Marking another year

Birthdays are funny.  Everyone responds differently to them, and I suppose that is closely associated with the number and the surrounding details.  I turn 47 today.  It's not necessarily a meaningful or milestone number, yet it marks another year.

I feel good today about where I am.  I share the love of an amazing husband and daughter, have friends I treasure near and far, work I enjoy that keeps me growing and learning, activities I'm challenged to attend to - running, reading, cooking, crafting ... all while I strive to maintain balance and gratitude.

Its been two years now that we've been in the mid-west and we've grown to love and appreciate our surroundings more each day.  Bill and I often talk about what has evolved in our ten and a half year marriage - including our families, Ellie, location and philosophy about life.  Many fears are behind us because we've overcome them, yet more remain unnamed and surely will surface around Ellie's adolescence!

As I turn 47 I treasure:   my husband who understands me completely, my daughter who makes my life a 3-D experience of laughter, affection, excitement and amazement, the friendships that have endured the years and the newer ones where we still are discovering wonderful connections and the family that provides the anchor reminding me of where I came from and what I'm made of.

For the record there's nothing better than my first cup of coffee in the morning, a good book, warm sunshine, Ellie love and laughter and the hand of Bill to hold as we continue on our journey together!

Another milestone ..

Last full day of school - next to her favorite purple flowers!

Ellie received her final report card this week.  We couldn't be prouder of her and the accomplishments she made throughout this school year.  I give a lot of credit to her amazing First Grade teacher, Mrs. Carlock for her patience, perseverance and most of all desire to help her kids learn!

And that, Ellie did!

She received the highest final grade possible for ALL her classes:

Art - 3
Computer/Library - 3
Language - 3
Math -3
Music - 3
Phys Ed - 3
Reading -3
Science - 3
Social Studies - 3
Writing -3

"You've been an awesome Gator!  Good luck in 2nd grade!  Keep reading! :)"  - Mrs. Carlock

Ellie was so happy when I read that to her.  She said, "you mean I passed first grade?"  Bill and I both laughed and said, "Of course you did!"

We are most impressed by her reading skills, her love of math and her desire to keep learning.  She has made great strides and we hope that continues for many years.

As a 'prize' for passing first grade with flying colors she was able to open her present.  Two "Life is Good' tank tops, 2 packs of baseball cards and the latest Amelia Bedelia chapter book!  She was very excited and said, "I wanted ALL these things.  How did you know?"

Calling the Tooth Fairy

To end the holiday weekend Ellie lost a tooth!  She wasn't trying to lose it, it just came out.  And THEN she ate corn on the cob for dinner!  All four bottom front have fallen out so far.

Although what she was most excited about was that this tooth was the 76th tooth lost by her first grade  class this school year.  She isn't keeping track of her own total, but that of the entire class.  With a footnote that if Emily B also loses one this weekend the class will finish with 77!  Since tomorrow is the last day they will be together as a class - for one hour in the a.m.

Glad I have am prepared with a trinket to leave with her $1 dollar bill!

Halfway through a 3-day Weekend

Sparkles added with care!

brisket complete with rub ready for the smoker

Shopping at Trader Joe's!

Got her IKEA shopping bag and ready to go!

We've had fun with our adventures so far this weekend. On Saturday Bill broke out the smoker for an awesome brisket with smoked mac and cheese and coleslaw. Yum! It was rainy on and off all day so we didn't get out much .. Legos, Scrabble, library books and crafts kept us busy.

On Sunday up and out early to drive to Bolling Brook and Naperville - suburbs of Chicago for visits to IKEA and Trader Joe's. We're still filling in spots in the basement and den with furniture. It was a leisurely day .. and we even stopped for lunch before getting back on the road home.

Not sure what tomorrow will bring, but we're game!

Celebrating First Grade Complete

Customize your own slideshow

Ellie's last full day of First Grade was on Friday. It was filled with lots of celebrating, and bit of reflecting! Although we love her growing smarter - sometimes we just we she could stay our 'little girl' a little longer! This is a collection of the memories from her First Grade year at Grove Elementary School. She chose the song. It's called Clouds.

Donuts with Dad

Daddy and Daughter at her desk

World's Smallest pencil .. used heavily the entire school year!

Mrs. Carlock - ready for summer vacation!!!

Happy Girl to have her Daddy at school with her!

