1 week down, 39 more to go!!

Let me first say I am not counting down to next summer already. That title is excitement! My kids had SUCH an amazing first week that I can't wait to see what they get to do for the other 39!

With live jazz playing in front of the chapel and a million smiles coming out of the photo booth on the quad, you really don't feel like you are attending your first day of school. It feels like a celebration! 

I did remember haircuts this year (we like long hair) AND remembered SG was providing signs, so I was a couple steps up from my last year's first day picture. :)

this year vs. last year

 

this year vs. last year

We are so grateful that Mrs. Schaefer has taught Luke in summer camp all year long! Luke loves telling me each night when we go over his 'who loves him list' that Mrs. Schaefer loves him lots and lots. 

Evan is super lucky that his teacher has know him since birth. Mrs. Cochran is actually the mom of one of Evan's friend! Caroline and Evan have known each other since 6 weeks old! 

It's guaranteed to be a great year!!

Oh Hey, 30A: family trip

First, I cannot explain to you the horrible guilt I have been carrying around because I haven't blogged in so many months. This is my family's memory album...the kids 'baby' book....our life summed up so my kids remember what forced family fun we had.

And because of that guilt, I never knew where to start or what to included when I actually did dial into the good ole interwebz again. Thankfully, I had a good long heart to heart with myself and decided to just 'let it go' and pick up exactly where we are now...which is the end of summer.

All smiles as we get on the road!

We decided to go to the beach again this summer for our family trip. Instead of the Alabama coast we wanted to try 30A. John and I had been there as a couple and really liked the vibe. Of course, the vibe with kiddos is much different.

9.5 hours into the trip I moved to the backseat to cheer these little dudes up. It only worked on one of them. I'll let you figure out who that was.

9 seconds on the beach and all that traffic nonsense was forgotten!

The beach was fabulous...as long as we were there. lol. I tell people that as a type A person I tend to set my expectations high and then do whatever it takes to get me there. The problem is, when you have kids AND you are type A, you tend to also set their expectations high and you have absolutely no way of forcing them to reach them. Mid way through this trip I realized I had done this and no one was happy about it.
So what if they didn't want to hang on the beach as long as I would have wanted (sun up to sun down), they were happy.
So what if they wanted to be in the pool 85% of the time, they were happy.
So what if they would rather stay in and eaten dinner in front of a movie, they were happy.
So what if they got up at 6AM every.single.morning, they were happy.
So about mid way through I realized this was their family trip too and my expectations should be; "make them smile".

Luke and Evan loved the ocean. They loved everything about it. They loved swimming in it, diving into it, wrestling against it, body boarding with it, searching for fish in it, getting beat up by it!

 

They weren't as enthusiastic about the sand, but would dig and build with me when I talked them into it.

 

We ventured out for a couple meals. The boys did great, but let us know quite vividly that they would rather stay in the condo and watch a movie while eating. I mean, when you only eat 6 foods, I can completely see how that would be more enjoyable. (:eyeroll:)

 

Thanks to the modern age of technology and social media, we found out we had not one, but TWO families we knew on 30A the same week! It was so fun to meet up with friends I haven't seen in years and introduce them to boys AND meet up friend from school so the guys could see a friendly face!

Careful Adam...captain Big Head is near.

Who needs toys when you have new friends and spoons!?

Most nights John and I ate dinner together on our patio looking out on the ocean and beach. One of my favorite activities while eating was watching all the well dressed families and groups of high school girls go out at sunset and take pictures. I loved predicting their poses, critiquing their lighting choices, oooh-ing and awwww-ing at their adorable kids playing in the sand. So the last evening we were there, we decided to just go for a walk on the beach. I grabbed my camera and we set off. Little did I know I would capture my family rawly in their elements. These are by far some of my favorite pictures of my family. The ones that tell you exactly who they are.

Evan wanted to record a video blog for his YouTube channel...that he doesn't have. Then he immediately found someone he found interesting, because the man was combing the beach with a metal detector, and tagged along with him looking for treasure.

 
 

Luke...well, Luke just wanted to be Luke.

 

 

Both these boys, in their frustrating ways, are perfect and all mine.
 

All in all, it was a good week. Not perfect, but good. My chaos, my family, my lovely lovely blessed life. 

That's a wrap!

Oh what a year - beginning PK and 1st to end of PK and 1st!

Time to make like a tomato and catch up!
AND KETCHUP - get it? Get it? tomato-ketchup-catch up....

I love a good corny joke.

I rarely blog in May and this is why. All my teacher fraaaans and moms of school age kids are lifting their hands while singing PREACH!

I have so much to catch up on that I am just going to try to get it all out in one big blog. Disclaimer off the bat, most of this is keep my memories alive and update our extended family on our happenings.

Luke's PK Program
I swear just a few short days ago Evan was preforming in his PK program. (Oh.my.gosh - when I went back to find this blog, I saw I titled it AND started it with the exact same joke I used in this one. Take me out to pasture now...I'm starting to repeat my stories without even knowing it...)

Anyway, Luke performed SO well. I will speak a truth here. I was scared to death. Luke doesn't like crowds and he really doesn't like crowds staring at him. I might have mentioned to his teachers I didn't think the whole PK program was going to work for him. Like "we were going to be absent that day", didn't work for him. Amazingly, in Luke fashion, he surprised me. He did GREAT thanks to his amazing teachers and Mrs. Broadway! He even had a small special part where he played the wood block. He was SO proud of himself! He lit up!

