A little disappointed

Tonight is a total lunar eclipse with a reddish moon, visible about 9 p.m. in our area of the world. The last total lunar eclipse until December 2010. I had planned to take the girls to the Lunar Planetary Institute this evening for the viewing and some fun children's activities. But two strikes against us - Bryan is sick (aches, chills, headache, but no fever) and we have rain. Complete cloud cover. So even though the full moon would be visible out our back window, rising over what's left of the closed golf course, we can't see it. What a disappointment.

Quick trip

The first weekend after our week of sickies (Feb 10) we decided that it was too beautiful of a day to stay cooped up in the house. We had originally planned to go to the Sabine River that weekend, but Brenna and I were still not well; in fact I found out at Monday's Dr. appt that I was harboring a nasty sinus infection.

We spent an hour at the San Jacinto Monument and Museum. It's very close, but Brenna has never been and Cameron was too young the last time to remember it. First we went through the museum. We chose to use our limited time to go for a hike on one of the marshlands boardwalk trails instead of taking the elevator to the top. We wanted to spend as much time outside as possible.

While on the hike we saw many birds, including a roseate spoonbill, egrets, herons, and many red-winged blackbirds, who were very vocal this evening. But the best was when Brenna and I saw an alligator! Bryan and Cameron had walked ahead and they didn't see it. Brenna, who was frightened, ran to catch up with Daddy, who promptly made her turn around and show him where she saw it. Disappointingly for him, the alligator had already turned the corner into another area.

This was the view we had of the monument as we returned. At 570 feet, the San Jacinto monument is the world's tallest memorial column. (Oh yeah, it towers a whole 15 feet above the Washington Monument.)

The girls at the base of the monument. If you're not familiar with the Battle of San Jacinto, take a moment and read about it at their website. In this photo, the reflection pool is behind the girls, with the six flags that flew over Texas, and though you can't see it, the Battleship Texas is a little farther back - at the sight of the Texian Army camp.

Diabetes Walk

Last week the girls came home talking about the diabetes lessons they learned in school. They also were excited about the school's Walk for Diabetes on Friday. Both girls asked Bryan and I to take their "Walk for Diabetes" fundraiser to work with us. They have learned from cookie dough sales and Girl Scout cookie order forms that "work" is the magic place where people fill in the blanks. To be quite honest, I had absolutely no intention of bringing yet another "money" form to work to put in the break room, but Brenna was so excited last week and asked me every day whether I'd brought it to work yet. So I caved and set up an online donation site for both girls. I hoped for a few $5 and $10 donations so the girls would have something to feel proud about.

Within thirty minutes of sending out an email to some family and friends, the online site had already picked up $100. I reset the goal amount three times, and each time I was overwhelmed by our friends and family's generosity. Even more touching were the emails that flooded my inbox telling of this person or that who has diabetes. I printed all of those emails to bring home for the girls to read. (That was the first night Brenna started running a high fever, so Cameron read them all.)

Thursday night we transferred all of the online donations to the entry form and printed the gift history list. Combined with offline checks, we turned in $450!! Actually, when we returned from the walk there were two more donations - $500!


THANK YOU to everyone who either gave money or sent us an email with information.


Friday arrived and Brenna was still home sick, but Cameron proudly walked for everyone!

She walked for:

Uncle Mike,

in memory of Great-Grandma,

in memory of Great-Aunt Maxine,

Ellie, a 9-yr old girl in Florida,

Julia, an 8-yr old girl in Maryland,

Debbi,

Eleanore Stauble,

Bobby Peebler,

Julia Dunn,

in memory of Frank Arthur Oakley, and

in memory of Karen B.'s mommy.

The entire third grade, about 100 students, marched around the outside of the school waving ribbons, pom-poms, carrying signs, cheering, and chanting. I was very impressed with the two PE teachers who organized this event, from the curriculum to the actual event. What fun! I heard children chanting "Walk for the cure!" and "Exercise an hour a day and don't forget to be fit!"

As a result of everyone's generous support, Cameron was the top girl fund-raiser at school and will be receiving 4 tickets to Galveston's new Schlitterbaun waterpark. So once again, THANK YOU.

