Jim is still working on looking for a new project. At the moment there are several possibilities, one in the US in the public sector, though we don't know with what company yet. There is another possibility with a bank in Lagos, Nigeria, a contract that should last a couple of months. A third possibility is with Astra-Zeneca, a pharmaceutical company in Manchester, England, a contract that could last as long as a year. We are all hoping that somewhere a contract is being signed that will get Jim billing hours really soon!
Parent-teacher conferences are Thursday for both children. The third graders will be giving their own presentations as part of the conference, for which they must dress "professionally," so Aidan is looking forward to doing his part and actually being there for the big secret that is a parent-teacher conference. I really hope we don't disappoint him. :) Aidan got in some trouble on Sunday during Kidmo (our church's current Sunday School curriculum) because he was not participating and actually disobeying the adult leaders. His dad and I had a long talk with him on Sunday and we hope that (a) now he understands why Sunday School and AWANA are so important, and (b) he will behave himself and participate in the future. In the meantime he is losing some of his privileges. At school Aidan is doing well and having fun, though I think he and the three other boys in his reading group wish they were reading something other than "Little House in the Big Woods". Today Aidan has a dentist appointment, just a regular cleaning, and Saturday he is taking a photography class at the Meijer Gardens, which we hope he enjoys.
Esme has been reading and drawing a lot...mostly to do with fairies, of course. She always has a bunch to say about school and is doing well and having fun. We have been working hard at spelling, which doesn't seem to come naturally to Esme...she has been allowed to do "inventive spelling" for too long and now we are paying for it. I am anxious to hear what Mrs. Morrell has to say about her work lately when I go to conferences on Thursday. Esme and I will be taking a butterflies craft class together at the Meijer Gardens next weekend, which we're looking forward to.
The seasons of Monk and Psych are now over, and we were disappointed to hear that the last season of Monk will take place this summer. If they're going to stop making the show, though, we at least hope they will solve Trudy's murder, once and for all. The Closer is also over for this season, and there is only one more episode of Burn Notice. Good thing we have a lot of DVDs to catch up on, right?
I am still working on lots of genealogy research for my cousin and friend Geraldine Thornton, and I just finished a contract with a friend of hers, Geri Elliott. Both ladies have asked for brochures to hand out to their friends, for which I am grateful. So I have been pretty busy and I actually have had a little income this year. I'm also going to be working on an editing and formatting project with the sexton of Oakwood Cemetery in Lowell, MI - he's working on a second guided historical tour of the cemetery.
Aidan and I finished getting all his Legos sorted out and organized. Our system looks quite nice and he has been having fun building all sorts of weird things.
The groundhog was right, and we're in the middle of those six more weeks of winter. Today it is nice and sunny...but super, super cold. The kids haven't been having outdoor recess lately because the windchill has been below zero.
We had the definite pleasure of visiting with Jim's sister Cindy and her husband Gerry yesterday, who were visiting from their home in Thompson, Manitoba. We were glad to have the chance to talk with them, and are very grateful for their advice! Here they are in Grandma's kitchen with the kids:
As members of the Public Museum of Grand Rapids, we were invited to opening night of the new dinosaur exhibit, which is really cool for kids...if you have a chance to go over the next few months, the kids will love it. After touring the exhibit, Aidan and Esme rode the carousel.
Dinner was also part of the event. We were able to choose between brontosaurus meatloaf and pterodactyl on foccacia - I think it might have been beef and chicken, though! Aidan chose to be a veggiesaurus, though, and had mostly salad.
The beautiful, sweet-smelling flowers in this photograph were my Valentine's Day gift...thank you, James! The lemons and grapefruits in this photograph were a very unexpected gift from a distant cousin of mine, Milt Sprowl, and his family in Scottsdale, Arizona. We're still planning on making fresh lemonade with the lemons, and Jim and Aidan have been very much enjoying the grapefruit. (I have to abstain from grapefruit due to warnings printed on my cholesterol medicine.) What a great thing to receive, in the middle of a Michigan winter!
We did have a few days near the beginning of February when the weather warmed up a little bit and stayed clear. We took advantage of the sunshine to pick up a hot dog dinner and drive to the airport viewing area one evening. It was nice. We miss that. Here's Aidan, happy to be hot-dogged and plane-watching.
We visited Mom and Dad a couple times in February...you can move out of your parents' house, but you'll still need them! In early February, Dad helped Aidan shape his AWANA Grand Prix car on all of his fancy woodworking equipment. Jim and Aidan finished the car - sanding and painting, weighting and wheeling. Aidan finished every single heat in which he participated in third place. But in watching the rest of the entries, now we know what to do next year!
Last weekend Mom helped me finish a baby quilt for my soon-to-be niece, Emily Anne...and we discussed and prepared for several other quilting projects! We missed Dad, as he was hard at work in the Northern Indiana maplewoods, drilling holes and running tubing...it's syrup time again, folks!
Stay warm and watch for a new update in early April!