Day Eight - H is for...

My favorite H

I knew as soon as we cycled to H what my entry would be...Holly, of course!

Unfortunately, our schedules were not synched up too well, so I had to wait for her to get home from school (she has all late classes and some days is not home until after 10 pm) and then snap an action shot.

Props to the Schnoogs for playing along.  I don't think that I even got out of the chair.  I just said to her, "I need to take your picture." I pushed the camera (phone) in her phase and snapped.

She is a good sport like that!

Lunch Date

The Schnoogs and I had a good tradition for the first 3 semesters of her college career - we met for dinner mid-week to have a nice meal and stay current on the happenings of our lives. We started to Yelp! our way through the greater LA Valley area, finding some fun, unique restaurants and staying connected.

This semester, Schnoogums is taking an impressive 19 units and as such, her schedule is not very open or flexible for dinner. In fact, the only opening she has is Tue or Wed between 1 and 5...not optimal hours for me to leave work and drive the 20 miles or so (the hard way, I might add) from Beverly Hills to Northridge. We skipped the first 2 weeks, but decided that we missed our tradition and each other, so Schnoogs offered herself up to come meet me for lunch.

With a little bit of directions from Mom, MapQuest and the GPS tracker, young Schnoogums made it right on time to enjoy a tour of the office then a quick walk up to one of the neighborhood restaurants (we had sushi). It was very nice to get back into our routine, and of course that kid cracks me up with her energy and exuberance.

We came back into the office to find things a little crazy and in deadline looming mode as we were fulfilling a bunch of orders from our Valentine's Day promotion. Poor kid, she never had a chance, I had her taping and labeling boxes like there was no tomorrow until she finally told me that her car was in a 2-hour parking space and she had to go. I tried to get her to just move it and come back, but there weren't any open places (so she said!).

With a quick hug, we said goodbye and she left me in the throes of the packing and shipping frenzy. I wonder if Holly thinks that sushi was worth it?

A Funny One

I came across this picture of Holly on Facebook the other day and it makes me laugh.

I can't imagine where she got the idea to do a silly pose and capture the moment to share in a public setting!

That kid cracks me up.

I Combed my Hair!

Wednesday night is always something to look forward to, as the Schnoogs and I get together for dinner somewhere cool and catch up on the week. We have missed the last 2 weeks of our outings due to conflicts between assignments (her) and work (me). I am still doing some training rollouts through next week, which means I am spending at least every Wednesday and Friday in a store, geared up in the full team uniform which includes a hat.

I actually don't mind wearing the gear, as it means I get to wear shorts and running shoes; a bit casual perhaps, but certainly comfortable and it makes it much easier to hang with the team (all of whom are now in the same age range as my daughter) and swirl some tasty yogurt.

Because my training goes straight to 7:30 pm, I made arrangements to have Holly come meet me in Woodland Hills and we had a bonus visitor, our friend Elizabeth who has ventured all the way from South Orange County for some training work herself (she informed me that this is the least desirable training location to go to, with the "i" in Hills often switched to an "e" as her co-workers bicker over who will be stuck coming out to the area.) No appreciation for the finer points of the Valley!

As I dashed over to meet my dinner party, I made what felt like a noble attempt to tidy up; I changed shirts, took off my hat and combed my hair. I combed it A LOT, like 4 or 5 different times, trying to plaster it down and eliminate some of the hat-hair frizz that was going on. It just could not be done and I had to settle with a "this is as good as it is going to get" attitude.

Holly & Elizabeth were waiting for me and after the hellos were over, I blurted out (as if I had turrets), "I combed my hair!" Elizabeth laughed out loud and Holly rolled her eyes. We all agreed that it wasn't it's best, but my concern over the state of my hair was a bit obsessive and it was time to let it go.

Besides, I was hungry and we had some catching up to do!

Apparently Very Memorable

Schnoogs and I had a quick bite of yogurt this evening; I had to swing by our favorite place in Northridge for a cup of "chilly bliss" because I left my apron and nametag there when I was working in the store on Friday (quite the fancy get-up when I have an apron, nametag, hat AND shirt). Since I had to go over to the store, I thought that I would give my girl a call and have her visit with me for an hour or so.

