Saturday, October 1, 2022

Chase had a busy day on Saturday. First,’ he had a cross-country meet at Gibault. They did very well and some of the runners are going to the state meet. In the afternoon, Daddy took Chase to hockey practice. Then I’m the evening, Mama, Daddy, Chase and Nanaw went to Olive Garden on Lindbergh for dinner. As an appetizer, they had fried mozzarella. Then they had salad and unending bread sticks as Chase calls them. Mama and Nanaw had fettuccini Al Fredo. Daddy had seafood Al Fredo. Chase had "create your own pasta:" small shells, tomato sauce and meatballs. Everybody thought their food was delicious. Everybody also had enough food to take home so they all have enough food for dinner Sunday night. Nanaw stayed for a while at Chase's house when they got home. First, they played hockey in the hall. Then they played soccer on Chase’s bed with the guys. The last picture below is of a fire at the little house on Friday night.

Friday, September 30, 2022

Chase's friend Will was tentatively going to come over after school on Friday to play with Chase but evidently couldn't. Chase was a little disappointed but all right with it. He brought home the list of things to pack for the adventure to Camp O next Wednesday and Thursday. Mama has the afternoon off on Thursday so she and Nanaw are going shopping at Sam's and Bath & Body Works, two of Nanaw's favorite stores. Nanaw asked Chase if he gave the $20 to his teacher as a donation for the dress-down day, and Chase said yes. So when Mama asked about it, Nanaw said, yes, he'd given her the money. Today was the last day of the Iowa testing, and Chase didn't have any homework. Nanaw has to have Chase home by 5 today because he has hockey practice at 6. Nanaw is going to the little house after she drops Chase off and will come back tomorrow afternoon. In the evening, Mama, Daddy, Chase and Nanaw are going to Olive Garden for dinner, at Nanaw's request. Nanaw is going to get Fettuccine Al Fredo. 

Thursday, September 29, 2022

Chase had cross-country practice after school on Thursday so Nanaw didn't pick him up from school till 4:45. Uncle Mike was at Nanaw's house cutting the grass so Chase got to see him. Chase said he had math homework to do. Nanaw asked what kind of homework he had, and he said estimating. Nanaw said she preferred doing real problems to estimating. Chase said he liked estimating better because it was easier. On the way home, Chase said that next week he'd be at Camp O, and then he said that was depressing. Nanaw asked him why it was depressing, and he told Nanaw to think about what he likes to do best of all. And Nanaw said devices -- she realized that he couldn't have a tablet or a computer or a phone at the camp. Nanaw thought that was really funny but she understood how he felt. She feels that way at Rockbridge with no Internet. Chase did his math homework, and Nanaw looked it over. He did a great job estimating. He said he'll do his AR reading tonight at home.

Wednesday, September 28, 2022

On Wednesday, Chase had early dismissal at 2 p.m. He told Mama and Nanaw that the Iowa test was good, and he didn’t have any homework. Nanaw checked with Chase to make sure he still wanted to go to Stuckmeyer’s playground, and he did. At Stuckmeyer’s, Chase played all kinds of things. He played golf a lot and said that was his favorite thing to do there. He also threw a basketball into a huge, high-up bin about 10 or 15 times. He played Plinko and showed Nanaw how to do it because she didn’t know how. Another thing he really liked was the little bowling alley. He set up the bowling pins, then rolled the bowling ball down the bowling alley. He got a strike and was very proud of himself. He spent a lot of time on the swings. He and Nanaw played tic tac toe, and miraculously, Nanaw won. They went inside the shop and bought six candy sticks for Chase. On their way home, they stopped to get gas and then went to the library to pick up the movie Holes. Nanaw bought Chase some Lay’s classic potato chips from the vending machine.. 

Tuesday, September 27, 2022

Chase had cross-country practice after school on Tuesday so Nanaw didn't pick him up until 4:45. He told Nanaw he had homework -- Holes questions and math homework. As he was working on the Holes questions, he said they were going to watch a movie about Holes at school. Nanaw said she would check to see if the library had Holes. They did so Nanaw put it on request. Chase showed Nanaw his books from the book order -- he got some really interesting-looking books and games. When he finished his homework, he played Roblox on the computer in the dining room. At home, Mama told Chase that the cross-country coach said Chase is a really good runner and could be one of the best in his class. Chase is not sure he wants to do cross-country next year but Mama is hoping he will. Chase says he might be interested in track. Everybody is hoping that the Cardinals win tonight's game with the Brewers because if they do, they'll clinch their division. 

