10 (and almost a 1/2) Year Photos

We were a little late getting these photos taken this year... ok, a lot late.  But taking them outside in a pretty spring dress made it all worth while.

I met the photographer as a friend of a friend a couple years ago.  She's such a great photographer and she does a fantastic job of capturing Jocelyn's personality.  Enjoy!

Gus, of course, had to get in on the act!

I fear some of these photos bring out the teenager!   Noooo!!!

It's Over!!

4th grade is over and we couldn't be happier!!
Technically, schools are not done until Tuesday, but Jocelyn is done!  She is so relieved to be out of that class, and so excited to be going to Programming Roblox Camp starting tomorrow, for a week.

On Thursday I volunteered my last time for the year, so we ate breakfast at Dunkin Donuts, and then brought in the gifts for Jocelyn's teachers, and took a couple pictures.  Miss. Dorchak (left), math, science and home room, was a very sweet teacher, but fought the battle with Jocelyn all year long with a difficult class.  Mrs. Lee (right) was Jocelyn's Language Arts teacher and helped her grow leaps and bounds in this area this year.  Jocelyn is really going to miss her and I'm going to really miss her teaching style.  She's been amazing!

The last day of school was a great way to end the year.  The 4th grade had an extended recess which was a great time for Jocelyn to hang out - literally - with two of her best friends, Kate and Ryan, then she said her goodbyes to Mrs. Rowe, the GT Science teacher that brought Jocelyn into the Animal Antics and Crazy Contraptions sessions that she loved.  Then I wrote "Running Away" on the early dismissal sheet and we escaped for good to have lunch at Jocelyn's favorite restaurant Red Robin.   We've never been more relieved to see the end of a school year.  On to a fun and exciting summer!!

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of 4th Grade

As Jocelyn's 4th grade year comes to an end, I sadly have to say it has been the worst one ever, and we will be happy to see it over with in 8 (hopefully) short days.

Don't get me wrong - "worst ever" - is not in any way a reflection of Jocelyn.  She is doing beautifully, despite it, and we couldn't be prouder.  She's an "A", "B" student and she's done great this year in her educational accomplishments.  She spends half her day with a great Language Arts teacher and has come leaps and bounds from where she was last year in this area.  But for the other half of her day, she's been stuck in a class all year, with a group of kids that are non stop behavioral issues.  I have never seen kids like this that have no respect for adults or each other, they don't care if they get in trouble, they don't want to do the work, they're always rowdy and disruptive.  I frankly don't know how Jocelyn has managed to deal with it all this time.

We talked with her teacher in November, and we talked with her teacher and the principal in January.  I truly believe they have done all they can to deal with the issue.  We considered changing her classes, but long story short, it would have meant taking her out of the Language Arts class too, and we didn't want her to lose out on the great things that she's been able to accomplish in that class this year.

So anyway, we sit at the end of the year, and even with this horrible class half the time, some great things have happened this year.

We did a trunk again for Trunk or Treat

She had a blast at the Holiday Shoppe, especially with her
buddy Kate (unfortunately they weren't in the same classes this year
 or that would have made it a little easier to get through).

She was chosen to be part of a 6 week GT session called Animal Antics. 
They had to create a game about animals and their habitats. 
These classes were one of the highlights of her year!

She made it across the playground monkey bars!

She was chosen, along with Mrs. Lee (that Language Arts Teacher!)
to have their picture on the front and back pages of a Power Point presentation
shown to every teacher in the county on a Teacher Professionals day! 

At the Enrichment Fair Jocelyn had 4, yes 4, items entered into the fair!!  Her Animal Antics Game, her Crazy Contraptions Massager, A tri-o-rama based on the Shiloh book, and some artwork.  It was great to see her so proud to show off all her hard work!

Jocelyn was also chosen
for the Crazy Contraptions
GT session.  Massages anyone?

On Field Day she got to hang out with her best buddies, Kate and Ryan.