Today was the last full day of school for Ellie.  They celebrated with an hour of Donuts with Dad!  Bill was happy to report that every Dad was there to share in the celebration.  They saw the wonderful commercials, played a trivia game and enjoyed donuts and juice refreshments.  Even Bill said it was the very best hour of his day!

Swim Lane

They get to ring the cow bell when they master a skill (receive a sticker)!

running on the foam track to jump into the pool - their treat at the end of lessons

Last night was the last night of the Spring swim session for Ellie.  At least that's how I like to think of it being divided.  The next session starts in two weeks, which is after Memorial Day - the official start of summer.

I was able to race to the pool last night from work to meet Bill and Ellie just as she was finishing up - receiving a sticker for her certificate for another accomplishment AND to find out that when she begins again for summer session she moves up a lane!!!

She's made such tremendous progress this Spring, and we're so proud of her.  She just loves the pool, and now she's strengthening her swimming as well.

Last week of school

Ellie "getting her Grove on"

She loves the purple flowers!

Me too!

This is Ellie's last full week of school.  She mentioned that yesterday they had to swap classes with a Kindergarten so the soon-to-be first graders could visit their class.  You may recall (as I do) HER visit to a first grade class last Spring and her trepidation around the potential new math book.

And now here we are a year later!  Today she visits the second grade classroom!  Oh dear, this is going by quickly!!

Weekend adventures

Choosing wisely in non-fiction!

Duck, duck, goose .... at Bass Pro Shops

Robin sitting outside out back window

What a busy weekend we had .. us girls! As Bill was busy studying for an insurance exam, the girls got busy! We planned and executed on our Father's Day gift idea. No, I can post any pictures .. it's a surprise!!!

We also made a road trip to Peoria to Bass Pro Shops. Ellie loved the aquarium, huge stuffed animals and all the birds! We even saw a couple ducks swimming around! We also had a bird siting of our own backyard too. A very squawky robin sat for quite a good while on the back of chair on the patio making noise. It was wet from the rain, and it's feathers were ruffled. We just knew it wasn't particularly happy.

Additionally, a trip to the library was in order on Sunday afternoon. Ellie was limited to 10 books. That may sound unrealistic, but it forces her to make decisions and choose wisely. She's ready for her summer reading incentive program that we will post on the fridge next week. We're still determining the prizes for her finishing chapter books. She's really looking forward to it!

Muffins with Moms

Today Ellie's First Grade class hosted the Moms for an hour of entertainment and refreshments.  It was called Muffins with Moms!  We got to sit next to our Grove Gator, have them read a book to us, view the commercial they made about their favorite book and enjoy wonderful refreshments!

Mrs. Carlock snapped pictures of all of us .. and Ellie and I took one of ourselves too!  It was my favorite part of the day - by far!!

Coming soon ... donuts with Dads!

Flowers for Mother's Day

For the patio pots - one is pink and other other purple & yellow

The front door pot is pink with white.  Can't wait till things grow!

I've found this has become our traditional day to choose and fill the planters for the summer.  Ellie helps me choose our color scheme and then with gloves and tools carefully fills the containers too.  We have more colors than normal, this year - but we couldn't resist!  We have a big ceramic planter at the front door, and two smaller pots on the patio in the back.  It will be nice to enjoy the patio this afternoon when Bill grills our Mother's Day dinner!  Can't wait ....

Happy Mother's Day

To begin the day I had coffee and lemon poppyseed muffins ... with Ellie's help, of course!  And she couldn't wait to give me presents!  We opened them really early - which is a wonderful start to the day!

This letter accompanied the awesome gifts of candles, jewelry, cards and plants!  And that was all before breakfast!!

"Why I love my Mom by Ellie
10.  I love my Mom because she reads to me (when she) takes me to bed.
9.   I love my Mom because she helps me (with my) homework.
8.   I love my Mom when she makes me laugh by tickling me.
7.  I love my Mom because she taught me to cook.
6.  I love to hear my Mom sing Wagon Wheel.
5.  I love my Mom because she finds time to read to me.
4.  I know my Mom cares because she smiles.
3.  I know my Mom is smart because she passed her test.
2.  I love my Mom because she works so hard at passing her test.
1.  I love my Mom because she is the best Mom EVER!"

More photos to come as the adventures unfold ...

