A big sigh and a quick update...

Do you hear that long, loud sigh?

No worries.  It's just me breathing a huge sigh of relief!

School was over on Friday and honestly, I was more excited than the kids.  Between PTO work and driving for field trips and working on the dance and just general life, I am more than ready for a break.  Don't get me wrong though - I enjoy everything I work on but a break is always good.

And the kids?  They had homework and projects and tests up until Thursday!  So there was no relief for them until the very last day!  They are more than ready for a couple of months off as well.

Before we officially get going with summer though, I have some pictures to share.

Last Monday, Dan and Sarah and I took a bike ride around Salem Lake.  An almost 7 mile bike ride.  Salem Lake is hilly and it was hot and I was very glad when it was over.  Sarah had been begging to go on a bike ride for a while so we took her.  Peter was not interested in going and since he had homework, we let him stay home.

And for the record, this is my new favorite way to pose for photos.  In the future, I will be standing sideways and very close to whomever happens to be beside me so that I can hide half of myself!  I swear, this angle takes 15 pounds off! 

On Tuesday, the school had it's annual picnic.  We spent the day at a local park playing and eating and celebrating the end being near!

7th grade with some of the 8th grade mixed in!

Some of the 6th grade waiting their turn to bat in the softball game! 

And on Wednesday, Sarah's class presented Mark Twain's "The One Million Pound Note" in their classroom. They had been working on it for the last couple of weeks and did a really great job. Sarah had the lead female role.  The class was split into actors and crew and they all did a great job!! I was very proud of them all. They had a short time to learn a lot of lines and they came through!

After watching the play, I drove on the 7th grade/PreK Buddies final field trip.  They went bowling together and had a great time!  Here is Peter with his sweet little buddy, Tommy. 

He's giving Peter a big hug and he's saying cheese.  So cute when little kids try to smile and it looks like a pained grimace!

Now that's a cute smile!

On Thursday, I took one last solo Target/Kohls run before summer vacation and stopped at Dunkin Donuts for an iced coffee.  And to my surprise I got a free donut for National Donut Day!

And then on Friday night, we had our annual end-of-year dinner celebration at Tokyo.  My brother joined us.

Me and my girl before heading out to dinner.

And with that, school is over and I'm going to rest. 

But wait - we've got swim practice and swim meets and a basketball tournament and I woke up this morning thinking about some things I need to start working on for the PTO and ....well, it will be September soon enough.  I guess I can rest then!

Twelve is...

Twelve Is...

Friendly

Smart

Kind

Beautiful

Creative

Helpful
Persistent
Fun-Loving
Afraid of Heights
A Night Owl
Athletic

Twelve Loves To...

Swim
Style Her Hair
Paint Her Nails
Watch You-Tube Make Up, Hair, and Craft Tutorials
Decorate Her Room
Put Together Outfits
Go To Chick-Fil-A

Cook
Text Her Friends
Ride Her Bike
Go Out To Eat
Go To Hobby Lobby
Hang Out With Her Friends
Annoy Her Brother
Play the Ukulele
Take Selfies


Oh how I love my sweet little twelve!
Happy Birthday, Sarah!

Friday Night Dance Party!

Friday night was the 8th grade graduation dance which the 7th grade hosts.  As part of my duties as a 7th grade parent I was able to help decorate and get everything ready for the dance.  It was hard work but I think we pulled off a great dance! Peter had fun anyway!

However, because I was setting everything up for the dance and because Dan was travelling and didn't get home until 10:00 PM on Saturday, my parents had to fill in to help get Peter ready for the dance.

Peter has been sporting a nice little mustache for most of this school year.  However, a friend did him a favor and told him his payment was shaving off his mustache.  Peter gladly obliged so my dad helped him with that before the dance.

Of course, being a good blogger, I took before and after photos.  And of course, Peter being 13, made me promise not to post them.

However, I am going to post these pictures:

My dad helping Peter with his tie.

So handsome!

The 7th graders escorted in the 8th graders.  Peter was a little nervous about this task but I think he did a great job.  It didn't help matters that all the parents were there snapping pictures like crazed paparazzi!

