she is five

WOW ~ m1 is five! jd came up with the idea of a ballet party. ms. jessica came and taught a lesson to m1 and her friends and then they performed for the parents. the music was strawberry shortcake's happy birthday song. it was very cute. (little man was at the lake with my parents ~ he did not want to hang around with a bunch of girls).

the cake ~ yes, it's a fish. i do not know what that has to do with ballet, but it is what she wanted. instead of doing bright primary colors, i made it girly colors with polka dots. it is upside down but i do not know how to fix that.

Backyard Fun

little man

m1

m2

sweet music

m2 plays the piano while i am cleaning the dining / piano room. sometimes she will get vocal and add some singing also. fun to hear her play while i work. look at those hands go.

virginia marine science museum

 m1, little man, me, m2, aunt jane, grammy and granddaddy, nana and pops, daddy

the whole family headed to the virginia marine science museum for a client appreciation event for my parents real estate office. the children participated in a scavenger hunt trying to locate different species of fish. the highlight was a 3-d movie showcasing the underwater ocean habitat. it was a hoot. several times we would look over at the children and see them reaching out trying to touch something "swimming" in their direction. the very last scene was baby sea lions bobbing their heads to smooching sounds... it looked as if they were planting kisses right on your face. very cool!

beach day

the warm sun was so inviting... several of us got together for just one more outing before katy and crew headed south. all the children had a great time playing in the sand and water.  m2 enjoyed her first beach experience and thought the sand tasted great. the good-bye was not as sad as m2 began to lose it around 3:00; in her defense mommy did make her miss her nap to go. there is an exciting adventure awaiting them in sc... new job, new home, new church (it has to be a good church since it has Upward sports) and new friends to make. we have prayed for this family during this transitional time and they are going to be blessed abundantly! katy in turn will also bless them abundantly as well... she is a great asset to her music minister husband.

katy

where to begin? katy and i were alto choir buddies when we discovered we were both pregnant with boys to be born two weeks apart. j and little man are now six and have been friends since birth. as the boys have transitioned through different stages, katy and i have done life together... asking questions back and forth and comparing notes, as well as slipping karen kingsbury books in each others diaper bags at church. j stayed with our family when his brother was born; both brothers were dropped off around 2:00 AM a few years later when their sister arrived. baby #4 will arrive this summer and we will not be able to help. life is moving this family to south carolina and we will miss them greatly.

we got together for a fun pool afternoon and dinner. katy and i sent the children outside to eat so we could talk in peace... first almost uninterrupted conversation in six years. they played until we turned on the flood lights and when the bugs started biting we let them back in and they played some more.

it was after 10:00 (on a school night) when katy and i shared a tearful final goodbye. her husband warned her that would happen.