Kindergarten Graduation

Somehow, someone allowed my baby to complete kindergarten.  I'm not sure how that happened, but she sure was excited to be a 1st grader. :)

They sang a couple of songs including "Let Us Go" for kindergartners heading out to 1st grade. They got to hold these balloons until one point in the song where they let them go.  I was quite impressed at the kids holding on to their balloons until just the right second.

Brooke always loves to have the attention of her family, but not so much the attention of a crowd.

She was on cloud 9 all day.  We are so proud of you Brooke and all you have learned in kindergarten! I know you will have an amazing year in 1st grade too!

A Few Pictures from the Spring Concert

Little White House

We took an overnight trip to Warm Springs, GA to visit the Little White House.  Kayla was researching FDR so we thought this made for a neat little adventure over spring break.

 

This is the portrait that was being painted when he collapsed and later passed away.  It was 

left unfinished. 

And this is the chair he was sitting in while having his portrait painted. 

We also visited the pools that FDR frequented.  They are no longer filled, but they did have this fountain with the water that came up from the springs. It wasn't as warm as I was expecting.

Pool time is always a fun time with these girls. 

Before we headed home we visited the Wild Animal Safari. 

And this is what we were all thinking once we got in that NASTY car.  The only door we could open was the drivers door so we all climbed in that way.  By the time we were done I refused to crawl back out that way.  Turns out the doors hadn't been unlocked so I was able to pull the rope and open my door.  Yes, the car was so beat up that there was a rope to pull to open the door.  The back doors still didn't open. 

The animals come right up to the window looking for food. It was quite disgusting, but we did laugh a lot on our adventure. 

This picture just cracks me up!

We made sure to shower really well when we got home. It was one of the most disgusting things I have ever done, but we also laughed harder than we had laughed in a long time.

Kayla's Birthday Celebrations

We kept it super simple this year and Kayla just had a couple of friends over to spend the night. They ran around and played, did a scavenger hunt Marc created, and learned how to play Capture the Flag.

Searching for clues!

Putting the clues in order to make sure they had them all.

All of that excitement wore this one out.

 

We had school on her birthday, but she requested a roast, mashed potatoes, green beans, and a couple of other things for her birthday dinner. Family came over to celebrate, and just like that she is 11 years old. 

Happy 11th Birthday, Kayla!

It is always such fun to look back at old pictures of my girls, especially around their birthdays. I have forgotten so much of the day to day life when they were little, but I am so thankful for the memories that are recalled through photographs. Eleven years of snapping pictures of my first baby. It hardly seems real.

Gone are the pudgy cheeks, rolls, and bangs.

But I have welcomed each year as you have grown into the lovely young lady that you are 

becoming. You fill our days with sunshine, smiles, deep thinking (most of the time), and mispronounced words. ;)

After trying ballet, tap, tumbling, and sewing you have finally found your passion - clogging. You are always clogging in stores and around the house.  I'm happy to see that you have found something you love. You did also manage to get your mother's love of traveling. I'm not sure we will ever top your 10th year in that area.  After all, Mexico and Australia are not common vacations!

Kayla, 

It is so hard to believe that you are 11 years old. You have found an amazing group of friends at school and at church. You are kind, thoughtful, and loyal. Every morning I am greeted with a smile, even if it does take you a few minutes to wake up on school mornings. Planning and organizing are just a few of your strengths. When it comes to school you are becoming very independent which is such a blessing to our homeschool days. 

In your spare time I can almost always find you with a book in your hand or a plan being made. Sometimes I wonder if you will ever start playing because you spend so much time planning! You love your sisters fiercely, and you are a great big cousin too. 

You love reading the Bible and journaling about what you are learning. You have memorized quite a few verses this year and you challenge me in that area. I am so thankful that you have chosen to follow Christ and that you are cultivating that relationship at an early age. 

I am blessed to be your mama and I'm thankful for each day that I get to watch you grow into a beautiful young lady. 

I love you always and forever, 

Mama

Disney Vacation Day 5: Magic Kingdom

Saturday was our last day at Disney and we had yet to meet Anna and Elsa.  Fast Passes had all been taken weeks ago and the wait was usually an hour or longer at any time during the day. All of these factors led to Operation Frozen. We were up early and at the gates before the park opened. I had no idea that there was a little welcome show with dancers and the train arrival with Mickey and some other Disney friends.  They actually opened the gates about 15 minutes early and we were towards the front of the crowd walking in.  There is a guide rope you can't cross and a certain path you have to walk. It was a fun little surprise for our early morning venture.  Then to top it off we were FIRST in line. I barely had time to take coats off the girls and get autograph cards out. By the time we walked out there was probably a 20 minute wait already.

Mesmerized.

 

Then because everyone was in line for Anna and Elsa we ended up being first in line to meet Rapunzel too. By 8:15 we were done and spent the remainder of the morning riding rides with very little wait. It turned out to be a perfect morning with my family. 

 As the day went on the skies grew darker, but that didn't stop us from having a good time.

 The storm was starting to roll in just as we were heading to lunch at Chef Mickeys. The girls had fun riding the monorail over there and then back to the park. 

 

There was a group request to ride Space Mountain one more time before we left. The girls and I had never ridden it before Tuesday and they were eager to ride it again.  Brooke hated roller coasters at Dollywood. She has ridden several and unless it was a little kid one she wanted nothing to do with it. She had tried several times and hated them. While she was big enough for this one I told her it was a fast roller coaster, in the dark, and she had to sit by herself. No thank you. She was not about to ride this one. Well as the week went out she began to LOVE roller coasters. As we were heading for this one she decided she was going to ride it. I made sure she remembered what it was like, but she was positive she wanted to go. 

And she LOVED it and said that it was one of her favorite rides in the park. I'm so proud of her!

This is how we ended the evening. Please ignore my rolled up pants. I didn't feel like walking around in wet jeans the rest of the night. We didn't stay late since we were headed to an early breakfast before making the trek home. It was an amazing vacation and I am so thankful for the opportunity we had to spend time with family. Not that it was a relaxing trip, and I really do need another vacation to recuperate, but I wouldn't change a thing.