During our debrief session (a lot has happened in the 24 hours or so since we last saw one another), Holly was talking about some people that she has met in several of her classes, many of whom have recognized her from a class, event or gathering of some kind. An interesting fact, punctuated by the very confident statement of, "Apparently, I am very memorable."

And very humble, too.

Nightmare on Schnoogie Street

Holly has served as the Fashion Police in our household for the past 4 years or so. Her task has been a tough one with me on some occasions, partly because I don't keep up with the trends and partly because I don't care!

The picture here represents all that is wrong with the way I dress at home. I got home late from work tonight, so I went straight in to change and put on my fuzzy pink socks because it is getting cool at night now. I had some laundry to do, so I grabbed my crocs (it might be obvioous that I have two pairs) out of the closet on my way into the garage.

Upon realizing my fashion faux pas once I got out into the kitchen, David and I had a good laugh about just how distressed Holly would be were she here to witness my complete lack of taste, style, coordination and apparent understanding of colors.

We took a picture. She's going to be appalled!

Go Matadors

The colors around the house have quickly switched from green to red...not because we are getting ready for Christmas (yet), but because Holly and her school spirit have moved from Lancer green to Matador red!

The final preparations are in motion, ranging from bedding to a microwave and final decisions on the meal plan. The roommates (there will be 4 of them together in a 2 bedroom apartment, complete with kitchen) have all chatted on the phone and across their various MySpace and Facebook pages.

Shopping at Target will likely be an all-weekend event to make sure that we set the new place up right.

Thank goodness she is only going 30 miles away!

A Good Gig

The Schnoogs was never much of a babysitter, not because she wasn't asked to or wasn't responsible enough, but just because she never felt that it was the right kind of job for her.  She found a good gig in dogsitting, especially since she comes with the bonus ability to house sit for the owners.

Last week Holly spent 7 days with her little charge - Claire, an 8-month whoodle (wheaton terrier and poodle mix).  It was weird knowing that Holly was around but not staying at home, so on Sunday we called her up and enticed her over with the offer of dinner (homemade pizza, YUM).

Schnoogs eagerly accepted and showed up at 7 pm with Claire in tow.  Claire ran around the back yard, all of the dogs barked and played, we ate some pizza and then Claire threw up on the carpet...it was quite an evening full of activity!

Props to Holly for taking good care of Claire...and for cleaning up that mess on the carpet, ugh!

Twelfth Grade

We have arrived.  Senior year.  This not only means that we have made it through the school years photos, but it also means that graduation is upon us.  Time to sum it all up.

Holly's senior pix came out great.  She was very pleased with herself in her clothing options and I have to say that the photographers did a good job of capturing some nice shots.  They saw me coming a mile away when it was time to preview and select/pay for the photos.

Jack Johnson playing softly in the background, the photos all arranged on a cute little DVD slide show, multiple poses and backgrounds.  Yep, I went for the big package. 

I think that senior year was a big year for us all.  Hard to believe that here it is, 13 years later from the day that the very little Schnoogs flopped back on the couch and asked me how much longer she would be going to class.

Now the college journey begins.  First, let's get through the commencement ceremony.

Eleventh Grade

Pressure!!!!  The big graduation day is drawing ever closer.  Junior year was a pretty good one for the Schnoogs.  She was in the midst of Band Camp when photos were taken; hence the stylin' shirt here.  There was much teasing and heckling about that, I can assure you.

I enjoyed Holly's 11th grade, as this was the year that I went along on the Band/Color Guard competitions as a worker/chaperone.  I wore my kelly green band booster shirt with pride.  I did EXACTLY what I was told to do with the props (the Mom who was in charge of that section, and to whom I was assigned as a personal assistant had been in the program for something close to 12 years with the way her kids were spaced out and she was clearly senior to yours truly!)

Holly got her act together with her study habits too, and although she wasn't sure what she wanted to do and would get a little stressed whenever anyone spoke of college plans, we continued to move ever-closer to the big year.

I'm with you Holly, I don't think that I am quite ready for it either!

Tenth Grade

The great race to squeeze in all of the school years continues. Here we are at sophomore year already.

