It's a Wrap!

I must admit it: this might be the cutest kindergarten classes in all of our area. They held a wonderful graduation performance for us Wednesday of last week - crooked caps and all!

They sang loud and proud and melted everyone with their rendition of What a Wonderful World complete with sign language. I was so proud of myself for keeping it together and taking it all in.

Then we were surprised by the Candy Awards. Mrs. P and Mrs. M passed awards to each child in their classes and all were based on only the best thing ever: candy. I cheered so hard for each of her classmates, because I've been lucky enough to watch them all transform this year while helping in the classroom. And then Ella got the Milky Way Award...for respect and kindness. The culmination of pride and melancholy washed over me so quickly that the biggest crocodile tears spilled out of my eyes before I could think twice. So I went with it. And when Ella marched her way off the stage to hand us her award, seeing her mama's happy tears bursting out everywhere was what she always expected.

Holy Toledo are we proud of her. Of all the awards, this touched us so deeply. I'm also ecstatic that she hood-winked the entire administration at GP Academy and saved all her less-than-flattering behavior for us!!

The Magic Worker, Mrs. P

JJ and Ella

With the future all bright and stuff, we headed home, got into zoo clothes and hit the ground running with Grandma and Papa for a few hours before I went into work.

We are a few days into Summer Break now and it has gone amazingly. Ella has a brand new journal she is writing in a few times a day. Yesterday, she added an entry about her Daddy being handsome. I also did some research on good learning apps for sight words and math and those have been downloaded to the tablet. Grandma has done her homework and secured a great workbook to keep her little noodle from getting all mushy, too. Her teacher made me promise to keep some of the routine going over the summer and I'm doing my part!

This past weekend was really wonderful with a festival in one of our best neighborhoods and then our own personal border patrol doing this...

I can't make this stuff up. I wasn't home. I was off doing fantastic stuff helping to kick off something I will mention later this month. Larry was home, with Ella and our two neighbor pals. Ella heard a baby kitty crying and this little stinker shows herself.

More later but we are fostering her after a quick trip to the Humane Society for a foster starter kit and meds to get her healthier. Meet Miss Agatha Hannigan, or Miss Hannigan for short. If you have no idea where Ella got this name (a name her BFF Roz thought would be awesome also, not knowing that E had chosen it), please consult all things Annie Movie.

I spent last night doing 3 hour intervals to check on her. She's just like a newborn baby, folks.

Summer Vacation just got a little more fun!

~H