wildcat weekend

for years we have talked about taking the kids to tucson and to a u of a game.
we finally made it happen this year thanks to chris-he planned it all, & we had a great time.
we went to the homecoming game on saturday and had a full day on campus.
it was fun showing the kids around- the library, student union, bookstore, game center.

we had a so much fun at the game, it was perfectly chilly - just right for a football game.
tio tim and santa went with us - wish i would've gotten a picture at the game.
they hung out with us most the weekend, it was great to spend some extra time with them.
and on sunday we took out cousin katie, who is a freshman...

we all went to brunch and then she showed us around her dorm.
it was so fun to have the kids see first hand a bit of college life - they loved it!
we also drove by our first apartment, went to mass at the school where chris was the p.e.
teacher and coach, and showed them the building i worked at (college of pharmacy).

the kids are still thanking us for taking them, it was sure a nice little getaway.
we are so glad we finally took them and we hope to make it an annual trip now-
i think we may have some future wildcats on our hands!

all saints day

every year the 5th grade students of the school pick a saint to dress as for all saints day.

they prepare for this day for quite some time- they also do a written report on the saint,

and a class presentation.

then, at the all saints mass they each give a speech on their saint at the end of the mass.
it is always so touching to hear these kids talk about the saint they are representing.
they do such an amazing job, a true testament to the time they have put into it.

and what a great reminder it is for us to hear about how the saints lived their lives.
especially in the voices of these kids it is really amazing to hear their stories.

the 5th graders then wear their costumes all day on all saints day to remember the saints.
and to remind us of how we should try to live our lives.

here are both 5th grade classes after the mass:

the kids get to pick the saint, andrew picked st. andrew...

this is such a special day in the life of the education of the kids at ssj.
we are so proud of our little st. andrew and all the hard work he put into preparing for it.

halloween 2012

three of the kids painted pumpkins after school.
christopher had a flag football tournament game far far away and was gone until about 7.

we started this painting tradition last year.
unfortunately i didn't have time to sit and paint with the kids this year.
and i even bought my own pumpkin this year and had a design in mind...
maybe i'll still get around to it one of these days.

we were barely able to squeeze it into the kids schedule this year.
and we missed the oldest not being with us,
maybe i'll make him sit with me and we'll paint ours together sometime!

 the kids went as the 'avengers' this year.

 so sad i didn't get any pictures of christopher and ben since they met up with us later.

ella went as 'wonder woman' even though she isn't technically an avenger,
we figured it still went with the superhero theme.
we've had the costume for years and it finally fit this year!

it was a totally different halloween for us this year for the following reasons:
1. we are in our new neighborhood
2. we were not all together since christopher was out at his tournament game.
3. the kids were all split up because they were dying to go with their friends.

andrew's friend ryan (above) came over and the two of them were ready to go.

meanwhile, we were still finishing dinner and putting ella's costume together.

so, they took off first (with ryan's parents following behind)

then this crew came to the door -
3rd grade friends (and siblings) from ella's class and she was dying to go with them.
so she, john and i headed out with them while chris & nani handed out candy & waited for lc.

we met up with some more friends from school out in the neighborhood.
you can't tell by the picture, but it was crazy with kids - i've never seen anything like it!

 and we eventually ran into the 5th grade boy group...

we ended up at mark and lori's massive halloween party.
the kids had fun hang'n out inside for awhile, trading candy.

 here they are in the middle of one of their candy trades...

 and our dear friends from our old neighborhood came over to hang out for awhile too.

it was a fun filled halloween -
a big thanks to nani and bobby for coming over and holding down the fort for us while we
hit the neighborhood with the kiddos!