Sickies

Brenna and Mommy have been sick all week. We lost a whole week! It started with Brenna running a high fever last Friday, and Mommy started hers on Sunday, and somewhere between the two of us we have been running fever, coughing, sinus and chest congestion, and headaches for 8-9 days. Today Brenna is much better, and if Mommy could just get rid of this sinus pain and headache, she knows she would be on the mend. So if we've been particularly quiet, it's because we've been laying on the couch together sleeping since Sunday a week ago.

Personally, I feel like Rip Van Winkle, who wakes up and the world has passed him by. It's a week later and everything that had to be done last week didn't get done.

Responsible

Today the elementary school conducted their semi-annual Awards Ceremony. Cameron received the Thunderbird "Pillar" Responsibility Award and a certificate of recognition for participating in the Science Fair. She also got to stand and be recognized for All A's, One B Honor Roll in the first 9 weeks, and All A's Honor Roll in the second 9 weeks.

Poor Brenna spent the day at home sick with a fever, so she missed the Awards program and anything that might have been given to her. She will just have to attend the one in May.

Voting for Bluebonnets

Cameron arrived at school this morning at 7:30 a.m. to cast her ballot for the TLA Bluebonnet Award. The Texas Library Association established the Bluebonnet Award reading program back in 1979 to encourage to encourage Texas children to read more books, explore a variety of current books, develop powers of discrimination, and identify their favorite books. (Yep, taken right from their website.)

Students were encouraged to read a certain number of books on their own, and the teacher and/or librarian also read 2 other books. Any student who read (i forget how many total) would be allowed to participate in the official student voting for the Bluebonnet Award book.

I'm not going to list all of the books Cameron read from the list, but she did confide that her vote went to The Blue Ghost by Marion Dane Bauer.

Her second favorite was Roxie and the Hooligans Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. Though if you ask her about one or two others, including George Crum and the Saratoga Chip by Gaylia Taylor, she gets real animated telling you about the story (the invention of the potato chip.)

I even read two of the older books, and I read most of the books Cameron read. Though some how I missed reading The Blue Ghost. Hm... guess I'll have to pick it up and read it some night.

Glu-ghost

Today both girls came home from school full of questions (and details) about Diabetes. Did we know anyone with Diabetes? Anyone in our family have diabetes? Type 1 or Type 2? It's very odd to sit at the dinner table and listen to my kindergarten five year old talk about Insulin and Nucleus and Glu-ghost and sugar. The scary thing is everything she says is correct!

Both girls were very concerned about their dinner, did the soup have any sugar in it? They even passed on dessert. I know this won't last long. Though when I brought up Lent coming up next week and that we need to think about what to give up, both girls said dessert.

The special Diabetes lecturer was part of a Walk for Diabetes (fundraiser) launch at their school. (All the forms were in backpacks today.) Health and fitness are having a huge influence on curriculum lately. There is a state mandated fitness test for all grades 3-12 coming up soon. The superintendent's letter assures parents that their child's physical fitness status will not affect their grades.

After I put Brenna in bed, she was a little jabberbox. She spent another ten minutes very animated talking excitedly about how she and "girl Jordan" (one of her best friends at school) want to write a play. She wanted me to help her. I asked her if Mr. K. could help them at school, but she gave me an exasperated look and said, "Mom, he only does music - singing? - Boring." (oookayyyy.) So I said what about Ms. P. (the GT teacher who has been testing them) Oh Yes, she would be good.

Jordan is the best writer/reader in the K class, and when I suggested that Jordan could write down the play, Brenna wrinkled her nose and said, "But Jordan writes big (waves her hands to make the point) and I don't want it all big across the page." Well, says I, she could write it down and an adult could type it up on the computer. (BIG SMILES) "Perfect Mommy!"

So apparently Brenna and Jordan want to do a play that sounds a whole lot like Barbie Island Princess with Harry Potter. Harry would be ON the island with Roe (Brenna) and whomever Jordan and Xyla (another girl friend) would be playing. And there have to be songs. And she needs a dress-up dress that is currently at Nana's house. And a wig.

When I said aloud that this play sounded an awful lot like Island Princess, Brenna says, "No, I'm not copying it. I'm only borrowing small details. Barbie's name is Rosella. I'm only using ROE, see!?"

Where does she get these ideas?

Meanwhile Cameron is in her bed, lights off, writing in her story ideas notebook by the hallway light. She decided that her three girl characters would form a baking club, but she needed a name for the club. I brainstormed a bunch of words and she wrote down Pies R Us, but then changed it to The Baker Girls. Just another day All Things Kelly.