Ready, Set...DODGEBALL!!

6th Grade Dodgeball Tournament

Genoa Middle School

October 19, 2011














Team Whitehawks



Three Dogs and a Cat

Sixth graders from each of the four middle schools were invited to participate in the first-ever "Three Dogs and a Cat" fun run.  The experience helped runners determine whether or not they might join the Cross Country team next year.  Noah enjoyed running, but decided that Cross Country is not for him.      

Stretching




Stretching some more to loosen tight muscles



All the 6th graders gather for instruction on where the race will begin and end

And, they're OFF!

YAY Noah!



A strong finish to his mile run



Our First Letterboxing Adventure

Welcome to Char-Mar Preserve
Delaware County Ohio
October 9, 2011

We found our clues on http://www.letterboxing.org/ before beginning our adventure.  Noah was designated as our "clue reader".  The clues take you off the beaten path, but it was fun to navigate through the leaves and over fallen trees and rocks, climb up dry creek beds and explore.

Trey and Alexander looking ahead as Noah shares our next clue.

Unfortunately, we confirmed that the 1st and 4th "letterboxes" remain "unkown".

Our clues for the "Animal Quest" led us to two letterboxes!  We were thrilled to find the "froggy", which took a lot of effort and the "lizard", which we easily found. 

We brought our own stamp pad, stamp and pen and wrote a comment in the letterbox before concealing the letterbox for the next adventurer(s).

Continuing our hike after finding the letterboxes.

If you're interested in venturing on your own "letterbox" scavenger hunt, check out http://www.letterboxing.org/ for more information. 

We had a wonderful time at Char-Mar and hope to have another letterboxing adventure soon!  

How Do We Spend Our Weekends...

serving Varsity football players a team meal EVERY Friday, watching Varsity Friday night footbal games (home and away) and watching Alexander play Saturday mornings on the JV Football team AND

watching Noah on the soccer field.  He's scored 2 goals this year and is thoroughly enjoying his soccer games.

As I've mentioned before, it brings me great joy to watch the boys play their respective sports.  They both try hard, are team players and enjoy what they're doing. 

Can't believe both seasons will be wrapping up by month's end. 

Honors Physics 100 Foot Egg Dop

Alex and Trey's (his buddy Trey, not his Dad) Honors Physics project heading up the Genoa Township Ladder Truck

Free Falling 100 feet back to the ground!

IT MADE IT!  After hours and hours of hardwork--the egg contraption worked!

Trey and Alexander-showing no egg splatter inside their contraption.  A styrofoam cup with colorful straws placed around the interior.  The egg was then placed in a germination cup topped with another germination cup and then placed inside the sock.  The boys removed the sides of the box thinking that the structure would lend better to the fall and "float to the ground".   The suspended sock was tied in place from the four corners with fishing wire.  Boys, absolutely brilliant! 

A HUGE thank-you to my friend, Andrea (Trey's Mom), for taking pictures and sharing them with me.  I was at preschool during the drop and had to miss the Egg Drop fun.  Again, congratulations Alexander and Trey on a job well-done!

Homecoming 2011

Alexander insisted on wearing a bow tie to Homecoming.  My parents and sister were in town last weekend and enjoyed shopping for a bow tie with Alexander.  His plans to attend dinner with friends fell through last weekend, but he insisted on attending the dance.  I'm proud of him for having the courage and confidence to attend the dance alone and meet friends at the dance once he arrived.  He had a GREAT time and smiled when he said he'd go next year!  

First Middle School Dance

I realize the picture doesn't match the title, but it's the best I could do!  Noah invited a couple friends over for pizza before the dance.  After dinner they were in the basement playing Kinect and I asked if I could take a quick picture before transporting them to the dance.  I knew there was NO WAY I'd be allowed to take a picture at school, so I took would I could get.  I still can't believe he's old enough to be attending a dance!

6th Grade Adventure Club

The object of Island Hopping:  successfully move each member of your team across the "water"  by laying boards from "island to island".  There was no talking allowed between team members and if a board hit the "water" it was unusable and if a team member fell in the water or someone spoke, all boards were returned and the game started over again.  It was a wonderful challenge to witness.  The kids really thought about which boards to place where and who was strong and well-balanced to hold and position the boards carefully.  Once the boards were laid in place--they did a wonderful job encouraging one another from one side to the other--a very rewarding challenge for all!

 

The boards are positioned between each "island" and each member is now carefully crossing the boards to the other side.

Noah, who claimed he was terrified of heights, dangled his body off the side of the ropes course! 

Preparing for Geo-Tracking.  The device led the students on a scavenger hunt throughout the back fields of the school.  Eventually the smaller teams learned that their Geo-Tracker spelled "Teamwork".

Noah's last station was the Rock Wall.  Getting harnessed and preparing for his climb.

Enjoying time with friends!

 The school district provides Adventure Day for each 6th grade class at all 4 middle schools.  It's a rewarding and fun time for the kids and I'm happy I was able to witness their success today!

Learning a New Instrument

Noah's playing the baritone too--just as Alexander once did!  Noah enjoys band and faithfully carries his big instrument home on the bus.  He has his first playing test tomorrow and has already practiced and practiced some more.  Below are pictures from the first time Noah brought his instrument home.  There are a couple of 6th grade band classes, but he's the only baritone player in his class.  Very proud of his new found ability!  A 

Evening of Excellence

Alexander receiving his reward for achieving a cumulative 4.0+ grade
point average for freshman year

Spencer and Alex

 

A very happy and proud Mom, Dad and Alexander

The current sophomores, juniors and seniors were honored for their academic success during the prior year recently.  The GPAs of the students being honored averaged over 4.0 for all three classes.  Alexander completed a very challenging year of classes and we're extremely proud of the effort and success he achieved during his first year of high school.  WAY TO GO ALEX!



Happy Birthday Noah!

We have been blessed with two amazing sons and although parenting is unpredictable,
it's the best "job" I could ever want! 
Noah, Happy 12th Birthday! 
Love you to the moon and back today and always!!  Mom, Dad & Alexander

PS  I've been a little lax with my postings (this one has been in "edits" since September 12th!)