Joshua...

Wow - I've been so pathetic with blogging in the past several months that I haven't shared any of the exciting things Joshua has done in the past six months.  So, we'll go back a little bit...
Besides turning 11 in April, Joshua played Little League again...this year on the Ft Jones team and he was a Pirate. He improved quite a bit - and even hit the winning run in for their final game in June!!



It was cold for some of the April games!  This is one of them...you can tell it is pretty windy by the way the flag is blowing out. Grace and I stayed at Mom and Dad's for most of this one and walked down for the end.

Growing up so fast...this was at the end of April at the Medford Temple.

The music program this year was...well, we'll just leave it at that.
Joshua enjoys playing the trumpet and for Easter we'd gotten him at Phantom of the Opera book of trumpet music (he loves Phantom). He taught himself (with some help from his dad) how to play some of the music and then asked his teacher if he could play it at the Spring concert.
He did wonderfully!!
He (along with a couple of other 5th graders) was asked to play with the 6-8th grade band as well as there were only 4 of them.
He continues to play the trumpet now - and in his new school - has band every day!

He really wants a dog - but he's not getting one for awhile. He got a ride home from school on this day from our neighbor and got to go with them to check on the puppy they were getting shortly.

Last day of fifth grade - last day at Etna Elementary - and last day in the SV School District (though we didn't know that at this time).
Grace got to go with him (and me - I was helping supervise his class) to all the fun stations. She loved the limbo - and thought Emily (one of Joshua's classmates who is standing right behind them) was the coolest girl ever!
In May the fifth grade had gone to an outdoor education camp...he loved that.
Below is Joshua and his teacher, Mrs. Fasenfest.  He'd had Mr. Fasenfest for 2nd grade.
She was a great teacher!

Right after school got out, Joshua got to go on his first 11 year old Scout Campout.
The next week he and his friends, Calvin and Cole, had their Arrow of Light Ceremony...and a pancake breakfast ;)

Joshua with his Webelos leader, Susan.

Being goofy at Uncle Terry and Aunt Theresa's - photo courtesy of Nathaniel.

Swimming lessons - he learned a lot of new strokes and improved this year - I think he was the only one in his class.

Origami Yoda books - and lots of origami Star Wars puppets...I went to download pictures from his camera (that I also use a lot) and found A TON of pictures of Star Wars origami...

It's the big leagues now - Middle School - a locker, 7 classes every day, co-ed PE, 4 minutes between each class and probably more kids in the school than there were in either town he's lived in since he was 6!
I took these pictures at his orientation BBQ so that I didn't embarass him the first day of school :)
He is doing exceptionally well in school - before it even started he had to take a math placement test to see what math he was going to be in - and he's in Introduction to Pre Algebra (Pre Pre Algebra?).

First day of school in Grants Pass
 

A five mile hike the 11 year old Scouts in the Stake did...Brian even got to go on this one :)

Another random picture courtesy of Nathaniel

First Court of Honor - he received to awards (ranks?) Scout and something else - I'm still not familiar with all the terms...he's now been elected Assitant Patrol Leader in his Patrol and got to lead his first Patrol meeting the week before Thanksgiving..and found out that being in charge and trying to instruct a bunch of 11 year old boys isn't as easy as he thought it would be...

Here he is as part of the Chain Crew for the North MS football team. 6th graders don't play football. And before Joshua, there had never been a 6th graderon the chain crew. He heard it announced at school and wanted to do it - but he missed the part about it being for 7th and 8th graders. He found that out after he turned in his permission slip and told the vice principal that he hadn't realized that it wasn't for 6th graders. She said that they'd give him a try and see how a 6th grader could do.
He was one of the few that stuck it out the whole season.
One of his main reasons for wanting to do this?
He earned $5 for each game (and a cross country event he helped at)...which he promptly spent at the school book fair...

Once again he was invited to play with the 7th and 8th grade band...this time to march in and play the National Anthem at the high school marching band's competition.
There were only a few 6th graders that were asked to join in this...he said he was so nervous he was chewing on his mouthpiece! He and Brian watched the competition (the other two kids and I stayed home 'cause it was a cold October evening).

