Hoco 2025

 

Emily's school had its annual homecoming dance on the 13th. Being in a new school district, we weren't sure what to expect, but Emily thought it was important to go check it out. She decided to meet up with a friend of hers at the dance, which was scheduled from 7-11pm, but she was only there from about 7:30-9:30pm.

She was coming down with a cold, so she didn't have much energy for it. Plus, it turned out that the dance itself was "pretty lame." That's definitely a shame, but it also made my life easier because I didn't have to stay up past my bedtime to pick her up! 

Regardless of how the dance turned out, it did allow me to get some great photos of her! 

Back to School!

1st day outfit! 

Emily has been back in school for about a week and a half now. So far, it has been going really well. She has a very full schedule - Honors French, Honors Art, Fitness, Honors Biology, Honors Algebra, Choir, AP Human Geography, and Honors English. It is definitely a full schedule, but she really likes all of her teachers and the content is manageable because she has (1) more French background than everybody else, (2) a half year of Algebra under her belt from her prior school, and (3) already read the books they are planning to tackle in English this year. 

Friend-wise, she seems to be doing great. She has people she enjoys sitting with at lunch, and she feels like it has been pretty easy to make friends in class. The only hiccup so far has been the bus schedule. It went fine at first, but there have been substitute bus drivers lately, and they don't seem to be capable of following the schedule. So, most mornings, I drop her off on my way to work so that she isn't late, and then she takes the bus home in the afternoon, but she has taken to getting off earlier and walking farther to get home a little quicker. 

Camp Update

Emily absolutely LOVED her two weeks at French camp. It sounds like it was the perfect blend of structure and free time. Also, she said that everyone was really nice and the facilities were better than those at the camp she had attended in Texas for the past two years. She is absolutely committed to going back to French camp next year. 

On a walk around the lakes

She also decided that she would like to spend some additional time in Minnesota this summer, so rather than flying home and then flying back in August for the county fair, she is staying straight through. She says there is more to do there, which is probably true. Also, she hit it off with a boy named Atticus at camp (yes, his parents are English teachers and he is named after Atticus Finch). He lives pretty close to Chad, so the kids have been able to get together for movies, putt-putt golf, etc.

Sushi sisters

She has also been enjoying all the great food in Minneapolis. Sushi is one of her favorites, but she has also discovered the wonders of sweet-and-sour sauce in Chinese dishes, and appreciates the incredible pizza that is available. 

By the time Emily returns, a new school year will be just three days away! Where does the summer go? We ask every year, but never get a good answer. That said, Emily says she is happy to go back. Summer is great, but some structure is good, too.

Fifteen + One Week

I am overdue for a Happy Birthday post. Emily has already spent a week as a 15-year-old. It was a very laid-back birthday. She didn't want a party and even dragged her feet on having a special dessert. In the end, she opted for some macarons.

15-year-old Emily

Emily's one request was that we do some shopping. She loves going to the mall, so we did that and also made a stop at Target. I got her a few presents from her list, but nothing too exciting. She also has some presents waiting for her in Minnesota, so she has that to look forward to when she heads up there in a couple of weeks.

Although it looks like we went out for dinner for her birthday, we did not. The photo above was actually taken a few days after her birthday when we went for French food. It's proving to be a relatively quiet summer. Despite all the time on her hands, she hasn't started tackling her driver's ed course yet, so I suppose that is one less thing for me to worry about as she gets older. LOL.

School's Out for Summer!

Last day of school photo

As you can tell, Emily was pretty happy about the last day of school. She has really enjoyed the change and the friends she has made, but it is also nice to sleep in once in a while.

The last day concluded with an 8th-grade walkout, which the parents were invited to attend. Emily was horrified at the idea that I might show up, so of course, I made sure to be really obnoxious about it. LOL. There wasn't much to it; they just left the school and did a lap around the track. I was able to get video at both the start and end of her lap.

In the first video, you will see her appear in a green dress right at the end of the video and work very hard to ignore me. In the second video, she has braced herself and is ready to more actively put an end to my shenanigans. LOL.
 

