Seven Quick Takes afterall

Maybe this will end up as a Friday quick takes post and maybe it'll just be a little train of thought.  Jake's school picks two kids from each class for the school wide spelling bee.  The winners go to the county spelling bee, then I guess regionals, state, etc... Well I will be the first to admit that Jake is really smart.  Spelling however is generally not his thing.  As in 2 years ago when he took the California Achievement Test he scored in the 33rd percentile.  Guess who got picked to represent his class?!  That same day he also came home with the PE award.  Jake can dance and can play a little bit of basketball or baseball, but when naming his many many strengths, usually spelling and physical fitness are absent from the list.  This has me thinking.  Did he get these things because he's so well behaved?  Here's the thing, "well behaved" isn't necessarily his thing either (but I know he is very well behaved in school).  Ask anyone who knows Jake, he's smart, funny, can sing like crazy, can name all the presidents, is good at math, is a picky eater, can recite every episode of Seinfeld, can do amazing card tricks, and lots of other things.  Spelling, behaving, and PE are not in his top 10 (or top 50).  He is thriving in school, there's no doubt about that.  Is he thriving to the extent that he should continue in public school next year?  (as of now that is not the plan)  Is he thriving because he was homeschooled all these years?  Am I reading too much into this?

2. I think I will make this into a quick takes post and since take #1 was almost a post of it's own, the rest of them can and will be totally lame.  For example, I think I might make a cake this afternoon.

3. I've accomplished almost nothing today, and I'm pretty happy about it. 

4. Yesterday I successfully registered Jonathan for his big high school graduation celebration.  That took a lot of compiling of pictures and information.  Not to mention all of the time and energy it's taken over the last 18 years to get us to this point.  So yes, I am taking it easy today (or this week or this year...)

Baby picture that took a long time to find... how did we do it in the nondigital age?

5. Jake and Madi both got the parts that they wanted in the upcoming show, Music Man.  Madi is Marion and Jake is Marcelus.  It's going to be a good one!  Music Man was Madi's first show when she was six.  I'll dig up some old pictures eventually.  In the mean time, keeping in mind Music Man was over two years earlier than the start of this blog and when I started this blog this was Madi...

and now this is Madi...

6. My car is currently at the Honda place.  It's been acting like a real butt all week.  Apparently spark plugs will do the trick.  I feel like we've already replaced the spark plugs more in this vehicle than in any other one we've ever had.  I'm getting a little tired of this car.  I was the one who has felt for years that we need to be able to transport so many people and thus the 8 passenger vehicle has been a necessity.  Now I'm thinking if I couldn't babysit 2 little boys and transport 4 Chinese students at the same time, then I would be forced to say no to those things.  Kind of fits into my New Year's resolutions to do less.  Not that we are getting rid of the Pilot anytime soon, just thinking that if I couldn't drive tons of people all over the place, then I wouldn't have to.

7. And we'll end with a little bit of crazy stress that is three teenagers ready to go to theatre (one of whom is driving) and one 11 year old who has been outside playing all day in yesterday's clothes, never even had lunch, and now is scrambling to change, eat, and get out the door in a timely fashion. 

Bonus take...the crazy stress isn't too bad because I have completely taken myself out of it (no car and all) and the three teenagers are being extremely patient while the 11 year old gulps down his macaroni and cheese.  If I were the one driving, I'm sure I'd be screaming like a madwoman about how the others want to get there and blah blah blah, but the others, just waited calmly and everyone drove off peacefully.

For more quick takes go here.