Monday, September 26, 2022

This will be an easier week than usual for Chase. They're doing the Iowa Standardized test this week so they won't have their usual class work and homework. When Nanaw picked Chase up from school, he told her the Iowa test was okay, and he thinks he did well on it. Later when she asked what kinds of questions were on the test, he said there were questions on English, numbers, and shapes. Tomorrow, the teacher says he needs his calculator. Mama had Nanaw ask Chase if he has his calculator, and he said it's at school in his locker. Chase reported two problems to Nanaw. The first one was about his AR reading book. He said he didn't have it because his teacher had it on her desk. He doesn't know how or why it got there. Mama and Nanaw told Chase that he has to ask her about it first thing in the morning and then get it back so he can do his AR reading. The second problem had to do with his glasses. He couldn't find his glasses in his backpack, and he said he didn't have them at school today. Chase and Nanaw looked everywhere but couldn't find them. They couldn't remember if Chase wore them home on Friday. It was very troubling. Then Mama called to tell them that she found them in the dark eyeglasses case at home so all is well with the world.

Sunday, September 25, 2022

Daddy and Chase went to church on Sunday morning, and Chase saw a few of his friends. Chase had a 5:30 hockey game at the Affton rink. Nanaw rode to the rink with Mama. They took heavy coats and blankets because it’s cold on the ice rink. Chase and his team played really well but unfortunately, they lost 5-0. Nanaw ride back with Nanaw, and Daddy and Chase got home a little while after Mama and Nanaw. Mama had fixed delicious chili and wonderful cornbread for dinner. Chase removed the beans and then ate the chili. After dinner, Chase presented his saint slideshow to Mama — his assignment from school. He did his project on St. Roch, the patron saint of dogs. The slideshow was awesome. He did animation on the slides and special markings. Mama and Nanaw loved the presentation and were very impressed. Mama especially liked the dog bringing bread to St. Roch. He used an arrow to show where in France St. Roch was born. He circled dates on the calendar to show when St. Roch’s feast days were. After the presentation, Chase and Nanaw went into his room and studied for his sentence quiz Monday on The Jeopardy game on his Chromebook. When they were done studying, they played ball with the guys on Chase’s bed.

Saturday, September 24, 2022

Mama brought Chase over to Nanaw's house on Saturday morning while she went to the grocery store. Nanaw told Mama and Chase that from reading Mrs. Cornish's weekly email, Chase has an English quiz on Monday on sentences. Chase said he forgot to bring his English binder or anything else home to study for the quiz. Mama was not happy. After she left, Chase had Nanaw search for the Jeopardy game that reviews the sentence things they learned and that would be on the quiz. Chase and Nanaw spent the next hour studying sentences. Nanaw said they would study them again tomorrow on the tablet when she's visiting Chase. After today's studying, they played in Chase's room with his hockey locker room. When they left Nanaw's house, Chase and Mama went to Red Roof to get reimbursed for a $20 scratcher. Chase had forgotten his Fitbit at Nanaw's so she dropped it off at Chase's house. Chase had a hockey game in the afternoon, and his team won the game 1-0. So exciting! After the game, Chase, Mama and Daddy stopped by Emma's birthday party at the rollercade so they could give her a birthday present. After the party, they went to Buffalo Wild Wings by Dick's at the mall. Chase had cheese curds, which he loves. 