Out theme for the dance was "glow" and here are just a few pictures of how we tried to transform the cafeteria:

Everything looked even cooler when the sun went down.

Peter said he had a great time.  I hope all the kids did - especially the 8th graders!  It was fun working with the other moms putting it all together!

7th Grade Field Trip!!

Peter came home Friday night tired but pleased.  His field trip was a success!

They packed a lot into their three day trip.

They left the school at 6:00 AM on Wednesday and headed to Gatlinburg, TN by chartered bus.  When they arrived they took a hike in the Great Smokey Mountain National Park and ate lunch.

Then they headed to Wonderworks, a hands-on science museum. While they were there, among other activities, they dissected a squid.

After this, they headed to dinner at Hard Rock Cafe.  After dinner they went to Ripley's Aquarium where they learned about sharks and actually spent the night underneath the shark tank!

Day 2 found them at Dollywood!  Peter had a blast.  He rode almost all of the rides and had a great time hanging out with his friends.  After a day of play, they checked into their hotel and then headed to the Happy Days Dinner and the Comedy Barn for dinner and a show.

On the third day of their trip, they packed up and headed to Damascum, VA where they rented backs and took a 17 mile bike ride on the Virginia Creeper Trail.

Whew!  What a busy group of 7th graders.  The trip sounds like a great mix of learning and fun.  Sarah's already looking forward to this trip next year.

Here are a few pictures from the trip:

I wish I had more pictures but that's one of the downsides to not being a chaperone!  (And a downside that I will gladly live with!!)

On Thursday night, I was at a PTO meeting.  When I got home from the meeting, the message light was flashing and I had a message from Peter.  The message went like this

"Hey Mom, it's just Peter.  Mr. Cancro wanted me to  call and let you know we got to the hotel and are checked in.  Um, so yeah."

Um, so yeah???  Where the heck is my I love you and miss you??

You can bet I gave him a hard time about "um, so yeah".

Although in his defense, when they were on the bus, he called to let me know the exact time they would be arriving at the school and once again I wasn't home. In that message he did give me a quiet "I love you", so I guess he's off the hook!

Sound to Sea!

Sarah attended the 6th grade's field trip, Sound to Sea last week.  She had to be at the school by 6:15 last Wednesday morning.

We pulled up to the school, she got her things in the back of the charter bus, gave me a quick hug and hopped on the bus with her friends.  I hung around and chatted with the other parents until the bus pulled off.

Sound to Sea is a program that's held at the Trinity Center in Atlantic Beach, NC.  It was a three day environmental program that included a lot of hands-on activities during the day, exploring both the sound side of the Atlantic Beach as well as the beach, challenge courses, and special evening programs.

One of the parent chaperones sent me a few pictures:

And here are some pictures of some more of her classmates.  (Sarah's group got to do these same activities.)

When I picked Sarah up on Friday night, she was tired and sandy.  But she said they had a great time!  And I was so happy that they didn't get rain because the weather forecast looked pretty iffy last week.

Peter probably isn't going to be as lucky.  His class left bright and early this morning headed to Tennessee and unfortunately,  I think they will definitely be getting some rain.  They do all their activities rain or shine so I guess it doesn't matter.

Science Expo!

Last night was the Science Expo! 

Sciene Expo is the culmination of  a 6 month long project where the middle school kids team up (or they can choose to do it alone), pick a topic, research it, create a hypothesis, perform an experiment, write a research paper detailing the experiment and their research and their results, create a display board and come up with an interactive experience for the lower school kids.

Whew!  And then finally it's Expo day!  During the day at school, the elementary kids go to all the different displays where the middle schoolers explain what they did and then do the interactive experience with them (a game or a demo).  Also during the day, a team of judges come around and groups explain their experiment.  In the evening, the whole school is invited back to see all the projects and then their are awards.

Sarah's group won 2nd place out of the 6th grade and Peter's group won Best Overall Experiment.

Dan unfortunately was out of town (Again!  This is the third week he's been gone in a row.)  But my parents were able to go. 