 

Evan's Recognition Chapel
Evan's last chapel as a 1st grade allowed the first graders to be acknowledged for their accomplishments for the year. These big kids just mean so much to me. I quite literally have known some of them since they were in their momma's bellies!

Evan received an art award for his Book Week Poster, and AR award, physical fitness recognition, and received his Tiger badge. He's grown so much this year and has amazed me not only with his academics but his heart.

End of the Year
The end of the year is always so bittersweet for me. I love wrapping things up in a nice neat bow, but I hate moving on. I don't do goodbyes. Period. I just don't do them. So to say "I'm done" or 'goodbye' doesn't come naturally. I get all awkward and dodgy and just plain weird. Saying my kids are done with an entire grade makes my stomach ache and I never have the right words for my kids teachers.

You see, I was a teacher for 9 years before I had kids. I knew what the kids meant to ME as a teacher. I loved my students....I mean, LOVED them. I worried about them. I celebrated with them. I cried for them. They were my babies. When I had babies of my own, the way I viewed a teacher became an entirely different thing. I was handing my beating hearts over the them for a full year. The way Mrs. Lawo, Mrs. Ruffin, and Mrs. Field took my children into their heart will forever stay with me. I am constantly amazed by the teachers at SG. This year was no exception. We all left a little bit better than when we came.

Game Ball!!

Super proud of this boy right here! He got the game ball last night for ripping a triple the first time up to bat. But that isn’t the real reason I am proud. It’s the character he showed out on the field and the lesson he learned from a mistake he made a couple games ago. While some of the boys on the other team were smack talking and saying they were going to "kick their butts", Evan just smiled and shook his head no. He could have engaged (and has engaged before) but chose to take the high road and keep his mouth closed. I am sure their words didn’t feel good while they were on the field, but I am super proud of the sportsmanship he showed both his team and the other team. Way to go E!! You totally earned that game ball for not only that slammin’ triple, but your amazing character!!!

Yoga Gives

**Warning - long post with multiple yoga selfies. If either one of these things annoys you, please just CLICK HERE to donate to St. Jude!! 

Last year I participated in my first Yoga Gives for St. Jude Kids event. I was so moved by the day long yoga fundraiser I knew walking away from that day I wanted to do more than just participate.

Outside the Danny Thomas Pavillion last year at Yoga Gives.

St. Jude is one of the many many things I proudly brag that Memphis has. Not only does Memphis house the best children's cancer research hospital in the country, the people of Memphis support it. St. Jude is the hope that so many of these family need in their time of crisis and despair. From the moment patients and their families arrive at St. Jude, they do not have to play for anything; no deductibles, copays, worrying about eating, lodging, anything! In some cases, they don't pay for their travel to St. Jude. Not only does St. Jude pay for all the patients expenses, it operates totally on donations and fundraising. That means the cost of running the hospital, all the labs, meds including chemo, radiation, housing and staff are paid for people LIKE YOU!

 

I know a sweet sweet girl who has gotten to know almost every wall of that hospital. Carson is the reason I did this event last year. You can read her full story on her Caring Bridge site. She has to be one of the spunkiest, sweetest, bravest gals I know. This year and every year, I will do Yoga Gives in her honor.

Last years event pushed me. I had no clue how exhausted I would be. I didn't 'train' like I would a half marathon because, it was yoga. Well, 6 hours of yoga is nothing joke about. I was pretty sore the next day, but super proud of myself. The one day of endurance and pushing myself is nothing like what Carson and her family (and all St. Jude families) must have to go through every day.

 

This is where I need your help. First, please pray for Carson, her family and her team of doctors and nurses. Second, donate in the name of Team Carson. I have until the beginning of June to raise as much money as I can. I would love your help. Every dollar counts. Can you skip your Starbucks once this week and help the kids at St. Jude? Can you and your family decide together to forgo a dinner out this month and put that money toward research for St. Jude via a donation? Like I said, every dollar counts.

 

Other ways to help:

DONATE - This is my fundraising page: http://fundraising.stjude.org/site/TR/YogaGives/Events?px=3067324&pg=personal&fr_id=39539
Every penny counts. If you have $1, that's wonderful. $2, $5, $10?? It ALL helps.

1. Pass along the flyer! Can you put a flyer up around town for me? Ask at your church, hair stylist, childcare facility, gym, that would be a big help. Does YOU or your husband/wife/mother/father/next door neighbor/best friend have a business that could hang the flyer? I can get you as many as you need! Just tell me how many you want and I'll get them to you.

2. Come do yoga! If you enjoy yoga, consider participating in the event. You don't have to attend the entire day, just make the times you can! Raising $250 for the hospital gets you in for the day, an awesome tank top (think of it like your Hero Marathon bib), and a St. Jude bandanna, (which I still use when practicing).

3. Share the love. Could you share this post and see if any of your Facebook friends would like to donate or participate? If you know a yogi, pass along the website and flyer! Encourage them to come! I attended last year not knowing a soul and left with gaining some friends I am still in contact with!

4. Pray for all involved; organizing, participating, fundraising. Everyone could use your positive thoughts, vibes and prayers!

If you made it this far, thank you! If you can't give, please pass the word. Someone you know might be able to make the difference in the lives of the children of St. Jude.