Ben's Celebration of Learning

First grade had its Celebration of Learning on Friday, which I guess means they're done learning for the year.  These last 2 1/2 days must just be for play!  It was a really sweet program in the classroom.  The parents were greeted with a big sign and the kids' handmade faces on the board.

At each desk was a bound book full of the kids' work through the year and a handmade tote with artwork.

 

This was extra special - a laminated mat with Ben's characteristics.  I wasn't surprised because I laminated and cut out the class set, but I also got to read about each child as I did it so I got to know the class a little better.  I thought these were really special gifts from Mrs. Cooper!  Especially because she so accurately described Ben.

 

These little guys and girls were dying to show off what they'd prepared for the parents.

Each child had written about his favorite parts of first grade (mostly music, art, recess, and science...although one kid said math, because it's so easy) and why he liked the year.  Most of the kids read it aloud, but several asked Mrs. Cooper to read it instead.  I was so proud of Ben for reading his own!  I know it's hard to hear, but he said he loved first grade, loved his teacher, loved music and recess.

We watched a great video of pictures throughout the year from all of first grade.  I didn't get the tearjerker warning, but they played "My Wish" by Rascal Flatts and I wish I'd brought kleenex.  Especially when the class was singing along...I guess they'd already watched it a few times.  The lyrics:

"My Wish"

I hope that the days come easy and the moments pass slow,
And each road leads you where you want to go,
And if you're faced with a choice, and you have to choose,
I hope you choose the one that means the most to you.
And if one door opens to another door closed,
I hope you keep on walkin' till you find the window,
If it's cold outside, show the world the warmth of your smile,

But more than anything, more than anything,
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
Your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
And while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

I hope you never look back, but ya never forget,
All the ones who love you, in the place you left,
I hope you always forgive, and you never regret,
And you help somebody every chance you get,
Oh, you find God's grace, in every mistake,
And you always give more than you take.

But more than anything, yeah, and more than anything,
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
Your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
And while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
Your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
And while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

This is my wish
I hope you know somebody loves you
May all your dreams stay big 

 Finally, the class finished up with a cheer and we got lots of hugs and kisses.

It's almost time to check the box on Ben's list that says "finished first grade"!

End of the Preschool Era

It's hard for me to believe that this family is done with preschool.  Forever!  Alex's final day was last Thursday and his graduation was that evening.  We sure did love Discovery Bay and made some really happy memories there!  Can you believe this boy will be five in a few short weeks?

 

He's grown just a bit since his first day of Pre-K back in September.

 

Before the graduation ceremony, the kids got to enjoy their annual splash day before school let out.  Since I had Ben with me fresh from the dentist and minus one tooth, we went the lazy route and watched the fun from our air-conditioned car with our snow cones.  Alex (running in the white shirt) had a ball playing with his buddies one last time.

 

They had all kinds of water fun out there and I was shocked that Alex stayed to play for half an hour even after he knew he had a snow cone waiting in the car.

 

We went home, took a nap, then cleaned up for the big ceremony.  These kids were really excited!  Gavin, Corynn (Alex's "girlfriend" this year, whether she knew it or not), Emmie, Alexane, Alex, and Simon in back.

I gotta admit...this got me a little choked up.  Where has the time gone?  

The kids got on stage to perform some sweet songs for the parents.  

After a little rearranging, Alex found himself on the end.  Good thing because he needed plenty of room for his interpretive dance.

Here's one of my favorites...

 

 Then the kids went out and changed into their caps and gowns.  So adorable!!

Each child was called across the stage and given a bag from his teacher with his diploma and a few gifts.  Unfortunately, I got a little overexcited when Alex's name was called and hit the record button twice, so the video is 0.5 seconds long.  But the moment was priceless.  Miss Barbie announced what each child wanted to be when he or she grew up, and there were lots of answers from doctor to policeman to ninja to fairy.  Alex had told me in the car on the way there that he had changed his mind, so I just told him to tell Miss Barbie (thinking this was a live question, not something they'd already scripted).  Well, halfway across the stage as she is announcing that he wants to be a doctor when he grows up, Alex yells out to her, "No, I want to be an engineer!"  Miss Barbie says, "And he wants to be an engineer."  Alex yells, "No, JUST an engineer!"  Cue the laughter from the audience.  And we have another classic Alex moment.  I never worry about this child speaking his mind.

 

After the ceremony, we got some pictures with our new graduate!

We got hugs from precious Miss Barbie, the assistant director who greeted us each morning.  We will sure miss her!

One more hug from Ava, the sweet girl that Alex decided "he will start loving soon" after we saw her at the baseball fields a few times.

And another hug from Miss Laurel, Alex's wonderful teacher from last year.  She was across the hall this year so we still got to say hello often and keep up with her.  She loves both of these boys so much.

And now after we enjoy this summer together, it's time for (GULP) Kindergarten!!  Not sure this mama is quite ready to send her baby off five days a week.  But I'm sure excited to see him grow and learn.

Ben is 7!!

Where has the time gone?  I keep thinking my baby is five years old, so how can he be seven already??  He's finishing first grade, growing out of all his clothes, and finally losing teeth as well.  I guess no matter what I do Ben is going to keep growing up.

At the dentist's recommendation, we worked on Ben's loose tooth in front and Daddy pulled it out.

 

This boy was proud of his new gap!  His little teeth are so small that the permanent teeth are coming in behind the baby teeth and we had to make room.  Nothing seems to be easy for Ben but he took it like a champ.