Now that summer is here, we have been figuring out how her days will look. In her mind, she should do whatever she wants, whenever she wants. In my mind, there are opportunities for her to help around the house, learn to type, and finally tackle that driver's ed course. We'll probably find an equilibrium just in time for her to head up to Minnesota for three weeks (two of which will be at French camp).

Gearing up for summer

It is hard to believe that Emily's school year will end in just a few weeks. Her classes are already winding down. They have been doing standardized testing each week, but as soon as a given class is done with its required testing, the teachers lighten up and let the kids watch movies, etc. 

Now that the weather is nice, Emily has also been hanging out with friends at the park next to the school. She still has the same boyfriend, and sometimes he and his twin brother are part of the group that goes to the park, but her circle of friends is definitely starting to widen. The group meets at least two afternoons a week, and sometimes a friend or two will come home with her. Most of her friends seem to live within a mile of the school, but being practically across the street makes our house an easy hangout spot. Of course, that will change next year when she goes to the 9th-grade campus, but for now, it is great.

As for summer plans, there still isn't much on the agenda, but we did manage to sign Emily up for a 2-week French immersion camp at the end of June. Hopefully, that will get her back in shape for honors French this fall. It has only been a few months since she was in French classes at her old school, but she is already getting rusty. 

This weekend, we will trek down to Houston to bring Abbie some furniture for her apartment. Hopefully, Abbie and Emily will get some good sister time, and Emily will get a good look at college life. She has not been to the campus in over a year, so I think it will be fun for her to see Abbie's dorm room and her apartment for next year, not to mention meeting some of her friends, etc.

Spring Break!

Time has flown by and it is already Spring Break next week! Emily still loves her new school. She is so much happier and has so much more energy, but she is still looking forward to the break. We don't have any big plans. The weather is going to be lovely, so hopefully she'll get outside a bit. She has an anime show she wants to binge, and has talked about getting together with some friends, but nothing is firm yet.

As I mentioned in my last post, there was a school dance just before Valentine's Day. The guy she got set up with, Preston, is still her boyfriend and she says he is really nice. However, I haven't met him yet. 

As you can imagine, she was very excited about the dance.

And, as luck would have it, Abbie was home for a long weekend, so the sisters had some bonding time while Abbie helped Emily get ready.

Emily looked great, but the dance itself turned out to be pretty lame. Go figure, it's middle school. There was music and dancing in the gym and games, etc. in the cafeteria. However, everything needs to be G-rated, so the gym was lit up bright as day, there was no slow dancing allowed, and the music was way too loud. Definitely not what she had hoped for.

Emily is starting to think about what she wants to do with her summer, but we need to formalize the plan or the time will just slip by. I would like her to take a typing course, she has a driver's ed course she needs to take, and I expect she will spend some time in Minnesota. However, we need to arrange some out-of-the-house day-to-day activities. She has signed up to be a volunteer in the community, so that is one option, but we'll have to see what else we can come up with.

A New School

 

1st Day of School (again)

 

Emily started at her new school a few weeks ago and it has been a big change in so many ways. In addition to there being no uniforms, she has been pleasantly surprised to discover that she can eat in class, people are incredibly friendly, her teachers are nice, and there is basically no homework. Needless to say, she is much happier with the whole situation. She walks over in the mornings and walks back in the afternoons, which makes my life easier. She is allowed to bring a lunch from home so we can pack food that she actually likes, which means that she has more energy during the day. In the afternoons, she can get a workout in or just relax, depending on how she feels. It has been great and she is so glad that we decided to move mid-year. 

She has already submitted her requests for next year's classes and gone on a tour of the high school. It will be big -- 1,000 9th graders all on one campus together, but she doesn't seem to mind the increased size. Other excitement -- she is looking forward to a school dance that is coming up on February 13th. One of the girls set her up with a guy in her grade, so I guess she has a "date" for the dance. She doesn't know the guy much at all, so there is a bit of trepidation there, but I'm sure she will be fine. I'll be sure to get photos!

Merry Christmas?

Yes, it has been an insanely long time between posts and there is definitely news to report. But first, I need to do a Christmas update. As usual, we opened a few gifts on Christmas Eve and then saved the rest for Christmas Day. The gifts we opened on Christmas Eve tipped Emily off that something was wrong, very wrong. When she woke up on Christmas morning, she quietly said, "Mom, I think you and Dad used the wrong list."

