Battle of the Books! Update:

Sarah had a pizza party after school on Monday to celebrate her participation in Battle of the Books. While there, her coach, Ms. Chambers, announced that team #51 was in 9th place, just one place away from a ribbon! So close! The other Tudor team was in 13th place. This is the best that the Tudor Thundercats have ever done under Ms. Chamber's coaching. Next year Sarah plans on reading all the books to ensure her team gets a ribbon. If she reads them all, they'll do it. She's got the memory of a...Shoot! which animal is it that can remember stuff...?

Battle of the Books!-Tudor Thundercats Team #51

Sarah competed in the annual Battle of the Books competition on Valentine's day last Thursday. with about 80 other teams from Anchorage area schools. She did awesome, especially considering that she had read about half of the books. Of course, she's so bright that she answered questions about all of the books correctly, just from attending practices and getting the context. It's a really cool competition. There are a total of 3 or 4 kids on each team. Sarah's team had four. One was the "writer", and she was responsible for writing a key word from the title, and the author's last name. (Spelling didn't count, thank goodness, or I think her team would have gotten zero points!) Then there was a "walker". That person would take the paper to the judge's table. The "speaker" would then say the entire title and author's first and last name. The fourth kid was an "alternate" and was required to sit in the back of the room. The three active kids at the table were allowed to whisper together to get the right answer. In fact, our team gave away an answer by over excitedly whisper-shoulting, "Justin!", as in Justin and the Best Biscuits in the World. That team later got a 6th place ribbon, probably because they got that answer correct ;)

Sarah's shining moment came when she was the writer and the question was, "In which book does a character run with wolves for a quarter of a mile?" Her two teammates wanted to answer Balto and the Great Race, which was a logical choice as, for those of you unfamiliar with Alaska history, is the story of the lead dog who delivered medicine to the people of Nome who were dying of diptheria, (sp?) and the precedent to the Iditarod. Sarah, however KNEW the answer was....anybody remember? Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder. She refused to write down the wrong answer, got it correct, and scored her team some serious points. Go Sarah!

Her team's shining moment was when they answered 12 questions in a row correctly (Sarah was the speaker that round) for a perfect fourth round in the final battle.

She did great, and plans on competing next year....and reading ALL the books!

What a difference OT can make...

Logan graduated from OT (Occupational Therapy) this week! I am so happy at how far he has come. I actually got emotional when I picked him up and he had his little certificate. I was surprised, but I guess I shouldn't have been considering how far he has come in the last two years of his life.This is Logan a little over 2 years ago. He wouldn't let us cut his hair. His wardrobe was limited to overalls, 3 specific shirts, and either Mickey shoes or red boots. He wouldn't participate in primary. He would flip out without warning. He was obsessed with organization. Few could understand what he said, if and when he said anything at all.
This is Logan now! (Actually, this is Logan last Halloween. I'm having some trouble getting images off my card reader-something about it not going into the dock and a missing USB cord...)
Notice his nice neatly trimmed hair. He now LOVES getting his hair cut. He's actually digging the guts out of a pumpkin. He's happy, more flexible, and most people can understand most of what he says. He is sleeping through the night, and rarely has night terrors anymore. He sings in Primary, (his favorite song is "I Hope They Call Me On a Mission"), and has even been caught raising his hand to participate. His room looks like a bomb hit it and he can still sleep in it. (Which is not my favorite result, but all things in perspective, right?)

He's come such a long way, and still has some little quirks about him, but he is truly our miracle boy! I am so grateful for therapy and modern medicine.

Thanks for all your prayers in his behalf. They have truly helped, as you can plainly see.

Goodbye, Little Red Boots!

Top o' the Word to ya!

Okay, hopefully some of you are logging on as we speak to check out the blog, under my new and improved (or at least WORKING) address! Welcome to those of you (Maggie, Dad, etc.) who have tried to log on without success! Feel free to browse through the archives on the right hand of the page . There are some great pics and stories about my kids there I hope you will enjoy. I'm working on a post for later today, so stay tuned...