view in what they do at school, how they learn and express themselves. In the younger years, it was often filled with artwork, hand prints and adorable handwriting and now in the later years, it is filled with spelling tests and math homework. 

This week had math homework, but it also had several treasures that made me realize this is my last year of Thursday folders. In fact, this is our last year at elementary and wow, I need to be mindful - paying close attention to the sweetness that Alyssa shares with her teacher and possibly classmates. She will probably kill me and tell me "it is illegal" (her newest saying when she is reprimanding me!)  for me to share her school work but I think you will enjoy it too so I will risk her reprimands!

Cover of TIME magazine for being a "leader in skate bording"

Top Ten Things You Need to Know About:

Alyssa

10. I am funny.

9. I'm nice.

8. I love animals.

7. Did you know I'm on swim team.

6. I love reading.

5. I was born on the same day as Albert Eistien (Einstein).

4. I love school.

3. I read history.

2. I sing to relax.

And the number one thing about me: I draw to think.

Adorable, right?

officially the smallest feet

A few Saturday's ago, I took Alyssa to go shop for shoes. It's getting harder and harder to find shoes in this town with only two clothing stores and one shoe store so we drove a little further to check out Nordstrom's rack.

It turned out very quickly that the largest youth shoe size is too small, so we ventured to the women's sizes and it was there that I discovered I officially have the smallest feet in the house. She sized in between a 7.5 and an 8!

Then we decided to play and texted Dennis this photo...

... to which he responded "nice shoes for PE"

Alyssa's response "I can't imagine running in those - just thinking about it makes my pinky toe hurt"

I couldn't stop laughing! Not sure which was more laughable - watching her walk in them or her response to even trying to walk in them!