barrett: 137 months old

What a busy October we've had!  Barrett is deep into his flag football season and really enjoying it.  He plays defense, and is now actually looking forward to going to practice twice a week!  He's got 2 games left, then the end-of-season tournament.  He's also rocking it at school, with good grades and keeping track of all of his homework on his own.  Bonus - he's joined the Pokemon Club at school, and they had their first meeting today.  He said he got some good traded cards, and I'll take his word for it because I don't know much about Pokemon cards!

Likes:  football, Madden football video game, Nutella on waffles

Dislikes: ravioli

Throwback Barrett - 10 years ago!  Covered in paint

182 months old

 

We're in October!  And the hubs and I were away playing in Charleston, SC with Aunt Jessica and Uncle Tim, so I'm posting late.  Britton is definitely in her groove with school now - the first six weeks are always the hardest to get back into the rhythm, but she's over the hump now and doing well.  This year Britton is taking Debate for her speech credit, and is really enjoying it!  She's definitely not her mother's daughter, as I went well into my 30s before I could talk in front of people without sweating and shaking.  She's got a tournament coming up in November, and the hubs has agreed to volunteer as a judge!  I love that she's getting comfortable having her say and speaking her mind, all while thinking on her feet.  

Likes:  Strawberry Shortcake's friend Plum Pudding as a Halloween costume

Dislikes: softball practice has started focusing on running, Britton's exercise nemesis

barrett: 136 months old

We're in September!  Barrett has started 6th grade at the junior high, and is now a pro at finding his classes and working his locker.  He also started flag football a few weeks ago, and had his first game yesterday.  He's playing offensive lineman and is getting used to the position, as he was previously practicing as a defensive player.  His team lost against the Cowboys yesterday, but no worries, they've got an entire season ahead them to change up those stats.  He's having a good time and getting exercise, so I'm all for it!

Likes:  playing the new Madden game

Dislikes:  getting up early for math tutorials this week

181 months old

I'm a little behind because Britton was traveling home on the 2nd - her first plane ride solo!  She went to visit her friend Jody in Virginia over Labor Day weekend, and Jody had an extra ticket to see Mitski, a bonus!  Britton got home late Monday night, and I totally forgot to get her monthly photo, then school and work and life caught up to me and well, here we are a few days late.

Britton is trudging away at the new school year.  She has her first AP class this year (World History), and also Algebra II, French II, Debate, Chemistry, KAP English, and softball.  She's killing it in all her classes, and she's found a new love for chemistry.  She stays on top of her classes herself without us having to remind her about homework and tests, and when we met her teachers they all said she's a delight to have in class and applies herself.  As they all put it, they never have to worry about her.  

Britton has recently picked out a ton of holiday-themed earrings and is wearing her new Halloween sweatshirt in her photo.  A girl after my own heart - I love Halloween!

Likes: Chemistry, her teachers (she got some great ones this year), debate - she's going to do a few tournaments this year!

Dislikes:  Algebra II

No reason for this - just a pretty rainbow I saw tonight!

 

barrett: 135 months old

A *bit* (2 weeks) late, I know, but we're getting back into the swing of things with school starting back up, so please pretend I've gotten this up on time!  Barrett spent his early August trying to fit in all things SUMMER before the end of summer vacation.  He slept in, playing too many video games, swam in the pool with his friends, and was just living his best life.  Then, reality hit, that he was heading to a new school, new grade, new teachers and new classmates, and we headed up for a tour of the school and his schedule.  Barrett is now in his second week of school, and while he has way fewer people in his classes than he knows from elementary school, he's taking it all in stride.  For the first time, he's riding the bus, and he has a locker.  And he has his first school dance on Friday!

Likes:  Jurassic Park/World/Dominion/everything

Dislikes:  the bus stop being so far away (it's not that far)

15 years old!

I think I'm in denial that I now have a 15 year old!  Britton decided she wanted pho for dinner tonight, so we rounded up Memaw and PawPaw and Britton's friend Emma, and treated ourselves to spring rolls and pho.  Then we headed back to the house for cake - a tiramisu cake from 85 Degree Bakery.  It was incredible!  Britton's party is tomorrow - she wanted a golf party at Top Golf, so we will be there with her friends tomorrow evening, eating more birthday cake (this time cupcakes!) and trying to stay out of the way of teenagers.  

Likes:  no LOVES her new iPad

Dislikes:  when Nella won't snuggle

 

barrett: 134 months old

 

A little late this month!  We recently returned from 2 weeks in Japan, and I knew I would not be able to remember when it take Barrett's monthly picture while we were there, so I waited until we got back.  For reference, here he is below on July 7th, at the Harry Potter Studio Tour in Tokyo!

Barrett liked the fast pace and buildings in Tokyo, but I think the trains (subways and bullet train) got his heart!  He learned all about them, then took the opportunity on the 2 hour ride to Kyoto to draw the trains. He and I both really liked Kyoto, because it's less crowded than Tokyo and more traditional in style.  Barrett isn't an adventurous eater to begin with, but he did give new things a try in Japan, including udon noodles and a hot pot.  

We're halfway through the summer and according to everyone but me it's going "way too fast."  Barrett has STEM camp next week, and then a math refresher camp for two days at the beginning of August.  Right around the corner is his "junior high bootcamp" where they go and tour the school, and realize that the well-known community of elementary school is gone - it's all new and it's scary until it's not, and there's just a lot of changes going from elementary school to junior high school. For now, he's happy to swim in the pool and play his new Madden football video game.  And I found him using his Harry Potter Brickheadz to act out the movie today, so watching the movies on the 13+ hours of the flight from Japan got his creative juices flowing!

Likes:  Harry Potter, reading the Judy Moody series again

Dislikes: the over-abundance of little kids at the Toy Story Hotel (and their screeching)