Took the girls blueberry/blackberry picking yesterday and it was so much fun. It's nice when you tell your two youngest to pick just the purple berries and they actually do it. We had a bunch of berries when we left and were filled with fresh fruit pies and fresh fruit slushes.
Look forward to go back again. And again. And again.
This is the hotel:
This is the city:
Headed to Nashville for girls weekend with my dear old friend Lisa. A much needed mini me break. Will be sure to post pictures and give details when I get back!
I thought that when school let out things around here would slow down, but that doesn't seem to be the case. I can't believe Georgia has just begun her third week of Fast Forward (and is doing exceptionally well) and that the girls have just wrapped up their swimming lessons. And what little fish they are. Emma especially has taken to the water (except for diving in head first) and looks so graceful in the water. I am mesmorized by her lanky long legs and how fast she can swim. I took some snapshots on the last day of swimming lesson:
The weekend flew by and before you knew it, it became June. Abby had a wonderful 3rd birthday with yummy chocolate cake from Magpies and lots of goodies from friends and family. After the official birthday celebration on Friday we headed to Chattanooga on Saturday for lunch at the Big River Grill with Grandma and Grandpa Clark and played at the Children's Discover Musuem, an old favorite.
Abby is three years old today! I can't believe she's three already. Sometimes I watch her, look at her, soak her in and I can't believe she's mine. She's a chatterbox. Precocious. Congenial. We are celebrating with some time at the library and some time at the pool. And we will eat cake (A "Diego" cake that she's been hammering about since Georgia's birthday). Happy Birthday my Abbycakes! May all your dreams come true.
So the last day of school was Friday. Every year on the last day of school there is an award ceremony and a farewell to the 5th graders. This year Georgia was called up for having perfect attendance all year:
And as for the other students who received the same award Georgia clapped and cheered for them the loudest. She was very pleased to get her award and I was very proud. Emma, I think, felt a little left out due to the chicken pox and pesky lice earlier this year. She had been a recipient of the same award for the past two years. But nothing could take away how proud I am of them both for such hard work they've done througout the school year.
Now let the summer begin.
Emma had her Brownie graduating ceremony earlier this week. It was called crossing the bridge of somesort with a ceremonial crossing over of sticks and construction paper. I guess it was to resemble a bridge? Anyway, she crossed over from being a Brownie to a Junior Girls Scout. She goes from wearing brown to green. She's very pleased about it. Of all the things Emma has tried and done she has stuck with Brownies the longest. I'm thinking it's because it's so laid back and there's no real pressure about it. Plus there's those delicious cookies every year.
Sometimes I worry I don't tell her enough, but I'm very proud of my Emma.
What a lovely day. Took a run along Lakeshore Park. Took the girls to Concord Park. Took the girls out for ice cream. Had filet's made for me for dinner. Every Mother's Day seems to be getting better and better as the years go by. Snapshots of our time spent at Concord Park this afternoon:
After dropping the girls off at school this morning, I started walking out the door when I heard, "Mrs. Clark...." And I thought to myself, "Oh, crap, now what?"
Georgia has had the worst week in school ever. Some of her time was spent in the principals office. I was on the phone several times with the principal herself as well as Ms. Hamilton in resource. I've had to coax her into going to school each morning. To say she has the end of the school year blues is an understatement. What was next?
I turn and it's Ms. Leinart, one of the third grade teachers. "I just want to tell you that I'm going to be keeping Emma over the summer. She is just the sweetest child."
Relief flooded me. She had no idea what that meant to me. It reminded me that I do have a lot to be thankful for. And maybe I am doing something right.
Took Abby to Ijam's Nature Park this morning. Now that she's older I think we'll be going there more often. So much to look at and explore. We saw tadpoles, salamanders, leeches, turtles, fish and silk worms. I pointed out ferns, spider webs and steered her clear of the poison ivy on the nature trails. She picked flowers and cried when it was time to go home. She could have stayed and played all day.
It was quiet. It was peaceful. Best of all, it was just us.
