Middle School Open House

So we went to the open house last night for one of the middle schools Gabi could go to next year. Ogden Middle School. It is still in Oregon City School district and the state report card is actually pretty good for that school, the best I have seen for any middle school around here, or even in Springfield. That alone should be a good sign. 

And not only do they provide transportation to and from school (the school is 20 minutes away from our house. Not the most convenient thing) but they also provide transportation home after their numerous after school activities including sports, and many other elective club like activities. Their electives including the traditional wood shop, choir, band, art etc. also include robotics, computers, "baking" and more PE type classes. Plus their after school activities include homework clubs, learning to sew, a girls group and different sports. I haven't found another school anywhere with the activities they provide and believe in. 

With the upcoming budget concerns one wonders what in these programs will be cut, and hopefully not many will, but the principle believes in the after school programs and the benefits they provide the kids and said he is fighting to keep everything and will find new ways to fund them if necessary. Needless to say Bryan and I were both impressed by the school and think it might be a really good fit for her. Gabi of course is super excited and really wants to go to that school. But we have one more school to visit next week before we make our decision. 

Of course all the kids wanted to know and were concerned about was the lockers. Are they hard to open, do you have to share, what happens if you forget your combination, can we decorate them, etc... I remember those concerns back in the day. Just one step closer to growing up. I wish she would stop grow up so fast! 

Success at the races!

The kids had a great weekend at the indoor track on Sunday in Eugene! They raced in the big Redline Cup Qualifier race which was the first qualifier for the regional Redline Cup, held at the end of the year. This was their first major race as a team, and I have to say the team did very well. We didn't finish in the top 3, but had a 1st, 2nd & 3rd as a team which was great! I still don't know what the final standings were for the team, but I know that Nick got 2nd and Gabi got 3rd in their races. 

Nick had some difficulties in his race due to his special clip shoes and pedals not working correctly so we ended up having to get him new shoes and pedals so his next race will be even better! Poor kid told us after the race he had to curl his toes up in his shoes because they are too small! That would have been some helpful information to know BEFORE the race so we could have fixed the problem. Oh well. Live and learn! 

He had some problems with his placement after the race too that he did a great job handling himself. He finished 3rd in the final race, but 2nd overall and they tried to give him the 3rd place trophy since that was how he finished the 3rd race. He knew that was wrong though so he had to go to the finish line scorekeeper to resolve the issue and well, to make a long story short, he got it handled and received the right trophy. I was very proud of him for taking care of the problem on his own. A good learning experience for him.

Now we take a couple of weeks off since next Saturday is Valentine's Day and the following one they are closed. Looks like we will be back to racing on the 28th, so in the meantime lots of training!

In other news from the day, Gabi was able to sell her entire bag of Pepperoni sticks AND sell a tub of Cookie Dough at the races. Gotta love those supportive parents! We then had dinner after the races with Grandma Sue at Kabukis on West 11th. It's one of those Japanese places where they cook in front of you, like Shojis or Benihanas. The BEST food we have had at those places in a long time, and also the best show! He was quite entertaining and really knew how to throw those knives! He tossed rice for both the kids to try and catch in their mouths. Gabi's landed on her glasses (his aim was off) but Nick caught his in his mouth. It was pretty fun.  The chef's name is Josh and he also said they are putting a video together to send to the Food Network to complete on one of their shows. We wish him luck because he was truly amazing! 

Fun at the Track

The kids had a great time racing this weekend! Nick ended up with a 2nd place finish in a class of 6 and Gabi ended up with a 4th place finish in a class of 5. She made her main event which was her goal she said. They both took part in the training clinic after the race as well which should really help and was a good refresher for them at the start of the season.

The indoor track in Eugene is pretty fast and both kids really enjoyed racing on it. Next Sunday is a Redline Qualifier race in Eugene so we will be heading down once again for that race. The Redline Cup is a regional championship that we are going to take part in this year so we have to hit a couple of qualifiers to make it to the finals. 

It was a lot of fun to see all our racing friends again after a little break and we are really looking forward to a great year of racing. Should be a lot of fun!