American Revolution

Today was another fun day for the 5th graders. Instead of doing a regular field trip, they had a "field trip" come to them. This is an awesome Walk Through the Revolution program that lets the kids participate and learn by "doing." They were each assigned a role to play for the day, as well as learn different terms and reenactments having to do this period in history.
Zoe was set to play Abigail Adams, wife of John Adams (our 2nd president), and mother of John Quincy Adams (our 6th president).
She enjoyed telling everyone how she supported education for women, and became a strong reader and writer, even with no formal education. During the war, she managed their farm, taught their children, and expressed her political views in letters written to her husband.

She also had to explain the Declaratory Act. They all worked hard on memorizing their lines! She then participated in one of several battle scenes from the Revolutionary War.

Zoe was also part of the Red Coats, and each team had to work together to get answers to some trivia questions in order to play a game at the end of the program. The Red Coats were excited to learn that they had earned the most points throughout the program!

The class had a great time learning a lot about our history. They sure looked great all dressed up!

Never too cold for ice cream!

Yesterday happened to be one of the coldest days of the year here. We were actually expecting a little snow, but the rain died down when the temperature dropped. So, most people would want to curl up with the hot chocolate, but what does Zoe want to do...make ice cream! She has been waiting to use her ice cream maker that she got for Christmas, and we just haven't gotten around to it yet. She was determined that today was the day! She dragged Daddy to the store for some ice and rock salt, and then stocked up on the milk, cream, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. I must say, it was some of the best old fashioned vanilla ice cream I've ever tasted! We can't wait to try all the other recipes.
Today we decided to bake batch of chocolate chip cookies and make some mini ice cream cookie sandwiches. They were delicious! I think I will enjoy them even more in the heat of the summer! :)

Time for a party!

After our playoff game, we wanted to celebrate the end of the season with our team party. It's always fun to get together outside of the sport and hang out. We really enjoyed getting to know a few new families.
This team sure has had it's struggles. We lost a couple kids early in the season, and rarely had a practice with everyone there, but the kids fought hard, learned a ton, got along well, and had a great time.
The Jazz:
I am so proud of all of these boys. No matter how tough the competition was, or how hard we were struggling, they NEVER gave up. This team had a ton of heart and determination, and they were awesome to watch!

They were ready to celebrate their season and happy to sit down and wait for their pizza.

Coach Keith and Coach Kyle took turns talking about each of the players. These were the 3rd graders on the team, and Coop hopes he can play with them again next year. Coach Kyle said that he loves how Cooper gives it his all at every practice and game. He also earned his nickname, "The Champ," by consistently winning their lightning game at every practice. He said his defense skills are awesome and that he has learned to be aggressive out on the court. He can't wait to coach him again.
We were so thrilled to be with these coaches. It was fantastic to play another sport with Keith, and we loved the experience with Kyle. These two guys really care about these boys and have such a great time with them. Cooper is so sad that the season is over, and is already looking forward to next November!
We finished up with some cake before saying our goodbyes.

Final Game

The regular season of basketball ended last week, but it was time for playoffs. This ended up being our first and last game of playoffs. We were 3-7 this season, and we played against a 9-1 team, so we knew the odds were against us. I love the heart of this team though, and they were ready to give it 100%.

They played tough and fought through every quarter. Coop had some great defense, and made 2 shots and a free throw.
Unfortunately, they just couldn't beat the other team and we lost 31-19. The boys were disappointed but they held their heads high knowing that they gave it their all. I have truly come to love basketball, so I'm sad to see it over (although I won't miss sitting through the freezing outdoor evening practices!)

Good job Jazz!!

Colonial Day!

Zoe has been counting down the days to Colonial Day for 5th grade. We got to borrow a fun colonial outfit and she was ready to go.

Mrs. Underwood's class (along with all of 5th grade) was decked out in their colonial best!

They spent the day participating in 5 30-minute rotations doing traditional colonial activities.
Zoe's group started with pillow making (sewing). This was the room I was volunteering in...it involved a lot of threading and re-threading of needles, and a few finger pokes!

