Jon safely in Germany

I finally received an e-mail from Jon this morning letting me know in a short note that he arrived safely in Germany. He and the members of his team are meeting there for a few days to prepare for the exercise which will be in another country.

I'll try to post updates as I get them, although there probably won't be a lot of exciting news that he can pass on. All for now.

Sheryl

Soccer season

I don't think I've posted any soccer pictures yet this year. I was amazed that my very slow camera caught this shot while Joshua was warming up for the game this morning. The team had a hard earned 2-1 win over a very fast, tough team. That puts us at 3-0 for the season. Joshua and all of the boys are improving each game -- playing better as a team, playing their positions, improving their skills. It is very fun to watch.

Jon got off okay and should be well on his way to Europe.

Sheryl

Jon off to Europe

Jon has not gotten a full-time permanent job yet, but the Marine Corps has provided work via his Reserve Unit. He spent the past two weeks in San Diego and this weekend he leaves for a three week NATO exercise in Europe. It is hard to have him gone so much, but it isn't as bad as a year in Iraq and the income is good, so we are grateful.

When Jon gets home in mid October, we hope there will be a job waiting for him with the US Census Bureau. Thanks for keeping us all in your prayers.

Sheryl

First Day of School

Joshua had a good first day of school. Jon and I walked with him the 20 minute-walk to school. Then Jon was able to pick him up after school since Jon is currently between work projects. They had a fun afternoon, then off to soccer practice and I got to sit with Joshua this evening while he did his homework -- yep, about two pages of writing plus 30 minutes of reading. Lots of work for 4th graders.

Here are pictures of him with his two teachers: Mrs. Porter for English and Sr. Martinez for Spanish.

Tomorrow Jon leaves for two weeks of Marine Corps duty down in San Diego. We may see him one weekend, but probably not both. That means that Joshua will take a van to the Boys & Girls Club after school tomorrow. Hopefully he will get all of his homework done there before I pick him up around 4:15. Then we can have the evening to play instead of sitting at the table doing homework right up till bedtime. :)

All for now.

Sheryl

France Family Labor Day Party

Had a great time with the France Clan today at Brett & Stacey's home. I think we had 35 family members in attendance ranging in age from a few weeks to many, many, many years (you know who you are). :) We had representatives from 7 of the 9 families descended from Milton and Reka Mae. And I have to say, my favorite attendee this year was Cindy France, arriving for the first time in the 20+ year history of this event. Of course, Micah was a close 2nd with Sean, Estee and Natalie tied for 3rd with there adorableness. Since this is my blog, my nephew gets the star treatment. You can go to my facebook page to see the other adorable children.

The weather was perfect -- not too hot and not humid at all. The food, as always, was delicious and plentiful, a great combination when it comes to food. The company was enjoyable and the pool was refreshing whether you chose to enter it willingly or with help from the rowdy members of the family (you know who you are).

A big thanks to Brett and Stacey for hosting all of us once again. See you all next year, if not sooner.

Sheryl

A great afternoon at the beach

We are so fortunate to be so close to the beach. We spent three hours in the water this afternoon. I got this great video of Jon and Joshua enjoying the waves together.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b204Fg1SvOE

Happy Labor Day everyone.

Sheryl

Job possibility and school starting

Well, Jon had to turn down a job offer yesterday. The bad news is that the Census Bureau finally called to offer him a part-time job in the middle of September but he already has a USMC job scheduled. The USMC job is full-time and pays much more plus he has committed to it, so he told the CB caller that he wasn't free then, but would be available after October 17. The good news is that the caller said she would make a note and Jon's name would be at the top of the list for job opportunities that come available after October 17. That is great news. Our current scheduled income will cover our 2009 scheduled expenses, so any work he gets with the CB will be a help toward next year's expenses. We don't expect a CB job to last past April 2010.

I continue to enjoy my work at San Clemente Presbyterian Church. It is great to chat on the phone or in person with the many members and guests who come to the office each day. I took Wednesday off this week to enjoy one final day of summer vacation before Joshua goes back to school. Jon is between projects this week so he has been home and the three of us enjoyed a warm, but beautiful afternoon and evening at the San Diego Zoo. Yes, the guys carried their USMC umbrellas around the zoo all afternoon and even on the top of the doubledecker tour bus.

We met Joshua's 4th grade teachers yesterday at the Meet & Greet at his school. He will have two teachers this year -- one who teaches entirely in English (Ms. Porter) and one who teaches entirely in Spanish (Sr. Martinez). The students will only be allowed to speak the appropriate language in each classroom. The entire curriculum will be divided up (odd chapters in one class and even in the other) so that every subject will be taught (and hopefully learned) in both languages. We are all excited about this creative way for Joshua to continue to learn in both English and Spanish.

Since I do not start my job until 9:00 am, I will be able to take Joshua to school each morning and will even be able to participate in the once-a-week Mom's In Touch Prayer group at our school. In the afternoons Joshua will ride the free van to the Boys & Girls Club, where he has been for about four weeks this summer. There he will do his homework and then have a little free time before I pick him up at 4:30. Wish I could pick him up after school, but hopefully he'll have all of his homework done when I do pick him up, so we can have fun the rest of the evening.

Well, I think that is a full update on the Moran family.

Sheryl