Preschool Graduation

Trey went to a pretty great preschool.  The same that Kayli and Bryce had gone to.  And he got to attend with a couple of his really great friends.

Their graduation program was held at a nearby park.  Naturally, they had to get some playing in first.

They were supposed to be singing songs.  But this is what happens when you're standing next to your best friend while you're supposed to be singing a song.

It was hard to get the whole class to fit in one picture.  I don't know how their teachers handled that many 3-year olds!

Here his cute teachers are.  Usually, I get a pic of my child standing alone with their teachers.  This year, I was not on top of things.

These next few pics just make me happy.

Look how ridiculously stoked they are to be sitting by each other.

I love that smile.

The program itself was pretty dang cute.  As you can imagine a bunch of 3-year olds singing songs would have to be.

Friends and Farewells

So, I had an interesting experience in October that has seriously affected my short-term memory.  And I'm finding it difficult to look at these photos and remember what happened.  So, the next few posts might be a little shorter.

And I'll explain October more when we get there.

What I do know is that we were about to leave behind some awesome friends when we moved.  And we had a party to celebrate.

Oh my goodness, I love these ladies.  I had a rare group of amazing friends.  Aren't they pretty?

I took a few individual close ups.

She's the reason we moved to the North Pole to begin with.  Seriously.  The responsibility is all on her.  And we thank her for it.  For five really fabulous years.

I couldn't get these guys to look at the camera.  But, this little man left behind a couple really good friends, too.

Also excellent at focusing on the camera.

How many people not only have an amazing violin instructor for their children, but are also great friends with them?  I've been so lucky!

This photo just makes me smile.

I miss this face.  And the sweet friend behind it.

This is the best photo I got of Kayli and any of her friends.  Can you find her?

Look at those thighs!

She still has no clue that we've moved or left friends behind.  But she's young enough that she wasn't super attached to any of her friends anyway.

And that's all I remember of the barbecue.

Thanks, Friends, for being such great friends.  For all the fun times, going out to dinner, Girls' weekends, working out together, Movie Nights, letting me cry on your shoulder, laughing until my guts were sore, and taking care of me when I needed it.  I love you and I miss you.  And I'll be forever grateful for you.

Mothers and Stormy Weather

My parents came out to stay with us while Blake was gone for another long stretch at his new job in our new town.

Grandparents are indispensable.

This little man is learning to ride his bike.  With training wheels.  But still!

And April always brings with it some awesome skies, like this one.

Blake sent this for Mother's Day.  Edible Arrangements are seriously some of  my very favorite things in the whole wide world.  This one did not disappoint.

Neither did my cute kids, who had Grandpa help them prepare a breakfast in bed.

And some cute cards.

Aren't I lucky?!

I'm not going to lie--these were pretty tasty.  The cake was lemon, if I remember correctly.  And the raspberries were an excellent companion.

I just love this little face so much.

Speaking of stormy skies...

Mother's Day brought a tornado watch with it.  And this is how we observed it.

We've come a long way in five years.

Random

Things I am so sad to have left behind:

The kids got to do one final violin recital.  Blake even was home for it, awesomely enough.

I got horrible pictures of it.  But, they did great.

And we miss their teacher so incredibly much!!!!

And this best friend.

You can guess how many conversations we have about him, on an on-going basis.  We miss you, Dane!

And this is our peace lily.  I bought it a few months after we moved to Nebraska.  And this is the first, and only, time that it bloomed.  How crazy is that?!  I just had to document it.