11 Years, 9 Months...6th Grade, Quarter 2!

We have continued with virtual learning this month and will until January 18th or later.  Mom and Emily went back to school for a little bit, but then are now back home until January.  It is really strange to learn from home, but I am getting the hang of it.  I don't think so, but Mom and Dad think that I have been a lot more pleasant and focused and less anxious now that I do not have my phone during the day.  I'm just mad that they don't trust me!

I finished up the quarter with all A's and passing classes.  We had conferences with my math, English, and orchestra teacher.  We just switched core classes so I have math and English now, with world languages.  I'm excited to learn a little French and Spanish.

The only social thing I have been doing is volleyball.  I have been really cautious and started wearing my mask during practice before it was an expectation.  I was able to have a socially distant play date with Lila and Ella one day when the weather was nice.  Mom and I have attended quite a few orchestra instrument tuning sessions.  This last time, my bridge fell off my bass and it turns out that my D string is breaking and won't last much longer.

Our family bought pumpkins to carve or paint for Halloween. I was planning on making mine into an eyeball with a spherical white pumpkin inside a larger orange pumpkin in the shape of an eye.  I just never followed through to finish it.  We didn't go trick or treating for Halloween, but we did a drive through at Hy-Vee.  I dressed up as Ali Kreklow again at the last minute.  It was beautiful weather that day and I played soccer outside with Mom and Emily.  Papa Rodney bought us Shakespeare's Pizza to eat at home.

The other memorable thing that happened is that I got my 4 shots that I needed.  It only took 3 hours and 2 Xanax!  Dr. Prica was very patient and surprised that I was still completely alert by the end of the night.  He said he would have been knocked out.  I just get very anxious about things and can't help it.  I am hoping this gets easier as I get older!

Crazy eyes at the doctor's office

Trying to be brave

Ali Kreklow, part 2

Uma and Ali

Visiting Bryan and Cindy

12U Volleyball team

Beautiful day at the park

Two little monkeys jumping on the bed

Enjoying the empty park

11 Years, 8 Months...Homework and more homework!

School is in full swing!  I am working so hard on my schoolwork, often hours a day after classes are over.  I want my work to be perfect and I don't like to expect less than that.  (I did get all A's or passing on my progress report!)  Because of all the work and me getting older, I really like to spend all my time in my room. Because Dad is at work and Mom is working when she is home, I have regular-ish check ins with Grandma Kathy and McDonald's lunch visits with Nana Arden.  Starting next week, Mom and Emily will go back to school four days a week.  I am a little excited to have the house to myself during the day.  I kind of find my family annoying sometimes. 

I really love my science teacher Mrs. Duncan.  She is truly amazing and supportive.  I even got a nice handwritten postcard from her this week.  I also really like my EEE class and teacher.  I really enjoy social studies even though I'm not a huge fan of my teacher.  I really don't like RTI because I only do iReady and it is so boring!!!  I put a lot of effort into my FACS class and PE is ok.  I am enjoying orchestra as well and really like my teacher.  I have had to take my bass to be tuned, and to check out my bow because Twist chewed on the strings.  I was so mad I was chasing him around the house.  Luckily, it was easily fixed and my teacher wasn't mad.

We dropped off Catherine's birthday card at Aunt Lisa's and was able to update them on school.  I was more talkative there than I have been the entire time at home.  It was good to hear how my cousins were doing with online school.  We had Catherine's birthday Zoom the next day.

The one thing that I am able to do in person is volleyball.  We practice once a week and I am so glad to get out and see Taylor and Lila.  It just feels a little different this year and I don't know my teammates as well.

Our family went apple picking one Saturday.  Even though I didn't want to, I enjoyed it.  I got to eat some applesauce, apple pie, and apple crisp.  

Mom took Emily and me to Washington one Saturday.  It was really good to spend time with Grandma Kathy and Grandpa Tom, and then Papa Ron.  The visits lately seem so short, and that is probably because I don't know when I will see them the next time.

Apple picking fun

Passed out in bed with mom (a very rare photo!)

Backyard volleyball

Ellie-hide and seek champion!

11 Years, 7 Months...Here I come middle school!!!

I started Missouri Juniors volleyball this month!  Colleen is my coach, but sometimes we work with Molly or Leandra.  This is about the only interaction I get outside of our house, other than a couple outside get togethers.  I really love volleyball and I get nervous before every weekly practice.  I just want to do well.  I got to have my last couple of lessons with Trevor since school started.

I did get to go to Olga's birthday party on a patio at a restaurant.  Mom and Dad were very cautious about letting me go, but I did have a really good time.  My favorite part was after I thanked a waitress for her service and she came to thank me before I left because it made her night.  I felt so good after that and want to do more "making people's day!"  Mom and I wrote to the manager that night to let him know the impact it made on me and he wrote back!

I was able to have Ella over here to play.  It has been a long time since we hung out and it was nice to reconnect with her.  I also got to go to Lila's grandma's to go swimming one day.  It was really good to hang out with her in person.