 

Joshua is doing great in his new school and new environment in general. We are so happy with him and all he does. Sometimes it seems like I don't tell him that enough...Grace is still so little and needs me a lot...Nathaniel has had a very hard time adjusting to a new school, new house, new everything (on top of being sick most of October) and has needed a lot of extra support. And Joshua, he just does what is expected and is an all-round great kid, though we are seeing some pre-teen traits popping up every now and then. We ran into the principal of the Middle School at the grocery store the day before Thanksgiving. He told us how glad they are to have Joshua in their school and how he and the vice principal and some teachers (at least one of which isn't even one of Joshua's teachers right now) had been talking about him the other day and how he is one of the staff's favorite students. He's always happy, always willing to help, always willing to get involved...he mentioned the Chain Crew and how Joshua had been wanting to get involved in Student Government. Wow - we know he's pretty awesome, but to hear that from his principal was pretty special. And that the principal, vp, and others on staff know him that well after just 3 months in a school of over 700 kids...that impressed me. I think the only reason Nathaniel's principal knows his name is because he's missed so many days of school for being sick that the district sent us a letter about it.  Anyway, now it's on to the Christmas Concert on Monday, singing with his dad at the Stake Christmas Devotional later this month (he sang a solo at the Primary Program and then we got a phone call about singing at this other thing) and after Christmas the Geography Bee that he just qualified for. Hard to believe that this time 11 years ago we were excited he was crawling and starting to pull himself up on things to walk :)

 



December 2002
 

Halloween 2013

We did Halloween twice, it feels like...our church Halloween party was on the 19th and by the time Halloween actually got here it wasn't such a big deal. Nathaniel's school didn't do Halloween parties or anything Halloween (no costumes, no parade, no nothin'...and yes, it is a public school, I've had people ask me...) but they had a Harvest party and could wear Halloween colors or "farmer clothes" - which I had to explain to Nathaniel...being as it's not much different from what he usually wears. We accomodated both by wearing an orange Tshirt under a black & white flannel shirt with jeans :)
Joshua, however, at the middle school,  was allowed to go in costume. So the Phantom of the Opera haunted the halls of North Middle School.

Grace changed her mind of which princess she was going to be Halloween afternoon (she was Sofia the First at the party and was going to be Rapunzel for the actual day, but that dress was a little big. She had a cute pirate princess costume we got last year after Halloween and it fit her perfectly so I convinced her).

We went to the downtown Trick-or-Treating in Grants Pass that afternoon and then Brian took them to the house on our street.  We had a dozen or so trick-or-treaters come to our house and enjoyed Papa John's pizza (when it finally arrived...took the delivery guy forever because of all the kids on a couple of streets near us) and watching Studio C. The kids got plenty of candy and we got to explore a little of our new town...and best discovery of our Rebel Blocks - a lego store.  While I took the kids trick-or-treating, Brian stayed home and gutted the pumpkins so the kids could carve them (Nathaniel did his all on his own this year - Grace was the only one who needed help) when we got back. The pumpkins Grandma and Grandpa had grown for them were perfect.

So here are our pictures - a princess, a phantom and a vampire.

The ward party had a talent show...he brought the Phantom of the Opera soundtrack and lip synced to part of it...he needed a mike. He's decided that this will be his costume from here on out.

We are having some major deja vu this year...in 2nd grade Joshua was a vampire - Nathaniel is a 2nd grade vampire. The shirt Nathaniel picked for his school picture this year - same one Joshua wore for his 2nd grade school picture. Good thing they don't really look alike so I don't get the pictures confused :)

Helping Dad get the pumpkins set out before heading to trick-or-treat

The best I could get of the three together...

Grace wouldn't get in the pictures..the boys were ecstatic...this was at Rebel Brick (or Block -I can't remember now) the lego store they discovered downtown.

The crate pumpkin in front of the Ray's grocery store

Our sleepy, cranky, finally got a smile, little Pirate princess

The most handsome vampire of all

The frightening Phantom of the Opera (note the black object in his shirt pocket...it is kind of rough being the Phantom and not being able to wear your glasses and your mask at the same time...good thing his eyesight isn't as bad as mine...yet. He kept trying to convince us to let him get contacts for Halloween...yeah, not happening)

Hard at work getting those faces just right...

Pirate Pose, me hearties

Nathaniel



Grace

Joshua