I guess I read the blogs but don't contribute!
I am going to use this opportunity to blow off a little steam. If any of you have talked to Mary Beth lately, you have probably heard that we are going through the very painful process of discussing consolidation of Olpe and Hartford public schools. I am not even going to get into those details. What REALLY pisses me off is to hear comments like, "well why don't you just close St. Joseph School and send those kids to the public school. That would equal $175,000 in State funding." First of all, the USD 252 budget deficit is $400,000. As you ALL know, we work our ASSES off to keep SJS open, not to mention all the personal sacrifices we make to be able to afford to send our kids there. There are a lot of material things that I would like but I would not trade them for my kids' catholic education. AND no one can promise that if we close SJS that the public schools would never consolidate. Now that would be an even bigger tragedy to lose our catholic gem of a grade school and the public school. I think the public patrons need to donate money to their foundation and fight for their school and not look to someone else to solve their problem. Sorry to be such a rambling idiot but I cannot express the joy that fills my heart every time I hear my kids saying the prayers that we used to recite and singing the songs that we used to sing and just learning those valuable lessons that we learned. I would not trade my kids' catholic education for all the riches in the world! And we shouldn't be asked to. By the way, I am equally as passionate about not consolidating with Hartford because it will impact my kids in the long run. I consider it my responsibility to help with both causes.
Okay, I'm done.
I am really looking forward to GINER WEEKEND and also we are going to St. Lucia with Travis and Stacy and another couple. Talk about bad timing with the whole school budget issue. But we did not know about these problems when we booked and paid for our trip and honestly we have been saving for this trip for a long time. I think a drunken weekend in OKC and a drunken WEEK on a paradise island will do me some good. If you are still reading this, I am sure you will agree!
The kiddos are doing great. How did Mary Hoelting survive raising 11 children?! Three boys are a handful and I wouldn't trade my life for anything!! The kids are actually pretty well behaved most of the time (and honestly, their mother has high expectations for their behavior).
Kadon has been doing excellent in school. His teacher told us she would take a classroom full of Kadons. He makes us proud but Justin and I are suspicious that he might be sneaky. We will have to keep an eye on him. He is a walking encyclopedia of sports knowledge.
Nolan on the other hand is pure onery and honest! He found one of his Christmas presents and told me right away. It was hard to be mad with him smiling at me and telling me that he was "snooping" when I asked what he was up to. At Nolan's parent teachers conferences, his teacher's face lit up as she talked about his great personality and I surely know why. He is the most considerate child I have ever met.
And Ethan is wild man, funny boy, and all around just the kid that has both Justin and I smitten. I take him to Murphy Oil twice a week to meet Dad, who then transports him to Mom's so I don't have to drive all the way over there. He is Mr. Popular with the guys at the "coffee shop". As soon as we walk in, he struts over there and all of those old farmers greet him good morning. Every one knows him by name. I think Grandpa Henry is pretty proud of him too!
I will try to write a shorter blog next time. I guess I had a lot on my chest and I knew the Hoelting family would understand. We are supposed to get snow tonight and after being stranded here over the holidays I am ready for spring.
Love you all and March cannot get here soon enough!
