8th grade graduation

yes, i officially have a high schooler - my, oh my where has the time gone?
it has been so nostalgic for me this year, looking back on all those wonderful years.
and all the fabulous kids who have been together since kinder are growing up.

the 8th grade mass and ceremony was so beautiful, it brought me to tears several times.

christopher was chosen by the principal to bring up the gifts,

along with his good friend, reagan and some sweet girls.

here he is receiving his diploma and some special awards - we are sure proud of him.

and our pastor giving our amazing principal a bouquet of flowers -
we have been so blessed to have her in our children's lives and to know them so well.

here is our graduate on his way out of the ceremony.
and many of his friends: jack, ben h., chad, ben p., matt (stoops), reagan.

both of christopher's godparents were there: uncle greg and auntie jenny -
my bf from college, she flew in from texas with her two children for the occasion.

and much of our family were able to make it -
so happy they could be there and share this special evening with us.

i was able to get some pics of christopher and his friends afterwards:
with reagan, matt (blurry), chad and hieu before they headed over to their dance.

and we were able to chat with our wonderful pastor before heading over to the hall...

the parents get to go into the dance for a special mother/son or father/daughter dance.

the rest of the evening is just for the graduates to celebrate their last time together.

it was sure fun seeing everyone in there together - andrew took this great pic of us :)

i got this one of these sweet girls as we were headed out.
chris took this last one of ben and chris when he went back to pick him up at 11:00.

it was sure a wonderful evening and an amazing 9 years in an incredible school.
outstanding principal, teachers, nuns, priests, families, friends and community -
words truly cannot describe what a truly unique and marvelous place ssj is.
and thank goodness for that because we will be there for a looong time :)

mother's day 2014

i am so lucky to be the mother of these five wonderful children of mine.
and so lucky to have such a wonderful mother and mother-in-law in my life.
darrel was starting to get mad right as we were trying to take a picture :)

we hosted mother's day brunch for chris' side at our house this year.
it was lovely- i wish i would have gotten some pics of everyone and the pretties i had out.
john was a powerhouse on saturday squeezing and squeezing oranges for our fresh juice.
andrew did a good amount of squeezing too (the other two were gone).
the babe looked too darn cute napping while everyone was busy in the kitchen on sunday...

mom and i got our nails done (ella had already gone with friends - a rare occurrence),

and we shopped a bit before my side came over for dinner.

we had just started playing monopoly when my brothers arrived-

little d was mesmerized by my brother john- he immediately sat down right next to him.

i just loved watching him sit there with that baby of mine and entertain him...

had to include these of the cutie playing...

it was a lovely mother's day...

reading buddies

these are some of my most favorite recent photos of my two youngest boys.
john john reading a baby book to little baby d.
so stinkin cute, just love these shots of them...

how lucky this little guy is to have these wonderful siblings surrounding him.
and they (we) in turn are so lucky to have him among us each day as well.

john has read to his baby bro since he was an infant.
baby d was just two months old in these next two shots...

and his other two brothers have also read and studied next to their baby brother
for many many months, for all of his life so far...

god has truly blessed us by giving us this precious little guy-
andrew keeps asking if we can give him something to freeze him.
and ella cries at the thought if him not being a baby next year.
yes, babies are the best, and yes they grow up way too fast!

staring contest

these two cracked me up back in march, just looking at each other.
they keep each other entertained at times and baby d knows lady's name very well.
he is learning the kids' names too - seems to be learning them and their different sounds.

this little baby boy is growing up way too fast.
and i am way going to try to catch up with all he and everyone has been doing!

weekend review

baby sleeping 10 hrs. thru the night -
i think due to the massive amount of avocado/guacamole he had the night before.
the kids loved seeing him sleeping in his crib in the morning with his bum up in the air :)
yes, those are flowered sheets (haven't found the boy ones i must have somewhere!)

 followed by morning cuteness...

saturday morning was glorious outside.
mowing was done and then we spent hours outside...
trampoline routines were choreographed, baby swing was put up, swimming was done.

followed by showers outside - we had one installed last year about this time -
the kids love it. don't think any of us even showered inside last summer (minus chris).
and a picnic lunch to top off our outdoor enjoyment in the backyard.

 

later that evening we ran into uncle kev after mass.

and chris and i were able to meet up with a dear friend who was in town & her hubby.

we had so much to catch up on, i didn't even think to take a picture.

sunday brought morning walk/training wheel free bike ride to g & g's for breakfast.
and a day full of projects, errands, and family dinner at great grandpa's house.
we are soaking up these days that we can be outdoors before the heat of the summer!

8th grade football champs and SOM

back in the fall the 8th graders won the catholic school 8th gr. flag football tournament.
i missed a bunch of their games since i had just had darrel and it was blazen hot.
but, i made it to (i think, if i recall correctly) all of the tournament games.

such a fun group of kids and parents, hard to believe they won't all be together next yr.
i will miss seeing them all, it is so hard to believe they will be graduating soon.
andrew has commented all year on how he will miss them next year-
and how he does not want them to graduate...they really are a great group.

it has been rumored for years that the p.e. teacher is retiring.
he has been there since we were in grade school.
and he has been wanting to win this tourney before he retires...so they pulled it off for him.

and this first born of mine was voted student of the month this week by his peers.
for the skill of listening, both in class and as a friend.
which made me realize that being a good listener is really important in life -

because there is nothing worse than having a conversation and realize the other person

isn't really listening to what you are saying!!

yes, we are quite proud of this boy - way to go lc! :)