In the last 8 days of school, she will wrap up the last of her homework and classwork, there will be a Rockfest outdoor fun day, on her last day June 15th, which families are invited to, she will say goodbye to her teachers and friends for the summer, and starting June 18th, she has a week of Programming Roblox camp, which she is SO EXCITED about!!  We're going to have another great summer together with lots of fun stuff planned, and at some point during the summer I will be meeting with the principal to discuss Jocelyn's 5th grade classmates because there is no way we want her to get stuck with a group like this for her last year of Elementary School!!  Stay tuned!

Ellicott City Floods Again!

Tragic flooding has happened again in Ellicott City...

In recent years, I have become more and more interested in the history of our county.  It started with the discovery of the kids summer Passport series, which we are about to venture on for the 4th year.  And it has flourished into tours of the Patapsco Female Institute, museums and historic locations around the area, as well as classes at the Historical Museum for both Jocelyn and myself.  I love the history of people, and I love hearing about how our area came to be.

Almost 250 years ago, the Ellicotts settled in the area, drawn here by the possibilities of mills powered by the flow of many rivers in the area, specifically the Patapsco River.  Many other families with now, well known names, came here too, and Elkridge and Ellicott Mills became thriving towns.

Eventually the first ever B&O Railroad and Train Station were built in Ellicott City.  Along with the rivers it became a way to transport goods produced in the area.

Ellicott City was built at a point where 3 tributaries run into the Patapsco River.  It's also in a valley at the bottom of "7 hills".  So there's already plenty of flowing water to cause flooding, but the floods of 2016 and last week, are significant because the water did not come UP from a flooding Patapsco, it came DOWN from the hills.  Much of the reason for this is the over building up on the hills above Old Ellicott City.  Everyone, and I mean everyone it seems, wants to live in this area, which is fine and dandy, until you change the topography and take away so much of the areas for water to absorb into the ground.   Instead it flows down hill.  Now granted, we've been dealing with record amounts of rain in the area, and the ground can only absorb so much water, but still....

Anyway, on Saturday May 27, 2018, for the second time in 2 years, Ellicott City flooded.  After more than 8 inches of rain in two hours, rushing water flowed down the funnel known as Main Street.  It gutted historic shops and homes that had managed to survive for 246 years worth of floods.  And now those buildings may be condemned and never see visitors again.

When the flood happened in 2016, everyone said it was a once in 1000 year flood.  They don't think that anymore.

I'm sad to see the pictures, and even though there are many people that know and love the area even more than I do, I greatly feel the loss of the history that I love.  I had just recently discovered there was a building in town that had been the first court house in Howard County.  It was on my list of places to visit this summer.  I had just discovered it and wanted to learn about it's history.  It's gone now, history washed away in the flood waters.  This is what it once looked like.

And now the boards that look like twigs in this photo are what's left of the original court house.  The cabin to the left is also a historic site, that came too close to being washed away with it.

This is the bottom of the hill where the B&O Train Station is (bottom right).  Just past the station farther to the right and not in the photo, is the Patapsco River.  There is plenty of clean up to do.  Sadly, prior to 2016, there was a clock in the street corner beneath the trees.  The flood in 2016 washed the original clock away, but it was eventually found.  A new clock replaced it last year, but that too was washed away in this flood.  It was found a few days ago.  

This past weekend, on Saturday morning, one week after the flood, Jocelyn and I went to a kids program at the Howard County Historic Museum, which fortunately is on one of the hills way above the city flood area.  She got her Passport book for this summer, and we got to visit (from the outside) some of the sites at the top of the hill, the current court house being one of them.  There are sites along Main Street listed in our book, but we don't know if we'll be able to visit them before the end of the summer.  We'll see I guess.

The Historical Society Museum has the clock that was washed away in 2016.  I wonder if they will get the clock that was washed away last week too.

If there is anything good to come of this flooding, it's that after the flood waters washed away the road and the first court house, they left visible one of the long buried millstones, from one of the Ellicott Mills.  I hope maybe one day it will be possible to see it up close

I continue to follow the news reports about Ellicott City, with sadness for the people, and history affected by these floods.  I don't know what the solution is, and I certainly don't blame people for not wanting to rebuild, own businesses, work and / or live on Main Street.  But I am so sad for the history that may be lost forever.