May Recap 3: The Bodie-Ro

Our first activity of the summer was to take these little cowgirls to their first rodeo. Growing up, my dad used to usher rodeos for Civitan, and I loved going to see all the festivities.  These little girls ate it up.

Bear couldn't resist buying them hats, and they LOVE them. Thanks, Bear,

 I love all of the many faces of Ansley, who calls the rodeo, the "bodie-ro." I love it.

 Little best buds.

 Miss Priss.

 Sassy Pants and Prissy Pants.

This girl was working the strut. I know these pics are blurry, but she was cracking us up, and people were turning to stare at her.

We had such a fun night with everyone, and Patrick and I even got to stay to see the bulls. Yee-haw!

Our first activity of the summer was to take these little cowgirls to their first rodeo. Growing up, my dad used to usher rodeos for Civitan, and I loved going to see all the festivities.  These little girls ate it up.

Bear couldn't resist buying them hats, and they LOVE them. Thanks, Bear,

 I love all of the many faces of Ansley, who calls the rodeo, the "bodie-ro." I love it.

 Little best buds.

 Miss Priss.

 Sassy Pants and Prissy Pants.

This girl was working the strut. I know these pics are blurry, but she was cracking us up, and people were turning to stare at her.

We had such a fun night with everyone, and Patrick and I even got to stay to see the bulls. Yee-haw!

May Recap 2: End of year things

I love school. Being a teacher looked quite different to me, but I loved it all the same. The responsibility, the relationships, the projects, the encouragement, watching eyes light up... there's nothing quite like it to me, and I am always a little bit euphoric at the end of each school year.

This year was super special to me because I got to teach at the same school that my girls attended. Their teachers were my colleagues, and they had some special ladies nurture, teach, and love them.  To say thanks, I made them this goody bag and the clip boards below.

 I also enjoying making these photo memory books for all of my sweet kiddos for their end of year gift. I've gone from grading papers to cutting lamination. :)

I love chronicling how the girls grow and change, and the following few pictures show the first day of school and the last week of school. I see such significant physical changes in Ansley especially.

 We were so thankful to be a part of Sunshine School this year--especially as it is the only year that all four of these cousin/best friends would go to school together. Sweet Savannah graduated Pre-K, and I got to help her class put on their caps and gowns. I was so thankful to share this moment with her.

  

  Here is our whole gang together for the last time in this special way.

 They really are best friends who double as cousins and who wish they were sisters.

 And we really are best friends who double as sisters and colleagues.

 Here is what we gave to Savannah for her milestone! Such a cute "get ready for kindergarten" story.

 Here is some of MY loot that I got from kiddos. (If you ever need an end-of-year teacher gift, look no further. I will be reusing these ideas in years to come!) I had a couple of different versions of this picture below, so my family is set for the pool and beach.

 I am hoping that we can produce some juicy tomatoes for my tomato pie with this lovely plant below.

 This plaque matches my kitchen!

 And I have had some fun shopping sprees and coffee/ice cream outings to look forward to with these.

 Other gifts that I received and loved but forgot to photograph were gerber daisy plants and trail mix with a note thanking me for "mixing it up" in the class that year. I am so thankful for the sweet families that we got to know through Sunshine School this year.

I love school. Being a teacher looked quite different to me, but I loved it all the same. The responsibility, the relationships, the projects, the encouragement, watching eyes light up... there's nothing quite like it to me, and I am always a little bit euphoric at the end of each school year.

This year was super special to me because I got to teach at the same school that my girls attended. Their teachers were my colleagues, and they had some special ladies nurture, teach, and love them.  To say thanks, I made them this goody bag and the clip boards below.

 I also enjoying making these photo memory books for all of my sweet kiddos for their end of year gift. I've gone from grading papers to cutting lamination. :)

I love chronicling how the girls grow and change, and the following few pictures show the first day of school and the last week of school. I see such significant physical changes in Ansley especially.

 We were so thankful to be a part of Sunshine School this year--especially as it is the only year that all four of these cousin/best friends would go to school together. Sweet Savannah graduated Pre-K, and I got to help her class put on their caps and gowns. I was so thankful to share this moment with her.

  

  Here is our whole gang together for the last time in this special way.

 They really are best friends who double as cousins and who wish they were sisters.

 And we really are best friends who double as sisters and colleagues.

 Here is what we gave to Savannah for her milestone! Such a cute "get ready for kindergarten" story.

 Here is some of MY loot that I got from kiddos. (If you ever need an end-of-year teacher gift, look no further. I will be reusing these ideas in years to come!) I had a couple of different versions of this picture below, so my family is set for the pool and beach.

 I am hoping that we can produce some juicy tomatoes for my tomato pie with this lovely plant below.

