It's June!

June was full of summer fun, including two baseball games.  We love our minor league teams, and attended a Winston-Salem Dash game with a group from our church in early June.  A couple of weeks later, we were invited to join our friends in their box at a Greensboro Grasshoppers game, and Mark caught a foul ball!  Everything about watching a game in the suite is appealing: the air conditioning, the snacks, and the special visit from Reedy, the Grasshoppers' mascot, who always stops by to say hi:

Much like last summer, Leah was far outnumbered by the boys, but held her own with them.  Such adorable baseball fans!

Our annual June Father's Day weekend tradition is to go golfing with Daddy at our local par-3 course.  Somehow, Daddy ends up being the caddy for our two little golfers, and this year, we even had coordinating attire.  We call Mark, "Big Boss", and surprised him with our own t-shirts to compliment his Big Boss shirt.  Leah's said, "Girl Boss" (with a cute emoji), Luke's read, "#BossSkills", and mine said, "The REAL Boss".  How we adore our Big Boss and #1 guy!

We also celebrated Father's Day and Grandpa's 70th birthday with a great weekend in Myrtle Beach:

L&L had lots of fun surfing with Grandpa's new boogie boards, and we had wonderful beach weather:

On Saturday evening of our MB weekend, we went out to a lovely Italian restaurant for Grandpa's birthday.  The waiter asked Luke and Leah what they'd like to order, and assumed that both kids would choose something from the Kid's Menu.  Luke replied, "Scallop Risotto, please," and the waiter's eyes grew wide.  He challenged Luke to order the seafood special of the evening, which contained jumbo scallops, shrimp, and one pound of mussels over a bed of linguine.  Luke agreed, and the waiter promised to bring him a free dessert if he made a good dent in all that food.  Luke finished the entire meal, and proudly took home a slice of cheesecake as his reward:  

We love this little foodie and his giant appetite!

While we were at Grandpa's house, the children each lost a tooth (within 10 minutes of each other!).  Both teeth were in the upper left quadrants of their mouths, and it was funny to see similar holes in their smiles.  Luckily, Mama packed the tooth pillows and the Tooth Fairy kept her promise about the children receiving "double money" if they lose teeth on vacation!  (I'm pretty sure there was some strategic planning/wiggling by L&L to hang on to their loose teeth until vacation weekend...)

Tooth #7 for Leah and Tooth #9 for Luke!

 Mid-June also meant Wake Forest Basketball Camp for Luke and Aiden.  Danny Manning (the head coach of the WFU mens' basketball team) runs a week-long camp for children, which is led by current and former WFU players and coaching staff.  The camp was held on campus, in the brand new facility where the players train, and these kiddos were full of anticipation and excitement:

Luke and Aiden have been looking forward to WFU basketball camp for months and theorized that Tim Duncan, Chris Paul, and John Collins may come back to coach them.  We had to plant the seed that these retired and current NBA stars probably wouldn't have time in their busy schedules to make an appearance this year, but that there would be plenty of other basketball players that they'd recognize.  Sure enough, shortly after we walked in, Luke began playing 1:1 with Randolph Childress, who is one of WFU's all-time greats (and a former NBA player and current WFU coach):

Childress' Banner is right above them in this photo.  Pretty cool!

Coach Childress with the boys.

Coach Danny Manning talks to the campers.

Each player on the 2018-2019 Wake Forest Mens' Basketball team autographed the boys' t-shirts, and the camp proved to be an awesome experience for these two best friends, who talk about going to WFU together someday: 

While the boys were at basketball camp, Leah and I did some of our favorite Winston-Salem activities, and tried a few new places, too:

Our first stop on Monday was the Krispy Kreme Doughnut Factory!

Someone had this indoor bungee jump on her summer bucket list!

Doing flips!

Our visit to Tart Sweets (a bakery/coffee shop in the historic West End district of W-S).

We loved both the pastries AND the girly atmosphere of Tart Sweets!

June also brought two new additions to our street.  Our sweet neighbors had twin boys, and we loved meeting the babies and holding them.  L&L looked like giants compared to these sweet, tiny bundles: 

We also hosted a pool party for our dear friends who are moving to California.  The Dyas' were our first friends upon our move to NC, and we are going to miss them tremendously.  We squeezed in lots of play time with them in June, including a visit to SciWorks (our favorite science museum in Winston-Salem), afternoons at the pool, and play dates at our house:

We will miss you, Kayla and Will!

