Tag Archives: St. Mary Catholic School Spokane

Rogan Thursday Rundown

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Good evening and welcome back to Don’t Blink. Let’s get right to business with this week’s five topics…

Fair Tradition – For the fifth straight year, my family went to the Spokane Interstate Fair. We attended last Friday night and stayed until they shut the doors. The kids went crazy on the rides and I went crazy on the heart attack–inducing food. For the fourth straight year I ordered a slice of deep fried pizza. Now I know it doesn’t look like much but every bite was so incredibly good. Combined with Sid’s “nest of fries” it was a major greasy treat.

We had another awesome time at the Spokane Interstate Fair. My slice of deep fried pizza was delicious.

Soccer Season – The 2025 fall soccer season is here and it just isn’t Sloan playing this year. Beau is playing too and loving it. Saturdays are a little busy for us now since we have both kids playing games at different sites but the packed schedule is worth the fun, exercise, and competition that Sloan and Beau get to experience.

My dad helps Beau get ready for his first soccer game that was played this past Saturday.

Pop-Tart Mornings – In order to arrive at work on time, I drop my kids off at educare, which is St. Mary Catholic School’s daycare service for students who arrive before school starts. We have many early mornings in our house and sometimes breakfast is grab-and-go. I took this photo of Sloan and Beau on Tuesday morning as I dropped them off at educare. Like father like son/daughter, they are eating s’mores Pop-Tarts.

Beau and Sloan eat their s’mores Pop-Tarts during educare at St. Mary Catholic School (Spokane Valley).

National Cheeseburger Day – Shame on me! I have neglected to properly recognize National Cheeseburger Day (Sept. 18) while showering love on its sibling, National Hamburger Day (May 28). Case in point? On National Hamburger Day in 2024 I wrote an ode to the sandwich, praising it for the universality it enjoys on restaurant menus across the country. Then, just a few months ago, I used National Hamburger Day to recognize the best burger I had over the past 12 months. The real irony in my snub of National Cheeseburger Day? I will always choose a cheeseburger over a hamburger.

Happy National Cheeseburger Day!

Rogan Murrell – On Saturday, Beau and I went to Divine’s Convenience Store on Pines in Spokane Valley. We had to wait about three minutes before an employee let us in because they were taking the garbage out. While looking at the doors, I noticed the plaque commemorating the life of Rogan Murrell. As we stood there, I googled Rogan’s name. I learned that he was killed when a drunk driver crashed into the car he was driving in with two of his friends. He had graduated high school two months before his death and was going to attend college at Western Washington University. Part of his obituary states: “Rogan was an exceptional, bright, sunny, young man. He had an infectious smile, a wonderful laugh, and great hair.” If you are reading this, please pray for the repose of Rogan’s soul and for his family.

This plaque was installed on the door at Divine’s Convenience Store in Spokane Valley.

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I know I ended this rundown on a sad note. If you have someone in mind who recently lost someone close to them, perhaps it would be nice to reach out to that individual and let them know you are thinking of them. Don’t Blink.

Ready For a Fruitful and Safe 2025-26 School Year

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Watch a “First Day of School” video of Sloan and Beau

It’s the Tuesday after Labor Day and that means one thing in these parts: The first day of school!

Sloan and Beau attended their first day of school for the 2025-26 school year. Once again, they are attending St. Mary Catholic School in the Spokane Valley.

Sloan and Beau started their third grade and kindergarten years today. Believe it or not, this will be our SIXTH year at St. Mary Catholic School and we couldn’t be more excited.

Sloan and Beau are ready for another great year at St. Mary Catholic School (Spokane Valley).

This year, Sloan has Mrs. Mary Remer leading her classroom. New to the school for 2025-26, we look forward to getting to know Mrs. Remer. However, I think we already like her considering her last name closely resembles ours AND it is also a palindrome 😉.

Sloan all set this morning on her first day as a 3rd grader.

When it comes to Beau, his teacher is Mrs. Kristen Mead. We have a little more familiarity with her than Sloan’s teacher—when Beau started Pre-K4 last year, Mrs. Mead was leading his classroom. However, a last-minute teacher shuffle resulted in Mrs. Mead moving up to kindergarten. Although that ended up working just fine because Beau’s re-assigned Pre-K4 teacher was AWESOME, we are looking forward to finishing what we started with Mrs. Mead.

How is he a kindergartener?! He is in store for a great year.

Thanks be to God, Stephen Hart is once again returning to St. Mary as the principal. He will continue to run an unapologetically Catholic school that strives to help students and staff get to Heaven. His leadership is infectious. Enrollment is up this year, parents/students have bought in, and the vibe I felt this morning was so assuring. We are in good hands.

