Kindergarten Bound!

Leah completed her last day of preschool today with lots of pomp and circumstance.  There were several events to mark the close of the school year, including a class party at the park on Tuesday, the End of Year music program this morning, and a school-wide picnic this afternoon.  

Leah is 100% ready for kindergarten!  She can't wait to join Luke at Oak Ridge Elementary in the fall, and already points out her future hallway there and talks about riding the bus next year.  I am so thankful that my baby girl is ready, that we already know and love the school, and that she is excited.  It's what she was born to do, to spread her wings and fly, but it's a bittersweet milestone for Mommy.  There is an entirely different set of emotions involved between sending my first child and my last child to kindergarten, and most of my sadness this time lies in the fact that I won't have Leah with me as much anymore.  I love being with her, and it's going to be a change for me not to have my Peanut by my side.  It's the end of an era of parenting for me, as I transition from a mother of young children to the mom of elementary-aged kiddos.  So, there was has been a bit of blubbering on my part this week (including an "ugly cry" as I pulled out of the parking lot after dropping her off for the last morning of preschool).  I blamed my watery eyes on a cold that I have, but I'm pretty sure that the sight of Mark walking into Leah's preschool program with a bouquet of flowers for his special girl may have triggered some of the waterworks.  Thankfully, Daddy was all smiles and high fives this morning, which helped provide some balance to my less stable emotions:

  Our baby has grown up this year.  Here's a comparison of her first day of 4 year-old preschool vs. this morning:     

Here's another set of pictures that I adore:

Leah's first day of preschool ever!  (Fall 2014)

Leah's Last Day of Preschool Ever!  (June 1, 2016)

That's Leah, in a nutshell.  Happy, radiating joy, and full of sunshine.  She has such a kind and loving heart, is wise beyond her years, and is perceptive and bright.  During her music program, Leah's clear, strong voice could be heard above all the others, and she was incredibly expressive with her motions (I'm trying to upload videos to share...).  However, my favorite pictures of the day are the below images of Leah in prayer.  She is such a sweet, innocent child of God, and has absolutely embraced and treasured her lovely preschool class this year. 

I am so proud of my strong, sweet girl, and I know that kindergarten will be a wonderful, new beginning for her.  She's a joy to know and love, and it has been a gift from God to spend each day with my precious baby.

So, as we close one chapter and begin a new one, I am overwhelmingly full of gratitude and thanksgiving for the blessing of Leah.

  Kindergarten, here she comes!!

Cute Country: Favorite Things/Grandparent Edition

I've blogged in the past about how much I love our "cute country" life.  It's perfect for us, as everything that we need (which is "Target" for Mommy) is within a 15 minute drive, and Oak Ridge itself is bucolic.  We embrace and cherish being able to raise our children in a community where they can grow up enjoying simple pleasures.  We walk and ride bikes to the town park, spend our weekends playing outside, and love our neighborhood and all that it has to offer.  When Bean and Poppy visited us last weekend, we filled our days with some of our favorite "cute country" things.  First were more birthday presents for our new 8 year-old.  This kid has been celebrating for weeks, and loved this grand finale to his birthday festivities!

On Saturday morning, we went to the Summerfield Founders' Day Parade.  This cute event is the perfect example of small town America, and the kids quickly learned that if they waved to the parade participants, that candy would be tossed in their direction:



We knew several people marching in the parade (and Luke actually marched two years ago with his baseball team), and it was fun to wave and call out to our friends as they passed.  Our happy little parade-goers filled their bags with treats, and afterward, we walked to the festival's attractions:

Both kids enjoyed the bounce houses and rock climbing wall, but Leah astounded us with her bravery.  Here is she preparing to jump off the inflatable ball to go through an obstacle course.  This girl is fearless!

Here's our little climber, preparing to scale the wall (in sandals nonetheless!):

Up she went, without any hesitation:

When she got to the top, both Mommy and Bean couldn't look anymore.  Then sweet Peanut joyfully repelled down the entire wall, giggling with glee:

Leah was also chosen to be an assistant in the magic show at the festival.  She helped Captain Jim perform a rope trick and we were proud of our little magician:

On Saturday afternoon, we enjoyed the beautiful weather and showed Bean and Poppy our new trapeze swing.  We also played our favorite family sport, kickball, and these willing grandparents were great sports and played with us. 

We went fishing at our neighborhood lake a couple of times over the weekend, too, which is another "cute country" favorite activity of ours.  The kids have recently upgraded their rods, which leaves Mommy and Daddy to use their outgrown Barbie and Superman fishing poles.

Catch of the Day!