The last week of June was VBS at our church.  It is always a summer highlight for our kids, and the theme this year was "Shipwrecked".  So much love and time goes into VBS for the children of our community, and we love this event every summer:

We packed in so much fun during the 2.5 weeks since school ended, and have lots more planned for July!  Happy Summer!

School Finale

School's out for summer, which means we have a 5th grader and a 2nd grader!  I'm in complete denial about next year being Luke's last year of elementary school, and warned Mark that "next year at this time, I'll be a complete mess!".  He sarcastically thanked me for the 365-day advanced warning.  In the meantime, we have a LOT to catch up on re: the end of the school year, and have a summer full of fun plans.  Let's backtrack a little:

The last week of school was so much fun.  Mark and I were especially excited to watch the inaugural performance of ORES Jumpers.  When Luke came home in January with a permission slip and announced that he was going to audition for a spot in the new Jump Rope Club at school, I was astonished.  This was not something that I had ever heard about, and there were certain "moves" that were required as prerequisites (single, double, cross, etc.).   We received exactly zero details about Jumpers all year (welcome to life with a boy!), but Luke woke up early to faithfully attend practice each Friday morning before school.  We didn't know what to expect, and the whole thing remained in a fog of mystery until their End of Year performance, which the Jumpers presented in front of the entire student body.  It was AMAZING.  The kids performed a routine set to hip hop music and were quite impressive showing off their different skills.  Never in a million years would I have known that Luke was so accomplished at jump rope, and we thoroughly enjoyed this awesome club and thank the dedicated teachers who led ORES Jumpers.

ORES Jumpers

The 3rd-5th grade Award Ceremony was also held during the last week of school, and Luke was proud to receive the Perfect Attendance award for the first time.  Somehow, our family avoided all of the yucky germs that went around school this year, and both L&L were recognized with perfect attendance at their respective ceremonies.  This was a relief to me, as we are in the stage where everything has to be "fair" at our house, and it's easy to become green with envy if your sibling receives something that you don't. 

4th Grade Perfect Attendance.  

Luke was also recognized for being on the All-A Honor Roll for the entire year.  We're so proud of this kiddo for his good grades and continued love of school!

A Honor Roll.

A special honor for Luke was that he received the 4th Grade Outstanding Music Student Award.  Each of the four "specials" teachers (art, music, PE, and media) chooses one student to be recognized for an award.  The music teacher at our school does a year-long program with the fourth graders called "Recorder Karate", and all of the students receive plastic recorders at the beginning of the year.  They move through a series of "belts", (white belt, yellow belt, etc., all the way up to black belt), as they learn to play various songs.  After a period of classroom instruction, this program becomes self-motivated, and the students may choose to practice their instrument at home and perform each song in front of the teacher to achieve their next belt.  The students' names were written on a banner in the school hallway each time they master a belt, and Luke was the only 4th grader to reach the Black Belt level.  I will not write details about the "joyful noise" that listening to the recorder each afternoon brought to our life, but can say that Leah and I would sometimes hide in other rooms, and that any parent who has lived through a child learning the recorder understands.  I also can share the relief I felt when I thought that Luke had achieved his "last" belt and learned his Black Belt song... and then he proudly announced, "Mrs. Royal has an entire filing cabinet of "BONUS Belt Songs that I can bring home and practice, too!"...  

However, this was all worth it, as Recorder Karate provided a tangible, concrete example for Luke about putting his mind to something to achieve a goal.  He was very excited about receiving the Music Award, and earned this special recognition with his hard work.  

Hugging his music teacher, Mrs. Royal... and yes, he's almost as tall as many teachers.

Grades 3-5 "Outstanding Specials Students".  

This kid continues to amaze us.  So proud of him!

Luke had a wonderful 4th grade year.  His homeroom teacher, Ms. Gsell, appreciated his quirky sense of humor, was laidback but firm, and recognized Luke's love of reading and challenged him.  This year, Luke was introduced to a "team teaching" approach, and switched teachers/classes halfway through the day.  Much like 3rd grade is the year of standardized testing, 4th grade is the year of responsibility.  The students were responsible for remembering their school supplies as they switched classes, they adapted to two different teaching styles and environments, and did all of their projects independently (without any parent assistance).  It was a great, great year for our son, and we loved watching him grow and mature.  