Mr. Stephen Hart returns to St. Mary Catholic School for his third year as principal. This is him opening up the school doors for the first day of school.

But even though we are in good hands with our leadership, there is some anxiety this year. With the tragic incident at Annunciation School last week, everyone is a little more on guard. St. Mary has already put in place a tighter security protocol, especially when it comes to mass, but prayers for a safe school year are very much appreciated.

Please pray for St. Mary School and all schools as the 2025-26 year begins.

I want to wish everyone returning to school—students and teachers—a fruitful year. Whether you attend St. Mary or not, I am pulling for you. Hope it is the best year yet! Don’t Blink.

A Shattered Thursday Rundown

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I understand that this blog post might be the last thing between you and a four-day Memorial Day weekend so let me try to move fast. Thankfully, it is a Thursday Rundown so you don’t have to worry about reading a novel. But I guess continuing on with this introduction isn’t helping much so let’s get right to the five topics…

Olivia Is 1 – Last week my niece turned 1-year-old. Olivia, who was born on May 15, is the daughter of my brother and sister-in-law. I remember the day she was born I picked up the kids from school and surprised them by taking them to the hospital to meet Olivia. A strawberry-themed birthday party was thrown at my parents’ house to celebrate her first 365 days.

Olivia at her 1st birthday party.

Basketball Hoop Destroyed – Speaking of my parents’ house, I must convey some really tough news. Our family basketball hoop was recently ripped from its pole and rendered completely unusable. If you remember, we celebrated the hoop’s 30th anniversary last September and the post I wrote to commemorate the milestone was chosen as my #1 blog post of 2024. On Sunday, I helped my dad pick up the detached backboard/basket and place it in his truck for transport to the dump. My parents plan to purchase a new basketball hoop and I will update you when it is installed.

The Reser basketball hoop after it was taken to the ground.

Crazy Hair/Tie Dye Day – It is Spirit Week at St. Mary Catholic School as Sloan and Beau have thrown their full participation behind it. Yesterday happened to be Crazy Hair/Tie Dye Day and while both children were able to check the “tie dye” portion, my youngest struggled with the “crazy hair” part. Sidney recently cut his hair extremely short and when he asked for a mohawk, we couldn’t exactly swing it. Maybe next year, Beau!

Sloan and Beau pose for a photo before going to St. Mary Catholic School for Crazy Hair/Tie Dye Day.

Fun and Original Pizza – Before heading to the Immaculate Heart Retreat Center on Friday night, our Engaged Encounter ministry team went out for dinner. At the recommendation of Fr. Pat Kerst, the five of us went to Republic Pi on the South Hill. What a great choice! The sandwiches were made with the freshest bread, the service was great, and the atmosphere was on-point. But the best part was the restaurant’s signature item—pizza! I ordered the Wilson pie which consisted of garlic cream sauce, smoked chicken, Yukon potatoes, cheese blend, green onion, and roasted garlic. It was excellent and worth another trip one of these days.

This was the Wilson pizza I ordered from Republic Pi. It was good!

Peanut Butter Sandwiches for Days – In another example of how some things seldom change, I want to flashback to a blog post I wrote 11 years ago on May 21, 2014. It chronicled my obsession with eating peanut butter sandwiches for lunch. In this particular blog post, I outlined the long history I had with eating the classic staple and shared some of the reaction from co-workers who became astonished with my consistent hobby. Well, guess what I ate for lunch today? Yep, you know.

A peanut butter sandwich I devoured 11 years ago. I still eat these delicacies every day.

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I am pumped for the Memorial Day weekend. The weather is going to be gorgeous and I am looking forward to just relaxing. After a couple big trips and a retreat, I am ready to stay home and rest. Please enjoy and be safe! Don’t Blink.

2025 Homemade Mother’s Day Gifts

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As I have echoed my own mom’s words in past blog posts, homemade Mother’s Day gifts are simply the best. Once again this year, St. Mary Catholic School offered the initiative/thought while our kids supplied the creativity to produce some special gifts for Sidney.

Let’s open up these gift bags and see what is inside!

First, let’s start with Beau. You know if the gift bag has a cute pun on it that the contents should be halfway decent…

Based on the pun, any idea what is inside?

Beau gave Sid a cilantro starter kit. Everything she needs to grow the herb is in the pot that Beau painted himself. Thanks to the handsome photo of himself, there will be no confusion on who gifted his mommy the cilantro wants it begins to grow.

Beau gave Sidney this cilantro kit.

Sloan channeled her inner-Picasso for the second straight year. However, instead of the stunning portrait she made of Sid last year (which I loved), Sloan painted this moody landscape to be hung at the most highly-visible spot in our house.