Sisters

In fact, we had used the wrong list! She had started a list of clothes that she wanted for school and then separately started a Christmas list. Ultimately, she shared the clothing list with me, but not the Christmas list. I kept telling her that I didn't see the things she said she wanted on the list she shared, but neither of us took the time to put two and two together. So, the end results is that she got a bunch of clothes for Christmas, but nothing else. And, Chad and I now have more shopping to do! LOL.

How could this happen? And why does Emily need clothes for school? Well, both questions have the same answer. Since my last post, I bought a house, which we moved into on the 23rd. It is in a district with great public schools, so Emily will now be a public school kid - no more uniforms! That said, it also means that the past month has been incredibly hectic, which is why I just grabbed a list and ran with it. Oops.

Anyway, this means that Emily is switching schools midyear, which she is okay with. Her new school is across the street from our house, so she will be able to walk there when the weather is reasonable. Next year, she will switch to the 9th grade campus, which will be a drive (or a bus ride), but even that won't be more than 10 minutes away.

Halloween

Before it becomes too much of a distant memory, I thought I would give a quick Halloween update. First, Emily did some market research on the whole Killer Queen idea and decided to kill it. It turns out that "Killer Queen" means absolutely nothing to the kids in her grade. LOL. So, she just went as a prison inmate.

I thought I would be able to get more photos later in the day, but that didn't happen, so these are the only two that show her costume. She went to a Halloween party in the evening, but didn't do any trick-or-treating. On the one hand, she said she didn't want to, but on the other hand, she thought it was sad that she didn't. She did help me pass out candy, though. We had a good turnout, with people ranging from probably 4-years old to 20-years old. 

As is usually the case, the whole holiday went too quickly, but there is always next year!

Quick Check In

Yes, it has been a long time between posts, so I thought it would be good to do a quick check in, particularly since last week was a week of check ins for Emily. We had her 14-year check up with the pediatrician and her fall parent-teacher conference with her advisor. Not surprisingly, she is doing great on both fronts. She is officially 5'3" which is over an inch taller than last year at this time and she is expected to continue growing, so there is no doubt that she will be taller than both me and Abbie. School-wise, she is doing well in her classes. However, the workload this year has been significantly greater than the past few years, much to her dismay. Also disappointing, she feels like she hasn't really connected with any of her teachers this year. In past years there has always been at least one teacher that she really liked and that seemed to really like her. That definitely makes classes feel more like drudgery.

Emily has taken an interest in learning to sew, so I found a woman that she can take sewing lessons with. We had one lesson a few weeks ago and she took to it really well. Unfortunately, school has kept her so busy that she hasn't been able to practice with it since then. Hopefully she will still remember what she learned when she finally gets a chance to work on it again.

She is also busy with babysitting gigs. She now has two families in the neighborhood that she babysits for. The one job just requires her to play endless hours of dinosaurs and transformers with a 4-year-old boy. The other job is a bit more demanding in that there is a 6-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy, both of which sound pretty active. It tires her out, but both jobs are walking distance and both pay very well, so that is good.

Emily's favorite holiday, Halloween, is just around the corner. She has a prison inmate costume that she is planning to wear. She is considering splattering it with blood (red paint, obviously) and wearing a tiara with it, which would make her a Killer Queen. LOL. She has a party that she is planning to attend, but she isn't sure how late she is going to stay out on Thursday, as she has been so busy and tired lately. Regardless, I will be sure to get photos!

Back to School!

Ready for the back-to-school party

The summer that seemed like it would never end has gone too fast. Emily's class had their back-to-school party at Pinstripes last Friday. We went and set up her locker yesterday. Today is the first official day, although it is only a half day. 

1st day of school!

Her schedule involves the usual suspects - art, show choir, English, French, cross country, honors algebra, physical science, and world history. The biggest challenge will be for both of us to adjust our sleep schedule. I have become accustomed to going to bed late and sleeping in, so having to be out the door before 8am this morning was a little painful for me, but Emily was pretty chipper about it!

