Fleur de Aleta

  Dear Son,   5 th  grade!  What?  Wait!  When did this happen?  Yesterday you were starting your first year as a Kindergarten student.  *sigh*  I remember walking with you to a school function when you were in Kindergarten and seeing a couple of boys and I thought, “Those are students?  Oh my goodness, they are so tall!  Are they supposed to be that tall in elementary school?”  And here you are.... 10 years old and just a sliver of an inch shorter than me.  You are those boys, the big kids on the block, the 5 th  graders, your last year at APAAS.  I know I’m going to cry at the end of the year.  I refuse to get teary-eyed now though.   Your summer started at a cool beach condo with us, Oma, Opa, Uncle Rob, Aunt Roda and your cousin, TJ (Troy).  You loved the beach, sand and all.  Even your dad managed to enjoy some beach time.  He really doesn’t like sand getting all over the place....

 Dear Son, 2020 is the year that just keeps giving, not in a good way.  Normally we don't have hurricanes in October.  This will be another year mommy will remember her birthday - when Cat 3, Hurricane Zeta arrived.  That morning, Mommy went for a walk with Oma.  We commented on how windy it was and how the birds were cawing and flying crazy.  Sure it was cloudy, but it seemed like it was a pleasant day.  Other than the birds' behavior, how would people know without modern technology that a Cat 3 was about to land.   You had virtual classes for half the day.  The winds slowly increased, but not alarmingly. Oma, Opa and TJ came over to celebrate Mommy's birthday and enjoy some steaks your Daddy cooked for us.  My parents decided to leave and got home, just in time.  The rain came quickly.  The wind picked up... sending the rain sideways.  By the evening, it was pretty scary.  The rain was so thick and heavy, it was pou...

  Dear Son, I haven't written a letter in a long time.  I'm sorry, sweet boy.  You know Mommy has been through a lot with cancer.  You were so helpful, offering to help me get out of chairs and hold the doors open for me and picking up things that I couldn't reach.  Mommy is getting better and feeling better, almost a year since the first surgery and not even a month after the second surgery.  I did a blog post (scroll down further past this post to see it) about my "pink journey." "Pink Journey" is called this for breast cancer awareness and also because you know Mommy loves the color pink.  I used to think it was pretty, but now I know it also means strength.  I hope you remember Mommy being strong and determined to heal. You certainly have been strong!  So many changes at such a young age and you adapt so well.  At the end of 1st grade, Corona Virus swept around the world.  Everything closed down, including schools.  Your te...

Dear Son, It's Christmas inside our home and it's not even Thanksgiving yet.  The spirit of Christmas is helping our family, lifting our spirits, but more of that later. You have taken on First Grade with gusto!  You love to learn.  Math is still your favorite.  You even wrote in a paragraph prompt, "If you were a teacher, you would teach Math...." and more of course.  You love your teacher, Ms. Falgout.  I like her too and think she's doing an excellent job.  She is new to APAAS, but you'd never know it, because she fits right in. In the beginning of the school year, Ms. Missy met us at the carline and said, "Gregory is so sweet.  Sometimes it's not the "in" thing for boys to be kind, but when we are older, that kindness is what really matters.  Don't let him lose that."  I tell you, "are my sweet son" and you often times reply I am "your sweet mom."  Kindness is so important in life. In the morning, you...