Friday, September 23, 2022

Mama had the day off to spend with Aunt Becca on her birthday, so Mama took Chase to school. When Nanaw picked Chase up, his friend Will was with him. Nanaw asked if they wanted to go to the big park, and they agreed enthusiastically. First, they went to the swings, and so did Nanaw. They all had fun swinging. Then the boys played on the merry-go-round, then went exploring to the creek. Next, they went to the baseball field to play Wiffle ball. Nanaw pitched to them, and they got a fair amount of hits, despite Nanaw's pitching being really bad today. After Wiffle ball, they played soccer in the batting cage. That was really smart because the netting surrounding the batting cage kept the soccer ball from getting away from them. It started to rain a little, so Nanaw went to sit in the car. Then it rained harder so the boys came to the car. Nanaw had brought drinks and treats for them so they had sort of a picnic in the car. After the picnic, they went back to Nanaw's house. For a little while, Chase and Will played in Chase's room, then they went outside to play soccer for a few minutes before Nanaw drove Will home. Back at Nanaw's house, Chase did 20 minutes of AR reading, then played on the computer. Nanaw took Chase home at six; Mama was going to take him to soccer practice. Things Nanaw learned: Reagan's grandpa developed the subdivision where Will lives; there's an entrance path to the Sportsmen's Club across the street from where Will lives that Will uses to go fishing in the Sportsmen's Club lake; Will says the teacher said they could wear jackets without hoods next week if they're cold -- that's a ban on hoodies. Today would have been Pawpaw's 83rd birthday. Nanaw had dinner with him at the cemetery.

Thursday, September 22, 2022

Chase declared today and tomorrow as National Lemur Day. He brought all of his lemurs with him, and Nanaw made a sign for them. Chase had cross-country practice after school, and Nanaw went to pick him up at 4:45. Uncle Mike came as she was leaving. He was there to pick up the mums he bought for Chase’s fundraiser. Chase did his math and religion homework, and he has a science quiz tomorrow but he didn’t have anything to study. He said he didn’t get his paper back. He wasn’t happy with Nanaw because she wasn’t happy with him not being able to study. When Nanaw took Chase home, Daddy asked him if he brought his science book home. Chase said no but didn't explain why. The grumpy picture below is because Chase didn’t want Nanaw to take his picture. 

Wednesday, September 21, 2022

Here's what Nanaw posted on Facebook: "Today was Grandparents' Day at Chase's school. Grandparents could meet their grandchildren's teachers and explore their classrooms. The green notebook in the picture of Chase is his journal. He says they write in their journals every day. The principal took one of the pictures of Chase and Nanaw and sent it to Mama. It's nice to be on good terms with the principal!" Nanaw went to Mass with Chase, and they sat behind Brady's grandparents. Nanaw was very excited to see Chase's classroom. He sits at a table with three other students. They stack their books and notebooks on the floor next to their chairs. They have a reading area with a little sofa and two chairs. Chase showed Nanaw his locker; it's small and will be crowded when he has to put his winter coat in there. 

Tuesday, September 20, 2022

Every morning on the way to school, Chase reads the school lunch menu to tell Nanaw what he's having for lunch. Today it was spaghetti, one of his favorites. He also tells Nanaw which of his exciting classes he has that day. Today it was computers and PE. The exciting classes are computers, PE Art, Band and Spanish. When Nanaw picked Chase up from school, he told her he had Holes vocabulary homework. He also said he brought home his Weekly Writing paper but it wasn't due till Thursday. It turned out when Mama wanted him to at least start the Weekly Writing, he didn't have the paper after all. He had another homework assignment that he didn't tell Nanaw about. Mama made him redo it because his writing was so light she couldn't read it. When she told him that, he asked her if she needed reading glasses. Mama wasn't happy about that. Nanaw went to Chase's last soccer game of the year. They lost but Chase did a really good job, keeping after the ball and getting in some good kicks.

Monday, September 19, 2022

When Nanaw picked Chase up from school, she told him she had looked on Facts and saw that he got a really good grade on his history test -- he got all the questions right and got an A+. But then he told her they had a parts of speech quiz today, and he only got 17 out of 22. He said Lorelei got 22 out of 22 and so she got candy. He said he studied for the quiz in class. Nanaw told him he should have brought the study materials home with him so he could study with Nanaw. Nanaw had to take Chase directly home after school because he had a cross-country meet in Smithton. Hunter's mom picked Chase up to take him to the meet. Hunter's mom sent Mama a picture of Chase and Hunter eating ice cream, and one of Chase running. Mama had to work up at school, handing out mums from the fund raising project. Later in the evening, Chase had hockey practice, and Daddy was going to take him. Mama had to work with the mums until 7:30, and then she was going to bring Nanaw's mums and Uncle Mike's mums over to Nanaw's house. Mama said they could put them on Nanaw's lower deck. 