His note:  Toothfairy, May I please keep my tooth?  + money. (that was an emergency afterthought)  Love, Ben.  Lucky for him, she read the note and he got two dollars and his tooth.

 

On the big day, Ben got McDonald's for lunch, donuts to hand out to his class, and gifts after school.  Here Grumpy is helping him get his new remote controlled Jeep in working order.

 

Then we headed out to the main event - the big birthday bash at Pump It Up.  Ben chose a glow party and it turned out to be a lot of fun. The kids all got big glow necklaces as part of the package and I had a huge box of 100 small glowsticks to add to the fun.

 

It was tons of fun for the kids, but terrible for pictures.  I caught Ben in the flash once when he ran past.

The lights were lots of fun and all the kids had a great time running, jumping, dancing, and bouncing together.  We had kids from the neighborhood, school, and t-ball.

This is what we saw most of the evening - a bunch of glowsticks running around.

 

After all the playing, it was time to refuel.

Ben got the seat of honor.

Cake time!  Ben wanted a rainbow Star Wars cookie cake, so they put light sabers in the icing.

Look at those long pretzel legs!  I think he grew an inch just during dinner.

Oh, I love this boy.  He kept chugging his gatorade the entire time everyone sang happy birthday to him.

 Hanging with some buddies...Sammy, Cooper, Bently, Ben, Kailan, Kai, and Alex.

 

 Everyone got Star Wars treat bags to take home with Yoda and Storm Trooper cookies.

 

I also made a couple dozen chocolate Darth Vaders to round out the goodies.  Ben thought they were awesome.

 

The day after the big celebration, we were back at the dentist and she pulled out the next tooth.  This one still had pretty deep roots and Ben was a tough guy again and did great through the whole process.  It helps that he sees a lovely dentist who took lots of time to make sure he was comfortable, and a nice snow cone afterward didn't hurt one bit.

Ben is such an amazing little guy.  He is always his own person and not too concerned with what anyone else thinks.  He's obsessed with Minecraft, loves his bird Blue with all his heart, and still teaches in his closet classroom most nights before bed.  Darth Vader is fascinating to him and he can't get enough of the Star Wars movies.  "Luke, I am your father" was a jaw-dropping revelation to him!  Luckily, he got the entire set of DVDs for his birthday.  He's discovered the potty humor genre and loves to gross me out any chance he gets.  So I guess that makes him a pretty average 7-year old boy!  We thank God daily for this precious boy that made us parents and keeps us smiling and laughing every day.  Happy birthday, Ben.

Wrapping Up T-ball

Whew...I really did enjoy having both boys in t-ball this spring but I sure am glad it's over!  Practices started in February and the season just wrapped up in mid-May, so it was quite a commitment.  Each boy played two games a week and usually had a practice, so it ruled our schedules.  Occasionally, they would have games at the same time which was handy, but also meant I didn't get to see them both play.  Naturally, the 6-7 year old games were more exciting than the 4-5 league, but I made sure my presence was balanced between the fields.

Here are my two favorite guys warming up together before their games...

 

During one of Ben's game, his teammate Noah gave everyone the black grease paint under their eyes...sort of...Ben got a few dots on his cheeks and Kai (on the left) looked like he had a mustache at first base.

 

 Ben lining up...

 

...and swinging hard!  He may not have been the best in the field but he had some great hits during the season.  We found out at his last ophthalmologist checkup that his depth perception is very poor.  That would explain why he had trouble reacting quickly and catching the ball this season.  Ben did give each game his all and never complained, so I was always proud of his great attitude and effort.

 

The team played hard during the regular season but came up short almost every single game for one reason or another.  The Cardinals lost many heartbreakers on just one or two scores, but the had a fantastic run in the post-season tournament.

 

Their hard work paid off and the 11th seeded team (out of 13) beat the 6th seed to advance in the tournament.  We were so proud of the boys as they shook hands with the opposing team after their big win!

 

They lost their next game in the double-elimination tournament, but went on to win another and then play the 3rd seed.  It was a fantastic game that ended in a tie, but the Rangers scored more outs so they won the game.  The Cardinals gave it their all and ended up 5th overall for the season.  Matt was so happy and loved seeing how much the boys learned and developed over the season.

 

Over at Alex's field, there wasn't quite as much drama or nail-biting, but there was a lot more laughter.  These boys (and girls) were just learning the basics and many could throw but most couldn't catch, so many plays were just comedies of errors.  There was no score for these games, although we celebrated whenever a player got an out for his team.

 

Alex took his hitting very seriously and was lucky enough to bat at the end of several innings.  Each team had a 5-run limit per inning, so the batter to hit in the 5th run got to run all the bases.  Alex would come back yelling, "I got a home run!!"

 
 He always looked so big to me when he was up at bat!

All season, Alex kept looking forward to playing his two friends from school, so it was an exciting day when Cainan and Brody showed up.

I was really proud of how hard Alex worked and how he really learned to pay attention (most of the time) and was eager to make a good play.  When the season wrapped up, he loved his team party and was so happy to get a trophy from Coach John.  He was a great teacher and so patient with the little guys.

The Rockies showing off their new trophies!

Had to get a picture with Coach John's wife, Brooke, because Alex was completely infatuated with her and would sometimes come out of the dugout to give her a high five.  He called her his grown-up girlfriend and was unconcerned that she's already married!

Ben's team party was a few days after their final game and it was fun to celebrate the season with everyone.  Matt got to hand out the trophies to all the kids and most took great pictures.  Ben chose to give me his comic frown.

He did, however, get a big smile on is face when he saw the cupcakes!

What a great way to wrap up the season!