Performances, last days of school, celebrations, golf lessons, fishing, and turtles making babies? Yes. All of that randomness was in May.
But first, a sweet picture of our oldest pup, Abby. She's been having a rough time with some health issues (something is up with her sinuses and she has begun to sneeze blood sometimes), but her spirits are still up, she is eating and drinking, excited for walks, and even playful at times...so we're taking it day by day with our old lady. Hugging her tight as much as possible.
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| our sweet Abby, almost 15 and still hanging in there with our little family |
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| are you practicing for the Olympic bobsled team with one of our neighbors? ha...skateboards have many uses |
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| watching the shapes in the clouds go by while laying on my lap |
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| haircuts and Duck Donuts on a Saturday morning |
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| um, yummmm |
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| "Mom! Look at all the wishes!" (some see weeds, others see magic... it's all about perspective) |
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| thumbs up for bike rides with Mom |
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| finally Abby is feeling well enough to take some walks through the woods with us again...it's been touch and go with our elderly pup |
You were so excited to teach me all about hitting golf balls and putting. Fun family night at the range and putt putt course. Good stuff.
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| carrying your own set of clubs down the path |
This month also gave Daddy and I a bit of a break. We actually took a couple nights to use a gift certificate to get away and stay in a cottage in the woods. Late use of an anniversary present from Lao Lao (from last year) that turned into an early anniversary celebration this year (we are celebrating 17 years of marriage and 21 years together). Obviously, we love you so much and normally take you with us, but it's also nice to get away and reconnect with just Daddy again. Definitely makes coming home to see you all the more sweet!
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| we stayed near Landoll's castle and the grounds were beautiful but we couldn't quite figure out how this dinosaur statue fit into their motif - hmmm... |
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| is the dinosaur tickling or attacking Daddy? |
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| Daddy just couldn't resist climbing out on this big, bent tree |
The day after we got back from our getaway we celebrated Mother's Day with a cookout at our house. It was a really pleasant dinner together...you, me, Daddy, Lao Lao, Memaw, and Papaw.
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| the 3 moms and one ornery monkey |
4th grade performance! You were so excited to show off your singing and musical talents. Lao Lao, Audrey, Memaw, Papaw, Daddy, and I all came to watch you. It was a wonderful performance by everyone.
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| I love your school and your principal |
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| recorders! a 4th grade rite of passage |
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| Audrey is always up for shenanigans |
And speaking of shenanigans...see the paragraph and picture below for more.
So, this was an interesting story...basically, you and Ana were playing some type of game and you came out of the garage dressed with a fedora and hauling a large cooler around. Evidently, you are a businessman seeking to grow your business of detective work and the reason you have your cooler is to carry all of your "detective supplies". You went up and down the sidewalk with that thing, pausing every now and then to open it, pretend like you were typing something into it, and then closing it to be on your way again. Haha. The imagination is immense with you, dear one. Don't ever lose it.
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| you fascinate and crack me up at the same time |
Imaginative play must be tiring work because you slept very soundly with me later on.
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| my tween may be beginning to pull away but still can't help gravitating to me in their sleep... and I will always be here |
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| obligatory silly picture |
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| the grands |
Did I mention shenanigans yet in this post? Oh. I did? Well...here's some more. See below.
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| I completely forgot how fun riding your Green Machine is! ...and only a couple of funny looks from neighbors as I flew by on this thing that is way too small for me. ha! |
You had your LAST day of 4th grade this month on the 24th! Next year will be your last year in elementary school and then you are on to middle school! *gulp* Can you believe it?! I know. Me either.
Anyway, here are the obligatory before school / "last day of school" pictures I make you take. It was a feat to even get these two. I wonder how many more years you will let me do this until you just give me the middle finger and walk away? Ha ha.
If you look at the next picture, your face is so serious in comparison to Daddy and me. Well, later we found out that you were staying so sober-faced that morning because you were trying to hold it all together and not cry. See, you have loved your school, your teacher, and your friends so much this year (and every year so far, really), that you get really sad on your last day. When most kids are ecstatic to be done for the summer, you are melancholy. You have always had a hard time with goodbyes, though. My sweet, tender-hearted child. I love that you are this way, even if it's hard or painful for you at times. So much of the world will try to harden you, please hang on to your softness, even if it hurts sometimes. It's so worth it.