This was a good and active year for the Schnoogs. After doing PE her freshman year, Holly learned that she could take an activity that would serve as her PE credit, making her least favorite task of running laps a bad and distant memory. A few of her friends from church and classes were in Color Guard, so Schnoogs walked on the field on the first day of school, tried out and made it.

We later learned that it is pretty rare that someone gets to just walk on and try out, especially once the season has started (they gear up through the summer to be ready for the competitions in Fall). This just proves what I have been telling my child for years...she can do just about anything when she puts her mind to it.

Too bad she wasn't as interested in putting her mind to homework during sophomore year. She just about killed me (or was it the other way around?) with the ongoing relaxed approach to homework. By the way, when I say "relaxed", I really mean "refused."

Thankfully, time and maturity have marched on, resulting in a student who does not have to be nagged to do her homework!

Those Kids Aren't Coming Back

More stories from Holly's drama class. You might recall from a few posts ago the pie-in-the-face play that Holly and some of her classmates did for a group of 2nd and 3rd grade classes. There were apparently 2 days of performances of Fable Factory and from it comes what I think is a VERY funny story that Holly told me.

It would seem that there were two different productions in the same session. Thumbelina was the musical option that everyone had to try out for. It was considered the premier play, relegating anyone who didn't make the singing cut to the "reject" option of Fable Factory. My kid, having inherited the singing pipes of her parents ended up in the Fable Factory group pretty quickly.

On the first day of the production, Fable Factory went first and was a big hit. Thumbelina was up next...they started off awkward and it never fell into place. The cast had never practiced the whole thing together, and it showed. The music was playing slower than the pace they had practiced, so all of the songs were off. Many cues were missed, lines were blown; it was something of the theater train-wreck.

Even getting to intermission was tough. One of the characters was supposed to shout out, "intermission!!" but forgot, so the whole cast stood on stage looking at one another until someone shouted it from backstage. The kids got up, filed out...and then that was all.

After 10 minutes or so, it became apparent to all that the Thumbelina group was not going to be able to present the rest of their production. Someone in the Fable Factory group muttered, "those kids aren't coming back." That was all it took, the phrase caught on like wildfire and it became the explanation for anything that went wrong.

Even funnier to me was the fact that they had to show up the next day and do it all over again.

Those kids aren't coming back!

Ninth Grade

Feeling very pressured here to get all of the school years blogged before graduation hits in two weeks. Again, a very good parallel to how life is moving these days, because we can all certainly remember as if it were yesterday (really? wasn't it?) Holly getting ready for her first year of High School.

I think that there was another big transformation between leaving 8th grade and starting up the 9th grade. It seems like the picture I took of the Little Schnoogs in front of Los Cerritos Middle School was one of a young girl, still looking like a 'tween. Here in front of us now is a sophisticated, mature young woman, all ready to take on the world.

Holly's first day of High School was as exciting for me as it was for her. We took a few pictures at home (naturally), a picture or two in the car while waiting at the stoplight, and then a hearty, "Make good choices" was shouted out the rolled down window as she walked towards the freshman lockers. Man, I am funny!

Pick-up on the first day was even better. I got to the school early enough to get a good spot at the curb, rolled down the window and waited...camera in hand. As soon as Holly got close enough to the car to lean into the window, I snapped a picture with the name of her school artfully in the background.

Holly was not as impressed with my photo skills as I was. She will learn to appreciate me!

Eighth Grade

Time is ticking along here as I race to post all 13 of Holly's school years before she graduates in (check the calendar...) 17 days.

As I look at this picture, I am startled at the evolution from kid to almost-a-high-schooler.  She looks so grown-up here that I had to double-check with her what year this was; in my mind it could have easily been her freshman of sophomore year.  Gone are the braces and the glasses have now slipped into her backpack for classroom use only.  

A friend of mine had asked Holly where her glasses where and the Schnoogs answered, "I don't wear them as often because when I took them off, I received many high quality compliments."

High quality compliments?  What a funny kid.  We still use that phrase around the house to tease her, particularly when I want to make sure she is wearing her glasses to drive.

The Artist Formerly Known as Schnoogs

Holly and I share the desktop computer at home (David could too, if he ever used it himself), and she has recently started to upload her photos into iPhoto.

