Ok, another story that no one else will probably enjoy, but I want to remember.
When I packed for the wedding, I tried to be mindful of what needed to go where. Getting 5 people ready to be in a wedding party takes some planning.
When we got to my parent's house, I tried to keep everything organized. There were definitely a few moments of chaos, but nothing major.
The night of the rehearsal dinner came, and we were having so much fun, we lost track of time. We got home later than expected, so we were in a bit of rush to get the kids to bed for a good night's sleep before the big day.
I hadn't put the pajamas away yet, so they were still sitting out from that morning. Lauren was doing a good job of listening and trying to get her jammies on and get to bed. Chad and I are rushing around trying to get our stuff together for the next day. It's a bit chaotic.
All of the sudden, we both hear Lauren say, "Wow, I must've really grown since this morning."
I'm only halfway listening, but I turn around to look at her, and there she is standing on the bed in Scarlet's 4T pajamas.
They have matching pajamas. She put on the wrong set. They were soooo tight. We all realized what happened at the exact same moment.
And we all 3 died laughing.
A moment of stress that ended in laughter. One of my favorite emotions. It was exactly what we needed. We put the 3 kids to bed with smiles on their faces, and happy thoughts running through their heads.
I know I'm not going to do this story justice, but I want to remember it, so I'm posting it anyways.
Evan is such a good brother. Lauren came home from summer camp a few days ago with a migraine. It's been awhile since she's had a bad one like that. I had prayed she would get through the wedding weekend headache free, and she did, so I am very thankful for that.
When it come to Lauren's headaches, Evan understands. He just gets it.
Chad was on a work trip to Minneapolis. I got the call from summer camp that Lauren was feeling pretty bad, so I left work to go pick her up. When I got there, she was vomiting, and looked pretty miserable. We got in the car and tried to make it home quickly. However, we also had to stop and pick up Scarlet.
I got to Scarlet's sitter's house, and I decided to let them stay in the air conditioned van while I ran in to grab Scarlet quick. Evan saw me glance back at Lauren several times, debating if she'd be ok for a minute while I was gone. He looked back at her, looked me square in the eye and said, "Mom, I'll keep an eye on her." I didn't even have to ask. He read my mind.
And he did keep an eye on her. I got back in the car with Scarlet a minute later, and he informed me that Lauren was fine while I was gone.
He also had a birthday party tonight. And both of them had swimming lessons. I was frantically trying to figure out how to make it all work, knowing Lauren needed to go straight to bed. He'd been looking forward to Teddy's birthday party for 2 weeks. But he sat down on the couch, and waited patiently for me while I comforted Lauren. He then said, "Mom, it's OK if I can't go to Teddy's birthday party."
My heart melted, and I almost cried. Love that boy. Well, he did get to go to that party, we skipped swimming lessons altogether, and when we got home, both girls were in bed, and he recited every detail of that birthday party for me. Just him and me in the kitchen over some chips and salsa. We read books in his bed, and he told me he loves me way way way way way way more. I went from feeling like the worst mom in the world to the best mom. All because of him.
Lauren's class was also very busy at the end of the school year. One of their big events was the poetry parade. They each had to chose a poem, memorize it, come up with their own costume and prop, and then perform it for all the parents.
Lauren's poem was entitled, "Soccer Star."
She was hell bent on designing her own costume. Apparently, her soccer uniform from last fall (which was my suggestion) wasn't good enough. She wanted to get a white t-shirt and color on it with sharpie. Now, it was the end of the year, so I crossed my fingers that this wasn't going to be one of those events in which parents try to impress each other and go all out on costumes. I decided to let her take the reigns, and do the project all on her own. I kept my mouth shut, and let her practice quietly in her room, without any input from mom or dad.
The day of the poetry parade came around, and I gave her a big hug, and crossed my fingers.
I scored a front row seat to the parade. Watching them parade into the room, all proud of themselves, was so cute.
There were a few overachievers that went overboard on costumes, but for the most part, the costumes were normal. I think having it the last week of school helped. I wouldn't take any bets on a poetry parade the first of school though. That's when people are still cutting their PB&J's into dinosaur shapes.
At this point, I was happy to be in the front row, but also hoping she didn't forget her lines, because it's not like I knew them either, so I couldn't whisper them to her, and I wouldn't have any excuses. She was on her own.
And she did great! I was proud of her for being so confident. There were about 100 parents in the room, and speaking in front of that size crowd was not easy.
