May Madness!!!

Having school age & preschool age children makes the month of May rival (and very likely surpass) the month of December for the number of engagements on our family calendar...there are parties & Muffins for Mom, field day & field trips, bike-a-thons & mini-musicals, Awana & football. 

Right now we have 3 kids at 2 schools...add in sports & church activities...and it seems like pretty much every day over the past 2-3 weeks has had some sort of activity or another going on...I can only imagine what it's going to be like when we have all five kids in school! I haven't been able to get to every event or document everything in pictures, but here is a quick sampling of the fun activities that have been keeping us busy over the last few weeks...

I was invited to celebrate Mother's Day with special treats in both of the girls' classes. I am very thankful because this year all of the events were on different days & times. There have been several times when things end up scheduled on the same day, at the same time, in two different locations...and I haven't quite figured out how to be more than one place at a time, but this year I didn't have to worry about that & I could enjoy some special one-on-one time with my girls!

Sophie's class celebrated their moms by having a sweet breakfast & little program for us. 

The children sang some adorable songs about mothers...

Recited some special poems about what makes mothers SO special... 

And gave us cute presents (which I have, but forgot to take photos of!) including cute self portraits & also "Mommy's Favorites"...where they answered questions like Mommy's favorite TV Show (Sophie answered "family movie night!") and Mommy is happy when...I obey was Sophie's response. One neat thing about Sophie having the same K teacher that Jack had is that I have the same sweet "Mommy's favorites" filled out by Jack & also his self portrait from 3 years ago!

 Next, I was invited to Darcy's class for an ice cream social!

 Not one to pass up an opportunity for ice cream, Lucy came along, too! 

Darcy's class also sang us some sweet songs & gave us cute presents. Her gift to me was an adorable stone ladybug for the garden (a large rock painted like a ladybug.) It is so cute! And she answered several questions about what is in Mommy's purse...Darcy said I carry gum in my purse (she would know because she's always looking for it!) She also said that I am 13 years old! And that my job is to "put on lipstick!"

 I was so blessed to spend time with each girl & be showered with love & gifts...but my best Mother's Day gifts are my 5 precious kids!

Next up...football games!

 I always enjoy capturing the sweet interactions on the sidelines as much as I enjoy the action on the field!

 Lucy & Darcy having fun with Pop!

Jack & his teammates receiving instruction from their coach 

Drew having a snack 

Jack in action pulling a flag! 

Lucy & Nana

 Jeff helped coach Jack's team again this season

 More fun on the sidelines

 Darcy asked last week when she would be old enough to play football!

 Jack running it in for a touchdown!!!

 High fives from the coach!!

Drew being busy as usual!

The nice thing about activity-filled-May is that most things are winding down, and so we are celebrating a fun season or a great year! Awana Awards night was exactly one of those evenings. The kids in the various Awana clubs in our church were recognized for their hard since August in learning Bible truths & memorizing verses. We are so thankful for this wonderful club that comes alongside parents to helps our children purpose to hide God's Word in their hearts & learn how to apply it to their daily lives!

 This was Sophie's first year as a Sparkie & she completed her first book! She was so excited receiving the Book One ribbon! In completing the first book, she memorized about 25 verses and all of the books of the Bible!

 Jack finished Sparks last year & moved up to TnT which stands for Truth in Training! He received a neat medal for finishing his first TnT book also. He actually finished the first book & made it half-way through the second book. He memorized over 50 verses! We are so proud of both Jack & Sophie for working diligently to learn verses & not only memorize them, but more importantly apply the truths to their lives. Our prayer is that they will always seek God's Word first & rely on Him to direct their paths!

Jack's school wrap-up...As excited as I am for summer & lazy days, I am still a little a little shocked that it is here already! Jack finished up 3rd grade and at 10:00 am on Wednesday his summer break got under way! Wow, it has been a wonderful year. We have been so blessed by his teachers this year, they have challenged him & stretched him. And Jack has been part of a great class with many wonderful friends! Along with a few last tests and cleaning our their desks, the last week of school consisted of Field Day on Monday, the 3rd grade pool party on Tuesday & classroom awards on Wednesday morning. 

 Jack's wonderful teacher, Ms. Doyle, had a special character trait award & prayer for every child in the class. Jack also had Ms. Doyle in 1st grade & she did this then, as well. I was so hoping she would do this again because it is such a sweet blessing for the kids! 

 Ms. Doyle recognized Jack for his Passion for God. She said that he has a soul that clings to the Lord, one that is passionate for Him (Psalm 63:8) and that during their daily Bible time, he knows how to apply God's Word to his life. She went on to say that he is kind & encouraging to others & leads by example. She urged him to continue meditating on the Word of God, hiding it in his heart, so that he can "speak words of faith & life to others." What a wonderful blessing to have this prayed over Jack and to know that his teachers were regularly praying for & encouraging him this year!!

She also presented several academic awards & special awards from some of their extra classes. Jack received recognition for exceptional work in Art class, extraordinary work in Science class, exceptional work in Spanish class, and excellence in Computer class! He also earned a certificate for having the highest AR reading comprehension score for the year in his class, and one for completing multiplication & division facts timed tests. Whew, I think 3rd grade is a busy year!

Jack worked very hard this year & we are proud of his diligence & accomplishments! Most of all, we are proud of him for being a friend to all, and for being such an awesome son & big brother!! 

 Ms. Doyle's boys!

 Ms. Doyle & Ms. Grey with most of the boys from the class

 Drew was content because he found a bin full of balls to play with!

 Jack & Ms. Grey

Jack & Ms. Doyle

Thanks SO much to both teachers for a wonderful year! We pray that they both will have a blessed & relaxing summer!