Sloan painted this for Sid.

As a bonus, Sloan also filled in this sheet for Sidney. However, I think as kids grow in age, these things just get more mundane because this is probably the most boring/least funny/straight forward “All About Mom” exercise I have ever seen.

These have sadly become pretty straight forward as Sloan has gotten older.

In addition to the above beautiful gifts, the kids also helped serve breakfast in bed to Sidney. I hope your Mother’s Day was just as sweet as the cinnamon sugar pancakes we made for her. Don’t Blink.

BOGO Thursday Rundown

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Good evening and thanks once again for choosing to read Don’t Blink. Even if you do choose to only come for the Thursdays, you are always welcome. Let’s begin this rundown…

Latest Chuck E. Cheese Outing – I have written a lot over the past several years about my family’s acceptance of Chuck E. Cheese. We have taken our kids there frequently over the years and even held a birthday there. Our “home” Chuck E. Cheese in the Spokane Valley recently went through an update and it looks great inside! I took the kids for a visit on President’s Day to play the new games and have some fun. I am glad to report that Sloan and Beau did indeed have fun, but it did come at a price. The unlimited hourly rate for a child is now $32. If I didn’t have a special BOGO offer, it would have been $64. Those prices make any of the area trampoline parks seem like cheap entertainment.

Sloan and Beau with the mouse himself at the Spokane Valley Chuck E. Cheese on Monday, Feb. 17.

100th Day of School – It was the 100th Day of School at St. Mary last week and the Pre-K4 class decided to dress up as centenarians. Sid dressed Beau in suspenders and dusted his hair with powder. Our son also brought in 100 Lego pieces for the occasion. If you remember, Sloan brought in raffle tickets when tasked with bringing in 100 items.

Beau dressed up as an old man on the 100th day of school.

Stephen King – When you think of Stephen King, the first thing that comes to your mind is probably horror. But believe it or not, he also writes thrillers and crime novels too. After completing Billy Summers not too long ago, I decided to read another non-scary book of King’s—Mr. Mercedes. When you don’t have to worry about giving yourself nightmares, you will be surprised at how great King’s writing is. With superb character development, plenty of humor mixed in, and masterful storytelling, his books really are page-turners. I completed Mr. Mercedes earlier this week and might consider reading the other two books in the trilogy.

Me clutching my library copy of “Mr. Mercedes.”

Post Office Birthday – On this date in 1792, President George Washington established the U.S. Post Office. What a glorious day! Although USPS has fallen on tough times lately, I never cease to sing its praises. The fact that you can slap a stamp on a letter and have it delivered anywhere in the nation has always fascinated me. In fact, it has done more than just “fascinate” me, it has pushed me to action. I love to send cards and letters and do so on a very constant basis. Almost 12 years ago, I even offered a promotion within this blog that resulted in many of my readers receiving personal mail from me! Also, back in 2021, my recommended gift of the holiday season was a book of stamps. There is nothing else to say but HAPPY BIRTHDAY, USPS!

I love USPS.

Mr. Walker Steps Out – My kids and I read so many books together that it has to be a special story to really stand out. Well, Beau and I read a pretty creative one earlier this week. Called Mr. Walker Steps Out by Lisa Graff, the story chronicles the “life” of a “person” who serves as the walk icon within a traffic light at a random intersection. One day, he becomes bored with his job and walks out of the light box. He strolls around town and enjoys his newfound freedom. However, after a while, he wanders back to his former intersection just in time to witness the makings of disaster. He jumps to action and saves a little girl crossing the street. The icon climbs back into his box with a greater appreciation for what he does.

Beau stands next to “Mr. Walker Steps Out.”

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That covers it for tonight. Thanks for taking the time to read my randomness! If you aren’t too busy, write a quick letter to a loved one, place it in an envelope, throw on a stamp, and drop it in the mailbox. Don’t Blink.

Valentine’s Eve Thursday Rundown

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Brrrrrrr. It has been a cold week here in the Inland Northwest. Temperatures have plummeted below zero a few times, making me feel very blessed to have a warm house but also sad for those I drive by each day that don’t. Let’s begin tonight’s rundown…

Spider-Man Cake – This was Beau’s birthday cake. Actually, it is Beau’s birthday cake because we still have quite a bit stored in our freezer. But it should come as no surprise that our little guy requested a Spider-Man cake. This white cake with strawberry filling was baked at Walmart and the coolest part was by far the eyes on the Spider-Man decorative emblem that lit up.

This was Beau’s Spider-Man birthday cake from Walmart.

