Star

 Zinash in her 5th grade classroom last spring

Last April, Zinash, like all California public school students, took the California Standards Test.  Today in the mail we received her STAR (Standardized Testing and Reporting) Results. (I know...4 months later...that's California for you!).  Of course I was curious to see how she did so I tore into the envelope between the mail box and our front door.

You see, she had scored in the "basic" category on both math and English/language arts at the end of 4th grade, and to be honest I was really pleased with that.  They also had categories for "below basic" and "far below basic" so I figured "basic" was two steps up from where she started when she came to the US. 

Her 5th grade teacher wanted to see Zinash break into the "proficient" category - at least in math and maybe even in English.  I thought she might score in the "proficient" category in math but it was unlikely in English; seriously, the child had only been in the US for a little over 2 years by April of her 5th grade year.  5th grade also included a science test and based on the practice tests Zinash kept bringing home, I was hoping that she would make it to the "basic" category on that test.

So anyway, I opened the envelope and saw three long bars on the bar chart.  And at the bottom of the page were those magic words: "Your child is at the Proficient level in English/Language Arts; Your child is at the Proficient level in Mathematics; Your child is at the Proficient level in Science." 

Amazing.  This girl simply amazes me. 

Thank You, God, for gifting Zinash with a strong mind, the willingness to work hard, and great teachers! 

Answered Prayers

Zinash started middle school this year.  I'm not sure who was more nervous about it: her or me.  My own experience in starting middle school was...hmm...let's just say it was character building.  My biggest concern was that she was starting in a new school in a new district without knowing anyone who goes to school there.  I had read enough about resilience in middle school to know how important a positive peer group was for overcoming adversity and making positive choices.  And here we were sending our daughter into the challenge of the middle school years without a single friend to walk those first days, weeks, and months with her.  (Sound a little melodramatic?  Yeah...I know...but that is really how I was feeling.)

I hoped and prayed that over the summer she would make a friend that would be going to her school.  We signed her up for a local art class through the Parks and Rec department so that she could meet some friends her age.  She ended up being the only kid in the class.  I told her that I had been hoping that she would meet some friends through the art class and she said, "Well, I guess I'll meet myself!"  (The cool thing is that she's been getting private art lessons this summer...)  We signed her up for Vacation Bible School at the church we've been attending.  There were over 500 kids at VBS and she met a couple fun girls, but they didn't go to her school.  She went to the 6th grade orientation for 3 hours one morning and met a few people but didn't really connect with anyone.

So the first day of school came and she still didn't really know anyone.  I knew she would make friends eventually but I prayed that God would help her meet some friends soon.  I also specifically asked that God would provide a friend for her to eat lunch with the first day.

After school, I asked how her first day was.

"Good."

Ah, the one word answers...  "So how was PE?"  I knew she was nervous about changing in the locker room.

"Fine!"

Awesome.  "What did you guys do in PE?"

"Not much.  We didn't have to change.  They just talked."

Sounds like my kind of PE day..."So how was lunch?  Did you find anyone to eat lunch with?"

"Yes! Actually I ate with 3 people."

Thank You, Jesus!  "What are their names?"

"Hmm...I don't remember..."

Oh well.  That's my girl.

She has continued to hang out with those girls the past two weeks and a couple more girls have joined them.  I'm so very thankful that God answered my prayer and hers as well.

When I went to Back to School Night at Zinash's school, I found out another piece of the story.  For Back to School Night, they had the parents follow their child's schedule for 10 minutes sessions in each class.  The Back to School Night was intended just for parents and Chuck was gone for the week for work, so I went by myself.

During Zinash's PE class, I sat at a table with another mom.  We started chatting and discovered that we both had 6th grade girls.  She said that they were new to the district and I shared that we were too.  She asked my daughter's name and I told her.  Her eyes lit up and she said, "Oh!  My daughter has been eating lunch with your daughter!"  I asked her daughter's name and recognized it from Zinash mentioning her earlier that day. The mom shared that her daughter had been so nervous about starting school without knowing anyone (sound familiar?) and that she was so thankful to have found a friend in Zinash.

How sweet is that?  Not only did God answer Zinash's and my prayers that she would find a friend, but also used Zinash to meet the need of another precious girl.  God is so good!!  If God had answered my prayer for Zinash to find a friend this summer, she and J and the other girls in their little lunch group may not have been drawn towards each other.  And so I'm reminded, once again, that God's timing really is best and that if things don't go the way I envision, it just might be that God has a better plan in mind.

