Happy Halloween!!

Happy Halloween from a witch, a cat and a pumpkin!

St. Lucy, by Emily Garrett

Each year the students are asked to pick a saint to study in our of All Saints Day November 1st. This year Emily chose St. Lucy. Below is the report she wrote (with the help of her Dad) about St. Lucy.

St. Lucy was born in the year 283. She died when she was 21 years old. Lucy's name means light. Her feast day is December 13. St. Lucy's father died when she was young. Lucy had a strong believe in God. Lucy's mother did not believe in God. Lucy's mother wanted her to marry a man that did not believe in God. Lucy took her mother to pray. Lucy's mother was healed from a long sickness and then she believed. Lucy's bridegroom told the Governor she was a Christian. The guards came to take her away but she was stiff and heavy as a mountain. They even tied a team of oxen to her but they could not move her. Then they cut her eyes out but God gave her eyesight even without her eyes. This is why in many paintings she is holding a plate with two eyeballs on it. Lucy is also the patron saint of the blind. I think Lucy was a good person and very brave to give her life to God.

The teacher in this photo is Mrs. Blair. She filled in for Mrs. Kostka while she was on maternity leave with little Boston Tyler. All the kids adored her and will miss her terribly. Today was her last day as her teacher, Mrs. Kostka returns Monday. Emily had a rough time saying goodbye. She got very emotional tonight. Her Dad said she is defiantly a Wittrock!

Gretchen Wrote a G!!!

With Gretchen the littlest things can mean the most. Tonight as I was putting her to bed I noticed her art board was full. As I looked closer I saw four pieces of paper with Gs on them. I asked her if she did this and in the proudest little voice she said "yeah!" I couldn't believe my eyes. All on her own she tried to write her name and felt like it was worthy to go in the wall. We high-fived like crazy and ran to get Daddy so he could see. He was just as proud of her as I was. Fighting back tears I ran to get the camera to capture this amazing moment and major accomplishment. One letter down, seven more to go!

New Jammies

Granddad showed up the other day with new matching jammies and bath robe for the girls. You never know what he will come home with from Bass Pro, but this time he did a really good job. The girls look pretty cute in their new jammies. Natalie looks like a miniature adult in her bathrobe. I crack up every time I see her walking around in it. I guess there are some neat things at Bass Pro after all. Thanks Granddad for the great pajamas!

Sts. Peter and Paul 18th Annual Benefit Auction

Tonight was our school's 18th Annual Benefit Auction. This years theme was "Decision 2008: Cast Your Bid." This is the 5th year that Janet and I have chaired this event. After many, many long hours and lots of hard work we raised $27,664 for the school.

P is for Pajamas, Princesses & Pigs

This week Gretchen's class is studying the letter P. Today they got to wear there pajamas to school. How cool is that! Emily was very jealous. They all looked so cute standing against the wall in there jammies. On Wednesday she came home with a pig mask and Thursday was Pirate and Princess day. She was a very cute little Princess, but I think she would have rather been a Pirate. Mrs. Hagar does the neatest things with her class. We are so blessed to have her teaching

Gretchen.

Parent Teacher Conferences

The ever dreaded parent teacher conferences took place this week for both girls. I can't believe I have two kids in school and that I am attending parent teacher conferences. Where did the time go...they are growing up way to fast.
Emily is in the second grade at Sts. Peter & Paul Catholic School, her teacher is Mrs. Kostka. Mrs. Kostka had wonderful things to say about Emily. Some of her strengths are that she is very organized and a self motivator. She expects a lot out of herself and doesn't want to let her teacher or us down. Mrs. Kostka also said that she is very polite and helpful. Her report card had all A's and she placed above average on her Iowa tests. One thing she needs to work on is her handwriting (her Mom and Dad both agree). All in all an excellent report for Emily.
Gretchen is in Pre-K at Gilmour Elementary, her teacher is Mrs. Hagar. Mrs. Hagar is very proud and encouraged by all the progress Gretchen has made. Mrs. Hagar sat down with Gretchen and gave her a "quiz" on all the things they have been working on this 9 weeks. Overall she did really well. Out of the letters J,M,R,A,F,P she recognized J, M and R. Out of the same letters she knew the sounds for J, M & R. She recognized the numbers 1,2,3 and counted out loud three leaves. She could recognize and name all of her shapes; circle, triangle, square, rectangle and oval. She also could name 6 out of the 8 colors Mrs. Hagar showed her. Mrs. Hagar said each day brings new progress for her and she can't wait to see what the next 9 weeks holds for her. Good job Gretchen!!
We are so very proud of both our girls and love hearing and seeing all the new things they learn each day.