Valentine Prep – I thought this picture perfectly captures what second graders across the country can be found doing the night before their Valentine’s Day party. Sloan used our kitchen table to sprawl out her supplies and then got to work preparing Valentine’s for each of her classmates. Since St. Mary doesn’t have school on Friday, Valentine celebrations were held today.

If you have young children, you might have a similar scene at your kitchen table tonight.

A Disappointed Quartet – Let me introduce you to four very disappointed Kansas City Chiefs fans. Both my kids and their cousins, Mik and John, had high hopes that the Chiefs would beat the Eagles in Super Bowl LIX. Unfortunately, they didn’t have much to cheer about. And when you are that age, you don’t always understand the complexities and realities of sports, thus making it hard for the kids to understand why Kansas City played so poorly. Sloan took the loss the hardest as she was 100% sure that Travis Kelce was going to propose to Taylor Swift if his team won.

This quarter was not pleased with the outcome of the Super Bowl.

NICU Reminder – This photo was taken five years ago on this date. Every February, I take time to reflect on Beau’s journey in the NICU and to thank God for his grace and for the superb medical care that Beau received. I mention a lot about how Sid and I present at retreats for engaged couples, and we always describe how this experience increased our faith and drew us closer together. My blog post about the saga was ranked as my #1 entry of all time during the 10th anniversary of Don’t Blink.

Sidney holds Beau in the McLeod Regional Medical Center in Florence, South Carolina.

Valentine’s Eve – For the first time in many years, Sid and I have Valentine’s Day plans tomorrow evening! Although we haven’t done much on the holiday in recent memory, we don’t hold the “trendy” contempt against Valentine’s Day like many others do. Whether you celebrate it or not, I think we can all be enlightened by learning about the holiday’s namesake. Sloan will tell you that St. Valentine is the patron saint of love and that he married couples at a time when a war general prohibited it because he thought marriage made soldiers weak. St. Valentine was jailed and challenged to heal the jailer’s blind daughter—which he did! Despite his incredible feats, like so many other saints, Valentine was martyred.

Sloan learned a lot about St. Valentine at school. She colored a picture of him in kindergarten. St. Valentine, pray for us!

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Try to stay warm, friends. Happy Valentine’s Day to you all, I hope you can find something redeeming about the holiday and enjoy it. Don’t Blink.

Golden Rings At St. Mary Catholic School

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Watch a “First Day of School” video of Sloan and Beau

It seems hard to believe, but our family started our FIFTH year at St. Mary Catholic School today. Sloan kicked things off in the Pre-K3 program in the fall of 2020 and now she is a big, bad second grader. More on that in just a moment.

Today was the first day of school for Sloan and Beau at St. Mary in Spokane Valley.

This “golden ring” year (get it?) for our family brings with it the most confidence and optimism for a school year yet. Principal and friend Stephen Hart introduced so many positive changes during his debut year in 2023-24 that the school couldn’t be in a better spot as the doors swung open this morning. Among the many improvements last year, the best part was just the overall embracing of a strong, devout Catholic culture. Thank you, Mr. Hart!

Stephen Hart, principal of St. Mary Catholic School, welcomes Sloan on the first day of the 2024-25 school year.

Okay, back to Sloan. She will spend her second grade year in Mrs. Abbie DeRuyter’s class. Sloan’s close-knit group of classmates will be joined by three new peers this year—all girls! I know our daughter looks forward to getting to know them while Sid and I are excited to welcome their parents and families.

Sloan sitting at her desk ready to start her first day of second grade.

Actually, we already know one of the “new” parents really well. The mom of one of the second grade newcomers is Mrs. Kristen Mead, the leader of the St. Mary Pre-K4 classroom and Beau’s teacher this year! With Beau’s Pre-K3 class in close proximity to Mrs. Mead’s class last year, we got to know her a little bit. We can’t wait for Beau to learn from her.

Beau sitting at his desk ready to start his first day of Pre-K4.

A big change for Beau from last year to this year is that his school day is now all-day. What better way to get him ready for kindergarten, right? Much to the satisfaction of mom and dad, Beau is still a napper so he will have to adjust his schedule a bit now that he is attending school all-day like a big boy.

My kids on our porch prior to their first day of the 2024-25 school year at St. Mary Catholic School.

One item that needed no adjustment on the schedules of my children was wake up time this morning. Sloan and Beau attended summer school at St. Paschal Educare the past couple months and were used to rising early. Because of that, there was no shock getting up at 6:30 a.m. for today’s first day.

It is going to be another great school year at St. Mary Catholic School!

Here we go! Another year at St. Mary Catholic School is underway and I know it will be a blessed one. Please pray for the teachers and students not just at my children’s school but everywhere. Don’t Blink.