6 or 16?

David got back his school picture and Dave and I both did a double take. We could easily flash forward and see the teenage boy. We are having a hard enough time keeping track of library books. I can't imagine a teenage boy! I know we have a lot of time, but it just seems like yesterday and David was this . . .

This is one of my favorite baby pictures of David - not only because of the strategic placement of his arm but also because of his reflection in the mirror. (Every mom is supposed to have a bare butt baby picture of their kids, right?)

A Day at Kindergarten

I had the opportunity to volunteer in David's classroom this morning. I was so impressed with how his teacher takes everyday things and has these kids thinking creatively. I also enjoyed looking around the classroom at David's work. They had a "news" board in the hallway and how there are many different ways to report the news. David's paper said this, "David learned how to start his sentence with a question." This is what he wrote, "Do you know that my mom likes Republicans? John McCain lost and Obama won. My mom was not happy." I was speechless. The teacher told me she wasn't sure about hanging it, but David was so excited about his news. This is what happens when you talk politics with a 6 year old. He practically announced who I voted for when we left the booth.

Another student's paper said, "On Tuesday, Obama won the election. He beat John McCain. If you vote, you get free donuts."

I helped the class at their Listening Center today. This is where they listen to a story and then draw a picture and write sentences applying the story to their own lives. The story was about Thanksgiving and the students were to write what they were thankful for. Most kids wrote about their families and their toys, but my favorite was, "I am thankful for everything except the devil." If I was their teacher, I don't think I would stop laughing all day.

A day off

A lot of people asked me how I spent my day off from chemo - I went to the eye doctor this morning, browsed through some stores for Christmas ideas, and bought some Christmas presents. But, the highlight of my day was this - we bought our family a game system as a collective Christmas present, but the boys don't know about it. We bought it back in September and have been holding onto it, but we haven't "tested" it out yet. Since both boys were out of the house today, I made the personal sacrifice to play video games for about an hour just to be certain that the system worked properly. I am happy to say that it works well, but it may require further "testing" tomorrow.

When the boys came home from school, it was pouring outside. So, we spent almost 2 hours working on crafts and coloring and just enjoying some time together. But, what is really amazing to me is that they never asked to watch TV. It was a nice way to spend the afternoon, as opposed to how I usually spend Thursday afternoons.

Interesting day

We have had some more good news recently - my younger brother is now engaged and a dear friend had her second baby boy on Monday. To make my week even better, I don't have to go for chemo this week!!

So, I volunteered at a local radio station to help with their Sharathon. The Reach FM is a Christian station that totally runs on the donations of its listeners. Every 6 months, they do this to raise the funds to operate for the next 6 months. I listen to the station all the time and I wanted to help out with their Sharathon. I couldn't believe how small their offices were and how they really only run on the necessities. I met some wonderful people in the few hours I was there and will listen to that station very differently. I really enjoyed doing something different than the norm.

Halloween pictures

Here are our boys in their Halloween costumes. Dawson's question that night, "Next is Christmas?"

That is Dawson behind all of those muscles.

Captain Jack Sparrow. (David was funny to watch with all of that hair.

He kept pushing it out of his face.)

It was merely a theory.

Dawson woke us up at 6 a.m. this morning - so much for an extra hour!

Good week.

Just wanted to share what a good week our house is having. It started with the Phillies' win! David is just starting to get into the baseball thing and has been into the Phillies, but missed the World Series games since they were past his bedtime. Dave and I were able to see the last inning of the game and there was excitement in the air. Dawson's birthday was Wednesday and he is really getting this present/birthday thing. Then, Dave got a promotion at work -a position he has waited years to get. He has been with MBNA/ Bank of America for 14 years now! And, Halloween was last night - still much excitement, but not so much from Dave and me. The boys were so excited with their costumes and Dawson loves the idea of trick-or-treating.

The best part of it all - an extra hour of sleep tonight (in theory - it doesn't always work when you have kids.) And next is the presidential election . . . .