August-September

August brought a bountiful harvest of blackberries on the vines out front. Yum!

Our church hosted a Vacation Bible School this year. Shannon enjoyed her last year as a participant while John and Joshua served as assistant leaders. The boys especially enjoyed their roles in the daily skits.

David took the boys on a Father-Son campout the same weekend that Liz and Shannon worked at an SWR Seminar. We discovered at the last minute that we would be only 3 miles apart as the campout was in a State Park just outside of the town where Liz was working.

As the 2009-2010 school year started, we dove into our new classes. John (9th grade) is studying Physical Science whereas Joshua (10th grade) is learning Biology. We have joined with two other families to conduct the experiments on weekends. David and another of the dads help run the labs. The boys are doing a great job learning the scientific method and trying out their theories.

Even though our swim team finishes up at the end of July, we hold our awards banquet mid-September. It was fun seeing all the families again after a 6-week break. The kids all look so different in regular clothes as opposed to swim suits! John received a trophy for Most Dedicated in the 13-14 boys age group. The coaches are great about commenting on each and every swimmer, highlighting their strengths and their contribution to the team.

The boys took a 9-week Introduction to Public Speaking class this fall. They learned how to give interpretive, expository, and limited preparatory speeches. Here they are presenting a couple of their speeches.

While Liz typically tries to conduct her SWR Seminars in the summer, two of them were held in September. Shannon enjoyed learning how to work at the book table this year.