"14 Years Old!"

Dear 14 year old,

Only one more year until your Quinceanera!  But for now you can have fun at the stake dances.  It has been so fun to see you blossom as a beautiful young woman who is quietly confident.  I love spending time with you as you help cook.  Sometimes not a lot is said but I know you love to be there and I cherish the time with you.  Remember how much mom and I love you and you have so many good gifts to share with your peers.  I hope you have a great birthday and hopefully Liam Nials Horton will give you a RT for your birthday!

Love,
Dad

"SEES Open House"

Payton was so excited to take us to her Open House at SEES.  She had so much to show us in Mr. Phinney's room.  Our first stop was her desk, might I add that is was very neat and tidy.  Good girl!  On her desk we found a check list of all the things we were to explore in the classroom.  One by one our tour guide Payton checked them off our list.  We saw her self portrait, her moldy bread experiment, her art portfolio and her San Juan Capistrano Mission.  We even took the "Are You Smarter Than a Fourth Grader" challenge.  I am sad to say Madison got more answers right than I did.  I failed!  We had a great time in Payton's classroom, she is really going to miss 4th grade.  But, she is so ready to tackle her last year at San Elijo Elementary!

"Knight's Blue and Grey Scrimmage"

It's Football Season again for the Knights.  R.J. started training for football the day after his last game for baseball.  There is no rest for the weary!  He's got practice everyday after school and will be starting mornings every day once school is out.  I love baseball but, football is a nice change of pace.  We love watching R.J. play any sport.  He is the Wide Receiver again this year and really enjoys being on the field catching those balls.
   Tonight the school had the "Blue and Grey Scrimmage".  They divide of the players onto a Blue team and Grey and play 7 on 7.  No Lineman, No Pads, No Tackling.  The game moves fast and it gives the players a chance to work on plays and passing.  R.J. was on the Blue Team- They won!  Which meant they got to get into line first for the BBQ.  We can't wait for the Season to start.  Go Knights!

"Like, Gag Me With a Spoon!"

 It was 80's Day at Payton's Elementary School.  My favorite Era, I lived it and Loved it.  She was the Perfect "Valley Girl".  We dressed her up with a "Flash-Dance" inspired shirt, leggings and a Madonna ruffled skirt.  We even painted her nails with Neon colors.  She even wore my favorite hair style- a Side-High Pony Tail.  It was sprayed up with Aqua Net (not a hair on her head will ever move out of place with that stuff.)  And for the finishing touch, we put some plastic bracelets and big  hoop earrings on her.  "She Looked Totally Awesome!!!!"

"SEMS 8th Grade Awards Ceremony"

Madison had her 8th Grade Awards Ceremony last night.  We are so proud of her, she received two awards.  The California Junior Scholarship Federation Honor Award- this award emphasizes high standards of scholarship and community service.  And she received the President's Education Award "Outstanding Academic Excellence"- this award recognizes academic success in the classroom and achievement of high scholastic goals.  She maintained a GPA of 3.5-4.0 for all of her semesters at San ELijo Middle School.  She worked very hard and always did her best with her school work and projects.  We couldn't be more pleased!  Great job Madison!

"Expert Fair- How to Teach Man's Best Friend Tricks!"

One of the last assignments Payton had to complete before the end of 4th grade was the "Expert Fair" project.  She decided to do it on how to teach a dog tricks.  Of course she made Colby her trusty assistant for the task.  He was a good sport and posed and performed tricks for the pictures.  Pay put a lot of time into this project.  She researched and wrote a report on training dogs.  She also designed a display with all her information.  She did a great job presenting and earned an  "A" on her project!

"Memorial Day"

After being sick for the week and dealing with a sinus infection it was nice to have a Vacation Day with the family. In the morning, we decided to go for a bike ride down at the beach.  It was a perfect day, the sun was shinning, the temperature was warm not too hot, not a cloud in the sky.  After all that perfection and feeling great with the wind in our hair,  R.J. and I realized our tires just didn't need air, they needed patches- they had holes in them.  What a bummer, we had to cut our ride a little short.  Later that afternoon, we had Family over for a BBQ.  All the cousins enjoyed swimming and eating and playing with one another.  It was the perfect day with all the people I love.

"Knights Baseball Banquet"

Freshman baseball is officially over!  R.J. had his baseball banquet today.  It was held on the varsity field at the high school.  It was a picnic style catered by "Hello-Deli".  Each team was introduced and the coaches talked about each player and said what their strengths were and what they contributed to the team.  We were so proud that R.J. was able to be the Captain of this team.  And grateful to the coach for trusting that R.J. could be a leader.  The Freshman team had a great season and they should be proud of what they accomplished their first year in high school.  They were able to take home the hardware and be Avocado League Champs.