Lasts

Today was a day for of “lasts” for our kids.  For starters, after what seemed like a long year, it was finally the last day of school.

It was this handsome guy’s last day of fourth grade.  And if you asked him, he would tell you that it was a great year.  His teachers were amazing, he excelled academically, he even earned an art award and all in all, he had a solid year.

He’s looking forward to fifth grade.  And even just typing that, my heart skips a beat and I wonder how my sweet little baby boy is old enough to be going into fifth grade?  But then I think that considering the fact that he is nearly as tall as me, I suppose it’s about right.  Christian, our amazing, stubborn, strong willed first born is living life well.  Sure, he has his moments.  But over all, he’s pretty incredible.  And we are pretty proud.

Oh, and I had to include this picture.  Because for the last three days of school, and after much begging and bargaining on his part, we decided to let him ride his bike to school.  And he was so excited.  Granted, he only got to ride about a quarter of a block, but nevertheless, it was enough to make him pretty happy about his newfound independence.

And this sweet girl enjoyed her last day of First Grade.

It was a beautiful year, fitting for our beautiful daughter.  She learned so much and had a great team of teachers around her to help and support her academically.  She worked hard, something that we saw and that was echoed from all of her teachers.  And we were super proud of our girl and all that she learned this year.

She’s excited for Second Grade.  And I’m excited for her.  I have to be honest though, I’m also excited for summer.  Because it seems like it’s been a long time coming.

It was a great day of lasts, commemorated with lots of goodbyes, teacher gifts and a family lunch out to the Tex Mex truck to celebrate the end of an incredible year.  As I drove away from their schools, I couldn’t help but breathe a silent prayer of thanksgiving for another year, safely past.  The fact that they finished another wonderful year of school is something that I try not to take for granted.  Their wonderful school, their incredible teachers and the rest of the staff do a wonderful job of creating a safe and fun learning environment and for that we are truly thankful.