Spelling bee

We are SO proud of Aaron! Today was the all-school spelling bee, and he did a wonderful job. There were 12 kids on stage representing the 3rd- through 8th-grade class winners. Our boy was cool, calm and collected, and did a fantastic job cheering for each of the other contestants as they spelled their words. Because the microphone was set as a vague "medium" height to accomodate the different ages, he had to stand tall and reach his chin up to the microphone. :o)

Aaron lasted through many rounds, and correctly spelled the word "monopolize" among others! He ended up in 6th place after battling with the word "subterranean." What a great morning for him -- his love of reading definitely showed today!

There were a few other highlights: the first was seeing how Nathan supported his big brother. He prayed for Aaron this morning before school, and it was so sweet. Then, during the spelling bee, we could definitely pick out Nathan's voice as he cheered his guts out after each word Aaron spelled.

The second was seeing what a great, encouraging atmosphere our teachers and staff have created. Every time a child disqualified and had to leave the stage, the crowd of students clapped, and there were kids patting them on the back, giving high fives, and whispering "good job" as they took their seats.

All that, and Anya Rashi was an angel during the bee, playing quietly, drawing and looking at books. What a great day! (The photos are from our family's "boy" trip to the Field of Dreams this summer. We had never posted them, and wanted to share.)