Mothers' Day

Mothers' Day walk, Lucy's Gully

I love Mothers' Day!  I like hearing the talks in church about mothers, and I like getting all the notes and treats from Primary!

Mothers' Day brekkie

I like breakfast in bed, and I like being treated with extra sensitivity all day by my family.  Thank you to my family for making it such a great day!

 My wish for Mothers' Day afternoon was a hike up Lucy's Gully to give a FHE lesson in the trees.  I got to tell all the interesting stories and anecdotes from my trip to the States.  

I kept a running list on my phone when I was traveling, so I had a lot of interesting stories to tell!  Everything from seeing a woman hiking in the mountains with a handgun strapped to her chest (to protect against moose), to stories from the funeral service, to Marshall's dance moves on YouTube, to what Abby thinks about boys who try to use "sexy" as a compliment, to seeing Jared on his knees praying in the morning by the side of the hide-a-bed couch...plus many more.   

These are the uniforms the boys wear when they represent our school at an event outside the city (Oak, cross-country; Danny, basketball).   Noah is doing an impromptu haka-move as a photo bomb.  

All 3 Jones Boys are in this picture of the house haka competition.
The boy standing up is leading the haka.

 These are the regular school-day uniforms.  Noah and Oak are on the left.  Danny on the upper right.

It still remains to be seen how going to an all-boys school will affect our boys.  They seem happy, in general...

Most people here, including the local boys, believe in the single-gender education system.  They feel that boys are happier and more free to develop as individuals, that the boys don't do as much posturing, and that the school is more able to incorporate the physical exercise and sports that help boys thrive.

Book of the Week:

Thanks, Stacy!

 I almost didn't pick up this book because of the subtitle, "from the Killing Fields of Sudan to the Olympic Games."  I didn't want to read any more about the terrible atrocities committed by child soldiers in the African wars.  This author, however, escaped the rebel army before being asked to become a soldier.  A very inspiring and interesting book!  It would make a good audiobook in the car for the whole family.