First Date and First Day of School

Becca had her first date tonight, and the lucky guy was her dad! The Jr. Ambassador program that Becca and John Mark participated in this summer sponsored their 2nd Annual Father-Daughter Purity Dance. Our friends Christina and Victoria came over to do Becca's hair for her, and we ordered her her first corsage. (Becca was impressed: "Is it really real?? )
As each couple was introduced at the banquet, each girl received a white silk rose and the dad received a boutonniere. During the evening, the dads crowned their daughters with tiaras and had an opportunity to speak a blessing over their daughters. Each couple was prayed over and the dads and daughters received purity pledges to sign together. They shared a dance, and of course there was lots of time to cut loose on the dance floor too. They had a great time and I hope Becca has wonderful memories of this special date for years to come.
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The first day of co-op went pretty smoothly. After much preparation and anticipation in our home, it was still absolute chaos as we tried to get out of the house in the morning- no happy mom waving the kids off to the schoolbus here! But we all made it. The kids were happy to be reunited with their friends.

John Mark is in 8th grade has a couple of really tough courses this year- literature and high-school level Latin. He received an "A" on his first Latin test, so he (and I!) know he can do it. The two of us sat down to analyze Emerson's poem, "Concord Hymn" today so he can write a paper on it. His work load is making last year's look like a walk in the park! It's gonna be a tough year.

Unlike John Mark, Rebecca, the new middle-schooler, Philip, 4th grade, and Benjamin, 2nd grade are all excited about their new classes. Kindergartener Nathanael is working hard on making "F's" and "E's". He has a lot to do before attaining his goal of writing his name! And on the bright side, after a summer of catch-up math, everyone is starting the school year exactly on track. Whew! We won't be getting behind in math again! It's been a chaotic week, with another to come, but so far... the school year is looking pretty good.