This month was school conferences. Amelia is doing very well in school. Her teacher said she is helpful and respectful. She said she doesn't usually give +'s (the exceeds mark) on report cards for behavior but Amelia is so wonderful she got all +'s. I am super proud that she is so diligent and responsible at school.
Jack is doing great in seventh grade. All of his teachers said they enjoy having him in class. He may talk a little too much in class but nothing to worry about. Despite missing a LOT of school this first trimester Jack had no missing assignments and As and Bs. Jack's favorite class is History. He really likes his teacher, Mr. Grimes. Jack says he makes learning fun.
Jacob is having a great year also. He too had no missing assignments despite the many absents. His teachers all say he produces quality work and is very respectful in class. During conferences his teachers said that they are going to start expecting high school quality work from him. They said he really won't even notice the difference because he is completely capable of adding the small details that high school work requires. I am proud of Jacob for hobbling around school on his crutches. His teachers have all been super nice about letting him leave early and propping his leg up.
All the kids are succeeding in school right now. I am so proud of their effort and achievement. I hope that by putting in the daily effort will become a lifelong habit.
The other Saturday, we all bundled into the car to go look at Christmas lights. Before we went though, we swung by and picked up Moana and a pizza. We drove through the usual Pasco neighborhood, out to West Richland and ended in Kennewick. The best house was in Richland. All the kids loved that one! It was pretty amazing with flat screen tvs and 15-foot projecting Christmas tree. I think we watched the light show for almost 30 minutes. After that the other displays were kinda a letdown. It was fun to all be in the car together listening to Christmas music and enjoying the lights.
Amelia has been blessed these last couple of weeks by hanging out with our good friend Sajen. Sajen was the kids' summer nanny several years ago. She now is an adult in the Tri-Cities but finds the time to pick Amelia up to hang out with her. Usually, they run some kind of errand and get ice cream. It is just super sweet of Sajen to take the time to come get Amelia. I know Amelia really really loves spending time with Sajen. And I love of course that one, Amelia has another adult in her life that loves her and two, she has a great adult role model to look up to.
Jacob had his ACL repair surgery on November 19th. It went great! I would like to tell some funny story about the goings on of the surgery but everything went very smoothly. Jacob was nervous about the IV but did fine. He was nervous about the nerve block but the anesthesiologist gave him some sedative before he started. Jacob said later, that after the sedative took effect, he doesn't really remember anything. He woke up in recovery just fine. I was a little worried about the anesthetics but the anesthesiologist was receptive to what I said about a family history of being sensitive to it. After the procedure the doctor showed me pictures of the inside of his knee; Jacob had no other damage other than the ACL tear. Now he just needs to rest, regain strength and range of motion. He will get his stiches out on December 4th. At his first post op appointment Jacob' range of motion was ahead of where it should be and he was healing good. We are praying for his full recovering.
On the way home from tennis Jack was complaining about something. To distract him I asked him what was on his Christmas list. He told me, "I'll get Amelia a blanket. I already got you something. Dad sock and I don't know about Jacob."
I told him he made my heart so warm. He didn't really understand why and I didn't explain it to him. But, what made my heart warm was that his Christmas list was a "giving" list instead of a "getting" list. He first thought of other before himself. Jack really is such a kind hearted person.
