Spelling Bee

This is a picture of Greg receiving his certificate after the Spelling Bee


The Athens School District puts on a Spelling Bee for local 3rd and 4th graders as preparation for the "official" Spelling Bee that 5th graders are given the opportunity to participate in (the one where they can go all the way to D.C.). The top 2 "spellers" in each 3rd and 4th grade class across the district are brought together for a Spelling Bee. Greg received the most points in his class after a series of mini spelling bees and was chosen to represent his class along with the second highest scoring student. The Spelling Bee for all the district classroom "champs" was last Wednesday. Out of 37 students, Greg came in 8th. His word was "longitude" and he missed the e on the end! He was so close! Had he spelled that word correctly, I'm positive he would have went on to be in the top 2 or 3. Below is a video clip of Greg spelling "frequently".

Back from Cali

We just returned from a week long trip back home to Northern California. The weather was beautiful and it was great to see family and friends. Below are a couple pictures from our trip and I've posted more on my Flickr. Tomorrow is back to work and the day to day grind of getting up at the crack of dawn. Ugh!

Taken on Table Mountain near Oroville, Ca.



A shot of Burney Falls

Jessica's 2nd Solo!

I have to give props to my daughter. Twice now she has stepped up and put herself on stage to pretty much blow our tops off with her singing. Tonight was the Talent Show for her Junior High. When Jessica initially told us she was going to perform, my first thought was...."Oh no...please don't!" This thought was spurred by my tragic remembrance of stage fright I encountered as a child and my own lack of self confidence. How does a child spawned of my (and Paul's) genetic make up get up there and just bust out singing without showing a hint of nerves??? There were 8 acts tonight and Jessica was, by far, the best talent up there on that stage. Our video clip isn't the best because Abbie was taking it on her camera and moving her arm around a lot. We also have it on digital video but I can't upload that to our computer without proper equipment. Jessica is a natural performer...it's in her blood...and God has blessed her with a beautiful voice. And now --- here she is --- Jessica Beck singing "Hey Jude" (by the Beatles) ---- our next AMERICAN IDOL! ;-)