Keeping Cool

All in all, it hasn't been too bad of a summer so far. We have been trying to keep cool, though. We tried the pool one day. It felt lovely, but the chlorine bothered Emily's skin, even after just a couple of hours in the water. 

To try something completely different, we decided to take a short trip to Carlsbad, NM to see the caverns. It was still hot during the day, but the low humidity made the mornings and evenings really lovely. Of course, the caverns themselves were very cool, which felt great. 

Emily was okay with the trip but her opinion is that if you've seen one rock, you've seen them all, so she lost interest in the caverns pretty quickly. LOL.

 

Tomorrow, she will return home from another week in Minnesota, which provided some cooler weather, but also a lot of rain. She won't have to worry about that when she returns home. We aren't expecting rain any time soon (sadly).

We are just about three weeks from Emily's first day of school, so I have already started ordering her books and we have already picked up most of her school supplies. Now, she just needs to get that pesky summer work done!

Summer Camp

For the 2nd year in a row, Emily had a great time at summer camp. She came home saying, "I loved it! I can't wait to go back next year. The food was gross and there were flies all over it, the lake was gross and smelly, and some of the girls in my cabin were really rude." Um, what? LOL.

Birthday at Camp

Apparently, despite all the downsides, she really appreciated the time without technology. It sounds like she had plenty of time to reflect, write and draw in her journal, and enjoy the peace and quiet.

Cards with Lola

Ready for the Dance

Unfortunately, she started noticing a sore throat shortly before camp ended. By the time she came home, she had a fever and felt pretty miserable. It turned out to be an adenovirus that dogged her for the next couple of weeks, so the rest of June was pretty subdued. She did a short trip to Minnesota, but was pretty fatigued for most of it. 

Now that July is here and she is back to her old self, she has gotten back to doing daily workouts. We have also managed to do some organizing in her room, which will come in handy when school starts again. As for her summer work, that is still on the "to-do" list. Somehow it always comes down to the last minute!

Happy 14th Birthday, Emily!

It's hard to believe that 14 years have flown by already, but they have! This birthday is unique in that it is the first one for which Emily has not spent the day with us. Yesterday, I dropped her off for two weeks at summer camp. When we booked it, she knew that she would be celebrating her birthday at camp, but she was totally fine with it.

On the way to camp!

We sent along bubble wands and noise makers for her cabin mates, so hopefully that will be fun. If nothing else, maybe it will be a good way to break the ice with a bunch of girls she has never met before. There should also be birthday cake at camp, so all is not lost. LOL.

With her camp counselors

Because she knew she would be at camp for her actual birthday, Emily had a small birthday party last Friday. It was a low key swim party. We got lucky and the weather cooperated and the girls seemed to have fun together. 

Lounging in the pool

Unfortunately, we also discovered that Emily, who loves to swim, has developed a sensitivity to chlorine. It turns her cheeks bright red and causes them to sting terribly. Aunt Elizabeth recommended a product that can help, so we will have to try it when she returns from camp. In the meantime, she is going to try to avoid putting her face in the water as much as possible. Easier said than done, no doubt.

As for the rest of summer, Emily is doing a one-week, half-day fashion camp after she returns from sleep away camp. Then, she is going to Minnesota for about a week. Beyond that, we don't have much for plans, but she and I may arrange a few day trips. I'll keep you posted!

Action!

After a couple months of very little activity, Emily finally has some new events to report on. She recently returned from a week in Vicksburg, Mississippi. Her class spent 4 days and 3 nights visiting museums, etc. 

On the bus!

Fancy dinner

She shared a hotel room with three other girls (which is always taxing) and the schedule was jam-packed to avoid any idle hands issues, so she came home pretty tired. Fortunately, she had a long weekend to recover. 

She also got invited to one of the biggest social events of the year - a bat mitzvah party for one of the girls in her grade. The evening portion was a neon party at an event center downtown. There was tons of dancing, food, music, etc. 

Pre-party

This also made for a tired Emily, as the party ran from 7pm - 11pm, so she didn't get to sleep until almost midnight. Although the party was on a Saturday, Monday morning school seemed to come a bit too quickly for her liking. 

