Go Green!

Shawn had his concert tonight and the theme was "Go Green." He is definitely our more musically inclined child. Christopher is more athletic. I was impressed with the concert. They did ribbon dancing to the song "Colors of the Wind" from Pocahontas.

They sang rap songs about being agents of change.
Shawn is actually standing still in this photo. Most of the photos we took, he was moving around and dancing. I think the video I took of this song is bouncing around from me stiffling my laughter. He was just too cute.

They also did the song "What a Wonderful World" in sign language.

Hammin' it up after the show! This is Ryan and Maleah. Shawn and Ryan begged to have pictures taken, and I think Maleah was grabbed at the last minute. Notice who is dead center???

It amazes me how God grants children different gifts and abilities. Given the same exact gene pool, we have two extremely different children.

One child is very athletic. He excels in all sports regardless of experience. He struggles with reading, but excels at math and science. He has many friends and does well in class.

The other child is very musical. He can pick up anything related to music and rhythm without any instruction. He struggles with attention and friendships, but excels at reading.

I think as parents... biological or not, we have the gift and challenge of accepting each child's strengths and weaknesses and cultivating them into the best people they can possibly be.

It has been a rough few weeks for me at work, and I find that when I see other children in a state of crisis I am reminded to be appreciative of the way my life is.

Surprise.... It's raining!!!

Okay - Let me start off this post by saying that the past 3 days in Bellevue have been over 65 degrees. Sunny, beautiful and a little windy. I was thinking that the rest of the week should be great too. (a little known fact is that I rarely stay awake for the news!)

With that being said, I missed the memo that today would be a sudden shock to my system. I awoke this morning to thunderstorms and cold temps. The wind is blowing and the rain is almost coming down sideways. Imagine my surprise!

Oh - and I forgot to mention... today is the day that the 2nd graders at my school go to the zoo... for the entire day! With 3 students with behaviors in that grade level, I get the distinct pleasure of accompanying them on this trip, along with Mrs. Tucker the special education para-professional! Oh Joy of all Joys!!!

Needless to say, I ended up wearing a long sleeve shirt, a zip up hoodie and a hooded sweatshirt. I also avoided all pictures as much as possible. My hair quickly went to shambles and I think I might have been wise to have taken ... hmmm... a coat?

Even though it was cold, we had fun and I got some cool pictures of the animals.


Above is picture of the albino crocodile in the Kingdoms of the Night.

Below is a picture of the emperor penguins in the Aquarium.


This is probably one of my favorite animals to view. I think they are cool and the lighting in the tank makes them appear to be glowing.


I had to include the next picture. If you look closely, you will see that this elephant is sleeping. It was obviously too great a strain to get down on the ground to sleep so he decided to rest his head on the post. We all got a chuckle out of it. It was one of the few outdoor exhibits we had a chance to enjoy.

Singing

The church youth group sponsored a Karaoke (?) night tonight. Christopher and I went to support them on their mission trip to Savannah, Georgia. Chris was so excited and ready to sing. He got right up and did a solo! I could hardly believe it. He also did a song with his buddy Lance.
Believe it or not... I actually got up the nerve to sing a solo. I was kind of proud of myself. I am used to singing with the 3 other ladies in Worship Team, but I haven't sang a solo in a very long time. I guess I forgot how much I really love singing.


On a side note: I am a captain for a Relay for Life team in support of cancer and cancer survivors. I don't know if many people know it, but Chad is a cancer survivor. My grandfather had cancer and Chad's grandmother had cancer. Lance's mom was also recently diagnosed with Brain Cancer. My current principal is a cancer survivor as well.

Anyway - I am asking for support/donations to support the American Cancer Society and my involvment in the relay for life. All donations are tax-deductable. You could chose to donate money or support the ACS by purchasing a luminary in memory or honor of someone.

Let me know if you are interested!

1st Soccer Game

Shawn had his first soccer game of the spring season this morning. We saw a big improvement in his ability to work with his teammates. Chad and I only wish we had the kind of energy that Shawn has... all the time! Shawn played for about half the game. He played forward in the picuture above.



He played defender too. I think he likes this position the best because there isn't as much running, but the action is going on all the time. In the next picture he is playing goalie. He didn't let anyone score a goal on him. This is probably his least favorite position. There just doesn't seem to be much action on a regular basis.
We love watching Shawn play soccer. It just kind of a bummer that we have to put the pancake tradition on hold for a few weeks!