Jack's first 10K

We are so proud of Jack! He finished his first 10K (well, the first one since he was like 19 and didn't even have to think about training for it...he just did it) last Saturday. He beat his goal of finishing in an hour. Our very close friend Patrick ran with him. Patrick (who recently ran a half marathon) finished before Jack but I didn't get a picture of his time as there was a VERY sick teenage girl who pretty much collapsed and started vomiting right in front of us while we were waiting for our runners. She was ok in the end and was the only "casualty" that we saw. Will found it all fascinating.

You can see how Will, Ellen Claire and I support Jack in his running (with Starbucks, of course!) Steamed vanilla milk warms a kid's body good on a frosty morning. Jack hates that they are already accustomed to Starbucks, courtesy of their mother. Can I help it if everything they have is SOOOOO good?!?!? I told my mama that I can now move home to MS as they are expecting to get a Starbucks in my home town :-)

So now I've got to find J another race to keep him motivated through the winter up here! I'm thinking that there has to be one in February in Aruba, right?!?!?

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

Happy Halloween from Oswego! We had the best weather yet to trick or treat last night. It was sunny and crisp---and then the sun went down and it was down right freezing. BUT the last 2 years that we have been here for Halloween have been awful--rain the first and frigid the last. The result was record numbers of children out and about--it was so much fun!

Ellen Claire was a green M&M. Will was some kind of creepy skeleton. We went out with our neighbors thinking that EC would make it up and down our street. Wrong. She made it completely around the circle and only came home because her pumpkin was too heavy to hold! She was loving trick or treating and was too cute about it. She would run back up to say thank you if she had forgotten, completely amazing the candy givers. Our group did a hearty "TRICK or TREAT!!!" at each door, prompting many a stunned, happy look from our neighbors. Guess many kids these days just stick out their pillowcases for the candy!

All in all, we had a blast--definitely our favorite Halloween up here yet. If it was only warm enough to do like we did in GA and MD---get pizza, lawn chairs and have mini parties in everyone's driveway! We'd all sit out and hand out the candy from the chairs--great way to visit for sure!

Meg's Confirmation

Meg's Holy Confirmation was this weekend. It was such a special time--the service was great, Meg looked adorable and Gramma Reese was able to attend as her sponsor. It was a 2 hour mass that, amazingly enough, went by really quickly. Poor Will was sick, so he got permission to sleep through most of it, which made it go by even faster for him. He felt good enough though to be able to table hop during the reception, looking for the best cookies!

Meg has worked on her confirmation program for 2 years. Not only did she attend classes, but she had to do 30 hours of community service--from wrapping gifts at Barnes and Noble for the Junior League to making rosaries for the parish, she had to earn this rite of passage. And as a result, the Holy Spirit has been confirmed in her, bringing all its gifts to her. She is one sealed forever!

Gramma's Here!

Gramma Reese came to visit us this weekend for Meg's Confirmation! We have so enjoyed her visit--one that is too short as she is going home tomorrow afternoon. In great Gramma fashion, she even made us meatballs (with Will's help!) for our freezer. NOTHING could be better than that. Will wrote the recipe down in my cookbook so that we will finally be able to make them on our own. We had to hear the story again of how Grandpop ate Will's mini-meatball a few years ago. Scarred the kid for life, I'm afraid! We wish that Grandpop could have come to visit, too. Thankfully, we got to spend good time with him before Will's first communion.

Thank you, Gramma, for coming to visit! We absolutely love having family here. We miss y'all so much! So please, come visit when you can!!! PLEASE!! :-) Am I begging?!?!? YES!

Will's 3rd Grade Field Trip

The Third Graders at our school headed out to the Pioneer Farm last week. Thanks to a kind neighbor who kept Ellen Claire, I was able to go as a chaperone. I completely enjoyed spending the time with Will. As the sandwiched kid between 2 high-demand sisters, Will doesn't get much one on one attention. So Jack and I both really enjoy anytime that we can get with him by ourselves.The kids made candles, got a lesson on furs and local animals, then searched for herbs and plants that the 1857 pioneers would have used for food and medicine. They also learned that pioneer children would have been responsible for making all the candles for an entire year and that it would have been wasteful to have candles the size and widths that we have today. They all thought that would be a great chore to have. But of course, they only had to make one candle!

All in all, it was a fun way to spend a very cold fall day. Beats the classroom!

Will's 9th Birthday Party!

Will's 9th birthday has been a blast! It started this week on Tuesday the 16th with a new bike, a new football, a new Gameboy DS game and new clothes. Will was Star Student this week in his class which comes with priveledges such as filling the estimation jar (with 277 candy corn, thank you very much) and getting to have lunch with his teacher.

We had a spend the night party last night to top off the week! It's Will's first sleepover to host ever and he's been fit to be tied. We had 7 boys over for the local rivalry football game between Oswego East Wolves and the Oswego Panthers. Meg and the cheerleaders went up into their stunts and sang "Happy Birthday" to Will in between quarters. It was so cute! Will's friends were QUITE impressed that the cheerleaders were singing to him. Too bad he's not in high school!

However, it was COLD, WINDY and DRIZZLY. The boys were more interested in playing tackle this, that and the other during the game, so we cut our losses and went home to play the Wii and watch Return of the Jedi. I called lights out and quiet at 12:30; Jack heard them as late as 2:10am and Will says he and a few others made it to 3am.

They were out playing flag football by 8:15 this morning (and that was 45 minutes after they TRIED to go out). And considering they had been up since 5:30am, that was mid-day for them! We had a big breakfast of pancakes, eggs and bacon, a few more Wii games and football--and now my house is destroyed but quiet! It was a great time with great boys, who, even if they were rough and tumble, were easier than girls :-)



Now Meg's off to cheer camp, we have a laser tag birthday party at noon and a soccer game at 5! No rest for the weary today...but there is one happy birthday boy as a result and that makes it worth it.

Meg's First Homecoming

Homecoming was quite an experience for ALL of us this weekend! The Oswego East Wolves lost their football game, but the dance was what Meg was all excited for anyway. Meg and her BFF Sarah spent many a minute planning, shopping and just laughing over it all. They all met at our house for pictures--and their parents (see the paparazzi picture), too. Meg's date Kevin, Sarah's date Reed and their friend Jimmy were such good sports to get all dressed up and with flowers, too! Kevin was so kind and brought me flowers for letting Meg go to the dance with him. I thanked him but said he really needed to be thanking Jack as he is not too keen on his baby growing up, having a boyfriend and going to dances! He keeps thinking it's going to be great to have her in college, but he's fooling only himself :-)

All in all, the kids had a great time--it was hot, the girls had sore feet and the most fun they had was afterwards at Chili's...the typical teen experience!