Don’t Blink, It’s Over!

Summer break is chugging along fast.  I’ve already received a direct mail piece from Lands End about Back-to-School shopping, and I imagine the stores will quickly become littered with school supplies in the coming weeks as well.  Matt, as usual, has played the role of Mr. Mom during the break while I’m working.  I’ve already got one summer theatre camp under my belt which always feels good.  I’ve got two more camps in July.  Never underestimate or under-appreciate the amount of planning and time that goes into executing a summer camp at ANY organization. 

Golf, golf, and more golf…Miles is completely eaten up with golf.  Matt’s mowed a nice little chipping and putting area in our back yard for him, complete with a cup in the ground.  He spends most of his days (sometimes up to four hours) outdoors perfecting his game.  Matt sent me a text the other day that said…mark my words, Miles will get a golf scholarship.  I’ve never seen a 10 year old more devoted to a sport.  He would go to the driving range everyday if he could.  However, our local range, Otte Golf, is closing this month.  Matt and Miles are members of the Birdie Club and have lots of buckets to get through before it closes.  I really hate that because it’s super close to the house and something I can take him to do if Matt doesn’t feel like it.  They’ve also put up a Pelican’s Snoballs right next door which Miles and I have enjoyed after a hot round of hitting. Apparently, Pelican’s is hit with this town.  I kid you not - people are lined up all the way out to Scottsville Road for snow cones.  Don’t get me wrong, we’ve been there too and think they’re good but….

 

Rant of the day: it’s SNOW CONES people.  They’ve been around for ages.  Why are people so gaga over this?  I used to make my own out of the trusty Snoopy Snow Cone Maker.  I worked at IslandSno when I was 16 years old at Covington Woods Park (fighting off killer bumble bees from juice drippings) and ate them everyday.  There used to be a snow cone place on the By-Pass, one at the waterpark, and I believe Kona Ice is still around.  I don’t get the crazed attention to Pelican’s.  I know we’ll be back but I’m quite sure a soft-serve cone at IGA for $1 will usually win if the line is too long at Pelican’s.

Miles competed in his 1^st Go Golf Junior event in this month in Franklin.  Tournament play is tough, but he pulled off a third place finish in his age division.  I’m not sure how many more of the series events he’ll participate in because he and Matt play so much already.  A lot of the tournaments are played at courses that are over an hour + from BG.  He is planning to play in the Goat Gary Classic at BG Country Club later this summer.  He's golfing machine and about the cutest little 10 year old on the planet.

 When Karson isn’t on the court #21, she’s in her pajamas.  She’s been rotating high school volleyball and basketball most of the summer which occupies lots of time.  I’d briefly considered taking her to Beech Bend’s job fair for a possible part-time job (yes, they hire 14 year old's for concessions and tickets), but she wanted to see what the demand of high school sports would be first.  We know now - demanding.

She’s been to three (1-day) team camps for basketball at Greenwood, Glasgow and Allen County High Schools.  She did a 3-day team camp at WKU playing at 9:20 in the evening two nights.  She also participated in a volleyball scrimmage at Lindsey Wilson.  It’s rare to hear her complain unless something hurts or she's just plum worn out.  She enjoys both sports very much and gives 100%.  SO, if she has a day off, I say…spend it in your pajamas girl, you deserve it. 

Pap and Nana took the kids to Holiday World this week.  And, by kids, I mean the older two kids.  Miles has zero interest in any theme park.  He doesn’t enjoy them, not sure if he ever will.  His thrills come from golf, roller skating, and puttering around on the electric scooter in the hood. 

The kids invited Aidan and Logan Allen as their companions.  Aidan is Karson’s boyfriend – 6 months and going.  Hard to believe she is old enough to have a boyfriend, but when I see her walking through the house tall/poised and help her with her hair, I’m quickly reminded of her age – a rising high school freshman.  I’m also reminded that there is real good possibility that I only have four years left (in the house) with her.  Noooooooo. Aidan’s brother, Logan, is Isaac’s age and they’ve taken a quick liking to each other as well.  They’re both really nice young men, and I’m thankful for their presence in our kids lives.

