Project Life 2012 - Week 25

June 17-23, 2012

This week started with Father's Day...

 I made Brad a cake (his request) and Bennett wanted to do the sprinkles. Needless to say, there were a few 'words' about that sprinkle job. 

And I'll never let him near my cake again :)

 Luckily, Brad still liked it. and it still tasted good :)

We celebrated lunch at Kobe, and sadly, Brad got called into work so he missed it.

 Evie enjoyed sitting by Bennett. I just love the way she looks at him :)

And we celebrated Father's Day with Pa and Bubba. 

Brad got home in the afternoon and we got to have his requested dinner of homemade chicken salad, corn, and cake :) We are lucky to be surrounded by so many good dads!

During the week, Bennett went to Latin camp and cartooning camp. 

He really loved both camps (although he didn't admit to loving Latin until the last day :) 

Here he is drawing a cartoon after the first class. He was so excited about his hero and villain, that he spent the ENTIRE afternoon creating. I love it!

On Saturday we invited the family over for dinner and Bennett was in charge of creating the menu in Latin...

He did a great job looking everything up and had a little guessing game at the beginning of dinner to see who could guess what we were having. Oh, and he made place cards too... do you see that mine has a muscle man on it? Interesting :)

It was a great week and I was super thankful for the opportunities that Bennett had this week to grow and stretch his mind. Since we are starting at a new school next year, he is going to be a bit behind in Latin (they started it in 3rd grade) but his teacher told me that she was going to have a great time with Bennett and that he was going to be fine. I know that I'm his mom, so I am definitely biased, but his mind just amazes me! He learned all of those Latin words (several pages of them!) in just days. He learned the conjugations and whatever else was taught to him (I am outta my league when it comes to Latin!) 

Simply amazing. 

Project Life 2012 - Week 24

June 10-16, 2012

This week was an 'off' week. We didn't have anything special planned, which was really nice. At first, at least :)  I quickly realized that Bennett needs to be occupied. Now, I did know this before, but I guess that because I was looking forward to some down-time, I thought that he would too... but he'd really rather have things to do. If he doesn't, he'll want to watch TV. And if you let him watch one show, he'll want another. And then after the other show, he'll want a snack. And then... well, you get the idea, right? Oh, and I should mention that he always wants me to watch with him. 

Anyway, we've got a system for 'plugged in' time with 2 hour limit each day (which sounds like a lot when I write it, but 2 hours go by so fast!) Anyway, last summer we started a system of reading for minutes and it worked great. He gets a minute of TV time for each minute that he reads. Works like a charm!

In fact, when we went to get his reading log stamped at the library for the first time, the librarian asked if he had 'really' read all of that (over 600 pages :)  Of course, Bennett, who is probably the most honest kid I know, responded 'yes.' and that was it :)

Anyway, he asked to go to McWane, so we headed there on Tuesday before picking Nana up from the airport.  We had a great time...

 The bed of nails

(he said that it really did kinda hurt. Kinda. Ha!)

 Water is ALWAYS a big draw.

And, although this picture is terrible, I have to post it because we FINALLY built the bridge! We've tried this so many times in the past, but this time we got it (with a little help from the teen volunteer ;)

Bennett loved trying all of the experiments that they had (and they really had quite a few this time!) And once or twice I think that I caught him actually pausing to read the explanations about the experiments. We're gettin' there!

Project Life 2012 - week 23

June 3-9, 2012

VBS! VBS! It's our favorite week of the summer!! Asbury's Bible School is the best!

I had a good time working as an 'assistant' (which really meant that I just did what Kim asked me to do :) Bennett had a great time with Ms. Bonnie and Ms. Wanda. 

We learned to 'Dive Deep!' into God's love.

 I loved watching Bennett practice the dances in music. He got to the back so that he'd have plenty of room to get down.

Bennett was so excited to hear that Mrs. Kim needed more 'people' for the stage. He made 6 this year (scuba divers, beach bums, volley ball players, and even a Captain (in my honor, since I was the Captain in the morning skits :)

 I love his artistic vision!

 glub. glub. glub.

On Thursday night we had a big celebration for the end of VBS. Bennett is waaaay over there in the far right at the top. He's the best!

