Fun to do

October and November passed fairly quickly for our family. I was asked to be the Junior Primary Chorister at the beginning of this month. Our Primary Presidency changed at the same time. The Berlins (from the 1st ward) moved into our ward a few years ago. Diane is the new Primary President and I'm delighted to work with her. I am mostly finished with the Reflections Art program for the Junior High which is nice so I have more time to think about the holidays.

Katherine started filling out college applications in October which was stressful but it was nice to look back at the amazing things that she's accomplished in high school. She really wants to go to BYU. We will find out in February. Katherine is teaching two classes at the taekwondo studio plus a 4-H class on Mondays with David. She loves being a teacher and finds great satisfaction from watching her students grow. It's wonderful to see Katherine feeling well. Katherine and David are both preparing to earn their 2nd degree black belt in the spring. Here she is practicing Crane stance in our backyard. The neighbor's kitty likes to "help" whenever Katherine practices. Our neighbor thought it was so funny that he turned it into a meme:

David taught a 4-H class on his own at Hillcrest on Fridays (I believe that's where Lisa did her student teaching). He is growing as a teacher. I was impressed by how patient he was with his beginning students. In the photo below, his student was nervous about hitting a board with her elbow but he talked her through the steps and she did great. David is playing piano for the Jazz band. He LOVED playing on the school's 9 foot grand piano at their concert.

Rebekah and Eric decided to join taekwondo in October so we pretty much spend all Tuesday and all Thursday evenings driving back and forth to the studio. Rebekah started volunteering at the Christa Maculiffe Space Education Center. She feels like it's exciting to be behind the scenes and learn all the secrets to her favorite space camps. Rebekah had her first choir concert. She looks quite grown-up in her choir dress:

Eric is adjusting to school. He is diligent at completing his homework. His science fair project won at the school level and he gets to participate in the district science fair in January. Taekwondo has been nice to help him with his energy. He spends a lot of time kicking our target down in the basement. He just had his Colonial Days at school. He got to dress up like Charles II and he felt very regal:

Elena continues to amaze us with the things she builds. For example, we didn't have time to carve pumpkins so Elena decided to paint a rock to look like a pumpkin and put it out on our steps. Foothill has been a great fit for her creativity.  She's been able to explore her talents while trying to learn important study skills. Elena loves life and tries to help us to feel happy. We all love watching her dance and sing.

Brian continues to spend long hours at work then he spends a lot of time with his Scout troop. He just took his Scouts to the cabin for an overnight trip. He survived the long car ride packed with noisy boys. Eric often gets to tag along with the Scouts so that is fun for both Brian and Eric. Brian tries to find time to work on his clock but he recently had a set-back so we're hoping the clock still works. :(