Award Day

Jasmine's school does something cool. Every quarter when they have the honor roll award ceremony, they also have the Bobcat Pride awards. Each letter of Bobcat Pride stands for a character trait. So 11 students a quarter per grade level receive an award. That means 44 students a year. So there's a better chance of getting one of those than if there is only a student of the month.

Jasmine got I for integrity in 5th grade. Then nothing in 6th and 7th. 

January 2012

They don't know ahead of time that they are getting an award. She knew once she saw me. Because she knew she wasn't on the honor roll so I had to be there for Bobcat Pride awards.

Mrs. Ginger came too. She is our children's minister. She and Jasmine have a special bond. Jasmine is holding up the wrong certificate. That one is for a special lunch for the award winners.

I took her chocolate covered strawberries, pretzels, haystacks etc. The problem is that awards are before the place to get these is open. I got this the day before, and Jasmine was with me. I told her it was for Jessica because she had class and couldn't get them herself. Yeah, I lied. Problem is, Jessica walked into the mall where we were about ten minutes later to borrow something from me. Of course she asked what the goodies were for!!! Busted. So, I lied again. They have been warned I will lie about presents (but not other things) and it's forgivable. So please don't leave me any nasty comments. Jasmine and I kidded about how I'd lied to her and then she got the integrity award!!

This past Monday she got the second B in bobcat for break through. It's for a student who makes significant progress in one area. I think it was probably her language art teacher who put her in for it. She's new to the school this year but not new to teaching. And she and Jasmine hit it off.

I just realized she was wearing a pink shirt both days. Funny because she's not a pink person. But Monday was color wars and pink was the 8th grade color. 

Again, as soon as she saw me--and Mrs. Ginger who was there for her too--she knew she was getting an award. When she first saw me, Ginger and Adam, who was able to come, she was a little startled. Then she appeared somewhat nervous about it. But it must have sunk in although she was still anxious clear up until they called her name. Of course they did honor roll first. Maybe she thought we were there by mistake for honor roll.

With Mrs. Ginger

With Adam. He and I went to lunch at Chick Fil a after this.

I bought her a Dr. Seuss travel journal while Jessica and I were on our weekend out. 

It's called Oh the Places I've Been. She has a band trip to Universal May 8 and 9 (so if you're in the area, check out their performance), then we have NYC. That's followed by New Orleans (just for a couple of days after we pick the twins up from camp in Pensacola. It's only 3 hours farther.), Orlando (book convention which means a book signing for me, chances to promote my books and get together with other authors) and Indiana (family). Can you say "hotel points"? Cutting corners is the only way we can make it all work. Get and use points, go to Walmart for food and pack lunches etc.

Jasmine has a lot coming up. The Universal band competition, spring concert with a reception for advanced band afterwards for them to get their awards. They usually have a separate banquet but that was just too much on top of the Universal trip and concert. Then she has 8th grade graduation. We have to find a dress that meets the dress code. Some of you remember what happened at the final dance of 8th grade!!!!

Right now I have a book give away going on here. Be sure to go and find out how to get free books.

Cross Country

The team got first place out of five teams.

Adam got 5th overall (the short kid on the other end usually places first every race but placed second today, he's 15 or 16, not as young as he looks)

Jasmine

Jasmine graduated from fifth grade Friday. She struggles with school work, but she has a great personality and attitude, and it draws the teachers to her. She is a joy. Well, most of the time. She can have some teen girl attitude at times too. But that's pretty normal.

Jasmine had a really good homeroom/language arts/social studies teacher this year. She is on the praise and worship team at one of the other Baptist churches. Kind of a funny thing--Jasmine has had two teachers she's really liked more than others--Mrs. Creel in her last public school and Mrs. Lovett this year in the charter school. We saw Mrs. Creel a few weeks ago in a restaurant. When Jasmine told her she had a teacher named Mrs. Lovett this year, it turned out that Mrs. Creel and Mrs. Lovett go to the same church AND Mrs. Lovett taught Mrs. Creel's husband when he was in sixth grade!!

Love this teacher.

Jasmine got the language arts award for her class. We were all surprised. It's our first year in the school, and we didn't know what awards they gave out. And we had a little issue with the big poetry book project, so this was unexpected.

We went to go to Cici's for pizza afterward and found out it was gone. So we went to Newks which is in the same plaza. Had two Cici's free buffet coupons though.

Ham. pineapple and tomato.

BBQ chicken.

My graduate. She's now a middle schooler!

My mother and brother sent her the same card! Our family seems to do that once in a while.

From Adam

From Aunt Lou

Chick Fil A from Jessica

Candy from Tyler

Justice from me

Burger King from Dad

Saturday morning Jasmine had basketball evaluations. She's never played before. We thought we'd try the summer program in a nearby town since we won't have to worry about homework. But we will miss about half of it being out of town.

