End of School Year and Memorial Day Weekend!

Whew! What a week! First off, Amelia cut her hair in a sassy bob:

Next, after a week of field trips, dances, parties, and more parties, the last day of school came:

Whenever I say "funny pose", Cooper hears "attack Amelia".

This is a picture of Amelia's last day as a middle-schooler---this fall, she's be in 7th Grade, that's the JUNIOR HIGH.

I tried to get Cooper's picture at his last day at Kennedy, but as I told him to pose a friend called his name and I lost him:

Luckily, I nabbed him after school:

He is officially a 4th grader!

After school we celebrated, as always, at Pizza Pie Cafe:

Saturday we visited family in Blackfoot and helped mom pack up her classroom. On the way home we stopped at Freeman Park to see the 1,000 American flags set up for Memorial Day to honor the men and women who serve(d) in the military. It was an amazing sight! The wind was blowing a bit, and the sound of all the flags snapping was pretty cool.

 Unfortunately, on Sunday Cooper caught a 24-hour bug so we spent  the day relaxing and cleaning the bathroom. :-)
 
Monday we visited Joey and Jojo at their campsite for a bit, grabbed some lunch, prepped our flower garden, then hit the opening day of the spray park and carousel.

Summer has certainly hit in a big way! Next up--scout day camp, girls' camp (yikes!), soccer, rodeos, parades, camping, summer ballet, and lots and lots of fun!

Recitals and Field Trips!

We are winding up the end-of-the-school-year-activities!

Amelia had her spring violin recital last weekend. She did a wonderful job! I apologize for the music stand blocking her violin. We weren't sitting in a good place so you can't see a lot of her bow work, but she still sounds nice. She was first, so the owner was talking a bit, then she was so nervous she started without the accompaniment. If you want to hear her play perfectly start 38 seconds in. :-)

                                        


Today I went on a field trip with Cooper's class to the nature park. It was a crazy few hours but lots of fun. Luckily the rain stayed away for that part of the day. Here's some pictures:

His friend Brayden had photobombed him.

At the nature park.

I wish I had more, but I was in charge of 7 third graders--all of whom were ready to be free for the summer!

Next up: Amelia's day at the park, Cooper's water party, and the LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!!

Swan Lake 2016

Amelia had her spring recital last weekend, they did Swan Lake. She had two dances--one in the "gala" before the actual ballet and one in the ballet. She danced on pointe for the gala.

She. Did. AMAZING!

I usually have a hard time watching my children perform because I get so nervous for them. I shouldn't, because they always do so well. In the Swan Lake, she was a Hungarian with shoes that "clicked".  Again, she did fabulous! I ordered a DVD, but won't get it for another 3-4 weeks. I look forward to watching it over and over.

Cooper did well, lasting all the way through the middle of the ballet. I woke him up for Amelia's second dance (she was the very last) but when I looked down at him after she had finished, his eyes were closed again. After the ballet was over, he told me he didn't see anything. Good thing we ordered that DVD. :-)

Here's my darlin' after the ballet on the stage, graciously accepting her flowers.

Cooper still waking up:

He's up! And here they are together:

Finally, Amelia "the star" as she put it. No self-esteem issues there!

Today Cooper had his field day and I volunteered. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures. Why, you ask? I had 6 rotations of 20-30 9 year-olds for an hour and a half. You're lucky I can type and post this blog. :-) We both had a lot of fun!

Next weekend: Amelia's violin recital and end-of-the-year parties!

End of the Year Craziness!

The end of the school year is near and with it comes a lot of recitals, plays, activities, and field days. This week, Amelia had her spring orchestra concert. She did a fabulous job and plans on sticking with the violin through junior high next year! She loves her teacher, and he'll be teaching at the junior high next year as well. Here she is before the concert:

Isn't she just photogenic?!

 Because of her short stature, I only saw her from the waist down--I blame the cellos for blocking my view. Speaking of stature, she had her well check last week and is growing, just slowly. That's alright with me, her personality makes up for it!

In Cooper news, he had a Mother's Day lunch at his school last week. I was happy my schedule worked out so I could go. He was so much fun to have lunch with, and very happy when I was understanding when he wanted to go to recess afterward.
 

Cooper also had a well check and he's growing a little faster than Amelia--he's only two inches shorter than her, and normally hits a growth spurt in the summer. He wears an entire shoe size larger and is looking forward to the day he can look down to her.

That's it for now. We have Amelia's "Swan Lake" recital this weekend--her first one dancing on pointe. She's thrilled. I'll post pictures when I can. Happy May!

Playing Catch-up and 4 Wheeling

Whew! Crazy couple weeks. I have substituted most of the days but managed to still relax, read, and binge-watch Netflix. A lot happened, but not many picture-taking events. School is in it's last few weeks, and I'm sorry to say we don't have a calm and relaxing summer ahead of us--but it'll be an exciting and memorable one! Here are a few pictures from Cooper's birthday and our weekend:

Now that they are 12 and 9, they think their addition year of maturity entitles them to certain things......

Cooper's birthday shots:

At Pizza Pie Cafe, with his beloved mini cookie monster. He. Ate. The. Whole. Thing. 

 

 Joey and Jojo went camping at Twin Bridges over the weekend, and invited us out for a 4 wheeler ride and s'mores. It was so much fun--thanks to Joey, Jojo, and Gary for taking my kiddos on numerous rides!

Amelia loved feeling the wind in her hair.

Next up--recitals (orchestra, ballet, and violin!), field trips, lunch dates, and end-of-school activities!