First Letter from Chad & Address

Chad has been at basic training for three weeks and yesterday we received our first letter from him.  Highlights from his letter:

** He loved his first plane ride.

**The first day of training they went through an obstacle course which he described as being very challenging. (His word, "Hell!")

**He is making friends and likes his drill sergeants. (They are all "cool.")

**The food is good.

**Sleep has been irregular, but he is dealing with it okay.

Here is his address if you would like to send him a note of encouragement. He will be there until mid-September:

Private, Maronge-Pustka, Chad

3rd Platoon

165 INFBDE

C Co, 2-39 REGT

10400 Hampton Parkway

Fort Jackson, SC 29207

Chad's Senior Ring Ceremony

Last night Chad's high school had their ring ceremony for all of the Juniors who are now becoming seniors. I thought that I had avoided all clothes drama by having boys, but even they have their moments. First, we had problems buttoning the top button on Chad's dress shirt. We had gotten it several months ago and I swear that his neck must have grown an inch since then. After the buttoning process, Todd helped Chad with his tie and he looked great. A few minutes later, we are in the car and Chad decides that the tie is too tight and takes it off. We are then pulling out of the driveway and he realizes that he forgot to put his belt on. Running right on schedule, we just decided to to with it and not go back for the belt. The dress code wasn't strict, so it all worked out.

The stage is set up so that each Junior's name is called and he/she then walks out on the stage and is presented his/her ring by the principal. To make it interesting, many of the students add their own personality to the walking out process. Some wave, some do a little dance, some pretend to fall, etc. My favorites were a male student who did a back flip and a female student that threw up a handful of glitter and walked under it as it fell. Chad was low key and did a cool hand signal.

After all of the students are presented with their rings, they all put them on at the same time and are declared "Seniors." Chad had a great time and said that it was one of the happiest moments of his life. We loved being there with you and watching you shine!

The stage

Family photo

The ring! (Chad chose to get his birthstone color.)

Chad making his entrance on stage to get his ring.

The proud senior!

How Time Flies!

It is amazing how children seem to grow up overnight! Just a few years ago, Chad looked like this:

Tonight his his high school's home coming dance and he looked like this:

What a grown up young man you have become...wow! We are so proud of you and hope you have fun at the dance.

Here are a few more photos from the night:

Joan and Chad

Joan, Chad and Todd

And of course we had to get one with Gwen!

Happy Birthday, Chad

Wow, I can't believe that you are sixteen years old today. How awesome is that! They say that the teenage years are the roughest and that may be true, but I do love watching you grow and change from the little boy that you into the man that you are becoming. Hope you have a super, wonderful, awesome birthday!

Since today is a school day, we had some pre-birthday cookie cake last night. Here are some pics of that:

 My two loves!

 Here is a photo of you from xmas 2007. Look how much you have changed since then!

Non Traditional Christmas

Since the boys are older and don't believe in Santa Claus anymore, we decided to take a nontraditional approach to gift giving this year. Instead of opening presents from "Santa" Christmas morning under the tree, we decided to have them find their presents by following clues that led them from place to place within the house. Since they are out of school and received electronics, we did this a few days early so they would get in more play time before going back to school in January.

Todd and I sat down one afternoon and came up with all the clues for the game. We decided to make the first clue in code, so that they would have to put a little bit of brain power into it. It was really just the clue written backwards, so they both got it pretty quickly.

A couple of weeks ago I had them fill out Elf applications that I found on the internet. They asked me now and again since then what those applications were for. I just told them they had to wait and see, so that added a little to the fun. Their applications ended up being "Approved" and that qualified them to receive their first clue. Evan was a little more happy to go along with the story, but we all had fun doing it in the end.

The first video is of them figuring out the first clue and Chad finding his presents. The second video is of Evan following his clues. He didn't want to be taped through the house, so Todd agreed to only tape him actually finding the clues and opening his presents. Thus, it is a bit choppy.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Birthday Chad!

How time flies! I can't believe that you are 15 years old today! I have watched you grow from an adorable little boy with the longest eyelashes into a young man who is anxious for new experiences and finding out what this world is all about. I loved you from the moment I laid eyes on you and love you even more today. Here are some photos of you when you were little. Hope you enjoy them and have an awesome birthday!

 4th Birthday

 5th Birthday

Being a great big brother.

 

Your first day of kindergarten.

My favorite, Adoption Day!

 Still watching out for your little brother.

All grown up (almost) and ready for fun!

Busy Weekend

Since the summer seems to be flying by, we are trying to cram as much fun into it as possible. This weekend was non-stop fun. Both the boys had friends come over. Evan's friend spent the night on Friday night and they played video games and watched t.v. until the wee hours of the morning. All that activity made them very hungry, so I took them to an all you can eat buffet for lunch on Saturday while Todd and Chad did some shopping.

The restaurant is one of our favorites because They have a lot of variety and everyone can find something they like. Because of that Evan said it was a 5 star restaurant. His friend agreed and so I asked them what other restaurants they rated 5 star. They both had McDonalds and Burger King on their lists as well as some other local chain restaurants. We definitely have different criteria when it comes to our 5 star ratings!

Saturday night was date night for Todd and I so we went to dinner and a play at our local downtown theater. It was a musical, which I love, but can't say is Todd's favorite kind of performance. I have to kid with him every time we see a musical because during the first one we ever went to, he fell asleep. It was many years ago when we went to the Texas state fair in Dallas and Robert Goulet was starring in South Pacific. I do have to say that we had walked around the fair all day and that probably contributed to the sleepiness more than the performance, but it is one of those funny stories we won't ever forget.