Out of the Mouth of Babes

Mihret and I met with her kindergarten teacher this week for the beginning of kindergarten testing/parent conference.  The teacher asked her to identify letters, primary sounds of the letters, numbers, etc.  She was able to do all of that and read about half of the sight words that they are supposed to learn this year.   Clearly, this girl is ready for kindergarten! 

At some point we shared that Mihret had an older sister who just started middle school.  Another teacher who was helping out in the classroom overheard our conversation and asked Mihret, "Is your sister as smart as you are?"  

Mihret responded, "Oh no!  She's MUCH smarter!!  She's 12!" 

Blessed

Lillian Fuenning

December 28, 1920 - May 19, 2012

This morning my sweet Grandma left this world behind.  I know she's overjoyed to be home with the Lord - in her Heart's True Home. In fact, if she could write me another letter, I would imagine that she would say, "What a great day to go to Heaven!" which, incidentally, is exactly what my Uncle Tom said to my Mom when they talked on the phone today.    Grandma has always been full of life, but I imagine that today she's absolutely giddy.  As my sister-in-law, Michelle, said, "I can see her dancing and celebrating with Jesus!"  

Although I'm happy for her, I'm sad for me and for all of us who love her so dearly.  I'm sad to think of life without her mostly illegible letters waiting in my mail box, without her cheerful voice on the other end of the line, without visits to Hilltop and walks down the lane with her, without her hug, her smile, her prayers, her effervescent faith, her truly authentic presence in our lives... 

My precious Grandma, what a gift you have been!  Your influence in my life - in the lives of so many - will last far beyond your years on this earth.  I'm so very glad that we'll see you again someday!  Until then, may your children, your grandchildren, and your great-grandchildren carry on your mission of loving people to Jesus. 

 Proverbs 31:28-29

Her children arise and call her blessed;
    her husband also, and he praises her: 

 “Many women do noble things,
    but you surpass them all.”

Christmas Greetings

Merry Christmas from the Strawns!

Here's a little "year in review" on our family:

Chuck: Still mourning the loss of the “sweater vest” but reveling in the early Christmas gift that Santa brought to the Ohio State University. (If that made absolutely no sense to you, feel free check out the OSU blog that Chuck writes for when he’s not directing fun at APU or at home: http://www.thebuckeyebattlecry.com/)

Carrie: Turned 40. Actually likes it. Has been doing some writing for World Vision when not chauffeuring kids to activities or organizing play dates at the park. Every once in a while updates this blog.

Zinash: Learned to ride a bike. Got 100% on the 5th grade states and capitals test. Has gone from beginning English language learner to intermediate in one year. Enjoys ballet, art, and watching movies. Graceful, smart, and kind.

Mihret: Wants to be a musketeer when she grows up. Practices kicks, forward rolls, cartwheels, and “en gardes” every day in our living room. Loves preschool and her new found ability to draw rainbows and write sweet, mostly legible notes (I LUV U). Energetic, strong, and loving.

May God bless you and your family this Christmas and throughout 2012!

Tis the Season

Mihret and her friend, D, visiting Santa Claus for the first time

Until this year, a sighting of Santa Claus sent Mihret straight for my arms. She appreciated the gifts and all, but felt it was best to keep her distance from the big man in red. In fact, she made sure that we put the baby gate on the stairs on Christmas Eve so that Santa would stay downstairs. (I know...he can get through chimneys and locked doors but can't step over a baby gate...)

This year, all that changed. She's been talking about Santa Claus all season and asking questions that make parents squirm. She asked Chuck, "Is Santa real?" and he said, "What do you think?" They talked for a while and I thought he handled the question really well. Then the next morning on the way to preschool she asked me, "Is Santa real?" Fortunately I had seen the expert in action so I said, "What do you think?" She responded, "No Mama, I asked you. What do YOU think? Is Santa real?" Really? Chuck gets away with, "What do you think?" and I have to answer the question??? I talked about how Santa Claus was another name for Saint Nicholas and told her as much as I could remember about the real Saint Nicholas. She seemed satisfied with that. Phew... Until after preschool when she asked me again.

