Jamie's First Concert

It's been a busy weekend for Jamie!

On Saturday, he had a volleyball tournament - held at St. Charles (the old Nickel District - for you absentee Sudburians). Their St. John's team has a great coach this year - it's the principal of the school - and she knows her volleyball! Starting at 10:30 am, Jamie's team played their first game against St. Anne and they tied (each team won a set). They had a short break and then played six more games in a row! The guys were exhausted by that last game - but they won a couple more games and there were a couple of really close games - lost by only a couple of points. The guys played really well!

Tonight - we (Corrie, Jamie and I) went to the INXS concert at the Sudbury Arena. It was amazing! They put on a great show! The band played a good mix of old and new songs - and Jamie even sang along during a couple of the songs. Jamie's favourite part was when they played "Pretty Vegas" - his favourite song by the group. JD was really good.

The part Jamie liked the least was - waiting in line to get in to the arena (it was windy and cold) and then when we got in where it was warm - we still had to wait till the show started - in Jamie's words - "It was boring." You can only watch people trying to find their seats for so long.

We had really good seats about 7 rows up and to the right side of the stage. If you've been to the arena, we were just up from the players' bench. Jamie could see everything, even though he thought the "light show" was a little bright! And, of course, he wore his ear plugs the entire time. We all know how much Jamie hates loud noises!

What a good first concert experience! And to think - he almost didn't even get to go! Jennifer was supposed to go, but she decided against it - not sure why exactly. Anyhow, I asked Jamie to go in her place.

When we were driving back in the car tonight, Jamie said - "That's the dumbest smart decision she has ever made!"

Hallowe'en

The wonderful thing about all-girls schools is that they know how to celebrate holidays and have fun . . . and yet somehow, still get school work done during class time.

For Hallowe'en this year, both Meghan and Jennifer dressed up for the day at school. As you can see from the picture, Meghan was a pirate. She paid attention to the details. If you look closely, you can see her dangling earring, her sword, and her wonderful boots!

Jennifer decided to be "Rowan Hood" - a close relative to Robin Hood. She definitely gives to the poor - "in spirit" that is. She made her own arrows (non-pointy) and a quiver for the arrows. The cape is the one that I made for Jamie when he was Robin Hood about 6 years ago.

Both girls had a great day! Meghan went trick-or-treating with a couple of friends, but I insisted that Jennifer stay home and hand out the "treats". It was a good year for costumes!

Terrific Kids

At the end of each month, St. John school holds a "Terrific Kids" assembly. Every month, each teacher selects a student to recognize at the assembly. The "Terrific Kid" is acknowledged in front of the school and is awarded a certificate. The interesting thing about this whole idea is that there is a theme for each month. September was the first letter in terrific. The letter "T" recognized a student who is "thoughtful". October was "E" - which recognized "enthusiasm".

About a week before the assembly, Jennifer answered the phone and took a message from Jamie's teacher, Mrs. Folino. The message was simply to call the school. When I received the message, I promptly asked Jamie what happened at school that day. I asked if he got in to trouble, if he didn't complete his homework, if he "bombed" a test or assignment, or even if he was bugging the girls. All his answers were "no".

When I finally returned the teacher's call, I found out that Jamie was receiving the award for his Grade 8 class. Cool! Family was invited to the event. Luckily, Pierre was in town and went to the school to surprise Jamie and watch him get his award. Way to go, Jamie!

It's taken Jamie more than a week to remember to bring his certificate home! He finally brought it home today, so I quickly took a picture and am posting it before he can lose it.