Fun in Recife and Bahia

Hannah and Jackson traveled "in loco" with Graded School this past week. Jackson went to Recife and Hannah visited Bahia. It is so cool that their school does this every Fall and allows the students to explore different parts of Brazil. Mostly, I think it gives the kids a chance to grow as independent, curious young adults. Both did native drumming, made crafts, danced, talked to locals in their best Portuguese and did a lot of "hanging" with their classmates. Oh yea, they got to swim in the ocean too. Hannah's video (she's near the front on the far right banging a drum) is from Oldum. It was made famous when Michael Jackson shot a video in the streets there in the mid '90s.

This week was also a good test for Ro and I to see if we'll be able to handle being "empty nesters" in a few years. We're still married so I think all is good.

Fire Up Chips!

This photo is dedicated to my husband, my brother, my co-workers and every other "Go Green" Spartan I've ever had to listen to!

This is the Guy I Dated

I was sent this great retro shot this week by John Zimmerman. Cracked me up. Hard to believe that Ro and I started dating in 1980, the same year this was taken. Even harder to believe that was nearly 30 years ago. Ro must have known what was ahead and that's why his eyes are closed. Jackson is the same age now as Ro was in this shot....and his hair is just about as long.

Random Thoughts from this Week

I have spent the week at the mercy of Brazilian plumbers. The apartment downstairs had a leak so they are ripping up our bathroom to repair their problem. Oh the dust and the noise! They tell me they will be with me next week too. Ugh!

My kids are getting to go on a bunch of cool trips in the next few weeks. I am way jealous. I've spent the week filling out a lot of paperwork. The school has a "bonding" trip every September for each grade. Hannah is going to Bahia and Jackson is headed to Recife from September 15-21. Then little Miss "I want to see the world" Hannah is going to Lisbon, Portgual with her Model United Nations Club in November. Jackson is headed to the beach for a senior trip. Top that off with the Big 8 Athletic Tournament at Nosso Recanto in late November and I don't think these two will be spending much time in their classrooms.

We're starting to focus pretty heavily on what Hannah and Jackson will be doing next year. Jackson has narrowed down his college search to Savannah College of Art & Design, College for Creative Studies, Cleveland Institute of Art, Wayne State and Grand Valley State. He's deep into applications right now and is going to tackle the ACT one more time in October. Hannah still seems a bit confused about where she wants to finish her last two years of high school. I think she wants to stay here!

Next month, I'm headed back to Detroit for a long stretch (October 3-November 5). Work has been crazy busy the past few weeks so it will be good to see people eye-to-eye. Working long distance is definitely possible but without that daily contact my mind does weird things.

We've got a loud thunderstorm moving in right now. I love the rain! It sure is weird to be in September and see the days getting longer and the temperatures getting hotter.