Last Day of School

First day of Great Beginnings Preschool this year...

Last day, today!

Ethan and I will be leaving soon to attend Noah's end of the year assembly. So much has happened this year - hard to believe we've been back this long already.

Mother's Day Weekend

While we didn't celebrate Mother's Day this year in the same way as we have the last 3 years in Peru, it was special all the same. This time I got to spend it with my Mom! My parents came for the weekend and we had a great time with them. Friday evening we attended the "Boogie on the Blacktop" dance event at Michael's school. Noah enjoyed doing the Hokie Pokie and Macarena with Daddy.

Saturday morning we went to Critzer's Family Farm for some strawberry picking! None of us had done it before (except for my Mom, when she was a child) and we had a blast, even though it was exceptionally windy! So we came home with loads of strawberries and decided to make strawberry shortcake for dessert that night and strawberry sorbet for Mother's Day. {Can't get any fresher than that. We have a big bag of frozen strawberries in the freezer that I'm looking forward to using for smoothies and other tasty treats. I'm trying to help our family eat things closer to their source, and this is a great town for that. Our Farmer's market in the park behind our house started last week. That will surely be a weekly "must" for us. It reminds me of Peru in some ways...}

Noah deemed Saturday another one of Aney's birthdays (I explained that he could have up to 7 in a year with the whole doggie years thing), so Strawberry Shortcake was an appropriate cake, since "Aney LOVES strawberries!"

Saturday afternoon, my Dad and Michael did a lot of "Honey do-s," to include replacing some warped 2x4s on our deck. THANK YOU!! Somehow, I got a nap on our hammock that afternoon.

A dear friend posted a blog recently about her two youngest (of 3) crawling into bed with them for different reasons and how she wanted to savor those precious moments. Thank you, Angie, for the perspective on that, and how it truly doesn't last forever. So, this morning, when Noah came in at 5:15 and said "Mommy, I'm lonely in my bed. I just want to sleep with another person," we agreed it was okay. Recently, he's been doing a great job of staying in his bed all night long.

Every day that I get to mother these little ones, is a gift. They bring me joy and teach me way more than I teach them.

"Sweeter than honey"

This morning, I woke-up to a little boy snuggling up next to me saying, "Mommy, you're sweeter than honey!" Awww. It's these little moments I'm trying to hide in my heart for those years ahead when he may not think I'm so sweet.

Yesterday, amidst a rather hectic day, Noah and I made a precious memory by attending his first musical! We saw "Beauty & the Beast" put on by Albemarle High School and it was pretty fantastic for a high school! We nearly didn't get in as it was totally sold out. Noah was crushed, and his big alligator tears melted the hearts of the adults with me in line. Graciously, one mother and teenage daughter who were on the waiting list to get in, got tickets and sold one to us so he could sit on my lap. The mother said she would rather Noah and I go together. WOW. We were so grateful. She gave Noah a bag of M & M's to boot! In case that mother ever finds this blog - I want her to know how appreciated that act of kindness was. Now, I'm not in support of Noah thinking that crying every time will get him what he wants, but we were grateful all the same. He thoroughly enjoyed it! His favorite parts were Gaston's song and the transformation at the end - complete with an audience filled with illuminated fake roses to help in making the magic happen. (c:

Ethan just figured out what kisses are and will give them when asked; if he's in the mood, that is. He and I just spent the weekend together again while Michael dropped Noah off with Grandma and Grandpa in Arlington and he took the train up to Hartford, Connecticut. He was interviewing for a summer masters degree program in music education with Kodaly emphasis. We all had a great weekend - Noah had a blast with Grandma and Grandpa, Michael's interview went really well and he got to see Matthew and Kerry briefly on the way back, and Ethan and I had a lot of fun at home together, going on lots of long walks and doing things around the house that I don't usually have time to do.

Here are some more recent pictures of my sweet boys:

Peonies from our garden that remind me of my Grandmother's in NY

Oh, how I love Spring!