School's Out for Summer!!!

I have to say, each May I get a little sad.  I guess I come to the realization that my babies are growing up and are one year older.  It just seems to hit me hard in May when that last day of school arrives.

Yesterday, Roy Austin had his last day ever of preschool.  I was a little sad, but I am so excited to see this guy go to Kindergarten.  He is growing so quickly and so nicely.

Enjoying his big bowl of ice cream at the end of his last day of preschool.

Roy Austin and his buddy, Malachi.  These two had lots of fun this year!

These three were such great teachers!  I wanted him to get into this class so badly and was thrilled when he got off the waiting list and was added to the class roster!

I love this picture.  The class showed the parents all that they learned this year, including the pledge to the American flag, Christian flag and Bible.  Here they are looking up to the Christian flag.

And speaking of pledges, Roy Austin got to hold the Bible during the Bible pledge.  He was so proud and took his job very seriously:
 

And one of his teachers taught the class how to sing "Jesus Loves Me" in Mandarin.  Too cute:

This morning was Caroline's last morning of 1st grade.  She was so excited when she woke up and told me that she didn't have to set her alarm clock any more!  Believe me, I am happy, too:)

In front of the Carmel Christian Mission Statement

Caroline had the best teachers this year--so sweet and so much fun!  Here she is with  Mrs. Kneisc.   Her other teacher, Mrs. Brackman, was doing carpool duty.   It's so nice when your children have great teachers:)

So, this mommy is thrilled that we will have lazy mornings, no more scrambling to pack balanced lunches, no more scurrying and hurrying to get three kids up, dressed, fed and in the car by 7:40, no more fighting congested traffic on Providence Road and NO MORE PRESCHOOL PARKING LOT!

Caroline E. Graham, First Grader!

It's official...we have a FIRST GRADER in our home!  Last night we packed up the backpack, laid out the uniform and then read, "The Night Before First Grade"...

It was an early morning wake up call, but she did it!

 

Next year, that little boy with his Blue-Blankie will be going to Kindergarten:(  He missed his "Liney" today, but we had an enjoyable day together!

We stopped by Chick-fil-A for our annual Back to School Breakfast...

...and then hurried off to school.  She was a little nervous to walk in, but she did fine!  Here she is with her teacher, Mrs. Brackman.  Her other teacher is on maternity leave.

By the looks of her reaction at pick up, first grade RULES!

We finished the day with a little celebration after dinner (don't laugh at my cookie crayon cake....Caroline liked it!).

The Final Countdown...

It happens each August, but this August I really mean it...."Where did this summer go?!"  Here we are getting ready to start our last week of summer vacation, because this Thursday, school begins for our family.  We will have a first grader and boy, is she excited:)  On Saturday, we went to her school's "Back to School Day" where all the families enjoyed a praise and worship celebration and then we were able to go to her classroom, meet her sweet teachers, put her school supplies away and more importantly...

 ...see where her desk will be!  Goodbye group tables, hello desks!  Caroline is so excited about this part  So, three more days of somewhat having relaxing mornings. 

I have to say that I learn each summer that I am a person who needs to be on a schedule.  I like knowing what my day will bring and I like knowing that I have to be somewhere at a certain time, even though I have liked our laid back mornings.  This will be my first year that I really will be doing a lot of back and forth driving, between two schools getting out at different times, speech therapy, gymnastics, and piano lessons...and an almost two year old that will need a nap sometime!  I am thankful for sweet friends who have said they will help me in the carpool area.  And I realize that I am not the first mom to do this.  As Frank says in "Father of the Bride"..."Welcome to the real world, Mr. Banks (Bonks!).".

