I've recently noticed that people refer to Memorial Day as the start of summer. However, with schools in Virginia not getting out until mid June, it never seemed like the start of summer. But now that Bryce is in preschool and he was done with school last week, it really does feel like summer! And with the warm temperatures, it REALLY feels like summer. All that to say, we had our first summer pool day at Nana and Pap's pool today. Nana bought the kids new hats and Emmy some goggles. They sure were ready for the pool.
It took Bryce MANY summers and swimming lessons to finally be comfortable in the water. Emmy has been a little fish since her toes touched the water. Funny how they're so different!
My boy!
Lounging by the pool before heading home. Poor Emmy didn't make it out of the neighborhood before she was sleep!
Bryce stayed at Nana and Pap's the rest of the day because he didn't want to miss out on any of Nana's birthday fun. Happy Birthday, Nana!
I know many people have big plans like the river or the beach for Memorial Day, but I couldn't have been happier that we were home and didn't have any plans. We have been working on painting our deck for what seems like the last month. Jason replaced some boards and I have been painting whenever I had some free minutes. I finally finished on Tuesday and it was ready to put furniture on it by Friday. We have a pretty big deck and no shade, so we bought a gazebo and I LOVE it. Jason put it together on Saturday and I just love how it all came together. My parents got new patio furniture so they gave us their old wicker set and now we have lots of seating all over the deck!
Macy likes the new sofa the best.
Our friends came over with their new baby, Sutton on Saturday night. We got some clothes out for them and Bryce and Emmy had a ball playing dress up with her. She didn't mind the hat, mittens, socks and slippers one bit. She is such a sweetie!
Today after church we went to a friend's 7th birthday party to watch our local baseball team play. Two helicopters landed on the field before the game and the mascots for the baseball team and VCU got out for the game!
Emmy needed a closer look.
The game was during Emmy's nap time, but she loved being out with all the big kids.
I didn't get a picture of the birthday boy, but I did get the cousins.
Poor Bryce got hit by a foul ball (because Jason wasn't there to catch it and I was a horrible judge as to where the ball was). The ball bounced down the row some after hitting him and his seat and a little boy brought it to him. Dave even got Nutzy to sign it for him. I think I cried more than Bryce, but he made it. There wasn't a mark on his arm, so the ball may have actually just hit his sit and scared him, but he was super upset and I was so mad at myself for not protecting him like I should have.
Take a moment this weekend to remember those who have and are serving our country for the freedoms we enjoy each day. I think of my Poppy everyday, but today especially as I remember his service to our country.
I cannot believe Bryce is old enough to be graduating from preschool. I remember when I dropped him off last year for his first day of school, I came home and thought, "What am I doing? I've stopped working to be at home with the kids, and now I'm sending him away." While it was hard at first, it was good for him, but boy did it go fast!
Barbara remembered last year that there wasn't really a chance to get good pictures of the kids in their cap and gown at the ceremony, so she volunteered to go in and take pictures of the kids. I LOVE how they turned out.
Class of 2014
I need to do a side by side of his first day of school this year with the chalkboard.
Even if Bryce learned nothing at preschool (which I know he learned tons), one of my biggest take-aways from his two years there was he formed a forever friendship with Thomas! This and the Biblical teachings at his school will take him as far as he needs to go in life!
The boys with Ms. Kim
The boys with Ms. Tammy. I honestly have not been emotional during this life event (I think I will fall apart on the first day of kindergarten), but I did get teary eyed when I said goodbye to Ms. Tammy today. She has loved on Bryce for the past two years and I am so grateful for her.
The ceremony began with all the classes singing a few songs. This was a cute song called "Moving Up". I only took a snippet because I didn't want to torture you with the obnoxious singing of some of the kids.
After singing their songs, the kids left the stage and got dressed in their caps and gowns.
He's officially a preschool graduate!
I'm a little biased, but he wore the cap and gown quite well if I do say so myself.
Emmy enjoyed the "show".
Proud Parents
Once we got home, we looked through all of Bryce's goodies and found his diploma!
The teachers were very generous and gifted the kids with some very thoughtful gifts, including a Bible.
Bryce's favorite gift this year and last was an album of pictures the teachers took throughout the year. I personally love the self portrait from September to May.
I very much appreciated his teachers' sweet comments on his report card!
It is HOT today. We ran a few errands this morning with my mom and the kids were so excited to go back to her house when we were done so they could run in the sprinkler. The first picture cracks me up because they literally ran from the sprinkler when it cut on!
Emmy was so excited to play in the sprinkler until it was actually time to play in it. Bryce was never a fan at her age either, but he's matured a bit!
Emmy hung out with me while Bryce finished playing.
Bryce had a grand old time.
While the air was hot, the water was cold. All wrapped up after some water fun!
Today was a great glimpse of what the summer holds!
Bryce's class went on a field trip to the park and Chick Fil A on Wednesday. How sweet does he look peeking out the window?! He's not sure he really wants to ride the school bus next year though.
Ready for some fun!
I'm so glad that Bryce has made some close friends in preschool.
Emmy joined us and had tons of fun as usual.
Emmy is always glad when Henry's sister Emily come to school events!
We went to a local you-pick strawberry patch today and came home with the last of the strawberries! The farmer told us they were swamped on Mother's Day and had to close yesterday to give the berries some time to ripen.
Most of them were so tiny and so sweet!
Emmy picked a few, but she didn't like the weeds and the dirt. I wonder who she gets that from?
Bryce was quite the pro. He had his bucket filled before I even covered the bottom of mine.
We enjoyed having Nana with us!
My mom insisted on me getting in a picture with the kids. I know I need to, but after seeing it, I'm glad I'm mostly behind the camera!
Proof of a successful morning!
The kids stayed with my mom after strawberry picking so I could get some painting done on the deck. They came home once it was nice and hot outside so they could swim in the pool for the first time this year. We've had this little pool for quite a while and it's still a big hit!
This little lady is going to keep me on my toes this summer. She loves the water and she's not afraid of it. She stood on the slide at one point and then slid down and went completely under water and came up with a grin on her face and never skipped a beat.
Bryce doesn't have many summers left in the "baby" pool. Thank goodness the grandparents all have pools we can go to.
Taylor even stopped by for some pool fun with us. They'll be excited once Chase is out of school for the summer and can join them!