Finally, we had her spring choir concert on Tuesday this week. I managed to get a decent video of one of the pieces. You can see Emily on the first row of risers with her hair in a French braid. The song is pretty long, but even a few seconds of it will give you a sense of what she has been working on in show choir this year.

As for the rest of the school year, Emily's last regular day of class is next Friday, which is the same day as Abbie's graduation. Emily has her end-of-year class party at a rollerskating rink that afternoon and then Abbie's ceremony is in the evening, so it will be a busy day. The following week, Emily will have a few final exams, but I don't think it will be anything too major. Then, summer break!!

Quick Update

A recent BeReal selfie

I have not gotten any good photos of Emily lately, so I had her send me a recent photo so I would have something to post. Life has been very quiet around here. Her biggest interest right now, besides drawing, is actually strength training. She is taking a weightlifting class for her PE requirement this spring, so she spends every afternoon in the gym. She is very into getting stronger and developing some muscles. At home, she finds all sorts of workout videos online that she likes. I did one of the arm videos with her one day and it was miserable. :) She really likes the challenge of a good workout, though, and she likes seeing that she is getting better at it over time. 

Other than that, she is ready for summer vacation. She is still doing well in school, but she is tired and ready for a break. Her two-week summer camp is early this year, so she will get a little bit of a break, but then will head to camp by the beginning of June. She is really excited about it, though. As long as the weather is a little cooler than last year, she will be in good shape!

Spring Break

Just a quick update - Emily is very excited to have made it to Spring Break. It is a pretty laid back break for her. With Abbie and me heading to Jamaica for a few days, Emily will hang out with Chad, while also making sure that the cats don't get too bored. :)

She continues the constant hunt for scary movies. She watched Bone Marrow recently. It was recommended by Abbie's friend Eleanor. I didn't watch most of it with her, but what little I did see looked awful. I think she agreed that the story was pretty depressing. She also likes dystopian films, so last night we watched I Am Mother. This one actually got a good Rotten Tomatoes score, but I don't think either of us were happy with the ending.

As for what else has been going on over the past month or so, the answer is 'not much.' The girls competed in the Show Choir Invitational, but it sounds like it was sort of a comedy of errors, so they didn't place very well, 13th or 14th as I recall, but I don't know how many teams were there. School continues to go well and Emily seems to stay on top of her work without much prodding from me. She is already starting to think about summer break, though. She is looking forward to pool weather and her two weeks at sleep away camp.

No News is Good News?

A whole month has gone by and there is very little to report. But, I suppose that no news is good news. Everything has been rolling along smoothly here. Emily is doing great in school this semester, really staying on top of her homework and exams. Her acne seems to be coming under control, which is good news and has her very relieved. 

Things have been pretty quiet on the friend front, but I did take her and a few friends to see Night Swim earlier this month. Emily was very excited about it because it is a horror movie, but is rated PG-13, so its not off limits. Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 22% on the Tomatometer, so there is that, but it sort of worked to our advantage in that the theater was empty when we were there. LOL. Movie quality aside, the girls seemed to have fun. Also this month, Emily discovered the Scream movie franchise. She devoured all six of them. I have to admit they do get sort of funny toward the end. 

Also this month, the middle school narratives arrived! Her are a few quotes from Emily's teachers:

From History:

I have loved getting to know Emily both in class and in advisory. I love seeing her artistic skills on display, whether it's in project form or in the margins of her notes. Something I especially love about Emily is her ability to incorporate creativity and even humor into her assignments while still making sure that historical content is front and center.

From English:

From the very beginning, Emily demonstrated both her serious work ethic and her love of learning as an English student. No matter what the activity, she is always ready to engage with the day's lesson, and her enthusiasm and insights add greatly to the class culture. In fact, Emily is such a committed English student that she asked to start a club for students with a similar love of reading, writing, and literary discussion. When Emily writes about literature, she also displays an ability to make abstract connections that are beyond her years. 

From French:

Emily's quiet determination is a lovely contrast to the occasional hullabaloo which can exist in this class! I love her individuality and the way she takes care of her work without fuss.

From Science:

Emily is always willing to volunteer and help in class. She is a very hard worker and you can tell that she takes her academics seriously. She has a great personality and makes me feel good when she pretends to laugh at my not so funny science jokes.

