Another Day at the Beach

For some reason, the warm weather is hangin' on this fall! So we took advantage of it and hit the beach again. I didn't take swim suits though thinking the water would be freezing. It wasn't too bad, and the kids were bummed, but I let them get wet anyhow!

Once the sun went down, it was cold - burzzzzzzy!

Quote of the day:

Zack: Mom, a girl threw up in class today. It went all over the desk and the floor. Peter and I had to take her to the office.

Me: Oh, I am so sorry she is sick.

Zack: She's not sick. She has the fleas!

Me: What?

Zack: Mom, Mrs. Ulrich said she has the fleas.

Me: Laughing...are you sure she didn't say the flu?

Skateboard Lessons

As it turned out yesterday was the 10th anniversary of the Vans Skatepark. I was amazed because I went there the day it opened with a couple of kids I was teaching at the time! I am getting old! I never thought I'd be there with my son one day.

Anyhow, they had a ton of free stuff and about 7 pros came and skated with the kids. Tony Alva was nice enough to come over where Sophia was on the outside to chat with her and then he told me to take a pic of them. He was a nice guy although I have looked at his website which is not so young kid friendly. Yesterday, however, he was a complete gentleman.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Alva

Zack learned how to drop in which is very scary when you start off. For those who don't know what that is - it is when a person literally drops into a half or quarter pipe. It is not so tough for a taller kid who is not afraid of heights, but Zack had a bit of trouble getting over how high it is.

It was a little nerve racking watching Zack from afar as he skated next to the very deep empty pool.

This is a group shot of the younger kids in the clinic. There were older kids as well, but for obvious reasons, they separate them. Zack made the middle group of the younger kids. The first step to learning is to learn to push off with your back foot instead of your front. I cannot do that!!! It feels so awkward. Fortunately for Zack, Jeff taught him how to do it. There were many kids who couldn't get it right, and I would have been in that group!!! I never knew it mattered what foot you used, but it makes sense to me after hearing the coach explain it.

Zack learns to drop in... He did learn how to do it on his own, but it was impossible to get a picture of him since even these photos were taken through a gate. He smiled a huge smile and told his coach that he conquered a fear. The coach smiled and got Zack to do it five more times.

Learning to jump up on a platform. For some reason, he likes this move.

This trick he learned on his own at home, but he has it down so that he was able to jump from higher and land it over and over.

He got a free t-shirt and got it signed by a pro which made him super jazzed as you can imagine. He insisted on wearing it. This was the smallest size they had so he happily skated in what looked like a dress! LOL

There were some seriously good skaters out there. I saw a couple little guys who were doing some difficult jumps and tricks. I watched Zack watch them wondering why he couldn't replicate!

Zack earned his day at the skatepark and the lessons. He has been doing great in school, and recently he has been sharing purposely and even at times when it is something he really doesn't want to share. I'm seeing a lot of growth, and I wanted to reward him in a meaningful way. Little did I know that he'd skateboard from 8AM - 7PM not even stopping to eat!!!! He had tons of water, but no food until I brought something back for him to snack on at around 5ish.

I'll take him there on the weekends when he has reached his goals during the week. I'm hoping that he'll grow into a kid who likes to be involved in many things so that someday in high school he'll want to take part in various "clubs" - chess maybe, band, ummmmmm, he said yes to band, but only if he can play the drums!

Anyone out there have your son in the Boyscouts? Can you tell me about it? I am wondering if this is something to put Zack in.

Fun Fall Days

The weather today was a little hot but beautiful in the evening. We went to see Madagascar 2 after school to celebrate Zack's 8th 100% on spelling and his A+ math test this week. Truth is that I would have taken them anyhow, but it certainly gives Zack a chance to feel the joy of success and a chance to learn about delayed gratification et al.

After the movie, we hung out on Birch Street where the kids danced around, chased each other, petted every dog that passed by and even met a few friends from school. They were having crazy fun so I watched giggled and took pictures. All the pics you see below were not requested by me. If they look posed, it is because Zack and Sophia posed and asked me to snap a shot.

Photo by Sophia Joy.

This girl is CRAZY. She was rolling all over the ground acting like a model. She doesn't even know what a model is but from how she poses, you'd think she watched America's Next Top Model because she tries to put on that serious face! LOL

Photo by Zack Alexander

Not sure where in the world Zack saw men doing push ups on one arm, but he was doing a pretty good job giggling all the while.

Whoa there!

Good times - laughter and love abounds with these two most of the time!

They said they were starfish.

Sophia actually ended up landing on Zack's head! He wasn't hurt except his hair got pulled a bit which he HATES! All in fun - he snarled, got up and jumped over her.

