Fifth Grade

I'm pretty sure I just sent this kid to school on the kindergarten bus yesterday, so I don't think it's possible that he's already in fifth grade! Being at the intermediate building again means he'll be switching teachers like last year and he's quite excited to have three different teachers. He's also looking forward to the clubs and after school activities again. There's no doubt he will rock it in fifth grade. This boy works hard and has always been serious about doing well in school.

What is your name? Caleb

How old are you? ten

What do you want to be when you grow up? roller coaster architect

What is your favorite food? tacos

What is your favorite drink? soda

What makes you happy? playing

What makes you sad? when someone hurts my feelings

What is your favorite thing to do at home? play with friends

Who is your best friend? Beau, Alec, Noah, Ruby, Micah, Jack

Where is your favorite place to go? the lake

What is your favorite thing to do with Mommy? play with her

What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy? play sports

What is the best part about Joel (brother)? He is always happy.

What is the best part about Leah (sister)? She is very likable.

What is your favorite book? Harry Potter

What is your favorite movie? Peter Rabbit

Where is your favorite place to eat? McDonalds

What is your favorite thing to wear? Underarmour

First Grade

This kid. This kid is the one who cried at preschool drop off every single year (even as a four year old) for the first month or two. He then surprised the heck out of us when he jumped onto the kindergarten bus last year and never looked back. He loved kindergarten and never had a bad thing to say about it. He worked hard, was kind, and grew by leaps and bounds academically. So, one would think there'd be lots of excitement about going into first grade. However, he spent the last part of summer declaring that he was going to retire back to preschool and not do first grade. He also spent an hour crying at bedtime the night before school started. Talk about making sending him off ALL day to school feel nearly impossible for his emotional mommy! It's been done twice already, but something about sending the last one off seems so odd. A chapter of motherhood has truly ended and it's hard to accept that. Thankfully, day one was as smooth as it could be. He woke up smiling and eagerly walked into school when we got there. He was full of smiles when he got home and had so much to say about his day. His biggest challenge, for now, will be learning how to eat lunch in 20 minutes. Day one left him with an almost completely uneaten lunch. He also didn't think to ask for help to open some of his things....like the salsa that he partially opened and then put right back into the lunchbox (that was a delightful mess to clean up)! Regardless, if that's our biggest problem at this point, we'll take it!  

What is your name? Joel

How old are you? six

What do you want to be when you grow up? a builder or a police horseback rider

What is your favorite food? tacos

What is your favorite drink? pink lemonade

What makes you happy? getting desserts..."I have a lot of things that make me happy!"

What makes you sad? Daddy giving me spankins

What is your favorite thing to do at home? cook

Who is your best friend? TJ and Marshall

Where is your favorite place to go? everywhere

What is your favorite thing to do with Mommy? ride bikes

What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy? have s'mores

What is the best part about Caleb (brother)? He lets me use his stuff.

What is the best part about Leah (sister)? She is nice.

What is your favorite book? Pete the Cat

What is your favorite movie? Peter Rabbit

Where is your favorite place to eat? everywhere

What is your favorite thing to wear? costumes

Third Grade

Third grade is a big year of transition and Leah is definitely looking forward to a fantastic year. She has the same teachers that Caleb had in third grade and that makes her even more excited. Last year was a bit rough, and we are also venturing down a new road with a 504 plan being put in place for her mild hearing loss that she was diagnosed with....but, we trust that everything will work out well and can't wait to see how she succeeds this year!

What is your name? Leah

How old are you? eight and a half

What do you want to be when you grow up? a teacher

What is your favorite food? ice cream

What is your favorite drink? Orange Crush

What makes you happy? Chesney

What makes you sad? When my brothers ignore me.

What is your favorite thing to do at home? play outside with friends

Who is your best friend? Bridget and Lily and Josie

Where is your favorite place to go? Florida

What is your favorite thing to do with Mommy? go shopping or cook

What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy? go on dates

What is the best part about Joel (brother)? I like to hug him and kiss him.

What is the best part about Caleb (brother))? I like to hug him and cuddle with him.

What is your favorite book? The Book With No Pictures AND Mine

What is your favorite movie? Pete's Dragon

Where is your favorite place to eat? McDonalds

What is your favorite thing to wear? running gear and dresses

Lake Trip #2

The last trip to the lake of the summer is always a bittersweet one, so I'm glad we got to drag it out even longer than normal. The kids and I spent almost two weeks down there. The first week we had Grandpa, Grandma, and TiTi with us. TiTi had to head home to start working on school stuff, but the kids were happy she was replaced with Daddy coming down for the second week. We had tons of fun enjoying simple, slow days on the water. We tended to spend most of our time at the dock, but did make a few trips to the pool as well. Neighbors of Uncle Dave and Aunt Nancy had their grandkids in town for a visit, so we spent part of the trip sharing our dock with friends. It was nice for the kids to have extra kids to play with! Another big highlight of the trip was time with some of our favorite furry friends. The kids LOVE Lucas and Bentley and left the lake BEGGING for us to get a puppy. All in all, it was a great trip and we are all so sad to have to wait so many months until we get back there next summer. For now, we will just relive the fun through the many pictures that were captured:

Picnics on the boat are always fun.

ready, set, jump

Leah was always helpful in the kitchen. She loved baking with Grandma because she got extra licks from the spatula :)

Bentley is SUCH a water dog!

This bookworm had days where he spent hours listening to audiobooks.

Arts and crafts, legos, and games are a staple at the lake.

little fish

big fish

It looks like Bentley wants a turn.

Ozzie came for a boat ride.

sunset boat ride

These kids love time with Grandma.

Uh-oh....he's as tall as the table!

Joel and Daddy tubing

Caleb and Leah tubing

such cuties

1-2-3 JUMP

The fishing was slow, but everyone caught a few.

These kids have some seriously silly grandparents!