Last Soccer Saturday

Tiger Lilies Team with Coach Frank (right) and Coach John (left)

Coach Frank and Ellie upon completion!

Encouraging words and awarding of the medal!

Ball control

Running Hard

Look at that determination!  Leading the pack to kick that ball.

Fancy Footwork

Ellie has achieved the "Most Improved" award from Coach Frank!  She scored three goals today in her final game of Spring soccer and can't wait to be on Coach Frank's team in the Fall.  She has learned to dribble the ball, score goals and some pretty fancy footwork.  She may not be the fastest or the highest scorer on the team, but she has the most fun!  I love to see her determination and her big smile as she comes down the field!

The girls each received a participation medal today for this season and some encouraging words from their coach.  We're thrilled she's learned so much and is enthusiastic about continuing to play!

She's at it again!

Girls just wanna have fun!  I know this one does!

Really, a peace sign?  Whodda thought?

Affect:  Bug Out .. oh dear ...

I think this is "Alien" effect

So ... apparently Ellie has been using a photo app on the desktop computer taking her picture and then adding effects.

It's through Photo Booth and you can see she's had so much fun with it.  I love her creativity and imaginative spirit.  She truly knows how to have fun, and make so many people smile.  She considers that her given right - she wants you to laugh!  And after you looked at this photos, I'm pretty sure you did!

Derby Day

We had our own Derby party yesterday afternoon watching races, slow cooking ribs and snacking along the way.  The ribs were a huge success - beef ribs started outside on the grill, and finished in the oven.  Although we didn't pick the race winner - we had fun cheering for our horses and learning their stories!

Earth Day project

Ellie's Earth Day project was to write a report and build the habitat of an endangered animal.  In determining what animal to choose, I was so proud of her when she said, "Mommy are there any birds that are endangered?"

Since I didn't know the answer to that question, I decided this could be a good research project for us!  She sat with me at the computer as we found the list and then carefully selected.  We wanted something that would be recognizable and fun.

She chose the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker.  She learned about how it became endangered as it habitats in old trees.  We discovered that after the Civil War ended there was a great need for lumber to rebuild, and many trees in the south were taken down for lumber.  "Why didn't they plant new ones?" she asked.  And then I reminded her of the need for them to be OLD trees and it was awesome to see her realize that it takes a long time for a tree to grow old!

Since it was an Earth Day project we used recycled supplies to make the habitat.  The display we built the tree on is the inside of a cereal box.  She then drew the tree and we glued tissue paper on to make the bark and leaves.  It wasn't smooth, just like a real tree she told me!  And from the picture on the right, she drew her very best version of the woodpecker and cut him out for the tree on left.  Her story told of how big he gets, where he used to live, the last documented sighting and what made him endangered.  She read her report out loud to us at home, and then again in the class.  She received a 3 out of 3 for her project.

As you can see, she is very proud of her report!!

Fun filled week

Yes, it looks like a 'blob', but it's the BACKSTROKE!

As we progress through the school year, and find we are in the final month of FIRST GRADE, things are beginning to wind to a close.

Last week we had our last Girl Scout meeting, this week we say good bye to Religious Education.  Soccer and Swim Lessons last a few more weeks, and then we'll begin our summer!

We participating in the Bridging to Brownies ceremony last week, and this week she brought the final progress report home from Religious Ed.  She received the highest marks for the categories she was graded on ... listening, participation, learning about faith, completing the homework, etc.

"Ellie has done a great job in class.  She has done a good job listening to others and being patient.  We have enjoyed having her in class this year!  Have a great summer!" - Miss Courtney and Miss Danielle

"Way to go Ellie!!"-  Miss Bobbi (Religious Ed Director)

"Great Job Ellie!" - Sister Rita Ann

As I am not the one to take Ellie to swim lessons each week, I treasure the nights I get to go and see how much progress she has made.  Each time I'm there I remark to Bill how she is the strongest one in the lane and it's nearly time for her to move to the next lane.

They divide the pool almost in half length-wise and her 'lane' is in the shallow end.  She has recently mastered swimming (arms and kicking) swimming the length of her lane on one breath!  She swims in a straight line while remembering the kicking and beautiful arm stroke!

I'm thinking it helps that she is getting taller all the time.  Amazingly she continues to gain on me!  So that makes for a gorgeous swim stroke in the pool.