Emi-Loo-Who's Graduation

These events occurred on May 22, 2012

Emi-Loo-Who, my younger SIL, graduated from the 5th grade recently. This means that she is no longer in Elementary School and she is on her way to Junior High.  This was my first time to go to an Elementary School graduation and I want to share it with you. :)  Oh, and Picture Overload Warning.

They had graduation caps on the walls with each child's name

They studied the aborigines earlier in the year and got to decorate their faces and the walls. 

The fifth grade class choir sang three songs for us: Shenandoah, My Favorite Things, and a song they wrote themselves to the tune of Bless the Broken Road.  It was very sweet and Becky totally cried, but I didn't get a pic. :)

A close up of Emi-Loo-Who smiling.

L to R: Emi and her teacher, waiting for her turn to cross the stage; Emi and the other 5th grade teacher.

 Emi with her graduation certificate and with her graduation cap!

 They had cakes and cupcakes to celebrate the occasion.  I thought this was very thoughtful. 

 L to R: Emi and TJ: Emi with both siblings, Emi and Becky

 The whole family, including Momma D.

Us with Emi-Loo-Who

Emi with the Gortons :)

L to R: Emi with her K and 1st grade teacher, another teacher, and another with her teacher

Me and Em, serious and weird, lol.

Lastly, a cute pic of us :)

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This was a very fun evening spent with my in-law family.  So glad I could be there to watch Emi achieve this milestone.  It wasn't so long ago that children, especially girls, didn't get to do this.  

Also, I want to give a big SHOUT OUT to all of Emi's teachers who have invested in her.  

YOU ARE AWESOME!!

Congratulations Emi-Loo-Who!!

June Celebrations

I am totally stealing this idea from Megan at Home Sweet 'Homa. Her blog is so adorable; go check it out!

Happy 1st Anniversary to Becky and John!! 

Love them both! Becky was a bridesmaid in my wedding and John was my ring bearer (you read it right)! Becky is my husband's sister, so that makes us in-laws! :) Which means you will read this every year, lol.  I'm so excited for them and wish them the best in all the years to come!  Becky's blog is at The Life of Mrs. Gorton :)

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Happy 1st Birthday to Haddles McPaddles!!!

No, that's not her real name, but it is so much fun to say and she is such a fun baby!  We love her soooo much and can't wait to celebrate with her!! Her mommy, one of my BFFs (do people still say BFF?), Heather has a blog at Little Precious Moments in Time and you should read it all the time, like me!

And Happy Birthday to Haddles' Dad, Lee!

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Happy Birthday to Anna!

Anna (pronounced On-Uh) is my sister-in-law; she married my older brother Richard.  The pic on the left is her in her absolutely gorgeous wedding dress and the pic on the right is your sneak peak at the triplets! That's right...TRIPLETS! From left to right: Leah, Noah, and Jonah!

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Last but not least, Happy Father's Day!

My handsome dad Carl.  This is his first father's day as a Grandpa!! Love you Dad!

TJ's Dad, Tracy Sr.  Happy Father's Day Tracy!!

TJ's maternal grandpa, Herman.  Happy Father's day!

TJ's paternal grandpa, Troy.  He's the cookie monster - Love this pic!

Happy Father's day!

And the newest member of the Father's day group - my brother, Richard (the guy in the middle).  Congrats bubba! Happy 1st Father's day!

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So that's my first attempt at monthly celebrations.  Hope I didn't forget anyone!! Love you all!

Review: The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins

Ok, so I promised this a long, long time ago.  But here is my review of the Hunger Games trilogy.  And yes, I realize that everyone who wants to read it probably already has and those who don't want to read it won't have to after all the movies are out.  But even still, its good for writing practice and getting in the habit of blogging when things are slow. 

I appreciated that it was a complete story.  At the end of the third book, it felt like an actual ending, not a cliff-hanger that would never be answered.  Each of the main characters' stories was finished.  And I liked that.

Each novel was very well-written, in my opinion.  The main character was new to me. Katniss Everdeen was not like any other girl I had encountered or loved to read before.  Definitely not a Bella, nor Hermione.  Maybe the closest was Jane Eyre. A girl forced to become an adult earlier than desired.  

Although her circumstances are certainly unique.  I enjoy dystopian literature, and I have never read something quite like this.  Of course it had the common features of a dystopia: controlling government, a strong connection to the rebel, lovable characters who must die in the end, and a selfless internal driving force. 

From the first chapter, I couldn't put it down.  I was amazed at how quickly I became attached to Katniss and Primrose.  The development of The Hunger Games kept me guessing.  I knew that she had to survive for their to be a second and third book, but I could never guess how.  It inspired questions in me that I wasn't necessarily prepared to answer:

Did I want her to kill others in order to save herself?

Could I really blame the other tributes for trying to kill her in order to survive?

Would I kill others in order to gain a better future for myself and my family, my entire town?

I did not enjoy the second book, Catching Fire, nearly as much as the first.  I began reading it with the persistent question of How can this continue on?  I didn't want to just read two books of her on-again/off-again love/hate relationship with Peeta.  That wasn't what drew me in in the first place. This was probably my least favorite of the trilogy.  

So that's that.

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And then there was Mockingjay.  I know a lot of people didn't like this one, but I wholeheartedly disagree.  I loved this one for the even more intense setting and the way each character was forced to progress even more in their development.  This was when I really began to respect Peeta as a possible partner for Katniss.  It seems that each of the main characters: Katniss, Peeta, Gale, Finnick, Johanna, and Haymitch, all hit rock bottom here.  It is definitely the least happy of the three.  Maybe because I'm not always such a happy, optimistic person, I loved this. 

The ending wasn't necessarily a Happily Ever After conclusion, but it did seem the most realistic for this set of fictional characters.  

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All in all, it was a very enjoyable and satisfying read from beginning to end.  I would definitely read it again (I already have once) and recommend it to others.