Baptism

Kooper was baptized today. He was supposed to be baptized last month but that was the weekend of Ike so we moved it to this month. We went to mass at noon and the baptism followed mass. I would say there were probably 10 to 12 babies that were baptized today, which is a large group but due to Ike we were all this month. Deacon Sid Sandiford performed the service. We did the majority of it as a group and then we took Kooper to the fountain for Deacon Sid to do the water part of it. Kooper did very good for having to sit for almost two hours. Mass was an hour and then the baptism took almost an hour. He started talking during the baptism, very loud infact. There was a boy about two pews in front of us that was crying and Kooper was looking at him like what are you crying about. It was funny to watch his facial expressions. Deacon Sid came around first asking each child's name and what we wanted for our child, in which we responded "Baptism". Then he spoke for a minute, then came back around and annointed him with a cross on his chest. Then we went to the back an he poured water over his head and did the actual baptizing. Rachel and Chad, his godparents, then took his baptism candle and lit it using the church candle. Deacon Sid said a few prayers and few other words then he came back around and annointed each child on the forehead with the sign of the cross. He said his final prayer and we were done. We took a few pictures at the church and headed home. A friend of mine, Kristi, picked up the food from Cliantro's and brought it to the house for us. We had the house set up for about 30 people and I'd say we had pretty close to that amount show up for the reception. We ate, visited, took more pictures and eveyone left. Then Jeremy, Kooper and I all crashed. We all took about an hour nap and got up around 6pm. Kooper did so good today. I feel so blessed to have such wonderful family and friends. I'm also thankful for Chad and Rachel for being Kooper's godparents. I know they are both great people and he will always be able to look up to them and go to them for guidance. Thank you to everyone who came, helped out and shared in this joyous day for us! We will remember this day for always!!

Happenings

I just thought I'd post even though not much has been going on. We had Kooper's picture taken this past weekend at Studio One in the mall. We took a pumpkin with us and put him in his overalls. He was so cute standing with the pumpkin. He also had his nine months check up at the doctor's office. He had to have blood drawn and he got a flu shot. He did not like them doing the blood work because they had to prick his finger and squeeze, boy did he scream, and of course I'm having to hold him still. The flu shot wasn't so bad because it was just one prick, but he survived. This coming Sunday, Oct. 19 he will be baptized, finally! We were supposed to do it on the Sunday of Hurricane Ike, well that didn't happen. So we rescheduled everything, the food, the family, etc and we will be having it this Sunday. We will go to Mass, then the baptism will follow around 1pm and then we will have everyone back to the house for food. I will post those pictures next week sometime. Other than that we have just been going to work and hanging out. I will post again next week after his baptism. I hope everyone is doing well!

School Happenings

These are some of the second grade teachers that dressed up for career day.


Me, my friends Sarah and Shannon. We all attended SHSU. Go Bearkats!!!

In school this week we've been encouraging our students to further their education after high school. We're calling it Education: Go Get It! Monday we dressed up as different careers, Tuesday we wore college shirts and Thursday we are going to wear shirts from the local middle school, junior high and high school. Each day we are talking about college and higher education. Monday we talked about different career options and how second grade can help them prepare. Tuesday we talked about going to college. I got on to Sam Houston State University's webpage and showed them a few things. I went to the girls soccer and basketball pages and showed them Britni's picture. They all thought that was cool. Tomorrow we will talk about the military, trades and other options besides college, although I tell my kids they have to go to college. :) A lot of my kids wore their college shirts today. There were a lot of Horn fans! I wore SHSU of course, so did two other girls I teach with. We're having fun wearing our jeans all week and sharing some of our experiences with our students.

Bunco Night

Last Friday night I played Bunco for the first time. The teachers on my team along with a couple of other people have started a Bunco team. We are going to play once a month. Each month will be held at a different person's house. They will host for the night and provide food. This past Friday we went over to Amanda's house. She had chicken enchilada cassarole, homemade salsa, chips and queso. Many of us didn't know how to play so Amanda and her friend Robin had to teach us. At first I thought I was going to be lost all night but once you start playing you get the hang of it. We had to play with three "ghosts" because Pat, Carol and Brandy couldn't make it. We play again in November at Shannon's house and I'm looking forward to it.

Z Family Pics

Jeremy, Jill and Kooper Martin



Tamara and Jimmy, Cindy and Amelia Bennett







Jill Zdunkewicz-Martin, Tommy and Linda Zdunkewicz


Jimmy, Vic, Bobby, Robert, Dan and Tommy


Jana, Catherine and Cindy Zdunkewicz


Jimmy, Robert and Bobby Bennett


Tommy, Bobby, Dan, Vic and Robert


Jimmy and Amelia, Robert and Bobby

Zdunkewicz Family Reunion

This past Saturday, Sept. 27, 2008 we had our first Zdunkewicz Family reunion in probably 10 or more years. We were invited out to Fulshear, TX to my Uncle Vic and Aunt Mary Rose's house. They were gracious enough to host the reunion. In attendance were my dad's two brothers Vic Zdunkewicz and Dan Zdunkewicz, along with their wives, Mary Rose and Gloria. There were many of my cousins there as well, including two from out of state. Colonel Robert (Bobby) Bennett and his wife Colonel Sylvia Bennett came from Washington, D.C. Jimmy, Cindy and Amelia Bennett came from Atlanta, Georgia. There father Robert Bennett Sr. also came from Atlanta, Georgia. Jimmy and Bobby are the sons of the late Dorothy Bennett, also my dad's only sister. She passed away in April 2008 and will all miss her dearly but we know she is smiling down on us all. The reunion was a hit if I do say so myself. We arrived around 3pm and stayed until about 8pm. We talked, told stories and even got to know some of our relatives we haven't seen in years. I had never met Jimmy or Bobby, atleast I don't remember meeting them. Bobby is in the military and served in Desert Storm. I was in the fourth grade at the time and I remember writing to him in Saudia Arabia. He wrote back a couple weeks later, I think I have the letter somewhere. We really had a great time with everyone and I'm so glad we were able to get together. Our intentions are to do this again in two years when the Bennetts can return to Texas. I hope everyone else enjoyed themselves and it was great to see all of you. Take care!

You Should See The Other Guy!

Well Kooper had his first big booboo. He was at the sitter's house and fell and hit his head. The concrete won. His sitter, Sandy, called me right away to tell me, luckily all my students were gone so I went over there to get him. She felt horrible about what happened but I tried to tell her that these things happen. I pinched his finger in his high chair a few months ago so I know how she feels. I was worried about a concusion so I went ahead and took him to his pediatrician. They saw us right away and the doctor said he looked fine. He checked his head, eyes, ears, chest and arm (because he also hit his shoulder pretty hard). He said everything looked fine. He told us to wake him up tonight every four hours and make sure he doesn't vomit more than twice, which he didn't. So tonight will be a long night for us but that's fine with me as long as my little buddy is ok. Kooper actually seemed fine. On our ride to the doctor's office he was talking to me and playing with his toys in the back seat. He didn't like the doctor pushing on his head but he was fine otherwise. The doctor cleaned the scrape on his eyebrow and put a bandage on it to keep it clean. Jeremy said he looked like a boxer and that we should get boxing gloves for him. I'm a little disappointed it happened now because we have a family reunion this coming Saturday and some of my family has yet to see Kooper. Oh well, he'll get lots of lovin from everyone.