OCTOBER 2020
Hill Country
Backpack Connection
FABRA • KENDALL • CURINGTON FAIR OAKS • HERFF • CIBOLO CREEK • VAN RAUB
Connecting Our Families, Our Schools and Our Local Businesses
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HUDDLE HAVEN FITNESS FILLS NICHE
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HOLIDAYS 2020 GET PREPARED NOW
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SCHOOL NEWS
Huddle Haven Fitness Fills Niche
We are the Jordan Family—Ricky, Rhonda, Reed and Rylee (Chocolate LabReeses, and Cavalier Spaniel-Ruby). Additionally, Pat Brannen lives with us (Ricky’s wonderfully kind 85-year-old aunt). We are originally from San Antonio and are proud to call the Deer Meadow area of Fair Oaks “home sweet home” since moving back to Texas in late 2016. For the last 16-plus years, Ricky has been in Corporate HR Leadership. Prior to his years serving the Engineering/Con-
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struction and Global Automotive industries, he spent ten years as a Texas High School Coach (football and baseball) and Special Education Teacher. Rhonda also spent many years as a Special Education Teacher. In addition, she is a certified financial coach through Ramsey Solutions. In early August this year, Ricky and Rhonda launched their own small business, Huddle Haven, LLC. The couple is intensely focused on serving their local communities of Fair Oaks Ranch and Boerne. They are excited to be pursuing their passion for health and wellness. Both are certified, professional coaches and trainers. Huddle Haven Fitness is a mobile fitness concept offering an array of immune system boosting workouts. All programs are hosted in spectacular outdoor settings in the Boerne area. Need a breath of fresh air? Huddle Haven’s “Spin & Shape” delivers sensational cycling and toning experiences, set to themed music selections, on brand
new state-of-the-art equipment. Seeking to sweat and sculpt? Huddle Haven hosts a variety of “Barre” sessions for all levels of fitness. Looking for an intense, totalbody workout? Huddle Haven’s “Strength” sessions will test your inner athlete with extreme, agility-focused training. “Huddle Haven Athletics” offers sport specific lessons and instruction for kids of all ages. Huddle Haven offers quality, position specific lessons for baseball, softball and football at an affordable price. Their unique approach combines fundamental skill development, with in-depth, positionspecific technical training. Looking to elevate athletic performance? Huddle Haven’s “Speed & Agility” offers specialized, age-appropriate strength and conditioning programs for young athletes. For more information, or to book your first FREE class or lesson visit: www.huddlehaven.com or Email: host@huddlehaven.com with any questions you may have.
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Distributed into the Backpacks of 6,000 Boerne / Leon Springs Students Fabra • Kendall Curington • Fair Oaks Cibolo Creek Van Raub • Herff Elementary Schools Art Director Susie Fluckiger Sales Audra Miller Publisher BP PUBLISHING LLC Content for the Elementary School pages contributed by each school. Backpack Connection magazines are published every six weeks during the school year by BP Publishing LLC. The advertisements in this magazine are paid for by the advertisers, which allows this magazine to be distributed free to the families of the elementary students. Unless specifically noted, no advertisers, products or services are endorsed by the publisher, BISD, or NISD, or any districts employees. BP PUBLISHING LLC is not responsible for omissions, errors or misinformation within this publication. All real estate advertised within this publication are subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act, which make it illegally to advertise any preference, limitation, or discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin or intention to make any such preference, limitation, or discrimination. We will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All persons are hereby informed that all dwellings adverting are available on an equal opportunity basis. Reproductions of this magazine in whole or part without written permission is prohibited.
Encouraging, Supporting and Loving the Children We Share...
In the last couple of years, we built a farmhouse and my daughter’s family redid a 100-year-old farm house. It has become a challenge to learn to decorate simply. She is always sending me pictures and telling me to join groups like “Nesting with Grace”. Who knew the year of 2020 would be the year that everything got simplified or eliminated? YIKES! The thing is we do not want our kids to have everything in their live cancelled! So, it is important to think forward to holidays now and what they can look like for our kids.
For years masks have been kind of a no-no in our family, but not this year! What a fun way to make it easier for your kids to Trick-or-Treat. Talk to your kids about what the holiday will look like for them. Maybe it will be setting up truck-or-treating with a few friends or a small family party with carnival-type games. However you decide to participate traditionally or modified, just prepare your kids and mange expectations.
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This to me will be the most difficult time. We are used to having lots of family around and we always host a pie night the Sunday evening before and get together with extended family, friends, and church
members to enjoy those desserts you are too full to eat Thanksgiving day! Most of us are used to large family gatherings and traveling. I think each family’s celebration will look different this year and that is okay! If being with family is possible than keep that tradition the same for your kids, but if not, try to be creative with alternatives. Maybe facetime or conference call in family members. Choose a designated time and plan to connect with family whatever that might look like. Think about those around you that may be in need of a plate of food or slice of pie. This holiday season maybe particularly harder on older people, so think about ways you and your kids can reach out to them. What wonderful lessons in compassion can be taught to your kids this year!
