End of the Year Party!

I just realized I never shared Gavin's special end-of-the-year party pics!  We had a beautiful day to spend at a local park and splash park and of course, I was so excited that Riley and I were able to attend.  She even lasted almost the whole time!

 

There was a toss game set up for them to play.  I just loved seeing the competitive side of Gavin come out just a little bit with his friends.  Mrs. R even commented on it.  The look on his face when they won was priceless. 

 

Still so little...

Being silly with the hula hoops!

We had a picnic lunch before walking over to the splash park.  The kids all had pizza, which they just loved!

Gavin around his school friends certainly is another Gavin!  I wasn't sure how the splash park would go because he's never been a huge fan in the past, but he LOVED it and had so much fun.  Turning 6 sure has brought about a new personality for this kid, and I love how brave he's being now!

We even got a surprise visit from Daddy!

Honestly, we couldn't have asked for a better day.  All of the teachers and parents did a great job making it a memorable event for these special kindergarteners.  We've enjoyed our year so much and I can't wait for more memories next year!

Kindergarten Celebration

Kindergarten Celebration!!  Wow!  This year flew by.  I feel like I just found myself on the couch late at night, crying because my baby was growing up and I'd see him less through the week than his teacher did....and now I find myself up at night, crying because this year flew by and he's already SIX and, according to him, practically a first grader.  Seriously, time....SLOW DOWN!  I'm not enjoying your speed at the moment.

His program was so sweet.  I was shocked that he never talked about being nervous beforehand.  This is the kid that cried when his class had to lead the Rise and Shine program back in August and he didn't want to be on stage.  Boy, has he come a long way!  Was he overly photogenic?  No.  Will he be our drama club member?  Ha!  But he did great and we were so proud to see him up on stage.

Of  course, thanks to his awesome size, we had a great view of him.  Front row, baby!  And, he got to sit right next to his best bud, Gunner.

The program started with a slideshow, that {of course!} brought me to tears.  So many sweet memories during his kindergarten year! They sang a few songs, and in between songs, each class was introduced one by one and the kids got to do a little wave.

It was nothing elaborate - no cap and gowns, no handshaking...it was a simple celebration of all the hard work they put into their full year in elementary school!  Such a huge accomplishment and they have so much of which to be proud.

 

We had a great year with Mrs. R!  I love how she said she 'had Gavin pegged' from Day One and knew his personality style.  She worked with him to get him to stand up for himself; he learned some tough lessons this year.  He went from a beginning reader to reading chapter books and testing at a third grade level.  He can do multiplication!  He seriously amazes us...and we couldn't be more proud.

He says his favorite thing about kindergarten was getting away from his crazy sister.  I can only imagine what they're going to do to each other during their six weeks away from school!  Little Sister, though she got bored through the program and took out her braids, is really proud of you, too.  We all love you so much, Gavin Jack. 

#InstagramMonday

#InstagramMonday

Like that #hashtag?  :)  I'm not a big 'hashtagger' but I am in love with Instagram and take lots of photos that way, so I decided to do a 'photo dump' of my Instagram pics every Monday so I have them documented here for my blog books, too.  Here are some from the last few months.