Roy Austin had his teacher visit last week for preschool and it went well (I still cringe when I think about last year's).  He got into a great class by the skin of his (or my) teeth.  When the ladies came for their visit, I was surprised how shy he was.  He is never shy, but he hid upstairs for about 10 minutes before I had to drag him downstairs with bribes of Skittles. 
Last week, I found a cute little man's tie at one of my favorite consignment stores. He couldn't wait until Sunday to wear it to church and each morning he'd say, "Is it Sunday yet?"  It's a real tie...no clippie for him!  He was very proud this morning, can you tell?:

And then we have Charlotte. She has really grown up lately.  Our 22 month old is a talker.  She will say the funniest and sweetest things.  Her favorite is, "Thank you, Mama!" and she says it at the funniest times, like when I get her in her car seat.  She says it very matter of factly, too.  And she has learned to be feisty.  Someone is ALWAYS trying to carry her or pull on her or sit and even lay on her.  I think I say 20 times a day, "LEAVE CHARLOTTE ALONE!".  Her sweet older siblings think it's so funny to teach her words like "poopoo" when I'm not looking, and she knows it's not right.  This morning, Caroline called her "Charlotte Poo" and she got so mad.  She said, "NO, Nie Nie! No poopoo!".  And the other day, those same sweet older children of mine decided to chose the Post Office at lunch time to be the scene of a fight.  They were literally screaming at each other, fighting over who got to pull down the door to place the package I was mailing.  I was humiliated, but calmly got on my knees and got close to their faces and quietly told them (through my gritted teeth) what they needed to hear.  They apologized to the line of customers waiting to be helped and when we got outside I said, "I am so disappointed in the two of you!".  Charlotte, (sitting on my hip), replied quietly, "Me, too.".  It was hard not to laugh.  That was followed by a, "I sorry, Mama." from my little apprentice.  And the rest of the two minute ride home she kept telling me, "Sorry, Mama".  (the other two were sent to their rooms without lunch).
Here is a video of Charlotte that Caroline and I took yesterday.  She sings all of the time and it really makes our family laugh.  Of course, when I got the camera out, she didn't do it like she normally does, but here she is singing one of her favorite praise songs...it's a little long:)

So this week will be filled with alarm clocks being set for 7:00 to get ready for earlier mornings, a few last minute trips to the pool and a Carowinds visit starting tonight!

Can I Get a Witness?

Before you read this post, please know that I am not trying to be a "Harriet Olsen" from Little House on the Prairie--always bragging about "myyyyyyy Nellie".  I never want to be one of those moms.  But last night, Roy and I experienced a proud parent moment with our sweet Caroline and I just wanted to document it for this blog that ONE DAY (when I find the time sit down and copy and paste) will become a scrap book for our family.

Caroline has such a sweet, sincere heart for the Lord.  She is so vulnerable towards Him and I love to watch it.  I call her an old soul because of the wisdom and and insights that come out of her mouth sometimes. She has her Daddy's giving heart and is so interested in people's life stories and how to help others.  I guess you could call her "mission minded"--she already has a project she wants to raise money for at our next yard sale with her baked goods stand:)

Anyway, last weekend we were doing side walk chalk on the driveway and she proudly called my name over to the front sidewalk to see what she had drawn.  As I walked over, I saw that she had drawn a huge cross and underneath it the words,

Jesus dide for are sins!

John 3:16

It was written just like that and it was big...impossible to miss.  I praised her for her work and told her that she was being a good witness.  To be completely honest, I kind of laughed a little to myself.  Our neighborhood seems to have many Hindus living in it and it is also a neighborhood full of walkers and joggers.  I wouldn't say I was embarrassed, but I just didn't want people to think we were being in-your-face-preachy about anything.  I know...come on, Donna--but I'm being honest.
So last night, Roy was driving home from work and when he was two streets away from our house a man stopped him.  He recognized Roy's truck and asked if one of our kids made that sign with the cross and the verse.  Roy replied that our daughter had made it and he told Roy that he walks in our neighborhood and appreciated and was impacted by Caroline's message.  When Caroline heard this, she acted like it was no big deal, but we could tell that she was excited because her plan to be a witness worked! Again, we told her what a good witness she had been for Christ and again, I felt totally convicted for my reaction towards the announcement on our sidewalk.  Shame on me!! Nothing like learning a spiritual lesson from your 7 year old:)
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And just because I am on a roll about "myyyyy Caroline", here is another heart-smiling moment.  For years, I have snuck little notes into Roy's suitcase when he travels.  I'll hide a love note in his socks or a note of encouragement in his underwear, just something for him to find while he's away to remind him how much he's loved and appreciated.  A few years ago, Caroline saw me doing this, so I explained my method to her.  Now,when he packs for a trip, she brings me some notes and pictures to slip in his suitcase.  On his last trip, she insisted on hiding the notes herself so I never got to see what she had written.  Roy saved this one and brought it home for me to see:

I pray that her little heart continues to be nurtured in the right direction and one day she'll do some mighty and amazing things! 

