School starts this week

Well, its that time of year again where we get all excited about school starting up again! Samantha's a senior (duh, can tell that from the senior pics, right?), Brendan's a 4th grader and Makayla's making her way through her 2nd year of preschool.

Samantha and Brendan are both going to attend eCOT this year (you know, the Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow... online public school, basically.) Sammie has come along really well with it and I enjoy the fact that I get to observe what she learns much closer than with the traditional public schools.

Brendan is new to eCOT this year. We decided that he really needs the additional supervision that being at home can give him. For some reason, he has really had a difficult time abiding by the rules that the school has set up. He's also had a difficult time attracting a satisfactory group of children to be friends with and generally would find himself getting into trouble at the result of another child's prompting. We are praying that being schooled at home will be a VERY positive thing happening in his little life. I think our toughest challenge will be helping him be a social butterfly. He'll need some good influences to help him forget the bad ones he was exposed to at the elementary school he went to. Thankfully, he's starting to branch out at church and get to know the kids his age. I'm sure that will be a perfect place to learn how to be a good friend. :-)

Makayla's preschool experience has been an extremely positive presence in her life. Maki has some emotional and behavioral issues that are a result of her bio-mom's use of drugs and alcohol when she was pregnant with Maki. The preschool she goes to is actually through the school system and she's already on an I.E.P. which is why she's eligible for the preschool program. They've given her speech therapy and worked with her on things like her "lack of" attention, defiant behaviors, interrupting others, etc... She's not been officially diagnosed with any acronyms (thankfully), but we're hoping that the early intervention will alleviate the need for excessive intervention later in life.

Sorry for the long update today... It's pretty out of character for me to go on and on... but since I actually had a few minutes of semi-quiet today I thought I'd go all out!

Have a gracious day!

Portrait Innovations...

Just a moment to update the blog...

• Brendan had his birthday on the 18th! He's nine now and oh my! how they grow so fast.
  

• I got my hair cut today. Shocker for me too... it's still shoulder length, but layered. I think I'm gonna like it. Time will tell. At least, for now, it feels much lighter. Maybe the headaches will go away :-)

• Brendan and I got to spend some quality time out together on Wed. We hit the library for a while, shopped at Marcs (had to get some Pepsi on sale 5/$10 ha ha), and then went to A&W for lunch. Brendan had a foot long doggy and I got the popcorn chicken... it was quite a relaxing time for us and we really enjoyed it!

• School starts in less than a week. Makayla is going to be in an afternoon class this year. Yikes! that will be a big transition for her. But I'm actually looking forward to it for some reason. Brendan is joining Samantha in eCOT this year. He's excited and frightened to do something different, but I think it will do him a world of good to be at home for school.
  

Welcome "Haley Paige Miller"!!!!

Haley Paige Miller was born at 9:47 a.m., she weighs 6 lb. 12 oz. and is 20 inches long. Mom and baby are both doing great!!!

Joy, times 2

1) Sammie is home ~ we're all very glad to see her and thankful that she returned safely and had a great time at camp! She has lots to talk about! {or should I say, she has lots "more" to talk about that normal!}

2) My sister's first grandchild is on its way today! My niece Jenifer was taken to the hospital this morning and they will be doing a C-Section so please pray that she'll be okay and the baby, too!

Do I miss her or what?

Yes!

The many faces of Sam

What's a mother to do?

*sigh* Samantha is at teen camp this week. I always struggle with her going away each year to camp with the teens. I want her to have a wonderful time and be with her friends and enjoy the conference time and the activities... but at the same time, I'm a very selfish person (I know, shame on me!). I want her with me all the time.

Okay, here's where I get to brag on my daughter: She's one of the most responsible teenagers I've ever met. She might have her moments around the house where she procrastinates or does something really odd, but for the most part she's what I wish I could've been when I was a teen! Spiritually, she's light years ahead of where I was at her age. She has a sweet spirit about her that everyone has to love (okay, if you personally don't love her sweet spirit, don't comment on my blog... I'll just delete you. Yes, I'm partial to my own opinion!! ha ha)

I pray that she will be safe on her trip and that she'll return soon!!

Finally, our 20th Anniversary Celebrated!!

I finally got the montage built for the time we spent in Millersburg for our 20th Anniversary (celebrated a few months late since we had so much going on back in March!)... enjoy!