Sunday, September 18, 2022

On Sunday afternoon, Mama and Chase went to the Cardinals baseball game. It was a special game, with the first 12,000 children receiving a bear from Build a Bear, and the first 25,000 receiving an Albert Pujols bobblehead. Chase named his bear Albert, of course. The Cardinals lost but Chase and Mama had a great time. Mama found out later that Chase's school principal was at the game also. Cousin Robbie came out to the little house to go fishing and stopped by Nanaw's cabin to visit with her. When Nanaw got home from the little house, she went to visit Chase. Chase was playing with his Legos when Nanaw got there. He has some really cute Legos, including Mama's favorite: Jack Skellington ornaments. Nanaw and Chase went outside to play Wiffle ball. Chase did really well hitting. After a while, Nanaw went to sit in the shade, and Chase played fungo ball (which means throwing the ball up in the air and hitting it). Chase played n the trampoline for a little bit then he and Nanaw went into the house to play baseball with the guys on Chase's bed. Nanaw got to meet Albert the bear but she couldn't see the bobblehead because Chase had broken it and Daddy had to super glue it.

Saturday, September 17, 2022

On Saturday morning, Nanaw went with Chase, Mama and Daddy to Chase's soccer game in Fairview Heights. Chase did a really good job on the soccer field. He kept up with the ball, just like Daddy told him to. The highlight of the day was the visit by Jackson and his mom and dad. They live very close to the soccer field and came by to see Chase and everyone else. The soccer field was at Jackson's church, and the church was getting ready for its picnic later that day. Jackson and his family were going to the picnic that evening. After the soccer game, Nanaw went out to the little house. Chase had hockey practice later on Saturday, and both Mama and Daddy went to practice. After hockey practice, they had dinner at Hot Shots. Chase had tiny tacos, and he gave Mama a bite. She said it was good. Mama and Daddy split a pizza.

Friday, September 16, 2022

On the way to school, a rock hit Nanaw's windshield. She didn't see that she had damage till she got home. Glass America is coming to replace the windshield on Tuesday. When Nanaw picked Chase up from school, she showed him the damage, and he said wow. At Nanaw's house, Chase played out in the front yard for a while, then said he was going to practice running. Nanaw sat on the front porch to watch him run up and down the street on the sidewalk. Then he ran down into the back yard and accidentally got his shoes all muddy. Nanaw cleaned them off. When Chase came in the house, he and Nanaw did four multiplication problems together, and then Chase did 10 multiplication flashcards. Chase's math teacher suggested they practice at home because they're going to be doing two digit by two digit multiplication problems in school next week. He also did 10 minutes of AR reading; Nanaw thought he was going to do 20 minutes. He has another very long book for AR so he's going to have to do 20 minutes reading every day to finish the book and take the book test by the end of the first quarter to get the points that he needs. Mama picked Chase up at 4:20 to go to hockey practice. Chase rode home in the front seat with Mama, and Nanaw took pictures of him there. Nanaw is going to Chase's soccer game tomorrow morning in Fairview Heights. Mama sent the last picture to Nanaw; it was from the school website.

Thursday, September 15, 2022

Chase had cross-country practice after school so Nanaw didn't pick him up until 4:45. She told him she'd be parked in one of the older adults parking spaces so he'd know where to look for her. He came around the side of the school building at 4:45 and saw Nanaw's car and started running toward it. Nanaw decided to drive over to pick him up. He waited by the crosswalk for Nanaw to get there. He said practice was fun. They did a race and he came in fourth and was very proud of himself, especially because he was ahead of Joey, one of the best runners. Nanaw brought along all of the lemurs and Tee Tee, along with the Junior Mints. At Nanaw's house, they studied for his history test tomorrow. They went through the study guide, then did the questions from his three papers, and finally did an overview page. Of course, Chase protested that that was too much studying but he did very well and should do well on tomorrow's test.