The Last Day of First {ever}

So, Miller is kind of a big deal finishing up first grade and being promoted on as a 2nd grader. Mr. Big Time or so it seems in his little world. Here we are again... The Night Before Summer Vacation begins. We like to cozy up on his twin bed and read our traditional Night Before series before these remarkable occasions of firsts & lasts & night befores. 

The last bus ride of the year called for a popsicle toast with our bus stop friends. Wa hoo! I'm sure Mr. Ron our driver was doing a happy dance.

 The 5th graders were greeted with a water hose squirt down upon exiting the bus. The younger grades didn't mind being doused with a few missed aims on such a hot, May day. We all met up at the pool for an after school celebration!

We're not mourning that first grade is over, we're celebrating that it happened! 

saying goodbye to first grade

None of the Techies wanted to say goodbye to our Teacher of the Year, Mrs. K. We knew that as the year was coming to a close, no ordinary teacher gift would suffice. Nikki and I brainstormed a few ideas and took the lead from one of our very favorite local blogger moms on the gift. 

First of all, the kids scooped their way into a delicious ice cream party in the room with toppings. Peanut free of course:)

And, this is the photo Miller let me snap of his table grouping. He could have just turned around and smiled, but decided to turn upside down for some extra FLAIR-oh my!

Once we had them all sugared up and quiet, we presented Mrs. K with a "high fives" book of quotes from all of the students as a keepsake. Nikki spent hours of her precious time in May {of all months} coordinating this gift book. We learned a lot about special glue together;) When it was all said and done we collected a little over $300 for our most special teacher. Let's just say that this little bonus was the least that we could have done for all of her overtime work!

The class loved watching Mrs. K select one quote from each child to read aloud. She hugged each one after reading their claim to fame. Nikki and I were holding back tears:) Proper goodbyes and endings can be so hard in the mom world especially when you prayed that this educator would just go ahead and loop up to 2nd. The "lean on me" song wafting throughout the classroom had absolutely nothing to do with our bittersweet emotions;)

We traced each child's handprint for a "high fives" hydrangea plant for Mrs. K's yard. I love the gift of a happy plant for a teacher's yard. There's nothing like seeing it bloom and remembering your class' kindness. 

Hugs & high fives to the teacher that will always be near and dear to our hearts. Her encouragement, joy and educational imprint will never be forgotten!

harbor towne

Dinner found us at the Crazy Crab in Harbor Town. I adore an evening in Sea Pines. We waltzed right in to sit down for another early dinner. That's one of the reasons I love eating around 5 pm at the beach. Eliza Kate managed to land in a rocking chair matching her outfit after dinner~swoon.  We rocked away while Omi and Miller toured the variety boats in the yacht basin. Miller loves stealing away special time with his Omi. He has a lot of words to get out in one day, so undivided attention gives him that opportunity;)

We caught up with them for a lighthouse picture. This candy cane designed landmark is well loved and somewhat of a symbol for Hilton Head.  

Although it's not a real lighthouse, the littles enjoyed climbing all 114 stairs to the top. The views were nice from the top so I hear. They proudly showed me their right of passage sticker after exiting the museum. From this point on,  Miller obsessed about not getting a souvenir from the lighthouse museum upon exiting. We reminded him about the tacky bell he chose from the St. Augustine lighthouse that just sits in a drawer. Sometimes, hearing the word no in life can be hard;)

A hammerhead shark sighting seemed to distract us all high atop the pier. We spotted six in all. Beware of shallow water in Sea Pines. Dolphins were in and out of the water in the distance. One things for sure, we spotted a vast array of aquatic animals on this trip.

Here's our closing shot when Miller was forcing a smile through his disappointment over the gift shop--oh my! We put him to bed early on this night. That's what a combination of waves, sun, and beach exhaustion does to a 7 year old.

He rebounded after ice cream and a beach walk. I mean ah-hem, we're at the beach. We managed to get back to our condo in time for late evening  stroll on the shore--my fave! Of course it involved pictures...

It's either thumbs up or bunny ears for pictures these days. My too cool for school dude adds his own personal flair to our family photos. We went crabbing on our walk and this poor sand crab ended up posing with bunny ears.

A nautical cutie for sure this girly of mine.

Bruises, a bandaid, bunny ears, and all ~ I love these three and our beach memories together.

beach days

May weather on the island was gorgeous with a capital "G". The mornings were chilly and the beach breeze was oh so nice. The littles rushed for their towels after exiting the water with cold shivers.

          Miller loves a good wave pounding in the surf. The Atlantic creates an awesome wave.

Tutu cute from behind.

Another great reason to travel when school is still in session are low crowds. We had the pool all to ourselves. Landon discovered the fountain switch and these two had a blast in the shallow end of the water.