Here are the kids with their groups and their awards:

  

Hail Mary, full of grace...

I always try to get some pictures of me and the kids on the front porch on Mother's Day.  In early spring, the flowers on the porch are fresh and always look great.  In a few weeks, they won't look as lovely because I'll have forgotten to water them, or sometimes, I over water them.  My thumb is definitely not green.

But yesterday, as we were trying to take pictures, the sun was working against me.  Every picture I snapped had a few sun spots (large glowing orbs) right on Peter's face.  So we quickly took the pictures on the side of the porch to block the sun and in doing so, no pretty flowers.  Oh well...

 And then we took a few on my Mom's front porch after lunch:

 Check out Peter's mustache!  He refuses to shave it because he thinks it makes him look manly. 

Peter made me the sweetest card:

Peter loves languages so he wrong Mom for me in 13 different languages.  So sweet!

And Sarah took to Pinterest and made the cutest little 52 Reasons Why I Love You!

On each card she had written a different reason that she loves me.  But y'all, my favorite and the least accurate:

I remind her of Mary!!?? 

Oh, sweet Sarah, if only I could be more like Mary. 

Perhaps I will make that my mission in motherhood - be more like Mary - full of grace, loving, kind, trusting, faithful, generous, always willing to say yes to whatever the Lord asks of me.

I better start praying right now!

No more split ends!

I got my hair cut this morning!  I'm very happy with it.  It looks basically like it does every time I get my hair cut short.

My hair was a great length before I got it cut - not too long and not too short but it was getting unhealthy.  I get my hair highlighted every 7 weeks.  I blow dry it every single day.  And after I blow dry it I run the flat iron through it.  That's a lot of chemicals and a lot of heat on my fine thin hair.  And it causes it to split at the ends and break way up the length of the hair. 

And to me, that just looks gross.  So, it was time for a chop! 


Before:

See how damaged and frayed my hair looks? Not good.

After:

Much healthier looking!!  And who knows, I might even go shorter next time!

Buddies and Olympians!

This time of year is always packed with activity.  With school winding down and spring activities coming to a close before the end of the school year  (which is June 3rd for us - and can I get an "AMEN"?) and all the things that come along with that there's no other word to describe it but busy.

And yesterday was no exception.  Peter's 7th grade class took a field trip to Tanglewood Park with their Pre-K buddies.  I absolutely love the Buddy Program at our school.  The 6th graders are paired up with a 1st grader to get practice being a buddy.  The 7th graders are paired up with Pre-kers and the 8th graders are paired up with Kindergartneres.

The buddies sit together during Mass each week and they do special activities together through out the year.  The little kids really look up to the big kids and the big kids enjoy helping the littles.

And y'all, it just melts my heart every time I see the big kids with the little kids - especially the boys.  To see a big tall boy holding hands with a tiny one (and without embarrasement!) brings a tear to my eye.

The big kids led their buddies through the trails and had a scavenger hunt.  At the end of the scavenger hunt they made their way to the playground and spent lots of time pushing their little buddies on the swings, chasing after them on the slide and just running around and having fun.

Afterwards we headed for ice cream at a local restaurant.  It was a fun time and one that Peter had been looking forward to for a while.

Last night Sarah's seasonal swim program ended.  This program works on improving your strokes, building up endurance, and improving your speed  so that you are ready for summer league.  She did it in the fall and again spring and she's already looking forward to doing it again in the fall.

Last night, Charlie Houchin, who is an Olympic gold medalist came to meet the kids and talk to them about his experience in Olympics.  He has retired from swimming and has created some really cool technology to run swim meets from an app on your phone.

Here's Sarah with Charlie.  She's wearing his gold medal and holding a swim cap that he autographed for her. Her swim cap is blocking part of the medal unfortunately.  She said it was very heavy.

And tonight is our conference championship meet for the track team.  And since tonight is our last track meet of the season and since Sarah is finished with swimming until the end of May, next week is looking wide open.  I think we are all looking forward to a calm week with no after school activities!!!