Girls Dance Recital 2015

May 30th was dance recital day for the girls.  It was pouring rain and cold, so we didn't get a family photo.  Bebe and Pops came to watch the show too.

 

The girls were excellent.  Adeline was hilarious.  Last year, she didn't move a muscle on stage.  She was horrified to be there.  This year, she was a total ham.  She danced her heart out and smiled ear to ear.  She knew every single step and even gave animated expressions during the routine.  Dan and I were in stitches watching her.  I am so proud of how far she has come.  If anything, performing on a stage has given her so much self confidence.

 

Anna was a hoot too.  She is the youngest and smallest in her class.  She was on the far end of the stage, but we had perfect seats to see her.  I know she was looking for us when the curtain went up because she put her hand above her eyes like she was trying to see out into the crowd.  She danced and watched her friends and danced some more.  She was adorable!  So proud of you Anna!

 

Adeline danced to "Minnie's Bowtique" and Anna danced to "My Little Cupcake"

 

 

 

William's last day of 2nd grade. Holland Hall 2015

 

Last day of 2nd grade.  Mrs. Cardiel is the MOST AMAZING LADY.  She is incredible and gave William the best year of his Primary School career.  I cannot even explain how much we love her.  I only hope my girls will have the gift of being in her classroom.   She has published multiple books on the art of writing and taught college math for several years.  Her classroom looks like a college English and creative writing room exploding on math charts and graphs.  William clicked with her the second they met and she challenged him beyond our expectations.  2nd grade was awesome because of Mrs. Cardiel.  William was sad to say good-bye!

Last day of Kirk of the Hills preschool - Adeline 4 yrs and Anna 2.5 years

2nd Grade Invention Convention

The last big event for 2nd graders is the Invention Convention.  The kids have to "invent" something that helps them with a problem or a daily task in their life.   William thought long and hard about his options.  He LOVES this kind of stuff and took the entire project very seriously.  We brainstormed for weeks. 

Then one evening, it hit him.  I was serving dinner and the meal was hot.  William was starving and not very patient for his food to cool down enough to eat.  He said, "MOM!  I wish my food wasn't always so hot.  I need a fan so I can get this food cooled off really fast."  BOOM! 

Introducing The Easy Breezy Fork Fan.  Invented in 2015 by 8 year old William Barron from Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The Easy Breezy Fork Fan was completely designed and built by William.  There were a few times Dad was necessary in the process, but for the most part, it was all William. 

The Easy Breezy Fork Fan is a plastic fork with a USB port attached to it.  You can plug in a fan that adjusts to different angles to cool your plate.  For an added touch, William wanted to glue the contraption to a flashlight so he can eat hot food in the dark.  Genius.  So the Fork Fan is all attached to a black flashlight. 

He was so proud.  He wanted to make a poster board display for the Invention Convention.  So, he worked a few nights on the details of the board. 

The day of the convention, Dan and I went to see the kids and all their brilliant ideas.  William was thrilled at his audience and enjoyed giving demonstrations.  Lots of people were impressed and "wowed" by his imaginative problem solving skills.

Preschool picture spring 2015. Anna 2.5 and Adeline close to 4.

Mother's Day tea party with Adeline. I went to school with Adeline on Friday morning and we had fun playing in her classroom for 45 minutes.  The teachers set up a tea party with lemonade and brownies.

There were 3 stations - make

Mom a necklace, paint mom a picture and decorate a picture frame for mom.  We started at the picture frame station and carefully selected our jewels to bedazzle Adeline's frame.  Then we moved on to the jewelry station where Adeline spent a long time stringing me the lovely necklace I am wearing in the picture.   She was very proud.  

We played with her friends including her very best pal, Reese.  The two of them were in class together last year and again this year.   I know Adeline will miss her dearly when she goes to holland hall in the fall.  

We played with Legos and magnatiles before the party was over.   Adeline made sure I wore my necklace out the door.  

Preschool tea party with my girl was very fun!

Mother's Day Picnic 2nd Grade

The Holland Hall second grade hosted a Mother's Day picnic.  We gathered in the gym and watched the kids do a cute musical number to "The Monkeys."   At the end of the show, the moms had to get up and dance with their child to the song.  It was great fun and William let loose.  He is a pretty good dancer, but lets his silly side shine with confidence.  So I was silly too!  He laughed and got such a kick out of me dancing crazy to the music. 

After the show, we found a spot outside for the picnic.  We sat with his friends and enjoyed hotdogs, chips and fruit.  Afterwards, all the kids headed to the soccer fields to fly kites with mom. 

William had great success flying his kite.  His kite was up in the air for a majority of the party.  Some people brought fancy kites, but William and I used a Dollar store kite and put them to shame. Ha. 

It was hot and muggy. But it was so fun watching William have a great time.  With sisters in the mix, our days together as a duo are rare.  It's something I dearly miss about those 4 years of his life when it was just the two of us at home.  I knew I was lucky then and I knew to savor those moments.  I am so glad I did.  

Days like today when I can give my full attention to William are just so important. I can't believe he is almost in 3rd grade. He was only 4 yesterday.  I can remember pulling up to HH for

The first time and glancing over at the far right side of the building.  There is a sign there that says "3rd grade entrance."  I vividly remember telling myself, "wow I wonder what William will be like when he is in 3rd grade.  It sounds so big and he will be 9."   In that moment, William was only 4 and he was heading to preschool 4s at the very left side of the building.  He could barely read.  That was the beginning of Primary School. And now we are almost at the end and he has read out of the highest level offered in 2nd grade.  

It's amazing to see how much he has grown and matured.  This Mother's Day was one for my heart.  We had fun!  

William- may you always soar swiftly like your kite, may you shine like the sun and may your gifts impact others like a gentle breeze that fills your soul. 

Anna Baby 1st haircut age 2.5 years

Anna got her first official haircut at Supercuts last week.  She was all business and asked for a sucker before she climbed in the chair.  She didn't miss a beat.  She has seen her siblings get haircuts for the last few years and knows the drill well.  The only time Anna looked scared was when the scissors cut her bangs.  I think she was nervous about getting cut herself.   But she held tight to her sucker and kept a brave face.  The hairdresser kindly gave me an envelope of blonde hair that I will treasure forever.  Ha. 

Hollis is 4

The girls and I drove to Dallas with Rachel and Bebe so we could celebrate our cousin, Hollis, turning 4 on May 2nd.  

Adeline and Hollis are buddies and I love that they enjoy each other even if we don't live in the same city.  

The party theme was "Run for the candles" since Hollis' birthday was the same day as the Kentucky Derby.  There were pony rides, make your own derby hat craft station, a bounce house and face painting.  The adults enjoyed mint julips and watched the race.  

Adeline and Anna had the time if their lives.  Anna stayed at the pony station almost the entire party.  She was out of her skin with excitement to ride Bonzo and Lady.  I bet she went around the circle 15 times.  I had to pry her away with brownies and ice cream!

Adeline loved the pony but also enjoyed face painting and the bounce house.  She was very proud of her sparkle face.  Anna wasn't quite sure about the face painting, but she was really curious.  She watched several kids ahead of her in line and then she realized she could just paint her arm.   That was perfect for her and so she asked for an Elsa Frozen arm.  She was pleased as punch with the results. 

Adeline and Hollis ran around and had a ball.  My girls were exhausted after a weekend of shopping and  the party.  

We had fun and miss Hollis!   Can't wait for our summer play date.