Halloween and other things

Ellie and her friend, Bailey, wanted to go trick-or-treating together in coordinated costumes.  They thought they could both be Minions.  So, at the last minute (of course), we stopped at Hobby Lobby to see what we could find.  We found yellow truckers hats and yellow shirts.  Heather (Bailey’s mom and the crafty one) rounded the outfit out by making googles stickers to add to the hats and cutting navy ribbon to make suspenders for them.  And I think they looked great!

Josie and Janie also joined them for the neighborhood walk which was fun for all.  They were Joy and Sadness from Inside Out.

Jeremy, Madison (who kinda wanted to dress up, but didn’t want to walk around, but also felt too old to really dress up…), my mom, and I heanded out candy at the house. 

It was a beautiful day!  Pepper dressed up and made it for a brief moment outside.  Landen stopped by and Grandma didn’t recognize him at first.  He had to come back for his kiss :)

    

Afterwards, Bailey and Ellie swung by Living Water’s Trunk-or-Treat to see the their friends who had a trunk set up. 

    

Other fun pictures…

Ellie getting ready to sing the national anthem before a volleyball game with her choir.

Madison singing at her first high school choir concert

Packing school kits for the MCC Resource Center on a Wednesday night.  We packed over 800 school kits!!  Ellie, Landen, and Miriam worked on the pencils.

Going through some things at Grandma Yoh’s house – a treasure trove a such a variety of items!

A career exploration day for Madison

Erin Travels a bit

I took a personal day a bit earlier than normal this year.  We (Steph R and I) gifted mom with a girls’ trip to see Daniel at Sight and Sound Theater in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  It’s kinda a trek to get out there – 5 hours or more.  But we decided to just do it.  We left Friday morning around 9, stopped for lunch, checked into our hotel, and then had a delicious meal at Agape Café right next to the theater. 

We had great seats.  They weren’t in the lower section, but they were near the bottom of the next level and off toward the side.  We like them because you could see all the things happening on all sides of the theater.  There is a lot going on – animals, singing, lights, set changes, and more.  It was enjoyable. 

We headed back to the hotel afterwards and pretty much collapsed into bed. 

On the way home, we stopped at an outlet mall to see what there was – lots of shops, lots of still pretty pricey clothes, and a lot of nothing that we took home.  We did have the experience of witnessing the spotted lanternfly (locorma) invade everything!  It is an invasive species related to the grasshopper from Asia.  They fly/hop, and they are disgusting.  You are literally supposed to step on as many as you can to try to just kill them off.  You are also supposed to check your car so you don’t transport them from state to state. 

    

It was a good getaway, even though it was a lot of driving.

Then, for my 8th year in a row, I headed to Gettysburg/Washington D.C., with the 8th graders from school.  I am not sure when I will get tired of going.  It is a get away with very little responsibility – kinda.  I don’t have to plan the trip, navigate on the trip, entertain people on the trip, worry about food, restaurants or lodging.  I just get to go, count heads, take cell phones at night, encourage kids to look at things and think about things.  I do get tired; we walked over 7 miles on Thursday and stayed up later than I normally do.  But I enjoy it. 

I always like to see who we get from the National Park System to be our tour guide at Gettysburg.  This year, we had a man who had taught 8th grade history for 27 years (and some additional years at the high school level).  He got them.  He did a great job keeping it focused, giving out enough, but not too much, information, and trying to help them learn about what went on during the war.

This year, we went to a new White House Experience that was really cool.  It was maybe a little small for our group, but I thought it was so neat – the media and technology, the visual representations of the white house, the bounty of facts and tidbits you could learn. 

    

We also walked up Capitol hill to get to the backside of the Capitol building I don’t know if that was worth it, but it was new and something the kids see on TV, but got to see in real life. 

We hit the usual spots – World War II Memorial, Vietnam War Memorial, Korean War Memorial, FDR (one of my favorites), MLK Jr., Arlington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and the American History Museum (Smithsonian). 