Mark and I went on a date on Saturday night (such a treat!) while the kids had a pizza party with B&P.  On Sunday morning, Poppy filled in at church, as our pastor was on vacation, and our hearts were full watching Mark serve as Elder beside Poppy during the services.  We went out to lunch at one of our favorite local restaurants after church, and that afternoon, we introduced Bean and Poppy to our cute country "neighbors":

These cows literally live next door to us, on the farm which surrounds our cul-de-sac.  They are very friendly and come right up to the fence to munch on the grass and leaves that we feed them:

Daddy recently added a "cute" fire pit to our backyard, and we roasted s'mores and had a campfire on Sunday evening:

After all that fun, it was time to read books and go to bed.  Such a fun weekend showing Bean and Poppy some of our favorite "cute country" things!

Field Trip Fun

May is a busy time of field trips and fun, and both children took class excursions last week to "All-A-Flutter", which is a nearby butterfly farm.  Leah's preschool was first, and Miss Leah was excited to share her knowledge about the monarch butterfly life cycle.   She was chosen to assist during an informational presentation about butterflies, and was very proud to be a special helper:

The children were enthusiastic learners and everything is exciting and adorable when you are 5, especially props:

Next, the preschoolers visited the butterfly enclosure and used their sugar pads to attract monarchs.  Here is Leah with her BF, Silas:

We visited All-A-Flutter as a family two years ago (shortly after moving to NC), and I was amazed at how much Leah remembered about that day.  That little girl's mind for facts rivals her trivia-loving brother's at this age.  She is a sweet little butterfly girl, and was very gentle with the delicate creatures:

Leah asked me if she could wear her "biggest bow" on her field trip, as she remembered that the butterflies loved landing on them:

Leah and I also went strawberry picking a couple of weeks ago during one of our stay-at-home Fridays.  This Mommy and Leah field trip was such a sweet morning together, and we came home and made freezer jam that afternoon.  Leah is such a delight.  She brings a ray of sunshine with her wherever she goes, and I adore our special time together.  We've been making our Fridays extra special this spring, and I am soaking up every minute with my Peanut before she goes to kindergarten in the fall:

Meanwhile, back on the butterfly farm, Luke had a blast on his class field trip last week as well.  He's a bit wet in these pictures, as apparently the misting station on the playground was the big draw for the 2nd grade boys before they entered the butterfly enclosure:  

I should have known that Aiden and Luke would have coordinating blue shirts.  Too cute!:

Luke was able to coax his monarch to come off the sugar pad and sit on his finger:

It was a fun day for these second graders, and I was thrilled that I was able to chaperon their class as well (and now feel like I can give personal tours at All-A-Flutter after being there twice in one week!):

In one more piece of field trip news, Luke's class attended a Greensboro Grasshoppers game last week, along with every other 2nd grade class in Guilford County.  Due to the large number of students at the stadium, only 2 parents were selected to accompany each class.  I was not chosen, and panicked slightly at the thought of the complete chaos of thousands of students in the ballpark.  I soon channeled my nervousness at this lack of control toward the oh, so important decision re: lunch for the field trip.

The students were given the option to pack a lunch or take $10 for the snack bar.  I, of course, was in favor of the healthier option, but Luke was excited to be a big kid and order from the concession stand.  Mark also was on Luke's side, and offered this helpful tidbit:  "Carrie, please don't have him be that one kid with homemade peanut butter and jelly on whole wheat while everyone else gets to have a hot dog!".  Sigh.  So I googled a sample menu from the Grasshoppers website, carefully reviewed appropriate choices with Luke, and reiterated, "NO, you may not have coke/caffeine for the first time.... NO, a 32 oz. souvenier sized sprite is NOT necessary...", etc.  Poor kid.   Another mom even texted me the day before the trip and asked, "Are you sending $10 or packing a lunch?"   Eager to have a potential kindred spirit, I texted her back, "VERY RELUCTANTLY sending $10", and she responded, "I know!".  I launched into my crazy dialogue about my concerns about Luke making smart food choices, (remember, this is the same kid who called basketball camp, "Snack Camp") and there was a long pause in our texting.  Eventually, she wrote back, "Oh.  I was just concerned about long lines at the concession stand."   (Mark gently reminded me later that night that sometimes I may need to "tone down the crazy"...).  Somehow, miraculously, Luke and I came up with a compromise that he would pack a lunch AND take $10 (for "snacks and a drink if it gets hot, Mommy").  Hooray!

Anyway, our good friend ended up being the chaperon for the class and knows me very well, so he texted me this picture at 10:00 a.m. on the day of the field trip.  The caption read, "Lunch is still in the bag".

When Luke got home that afternoon, he excitedly told me,

"Mommy, I ate an ENTIRE bag of cotton candy!   I also ordered 2 bags of chips and a large sprite, and even have 50 cents change!"

I was speechless.   He also shared that he didn't eat any of his lunch except for a few grapes and that his tummy hurt "a lot" on the activity bus on the way back to school after the game.  "I almost threw up, Mommy...".  Luckily, Luke quickly rallied and was back to his hungry, usual self later that afternoon.  

So, there you have it.  Field Trip Fun in all forms.  Butterflies, strawberries, baseball, and a big bag of cotton candy, sprinkled with a little crazy, and a big ol' dose of humility for Mommy!