disappoitment

Sky got word today that he did not get one of the 4 percussion positions available in the band.  It is so sad because he has been practicing on the drum kit but that is not really the same as what they do in band. 

I wish we could find an older used clarinet to buy for Sky instead of renting the current one every month.  We may have a line on a sax if he decided to move to that instrument...fingers crossed!

OOPS forgot to post B's Bday!

My baby turned double digits!

We had a party at the bowling alley again this year and we all had a blast, except Shane who went home sick...

If you look on the table by the ice cream scoop you will see the cool bowling pin pens that I found online to use as decorations and everyone got to take one home.  I even gave one to the bowling alley owner because he thought they were so cool.

Brady got his bowling pin and everyone signed it, now I just need to find a way to drill a whole in it and make it into a lamp.  He has 2 and I thought they would make cool lamps for him to keep instead of just big paper weights.

Sky the Christmas Star

A few weeks ago Sky joined the Christmas Ensemble which is made up of band members from the middle school and the high school.  they have been getting together a couple afternoons a week to practice Christmas songs.  Yesterday the group welcomed Santa to town for the HO HO Hoquiam Celebration.

 

 After a few songs Santa arrived...

 

And we all moved inside for more music then a magic show...

ok not a great video but sky has the blue checkered shirt in the middle.

When it is hard to give thanks...

 

Our friend, Scott, lost his 15 yr old granddaughter this week after a valiant fight with cancer.  Even though we all knew this day was close, and now her suffering is gone, there is so much pain with loosing someone so young.  I pray for strength for all of them.


Getting wrapped up in our day to day lives it is so easy to loose track of the blessings we have each day.  I hope on this Thanksgiving day that everyone I know will join me and wrap our arms around our children and let them know how thankful we are to be blessed with them in our lives.

And I give thanks that I have each of you in my life also...

Fundraisers!

So far this year I worked to get the elementary schools magazine sale and candy sale fundraisers all done and now the middle school is selling Butter Braids and Pastry Puffins which is fine I knew there would be additional fundraisers now that Sky has moved up but I just found out that the middle school ASB will be starting another fundraiser before the holidays selling cookie dough!  After the new year I have basket bingo and regular catalogue fundraisers and we are adding Skate nights, a rummage sale and a fun run.  I am not looking forward to how many other fundraisers the middle school is going to do. 

I want to do everything I can to help the schools and the kids but I just don't know how much more I can do.  I have no time to do something just for me.

Sky's reading class is going to The Nutcracker in Seattle next month and I did sign up to be a chaperone.  Yes I have to deal with a group of obnoxious 6th graders but I get to go to the theatre!  Now I am packing up my office/craft room so we can give Sky his own room and I feel I may never have my own space again.  I can't let this happen!  I really need to find a way to still have craft time.

The first thing I need to do is decide what is important.  Get organized and then I should have the time to myself.  Hopefully before the end of the year Sky's room and the front porch will be done.  Keeping fingers crossed!

Truck or Treat...

I got to attend truck or treat for the first time this year at Central.  I have always been at Brady's class at Lincoln on Halloween and Shane when to Central.  This year the middle school does nothing for Halloween so I decorated my van and got in costume and had some fun with the kids!

The day before Sky had his first concert:

And the afterschool program taught the kids how to make fake wounds:

all and all a fairly interesting week around here.

My problem...

So I have an issue and I am having a hard time coming up with the answer.  Since my first baby entered school I have kept every piece of paper they have brought home.  I have weekly classroom updates from Mrs. Coyote's kindergarten class, I have every lunch menu sent home for the last 5 years...well technically I have 2 for every month for the last 3 years.  Every homework assignment, every picture painted, every name list for valentines, every scrap that came home I have kept in separate boxes, one for each kid for each separate year for fear of tossing something very important.

Did you know that after a while these boxes start to pile up!  I have many more years of all these papers coming home.  I had gone looking for some type of storage boxes when Sky was in 1st grade in hopes of more secure storage but now I am starting to think I need to let some of this paper go.  I could keep some of the art projects, although the schools we have attended have not been much into that kind of thing.

Of course not everything is a nice neat 81/2 by 11 sheet either, there are the odd big pictures and 3d projects...the really big stuff this last couple years I have tried to take picture of because in this small house it doesn't take long for that stuff to get ruined in the boys room and I just have not had the space to store it.

Will my boys think I am horrible if I toss out a bunch of these papers?  What should I keep and what should I toss?  I have lots of reminders sent home about various activities at school.  I can toss those correct?  Or should I scrap that stuff?  Or should I scan every sheet and save them on a hard drive?