There's nothing like what a lazy beach day as a family does to your soul. 

Off to the Beach

Our spring vacations this year just so happened to fall back to back and required a few missed school days in April & May. We managed long weekends so that those missed days would be limited. Uh-hem...mom of the year:) Besides, our bout with the flu over Christmas break, the littles didn't miss any other instructional days during the year. There was that one yucky stomach virus that took Miller out one school day in the fall. It was two months into school and we already blew the perfect attendance award. What's a family to do.... other than celebrate a few vacation days stress free without the worry of making it to the finish line "absence free?"

We landed in Hilton Head after picking up Eliza Kate from her last day of school beach party. It was an early afternoon Wa-hoo  & cannon ball dunk into the icy cold pool. The weather was unexpectedly cooler in South Carolina. Sweaters and long sleeves should have been stowed away in our suitcases. Who would have thought?

This little mermaid ventured out on her own in the water without her puddle jumper on this trip. A big step from the Wilderness pool. With swim team on the horizon, I'm so glad she's gaining the confidence she had last year.

Omi and Papa invited us to join them for phase one of their week long trip.  I knew we couldn't miss a whole week of first grade.  Our resort had convenient decking leading out to the ocean. It made trips back and forth to the pool more convenient.

Horshoe crab skeletons intrigued Miller. It was a little concerning seeing Miller come out of the surf holding what looked like a live creature.  One thing  I love about the Atlantic is that the sand is flat and extends out to the shore for running & exploring.

Jumping waves was an enjoyable vacation pastime to watch. I love this shot. We so needed this weekend of togetherness in the middle of  our crazy May to recharge. 

Shell collecting was a fun activity to share. We spotted playful dolphins jumping out of the water and swimming close to shore. Miller connected it all to his first book report book Dolphins at Daybreak.

Our neighbor recommended a new restaurant on the island. We cleaned up and set off to explore Skull Creek Boathouse. Think pirate inspired.... with sailboats off in the distance.

Skulls don't sound very appetizing, but I promise this restaurant is a favorite in Hilton Head.

The littles loved the games and legos set up in the waiting area. We were told to go early to get a table. Let's just say that a 5:00 arrival made us the early bird family. 

Out on the docks the scenic banks reminded me of the TV show Dawson's Creek with the beautiful marshlands.  Pinkney Wildlife preserve was in the distance overlooking Skull Creek.

The sunset over the water was just an added bonus to the already beautiful setting.
Miller joined in a rousing lawn game of Connect Four. Corn hole games were in full swing. I loved the atmosphere and food of this restaurant.
Say cheese...skipper boys!

We came back for an after dinner walk around the resort property for an alligator hunt. It was Omi's wish to spot a fierce reptile on our evening stroll. The beauty of the spanish moss hanging from the trees is a personal favorite in Hilton Head.  Fortunately we didn't spot any alligators on our search. We did spy the Disney resort on our walk right next to our condo. Anytime EK spots the Disney font on signs or movies she exclaims- "Disney World!"

We called it a night after ice cream and baths. Goodnight beach!

Honored to be their Mom

Eliza Kate's eyes light up when she knows I'm visiting her class. With arms flung wide open and a running leap she says, "Mommy!" I never want to forget that joy of her spotting me. So you can imagine that when we both worked it out to come together, she was over the moon excited. Moms and dads were invited to come see the 3's classroom performance of a precious song:

I wish I had a little red box to put my mommy in

I'd take her out and go "muah, muah, muah"

And, put her back again!

{complete with hand motions}

She sang her heart out at home that I'm still seeing her sweet voice and hand movements in my mind's eye. Barely 4 years old is just the sweetest stage of life. For the first few moments of our visit, I couldn't help but shift my attention to the case of the missing hair bow. I didn't want to cause a ruckus searching high and low. Luckily, it was stored safely in her bag. But, I would have loved it high atop her head for her song. Oh well, at least mommy sported an appropriate floral paper bowl hat secured with a lace neck ribbon for such a fine occasion as this.

 Then a rousing rendition of Take Me Out to the Ballgame won over the dads. Landon was given a paper tie to sport around. My place setting involved the cutest of placemats and a handprint calendar collection from the seasons with scrapbook pages from different events. This is truly the way to a mom's heart.

We took a mother/daughter photo together and Eliza Kate was so proud explaining all of my special gifts that she worked so hard on.. Each seashell was carefully crafted around our frame:)

And, we can't forget about the boy. He came home bouncing off the bus carrying a bronzed shoe flower container. Can we say unique? It reminds me of bronzed, vintage baby shoes. This was oh so special knowing that it was his shoe. We've kept the flower alive so far:) 

 Between brunch, flowers, cards, kisses and hugs, I had a wonderful day celebrating with Grandmama! I'm so honored to be a mother to these two littles of mine.