Let the Summer Begin!

This past week was our daughters' last week of classes for this school year. I think they could have shut 'er down a week earlier; I'm not sure how much academic work was done in the final days of the year. (Suzanna is watching over my shoulder as I type this, and she says, "None. Just letting you know. None.") In the days leading up to Wednesday (their final day), Suzanna's class went mini-golfing, watched movies, had a picnic, and on the last day went to the West River Community Center to swim and play basketball and enjoy the playground there. Abigail's class bowled instead of golfed but otherwise did the same activities. Hillary's class went to Fisher Park, hosted a Mommy Makeover Day, and had a kindergarten graduation party. Her incredibly thoughtful teacher gave each student a DVD on which she had had one of the class's more tech-savvy dads burn a slideshow set to music.

The slideshow features photos of the class throughout the year displayed while a series of appropriate songs plays, one of which especially tugged at our hearts. It was Lonestar's "Let Them Be Little" about enjoying children while they're still children ("'cause they're only that way for a while"). While we sat around the computer watching the slideshow and crying over the words to that song as photos of little Hillary and her classmates flashed on the screen, our daughters came over to us and wiped away our tears and rubbed our backs and gave us hugs--which, of course, made us cry all the more. Billy Dean's video for his version of the same song might have the same effect on you; give it a try!

So, although the weather has been cool and overcast this week, school is out so summer has begun. After Memorial Day the girls will begin their summer activities, including basketball camp, basketball league, gymnastics, children's theatre camp, summer reading program (theme: "Saddle Up and Read, Bookaroo") at the public library, and swimming lessons (not all simultaneous, by the way).

Oh, and their final report cards came home with them on the last day of school, too, and I'm happy to announce that they all passed and will advance to the next grade in the fall: Suzanna to fourth grade, Abigail to third, and Hillary to first.