Rick bought Chinese to celebrate the completion of my book project. Also chocolate sauce and strawberries.

Ready for church.

Outfit I gave Jasmine for graduation.

The twins and Adam are done Tuesday noon. We are leaving for Disney/Aqautica the minute the bell rings.

Adam has decided to stay home and work. I wish he'd decided that before I bought his non refundable ticket.

Once we get back, the twins and Jessica have TMI peanuts camp less than a week later. The house is a bit of a mess with keepsake bins being sorted out and this year's school work being added, Disney/Aquatica stuff being packed (we take our food and save money) and camp stuff being packed.

I think summer is going to speed by too quickly and it hasn't started yet!

The Way it Happened

Today is the second anniversary of the earthquake in Haiti, and also Adam's 17th birthday. We are both "lucky" in that I get to forever share my (legal) first name with a very damaging hurricane, and he gets to share his birthday with the anniversary of the earthquake. On the bright side, it brought our twins home after already waiting three years.
Because Rick leaves right after work to get Tyler, who is our pet sitter this weekend, and Jessica has tumbling and Explorers this afternoon and evening, we celebrated with Krispy Kreme donuts at 5:45 a.m.

17 candles in a donut!

We got him two pairs of South Pole shorts and three shirts, a clip on lamp for his bed and money toward track and soccer cleats. We put together money from other relatives too for those because they are going to be well over $100 combined. Tyler and Jessica got him Hoodwinked too (they are both very broke from college!), Kaleb got him a bag of chips and Jasmine got him three long sticks of laffy taffy.

This above picture doesn't go with the birthday photos, this changes the subject to Jasmine. I found out a couple of days ago that she was getting a Bobcat Pride award. (Before I was very careful not to say exactly where we live but that's increasingly harder because of more involvement in school activities, college majors etc.) Each letter stand for something and one child from each grade level is chosen by all the teachers together to get the award for that level.

This is kept secret from the students of course so they don't know who will be getting awards. I like this better than student of the quarter because 11 students instead of just 1 get awards and it is for character traits as well as achievement.

Jasmine's uniform pants were short on her and I wanted to get her new ones. Decided this was the time since she'd be up front, I bought them while she was at dance, and she didn't think anything about it because I've said for weeks she needed a longer pair. (They have to come from a certain store which is quite a ways from our house but not so far from dance.)

Then things got tricky. I mentioned to another mother who'd been at the charter school for a long time that Jasmine was getting a Bobcat Pride award in the morning. Since we're new to the school she told me the parents typically bring flowers or some little gift.

I am hearing this the night before the award ceremony, and the only child I have with me, of course, is Jasmine. As I'm driving her to the mall to eat and work on homework (more fun while you're eating), I'm trying to decide how to get flowers in the morning and realize the awards are too early for that. So I decide to get her something at the little mall store that has the chocolate covered strawberries and things like that.

I get Jasmine supper and tell her I need to get something for Jessica at the store which is just yards away. That was believable and since Jessica was at college for a night class, I'd just tell her about it later in case Jasmine mentioned it. Um, then Jessica walks in the mall!!! Uh huh. The same child who is suppose to be at college at that very moment. She walks over and I know she's going to ask why I have a bag from the candy store. I try to give her the "play along" look and tell her I picked up the stuff she wanted for her friend, but she was out of it and didn't catch it. So I discreetly nod at Jasmine, who picks that moment to look up!

Jasmine thinks it's for her for A/B honor roll, but I tell her it's not (it wasn't), report cards are not for two more weeks and besides she has 3 C's. She looks disappointed so I tell her "but you can go pick one thing from the store for yourself." I make up a story about how the other stuff is for a friend of Jessica's at college who helped her out. (Is there such a thing as an excusable lie? I mean, after all, undercover cops lie for a good cause everyday or they'd be dead).

Anyway, after Jasmine left for school today, I put the goodies together in box to take to the school. Our children's minister saw on my face book wall that Jasmine was getting an award and showed up for it with only a half hour notice! I'd meant to face book her a couple days ago and forgot.

This is Jasmine's teacher.

I thought Jasmine was going to get "b" for break through (finally catching on to something), C for compassion (because she'd befriended a child who was getting teased a few weeks ago) or P for persistence. But she got I for integrity because her teacher likes that she can always trust Jasmine.

All the winners got a certificate, ribbon and water bottle.

back with her class

Mrs. Ginger with Jasmine and a friend from her class who also goes to our church.

Jasmine loves her treats. I bet she was very popular at lunch today!

She's wearing her new pants and a new belt.