Time to move on to calligraphy. Zoe realized how long it took, especially when you had to keep re-dipping the "pen"...

Candle making was next. This one took a lot of patience. Lots of waiting, and dipping, and re-dipping, and re-dipping...

Then it was on to colonial games. They had jacks, checkers, marbles, and dominoes. Lacey, Zoe and Dana liked the jacks the best...

The final rotation of the day was food. They started by making butter by shaking whipping cream in bottle. Zoe and Maddyn shook away until it was thick enough to spread on some crackers...
Zoe loved it!!

Then they got to make some delicious corn fritters, topped with powdered sugar, with Mrs. Papagolas...

It was such a fun day for the kids, and they got to do some hands-on learning about what life was like back in the "old" days!

already missed...

For those that know me well, I am kind of a television junkie. I am not very picky...I enjoy dramas, comedies, reality tv, competition shows, food shows, etc. I don't have a lot of free time, but I will try my best to fit in what I can...it is a great way to unwind!
Very rarely does a show come around that I truly LOVE. Friday Night Lights was one of those shows for me. I have never watched a show that had such well built characters, meaningful moments, and true heart. Every episode pulled at your heart strings and left you wanting more. Who knew a show about a football coach in a small town in Texas could do that? The show ended its 5 season run this week, with a touching series finale. This is a cast and show that will be missed!

Lots of Love...

We had a fun time celebrating Valentine's Day!
The kids woke up to their "hanging" hearts...

And opened a few little goodies...

They enjoyed their "heart" french toast with strawberries and powdered sugar...

They got themselves decked out for their day and ready to go...
They both enjoyed some fun parties at school, with Coop's class enjoying some angel food cake with strawberries and whipped cream, and Zoe's class getting some yummy fruit smoothies. After school and work we raced to dance and then came home to make a taco dinner. We took turns going around the table telling each person several things that we love about each other. It was a great way to hear the things we don't always take the time to say. I am truly blessed and thankful for my wonderful "valentines!" We ended the evening with our annual Valentine's Day fondue dessert. Lots of delicious chocolate!


Happy Valentine's Day!!

Spoiled rotten...

Grandma and Grandpa sure do spoil us! We headed to Newport today to hang out and celebrate an early Valentine's Day. We hadn't seen each other in a few weeks, so it was nice to get together. We sure were spoiled with gifts!
Zoe got lots of fun girl things and some fun dance stuff...

and a cool new pair of "shades"...
Coop got some baseball cards, club penguin stuff, a new Wii game, and more...

Grandpa took the kids to the movies too. It was nice to spend the day together!

Heart Cards...

Time for the kids to sit down and write out their Valentine's Day cards for their classmates. They are both having parties Monday at school (with healthy treats), so we needed to get them done. As Zoe was writing hers out, it hit me that this is the last year she will be doing this. There are so many lasts with her this year, and I know a lot will be changing next year. I am trying to enjoy each minute, but it made me a little sad this morning, especially since she loves this stuff.
Cooper had just come home from an early, and long, baseball practice this morning. He sat down and got his done too.

Steelers vs. Packers

Super Bowl Sunday seemed to sneak up on us. Cooper couldn't have been more excited that his team, the Pittsburgh Steelers were once again in running for the championship. The rivalry in the neighborhood was getting intense since Todd is a die hard Packers fan. We even came home to our garage door decorated with Green Bay stickers one afternoon.
We decided to have some fun with our pancake breakfast this morning. Coop wanted a PS (for Pittsburgh Steelers) and then his favorite players' numbers. 7-Roethlisberger, 43-Polomalu, and 86-Ward.

We headed over to Lenny and Cristina's house for a fun Super Bowl party. We had tons of great Mexican food and snacks.

The kids had fun watching the game and also playing some sports in the backyard.
They all enjoyed watching the halftime show too...

It was a fun evening, but Cooper came home very disappointed, The Steelers lost 25-31. Maybe next year Coop!