Academic Success

We had one pretty proud Freshman at our house when the Norfolk Catholic first semester honor roll was posted at school!  Cara had made the white honor roll for the semester.  When it was announced at school that the honor roll was posted by the office, Cara went and looked for her name.  Then she took a photo of it with her I-pod and sent it to her Dad as proof.  (Even if it is against school policy to text during school.)  She got a response back from Dad telling her how he was proud of her and he knew that she had worked hard to achieve it.  The photo above appeared in the Norfolk Daily News a few days later. 

When we got home from school that day, she proudly announced it to her siblings.  In celebration of the event Ashlin pronounced, "Pops all around for everyone to celebrate!".  Erica was disappointed that junior high students do no qualify for the honor roll because otherwise Erica would have made it also.

Very proud of Cara on her academic accomplishment!  I know she worked hard for it!

Take care,
Michelle

Sportmanship

 Justin has been anxious to get back on the wrestling mat for months.  He has been practicing for the last few weeks and his first tournament was last weekend in Battle Creek.  He weighed in at 53.9 lbs. for the day and was placed in a 4-man bracket.

 In his bracket were wrestlers from Pierce, Elkhorn Valley and Plainview.  Justin fought hard for a 7-4 win in his first match.

 Then in his second match he lost by pin and in his third match he wouldn't finish the match because he said he was hurt. 

Justin had some poor sportsmanship qualities on Sunday, such as, not finishing a match, crying when losing a match, not going up to get his 3rd place medal, etc.  He has been talked to about his behavior and had a few things taken away.  He must learn that it is okay to lose and that he will not win all matches.  This was a tough lesson, but hopefully it will make him better. 

Take care,
Michelle

3rd Place in Elgin

Erica and I travelled to Elgin last Saturday morning for a club basketball tournament.  The girls were playing in a combined 7th/8th Grade bracket.  Out of the 8 teams playing, we had the only all 7th grade team and all 8th grade team.  Our 8th grade girls club team made the trip also.  Elgin is a little town of about 750 people about an hour from Norfolk.  Not much to do and not very many food choices.

 It was a very long day in the gym.  Erica and I left home at a little after 7 a.m. because her first game was at 8:55.  We got to the gym at about 8:15.  They won their first game against Boone Central 29-15.  Then they didn't play again until 1:30 against Elgin Public/Pope John.  They again won 27-6, which put the next game at 5:10.  The tournament was double elimination so they had to switch back and forth from the loser bracket to the winner's bracket.  All games being played in the same gym which slowed things down even more.

 Game #3 pitted our 7th grade girls against our 8th grade girls.  Not a good situation for the girls to be in, but at that point they were the only two teams undefeated and in the winners bracket.  7th grade lost 11-28, dropping us down to the loser's bracket with a game against O'Neill on tap.  The game came down to the last minute with a chance to win, but we lost by three giving the girls a 3rd place medal.

 Not too shabby considering they played against quite a few 8th graders.  It was a long day as Erica and I pulled into the driveway at 9 p.m.  The trip home was long with blowing snow and some white out conditions. 

Take care,
Michelle

Columbus Club Tournament

 Erica and her 7th Grade friends were back in the gym last weekend for a club basketball tournament in Columbus. 

 With six teams in the 7th Grade division, the teams were divided into two brackets of three teams.  You played the teams in your pool and then you played one team in the same place coming out of the other pool

 The girls won the first game against Columbus Scotus and then lost to York in game two.  Each team in our pool split games; therefore, they had to determine points allowed to determine who played for what place.

 By one point, our Lady Knights ended up in the championship game against a select team from Grand Island.  We got killed!  No other way to put it!  The other team was taller and played way better ball than our girls.

 But, a second place medal is still something to smile about!  Plus, she talked me into a trip to Pizza Ranch after the last game with some other families which added to her smile!

Take care,
Michelle

Christmas 2015

Yes, I am way behind on blogging, but I will get caught up.  Christmas morning we started unwrapping gifts around 8 am. 

 Erica's Christmas list was by far the longest with 28 things on it.  No, she did not get everything, but she did get a portable speaker, Vans, clothes, etc.  Erica is growing and she had a huge need for some new clothing.  She was so happy that she is officially in junior sizing and can now shop at the same stores as Cara.

 Ashlin's list may have been the shortest.  She condensed everything into clothes, Legos and socks.  She did get a few new outfits, Legos and socks.  But, she also got a Wii game, a CD, a movie, and the first season of "Pretty Little Liars".  The kids are obsessed with the show!

 Justin received some new clothes, socks (his always have holes in them), and a few new Lego sets.  He did get a few Wii games and movies also.

 Cara refused to have her photo taken, but her list was pretty teenage looking.  She asked for new clothes, Converse shoes, perfume, boots, etc. 

 Then the kids moved downstairs where Santa had left a big box.  The big box turned out to be a ping pong table which got used by the kids over the break from school.  A few neighbor kids came over and a few tournaments occurred.

Another big box sat in the living room and they had no idea what it was!  Santa brought the four of them a motorized Mo-ped.  It is battery operated and is black.  It can hold up to 170 lbs. They had to wait until some snow melted to try it out, but it has been seen speeding around the neighborhood.

Unfortunately shortly after opening our presents, I received a phone call that my Dad was in the ICU unit at the hospital with heart problems.  Dad was having pains in his left arm and his heart rate was at 36 when he was admitted.  After running some tests, the cardiologist determined that Dad needed a pacemaker to get his heart beating faster.  Dr. Kim told us that Dad has lived with a low heart rate for probably over a year, but he learned to adapt his lifestyle to his heart rate.  But, he did not have a heart attack or blockages.  To say the least, I was very upset and worried.  I spent many hours at the hospital with Dad.  The doctor would have let him go home on Christmas Day, but Mom and I were not comfortable with that.  Dad had been hiding symptoms from Mom and that made me very upset.  By being at the hospital quite a bit, I was able to hear what the doctors, nurses, physician assistants, etc. all had to say about his condition and process.  We also got to watch one of his favorite shows together, "The Andy Griffith Show".  They were running a marathon one day.  We will need to make some changes to life on the farm for him to handle the pacemaker, but it will work. 

 Therefore, Christmas was celebrated at the farm without Grandpa Bob.  He insisted that we go on and have it.  But, no family photo this year without Grandpa there.  Plus, with my Dad in the hospital I did not attend the Leader Christmas in Bloomfield; so, I have not photos to share from that fun day.  Dad received his pacemaker the Monday after Christmas and his heart rate was immediately 30 beats faster.  After six days in the hospital, he went home with some physical restrictions, but feeling much better.

Take care,
Michelle