30th Class Reunion

 Saturday night was Keith's 30th Class Reunion at the golf course.  The class of 1985 graduated with 42 members.  One classmate is deceased and 21 classmates were at the party.

 We had a broasted chicken dinner meal with salads and dinner rolls.  The class talked about old times and then everyone headed into Bloomfield for the street dance.  Some of the classmates that attended hadn't been back in years.

Take care,
Michelle

Bloomfield Q125 Celebration

This last weekend was Bloomfield's Q125 Celebration!  Grandpa and Grandma Leader live in Bloomfield and it was also Keith's 30th Class Reunion.  Therefore, it was a time to celebrate in the small town of Bloomfield.  Friday night we went up to listen to the Dueling Pianos and they were great.  Before we left town for the night, the kids watched the start and finish of the Glow Run which was held at the park.

 Saturday morning we were back in Bloomfield for the celebration parade.  We had a great spot at the beginning of the parade, right on Main Street and also in the shade.

 Many floats featured large birthday cakes in honor of the celebration.

 Many of the surrounding small towns had entries in the parade, such as Wausa, Osmond, Belden, Crofton, Creighton, etc.  It was great to see these other small towns being so supportive.  The photo above is of the Wausa Vikings.  This is a constant in many parades.

 Also no small town parade is complete without the Shriners, fire trucks or tractors.

 Cousin Michael drove a fire truck through representing the City of Crofton.

 As you can see the parade was long.  This is from where we sat looking downtown Bloomfield.

 It was a HOT morning!  Therefore, these two men representing Lewis and Clark had to be dying in these fur coats.  After the parade, the kids weighed how much candy they collected during the parade.  The bucket and bag of candy loot weighed in at 6 pounds.

After the parade, Keith stopped by the teacher/staff reunion to visit with some of his old teachers from Bloomfield High.  He enjoyed visiting with them.  Then we had lunch at Grandma & Grandpa Leader's house before heading across the street to play and watch the mud volleyball tournament.

 Later in the afternoon, we took in the Quilt Show at the Community Center.  Then we headed to the fairgrounds for the free Kid's Games and a craft/vendor show.  Also at the fairgrounds, visitors could check out The Wall which featured the names of soldiers killed while defending our country during various wars.

It was a great day with many activities!

Take care,
Michelle

Coach Pitch Baseball

 Justin is busy playing coach pitch baseball every Tuesday and Thursday evening.  He is on the Canham Maytag Twins team. 

 The league is about learning fundamentals, everybody getting to play, playing all positions on the field and everyone batting.  If you don't hit the ball after seven pitches, then the tee is brought out to hit off of.

 Last night wasn't his best night of hitting, but he hit the ball every time off the pitch.  Justin did get to play pitcher position last night also.

Uncle Randy and Cousin Eli were in Norfolk yesterday, so, they stopped by and caught a few innings of Justin's game.  It sure was a HOT night to play!

Take care,
Michelle

Summer League Begins

This last week summer volleyball league started.  Erica and Ashlin will play games every Wednesday.  They have practice on Tuesday night and then play league the next day.  Two weeks they play in Battle Creek and two weeks at Lutheran High Northeast.  Cara is helping coach Ashlin's 5th Grade team.

 I think Ashlin had a smile on her face all day!  She was so excited to play volleyball again.  Ashlin ended up playing two games with the 5th Grade team and then one game with the 6th Grade team because they were short on players.

 For Ashlin's size, she has a powerful serve.  She serves overhand and is almost back to the regulation serving line.  She surprises many people watching with her serve.

 For the first week back in the gym, both of the girls' teams won one game and lost one game.

 There were good plays and bad plays on the day.  But, the focus is fundamentals and getting touches while having fun and learning more about the game.

Summer is in full swing here at the Leader house.  Cara is in the weight room 5 days a week.  She works two days on arms, two days on legs and one day of summer conditioning.  Cara doesn't start league until July.  Justin is playing baseball two nights a week.  Erica and Ashlin have volleyball two times a week and they started going to a basketball fundamental night at the school on Wednesday nights.  We are trying to squeeze in some time at the water park on hot, sunny days, but so far there have been few of them.  Then we really need to get cracking on the 4-H projects because entry day is rapidly approaching.  And last, I may be off from school for the summer, but I still have to complete my merchandising jobs each week.  Hopefully, the weather starts to cooperate and we can get the boat out of storage and have some fun up at the river.

Take care,
Michelle

Piano Recital

 Ashlin just finished up her second year of piano lessons with a recital.  She is quite the little player and has improved and progressed. 

 Ashlin played three songs for recital "Alouette", "Kum-ba-yah", and "Medley of English Dances".  Now she gets a week off from lessons and then Ashlin is going to start a new set of lesson books.  Mrs. Nissen, her piano teacher, has her students take lessons year round.  They get a few weeks off here and there, but for the most part they go every week.

Take care,
Michelle

Perfect Attendance Pool Party

Every year for the last twenty-some years, the Norfolk Noon Optimist Club, KNEN Radio, and the YMCA have hosted a "Cool To Be In School" pool party for students with perfect attendance for the school year.  The students in Kindergarten through 4th Grade are included in the event.  This is the first year that we have had someone in our family have perfect attendance.

 Ashlin and Justin both had perfect attendance for this past school year.  They were both excited to attend and have some fun swimming.

 The pool party last two hours.  At the end of the party, the students were served ice cream bars and a drawing was held for prizes.  There were 150 students in the City of Norfolk given certificates for perfect attendance, but there were maybe 50 students at the party.  The odds of winning a prize were pretty good.  Look at what these two came home with as prizes!  They were sure excited!

Take care,
Michelle

On To Junior High

Yesterday, on the last day of school, Erica was promoted during Mass to Junior High School. This is a huge day for the 6th Grade class.  They dress up for Mass and process into church to "Pomp & Circumstance". Erica was in the last grouping to walk into church (Erica, Carly M. Josue).

 After bowing in front of the altar, Erica making her way to her assigned seat.

 The 6th Graders performed the many tasks during Mass, such as greeting, singing, reading, presentation of gifts, etc.  At the end of Mass, the 6th Grade class was presented for graduation.  Each student's full name was read, Erica Pauline Leader, she then received her certificate from Mr. Hale, shook Mr. Hale's hand and shook Fr. Andrews hand.

 Then she moved onto our school President, Mr. Berryman, and received her house shirt for next year.  Erica automatically goes into the House of Aquinas because Cara is in that house.  Siblings in families are placed in the same house family.

 Everyone at Mass applauds when the they say "We present to you the graduating 6th Grade class of 2014-2015".

 Erica with her 6th Grade teacher, Mr. Korth.  Dusty is my first cousin and both Erica and Cara had him as their 6th Grade teacher.  He prepares them very well for the big step across the parking lot.

 It was required to take a photo of the three graduates from our neighborhood.  These three hang out together, play, do homework, fight like siblings, and have fun.  Hopefully, they stay friends - Sienna, Preston, and Erica.

 This group of girls are some of Erica's best friends - Mary, Anna, Erica, Sienna, and Hope.

 We couldn't let the day pass without a photograph with the parents and grandparents.

 The girls in the class.

We pulled these two little "buddies" (Bailey and Justin) out of 1st Grade to take a photo with the graduates.  Justin considers Anna, "Deuce", one of his best friends/crush. 

After Mass, the class had a reception of cake and juice/coffee.  Then they received their report cards and were dismissed for the day.  In the afternoon, the class met up for bowling.  Then some of the girls hung out at Sienna's and had pizza. 

Take care,
Michelle