I was proud of Karson and Isaac for taking care of their phones and bringing them home.  I know that sounds silly, but both kids have their phones attached to them at all times (who are we kidding, everyone does), but I worried about them taking them to Holiday World.  In fact, we encouraged Isaac to leave his at home since he’s only had it for a couple of weeks.  We got him a phone for 6^th grade graduation (like Karson).  He’s starting out with my old iPhone 5 (like Karson).  When they got home that evening, he flashed it like an Oscar Trophy – a prized possession that made it home =).  Whew.

In other news, every June we celebrate special horse-giraffe mixed stuffed animal named Jerry.  He loves Zebra Cakes and Chick Fil A.  Happy Birthday J.D.

Because  my precious Karson is wiser than her age, I've made the decision to allow her to start driving.  This may seem like a careless decision, but she's almost 15 and enjoys it.  SO...we've been going next door to Plano Elementary and driving around the lot.  She's done really well and looks super cute in the drivers seat!  Not worried about her driving but.....

Isaac, on the other hand, better start saving for the insurance on him now.  Such a stinker!  Look out 7th grade, his crew is coming!

Let the Summer Begin

It's officially summer!  You know how I know....I got a text from Matt on Friday that said you might want to pick up some dish liquid because the boys used it all on the slip-n-slide. 

 After a quick trip to Dollar General, I now have about 4-liters of dish soap.  Of course after about three days of solid play, the "ramp" on the slip-n-slide is already popped.  Those suckers aren't meant to last.  Good thing it was on sale at Toys R Us.  The kids don't mind, the yard, however, is getting destroyed. 

The last two weeks have been a flurry of events.  Karson played in a 4-man "grass" tournament with some of her volleyball friends.  Because the weather was supposed to be crummy, it was moved indoors and ended up being a SWHS.  For some reason, CROCS have resurfaced in our house and Karson loves them.  I think they might be making a come-back.  Anywho, she asked me to help her team come up with a name for the tournament - I suggested "Four Tough Crocs" and told her to wear her CROCS to the tournament - guess they liked it.

The Four Tough Crocs took home the win for their division.  Karson had to shake off a little rust from not playing but thought did well overall.

A week ago Monday, Karson had awards at SWMS.  I wasn't sure what to expect.  South has no shortage of extremely intelligent children, and while she stood out in elementary school for high achievement, middle school is a different ball of wax.  Karson has a 4.0 and very high KPREP and assessment scores.  She took two high school credit classes this year in 8th grade and has a hard load (with a some AP) scheduled for her Freshman year.  The awards night is for high scores in individual subject areas along with recognizing elective classes and students that have achieved in certain subject areas.  She and about 100 other students were recognized for taking high school classes which is a nice recognition. 

Tuesday was packed with events. I got a text from my mother first thing that morning saying that my Memaw was in the ER.  She'd fallen and whacked her head pretty good.  They were going to get her stitched up and run some tests on her.  She has dementia, stays confused, is hard of hearing, and her health has gradually deteriorated over the last few years.  

 Isaac had 6th grade graduation at Plano that morning.  Plano also has a big family picnic afterwards.  I had planned to stay for graduation and lunch and then head back to work (was scheduled for a 1/2 day).  Mom was going to stick around for Miles's awards which were at 1 PM.  However, with Memaw being in the hospital, those plans, understandably, didn't work out.  Isaac was leaving school with some friends which meant I didn't necessarily have to stay long so I rushed back to work for about two hours and then came back to Plano for Miles's awards before heading back to work again. 

 It's hard to believe that I will have three kids under three different roofs next year.  Next year will be full of growth for all them - sort of being on their own and finding new paths without a sibling in the same building.  Of course, Karson has had that for two years already, but I think it will be really good for our boys who share a room and do everything together.  Sometimes separation can be a good thing.

Is SWMS ready for this crew?  Look out!

 Isaac and his squad doing some "chilly" swimming after school.  This group of four crack me up.  They have a rotation for "hosting" the monthly sleepover.  Apparently, we are down for June.  I like his buddies and hope they have some classes together next year.

 Miles and his buddies celebrating with classroom awards.  I was able to check him out of school which is the major excitement about the last day of school.  I also took him to TRU (for the slip-n-slide purchase).  When Matt got him, he took him golfing which is equivalent to Disney World for him.  He LOVES golf!

