It's all good

I've erased two essays already because they just don't sum up life right now.

So I'll sum it up by bullet points:

• Henry: turns 16 this week (FINALLY), tried to skip his first class but called me to make sure it was ok (I may have screamed no! it's NOT ok! over the line), told us at 1am that he wants to quit soccer (which we may have over-reacted about and perhaps scared him for life), told us his birthday wish was to take his brother and sisters (with out us) to Jump On It (trampoline place) for his birthday after he gets his license.  He wears flannels almost every day.  Size XL. OH, and he's doing a month long Eagle project in conjunction with the Elementary school and PTA of a Book Drive.  Let's just say that he's learning something, but I'm learning A TON.  I will be VERY glad when it's over.
• Phoebe: ballet, ballet, ballet with moments of home time.  She keeps getting asked to do these things for super smart people (like take special test, harder classes, and apply for scholarships), she scrunches up her nose at that and says, Why would I want to do that?  It's more work.  Bah, no thank you.  Yeah, that's my girl.
• Celia: something has gotten into her and I don't want it to get out.  She does her homework as soon as she comes home from school, she does her hair every day, she wears not only clean clothes, but they match and look good.  She reads.  SHE READS!  And when I did the dreaded thing (go to Parent Teacher Conferences--they never go well with her), her teacher welcomed me with beaming smiles and did not stop talking about how amazing Celia is doing.  I had to look at the classroom to make sure I was in the right place.  WE are talking about Celia, Celia Thomas, right? I asked.  Yes, her teacher assured me.  Celia.  She's so amazing.  He showed me her work, her test scores and that they want her placed in high level math in 7th grade.  What? Celia?  Yeah, he said, Celia.  None of us can understand what's happened to her, he said.  But she's come into her own.
• I may have cried at this.  For maybe the whole night.  Miracles do, I tell you, happen.
• Piper: when her teacher asked if there were any concerns about the class, Piper told me to write: "Yes, there is a serious concern, people are stinking their fingers up their noses WAY too much and using tissues when they don't really need them.  This has got to stop!"  She's done amazing in school too (which was not the case last year).  They want to put her in enrichment classes (and I was ready to hear they wanted her to get extra help).  She's playing the piano like crazy and making sure everyone hears her.  I would say her most common phrase, "Will You YIELD the floor?!  Yield the Floor!!!" That's from our dinner discussion about parliamentary procedure. Yep, what goes into that brain sticks.
• Finn: well, thanks to his super ambitious sisters who constantly play school with him, is doing everything at a second grade level.  Luckily he's lazy like the rest of our children, and so is very happy to space off in school and enjoy being able to do everything the first time.  THe best moment this week was when his teacher showed me his enrichment activities.  He's working on the number 18 and he was supposed to draw 18 things.  He drew 18 dots.  As in, little pencil dots.  Well, when we asked him about it, there were 18 of them!  Yep, might be smart, but it's counteracted by an amazing dose of laziness.  
• John: work is for the moment quiet so he's going slightly crazy.  For all his talk of laziness, he's not.  That man thrives on crazy business and innovation and ideas.  It's a good thing he's the work.
• Me: Well, let's just say that all my years of laziness (they may have gotten it from me), have come to an end.  I can't even tell you how many hours a week I spend on my PTA work (which ends in four months!) and YW calling.  I never knew I could be this busy and survive.  THough, I had this thought when I was screaming at the kids, that maybe survive wasn't the best word, more like LIMPING along.  But then again, I still laugh way more than I cry.  And really, who doesn't imagine throwing china at brick walls?

So overall--it's all good.

What I found the other morning . . . 

Our semi-annual dinner as a family out (yep, it was very mature)

Sweetness

They're getting older . . .

Typical Phoebe craziness

A snowy day's project (Phoebe's idea)

Finn spent three days super sick, this is how I found him . . . Yes, that is a dolphin costume he's wearing

 Grampa's birthday celebration:

 Henry's Eagle project:  The books are pouring in!

 Us.