October

If magic lived in a month, it would be October. I'll just start with Halloween because it was a dream. Our buddies came and I was the bell hop for a haunted hotel I set up. The kids were apprentices and had to complete tasks in order to receive keys that unlocked access to other areas of the hotel. Actually they were just cardboard doors with prizes behind them. The tasks were silly things like counting candy corn, untangling our giant spider from a web of string, and complimenting a trick-or-treater's hat. The best one though was finding 9 mini ghosts (the hotel residents) that I hid around the house and then doing a logic puzzle based on clues from the front desk log and notice board that helped them return the guests to their assigned rooms. The kids were effusively nice about the whole experience, although that is probably 90 percent reflective of upbringing and 10 percent reflective of the activities. That was not even the best part though because the friends wanted to go trick-or-treating, so they roped mine into it and that gave me the view from the front porch of a band of costumed children, glow stick shining, walking down a lamp lit street at twilight with candy bags swinging. The perfect view as I sat with my dear friend handing out candy to other costumed children on the very best night of the very best month of the year. 

Also this month I hosted my 4th and 5th grade Sunday school girls for a fall craft party. I think I had 17 show up. One of them brought her entire birthday party. They made pumpkins by wrapping fluffy yarn around pool noodles. I think it went well, but there were so many it wasn't quite the chill-and-chat party I was imagining. Craft part 2 didn't seem feasible for such a group so Daron got out the Gaga ball pit and we did a little of that instead. Everyone was on board with everything and were such a sweet bunch! 

Rory's class took a field trip to Camp Discovery. It is basically they hunt for macroinvertebrates water quality testing we do at Jones Gap for ALERT, so I was glad he got a little bit of that experience.

We went to the zoo with the neighbors. I was kind of worried no one in our party would be into it, but it ended up being the perfect weather and Rory took a picture of every single animal we saw.

Gigi sent us Halloween treat money we used one morning for donut holes.

Silas had his Halloween orchestra concert. I had to make him dress up. He came up with taping an M to a brown shirt and being M&M's with his friend Turner.

The Brouceks had us over for firepit smores.

September

Silas story report.

1. Apparently the district was making a video about Silas's orchestra and his teacher forgot to tell his period to wear a certain shirt so she was letting them borrow extras for the filming. There was only an XL left for Silas so he had to be filmed on the end of the row right in front of the camera swimming in his dress/shirt. He told it funny and had me laughing.

2. He had a mandatory talent show for LAW and he and a few friends decided to play a song from Zelda. Another friend who is not in orchestra wanted to join them on his ocarina. (There was a lightsaber sword fight act, so they did not win for nerdiest.) I was proud of Silas for taking the lead, finding the music, practicing, and pretty much carrying the act that he was terrified to do... BUT, at one point he came to me to text his ocarina friend's mom about setting up a time for them to talk and discuss logistics. I do so and haven't heard back when about an hour later he comes to me reporting that the same child's grandmother (mother's mom) had just passed away that morning IN THEIR HOUSE. Dear heavens.

Rory story report.

1. Rory is having a resurgence of Spiderman fandom, seemly out of the blue because he didn't even want to go see the latest movie. He has been really into trying to develop a web shooter and is trying to make me put things like butane on my shopping list. With the help of YouTube he did make one that I thought was amazing that used a spring to shoot out stretchy string he got by unraveling the elastic from an old face mask. The kid is inventive... and messy. Our house still has a 3 foot robot on display made out of the recycle bin. Daron and I take turns hinting it might be time to return him there. Just yesterday he made a whole scavenger hunt by hiding toilet paper notes leading us to where someone had hidden all our shower supplies. Apparently this plan was hatched mid shower because the supplies were still wet, but worry not, they were wrapped in toilet paper to keep them from sopping up the hiding spot.

2. He is my only child that enjoys being outside and even rakes his own leaves to jump in. 

We took a Labor Day trip to Chimney Rock with the Hofts. I did some crafting and decorating. The horrors of having to get out of bed and leave the house, persist, but we are coping.

 

 

 

August

School is happening. Silas made Leadership Orchestra so he gets to do all the district gigs they play. He is outraged that his English teacher makes kids use only pen. His 6th grade orientation I left and literally cried because it seemed like it was a crazy load on all his teachers. In 7th grade I could have cried because it seemed like all his teachers were a bit lame and doing the bare minimum. Now in 8th grade I left happy because they all seemed perfectly balanced and amazing. A real Goldilocks situation. I have pretty much yet to hear a single story from Rory's experiences. We like his teachers, Ms. Ritter and Ms. Wood, and his school continues to be dreamy. The only news was a hostile takeover by ants that literally booted them from their classroom.

It's hot. Just waiting for the last days of summer to kill the rest of my flowers and get us into fall!

 

13!

We have a teenager!

The gaga ball/bucket hat party was a bit of a bust, but I didn't even care because I knew his big present would make everything else peanuts. We didn't play gaga ball or any of our lawn games due to downpour. We still had "Search for Silas" going on inside where guests had to find 13 of his hidden baby pictures to enter the drawing to win a bucket hat and twin with the birthday boy. Other than that, I really had no back up plan so in a pinch we decided to have a Spoons ("Balloons" to be on theme) tournament. The various table heats are below. The finals ended up being Logan, Conor, Meemaw and Daron. Daron won as he does. Levi had his named pulled from the hat and was the perfect pick because he seemed thrilled about the accessory, where I am not sure it was coveted by many others. 

Having completed his initiating 12 Ticket to Teen challenges, on his actual birthday he opened all the letters the family sent to encourage him. I included several shots of what the face of a teenager having his dream realized looks like. These were captures I pulled from the video of him receiving his first cell phone. I did not include the video because it is mostly us preemptively lecturing and yet still the face of bliss. He is now walking around quite a bit taller and we haven't regretted it so far.

The final shots are from a redo party where I made a few people come back to use the pit so I could say I did not spend that money for nothing.

July

We went to the beach! We saw my cousin Nevin! Silas got 4 teeth pulled. Elizabeth and I visited Laura (beach again!). Daron and Silas saw The Odyssey. I saw Hadestown and continue to be obsessed. Rory and I also saw the Spongebob Musical (not obsessed). Both boys got to see a few friends. We made some toilet paper dough sculptures with the Olivers and hosted their pups for a weekend. I finished the boys' room updates- mildly satisfied, until, much to Daron's dismay, I come up with a new idea. School supplies are purchased, Rory's teachers have been met, I am back at work, and we are bracing for the thirteenth birthday gaga ball/bucket hat bash.