First Day...First Grade!

Ben was so excited to start school this year! He LOVES school. When I told him about the Hurricane heading our way he started crying. I told him we would be safe and that he didn't need to cry. He told me he was just worried he wouldn't be able to start school on time. His fears became a reality. School was cancelled for the first four days because the school had no power. He prayed every day that his school would get power back...no mention of our house! He was beyond excited when Friday rolled around and his prayers were answered. He is extra excited that this year he gets his "own locker and his own desk." Kindergarten "only had cubbies and tables!" His first day went great. Kate missed him...instead of asking me when Ben was going to be home she kept asking, "How long is first grade?"

Ben's new teacher is Ms. Varlack. David asked Ben if he liked his teacher after he met her at the "sneak a peek at your seat" day. Ben's reply was, "She's great! (pause) But, I thought she would have the same color hair as Ms. Cox (his blond Kindergarten teacher)." He couldn't quite put his finger on what was different about her. I love his pure innocence.

On the way to the bus, I told him to look for the airplanes when he was looking for his locker. He started laughing and said, "Mom, they are helicopters." I guess I'm getting old!



Waiting for the bus!


Happy to see Miss Betty again!

An EARTHQUAKE a BIRTHDAY a HURRICANE and a 10th WEDDING ANNIVERSARY...all in one week!

When David was applying to residency I was very open to moving just about anywhere he wanted to go (hence Baltimore!) but I did rule out a couple of places. 1. Baylor (Houston)...I was scared of hurricanes. 2. California programs...I was scared of earthquakes and the cost of living. So I suppose Baltimore can blame me for both our recent earthquake and hurricane...all in one week. My sister thinks natural disasters follow me, but they still have tornadoes in Oklahoma...with or without me. When the earthquake hit, I was brushing my teeth with my Oral B Sonic toothbrush. I was amazed at the extra vibration it was creating, until David informed me we were really experiencing an earthquake. Fortunately, we had no damage.

Just days later, Irene made its mark on the East Coast. She left us without power for 60+ hours and Ben's school was closed for the first 4 days! Many thanks to our friends who saved the bulk of our refrigerator and freezer foods, let me and the kids crash their houses for meals, and even shared their hot water so we could all bathe! . We were the lucky ones. Two of our neighbors had very large trees fall on their houses, but fortunately no one was injured. Here are just a few of the pictures I took of the damage.

Our Neighborhood




My friend Liz's back alley (just a couple of miles away). This spot made the front cover of the Baltimore Sun! She was one of the last to get power restored!



Through it all, we still managed to celebrate David's 32nd birthday. I think I finally mastered the traditional Behrmann German Chocolate cake.



For our 10th wedding anniversary I made David a 100+ page digital hardbound scrapbook of memories and pictures through the years. It was quite a project! While I was working on it, Ben told me, "You should really thank yourself for that book." I asked why and he said, "You are the one that really wants it." Such a smart boy! David also made arrangements for us to go on a 4 night cruise in November. Grandma Jacobs will be flying in from Colorado to take care of the kids! I am very excited! We were even able to go out to dinner on our anniversary thanks to the Ebert family. They brought their family to our house and falsely claimed we were doing them the favor (they were still without power and ours had just come back on). We are thankful for so many good friends!

Mormon Night at Camden Yards!

David took Ben and Kate to "Mormon Night" with the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards. Unfortunately, the Orioles lost by one run, but you can't beat $6 tickets and a good time!