As the end of the kids' school year approached, Jeff and I were feeling beyond proud of Connor and Kaitlynn for their amazing efforts in their first year of high school and junior high. Despite all of the challenges presented around Covid protocols in school and navigating so many unfamiliar experiences in new campuses for both of them, they were both exceeding our expectations on their academic and athletic achievements.
Not only did Connor make straight As on his tough 9th grade schedule of all advanced classes, including 2 college-level AP courses where he earned the highest scores possible, but he also managed to make the freshman basketball team and freshman/sophomore baseball team amidst steep competition from his peers. What incredible accomplishments for him amidst such a challenging and hectic first year of high school!
For Kaitlynn's part, she also took all advanced classes and earned straight As for the entire school year while having a successful cheer competition season, earning a spot on the cheer squad for 7th grade, making huge strides in her tumbling skills, and gaining recognition in her school theater program. Wow, another amazing school year full of accomplishments for her!
Yes, this post is a "brag on my kids" moment and I'm not ashamed of it! They both worked so hard to earn these achievements, and Jeff and I marveled at their success every step of the way. We waited the entire school year to reward them in the way they truly earned, deserved, and secretly hoped for: another edition of their favorite game - You Win!
On the last day of school, we picked up the kids and surprised them when we revealed they were in for several rounds of You Win! They were excited and ready to get the afternoon game underway.
For Round 1, we asked them to pick a spot to eat lunch and unwind with games - either Dave & Busters or Main Event. They chose Main Event, so off we went!
We sat down together and enjoyed a nice lunch - made even nicer by the fact that they knew their hard 9th and 6th grade school years were behind them! After a quick meal, we headed over to the arcade where we all enjoyed lots of games and competition. There were lots of smiles and laughs and we soaked in the family time.
Probably the most fun of all was when they pooled their winnings to see what goodies they could purchase from the arcade store. They even calculated how they could optimally divide the pool and put every last point to use. Way to put those freshly learned math skills to use, ha!
Next up was Round 2: $20 to spend at one of their favorite stores, either Five Below or Dollar Tree. (Yes, those are some of their favorite places to shop!) They chose Five Below and off we went. When we first walked in, Kaitlynn was greeted by one of her best friends from elementary school, Londyn. What a fun and unexpected surprise!
Our next round of the You Win game was pretty obvious: the dessert round! The choices were between Marble Slab and Freddy's. Anyone who knows Kaitlynn could guess the obvious choice here - Freddy's, which is her all-time favorite spot for food and ice cream (technically, frozen custard)! It puts her in such a good mood that she's even affectionate with her brother, ha!
The last and final round of You Win! is always the kids' favorite, and they had high hopes as we headed home to wrap up the game. The game always includes a "joke" round, so we had to throw in something silly like a choice between a bath or a shower. The kids of course rolled their eyes because they were anxious to get to the grand finale, the round they KNEW was coming based on prior games.
Back home, the final round was underway. It was a round they were very familiar with: choose between money or a gift. There is a usually a pause as they consider the things they could buy with a stack of cash, but the gift option always wins out. After all, Mom and Dad have never let them down in the past.
First up to open his gift was Connor. After much anticipation, he tore into the package. He was slightly confused when he was presented with a new Xbox controller. Not a bad gift at all, but certainly not the scale of gift he was likely anticipating. We couldn't hold in the surprise for long, though. When he saw his REAL gift, he was SO excited and thankful. A brand new Xbox - he was ecstatic!
Then it was time for Kaitlynn. Jeff had tried to disguise her gift because this was one we were expecting her to be quite surprised about. After years (and years and years) of being the only child amongst her peers without a personal mobile device, we had decided it was time for her to have one. It was a full year earlier than promised, so we assumed she would be shocked. When she tore into the package, she was definitely surprised but not nearly as surprised as we'd expected her to be. Her very own iPhone - we expected squeals of joy and maybe even some tears! But she had outsmarted us and already figured out that she was likely going to get my hand-me-down iPhone since I had just upgraded mine that morning. Typical, ha! She was still super excited and ready to get her new phone all set up and personalized.
With their gifts opened and big smiles all around, another game of You Win! came to a fun and successful end. Throughout the game, Jeff and I praised their hard work and perseverance though their tough classes and hectic schedules. We couldn't have asked for a better first year of high school for Connor and junior high for Kaitlynn. We were beyond proud of these kids and happy for them to get such a fun start to their summer!
