And just like that...

...the little one is 5. Happy Birthday my little Gracie Lu. You drive me absolutely insane some days, but I am starting to realize it's because I think I might be looking at myself at your age...the bossy, sneaky, tv-addicted, faux rule-follower. You balance it all out well with the whole other side...the smart, imaginative, creative, funny, animal-loving, cuddly, outgoing and soft-hearted side. And you know what? We love you for ALL of it! I couldn't have asked for a better 5 years. I hope all your birthday wishes come true and you do grow hair as long as Rapunzel's!

And there you have it...

...our crazy spring! Now on to summertime...

What we've been up to {Part 11}

We've been watching out little man graduate from kindergarten! It was a fun, yet tearjerking show, as they presented us with a slide show of the year at the end, as they had for preK the day before. Of course they have to get us with the music selections! Let Them be Little, Angels Among Us, etc...there wasn't a dry mama eye in the house! So proud of all Sam has accomplished this year...and he is so proud to be heading to FIRST grade in the fall.

What we've been up to {Part 10}

We've been attending the wedding of Q & U! This is the end-of-the-year program for preK at CKS. It was seriously one of the most adorable things I've ever seen. :) It was bittersweet saying good-bye to Grace's wonderful teachers...what a great year she has had for her first year at CKS.

What we've been up to {Part 9}

We've been participating in fun end-of-the-school-year activities!

PreK Field Day

Even though it only lasted an hour, the PreK kids had so much fun during their Field Day activities. I was in charge of the obstacle course on the playground which was a challenge! The best part was the tug o war, though...Grace's class won and they were soooooo excited. :)

A Day at the Farm with the Kindergarten Classes

Grace got tag along for this one...she was thrilled! It was a really fun day for everyone and the best field trip Sam has had all year. We had a hay ride, played games, had lunch, learned how they saddle a horse/pony, fed chickens, pet horses, and the list goes on! Perfect way to wrap up a busy year of learning. :)

What we've been up to {Part 8}

We've been dancing! Grace's spring recital was adorable and entertaining. One of the best parts was her costume which will have a follow-up post once we visit my parents in July.

What we've been up to {Part 7}

We've (well, Sam's) been jump roping for heart to raise money for the American Heart Association in his Papa Mike's and Grandma Pat's names as they've been working on changing their lifestyles after both suffering heart attacks two years ago. Well, actually, Sam raised the money and then his mother (along with some other parents at school...which made me feel a little better) neglected to print out the donation sheet from his online page where we had registered, so he missed the jump rope event. I felt horrible when I inquired with the gym teacher at school and learned that I had missed the last step. Sam got over it pretty quickly when he found out that he would still receive his t-shirt and jump rope for participating. Me, I'm still working on getting over it. Mom guilt...never-ending...ugh.

What we've been up to {Part 6}

We've (okay, I've) been designing, painting, crafting, etc...

Check out my Etsy shop here for new items. I also recently created a Facebook fan page, so please check it out here and LIKE it for updates on new products.

What we've been up to {Part 5}

We've been raising money for technology at school through the CKS walk-a-thon.

I volunteered to take photos of the event, so I did not walk. But I was able to get some good shots of my kids' classes...and I only had to weed through the 500+ photos I took for the school to find them! :)

What we've been up to {Part 4}

We've been catching butterflies.

Grace and I found this one outside and attempted to rescue it before the dog trampled it (it was questionable whether or not she already had). It seemed like something was wrong with it, since we watched it for quite awhile and realized that it wasn't able to fly. So, we scooped it up and transferred it to the flowers in the front yard.

The following morning, it was gone. Grace is sure it flew away. And, while I'm pretty skeptical, I'm going let her keep believing that!

What we've been up to {Part 3}

We've been playing soccer! Again, one of us has...the other three have been watching.

Grace LOVES soccer and, when her practices ended up on the same night as dance class, meaning she'd be busy with extracurriculars for over 2 hours on Monday nights, she didn't care one bit (even if it exhausted Mommy!). She had a fun time playing on the league through school this year. Unfortunately, she has to miss her last game of the season next weekend. And, even more unfortunate, due to Mommy's forgetfulness, she missed her game this weekend. When I told her about it and apologized, she realized she could work this guilt-ridden mommy by asking for a piece of candy...I agreed by giving her loads of candy! When she came downstairs dressed in her soccer uniform later in the evening, I braced myself for a request for a pony!

My girl loves her soccer...looking forward to watching her play for years to come. Hopefully, I can be better at keeping track of her schedule next season, though!