Math, Choir, and Drama had nice things to say, as well, but these were the quotes I liked the most. As we head into February, Emily is looking forward to the three-day weekend for Presidents' Day and is getting ready for a Show Choir competition at the end of the month!

Winter Break

Annual School Photo

Emily has been having a good winter break, but it is going too quickly. She can hardly believe there is less than a week left before school starts again. She is definitely not ready to go back. She did get those two bottom teeth extracted, and has slowly adapted to chewing with even fewer teeth in her mouth. Other than that, there hasn't been too much excitement to report. Her face rash cleared up but she is still struggling with lots of acne. I suppose it comes with the territory when one is 13. 

Christmas Day

I think she had a good Christmas this year. It was a bit different without Santa, but again, that comes with the territory at this age. The elf didn't appear right away, but apparently she didn't want to see Frisbee anyway. Poor Frisbee. She also wasn't particularly interested in watching Christmas movies, complaining, "I have seen this so many times." LOL. She got lots of good bedroom decor this year, which I think she was happy about, and also received the above-photographed Moose mug, just like in Christmas vacation. Abbie received one, too. I think Chad and I thought it was funnier than either of the girls did, though. 

As for New Year's Eve, I think we are planning on a rather quiet night. Abbie will likely be out with friends, so it will be up to me and Emily to pick a movie. I have had such a hard time convincing her to try good movies lately. I practically had to beg her to watch Ferris Bueller's Day Off earlier this week. She ended up enjoying it, but it was a miracle that she even tried it. Yesterday I tried to convince her to watch Uncle Buck, but no luck. Instead, we settled on Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, which is good, too.

Thelma and Louise

Other than movies, Emily has been entertaining herself by playing with the kittens - Thelma and Louise - that we got in November, doing daily workouts with her friend Morgan, having the occasional sleepover, reading a little bit, and drawing. She continues to be a pretty big homebody. I often invite her to accompany me to the store or out to eat, but she usually declines. Fair enough. There will be plenty of running around when school starts up again.

Holidaze

Trick-or-treating

All of the Halloween festivities feel like a lifetime ago. Emily had the two sleepovers - one at our house and one at a friend's house - and did her trick-or-treating. She didn't get much for candy, but it was fun to run around with a friend.

Sleepover

Perhaps needless to say, two weeks in a row of no-sleep activities left her pretty tired. Then, she and Abbie went to Minnesota for Thanksgiving, which made for a busier break than she would have had otherwise. 

Now, we are in the final push before Christmas break. She had her winter show choir concert last night and will have her winter theater production on the 13th. There will also be final exams to contend with. I am sure that the break will be a welcome relief when it finally arrives. She has been struggling with a mysterious rash on her face, likely an allergic reaction, which has been making it tough to sleep. And, her teachers seem to be piling on the homework and projects. So, as you can imagine, she is walking around in a bit of a daze, trying to keep up with everything.

So far, the only thing scheduled for the Christmas break, other than the holiday itself, is a tooth extraction. Yes, she needs to have two more baby teeth pulled to make room for some adult teeth. That is scheduled for the 19th and sounds to me like the perfect excuse for some much needed R&R!

Halloween Sleepover

Let the Halloween whirlwind begin! Today, the middle schoolers are wearing their costumes to school. Emily is going as Alice in Wonderland this year. Originally, the plan was to be 'Demented Alice in Wonderland' but I guess the 'demented' part was going to be too difficult to explain so she just went with the original.

Tonight, Emily is having six girls over for a Halloween sleepover. We have decorated the house with a few spiderwebs and gourds. Emily has plans for pizza, all sorts of junk food, and a movie. I am a bit worried about the drama that can come from shoving all these girls into a small space for a long time, but Emily says, "Oh yeah, don't worry. There is always crying at a sleepover party. It usually happens at 3am when people are overtired." Ugh. Perhaps this is part of the Halloween terror. 

For the actual Halloween, she is planning to go to a grade-level party with a friend of hers. Then, next weekend, one of her friends is having a belated Halloween/birthday sleepover. Hopefully this will be enough Halloween-related activity for her.

