Julian Gets a Dragon Award!

Proud mom moment!  Julian received a Dragon Award at school this morning.  He's had a pretty rough time at school in the past month and he's been working really hard to follow the Castlemont R's: Respect, Responsibility and the Right to be Safe.  He's also paying more attention to his work and completing his assignments.  It makes me so happy that he's turned things around and is enjoying his days at school.  He is having fun with his friends and some days doesn't even want to come home.  I'm even happier that his teacher recognized his efforts to change.  He was so proud of himself today, it really brought tears to my eyes.    

Hi mom and dad!!  

Julian Tesauro...please come receive your award!

shaking hands with the Principal

Getting a little help from the Vice Principal

Really happy!

The TK & Kinder kids who received awards

Way to go Julian!  

Very happy day for my little man!

Naomi goes Trick Or Treating at The Row!

This past Tuesday I took Naomi to Santana Row to Trick Or Treat.  Last year she was just a little baby Tinker Bell and she was in the stroller/carried when we went out for festivities.  This year she's a sassy little lady who knows how to say "Trick Or Treat," "thank you," and totally grasps the concept of opening her bag to get candy.  She barely wanted to hold my hand, but she made me happy and did.  We walked the ENTIRE shopping area and only passed up a couple stores because the lines were too long.  She did so great and didn't even try to eat any of the candy until we had finished!  My feet were pretty tired, hers must have been also because she napped for 2 hours that afternoon.  We also ran into some friends and spent the afternoon with them, collecting candy and eating lunch.  Oh and if you can't tell, and don't know that she is completely obsessed, she is Ariel this year.  

Fieldtrip To the Farm

Last Friday I was able to join Julian and his TK class on a field trip to the farm!  We left school bright and early on a school bus.  The quick bus ride exciting for the kids who acted like they were on a roller coaster with every turn.  In a short time we had arrived at Emma Prusch Farm.  It's been a long while since I'd been there and it was so much nicer than I remembered.  The class was toured around the petting animal area and go to pet a chicken and rooster.  They also saw pot belly pigs get some treats and then they fed some goats!  Julian did a great job being respectful and listening to directions.  He pet the chick and rooster very carefully and said the chicken was softer than the rooster.  

Answering a question about what comes from pigs....he said milk, lol.

This goat was named Milkshake and Julian got to feed her

Then we moved along to the big red barn.  There were even more animals in there and we met a baby steer, a giant sleeping pig and a baby lamb who had no wool.

Giant 1 1/2 year old Otis the steer

Freshly sheared lamb

Next we walked over to the big pen for more sheep and goats.  There were 2 goats in here with horns that kept butting all the sheep out of the way when the kids started feeding them.  What bullies!    

Quick class picture in front of the barn - really sweet group of kids!  

The last leg of the tour was a fun hay ride around the farm fields.  The kids enjoyed waving at all the farmers in the fields.  We moved along to the little pumpkin patch where all the kids got to pick out a pumpkin.  Then we had plenty of time to explore the playground and enjoy our lunches before we headed back to school.  It was a really fun day and I'm so glad I got to spend the time with Julian!  

Hayride!  Julian L, Julian T, Isaiah

Julian picked the BEST pumpkin!

Playground time!

Love my Julian!  

Driving a tractor with his friends Louis and Isaiah

oink oink!

He waited patiently for a chance to drive the tractor alone

A Visit to Swank Farms

Last weekend we headed out to Hollister to go to one of our favorite corn mazes at Swank Farms.  Leo and I used to come out here every October and go through the maze at night and then through the haunted house/farm/pumpkin patch (whatever the theme was that year).  It was always so much fun!  Well we had kids and we don't get to do that kind of stuff anymore.  But we get to have different fun now and we took the kids to drive the pedal cars, feed the goats, and go through the kiddie corn maze…which is really cute with the story of Spookley the Square Pumpkin along the way.  We did encounter some dinosaurs (as Leo ans I tend to do often) while in the maze.  Thankfully they were on the other side of the fence so we got away.  The boys had the most fun feeding corn stalks to the goats. Some of those goats were so big you could have rode them!  All in all it was a very fun trip and the kids all came home with a little pumpkin they picked from the patch.  

Julian couldn't reach the pedals so Leo had to drive him around the track

I was Naomi's chauffeur

panning for gold

did he find anything?

cute little kid pumpkin patch

chalkboard house

getting artistic

found a caterpillar in the corn

getting the kernels off the cob

Leo had to give it a try

king of the hay stack mountain

feeding goats

watching goats eat

Naomi got a boost to see the animals better

in the maze and reading Spookley

Dad's turn to read

uh-oh what's that ahead?

DINOSAURS!!

phew, this little chain fence saved us!

We love pumpkins!