Gavin Mekhi turns 18 AND graduates!

Note: this post will include some very cute photos of my adorable nephew.  

Gavin just turned 18 *AND* he graduated from high school! 

Gavin

His game plan now is to become an HVAC technician, which includes getting his certificate most likely through an apprenticeship.  

We are so very proud of him!

Baby Batman

Blurry First Christmas photo

Blowing up marshmallow experiment

Building a soccer goal

Cousin's birthday party

Goofing around during a photo shoot

Wearing goggles upside down

Tenth grade

Official Student ID

Official ID for the high school student in the house

 

Israel Update:

The kids have arrived at Tel Aviv!  There are supposed to be calls home once the kids have gone through Customs and had their PCR tests.

Photo credit to Shahar/Larisa/Matt (a.k.a. the chaperones)

So this happened today...

CLASS TRIP TO ISRAEL!

checking in

the class

kids - hen, daniel, assaf, and dillon

snacks from home

packed stuff

important docs, checked bag*, and carry-on

*Our fearless leader, Shahar, explained there is a competition to see who can pack the lightest bag.  Hen's pack was just under 11 pounds on the home scale.  Fingers crossed our scale is accurate and we won.  The current record is 11.4 pounds.

Eighth Grade

Last Day as a 7th Grader

At the end of the school day, Henry and (most of) his classmates walked to a nearby food cart pod and hung out until parents arrived to whisk their kids away.

Things to note about Hen, 7th grade, and the pandemic:

he hated having his camera on when in school

he did not cut his hair during the entire school year (and still hasn't)

he preferred in-person learning to online learning

he's a fan of the late start to the school day

he likes to stay up much later now that he's older

he was bored during math

he became a teenager

he missed his friends

he is now taller than his mama

he's really looking forward to summer

sometimes Mamoe went to school with Henry (in his room)

 

School in the Time of Covid-19

 

The bedroom was cleaned up and an attempt was made to differentiate the school space from the relax and play and sleep space.  The tables are a touch too low for the Stokke chair Henry is sitting on so we used Dav Pilkey's Dog Man books to prop one table up.

Optional challah baking class

Hen's first challah!  Note the shirt, this was intentional.

Twice a week cohort with Monsieur Eliav.  The boys meet in the common room of our building for classes.  They wear their masks during class but get to take them off for lunch.  On good weather days the boys get to have lunch on the patio, socially distanced, of course.

The beginning of the Summer Reading art project.  Hen read a nonfiction book by Steve Sheinkin about a Native American football team.  Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team. 

Glue has to dry before the project can continue.

Science experiment - pipette, pennies, rubbing alcohol, and water

Counting the drops for each type of liquid

Water bubble, approximately 30 drops

Rubbing alcohol bubble, approximately 17 drops

Hen's exploratory for this semester is Relax & Read, which I think is the best exploratory of all times.

Upping my lunch game - typical fare but fancier presentation

Seventh grade

End of Year Photo

It's a few days late because I lent my good camera to a friend but it does adequately capture what the school year has been like.  We are not likely to forget what life has been like since the pandemic stopped the world.  

Wear your masks, people.  

Before editing

After editing / I'm always amazed by how much of a difference a few tweaks can make.  The original pic is fine but I like the edited one so much more.

Climate Justice and Injustice, a Poem by H.F.G.

Hen's poem for school was selected to be included in a recent issue of NW Kids, a free local parenting magazine. His imagery is pretty great!

Basketball!

It feels like basketball ended before it even really began. The boys did a great job this year, winning the majority of their games and working hard to make sure everyone had opportunities to score, which Henry did in the last game of the season. It was a stunning, nothing-but-net kind of basket that I happened to almost mostly catch on film. Way to go, Dragons!

Blanchet House

Last night, kids from grades 6 and 7 served 328 dinners at the Blanchet House.

National Cat Day

Miss Mamoe providing emotional support while Henry finishes his math homework.