In other news, we had her annual check up a few weeks ago. She continues to grow and is currently 5'1.75" to be exact. She is incredibly excited because the doctor now projects her to be at least 5'5" tall. Having always been the littler little sister, she is very excited about the prospect of being the bigger little sister. We also had her parent-teacher conference yesterday. Not surprisingly, she is doing great and her teachers are happy with her. :)

7th Grade!

Its hard to believe, but Emily has been in school for almost three weeks already. So far, 7th grade has been going well and the friend situation seems to be under control. She likes some of her teachers better than others, but that is to be expected. The biggest piece of her schedule that took a little while to nail down was her athletic requirement. She started the year enrolled in field hockey, but very quickly realized that she knew nothing about field hockey and had no interest in playing it. Instead, she switched to cross country and seems happy with the choice. On days that are too hot, they stay in the weight room and she seems to have taken to that as well. 

Obligatory 1st day of school photo

A couple days before classes started, one of Emily's friends arranged for one last summer hurrah - a bunch of girls got together for dinner and a live performance of Frozen. Emily was a little torn on whether she wanted to sit through a musical or not, but she was so glad that she did. She absolutely loved the show. 

Since school has been in session, there have been a few football games and a few sleepovers on the weekends, but nothing as fancy as their evening at the theater.

As we inch into fall, Emily's thoughts naturally turn towards Halloween - her favorite holiday. There is at least one scary movie on her "must see" list that is either already in theaters or will be soon. She also already has plans for her costume, but I can't give it away yet!

Summer Camp

It has been a couple weeks since Emily returned from her two-week adventure at summer camp. The short version of the story is that she really enjoyed it, but she doesn't plan to go back. LOL.

Induction Ceremony for Trojans vs. Spartans

The longer version of the story is that she really enjoyed the people she met - lots of girls that she really enjoyed hanging around with and getting to know. However, 14 days/nights in 100+ degree temperatures without any air conditioning, even at night, was not her favorite. 

Neon Dance

She definitely came back with more maturity and confidence. She now knows that she can spend two weeks away from home and do great on her own. The key is just to find a camp with cooler temperatures or air conditioning!

Hawaiian Dance

One thing the camp was really great about was taking tons of photos and uploading them daily. Then, the app software used facial recognition technology to identify photos of your child and highlight them for you. That definitely saved me from hours of scrolling!

They also made it easy to send emails every day, which definitely helped with initial homesickness. Emily received at least one letter every day she was in camp. She became friends with a girl who had been attending camp for four years and had only ever received one letter, which was to tell her that her grandparent had died. Poor thing. 

The girls all exchanged phone numbers so hopefully they will keep in touch. There is one girl who only lives about an hour from us, so maybe they will even get together at some point.

When I picked her up, I was pleased to see that Emily did a great job keeping track of all of her stuff. We got her home, got everything washed, and got her settled in. She still has some summer homework to complete, but the first day of school is still over a week away so I guess there is plenty of time. LOL.

Dog Days of Summer

We have reached that point where the only options for keeping cool are hiding in the air conditioning or finding a place to swim. Emily has been doing both over the last couple of weeks. After two weeks in Minnesota, during which she kept busy with day camps, shopping, and a Taylor Swift concert, she returned home and has been swimming, playing with water balloons, and going to water parks with friends.

Pre-concert

 

If you look carefully at Emily's hand in the photo above, you will see the other big development from this summer - we finally got her a phone of her own. I think it will come in handy when the school year starts up again, but for now, she doesn't use it much.

Late into the Night

Other than trying to stay cool, we have been busy getting Emily ready for her two-week camp adventure, which starts on Sunday. She has a huge packing list and everything needs to be well-organized and labeled. This camp seems like a pretty well-run machine with all sorts of systems in place for getting campers moved in and settled.

She will be in a rustic cabin with 8-12 girls and 2-3 counselors. There is no electricity, so no lights and definitely no air conditioning. Fortunately, I think the kids spend a lot of time in the lake and the pool during the days, but I don't know how comfortable the nights will be for sleeping. It sounds like they keep everyone pretty busy, but also provide downtime in the afternoons, so hopefully she will have fun but won't be run too ragged. 

Once she returns from camp, there are a mere two weeks left before school starts up again. Hard to believe!