Seven on the Seventh!

Every year Caroline's birthday falls on Spring Break so we end up going to Virginia to visit family, and since there are 14 cousins, it makes for the perfect birthday party set-up! This year we picked a Barbie theme to celebrate year seven. We had Barbie-Cute-Sliders, Skippers (homemade frenchfries) and Ken's Creamy-Dreamy Salad (served with Ken's Salad Dressings)!

Thanks to Auntie Dawnie's help with making a Barbie Box, we kicked the party off with photos of the guests. There were MANY laughs over these poses!


First off, "Birthday Girl Barbie"





"Some Enchanted Evening Barbie"

"Surfin' Kenny"

"Ready to Shop Skipper"

"Bohemian Chic Barbie"

"Cheerleader Kelly"

"Grand Slam Kenny"

"Sweet Innocence Kelly"

Dream Date Kenny #1

Dream Date Kenny #2I'm laughing at this one and not sure what to call it!

"Broadway Lights Barbie"

"Totally Texting Barbie:

"Coach Barbie"
"Pregnant.....Again Barbie" (just a joke. She's NOT pregnant!!)

"Welcome to the Neighborhood Barbie"

"Solo in the Spotlight Barbie"

"Boardroom Business Ken"

"Printshop Ken"

Due to Roy's brace he's been wearing from his torn tendon, this is "Casual Casualty Ken....boot included"

"Professor Ken"

Matching sisters! Thanks for the shirts, Jessica! They were perfect:)

Sweet Eleanore:

Some Enchanted Evening Barbie stayed in character most of the evening. She gets the award:)

I put some watered down sweet tea in Charlotte's sippy cup and I didn't hear much from her during the party.

Then we had a dance party:

Every party has a pooper:

Notice Charlotte is still nursing that sweet tea in the background.

Auntie Dolly is crazy!

Even Grandaddy got in on the fun!
Then some of the cousins stayed to watch "The Muppets" and sleep over. We love this movie!

Two of the cousins went right to bed after the movie, no questions asked. But these three were a different story. Yes, two of them are mine but the one in the middle, Harry, was the instigator of the laughs and giggles that went on and on for I don't know how long (because I finally fell asleep and didn't care). Apparently, when your Auntie tells you a bedtime Bible story and the names Adam and Eve come up, the word "naked" is HILARIOUS to 4 and 7 year olds. This picture was taken around 11:30 by a tired me who just wanted to go to bed...


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We came home the night before Caroline's actual birthday so we could be home for it and get ready for Easter. She woke up to a room full of balloons from the Birthday Fairy:

Happy Birthday, Caroline!!

We went out for cupcakes later in the afternoon.(this is Caroline's new smile that she does. It's very forced. Oh, and this headband she wears.....do you think she'll look back on this in the years to come and laugh??):

I took her to get her nails done for Easter. I love that we can do things like this together!Since we had a big homemade birthday dinner in VA, she wanted to go to a Japanese steakhouse for dinner to celebrate...




She could not wait for the waiters to come out and sing to her!They had Roy dance with her while they beat the drums and sang their Japanese birthday song. She loved it! (I have to say that every time I eat at a Japanese steakhouse--which is not often--, I leave feeling SO sick and when I think about that yum yum sauce, I want to throw up! We all kind of felt that way driving home:(
So, it was a great few days celebrating our Caroline. She is such a sweet, caring, considerate and smart little girl. I feel so blessed to be able to be her mommy and take care of her. She is a true joy to all of us and we love her dearly.