Anyway, we took a trip with Chuck's staff to The Grove this past Friday. There's a Santa Claus there in a sweet little house which Mihret has always avoided in the past. She remembered it though and was super excited to sit on Santa's lap and tell him what she wanted for Christmas. She talked about it the whole week before we went.

I asked her what she was going to ask for and she said, "I can't tell you. It's a surprise!" But she really can't keep a secret for long so eventually she told me that she was going to tell Santa that she wished Barbies were real. I didn't tell her that Barbies would look really strange and probably a bit scary if they were real...but Chuck did.

We got to the Grove a bit later than normal and the wait to visit Santa was 45 minutes. They weren't sure if we would actually get to see the Jolly Old Elf before his bedtime, so we made the decision not to try. I broke the bad news to Mihret with a bit of good news. Santa was going to be at the mall next week and we could see him there. She was thrilled! Phew!

In the meantime, she discovered something that she wanted even more than real Barbies (big sigh of relief). So by the time we showed up at the mall to visit Santa (no line...score!), she had changed her biggest wish to a dolphin. Fortunately, she is hoping for a cute little stuffed animal dolphin that she saw at Kohls rather than a real one. Double phew...

Temporarily satisfying a 4 1/2 yr old's curiosity about Santa Claus - check
Successful visit to Santa Claus - check
Baby gate ready and waiting just in case - check

Unabashed Bragging

Zinash enjoying some hot chocolate

This past week we got some great news from Zinash's teacher. The school had given Zinash a test to determine the progress she has made in understanding, speaking, reading, and writing in English. Last year she was given the test at the beginning of the school year and scored a 1 out of 5 which meant that she was a very beginning English learner. That wasn't a surprise! At the end of the school year, she was re-tested and also scored a 1. Based on the descriptions given of each level, I thought she was more accurately a 2, but it didn't show up on the test. This fall they re-tested her again and she scored a 3! She has been working hard at school and at home on her homework. We are so proud of her!!

We also found out this past week that Zinash was being recognized for some artwork she submitted in a bookmark contest which is sponsored by the library. We went to a ceremony today to celebrate the contest winners and she was awarded 2nd place for the grade 3-5 division for our city!

Zinash with her award and her bookmark

A closer look at her bookmark

I am proud of her hard work at school and love her artwork, but the thing that made me most proud of her today was something that she did this evening. As she has gotten older, playing and running around with her little sister has lost some of its luster. Tonight we were at an APU football game and a bunch of kids were playing and running around in a grassy area behind one of the endzones. My social little Mihret really wanted to play with the kids and tried several times to get into their game, but she was younger than the other kids and they didn't seem interested in including a little kid. She came back over to us feeling sad and then went back over to try again. I looked over and saw her standing around watching the other kids play. Before I knew it, Zinash called Mihret over and said, "Hey Mihret! Wanna play tag?" Zinash spent the rest of the evening running around playing with her little sister. Mihret went from sad panda to utter joy.

Utter Joy

Gotcha!

Zinash had a lot of fun too, but I knew that her decision to play tag with her sister was motivated by her love for her sister rather than a personal desire to play tag. It was a precious moment and absolutely filled my heart with joy.

Zinash continues to amaze us. She is a remarkable girl and we are so blessed to have her as our daughter!

The Bottom of the Box

Mihret, with one of her many boxes in the background

Last night I was trying to help Mihret find something in her room. I was digging through one of her precious cardboard boxes (yup, she's a box hoarder--I mean, collector--but that's another story). As I got near the bottom of the box, she stopped me and said, "Mama, promise you won't be mad at me?"

"Why would I be mad at you, Mihret?"

"Ummm....just promise you won't be mad?"

Now I'm starting to get worried. What would I find at the bottom of the box? Something broken? Something ooey, gooey? Something of mine that had been "repurposed"?

"Mihret, just tell me..."

"Ummm...well...umm...."

I smile, trying to be non-threatening... "Just tell me, honey. It will be okay." (I'm hoping...)

"Um..." she pulls back the last layer of stuff at the bottom of the box to reveal....two small potatoes. "I took the potatoes so I could make noses on some aliens."

I couldn't help it. I busted up laughing. Scenes flashed before my mind's eye of a sweet little baby girl who had a slight potato obsession.

Once I caught my breath, we did have a little discussion about working on potato aliens in the kitchen instead of the bedroom. After all, I wouldn't want potato aliens taking over my house, which with this girl, is a real possibility.