Parties & staying cool!

The end of the school year is synonymous with parties and the last couple of weeks have been full of them! End of year parties, pool parties, birthday celebrations & more! We have been enjoying a slightly slower pace of life now that Jack has been out of school for a week (a week already!!) but we have still done a fair amount of running around as the girls school year draws to a close. Sophie graduates from Kindergarten on Friday & Darcy will finish up her year in the 3s.

Last week, Jack was able to spend a few minutes one afternoon reading to Sophie's class before dismissal.

The class had been studying insects, so he chose to read The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle.

He also read a wonderful book that he wrote & illustrated himself, The Mystery of the Missing Football.

Today, we were able to celebrate a great year with Darcy's class with a class picnic! I picked up Wendy's for us & we enjoyed lunch with her class on the picnic tables (in the 95+ degree heat, but who's counting!)

Darcy enjoying her ice cold lemonade! It was needed on such a hot day!

 Darcy & her sweet buddy Charly

 Darcy looking at the awesome photo book her teachers made for her of all the fun she had this year! Every class does this each year and, WOW, these are the best gift ever! It is so fun looking through these books and getting little glimpses of your child at school. SO precious!

Charly playing with Lucy (I wish I had gotten more pics of Darcy with all her friends, but it was so hot people didn't hang around too long & I guess I didn't mingle enough!) 

 This is what I get when I say, "Hey Jack, let me take your picture by this tree."

Darcy fell down & skinned her knee...hot, sweaty, skinned knee...I guess that is our cue to head inside for party number 2...

 It was the summer birthdays celebration in Sophie's class for those kids whose birthdays fall outside of the school year.

 Sophie & her friend Talia were the only two with summer birthdays

Talia's mom & I brought in push-up ice cream pops & pink frosted donuts with sprinkles...a nice sugar rush right before pick-up. (I am sure all of the moms were quite thankful we sent their kids home hopped up on sugar on such a hot day!)

 Sophie preparing to hand out the donuts!

 Her class is so sweet! Everyone waited so patiently for their treats!

 The kids all waited for Sophie & Talia to take the first bite of their donuts!

Talia was trying to give Drew a push pop, but he didn't know what it was...all the kids were watching to see what he would do...

 Finally Jack said, "Here taste it!" and smeared some on his lips...Drew figured out really quickly how yummy it was!

 A very sweet class enjoying some sweet treats! 

 Darcy has forgotten her skinned knee & is enjoying the party!

 What's the only thing sweeter than a cotton candy flavored push-up? 

 Drew!

Or maybe this super sweet girl! She was a gem & didn't make a peep the whole time...probably because Daddy held her the whole time...what a great dad!

After all that sugar, I mean celebrating at school, we needed to come home & let off some steam...like I said, it was HOT today...of course there was only one way to beat the heat and work off all that sugar...

Time to break out the slip-n-slide!! (Good thing we found one on sale yesterday at Target!)

 Inaugural run down the new slip-n-slide!

 From my childhood, I remember slip-n-slides being a sheet of orange plastic that you sprayed water down...

 They were always too short & you ended up sliding the last three or four feet through the grass!

 These new fangled models with the side sprays & splash zone at the end are ingenious! 

Darcy, I think the float goes the other way? 

 Drew's going to give it a try...

 Come on buddy!

 Darcy shows him how it's done!

Drew just walks down the mat & plays in the spray at the end! 

Racing! 

Drew finally gets it right! 

Splash!! 

 Watch out!

 Just a day at the races!

 Everybody slide!

 Sophie giving Drew an assist

 Let's do that again!

Ready, set, GO! 

 Photo finish!

Uh-oh, 3 car pile up, but Darcy makes it through! 

Drew finds bucket 

 Drew fills bucket

 Drew dumps bucket (on Jack's head)

Drew laughs hysterically! 

Drew fills bucket again...

 Here I have a blade of grass...

 I will make this blade of grass disappear!

Alacazam!

 See! All gone!

 Lucy enjoyed watching all the fun!

 No splash zone!

 Happy as a clam!

And after an hour or more of slippin', slidin' splashin' fun...this is what I got when I asked the kids to get together for a quick picture. 

It was time to call it a day, a very good day, but all good things must come to an end...next up, baths, dinner & bed...so we can wake up & have more fun tomorrow! I {heart} summer break! Now Mama needs to get to bed so I can keep up with everyone tomorrow!