Quick Update

August passed in a blur of lots of store receipts, lots of intallations, fix-ups, boxes unpacked and broken down, and those moments where you hold something in your hands and think, "Where am I going to put this!?"

Then school started in a rush... Zoë into 5th grade, Megan into 2nd grade, and Miranda in Kindergarten.

Zo&eum;l was challenged socially-- she was really missing her friends in South Bend and was feeling that she was excluded from the already-established groups in her class. She made a great friend from church who helped out a little. Then she started a cooking club. She invited two girls from the neighborhood, one from church, and it seems another from school (still not her class). And that has been great! They have met almost twice a week (which has been crazy for me!). They have made a number of different baked goods (play-dough cookies, chocolate chip cookies, brownies, ice cream sandwiches, peanut butter cookies, etc.) She has had to work, but is doing well in school. She has also started playing the flute, and after two weeks of massive frustration, she started making some notes, and is doing great with that, too! She is looking forward to the trip she earned to go back to South Bend in a few weekends (I'm headed there for BYU game, Travis to pick up fish for research).

Megan did great and made friends quickly, but came home every day with no homework (because she finished it in class, or wasn't assigned any), and would say, "Mom, this is so slow!" I chalked it up to just the start of the year general review, until I realized half the class was comprised of six-year-olds and the day she came home and said, "Mom, some of these kids are just learning to read!" I started thinking we needed to do something different. So, after an encouraging conversation with my mother-in-law, and speaking with her teacher who said she'd talk to the principal, Megan was tested to see if she would qualify to move up to third grade. After two weeks of Second Grade, and Megan moved into a third grade class. She went from no homework and doing simple one-digit addition, to crash course in multiplication and writing essays! She was really frustrated and struggled the first few weeks, but she has been doing GREAT! Oh, and socially she seems quite comfortable- at church and school.

Miranda dances to the school bus, sings and dances and leads (read that "bosses"?) at school, and then dances off the bus, sings and dances in the living room (unless she gets upset by something and then it is melodramatic tears and wailing), and then she collapses into bed and sleeps until she wakes up singing the next morning. She is loving school, but has an ennui that everything is so boring, and they aren't teaching her anything! When grandparents were here (for Megan's Baptism), she grabbed paper and pencil and requested they write down math problems for her to solve. We made them progressively harder, and she was starting to add two digit numbers! Eeek! Reading is still a trick cuz she wants to dance while reading, and then will guess the word by looking at pictures/context/first two letters of the word. Makes it a little more challenging to read! I can hardly wait for her to read- because I know she will love the doors it opens so much! Meanwhile, we are plugging away at it, and still loving audiobooks.

Veronica stayed home with me for a week after her big sisters started at school. She was so bored that by 1:30 she would go upstairs and fall asleep in bed! I knew that we needed to do something for her. I called around, talked to friends, and enrolled her in a catholic preschool that meets for 3 hours three days a week. Our neighbor's have a daughter Veronica's age who also attends, and that helped Nica start school a week late, but still with friends. She was SO EXCITED to be in school! She loved having a backpack, getting ready, and walking in like a big kid. The day I told her that next year she would start kindergarten, her eyes got HUGE and she jumped up and down in excitement. "I can't wait to tell my sisters!" was her first comment. She has done well with making friends, and even has started writing... a LOT.

Travis has made it 1/3 of the way through teaching his first class at a University by himself. He was fearful at the beginning that he was being too hard on students, but although challenging, he has been fair, available to assist outside of class, and been very clear with his objectives and demands. I still see his disappointment and sorrow when he sees one of his students struggling or not doing as well as he'd hoped on the exam or homework. He hasn't quite started on research yet. He is waiting for the committee to approve his animal handling protocol. He has the facility up and running, thanks to help from his dad and lots of trips to hardware stores. It's been frustrating how slowly everything has started with the facility, but hopefully by the beginning of December he will have fish thriving, the facility functioning perfectly (balanced, no leaks!) and he can start doing research. Although, I have loved having him home in the evenings, I also know once the fish are growing, I won't see him much anymore.

I have been busy trying to get the house set up... I still have a lot of boxes that need to be unpacked and find places for things. I also have lots of painting to do and some curtains to fix up. But, all of that was placed on hold while I studied for my National board exam for my Physician Assistant certification. I was majorly stressed about passing this time around because it has been so long since I have worked in medicine (aside from the consultations from friends about some pediatric rashes, ear infections, colds, fevers, etc. which I have LOVED!). Thankfully, with lots of support from friends, blessings, fasting on the behalf of others, and the kids in school, I was able to study and I passed my exam well! (Not just barely passing, but well). I still need to work on getting my license in NY, and I will probably keep my eyes open for a part time PA position locally, but it is so nice to know I am finished with that for another 6 years. Now, I just need to get the house in order, finish about a million projects (including sewing curtains, building shelves in Travis' office and the garage, putting in a garden, painting upstairs, assembling bookshelves, finish unpacking boxes, etc. etc. etc.).

I will post pictures of Veronica's birthday; Megan's birthday; visit with Grandparents, Nana and Grandma Winkie; Megan's baptism; Miranda's (upcoming) birthday (because I am pretty sure I won't get those done before Miranda's birthday!); first days of school (K, 2, 5, preK, and 3).

I love this place! I love the house (my kitchen is AWESOME!!!) I love my family! I am so looking forward to having friends and family come stay with us! The schools are growing on me, and the teachers here are some of the most caring I've ever met. The ward is quirky, but filled with good people, and it's been great getting to know them. Upstate Western NY is a great place, and I'm so glad we are here!