Parent/teacher conferences

Madelyn's p/t conference was yesterday afternoon. Ms. Watts had nothing but good things to say about Madelyn, which makes us very proud. She said she is a good listener, follows instructions well, and gets along well with all the other students. I was concerned about Madelyn being too chatty and she said that isn't a problem at school. Madelyn seems to have a knack for Math. She obviously didn't get that from either of her parents. Her reading level is at the first grade level, but a tadbit below the class average. This caused me (not Ryan) some concern, but Ms. Watts assured us that Madelyn has made huge improvements since the beginning of school. She expects that Madelyn's reading level will continue to improve and reach the reading standards.
I walked away from the conference a bit discouraged and completely humbled. As a parent, I want to believe that my child is the smartest of the class. Hearing that she is below average in a subject was disheartening. So I went home gave Madelyn a great big hug and told her how proud I was of her hard work and then we picked up a book and began reading (as we do every other night).
Ryan gave me words of encouragement by reminding me that most importantly Madelyn is kind to others and that her reading average is not what matters in the big scheme of things.

The Annual Beer Fest

For at least the last five years Ryan and I have attended the annual Beer Fest in Wichita. My employer has a silent auction and cash and carry at the Beer Fest which has proven to be a great fundraiser for the agency. Drunk people love to spend money!! Ryan and I have volunteered the last several years at the cash & carry booth. We get a t-shirt and free admission to the Beer Fest. We work the first shift which ends at 2:30pm and then spend the rest of the time sampling beers. Good times! This year our friends, Brandon and Lisa, also volunteered and our friends, Chuck and Rachel, came for sampling. Beer Fest never disappoints and we always have a great time.
After the Beer Fest we rode the trolley to Old Town to hang out at Heroes for a while and then made a stop at Whiskey Creek for drinks. We stopped at another bar on our walk back to the car and quickly discovered that it was a gay bar. Although the fellows wanted to get a drink we convinced them otherwise.

Here are just a few of the pics from the evening.


It was nice to see Daniel Boone at the Fest.


Me and the girls and some random drunk guy.


Ryan tackled Chuck and was going to throw him in the fountain.


Chuck may have been a dancer in his past life.


This fellow beer fester purchased a blow up Marlin and Rachel convinced him that I saved Marlins as a hobby.


No title needed for this picture.


A freshly picked elephant ear for fanning Rachel


Iron Cross performed on the trolley


AHHHHHH


I think we threw more popcorn than we ate here.


A piggy back ride from Brandon...I think they just came out of the gay bar.


And even gymnastics on the trolley

It was a blast as always and I was one of the few that held my food down the entire night!!

AppleJack's

Madelyn and I spent the morning with the First Grade class at AppleJack's Pumpkin Patch.


A few of the highlights of the Pumpkin Patch were:

The Pumpkin Patch




The Petting Zoo


The Zip-line


The Haystack


The Slide


The Ladder


The Sandbox


The Playground


The Tractor Tires


The Rubber Duck Races


The Corn Box


The corn maze was pretty cool too, but I figured no one really wanted to see pictures of a cornfield.


But my most favorite hightlight was:

This smiling face

Deer #1

Last year Ryan had the opportunity to process his first deer (the one I shot) and then he was hooked. Since that point he has planned to process all future deer that he (or I) shoots. This year he decided he would shoot a doe for the first time ever because he wanted to turn all the meat into jerkey. Tonight was a successful hunt. He dropped a doe a 20 yards. It will hang in our friends' shed for tonight and the butchering will begin tomorrow evening if anyone is interested in joining the fun.

Conversation with a First Grader

As I was driving Madelyn to Awana tonight the conversation went something like this:

Madelyn: Mama, can you tell me all the recycles?

Me: The recycles?

Madelyn: Yes the recycles.

Me: You mean like plastic and paper?

Madelyn: NO!! Like John and Peter....

Me: OH!! The Disciples?

Madelyn: Yes, the disciples (with a tone like Duh?!?!?)


It wouldn't be unusual to have a discussion about recycleable products with Madelyn because she seems to be going "green." Anytime we throw something away such as paper or plastic she reminds us that we could recycle such products. And on several occasions she has expressed interest in making a compost pile. I quickly remind her that this family is not going green. What are they teaching my child at school? Geez!

FB Withdrawal

This is what happens when you take a week long hiatus from facebook....


(the hairdo courtesy of Madelyn, with Ryan acting a fool in the back ground.)

You start to go CrAzY!!!

It was my choice to take a hiatus from FB, because it was becoming quite the addiction. Instead of spending so much time on FB I have finished reading another book and thought about scrapbooking. So, it hasn't really proven anything, besides I know I can't wait until Friday when my week long hiatus is over!!

Big Kid Check Up

Since we are in the midst of flu season and are four months past Madelyn's 6th birthday I figured it was fine time to get her in for her 6 year well child check up and flu shot. I scheduled the appointment for today and since Ryan works only a few blocks from the doctor's office he was the lucky one to take her. We didn't tell her about the appointment because we knew she would fret about getting a shot. As soon as they pulled into the doctor's office parking lot she started asking over and over if she was getting a shot. Thankfully Madelyn lucked out on the shot and got the flu nasal mist instead. That was a pleasant surprise.
Madelyn weighs 59lbs and is 49 3/4 inches tall. The doctor said "she is a big girl for her age." Ya think??? The rest of the appointment went well except for the eye test. She struggled with seeing some of the letters and we now have to schedule an eye appointment. I was a little disappointed with that news but Madelyn is stoked! She can't wait to get glasses because she knows she is going to be so cute, or so she told me. Obviously she has no problems in the self esteem area.