Ten Year of Dad's Christmas Letters - Post #246

Iona is 5 and has started school, sheis in kindergarten (= primary 1) at Frisbee Elementary School. She has a great teacher and is really enjoying it. Her day is so crammed full of things to do and learning opportunities that she is exhausted by the time she gets home. Her number skills are coming on well as is her handwriting and she is starting to read. By the time you get this she will have lost her first tooth. Outside school she goes to gymnastics and storytime at the library.

Iona is now 6 and in first grade. She has been blessed with another wonderful teacher. She is reading everything and loves to bring home books to read to Calum. Along with Mishy, she has joined the Brownies. She enjoys singing in the kids choir at church and is actually tuneful now on her violin. She is now swimming in the deep end much to her parents angst. Along with Calum she loves to kick her Dad off the computer and play Freddi Fish or on the PBS web site.

Iona is now 7 and enjoying second grade at Frisbee School here in Wolcott. Both she and Calum seem to have more active lives than their parents. They both played soccer this autumn, with Justin helping out with a bit of coaching and Iona has just started basketball. Iona’s violin playing is progressing well and she has played in a couple of concerts at her music school and at church. On top of this she takes swimming lessons, just completed a drawing class and is a Brownie.

Iona (aged 10) has taken up piano as well as violin, though she is even better at playing her parents is now in her final year in elementary school and thriving on the opportunities that affords.

Iona has taken the major step this year of moving up to Middle School (for three years before four years of high school). She loves it and all her teachers seem to be enjoying her. She is definitely more challenged there and also has the opportunity for more activities such as the writing and computer clubs that she joined. She has joined the school band in which she is playing the oboe. She plays the piano at home having taken a break from the violin. Outside school, she has joined a local swimming team. This has proved a huge success and Iona really enjoys competing against herself and trying to improve her times. This summer Iona seemed to spend more time away from us than she did with us. As well as spending a week at summer camp she also spent a week on Cape Code with a friend and her family.

Iona is 12 and in her second of three years at Tyrell Middle School. This year she has become involved with a number of extracurricular clubs including Writing, Social Studies, and Character Counts Clubs. Iona swims and swims and swims with the Southington YMCA Stingrays. This had been a very literary year for her. As well having a poem published in a multi-state anthology, she was selected to be one of two student judges for this year’s Nutmeg Children’s Book Award (www.biblio.org/nutmegaward). This involves her having to read and review about 140 books over the next year. You can keep up to date with Iona’s happening by check out her blog: iownapieceofbroccoli.blogspot.com.

Iona is in her last year at middle school (she’s 13). She’s been playing the oboe for the last couple of years, but wanted to be able to be in the High School marching band which has no oboes. We were preparing ourselves for the torture of starting a new instrument when a new solution was found. She’ll play oboe in the orchestra and base drum in the band (one go at We Will Rock You convinced her!). The easiest way to keep up with Iona is to read her blog (address below). It beats mine which is generally work related and Calum’s which focuses on toilet humour (if he actually writes!). Outside school Iona is doing a lot of swimming, including a solid week this summer, it was rather depressing when I tried to race her recently and lost hopelessly!

This is Iona’s freshman year at Wolcott High School (she’s 14) and she is loving it. She always seems to be doing something there after school. Up to now it has mainly been Marching Band where she plays the bass drum, but it could also be orchestra (oboe), or robotics, or who knows what else! She’s also swimming at the YMCA and preparing for a pilgrimage with her church group next summer to Cumbrae, Scotland.

My how things have changed...

--Iona