This was the shoebox project they'd been working on in art class. She wrote a poem to go with it called "Fireflies."
After the poetry parade, it was time for the end-of-the-year picnic. Lauren's picnic was also at Fairmeadows Park. I was one of the homeroom moms for her class this year, so I also got to help out with her picnic. It got scheduled for a Tuesday, which happens to be my day off.
Rain was in the forecast, but it held off, and the cloud cover actually made for the perfect day for a picnic.
There are 58 first graders, so I took fewer photos because I was too busy chatting with the other moms, chasing kids around.
Maddie - Amelia - Lauren - Anna - Corinne
It was such a fun day. I had underestimated the poetry parade. It wasn't exactly high on my list of fun things to do on my day off, but it ended up being exactly that. I was a little worried about my kid in the ratty $2.99 Hobby Lobby generic t-shirt with marker on it. But then, I saw the kids cheer each other on. I saw a few of them struggle. I saw a few tears shed. And then I saw a bunch of 1st graders pull together for those kiddos. They wanted to see each other succeed. There was no pointing fingers at the crying kid or the one who forgot his lines. Kids can be so good. When one particular first grade girl trembled and cried her way through her lines, there wasn't a dry eye in the place. My heart broke for her, and she got an enormous round of applause as she walked off the stage. That same girl also had a big hit at Lauren's softball game that night. The whole crowd was holding their breath praying she didn't strike out. There was also no making fun of the generic Soccer Star t-shirt. Everyone loved her design, and I fell in love with that school just a little bit more.
The end of the school year is always a fun time. Busy, but fun. The new TK program at Sacred Heart was a bit of rough start for Evan, but it ended up on a great note. His teacher, Mrs. Pigott, deserves most of the credit for that, but the kids worked hard too. I was very proud of Evan, and the great reports I got at the end of the year. When they scheduled the end-of-the-year picnic, I definitely wanted to be there. Since the class was so small (10 kids), the parents got to be really involved. In Lauren's class (29 kids), volunteer opportunities are usually first come, first serve, and they fill up fast. In Evan's class, pretty much all the parents got to do everything. The small class size also meant no cliques and no drama. My kinda class.
So, on a gorgeous Friday afternoon, the TK class had a picnic at Fairmeadows Park. It's a short 15 minute walk from Sacred Heart. Mrs. Pigott asked me to walk with them, and of course, I said yes. Their excitement about the whole thing was pretty contagious.
Multiple attempts at a class photo
"Mom, watch this." That's all I heard all afternoon. I know someday he won't want me to watch him, just hopefully that day doesn't come too soon.
Evan - Hunter - Jonathon - Teddy - Harley
On the drive home. I felt the same way. It was a "good" tired.
The 1st grade girls had the honor this year of being on Mary's court for May Crowning May 6th. Each girl got to bring flowers up to Mary, and then one lucky 8th grader got to crown Mary.
It was a very special day for Lauren and her classmates. One quick phone call to my scheduler at work, and I was free until 11! Of course, I HAD to be there.
A fancy dress and pretty flowers
Lauren a few sweet friends
Lauren and her 8th grade buddy, Katelyn. Each 1st grader at Sacred Heart gets paired with an 8th grader. They sit together at Mass, and do fun things together throughout the year. I underestimated how close these girls would get. When the 8th graders graduated from Sacred Heart, Lauren was devastated. Her tender little heart was breaking from not being able to see Katelyn in the halls next year. Next year, Katelyn will go to Dowling. So, you can only guess who's on my babysitter list now. :) Love that.
Evan is the most supportive, best little brother, and so when I asked him if he'd rather spend the morning at Plus with his friends, or go to Mass with me for May Crowning, he didn't think twice. He wanted to be there too.
It was a special morning, and I was proud of all of them.
Wedding week is almost here! So I think it's time to finish up my pre-wedding celebration posts before the big day!
We celebrated Kait's bachelorette party May 14th. It was a blast.
We started the afternoon with painting at Glazed Expressions. Most of us (myself included) had never done this before, so I was excited to see what a great artist I was.
Pam - Kaitlyn - Maddie
Erin & I sporting our aprons
Carol & Laurie
Mom & Carol
Look at all that creativity
Laurie & Kaitlyn
After that, we headed to the hotel for drinks, snacks, games, and presents! And more drinks. And that is where my photos stopped...:)