What a great (and exhausting!) week! There's nothing like seeing over 500 kids and over 300 adult volunteers learning and worshipping. Such a blessing!

Project Life 2012 - week 22

Happy Memorial Day!!

Gigi and Bubba opened up the pool for us and we had a GREAT time!

There's nothing like that first swim of the season :)

 Bennett was THRILLED!
(I'm not sure what this game is called, but guess who was the best at it?? ME!! :)

 Evie even warmed up to swimming :)

(and mom, dad, and I all hung out under the tent that Bubba set up for us - complete with a fan! That's service!)

 A little diving. Well, jumping.

And on the way home, I looked over, and this is that I saw. 

I guess my driving could use a little improving? :)

On Friday (June 1) the weather was GORGEOUS! Not typical Alabama June 1 weather, so we headed to the zoo. We were lucky because Brad was home after being on call, so we all got to go!

The train ride - you gotta do it! 

Bennett loves to do anything that you have to pay extra for... I guess that's how all kids are, right? :)  Anyway, his top choice was to feed the giraffe, but they weren't hungry, so we went for a camel ride instead :)

This first week of vacation has been great. Between the pool party and the zoo, we just enjoyed being around the house (which Bennett and Brad seem to have a hard time with sometimes - they like to go, go, go!) and did a little bit to get ready for VBS next week.

We can't wait!

Project Life 2012 - Week 21 (part3)

May 23

The last day. Sniff. Sniff.

I'm not normally sad about summer coming, but this 'last day' was a rite of passage. The last day at the elementary school. The last day at a great school that has taken such good care of us. US. Not just Bennett (although they have done an extra special job with him!), but me too. I've made friends there, learned to shelve books and laminate like a pro, learned how to be a 'room mom' {which is sorta my dream job...gasp}, and had so much fun. I'd like to think that I did a little good there along the way too :)

Anyway, here are the 'last day of third grade' pictures (& some first day of Kindergarten pictures because I like walks down memory lane. And getting all sappy :)

 Last day of 3rd grade. It was 'bring-a-game-day'. He won't let me pick his clothes out any more. He's got big-people teeth. He's tall. Really tall. He's so smart. He's absolutely the most handsome-est boy I know.

First day of Kindergarten. He didn't have a backpack, because that wasn't allowed. He let me pick out his clothes (that outfit was ADORABLE!!). He hadn't lost any teeth yet. He was so little (at least looking back!!). He was already so smart. And he was really adorable. So adorable!

Going into school for the last time. He still waved :)

I cried.

 Going into school for the first time. 

I cried. I mean, I sobbed.

At least on the last day, I only cried a little. And, I am happy to report that the tears were for totally different reasons. On the first day I cried (all day!) because I was so afraid that they wouldn't take good care of my baby. On the last day, however, I cried because they DID take such good care of him. We have been so blessed.

Ok, and 2 more pictures.

I checked him out after bringing a treat to the class on the last day. (Don't worry - it was late in the afternoon. He didn't miss anything :)

 Here he is on the bench in front of the school. 

 And here he is on that same bench on the day we registered for Kindergarten

 (in April of 2008)

Wow! Life sure can rush by, can't it? I'm so glad that I'm taking pictures along the way. My memory can sometimes be fuzzy, but these pictures bring me back instantly.

My little boy is really not so little any more. And you know what? That's really ok. It's all part of being a mom, right? I'm growing right alongside him, each step of the way. Although it seems that sometimes my heart breaks just a little. 

But then I am greeted with a hug or a 'hey mom' or a 'look at this cool something-or-another' and my heart is mended.

Being a mom is such a wonderful journey.

Bring on the summer fun!!!

Project Life 2012 - Week 21 (part two)

May 22

Class party day!!

As room mom, I was charged with the task of planning the class party. Since I'm not really a big party girl, myself, we went the low-key route. And guess what? We had a blast!

The party involved chicken nuggets, chips, juice boxes, Popsicles, free play and water balloons. Oh, the water balloons!!

He paused for a second to let me hug him :)

These water balloon pictures crack me up! I just kept clicking and got the best faces!

 Good poses too. This looks like a bowling pose to me.

