Done!

For better or worse,
We.
Are.
Done.
6th grade.  Check
4th grade.  Check
1st grade.  Check
Preschool  Check
Sammy finished his testing this morning (whew!), right before Lucy's last day of preschool program.  Strangely, I don't feel quite the relief I thought I would.  There's so much I would love to get done this summer but really, I think right now is a good time to just breathe....
Tonight- we celebrate!  Spaghetti for dinner (probably the one dish I know everyone likes).  Kayla won an ice cream cake from Cold Stone Creamery when she came in second place for the Walk for Life, so guess what's for dessert??  It is full of chocolate, just the way she likes it.

 
I think it has oreos, chocolate chips, chocolate ice cream, chocolate cake, and cookie dough. Wow.

The little preschoolers put on their clown noses and sang circus songs for us.

It was pretty funny to watch the noses pop off and roll away as the kids sang.  

The teachers did a little "graduation" for kids who won't be back to preschool next year.  Lucy is right in the middle of her best buddies- Bryson, Brock, and Dylan.

I got a little teary.

Ms. Lisa and Ms. Jo were wonderful teachers with just the right blend of love and firmness in their approach to the kids.  So thankful for them.  They took a minute to say something about each child.  Here's what they said about our Lucy:

"We will miss your gentle nature and your sweet personality.  You have been a great friend to others and a perfect role model as well.  We have been so pleased to have you in our preschool!"

Don't Miss the Meteor Shower...and a Skirt Idea

Jack has discovered "Alabama" and is listening to their greatest hits.  The other kids are playing out in the blow-up pool.  This wind is too much for me but they don't seem to mind.
It's a wedding weekend!  We are all excited for Lily and Jon.  Hoping that the pollen doesn't do too much of a number on Brian- a preacher with no voice would make for an interesting wedding ceremony!
Did you know there is a meteor shower tonight that could be of historic proportions?  Possibly up to 400 per hour???  I will be out there!  Read about it at this website.

Yesterday we made skirts!  Matching for Kayla and Lucy.  Kayla did the sewing while I did the cutting and pinning.  We got both skirts done in about two hours.  Not bad for an afternoon.

Hopefully I can get a picture of both of them wearing their skirts soon.

Rebekah, over at The Homemade Engineer, sent us a link with the directions.

Super easy.

I think we could make it our "own" pretty easily but this was a great start.

You can find it here.

Is It Summer Yet?

This homeschooling mama has checked out for the summer.  I'm in pool-mode, flower-mode, relaxed schedule-mode...you get the idea.
Only problem with that is we're not quite done.  Shooting for May 30th although I've told the older two, when a couple of their books are done, they are done. 
So we will plug ahead.
Sam lost his second tooth last week.  His plan:  "I hope I wake up when the tooth fairy comes.  Then I will grab her and take all the money."   !!!!  Goodness!
He also told me the other day that he can't wait to "get old" so people will take care of him and his grandchildren will come to visit him.  The things that go through his head make me smile.  Most of the time.

I got new glasses yesterday.  So excited.  I really like them.  Jack said I look like a college student now.  Score!  (I think that is the ceiling fan sticking out of my head.  At first I thought it was a wild hair!)

Bridal Shower

Earlier this week we had a bridal shower at our house for Lily, who is getting married in just two weeks!  We love Lily- she jumped right in last summer at church even as her fiancee (boyfriend at the time) was leaving for Ranger School.  It's been a treat to get to know her.  The only problem is, she'll be leaving town too after she gets married.  That's the bad thing about living in a college town.

(I am embarrassed to say I got food pictures at the shower but nothing else- I'll be sure to snap some photos of the bride at the wedding!)

My friend Julie makes the best cupcakes.  Just the best.  Lily requested caramel toffee latte cupcakes.  Delish.

Julie also brought her signature chocolate cupcake.  

Also delish.

The girls and I were particularly excited to make this recipe.  I was looking for something besides punch and found this in the Kroger coupon magazine, of all places.  

Kayla made it herself.  The rest of us taste-tested often before the shower.  It was really good!

Strawberry Agua Fresca

4 cups water

1/3 cup sugar

6 cups hulled strawberries 

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

mint sprigs, optional

Combine all ingredients except mint in a blender and puree until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is smooth.

Pour into ice-filled glasses.  Garnish with fresh mint, if desired.

*It took about one and a half boxes of berries to get 6 cups.

*We made it ahead of time and it chilled well.

*We are definitely using this recipe for fruit popsicles this summer!

p.s..

p.s.  Baby bird is back in its nest with his mama and siblings.  The nest was in our neighbor's tree.  His brother or sister keeps hopping out too.  Spunky little things!

Hijacked by a Fledgling

The best laid plans...
At some point around 11 this morning the kids found a little robin fledgling out in the road.  He seemed pretty strong, hopping all over the place but for Jack, who has a soft spot for animals, this was a little worrisome.  He was afraid the bird would get run over or eaten by a cat.

 

We brought him into the yard and out of harm's way.  Got online and googled what to do for young birds like this one.

Since we can't find the nest, we've put him in a little bucket and made a "nest" for him. This little guy is fast- heads straight for the road.   The bird is in the shade and away from us so that hopefully his mom will find him.  (which she just did since I wrote this up!)

In the meantime, the boys have fed the little guy worms.  It's funny to watch.  When he's hungry, his little mouth is open wide.  After a few bites of worm, mouth is closed and he's hopping about.

I'm thinking (hoping) he will fly away in the next day or two.

So.  Our "normal" school day has been hijacked by a fledgling.

But I know, I know.  

Teachable moment, right?

Walk For Life

Our local Pregnancy Resource Center had its annual Walk for Life this morning.  The weather was perfect!  There was a great crowd.  This year Providence Pres had our own team of walkers. 

 
Here's part of the team.  Notice Lucy got a ride.  She said the best part of the walk was "Riding on the shoulders and touching the leaves."  Mr. Holland was a trooper to carry her around so much.  And this pretty lady in the picture is Lindsey. She works for the PRC now but I remember her when she was about five!!

Kayla and I both raised money this year.  We had a lot of fun watching God bring in donation after donation from family and friends.  

Kayla was the second place walker out of everyone who got sponsors.  She was able to help raise $775!  Go Kayla!  I am so proud of her for wanting to walk but also for keeping a pretty level head about her ranking.  What I really hope for her is that this is just the beginning of developing a compassionate heart, not only for the unborn but for all that God loves. 

"I think about having fun a lot.  Like being Spiderman..."

I guess this is what happens when school work flies by!

Sometimes I catch such sweetness.  Like these two looking through a blog book.

And I am still amazed at how quickly things can go south.  They really weren't happy with each other! 

Have a lovely weekend!

p.s. Hello to my newest "commenter"- my sweet Kayla Beth

May 1

Loving the sunshine today!  I think there's something to this feeling happy in the sunshine theory because I feel GrEaT!
Can't believe it's May 1 already.  I'd say another four weeks or so and we'll be done with school.  Everyone's getting close to the end of their books.  Yay for summer!
Lucy came home and announced that next Tuesday at preschool is Wear Your Jammies Day.  She's super excited to wear her foot-jammies, even if it won't be cold.

Mail delivery doesn't get much cuter than this.

 

"For some reason if I don't complain about schoolwork, it flies by." Sam

Hmmm...haven't I been saying that all along??

A few weeks ago we went down to Brian's granddad's.  The boys did a little fishing with Granpa.

Love this one.

And if you don't want to fish, do backbends!