Yesterday Roger and Avery went on a date to Lexington to sell four sheep. That left me with a free morning. Okay, so maybe Avery went with Roger because I wanted a morning to myself. It was really nice. I took the other 3 to school and spent the morning running my errands in Hazard. At noon I drove to Jackson and met some friends for lunch – then I hung out with my friend Debbie at work until it was time to go to Honor’s Day at 2:30.
I was proud of Judah when I saw that he was one of only 2 boys in the elementary school who had completed his Book-It goals for the whole six months. It said a lot to me as his mom, because the child does NOT like to read. He wasn’t being rewarded for his love of reading, but for his persistance. (Or… obedience? Much of that reading was parentally forced.) But I’m pretty sure that he worked harder for that certificate than most of the girls standing up there with him.
At Riverside they have an Accelerated Reader program where students earn points by reading library books, then taking tests on the computer. Their points stack up all year, and yesterday they were recognized for their total number of points. As far as I know, it’s an optional program – the motivated students get the points. When they recognize these kids at the end of the year, everyone gets a certificate, starting with the person with the least amount of points. (This year I think it was .09) Malin told me not long ago that she was the first 1st grader to take a library test, so I expected to hear her name announced. But I didn’t expect that I would hear 10 names called before I heard “Malin Voth.” She worked harder for that than I’d realized.
I kept waiting and waiting to hear Wesley’s name called, because, unlike his brother, he loves to read. But after waiting through name after name after name, I decided that he had been too lazy to take any of the tests. Until I heard, ”…and with the highest number of points in the school…. Wesley Voth.”
It made me smile.
Malin also got a math award, Wesley got the Bible award in his class, and Judah got an award for cooperative attitude. I don’t remember the rest off the top of my head…
The other most exciting part of my day happened in Hazard. I had plenty of time, and some extra money to spend on myself, so I thought, “I’ll go in to Shoe Show.” (I’ve just classified myself as a typical woman, right?) It was a good decision. I found a pair of Skechers on half-price clearance. I’d seen them before and knew I’d love them, but hadn’t even tried them on, because I hate to spend $55 on a pair of shoes. They were perfect. They make me want to run. The end.