    

Homecoming

Madison is in high school.  And with high school comes new experiences and opportunities.  One of those experiences is Homecoming.  Back in the day :) when I was in school, homecoming was a fun dance twice a year.  We had the queen and the court.  The attendants would all choose an escort from among the sports players of that season (football or basketball).  The game would be Friday, the dance Saturday.  We would get dressed up in something nice, usually something that we wore (or could be worn) to church.  Sometimes you would go with a group of friends or sometimes you would go with a date.  If it was a date, the guy would usually just ask you in the hallway or after school or maybe he would call and ask via phone.

Now, homecoming is a bit different.  You still vote on the queen and attendant, but you also vote on their escorts, which can be any boy in the grade.  I kinda like this shift – that the boys can be a part of things even if they aren’t in a sport.  The game is still on Friday, and the dance is still on Saturday.  Now, homecoming is a semi-formal event.  Many girls get expensive dresses categorized by being short, sequined, and tight, often never worn again.  You can still go as a group, single, or as a date.  But, if a guy asks, there is some extravagant asking process – a poster with a cheesy saying, a surprise, romantic location, etc.  Not to belittle to effort; it just seems over-the-top to me… like you will have nothing to offer or receive when you get engaged one day.  Others differ in opinion from me, and that is fine.  Just my thoughts… maybe old-fashioned of me. 

    

I was glad for how homecoming went for Madison this year.  She had decided to go with a group of friends (with mostly no drama).  We went out shopping for a dress.  She said she didn’t was sparkles, and she didn’t want anything really short.  So, we looked for something that made her feel special and beautiful and that she like.  And lucky for us, we found a dress for a ridiculously cheap amount ($15) at TJ Maxx.  And it was gorgeous on her.  And she was fine not being “just like the others” in her group.  (This, I must admit, was one fear I had – her dress would go against the norm, and would she be okay with it?  She was!) 

Oh yeah.  I forgot to say, now, they all go to a location with their date or with their friends to take pictures.  Before… we just snapped a picture outside our house (or whoever’s house) we left from.  Well, we did do this.  We met her friends at P. Graham Dunn where there is a pretty foyer and a picturesque pond.  And we took pictures.  First, we took some family ones – and it was cool because Jennifer and Jason were both in town!

         

Then, they took pictures as their group – Madison, Jaida, Gretta, Skylar, Mallory, and Ellie.  One of the moms has a knack for flowers and created beautiful nosegays for the girls. 

   

And then some other freshmen groups came (invited via text from a mom), and they took pictures with a few more people. 

Then, finally, they headed off (with Lisa as their chauffeur) to eat at Mariola’s Italian restaurant in Wooster.  What was fun, for me, is the moms also went and had supper at a different table together.

By about 8, they headed back to Dalton and joined the dance.

Madison said her favorite part of dressing up and going out to eat.

    

I am glad she had a good first Homecoming.

Madison’s Freshman Volleyball Season

Madison moved up to the semi-big leagues – high school.  But, thankfully, there was a freshmen volleyball team.  I love that for many reasons, but I think it is a good entry into the next level, and it allows for more playing time rather than being lumped in with the JV players.  Madison had a great year learning how to field balls flying at her in the back row.  She worked hard to get to the corners and cover the court.  She also worked on her overhand serve.  By the end of the season, she was consistently getting it over the net when given the opportunity.  That was fun to watch develop. 

Her team had 11 players this year.  They had a great season – only losing one non-league game to Massillon.  It will be fun to see what happens as they move through high school. (All 36 freshmen through varsity players at meet the team)

Here are some pictures from throughout the season.

                                      

One really neat thing about this year is she was on the team with her cousin, Lilli, who was a senior this year.  Lilli would often transport her to and from practices and was an amazing example of a team encourager, athlete, and leader.  She was able to present Lilli with the team gift on senior/parent night. 

    

The varsity team was WCAL champs, district champs, and regional runner-ups this year.

Best of luck in your future seasons, Madison!  We so much enjoyed watching you play!