I started playing Pokemon Go because Emily likes it.  I'm definitely not as into it as she is.  I only catch the "cute ones", but it's pretty fun.  I also did a study online to help the Mizzou Memory Lab.  It was pretty fun and I got paid to do it too!  I also went through all of my Lego Friends sets and put them all together again to make sure all the pieces were there and then took them all apart.  I think I will eventually like to sell them.  Mom doesn't think I will get the amount that I want to ask for them though.  We shall see!

Mom and Dad both went back to work so I have been home alone a lot, and sometimes I have to watch Emily.  We actually get along better when our parents are not around.  I do like to try and see what I can get away with when they are not here, like sneaking food.  

Now it is time for me to go back to school!  Mom has been staying home so I don't have to take care of Emily and I am able to concentrate on my work.  I was so excited to get my schedule, but it took a lot of researching to understand it!  I have FACS, orchestra, RTI, 10:00 lunch!, PE/EEE, Science, and Social Studies.  I really like my Science teacher, and I love the topics in Social Studies.  I got my upright bass and it takes up a huge corner of my room.  (We have yet to get the instrument out!)  I ended up changing my room around to accommodate it and had to take things off the wall.  It pulled off the drywall so we ended up painting my room the first weekend after school started!  I am on Zooms all day long though and work hard to get all my work done as soon as possible.  It is really exhausting to stare at a screen all day.  Mom got me some blue light glasses to help with that and I really like wearing them!

Can't wait to see what else I am going to learn in middle school!

Good times with Grandma Kathy and Grandpa Tom

1st day of 6th and 1st grade

First day of virtual 6 grade (middle school)

1st day of 6th grade, I want to be an actress or author, 9/8/20

I was so embarrassed that Mom wanted to take these pictures!

Ready to learn!

After a long day's work...

11 1/2 Years Old...Almost the end of summer

I have had a couple of lessons with Trevor this month.  He had to cancel a couple because of Covid exposures and also because of weather once.  The last lesson, he was really impressed with my ability to set and is surprised that I don't want to be a setter.  I would just need to channel my inner Ali Kreklow!  I did get to try on my uniform for sizes.  I am really hoping to get #5 again this year!

We did a couple of social things this month.  I got my hair cut, finally!  I ended up having 8 inches taken off to donate to Children with Hair Loss again.  I love the length!  Madelyn and Lila came over on separate days to hang out.  We had another backyard volleyball get together with dad's side of the family.  This may be the last one as we are going back to school soon and won't be able to spread our germs from different schools.  Mom took us to run errands several times.  I think she does it a lot of times just to get us out of the house.  We had to go inside the library one day and I forgot how much I love being inside libraries.  We also tried to see some beautiful sunflowers that were planted outside of town.  In true 2020 fashion, they were dead and droopy!  We redeemed ourselves the next day and found another field.

Our family did several movie nights.  A lot of times I want to watch my own movie separate from what Emily chooses.  However, I chose the Dora movie one night and LOVED it!  I remembered a lot of the Dora shows I watched "when I was a little kid".  I also absolutely love wrestling with my Dad.  He is really impressed with how strong I am!  I have taken the initiative to find work outs to keep myself in shape and I am very dedicated to doing them. 

I was able to take a trip to Washington and was so excited!  Mom and Emily came down and we went to visit Papa Ron and then went to Grandma Kathy and Grandpa Tom's.  I was able to stay at their house for three days like I normally do.  The activities were very different though this year.  It was hard to not do any of the things we usually do.  

We had a lot of house projects going on this summer.  We are trying to fix the drainage in the backyard and have a lot of rock back there now.  We also had our deck and fence stained, and we got our house painted a pretty gray color.  I keep asking when I can move downstairs and I would like to paint it the same color.  I was told two years but maybe if I keep asking they may change their minds!

I have listened to a couple of Zoom meetings regarding middle school and what everything is going to look like next year. Our start date was pushed back to September 8 and we may do a hybrid.  That means I will go to school two days a week (most likely Monday and Tuesday) and do virtual learning the other three days.  Mom and Dad said that I might have to stay home with Emily on those three days while they go to work.  I was upset, but more because I had found out that I might not be going to school the same days as Lila.  I am really excited about middle school and don't want this experience taken away.  It is hard to say what is going to happen this year.  We will just have to watch the numbers and wait for a decision to be made.  Dad has already gone back to school.  

Ready for the big and long awaited hair cut

Snip, snip!

Before

8 inches later...

Second donation to Children with Hair Loss

Kaitlyn even curled my hair.  I love it!

Goofy sisters

Almost ready for a camp out

Giving Dad some love

The Droopy 2020 sunflowers

We checked out the big tree instead

You can really tell that I am taller than my Mom in this picture

But not Dad...

The better sunflower pictures

Not too old to play in the rain

Trying to beat Emily at the Wii (she has practiced a lot this summer!)

Picture of "the girls" in the house

Wrestling with Dad (almost my favorite thing to do!)

I use all my muscle, but Dad says he has to work hard too now!

So happy to hug Grandma Kathy

Pure joy

Washers at Grandma's

I was sad to leave

I got some bike riding in

The aftermath of a camp out in the living room

Ready to learn about middle school-so confusing to do it this way!

Never too old to swing

Although my legs were a little long for this swing!

Battling my Dad

A little help from Emily