Each day they look older to me, and I don't like that one bit! I don't want to miss a day of it. I would love to adopt 10 more... Kids are such precious people who need to be loved unconditionally. I ask myself often how I'd feel if Zack struggled in school. I need to keep myself in check and make sure I don't get too caught up in his academic success. It is important for him that I keep his life as balanced as possible and leave room for mistakes. I mean what better teacher is there than mistakes? If he can bomb a test, and have the attitude of "I"ll try harder next time," I'll know he's not finding his worth in a grade. When that cruddy grade comes, I'll for certain be alert to his response.

In the end though, a parent can only do so much to give a solid foundation for success. For this reason, I must remind myself to be fervently teaching them how to fish asking them the question that a wise person I know passed on to me - "What would you (Zack or Sophia) do if I weren't here"? Almost 100% of the time that I ask this question they button their own jeans, comb their own hair, get their own drink, etc... It's not that I don't want to help them. It is the opposite. I don't want to hinder their growth by not allowing them to learn to be interdependent rather than dependent on me or anyone else.

Tomorrow Zack is going to a skateboard clinic from 8-12. I had looked into private lessons because he wants to learn so badly, but private lessons are expensive. So he's going to a group session. He's looking forward to it with great anticipation. He even asked to go to bed at 7:00PM so he would not be tired in the morning to show "his moves"!!! Crazy kid!

I am so open to any feedback or advice out there. I see so many people with grown children and hear what they wished they had done while their kids were young. What were those things? Today I actually climbed a rock wall with Sophia and climbed to the top of the jungle gym. I have to admit I did it because I think it is important that I play with the kids, but I was terrified at the top of that apparatus! The sacrafices moms make!

November Catch Up...

We visited Wanda, Sean and their family last weekend. It was so nice to spend time with people who are from the days of my youth! Wanda's mom and dad are such wonderful people. I remember sitting in their kitchen eating the best brisket I've ever had. It is amazing how hospitable the Mills are. They are just awesome people.

Sophia warmed up to everyone very quickly! Here you see her imprisoning Sean! I would feel badly for him, but he actually gave her a rope so all was fair. Although, I was impressed that Wanda asked Sean to help Sophia tie her up! Now that's a teacher for you - giving a kid a smile instead of being annoyed. The kids have been fortunate to be surrounded by fun people since they've been home.

Wanda joins in...! From the look on Sean's face, I think he may have been having a little bit of fun.

These are Wanda's parents. They are the SWEETEST people in the world. The kids fell in love with them. They are the type of people who know no strangers. I don't have a pic, but they have a German Shepherd named Lady Bug, and the kids had a blast with her!

Wanda decides to tie up Sophia! Great idea! Hog tie her!

And, the group shot! It is amazing to me that we are both right around 40 years old, and it still feels like we're the young 20-somethings teaching at the small Christian school! Oh, and Sean is an awesome guy. It is apparent that he loves and adores Wanda. She's a lucky lady for sure!

Monday we headed out to the park where Zack worked on his skating while Sophia climbed on everything she could!

Here's a trick he likes to do:

Inspecting her owies!

Homework time. Both kids do their homework with their tongues out!

Tuesday morning Sophia and I went to a gorgeous park where she skateboarded while I walked at a brisk pace around the lake. The skateboard has proven to be her BEST most used birthday present!

Swinging on trees...

childhood

These next pictures were taken by Sophia!

Amazing

We set the timer for this one! I can't even put into words how much I love this girl. Sometimes, I just sit and watch her and am amazed. I wonder what that precious woman in Russia thinks each day that she goes without this little angel. I thank God each and every day for entrusting these two precious children to me.

Quotes:

Zack: Mom, you didn't brush my hair and now my brain isn't turned on!

Sophia: I rock Obama. Please wake me up to tell me if he wins.

Zack: McCain rules. Obama drools.

Zack: Mom, how did God make people?

Mom: He spoke them into existence.

Zack: Whoa!

I don't want to be controversial on this blog because it is about the kids, but I have to say that although I am pleased that Obama won, I am a bit put off by all of the racial focus.

For now, I am just glad that Palin will not have any sort of power over the United States of America even if it would have just been as a bug in McCain's ear. She BUGS IMHO. Although, I can stomach her much more than I can Hillary Clinton.

Lastly prop 8 won out for now. I have no doubt that it will change in California and soon the entire United States. That is just the nature of a democracy. As I was walking Zack and Sophia to the car after school, I heard a kid yell "You are so gay". And, at that moment I thought - "Who taught him that"? My kids will know all about what gay means - they already do. And they will be tolerant because that is what they'll be taught at home. God never calls us to hate for any reason.