On Sunday I finally took Chad to see the new Harry Potter movie. I have read all of the books, so I probably wanted to see it as much or more than he did. We met Chad's friend there and then he came home with us and they spent the afternoon playing video games and basketball. It was sprinkling off and on, but they didn't let that spoil any of their fun.

Todd finally got to mow in the morning. It has been raining her pretty much every day and the grass is growing like crazy. He then took Evan to a birthday party in the early afternoon. When Evan got home, he was ready to play outside. He played some basketball with the big guys, shot his pellet gun and searched the ditch for minnows. He found a couple and was happy with his "catch."

One of Evan's minnows.

Evan posing with his newly filled aquarium.

 It was a fun day...now time for a good bath!

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Early Birthday Present

Chad's birthday isn't until August, so he was thrilled today when we gave him an early birthday present, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows II video game for the Wii. It does make sense to give him some time to play it now since his birthday is the day after school starts, right? Bummer!



He started playing late this afternoon and went strong until the batteries in the controller went dead at about 9:00 p.m. I am so glad to see him have a great time!

Here is a pic of my other two cuties:



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Texas Fun

We met my brother on Saturday so that he could pick up the boys and take them to Texas. They are going to stay with my parents for a week and then stay with him for the second week. They were both excited about the trip and having fun 24 x 7.

Evan went nuts for the escalator at the Isle of Capri, where we ate lunch, and must have gone up and down at least twenty times. We definitely need to hit an amusement park, soon. Have fun y'all!

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Summer Update

It is only the beginning of summer and already very HOT! Evan is going to day camp and Chad did some volunteer work there for the last few weeks. Being inside a gym and swimming has sure helped them beat the heat. I'm sure that the daily snowballs have helped a bit, too.

Evan got his own part time job this week and is taking care of our neighbors' garden and cat while they are on vacation. He loves watering, feeding the cat and picking vegetables. The promise of getting paid helps, too. Here is some of what he came home with the other day:

 Yum, it finally looks like I am going to get some tomatoes!

Chad is looking forward to this weekend because he is going to participate in a youth conference called Stubenville on the Bayou. It lasts from Friday through Sunday and involves teens not only from Louisiana, but also from Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and Tennessee. It is spiritual in nature and he will get to enjoy music, activities, prayers, etc., with the other 3000 attendees. I can't wait to hear about his experience when he gets home on Sunday!

In addition to being hot, it has also been dry. We finally got some much needed rain last week. We also had some pea size hail and thunder, which I discovered Gwen didn't like too much when I found her hiding under our bed.

 Did the thunder stop yet?

My husband has been quite handy this summer. We needed to get the boys some furniture for their playroom so they would have a place to sit when they play video games or watch t.v. We decided on a futon, which of course had to be assembled. Todd, with a little help from Evan, put it together in a snap. They are enjoying it already.

Handy Man

Evan observing (and hopefully learning)!

 Chad enjoying the futon (and not having to sit on the floor)!

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Chad's Project

Todd has been helping Chad finish the trash can that he started building last semester in shop. I am so glad because it is almost finished and that bit of help from Todd seems like it is giving Chad some much needed motivation. Here is the progress so far:

Chad hammering a nail in, but is not totally correct on his technique.

Todd taking the hammer from Chad.

Hammering lessons from the Master!

Now we move onto staining. Yea!

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Craft Projects

The long Memorial weekend seemed like a great time for craft projects. We made a trip to Michael's on Saturday and Evan got a helicopter model kit. He couldn't wait to put it together, but within 15 minutes complained that the kit didn't include all of the pieces. Todd came to the rescue, found the missing pieces and helped him put it together.

The finished product turned out well and Evan had a lot of fun making it.

He then decided that he wanted to make some of his own Pokemon cards. He found a website that let's you upload a photo and then make and print the cards out. He attached a real Pokemon card to the back, so the finished product looks a lot like the real thing. He has been busy making cards ever since.

Chad took a shop class at school this semester and picked a trash can as his project. He didn't quite finish it before school let out. It still needs a back to be attached and to be stained and varnished. It does look good so far, so I hope he stays motivated and finishes it.

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Chad Moves Up a Belt

Last week Chad was tested for a new belt in Tae Kwon Do. He is currently a red belt and wanted to move up to a red/black belt. There were a lot of students and parents in the class, so I could tell that it made him a little nervous. He did all of his forms and had a couple of errors, but was still able to pass and move up a belt. He has accomplished so much over the years in his skills and focus and I am so very proud of him!

 Striking a pose before testing.

 I got my new belt. What a relief!

Pupil and Teacher

Rainy Mardi Gras

The weatherman says we are going to have scattered showers all day. Todd and the boys are going to brave the rain and go to the parades. He made them some temporary rain jackets out of trash bags:

Okay, the first one didn't turn out too good.

That's better. Have fun, guys!

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Chad's Last Game

This week Chad has the last of his basketball games. He has improved so much in the past six weeks, it is really amazing. Most importantly, he has had a lot of fun being a part of a team which has been wonderful to watch.

We took a photo before his game and then he asked to take some photos with Gwen. She wasn't too cooperative at first, but did eventually stand still so I could get a shot of both of them.

 Ready for my last game!

 Gwen not wanting to cooperate with the picture taking.

Now, they are both looking!

Chad's Car

One of Chad's classes this semester is shop. He is learning all about designing projects and using wood working tools. His most recent project was making a wooden car. Here he is showing off his creation.




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Chad Starts Basketball

Chad signed up for TPR basketball again this year and has been practicing hard with his team for the past few weeks. They had their first game last night. They played hard but ended up losing in the end. At least they know what they need to work on now!

 Concentrating before the big game.

 Todd ready to cheer Chad on.

Why to you have to take my picture? I'm just here to watch!