I've managed to squeeze in two concerts at Bridgestone the last two weeks.  Shannon, Lisa and I got tickets to see Boys II Men, Paula Abdul and NKOTB back in November.  Their Total Package Tour was heading to Nashville two weeks ago on Wednesday.  We got to re-live our childhood with some of our favorite songs. 

Hall and Oates were also schedule to come to Bridgestone last Wednesday.  I wanted to go see them too but didn't want to spend a ton on tickets.  Have a mentioned that all of our appliances in our house are revolting?  We had to replace our ice-maker, coffee pot and washer/dryer.  It's been a rather expensive May.  Anywho, I thought $65 was out of my price range, but my pal Jennie told me she knew they'd mark them down and they did.  I was able to snag tickets for both Matt and I for $16 and in great seats.  It was a no-brainer so I purchased them.  Daryl Hall is 70 and still rocking!  Tears for Fears was the opening act, and they were awesome as well.

 We spent yesterday at Nolin lake - boat riding, tubing and hanging out with family.  The weather was a wee bit chilly, but that didn't stop Isaac from tubing for hours.  He's part reptile.

Chlorophyll more like Borophyll

Unless you’re living in a cave, which is quite possible in the state of Kentucky, students everywhere are testing this time of the year – AP exams, finals, KPREP.  Karson has already completed three full days of testing at South and both of the boys started their exams yesterday.  Plano usually kicks off testing week with awards from last year’s testing.  Isaac and Miles both got awards at the ceremony.  Isaac got Distinguished medals and certificates in Math, Social Studies and Language Arts.  He didn’t even place in On-Demand writing (7 pts. short of a Proficient) which is rather comical to me since he’s one of the best writers (been writing books since he was four).  However, if you try to box him in and make him comply with a certain set of criteria when writing, don’t hold your breath (thus, no award in test writing).  Karson got Distinguished earnings in her 7th grade testing as well and has an 8th grade awards ceremony May 22.  Our little Panther, Miles received a Proficient in Math.  He’s been nervous about this year’s tests and is hoping he does better.  Isaac gave him some perils of wisdom by saying, “make sure you read the directions carefully, that always helps me.”  I told him to take his time and do the very best he can and that he’s very smart.  In my mind, I know it’s hard for him to see both of his siblings get all these awards and school comes so easily and naturally for them.  He has to work at it, and I did too. 

I remember Karson’s G/T teacher telling me one time that she was so high functioning that, essentially, if she didn’t comprehend something, she would still know the right answer because of her general intellect. Isaac just got his acceptance letter to take Algebra I at South his 7^th grade year.  Karson wanted that opportunity so badly (but missed it by a few measly points), and Isaac has ZERO desire to take it.  We’re not going to give our consent for him to take it for a couple of reasons.  (1) He doesn’t want to.  (2) It counts for high school credit – in middle school.  And, being that Karson has been at the middle school the last two years – I’ve been privy to news that other students have had to drop out because it’s tough for them which leads me to point #3.  (3)  Isaac was one of those independent workers who worked ahead in (math) class with a small group because they we removing quicker.  However, I noticed some of his grades started slipping because he didn’t understand concepts.  When I reached out to his teacher, she said she was a bit concerned too and would like for him to rejoin the class.  (4) Because all high school students have to have four high school credits, I have NO idea what Isaac will have to take his last two years – probably Calculus or something that ends in ‘nometry’.  I think we'll pass.

Academics remind me of athletic or artistic kids – some kids are naturally gifted at it, and others have to work harder.  Miles is right where he should be and needs to be on the spectrum, but I know he’d like to do better.  Lots of emphasis is placed on testing and performance.  Miles is one of those kids who flies underneath the radar, doesn’t cause problems in class, plugs along, produces satisfactory work, loves sports and his friends.  He might not have the flash the other two kids do in the classroom and might not receive a gaggle of awards during his academic career, but he’s quite special, confident, well-adjusted and capable – and brings a lot of balance to any classroom no doubt.  I'm proud of both of my boys and all their hard work this year.  I know they'll do some amazing things with their lives!