Last day of school

For Lexi and Ryleigh...the last day of school was Friday.

There were well wishes from Miss Kristen and the teachers

 There were surprises handed over to open on the airplane

There were group hugs and special "goodbye" songs 

And of course some Texas-themed cupcakes

There were thoughtful notes

And the obligatory "last day of school" photos

There were flowers and letters for the teachers

And cubbies to clean out

Mostly, there were heartfelt goodbyes and thank you's 

Farewell Small To Tall - you shall be missed!

Farewell Fantastic 4's

Today marks the end of an era...
Lexi's last day at Small To Tall preschool.
She has been there since her very first year in the 2's.
We have watched her grow and learn and thrive,
with many of the same kiddos by her side all three years.

This year, though, the "Fantastic 4's" was truly fantastic.
The girls all became great friends.
They played together, day in and day out.

Acting out "family" on the playground,
learning to pump, hanging from the monkey bars,
baking pretend birthday cakes for each other in the sandbox,
chasing Maxwell and giving him kisses on the cheek (oh dear!)
relishing in class jobs like line leader, weather watcher and door holder,
sitting and chatting at lunchtime each day,
really and truly learning how to write the alphabet,
thriving in so many ways under the loving, watchful eyes
of Miss Mary and Miss Jackie,
begging to stay after school for a few more minutes on the playground
- together, of course.
going to birthday party after birthday party - the whole gang in tow.
One big group, lots of laughs, lots of smiles, lots of learning.

And so it is especially sad that we won't be at the graduation ceremony next month.
Lexi won't get to wear the cute little red cap and gown
or get her "diploma" with her buddies.
She won't be there for the last day of school party out on the front lawn.

It is quite a bummer, for her AND for her mommy.
But rather than dwell on what we won't be here for,
we chose to celebrate all that her first preschool experience has meant.

So on Tuesday, all the girls from her class
(minus Betsy who was home in bed with a stomach bug)
came to our house for one last party...a goodbye party.
These girls just make me smile.

They are sweet and sassy.
They simply adore Ryleigh and spent the night arguing over who
was going to sit next to her.

Their energy is contagious, and their care and concern for one another
makes them seem wise beyond their years.
They are silly and goofy, crazy and smart.

And I think I'm going to miss them just as much as Lexi will.
The whole group is scattering next year.
In fact, all of Lexi's friends are going in different directions this fall.
Half of them are headed on to Kindergarten,
at one of the many elementary schools here in Fairfield and Westport.
The other half with fall birthdays are headed on to pre-k programs.
It's the end of an era...for all of them.

For that reason, and many more...
I am so glad I got these sweet photos to help capture an adorable moment in time.
I hope that years down the road, when she thinks back to her childhood,
Lexi has some memory of the wonderful preschool that felt more like a home!

One lucky mommy

La familia

As we prepare for the big move later this month,
we were so happy to squeeze in visits with our family.
Trading in an hour-and-a-half car ride for plane tickets
is sure a tough pill to swallow.

With a sprained ankle suffered the night before, 

I settled on taking the pictures instead of joining in the handstands

Sunday afternoon with the Hanks family 

Mid-week visit from Nanny

Sasco Beach, then home for dinner and a slide show 

with the Hamiltons

Eric joined us for a cocktail and to spend 

some time with Tom 

Kate with the older girls

Tom has his hands full - of lots of little girls!

A wonderful day in the city with Nanny, Wendy and Courtney

Thank you for the wonderful tickets to Cinderella.

What a special send-off that we'll always remember!

Lunch in Bryant Park 

We may not be back in the Big Apple for a while,

so this pretzel was a must

Our Spring - in pictures

Getting ready for a cross-country move is time consuming.
Getting ready for a cross-country move with a 1 and 4 year old
at your heels is downright nutty.
In between cramming in last doctors visits,
finding a new place to live,
turning utilities both on and off,
getting ready for our house to be invaded by a million cardboard boxes,
planning goodbye parties
planning to part with our cars and our possessions for up to a week,
and signing up for summer camps,
we are busy enjoying our last Spring in the Northeast
(at least for the foreseeable future).
We are savoring both the warm sunny days
and the wonderful people who make Fairfield such a hard place to say goodbye to.

 A little Spring training during one 

of Grandpa's visits

Her fielding needs a ton of work, 

but batting and running the bases are looking solid

 An adorable cooking class with Lexi's Westport buddies

 Her first chance to meet "real live" princesses 

with Tessa and Olivia.

She is so ready for Disney...

no hesitation whatsoever running right up to them all 

during the meet and greet portion after the play

 An afternoon spent swinging while Ryleigh napped

 Post preschool playground stop

 The little sisters learning to "play nice" in the sandbox

 When the goldfish came out, up onto the table went Ryleigh

 Straight up chillin' with her first smoothie

 Her latest trick, learned after watching

one of her best school buddies, Maddie

Here they are hanging together

 Once again, the little sisters have some fun of their own

Very sweet to watch Ryleigh forming her first friendships.

When she sees this little sweetie as well as her buddy Paige,

she tilts her head in for a little love tap 

then extends her arms to give a hug

Lexi and Keaton - just like their mommies

 Can't stand her cuteness...and red is her color!

One of the few times we've seen Henry with his eyes open ;)

 Greenfield Hill has the best playground in town

 Daddy is quite the celebrity around here

 Her strength and confidence has grown in leaps and bounds recently...

a lot of that is probably due to her awesome gymnastics class

My proudest mom moment had absolutely nothing to do with gymnastics, however. 

Right before the picture below, the smallest girl in class was 

trying in vain to reach the bar for her turn. 

Try as she might, it was just out of her grasp. 

Everyone stood milling around, watching her.

 The teachers were busy at other stations.

Then Lexi took charge.

First, she lifted the girl up, but still they came up short.

So Lexi ran over to the instructor,

and through the glass I heard her say,

"My friend can't reach the bar and really needs your help".

The teacher came right over, the little sweetie got her turn,

and seeing the smile it brought 

made me so darn proud of Lexi. 

 Cooking with Sue, our next door neighbor

She will surely miss this little tradition

(and the sweets she gets to bring home afterwards)

 Our house in bloom - such a beautiful time of year

 With Vic away for a work conference,

the girls and I went over the Emmotts' 

for a Derby party/change of scenery

Tis the season for Spring birthday parties