Wind Cave Hike

Our first hike this year was the Wind Cave Trail at Usery Mountain. The weather was perfect. The trail was rockier than we expected, but the kids didn't seem to have any trouble. In fact, I think a few of them may have gone up and down the trail more than once in the time it took me to get up and down. The views were beautiful and we are planning another hike for as soon as possible.

One of Our Favorite Traditions

Our children look forward every year to getting new pajamas from Grandma & Grandpa LeFevre. They always know what the Christmas Eve gift is, but they look forward to it just the same.

Go Vipers!

This fall Noah began playing tackle football. At the beginning, practices were everyday for two hours in the 114 degree heat. They have since backed off to three times a week with a game on Saturday. He has never really complained about the heat. It has been a good experience for him as he learns about a game that several boys on his team have been playing for years. However, his life now revolves around football. He talks about playing football in high school, playing football in college, and even playing football on the Wii. I am proud of his dedication and willingness to get hit multiple times and just keep going.

First Day through Fall Break

OK, so I have had the best of intentions updating the block more frequently, but life seems to have a way of getting in the way. Obviously since the last time I posted the kids have started school. In fact, they have already completed the first quarter and we are just beginning fall break. So far...so good. Emma has advanced to 7th grade and is busier than ever. She auditioned for the school muscial, "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat," and made it. She also ran for student council and made it. Noah is now in fifth grade and is enjoying getting to change classes every hour. Jacob is in the fourth grade and likes being one of the oldest boys in the class. He is also glad that he is fully able to participate in PE this quarter. Joel is in second grade and has been learning about mysteries and erosion. While watching TV recently he saw a helicopter landing on the beach and pointed out, "Talk about wind erosion." It's nice to see that they retain some information from school.

I have begun a new adventure and am now teaching first and second grade. It has been a very big change and I am constantly adjusting my directions so that little ones can understand. My favorite part is that they love you no matter what. It is really difficult to be in a bad mood or have a hard day when they smile up at you and say, "Good morning, Mrs. LeFevre." Plus, the are toothless and kind, and the growth you can see in just a few weeks is amazing. In the interest of school spirit I went to Skateland with the school during the third week of school. Unfortunately, I fell and broke my wrist and have been in a cast every since. Hopefully the doctor will have some good news for me this week.

We are looking forward to a week at home catching up on odd jobs and decorating for Halloween.

A Speciality

On the way home from school last week Joel said, "Mom, I think teaching is your specialty." He then proceeded to tell me that everybody has a specialty - Michael's is making chips (for cell phones), Emma's is being a good big sister, and his was losing at math games. That came as a surprise becuase he is actually very good at math, but apparantely not very fast when they're playing games in class.

Every now and then he comes home with a really big word that he actually understands. A few months ago the word was "deviate." He was so excited to tell us about how his teacher was going to school to become one thing, but then she decided to deviate and choose something different.

He may be our baby, but he sure likes the big words.

Finally Summer!

We have only been on summer break for about five days, but we are trying to make the most of it. We were so happy to be able to celebrate Kyle's half-birthday with him. We miss living so close and love any chance we have to get together with old friends.

Besides packing and getting ready for our tip we have been spending the rest of our time relaxing and hanging out at the pool as much as possible. Today I learned a painful lesson about needing sunscreen in Arizona, even though I never did in California. Oh well, the burn should fade soon.

Battle of the Books

This was the moment they realized they had won!


Emma was on a team called "The Divas and Those Guys." Don't they look the part?



The principal and the team holding the plague that will be displayed in the office.


Every year our school has a Battle of the Books competition. Students from 5th through 7th grades are asked to read from a list of between 11 and 14 books. They are put on teams of five or six students. 5th and 6th graders are on teams together, and 7th and 8th graders are on teams together. They read for six weeks and then we have a big competition. It starts with all the 5th and 6th grade teams battling each other and the 7th and 8th grade teams battling each other. The final four teams from each grade level then battle against each other. It is a major competition with the loud speaker, costumes, a fog machine, and very intense participants. This was Emma's second year to compete and they won! Michael and I were so proud of her. But, better than that, she was so proud of herself. I don't think she stopped talking about it for two weeks and we really didn't get tired of hearing about how her hard work paid off.