Awards Abound

It's that time of year again.

The end of another school year.

I have been very thankful for this year though, because in comparison to previous years, 4th grade has been a wonderful experience! Wesley is really coming into his own and making friends. He finally got to participate in the gifted program and was able to spread his wings through that avenue.

And this has been an excellent year in AWANA. Last year, you may recall, he received the Book One Award... which is the award given to kids who have completed the first book (huge surprise, right?)

This year, he received the Excellence Award... which is for children who have completed THREE Books!

He was so proud of himself! He puffed out his chest and told me his goal next year was to win the Timothy Award, which is the highest award reserved for kids who complete all of the books for the T&T program (3rd-6th grades)

I think he is on track to accomplish that goal!

Monday night, Wesley emptied out his book bag and discovered all sorts of things he had been meaning to give me (haha) Some of the forms had deadlines back in April... including the school photo order form! Another form was a permission slip for Fun Day this Friday (we barely got that turned in on time).  And one other tiny little slip of paper was stuck in with the bunch. It was a paper I had never gotten from this school before.

It said, "Congratulations! Your child will be receiving an award on Wednesday at 10:30 AM."  I jumped up and down and cheered! It has been a couple years since we've gone to an awards ceremony and it was just a tremendous confirmation that all the struggles with homework and assignments were worth it! Wes had no idea what the award was so we waited for the big reveal this morning.

Granny even came over for the big day :)   ... and I didn't manage to get her picture :(

So, what award was it?

Wesley made the President's List! That is for the students who maintained all A's and B's for the year!!!

I couldn't be prouder! Granny and I spent a good 10 minutes taking turns hugging and bragging on him!

It must have made him stand a little prouder... and a little taller... because according to this picture he's almost up to my chin!!

I guess he's not my Little Man anymore!

Now that Wesley has finished elementary school (*sniff sniff*) I can see big things on the horizon. Wonderful times lay just around the corner!

Just like our back doors on a chilly May day... the future is wide open!

Birthday Party & Mother's Day

We had a VERY busy week last week!

Tuesday, Brad went to the church to prepare for Wednesday.

I stayed home to clean for the weekend.

Wednesday was the Ice Cream Olympics (you can see in a previous post how that took over our evening!)

Thursday was May 5th. A pretty important day :)

~*~ WESLEY'S BIRTHDAY ~*~

After school, we stopped by Cup of Hope for a little treat. He didn't like the sound of any of the cupcakes (I did, but he didn't) so he opted to try a chocolate chip scone instead. 

After the snack, we had to finish up a science project (only the 3rd this year...) We were making a model of a plant cell. Since it was assigned and due during his birthday week, I thought Wes would enjoy making it as a cake :)

And didn't he do an awesome job? 

Then, Thursday night, we had a very special dinner! Pork filets with baked potatoes and the very last ears of corn from Wesley's crop. What a special treat! As you can see in the photo, he LOVED it! 

 Finally, after the project and dinner, it was time to open gifts!!
We gave him a Ripley's Believe It or Not book. ... and he couldn't believe it!   :)   In fact, he was so fascinated that he almost forgot about his other gifts!  (almost)

The 2nd gift was a bit of a mystery.
What could it be?

Computer Parts!! Brad and Wesley had a wonderful time putting the pieces together to make Wesley's very first computer!

When Saturday arrived, it was another crazy day!

We started the day off icing a LOT of cupcakes. Then we headed to Collinsville Day for lunch :)

After that, it was...

~*~ PARTY TIME ~*~

All the usual fiesta supplies were on hand...



Sombreros for all the kids...

and some of the adults!

Even a pinata - from Mexico no less!

The newspaper stuffing was in Spanish!

 I have to say the party was a complete success - everyone seemed to have a great time and the food was yummy.

After the party, we were all pretty exhausted. My parents stayed in town so I got to briefly see my mom on Mother's Day before they headed back to Birmingham.

~*~ MOTHER'S DAY ~*~

We had a good service Sunday morning and a wonderful breakfast for the ladies :) Then I headed home with my 2 favorite guys and was spoiled with relaxation, fun, and gifts.

Brad gave me 12 (!) petunias to plant in the front garden. I waited for it to cool off outside, but finally I couldn't wait any longer. I now have 11 bright pink accents and 1 purple / white plant. Can't wait for them to grow and grow :)

I logged some time playing video games with Wesley before I was presented with a beautiful purple flowery frame (custom-wrapped by Wesley himself)

I love the frame, don't get me wrong, but my favorite part was the card...

It says, "To a Mom who is terrific, fun, caring, a great cook, special, helpful and most of all.... very, very loved"

I certainly FELT very, very loved.



AWANA Ice Cream Olympics

Every year, AWANA goes out in style by hosting the Ice Cream Olympics. It's basically field day with Ice Cream in every activity... Oh yeah, and the kids get to eat a Sundae with all the toppings they can stand :) After everyone is good and sticky, they get rinsed off on the Redneck Water Slide.

This year was just as much fun as last year, despite the chilly weather.

And we had a massive turn-out. Take a look at this crowd:

Here is Wesley trying to warm up after his umpteenth trip down the slide. He thought he'd warm up and eat some ice cream!

After grabbing some sundaes, Wesley found some friends to hang out with.

He looks like he's Up To Something, too!

Here is his pal from across the street, Clare :) 

And, for a small taste of the fun, Check out this video of Wesley going down the slide for the first time.

Judging from his reaction at the end, I'd say he loved it!



Roses in bloom

What could be more beautiful than these roses?

The "red" ones that Kim convinced to bloom in a dark shade of pink are from Valentine's Day 2010. The Peach ones are new for 2011 :)

I have to say the peach ones are positively gorgeous in person and they are more fragrant than the previous ones... and they remind me of my favorite Barbie from my younger years :) Anyone else remember Peaches n Cream Barbie? I wanted her dress SO badly when I was little... and you know what, I still kinda do :)