Jog-a-Thon

Cameron and Ashton did the annual Jog-a-thon at school last week.  It another fundraiser for the school.  I happen to be on campus and got a few photos!

Multiplication and Music

Ashton's class has begin multiplication so I dug out my Push'N'Tell device that helped me learn my facts as a kid.  It was fun to watch him breeze through his worksheet!  Now to start memorizing so he's ready for state testing in May.

 Cameron saved up his allowance and got an electric guitar!  He's very excited and can now join Ethan in some jamming sessions.  We did use part of the weekend to create a spot for them to practice in the garage. :)

Ethan has been perfecting his Paul McCartney by figuring out the chords to "Blackbird."  He's currently enrolled in Exploring Percussion at school so he's going to be learning a third instrument.
So proud of these boys!

Dressing up and PJ Day

 Ashton and I were working in the garage when he found the often-neglected dress-up bin.  He wanted several things on and then came in the house looking for someone to battle with.  Cameron was a good sport and played!  :)

Cameron and Ashton also had pajama day at school and loved wearing their Christmas jammies!

Spring Soccer

 

 Spring soccer is here!  We have two weekends of games under our belt and the boys are having fun!  Cameron is on the Kings team, Ashton is on the Extreme Strikers. 

Derrik being assistant ref on the opponents side

Ashton's getting tips from his new coach

Ashton's Award

 Ashton received the Citizenship Award at school on Friday!  He is very thoughtful in the classroom and is frequently recognized for excellent behavior.  We are quite proud!

Cameron the Tech Guy

The 5th grade classes at school performed a musical this week called, "The 13 Colonies."  Our Cameron, though, was not on stage.  He begged his teacher to run sound and manage props, backstage.  So, we showed up to the performance and watch his classmates sing and dance!  I had to go backstage to get photos of him.  He was in his element!

Preparing props for the scene

Fooling around backstage

He was introduced afterwards and came on stage for a bow.

Videos for Teaching featuring Derrik and Ethan!

At school, with my 3-6 graders, we are talking about the different instrument families.  This week, we talked about the string family, specifically the guitar and the electric bass.  It just so happens that I know 2 guys that play those string instruments! :) Maybe I could make a little video of them playing for the kids at school to see?  So here they are.  Video #1:  Derrik explaining about the acoustic guitar

Video #2:  Ethan and Derrik talking about the electric bass

Video #3:  Both playing together

Thanks guys!

Valentine's Day

Ashton enjoying his candy

Happy teenager and tweenager

Chocolate covered oreo pops and strawberries!

 We had a nice and sugary Valentine's Day here with lots of chocolate and cheesecakes!  The boys each got a pack of candy and a personal note from us and then I made cinnamon rolls for breakfast. We got a nice 4 day weekend to recover from our sugar comas.  :)

Cameron added some candy to his cinnamon roll

Can you see the heart in the tree branches?

Bowling

Where's my bowling ball?

Ethan winding up

Cameron keeping score

A frequent face in my photos

We took the gang bowling last weekend!  Very fun!

Busy homework week.....

Hedgehog report - we created pom-pom hedgehogs for decoration

He made Grandma Bonnie's recipe

 We had such a crazy week for school work!  Ashton had a animal report that included six pages of information and Ethan needed to do some cooking for his class at school.  Thankfully, Cameron had a lighter week, homework-wise!  Ashton and I headed out for ice cream to celebrate his hard work, and we all enjoyed Ethan's meatballs!

Phew!  Shamrock shake was well earned

Visit to Apple Valley

 Last weekend, we headed to Apple Valley to spend time with Mom and Dad, as well as Aunt Sonja from KC and Cousin Wilma from Minnesota.  We spent time around the table listening to lots of stories, taking it all in.  At one point, Ethan showed Aunt Sonja how to create music with the ipad!

Bike Ride

The weather has been so nice here.  It's hard to know if we're in winter or not.  The boys were encourage to take advantage of it so Cameron and Ashton headed out for a quick ride.