This is what 4th grade looks like.

One other special note for Luke's 4th grade year:  Luke participated in a county-wide math tournament called the Summerfield Open.  Each month, we'd drive to another school, where Luke would compete against other academically gifted 4th and 5th graders and take a math test.  The math problems were written at a 6th-8th grade level, and included algebra, geometry, compound interest, and probability.  The students' scores were recorded each month, and the top winners from each school received cash prizes and trophies at the end of the year.  Luke tied for first place on the December test, and proudly represented Oak Ridge Elementary School as their overall winner.  One of the best parts is that after learning about compound interest this year, Luke (who is usually a "spender") has decided to invest his winnings, and asked us "which bank has the best interest rate?".  (Let's pause and reflect on how proud finance-minded Daddy is of this life lesson).

This kid's eyes almost popped out of his head when he saw his cash prize!

"Mr. Andrew" is the founder of the Summerfield Open, and his goal was to make math "cool" for these kids.  He did a great job getting media coverage of these events (which were published in the newspaper and featured on our local tv news channels) with the idea that it's imporant to praise and encourage students who love math in the same way that athletes or other clubs receive recognition.  We were fortunate to find this opportunity for Luke this year, and as a result, he is invited to attend a 2-week long STEM camp with Mr. Andrew later this summer.

Luke's photo in the newspaper earlier this year.

Luke is at the top left (bright green shirt).

 Here are L&L on their last days of 4th and 1st grades.  Usually, I show a comparison photo of the kids beside their first day of school pictures.  However, the last day of school photos are bittersweet.  Winnie is always by the kids' sides in these pictures, and it was just too hard for me.  We miss our sweet girl so much, and this "first" was unexpectedly difficult.  So, we'll enjoy looking at these big kids on their last day of school, and resume our side by side photos next year! 

June 2018:  Last Day of 4th Grade!

June 2018: Last Day of 1st Grade!

Leah's last week of school was full of fun, too.  I was in charge of the grade-level End of Year Party, which was the absolute best kind of fun, but also the kind that keeps you up at night thinking about details, and I didn't take any pictures!   Field Day was also a huge success, and these kiddos loved every station.  (I helped with Luke's Field Day, too, but don't have any photos of that, either!)

My co-Room Mom and I snuck into the cafeteria one day during the last week of school to get the first graders' thumbprints for this teacher present.  We thought we kept the gift a surprise until we learned that asking 21 seven year-olds to keep a secret for a few days is silly.  All week, they apparently told their teacher, "Our thumbs made a special present for you!".  Too cute!

Here they are, proudly presenting the gift, and demonstrating how their "thumbs" helped.

Leah's sweet first grade class.

Peanut cleaned up at the K-2 Awards Ceremony, which was also held during the last week of school.  She received an award for Perfect Attendance (for the second year in a row), and was quite delighted about this!

Leah also received the award for being the First Grade Outstanding Physical Education student.  There are so many things that I love about this.  Our basketball-loving, soccer-playing, sports-knowledgable daughter must have inherited ALL of her daddy's athletic genes (and absolutely NONE of mine!) to earn this award.  To think that less than 3 years ago, we consulted a physical therapist about Leah's gross motor issues and coordination (after the third time she required stitches in her chin after multiple falls)... This girl truly can do ANYTHING she puts her mind to, and her determination and perserverance paid off with this special award! 

Kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd Grade Outstanding P.E. Students

We are especially proud of Leah for receiving the Golden Colt Award.  One student in each class receives this recognition for modeling outstanding character traits and being an exemplary citizen all year, and this is the "big award' for our elementary school.  Leah is sweet, kind, and giving to all of her peers, was a wonderful helper to her teacher, and is acknowledged by staff as a role model for the school.  We are constantly amazed by this incredible child, and beamed with pride as she went on stage to receive her trophy:

We couldn't have been more blessed with a first grade teacher for Leah.  Mrs. Parrish was the perfect fit for her, and Peanut had an incredible year.  She had the opportunity to be enriched academically  and shine under the love and guidance of her teacher, and we are so thankful for this.

As we close the books on another great school year, we continue to give thanks for our wonderful community of teachers, staff, and parents who truly love our children and for such a positive, nurturing, safe school for our babies.