I opened the application today and found a host of very entertaining shots of Holly and her friends, all demonstrating very clearly that my kid is very artistic...and a bit wacky.

The photo here is pulled straight from the costume/make-up that Holly wore for a play she did in drama.  It was something about Aesop's fables, but there was a whipped cream pie to the face involved in the whole thing; I am not sure that I really understood the concept or plot of the play.

What I do know is this was an event that her drama class did for some local 2nd and 3rd graders, so the pie in the face was a BIG hit.

Apparently, so was Holly's make-up, or at least she thought so!!

Seventh Grade

Holly hates this picture, I do not. It is the perfect representation of the infamous "tween" phase that we all go through. Glasses, braces, maybe a little gangly...I think it's cute.

Seventh grade was a quick transition into changing classrooms, lots more homework, juggling priorities and getting a bit more focused on schoolwork, all of which the Schnoogs embraced with grace and aplomb.

This is also about the point when she started to demonstrate a strong affinity for English and Math as her favorite subjects. Her English teacher commented on her great vocabulary and command of the language (I think that she managed to bust out the words genre and magnanimous in the appropriate context in class over the course of the year).

I don't think that I could have been more proud.

Sixth Grade

The end of the elementary school years arrived just in time, as far as Holly was concerned. We had discussed and agreed to the choice of keeping her at the elementary level versus bumping her up to middle school (it was an option at the time), which was the right thing to do, but it certainly made the last month or so painfully long, as I am sure the Schnoogs will attest to.

The metamorphosis from little girl to pre-teen continues, as we have added braces to the mix. Pretty cute stuff and boy, is it ever going FAST!

Fifth Grade

Holy Toledo, the years are going by quickly as I try to beat the clock to graduation...a tad over 4 weeks away at this point!

You can see from the picture how very quickly Holly is transitioning from a little girl into a pre-teen/young lady.  Nail polish, very posed, all as cute as can be.  I seem to recall that this is about the year that the name "Schnoogs" started.  We were at a softball game (Holly was forced to play a sport by her overbearing Mother.  If she didn't pick something, I was going to enroll her in soccer, so she opted for softball because there wasn't too much running involved), cheering on our little player when I realized that calling out, "Go Schnoogie!" may not help her reputation too much.

We had a conversation about the nickname, and on a whim I suggested that we could make it cool by shortening it to "The Schnoogs", or just Schnoogs.  Holly agreed (I don't think that she was ready to give up her little title), and it has stuck every since.  I think that she even put it on the back of her softball jersey, it was always entertaining to me to listen to the other parents try to pronounce it!

We are fast approaching the end of the elementary school years...zoikes!

Double Down

It arrived. The ticket. Holly speculated it to be about $150. David thought maybe $200. I had already warned that I thought it was double.

The envelope please...$469!! Want to go to traffic school? Make that $526. Add in the cost of traffic school and the total damage is...$553. Winner, winner, chicken dinner!

That is a whole lot of lawns that the Schnoogs is going to be mowing this summer to work of the debt to her mother (the source of funding in the short term).

Having your kid realize that their actions have direct consequences and an impact on their life...priceless!

Fourth Grade

Thirteen years of school is a lot to get through! 4th grade marks a shift in the elementary school focus - class sizes get much larger - and it also marked a shift in where Holly went to school.

The Open Classroom program at Conejo Elementary was a great program and one that really helped the Schnoogs to come out of her shell. In fact, she got soooo comfortable with the program and had the same teacher for 3 years, that she got a little ahead of herself. When I learned that she was deciding when she would or would not do projects in class near the end of 3rd grade, David and I made the tough decision to shift things over to a mainstream public school and make things a bit tougher for the young Schnoogs, who seemed to have everything dialed in.

Welcome to ParkOaks Elementary and the very tough-teaching tactics of Mr. Hedin!! Life was different here, but in a good way...even Holly admits it. Mr. Hedin (I referred to him as Doug-E because his first name was Doug and he had something of a scary-if-you-crossed-him but cool surfer vibe going on) was a stern disciplinarian and expected a lot from his students...there was no opting in or out of assignments here!

Life is full of change, even the young Schnoogs could attest to that!