Saturday

Saturday mornings are always the best. Greg lets me sleep in! By the time I wake up he has already had a pot of coffee and breakfast is started. The girls are watching cartoons and Dad is fired up in the kitchen. This Saturday we all got up early since Emily had soccer games. It was a nice cool, fall morning and Greg was enjoying his coffee on the back porch. Emily and Gretchen decided they wanted to be like Dad. He fixed them both coffee cups of chocolate milk, bundled them up in their robes and house shoes, and they enjoyed a Colorado like morning on the back porch. (Natalie was still sound asleep in her bed.)

After breakfast it was time for some Stinger Soccer! Emily plays soccer in a Catholic soccer league through the school. This is the first year she and most of the kids on her team have played soccer. We have lots of heart and try really hard but haven't won many games. Emily loves soccer!! She scored two goals in her second game and was very excited. Today is her best friend Hanna's birthday and her team played right after ours. They came early to watch Emily play so we got to wish Hanna a Happy Birthday!! We love you Hanna Cat!!

Gobble, Gobble

At the ripe ole age of 31 I have finally cooked my first turkey. Every year our church's Altar Society hosts the Annual Turkey Dinner. Each member of the parish is asked to help and is assigned different duties. In the past I have always baked two apple pies. Well this year Greg and I got upgraded to Turkey cookers. You have to pick your turkey up on the designated day, thaw it out, cook it and return to the church to be cut up. Greg and I were both nervous, we had never cooked a turkey before. After consulting with Janet, who consulted with her mother, we decided we could handle it. We cut up onions and celery, rubbed the bird down with vegetable oil and seasoning and placed it in a big oven bag.

At 11:00 Friday night we placed the turkey in a 325 degree oven and went to bed. We set the alarm for 5:00. Greg woke up at 4:30 to the heavenly smell of turkey. The whole house smelled like Thanksgiving. He checked on the turkey and the little red thing had popped out meaning the turkey was finished cooking. Out of the oven it came and back to bed he went. Eight o'clock the next morning Greg very proudly delivered our first turkey to the church.

Our First Blog!

The Garrett family has finally caved and entered the blogging world. Keeping up with 3 girls is a challenge everyday. They have taught and continue to teach Greg and I so many things. Emily, the oldest, is 7 and in the 2nd grade at Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic School. She is currently playing soccer and taking dance. Emily is very responsible and an excellent student. She loves to read, play her DS and jam out to Hanna Montana. Gretchen is 4 and has a birthday coming up very soon. She is currently in Pre-K at Gilmour Elementary. She learns so many new things everyday. Gretchen is also taking dance and loves it. She comes home spinning and skipping all over the place. Right now we are working on saying our ABC's and counting to 10. Just tonight she identified all 10 numbers for her Dad! Natalie, the baby as she will probably always be called, is 15 months old. She is a very good mix of Emily and Gretchen. I fear her and Gretchen will be partners in crime. Natalie is very quick to imitate and is always copying everything her sisters do. As for Greg and I we are just trying to keep up. Greg is very thrilled that for the first time in his 36 years of existence our OSU Cowboy Football team is ranked 8th in the nation!! GO POKES!! We are holding our breath that it will last.