“What if Christmas,” the Grinch thought, “doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more?” —Dr. Seuss The term “Keep it Simple” fits perfect this year! I noticed stores not stocking items as much as before and this got me really worried about Christmas gifts. Our kids will be home, and we will all be together for the first time in a few years. Panic kind of set in and then a thought came into my mind… Do you remember what gifts you received last year? What about when you were 10? No? If you have any children, ask them what they got for Christmas last year. Do they remember? It is okay, neither do mine. Christmas is my second favorite holi-
day next to Easter. (Oops and Halloween) The Christmas season presents the opportunity for us to count our blessings one by one. Through the years, Christmas has become more about mass consumerism, mass consumption, and massive debt. Christmas has become less about giving and more about receiving. It has turned into a stress-inducing holiday for many because of all the activities we try to cram into our holiday schedules. As a result, Christmas has become far from simple. Christmas 2020 will probably not look like any we have ever seen before, but I think it is possible to create a simple Christmas that can be enjoyed even more than those of the past.
• Serve at a local food bank • Bake cookies for your neighbors and law enforcement • Make cards for those who are serving in the military • Collect food for your local food bank • Be a bell ringer for the Salvation Army Options are endless. The more acts of kindness we bestow on others, the happier we are. It’s a scientific fact! Just make sure you are not the only person in your family practicing simple acts of kindness. Get everyone involved and make it a lasting year-round tradition. You teach your kids to be givers and in turn that helps them to be happy! It is a win-win!
Start with simple traditions
Do you remember the house from National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation? Have you watched The Great Christmas Light Fight? We even have a participant right here in Boerne! The Jones CHRISTmas Lights at 208 Wollshlaeger Drive. It is a wonderful experience to drive through and they collect for local families and charities. We try and make the Christmas tree and nativity center stage inside as we hang a few strands of lights outside for some Christmas coziness. Then we have time to take a drive and see all the lights around town. I love the fact that one of the Jones’ neighbors put up a sign that said Ditto—and pointed to the Jones’ lights. What a great way to show support and understand that it is not in all of us to go all out.
Sometimes traditions you grew up with do not work well with your family and that is okay! Start your own or modify them to fit your needs. I loved seeing all the cute pictures of young families and their Christmas Elf and I want to join in the fun even though my kids were teenagers. I bought one and placed him in their bathroom with a note written in tooth paste on their mirror. I came home to find the Elf on a pile of laundry dumped in their floor and the next day perched high on the top of my kitchen cabinets. My teens thought it was great! We had fun together and will never forget that year.
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Maybe try these: Each child picks out a new ornament each year (this can be given to them when they leave the house and have their own tree) Read Luke chapter 2 as a family Set up the tree on Black Friday Have a family game night
Practice simple acts of kindness
These days it is even hard to personally connect with a stranger at the grocery store! It seems like work to just be there much less say something nice to someone. It is always easy to give a little wave and kind words. Maybe also try some of these.
Deck the halls with simple décor
Consider giving simple Christmas gifts
Scrutinize your spending this year to enjoy the art of gift giving. Refuse to go into or add onto credit card debt for Christmas gifts this holiday season. If you do use credit cards, treat them like cash and make sure you have the money on hand to pay them off the following month. Set a spending limit and stick to it. To ease the strain on your wallet, be as frugal as possible. If you have a talent, Do homemade gifts. Shop sales use
rebates and buy quality secondhand items. This year, shopping online will be extremely popular, do your research and get the best deal. Last year I took a couple of the kids to get Christmas presents at Black Friday sales. They stood in line for their own gifts! I thought it was a genius idea! This year maybe let them scan the online ads and pick the gift they really want.
In lieu of gifts, give experiences
By purchasing gift cards for restaurants and movies, or memberships to museums or zoos, you not only make sure you stay within your budget, you also limit clutter to the recipient. There are many ideas right in this very magazine for gifts of experiences! Better yet, give the gift of your time. Offer to mow someone’s lawn for the summer, or clean their home, or take over childcare for an evening so young parents can go out for a date night. Experiences will mean a lot to your kiddos in 2021!
Keep simple Christmas expectations
The key to pulling off a simple Christmas is to be content with who you are, your season in life, and with what you have. Choose to opt-out of the chaos, bickering and rampant consumerism that has become synonymous with the holiday season. Instead, choose to perform acts of kindness, simplify your traditions, family’s celebrations, décor, schedules, and gifts with these ideas. 2020 has been just plain hard but with a little bit of preparedness and managing expectations we can make it a memorable wonderful year for our children. The year we slowed down and spent more quality time together.
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