 Oops. He's a little wet :)
I couldn't believe it, but the kids actually played 'pass the water balloon' without just pelting each other! What a good class!
Oh, and one of the boys in the class declared 'This is the best party EVER!' so I guess it was a good time :)


That afternoon I took a few pictures of Bennett coming out in carpool. Turns out, it was the last afternoon carpool for us. 
I've been wanting to take these pictures for a while now. 
Here's the deal. 
I'm always (ALWAYS) in the first 3 or 4 cars. He knows it. He expects it. But he always looks and makes sure. Then he patiently waits for permission to come to the car. They always tell him he can go, but he will NOT go before they tell him. Wonder where he gets his love of rules from? :)

He's always so happy coming to the car. Usually he's got a smile on his face and he's talking to himself about something funny that happened during the day. Sometimes, by the time he gets to the car, he's just out-right laughing. 
I love him!

Here he is looking to make sure (I think) that it's really me :) 

Here's when I say 'Hey handsome!' and he replies 'Hey mom.'. Then I proceed to ask how the day was. Sometimes he tells who got in trouble (never him, by the way. Not once this whole year :) 
Other times I have to ask more detailed questions to get information. Sometimes I just get something about too much homework or how fun GRC was.
But picking him up from school is always a thrill!


Ok, part 3 coming right up...

Project Life 2012 - Week 21 (part one)

May 20-26, 2012

On the Sunday, the 20th, Bennett's baseball team had an end-of-the-season pool party.

The boys started out with a little swimming.

 This is a cool sign that our team mom made for the games - Bennett is the last one on the left. Go Cards!

 Coach Kevin called all the boys up one at a time and gave them their trophies. Bennett was SO excited!

The the boys each took the coaches' trophies and passed them down the line, each boys saying something special about the coach. Such a great idea!

In case you haven't gotten it yet, we had a GREAT baseball season. Did we win the championship? Nope. Far from it. But, we had great boys and parents on our team and we had a great time. That's all that matters!

May 21-23 

The last week of school. The last week of 3rd grade. The last week at our OMES. 

I'm not gonna lie - I was an emotional mess this week. 

So thankful for all of the good times. 

So sad to be leaving this wonderful place.

And, to be honest, a little scared of the 'unknown' - the new school next year.

But, that's what life is all about, right? Moving forward. Growing. Looking forward to new adventures. (and please keep in mind that I was the ONLY one in our family that was feeling anything other than pure elation at the thought of the end of school :)

So, without further sappiness (I'll TRY to spare you, but I can't promise anything!), here are the last week details:

The book we made for Bennett's teacher:

Bennett wrote the title page :)

 Bennett's pages

And, just to show you how funny Brad is - earlier this year, Brad went in to the class to talk about the heart. Apparently, while he was sitting ever-so-calmly in Mrs. Hardy's chair (which was like a director's chair) the chair fell apart, leaving Brad to crash to the ground. This made quite an impression on the class, as evidenced by the fact that he was mentioned numerous times as 'The funniest thing that happened in 3rd grade'.
Good job, honey!

This is getting kind of lengthy, so I'll break it up into 2 posts... stay tuned :)

Project Life 2012 - Week 20

May 13-19, 2012

We started off our week with Mother's Day (remember, we had already had cake on Saturday), and it was a great day! Bennett and Brad fixed me breakfast in bed, showered me with cards and gifts, and we headed out to church. 

After church, we celebrated every mom in our family by going out to brunch together at The Tavern. It was a great time!

 Evie and her mom (Gigi!)

 Bennett and my mom (Nana!)

 Bennett and his mom (me!) 

 Bennett and Brad with his mom (Mooma!)

After brunch, we had a nice laid back afternoon. Yea!

On Friday, the 18th, the third grade too a field trip to DeSoto Caverns. I was so happy to be able to go too! I had never been to the caverns before, so it was all new to me! And, as an extra bonus, the sun stayed away, so it wasn't even all that hot!

Most of the pictures that I took have all of Bennett's friends in them, and since I don't want to share those here, I'll just share this one...

After we toured the caverns and played in the maze, the kids got to pan for gold! Bennett found lots of great little stones and even some (fool's) gold! 

It was a great day for everyone!