Famille Du Pentium

This post is late – Aaron’s first quarter ended earlier this month, and I’m just now catching up on some of this stuff.

Aaron achieved High Honors and perfect attendance in the first scholastic quarter at his Jr. High school.   The awards pictured below may seem kinda cheesy, but what’s behind them is a lot of work – maintaining an A average, including taking two honors classes and second year spanish (without taking first year), while playing Junior Varsity Soccer, AYSO Soccer, Jr. Wildcats Basketball, plus playing first chair Trombone in their Concert Band.

So the awards below mean a lot more than a couple of ribbons pinned to a door. 🙂

Aaron's Scholastic Awards

Aaron’s school Concert Band performed on Thursday night.  This band is really starting to sound good – great timing, music flow, and overall sound.  I would not be surprised if Aaron ends up in the Symphonic Band next year, and I predict that they will go to SuperState.  Well, anyway, HERE‘s Aaron performing!

A class field trip was canceled three weeks ago, and rescheduled for today.  Justin’s kindergarten class went to Lincoln Park Zoo, and I – having mucho time on my hands – went with them, to chaperon the kids.  In my group was Justin, Noah (our next door neighbor), and Darren.  We saw most of the zoo, my feet are killing me.  Pictures are HERE.

Today the kids had the day off for Veterans Day, and it also happened to be a “free day” at the Field Museum (everyone gets in free).  So, we took the kids there.  Checked out Sue, the nearly 100% complete dinosaur that was uncovered in an archeological dig, and some other fun stuff like a real Ancient Egyptian tomb and a bunch of (dead) animals.

Not a great deal of pictures, but here they are.

All three kids take a swimming class in the fall, winter, and spring at the park district.

Here they are swimming.

Having some extra time on my hands lately, I helped out at my middle son’s class Halloween party.   It was a blast, I helped them make mouses (strawberries, almond slices, raisins with peanut butter, and individual strands of twizzlers),  ghosts (half bannanas and peanut butter with raisins), and broomsticks (pretzle sticks with cut up fruit roll-ups). Then, the kids put on a dance party for the parents.  After that was the Halloween parade around the school.

I feel lucky to get to watch some kids events that I wouldn’t normally be able to.  I also took pictures that I wouldn’t normally be able to, enjoy them.

Well we’re four weeks into the 2009-2010 AYSO season, and I haven’t posted any pictures of the games.  But I’ve just set up a gallery, and there’s one PIC… the kids in their uniforms.  I’ll post more if I take any ;-).

So after yet another lackluster year, this weekend the Cubs will implore us to once again “Wait until next year!”

I managed to get some tickets to today’s game versus the Diamondbacks, and the Cubs actually did a pretty good job – shutting out Arizona 5-0.

Pictures of Ethan and I at the game are HERE.

My aunt Marylin (Mimi, as she was known to us when we were kids) passed this summer of complications from Alzheimer’s disease.  The last time Mimi was at a family event was the family reunion in New Mexico in 2004 (or was it 2002?)  Anyway, the last time I saw Mimi was at the Chicago reunion, because we couldn’t make it to New Mexico because of one of our kids being born.

Her memorial was in Colorado Springs at the end of August.  Most of us arrived Friday afternoon, and had dinner at Fargo’s, a Colorado Springs favorite spot for many years.  Saturday we did some sightseeing, and then attended the memorial service itself where everyone shared stories.  Afterwards, we went to the Flying W Ranch, where we ate a chuckwagon dinner and watched their music show.  We left Sunday, and others stuck around to sightsee.

Pictures are here.

So we’re back from my Aunt’s memorial.  Some tear-jerker moments, as well as some fun.  My family does know how to have a good time, sometimes, when they get together.  It’d just be nice to have fun for it’s own sake, instead of because we’re all in town for a funeral.  I’ve got pictures of Colorado Springs, I’ll put ’em up later this week.

Aaron is in Honors Lit, and was also just re-accepted to the JV Soccer team in school.  He’s also still playing AYSO of course.  Games all start next week, although practice for both is already well underway.  He’s also taking 2nd year Spanish, which is odd because he never took first year.  Apparently a snafu at the school scheduling office.  So he’s now got a Spanish tutor, because if they move him to first year Spanish, he’ll have to drop Honors Lit.  Sigh.

Justin’s in Kindergarten, and he seems to be adjusting to it well so far.  Ethan’s in second grade, and now instead of asking for homework and getting really simple spelling or reading assignments to keep him from complaining about not getting enough homework, he’s now getting mandatory Math assignments, and tough ones at that.  That’ll keep him quiet for a while!

The beat goes on…