Macy's Junior Prom

It's already spring and time for prom. Macy has had her dress picked out for months.  Once she saw this one she knew it was the one she wanted.

Multi-tasking while getting ready.

Sisters scouting out locations for pictures.

These three really wanted to climb up on the sewer cap for a picture.

 They had a fun evening.  Dessert at a friend's house after the dance and then a couple of the girls came over and spent the night. I know she will treasure these memories for a long time.

Baltimore with Macy - Part 2

 Saturday was a beautiful day.  We started off with a walk to Edgar Allan Poe's house. It was a little over a mile away. On the way we stopped by his gravesite and enjoyed a pizza lunch at a nearby pizzeria.  It was super yummy.

After our visit we headed back to the harbor area. 

We sat down, read books, people watched, and enjoyed the sunshine.  It was so relaxing we didn't want to leave for dinner.

We found a restaurant with good reviews for their seafood.  We knew we needed to try some crab, so we ordered a crab dip appetizer and salads.  The portions were huge, but it was all very tasty. Macy isn't a big seafood eater, but she did want to try crab. I don't think it won her over, but I loved the big chunks of meat in the dip.

On our way back to the hotel we grabbed dessert from the cheesecake factory to eat in bed.  That's a requirement for a birthday trip - dessert in bed while watching TV. The Reese's peanut butter cheesecake didn't disappoint.

Sunday was our last day in Baltimore, and we had a late afternoon flight.  Macy started the day with a variety of waffles.

The roads in Baltimore are horrible, and this picture doesn't do this intersection justice.  It was so bumpy.

We decided to check out the aquarium.  

The weather was rainy, so we decided to head to the airport and see if we could catch the earlier flight home. I had a great weekend with my middle girl, and lots of fun memories were made. 

Baltimore with Macy - Part 1

 For Macy's 17th mother-daughter birthday trip she chose Baltimore, Maryland. We had an early morning flight and the weekend kicked off with me losing my driver's license in the airport. We kept checking with the Lost and Found and retracing our steps, but it wasn't found before we left.  That put a bit of a damper on the start to our trip, but once we got settled in our hotel room, we headed out to explore. First stop, Chipotle - one of Macy's favorites. 

After lunch we wandered around the water front for a bit. We enjoyed the park with the homophones scattered throughout.  It was a bit of a game to find as many as we could.

Always tinkering and creating ways to streamline her life - including how to carry her leftovers.

It was a bit of an overcast day, but it didn't rain on us.

High tide.  It took us a bit to figure out what was going on with the water and why it was up on the sidewalk. 

We took a cruise around the harbor.  There were only a few of us on the boat, and the concession worker gave us some free popcorn. We learned some interesting facts and saw the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in the distance.  

After dinner we headed back to our hotel.  I don't like to be out in cities after dark, so we called it a night. We were pretty tired after our early morning flight.

Southern Junction Clogging Championship - Central, SC

 

Contemporary Duo 2nd place

Juniors

Precision - 1st place, Grand Champion

Hoedown - 1st place

Traditional Line - 1st place

Traditional Line Formations - 3rd place

Line - 3rd place

Seniors

Hoedown - 1st place, Grand Champion

Running Set Precision - 1st place, Grand Champion

Traditional Line Formations - 1st place, Grand Champion

Line - 1st place, Grand Champion

Line Formations - 1st place

Traditional Line - 3rd place

Junior Team of the Day

Best Choreography

Highest Scoring Tiny Tot through Junior of the Day

Happy 19th Birthday!

Today we celebrated Kayla's birthday before she heads back to school. This will be the first year I have not seen her on her birthday, but we've ordered a cake that her friend is going to pick up, and I know she will will have such fun being with her friends all day on Thursday.

Kayla,

This has, without a doubt, been the hardest year for me as your mother.  To send you off into the next stage of your life has brought many tears, but to watch you take your wings and soar has been one of the greatest things to watch as your mama. You are learning to embrace who God has designed you to be.  You've learned hard things, made new friendships that will last a lifetime, and you've started to figure life out.  There will be many hills and valleys, and I promise to always be by your side as your biggest cheerleader. Keep shining bright for Jesus. Love others, and keep spreading those wings. 

Love forever and always, 

Mama

Boston Day 5

 I always love to see my babies sleeping, even if they are 16 and 18.

Benjamin Franklins grave.

Old and new. Side by side.

We took a tour of Harvard University.  It was a pretty interesting tour and a lovely campus.

We ended our day with the Boston Tea Party Experience.

Everyone was able to throw some tea into the harbor.

We made it home with lots of laundry, but the dog didn't care that it was all dirty.  She just wanted to be close to the people who abandoned her for 5 days.

It was a fun, educational trip despite the weather.  We're glad to be back in the south where it is warmer and the sun is shining.