End of the Year Bus Stop Party

 Another fun PSE tradition is the 5th grade pool party after graduation!  It was a super crazy day, so we carpooled there and back.  I volunteered to take all of the neighborhood kids to the pool and another mom brought them home so I could be there to greet Preston at the bus stop!

So after the pool party ended, the partying continued in the neighborhood!  We had treats, music, and lots of fun activities at the Hinkle's house (bus stop).

What a fun way to end the last day of school . . it's officially SUMMER!!!

5th Grade Graduation

Well, it's finally here. . .the day my oldest leaves our beloved Providence Spring Elementary and heads into the world of middle school.  Although it was a most bitter-sweet moment for me, it was a fun day to celebrate her hard work throughout the six years she's been at PSE.

She received multiple awards, including  A Honor Roll, Presidential Scholar, Outstanding Media Award, Accelerated Reading Award, Math Olympiad award for being in the top 10% WORLD wide, perfect attendance, and a special recognition for perfect attendance for all 6 years.  You should have heard the mummer from parents when this was announced as she was the ONLY one to receive the award.

Here's the thing, we know she is smart. She knows she is smart.  What I love about Savannah is that she doesn't have that snooty mentality.  She is always willing to help a friend who is struggling . . and that is what speaks most loudly to me, her character.

From her talent development teacher . . . "We are so proud of Savannah's incredible academic record. I know she is ready for middle school, but from the PSE perspective she will be greatly missed for her wonderful character, delightful personality, and her passion for learning, as well as her high academics."

 Aunt Cherry surprised her by coming to graduation!

Savannah with her favorite friend, Rose

I can't say enough wonderful things about her teacher this year, Mr. Grabon.  I have to admit I was a bit nervous at first, but he was a PERFECT fit for Savannah.  She not only learned a lot, scored perfect on her math and reading EOGs, as well as a perfect score on the sixth grade math EOG, but her confidence has blossomed. She is still very quiet and reserved, but this year helped her learn that it's okay to voice her opinion and that she can be confident in who God created her to be.

We are super proud of all she has accomplished and can't wait to see what middle school brings!  Ready or not, here we come . . but we know she's ready!  We are super proud of her!!

End of the Year Activities ~ Party & Clap Out

I was volunteering in the office all morning, so it was a treat to be able to stop in and see part of Preston's class party.  This one was planned by the other room mom so I was unable to attend, but it was a special time to be able to be there when we gave out the teacher gifts.  We are super thankful for Mrs. Safran and Mrs. Murchison!  Preston has learned SO much this year and most importantly his love for learning has grown as well.  These teachers have been such a blessing to our family . . . all through a little guy we call Peanut.

I had to appear before the school board this afternoon, so I was not able to attend Savannah's big event, the annual 5th Grade clap out.  This is another rite of passage as the 5th grade classes parade through the school while each of the younger classes "clap them out".  The parade is led by our principal in her cap and gown.  It's a beloved tradition that the 5th graders look forward to each year.

So that's almost the end of Savannah's time at PSE.  I'm going to be a mess tomorrow at graduation!

Celebration of Children . . .

Appropriately following the celebration of nations, we also celebrated with both Savannah and Preston today!  We picked a day months ago to celebrate their summer birthdays with each of their classes and today was finally the day!

 First was Savannah's lunch, where we enjoyed a nice time with her friend Rose.

My last lunch photo with Savannah before she's off to middle school :(

 Next was Preston's lunch, which was a bit more wild!  It was so crazy that we almost forgot to take a picture of the cake (Preston already had his carefully selected piece) with daddy!

I LOVE not only his expression here, but the fact that so many of his sweet friends were begging to be in the picture.

So although they will each celebrate birthdays after school is out, the parties have already started . . .  

Celebration of Nations

Today was a super emotional day for me as it was the last time both kids will participate in the PSE Celebration of Nations. Preston was picked by Mrs. Safran to be the flag bearer for his class, which was a big honor.  This honor also came with lots of responsibility too!  He had to work with the TD teacher to research interesting facts about South Korea, made a PowerPoint to share with the class and then was able to lead his class through the parade.

The fifth graders were last to parade in.  Here is Savannah getting ready to march out with her class.  They studied New Zealand and had grass skirts, leis, and the boys had arm tattoos to complete their costumes.  Of course, Mr. Grabon had to do his annual stop and dance show as they paraded in . . . 

After every class in the school had paraded in each grade level came back out to do a dance representing their continent.  But, the fifth graders always get a pop song instead.  It's top secret and they aren't allowed to tell what the fun song is!  This year they danced to "Can't Stop the Feeling".  

After all of the nations had paraded and danced, the most emotional part of the day started. PSE has a tradition of the passing of the torch, which represents good character that the school is built on.  So each year a few fifth graders are selected for each character trait and they participate in a ceremony in front of the entire school.  This ceremony is a visual representation of the older sibling passing the torch of character to their younger sibling.

Savannah was first out, representing the character trait of responsibility.  She ran out to meet Preston, they walked together to the center of the black top, and she left him with the torch to carry on the character trait of responsibility.

I'm not sure what was more emotional, the fact that my two kids were chosen to participate, that it was a visual representation of Savannah leaving PSE, or the honor that came with knowing Preston was left to carry on good character at PSE.  It was such a bittersweet moment that made me super proud!

After it was all over, I had to pick right up with my room parent responsibilities and collect the water and towels from Preston's class. :)  What a fun and special day!!

Drama Club Performance

This year Savannah decided to participate in the 5th grade drama play.  She wasn't so sure about being on stage, so she opted for the backstage crew.  Never the less, it was still a ton of work requiring a lot of after school time.  The crew not only built the entire set, but ran all of the backstage requirements during the performance too.  The last two weeks before the play they met every day after school until 6pm to get ready!!  She was in charge of the spotlight for the second half of the show, Annie.

The play was fantastic!  After it was all said and done, she decided that it would have been more fun to be on stage, since it was the same amount of work. :)  What a neat way to see kids' hidden talents and see them work together in such a grand way.

Early Celebrations

Since the kids birthdays are during the summer, we have to celebrate them early at school!  This year they wanted me to paint the rock . . . so while Savannah was at drama practice, Preston and I did the best we could.  Thankfully it didn't have to be perfect (or pretty) to make them happy. :)

 Preston was also able to celebrate Father's Day early with the first graders at Doughnuts for Dad.  They sang a few songs and had doughnuts of course. :)

 Here is his portrait of Dave

And this is the best . . . check out what he wrote!