Sky Ranch

Greg returned today from a 3 day school camp at Sky Ranch in Van, TX. That's a two hour bus ride east of Dallas. The fifth graders learned about ranch life and about all kind of animals.

Here's a picture Greg took during his time on the ranch and a journal entry he wrote:

Day 1:
Dear mom and dad. I had a great day. First we touched and petted horses and lamas. Even a donkey and also goats. The funniest part was when one of the instructors showed a lama spit on him by touching his butt. And we were going down a long fast big waterslide. It was awesome, so kool. We went horseback riding. They were so big. I got big. And we talked about nature and saw some spiders. Oh, you will be afraid of this one: they have venom snakes. Well, I had a good time but I still miss you.

Happy birthday to Greg!

Greg turned 11 today. He treated his new friends in school to a great american cookie cake. They loved it.

Greg loves his new school. Not as much as Hembree Springs, of course. But Wilmeth Elementary is almost as good.

Last night we had a curriculum night at the new school. There is a lot of focus on reading. No more D.E.A.R. time (Drop Everything And Read time). From now on, Greg is expected to read 60 minutes a day: 30 minutes in school, and 30 minutes at home. A good thing there are so many great books in the school library.

Football's starting

Tonight's the kick-off for the new NFL season. It's the Saints vs. the Colts. NBC has been teasing us for weeks with a commercial featuring Peyton Manning and Reggie Bush.



Who's going to win? The game's tied 10-10 at the half.

Texas mushrooms

Watertowers are mushrooming across the suburban ranchland of Dallas. They are a sign of the fast development up here. They also serve as useful landmarks in the open landscape.

I've always been fascinated by watertowers. Ever since my toddler years in Brielle which boasts a beautiful black and white tower.

The water in Texas hold is not the best I've ever tasted. Water is pumped from a large number of lakes throughout North Texas. It has an earthy/musty flavor and odor due to algae decay in the raw water source.

The good news is that there's enough of it. This year has been one of the wettest on record, turning Dallas in a green and leafy place.