Once you were at school, you did fine (thankfully). Once home, it was time to party because it wouldn't be a proper last day of school without a celebration, would it? In that vein, I took you and Addi to the Short North for some rolled ice cream, Rocket Fizz, and Big Fun.
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| watching them roll the ice cream at Simply Rolled |
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| delicious! why does rolled ice cream just taste better? |
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| at Rocket Fizz |
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| bumper sticker at Big Fun ~ "Weird is just a side effect of being awesome" |
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| I turned out to be the only one brave enough to get this thing on the shovel with Audrey's help ~ who knew I'd be the one with the courage in that motley crew? |
Then all that turtle wrangling called for some relaxation time, which I spent on the deck with some of our animals, a good book, and the sunshine.
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| sunny day with the animals on the deck... I love our zoo |
The next day we awoke to some glorious bedhead and another surprise.
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| fabulous bed head! |
Do you remember how I said we "thought" it was a success with the turtle? Well...that's because a little over 24 hours later, she was back and in the middle of laying her egg's on the edge of Mike's driveway right next door. I guess she was determined that our yards were a good place for her babies. Oh well! May as well just let her finish and get a first hand nature lesson to boot!
It was actually super cool to see her digging (with her hind legs, not her front ~ who knew?) to create the nest that would house her eggs. Over the course of the weekend, Lao Lao and I actually saw 3 other snappers on the trail by our house. Through a whole lot of Googling, we discovered May is snapping turtle breeding month where they typically mate and lay eggs. Conferring further with Google we found out that we should see babies around August. Pretty exciting stuff, actually.
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| you came out with your turtle hat on to watch her dig her nest... if the Brits watch the Royals get married with fancy hats, then we can watch turtles lay eggs with funny hats, right? |
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| working hard, digging the nest and then laying her eggs |
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| crossing the sidewalk and heading back to the creek after she was finished |
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| doesn't she look like a dinosaur? |
And one night you and Daddy even decided to try to camp out in the tent out back. Unfortunately, the neighbors made it too bright and/or too noisy for you to make it all night in the tent, but fortunately we'll have many more nights for you to try this again.
Memorial Day weekend we attended the Asian Festival where we met our friends, Ziying, Zuchao, Lucas and April. They moved out of Columbus about 3 years ago and we have missed them terribly since then so it was wonderful for all of us to catch up again.
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| we finally got to meet April, their newest child |
And for the finale this month, you knocked your most recent orthodontist appointment out of the park. Just a few months ago you had to leave the orthodontist office screaming and crying before they had even touched your mouth. This time was much different as you did a complete 180 in terms of cooperation.
Over the last few months, it took a lot of conversations with you to figure out what exactly was so disturbing about the visit, several phone calls between me and the team at Children's to voice our concerns, along with some slow-paced desensitization visits and a specialist for support. But, lo and behold ~ it all paid off because on this day you willingly marched in, climbed into the chair, made casual conversation with the nurse, and let the orthodontist man-handle your face for the entire appointment. I was floored you handled it so well!
The staff at Children's is always impressive, willing to listen to all of our concerns when we voice them loud and clear. I am very grateful to have such a wonderful resource so close by and also very grateful to be learning (together with you) how to be more assertive in advocating for our needs for you (and all of us). Which is another thing that is important in life ~ always being ready and willing to speak up for yourself when you need something. Which, if I think about it, was pretty much what you were doing when you were screaming and crying at them at that visit a few months ago. Regardless of how eloquently or messily it comes out, your voice is important and deserves to be heard. I can't stress that enough. I was so proud of how you communicated your fears to me, dug deep and found the courage I knew you were so capable of finding for yourself. Now, I hope that this experience is something you can look back on and remind yourself of when you face your next challenge. You will have plenty of opportunities for courage in life and even if it takes a while to find it, always remember that it is there somewhere. You can do it. I believe in you. I hope you will always believe in yourself too.
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| all smiles on our way home from the orthodontist |
Mama
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