Here are some fun samples of David’s work. It’s so much fun to try to decipher what he’s saying; he still uses a lot of creativity in his spelling. Click on each piece to see it larger; then use your browser’s “back” button to return.
Recess
Favorite school activities
Letter to soldiers
Randy’s mom and dad took us out to dinner for Randy’s birthday. We went to one of our favorite restaurants and had some great Italian food. MacKenzie and Devan were also with us and we had a very enjoyable time. The pictures aren’t quite up to our usual standards because we hadn’t yet thought to set our phones to high resolution (and, of course, we didn’t think to take a camera). Still, we had a great time!
Daniel’s team had a bye week so the coaches arranged for the team to play against the parents and siblings. Because of their advanced age (compared to all the other parents), Randy volunteered to referee (a slightly less physical role on his birthday) and SJ took some video and photos. We had a great time and the kids learned that they come by their skills naturally. Nobody kept score, but I think the parents might have won.
Daniel recently received the highest score possible – a ‘4’, which indicates “above grade level” – for one of his writing assignments. 
We are especially proud of him regarding this paper because his final copy was much improved from his rough draft. He is learning the writing process and, as a natural story teller, he is beginning to allow his personality and communication style to show through in his writing. Click on each page to see it larger; then use your browser’s “back” button to return to this page.
We’re also showing a thank you note David & Daniel wrote to Grammy and Grandpa. They’re thankful for a contribution to their college fund, but Daniel has additional funding sources in mind;). 
David, Age 9
We had a quick “Happy Birthday, David” celebration after a very busy day that included:
He enjoyed the cake & ice cream (who wouldn’t?) and kept a smile on his face. Click the picture to see more. The video shows the skating races.
The boys were able to participate in another cross-country meet at Bellarmine Prep School, running the same one-mile course that they had run two weeks prior. The race had 71 third- through fifth-grade boys in it. Since he had run a mile before, Daniel decided to set the pace, and he set an aggressive pace. Although he had run hard, and there was a steep hill near the end of the course, he still had enough energy to sprint to the finish with an impressive margin over the second-place finisher. David found himself in a battle at the end and was able to sprint to a very satisfying third-place finish. Each one of the boys shaved 16 seconds off his previous time. Daniel finished in 5:40 and David in 6:10! We caught a little video (below), including the start, middle and finish of the race. And of course there are more pictures – click on the one above.
Here’s a brief video montage of Daniel & David playing with some of the toys they received for their birthdays. They are definitely enjoying themselves.
The Puyallup School District always schedules two in-service days in October. Because SJ was not planning on attending any workshops, it was the perfect four-day weekend for Janel and Dad to scheme a much-needed surprise get-away. SJ doesn’t like surprises and she didn’t want to be gone on Big D’s birthday, so when the surprise was sprung just days before departure, she resisted. However, Janel and Dad worked their magic and insisted it would do wonders to recharge her very worn out batteries. THEY WERE RIGHT!!!! The four days included:
The best part, however, was just spending sweet time with Janel talking and laughing and just hanging out – no laundry, no cleaning, no cooking, no homework, chores, or disciplining. Great, great weekend!! Can we do it again next month?!!
On Saturday, Daniel officially turned eleven years old. It was a busy day that included:
Click on the picture above to see more. Watch a couple of Daniel’s birthday goals below.
Daniel & David opened their gifts a bit early because Sary-Jo was headed to California for a visit with Janel. The gift opening was a lot of fun and the boys were very grateful for each item. We took some pictures and a fair amount of video. Click the picture to see more.
