Halloween Celebrations

John has informed me that punctuality at the Valley View Elementary Halloween Parade is not vital. The kids march by twice. ;o)
Jack's eyes were "lit" as he filed past. He does adore a good costume session. For 3 years he was Tigger; once, he was a pirate; another year, he was Septimus Heap from Magyk by Angie Sage. He's thrilled by this season, and everything is an adventure.
Asa is Iron Man today, and he has sung his theme song for me. All the Wee Wolves were darling today! They came in, lined up, and got their KitKats...
Halloween is a good day to be a teacher: Students are beyond creative and clever. I have had one student come as bacon, one as Paul McCartney (the other Beatles are in their classes), a fantastic member of KISS, a cute, cute clown costume, amongst others in the hallway. My copy center friend, Jennifer, is Charlie Chaplin.
I didn't dress up today. Last year, I was so thrilled to be through October that I dressed up AND had a pummingo for the contest. This year, I'm just glad that everything has gone well and that we're on to Thanksgiving!

Here's a flashback to last year's pummingo...

The NieNie Dialogues

Ever since I saw Stephanie Nielson on Oprah, I've been thinking about my own family blog. Stephanie  keeps her blog updated every day (much like I do my school blog) but it's about something simple, something sweet about her kids, family, or husband (Mr. Nielson).

Lisa (Valentine) Clark, married to Stephanie's brother Topher Clark, was my good friend at BYU. I met them both at the same time, in the same play (Hester's Song--English Society, 1993). That's when they met, and they are singularly delightful people. I follow Chris and Lisa on Twitter and Facebook. If I lived in Provo, I'd vote for Steve Clark.

Anyway, I've been wondering what I had to write about... and I guess I do. I just need to take time to enjoy the little moments and celebrate them more.

This morning, Jack came down to ask me about Carrie Jenkins (John's cousin) who came to visit us yesterday. He also visits us about 8:30 each night to share what he's reading and thinking (and we always answer with an exasperated, "Go to bed, Jack!") These little moments remind me how fast he's growing up. Will we have those same discussions when he's a teenager? I don't remember having discussions like that with my mom and dad as a teenager. Dad used to complain about how expensive my books were, especially since I read them as fast as Jack does.

I need to live more in the moment, for the moments, and remember that the important things in life are the moments. I keep the phrase "Life isn't measured in the breaths you take, but in the moments that take your breath away" next to my bed. I need to recognize and celebrate those moments, because they go by so quickly and kids grow up so fast.