Winter Wonderland Extravaganza

Malana took part in the parade on Saturday as Little Miss Limberlost. The weather was perfect for welcoming Santa. Snow was falling. It was such a beautiful wintery scene. She was so excited about participating and could not wait for the parade to begin. She had to share a convertible with the Preteen Miss Limberlost, so they bundled up and enjoyed their stardom together. As Malana's car arrived, you could see her smiling from ear to ear. She had her wave down just right. Rich and I cannot be more proud of her and her accomplishments. This pageant has been an amazing experience for her!!!

Thanksgiving and Christmas with My Husband's Family

My husband's side of the family lives in Missouri, so we traveled down to his parent's home to celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas. We all gathered on Friday to celebrate Christmas and eat a home-cooked Thanksgiving meal. My mother-in-law is a wonderful cook, so everything was delicious. After dinner and desserts, we passed out gifts and watched all of the children open their gifts. Malana was thrilled, because she received 6 Webkins. She now has 10 Webkins in her collection. Grandma and Grandpa even gave her a shelf to display her new collection in her room. Alex opened his gifts and was excited to get paintball equipment. He prepped his equipment and played paintball with his cousin both Friday and Saturday. This was a perfect gift for him. While we were visiting, we had lots of fun with family.

Our School's Annual Turkey Bowl

Well, the annual turkey bowl at our school was a big hit with the students. Each year the teachers practice their bowling expertise by bowling a frozen turkey down the gym floor to the waiting pins. There were a few strikes and lots of excitement. Since my back surgeries I have opted out of bowling in the turkey bowl and have invited some special "relatives" to come and bowl for me.

This year was especially unique since I invited "Grannie Stella" from Missouri to come join our fun. She was wheeled in by our principal and used her cane to get herself into position. Let me tell you, she was fabulous!!! She was able to knock down some pins and even bowled backwards through her legs. It was truly amazing. I will be forever grateful for her enthusiasm and willingness to bowl for me. (One of my collegues dressed up as Grannie and played the part very well. Her bowling debut as "Grannie Stella" is in remembrance of my husband's real Grandma Stella who was always full of energy and enthusiasm.)

My 40th Birthday

Well, my 40th birthday has come and gone. I actually lived through the ordeal and have entered the "dark"side with others who are also in their 40's (This is how one of my coworkers described entering your 40's). I thought it was pretty clever. My husband really surprised me! He brought cake and ice cream to school, so I could share my birthday joy with my colleagues. What a man! He set up everything with our secretary and had everyone waiting in the lounge at the end of the day. My cake had the grim reeper and black balloons for decoration! Oh, and of course the big 4..0.. to top it off.

My students and the other third grade class surprised me with a shower of homemade cards. My class was so excited and couldn't wait to sing Happy Birthday to me. Just when I thought we were settled for the day, they had another gift for me. This gift was one that they had been working on for a week. My students kept the secret for a whole seven days! They each posed with a different face of Mrs. Pashea. All of the faces are permanently framed in a collage of faces for me to treasure forever. But wait, that's not all, the staff also made faces for me too. Their interesting faces are also framed in a collage to remind me of how much I communicate through my expressions. It is really scary!!!! What wonderful and unique gifts I was given. They will give me many laughs and remind me of all of the kind people that made my 40th birthday a spectacular day.

Meeting Patricia Polacco

On Saturday we went to Barnes and Noble to meet Patricia Polacco, one of my very favorite children's authors. Malana and I chose 2 books for her to sign, Someone for Mr. Sussmann and For the Love of Autumn. They were her lastest releases. We anxiously waited in line to meet her for about 45 minutes. Malana and I read both of her books while we waited and of course, they are wonderful. As our line crept closer, we finally got a glimpse of her. She looked just like her pictures you see of her. Wow!! Alex kept saying, "I am going to meet a celebrity!" Malana kept trying to peek through the people in line and eventually saw her. After a few more minutes, it was finally our turn. She had a wonderful and caring personality. She talked with Malana and asked her a few questions about where she went to school and what grade she was in. When Malana said "Kendallville", Patricia said, "I think I have been to Kendallville." Malana's eyes got really big. After she signed both of our books, she allowed us to take a picture with her. Alex, Malana, and I actually took our picture with a "celebrity". What a wonderful experience for our family.

Indoor Soccer

On Saturday Alex received a call about playing indoor soccer at CCC in Waterloo. He immediately jumped at the opportunity to play more soccer. On Sunday, he ventured into a new arena and experienced his first game of indoor soccer. Boy, what a difference there is!! Everything moves much faster. I mean much faster. It was really exciting to watch. Alex will be learning a great deal about the fundamentals of soccer and about playing different positions. He will be learning more about being the goalie which is his favorite position. As we watched the game, we were amazed at the amount of skills the other team's players had. They had older players and were able to move the ball skillfully on the field. Our team stuck with it and played their best, but they know they have a lot to learn. We think that this will be a great experience for Alex. As we watched his game, he was smiling a great deal. He could not thank us enough for giving him the opportunity to play. He kept saying, "Man, that was fun!"

Halloween Fun

Tonight the kids enjoyed trick-or-treating together. As usual, there was the bustle of lots of children going from house to house. Malana decided she wanted to be a witch and Alex dressed as a pirate. Arggg!! When we returned home after lots of walking, they both dumped their candy on the living room floor and began the counting phase. Each of them count their candy and decide which pieces they can trade. Meanwhile, mom and dad sneak a few pieces to eat!

We also enjoyed our annual pumpkin carving event at the kitchen table. Malana and Alex designed their pumpkin faces while Dad observes and helps when necessary. This year Malana decided on a happy face for her pumpkin while Alex (I will let you decide!) designed a much more unique pumpkin face. Since Malana loves pumpkin seeds, I baked the seeds while they finished their masterpieces. Somehow though I still got the job of cleaning out the remains from the inside of each pumpkin to be sure the candle could be seen. I wonder whose idea this was? Hmmm!!!