 This plaque matches my kitchen!

 And I have had some fun shopping sprees and coffee/ice cream outings to look forward to with these.

 Other gifts that I received and loved but forgot to photograph were gerber daisy plants and trail mix with a note thanking me for "mixing it up" in the class that year. I am so thankful for the sweet families that we got to know through Sunshine School this year.

May Recap 1: Mother's Day

Mother's Day is such a special holiday, and I feel so thankful and blessed to be a part of the sisterhood of mothers out there.  I remember Mother's Days that came and went where I wistfully longed to have a baby in my arms. I remember my first "Mother-to-be" Mother's Day--I had found out that I was going to have a daughter the Friday before, and I already loved little Addison Camille more than I knew possible.  Each year that comes, I think of all of the special mothers in my life, and I feel overwhelmingly grateful for my own fabulous mom; I think about moms who are experiencing loss and longing; I empathize with expectant moms--both pregnant and adoptive ones; I ache with women who long for the blessing of motherhood.

This year, I felt a cognizant awareness of the blessing of the two little girls who made me a mom.

So much of motherhood is not glamorous. So many days go by and I wonder if I am doing this job justice. Even on the hard days, I find moments of pure, overwhelming joy and thankfulness and this daunting responsibility.

This year, I was able to enjoy a "Mom's Retreat" with some of my oldest friends and favorite moms. We headed out to this quaint cabin in Rutherford County and filled our evening with endless conversations, snacks, and rainfall.

At Sunshine School, the children made this gift for their moms. I love these little hands and will always treasure this gift.

 Patrick and the girls made my morning special by showering me with gifts and making me breakfast and taking pictures.

 Patrick outdid himself with the gift showering, and Addison definitely input her opinions.  My favorite girt for sure was my totally unexpected Pandora bracelet. He chose the shell charm to represent our beach wedding, added the Bible charm as a "teacher gift" for being Addison's teacher this year, and gave me a "Mom" charm for Mother's Day.

 My sweet family took me to Pei Wei for lunch, and then I got to honor my special mom at Jim and Nick's that night.

 We ended the evening at Pinkerton Park and corralled the kids to take these bridge pictures before we let them loose on the playground.

 I am super thankful for this fine man who the Lord blessed me with. I wouldn't be a mom at all without him, and he is a great parenting partner!

 At school, Addison filled this questionnaire out about me. Those always make me nervous, but I love the way she responded to these questions. I love all of them, but I especially liked numbers 4 and 12 and the picture that she drew of us at the beach.

It was a wonderful day that I am thankful for each year.

Mother's Day is such a special holiday, and I feel so thankful and blessed to be a part of the sisterhood of mothers out there.  I remember Mother's Days that came and went where I wistfully longed to have a baby in my arms. I remember my first "Mother-to-be" Mother's Day--I had found out that I was going to have a daughter the Friday before, and I already loved little Addison Camille more than I knew possible.  Each year that comes, I think of all of the special mothers in my life, and I feel overwhelmingly grateful for my own fabulous mom; I think about moms who are experiencing loss and longing; I empathize with expectant moms--both pregnant and adoptive ones; I ache with women who long for the blessing of motherhood.

This year, I felt a cognizant awareness of the blessing of the two little girls who made me a mom.

So much of motherhood is not glamorous. So many days go by and I wonder if I am doing this job justice. Even on the hard days, I find moments of pure, overwhelming joy and thankfulness and this daunting responsibility.

This year, I was able to enjoy a "Mom's Retreat" with some of my oldest friends and favorite moms. We headed out to this quaint cabin in Rutherford County and filled our evening with endless conversations, snacks, and rainfall.

At Sunshine School, the children made this gift for their moms. I love these little hands and will always treasure this gift.

 Patrick and the girls made my morning special by showering me with gifts and making me breakfast and taking pictures.

 Patrick outdid himself with the gift showering, and Addison definitely input her opinions.  My favorite girt for sure was my totally unexpected Pandora bracelet. He chose the shell charm to represent our beach wedding, added the Bible charm as a "teacher gift" for being Addison's teacher this year, and gave me a "Mom" charm for Mother's Day.

 My sweet family took me to Pei Wei for lunch, and then I got to honor my special mom at Jim and Nick's that night.

 We ended the evening at Pinkerton Park and corralled the kids to take these bridge pictures before we let them loose on the playground.

 I am super thankful for this fine man who the Lord blessed me with. I wouldn't be a mom at all without him, and he is a great parenting partner!

 At school, Addison filled this questionnaire out about me. Those always make me nervous, but I love the way she responded to these questions. I love all of them, but I especially liked numbers 4 and 12 and the picture that she drew of us at the beach.

It was a wonderful day that I am thankful for each year.