And just like that- another year is wrapped up for school! As I reflect back on the school year, it was one of different challenges unlike any every before, but God was faithful! Last June, as restrictions were being put in place by our governor regarding school rules, the school year stretched ahead long and daunting. There were those that said it couldn’t be done- there was no way that kids would be able to go to school in-person all year long. I’m here to shout it from the rooftops that we serve an amazing God! The God that I serve is so powerful that He could split the Red Sea; He’s so compassionate that He raised a 12 year old girl from the dead. He’s so merciful that He gave His only Son to die for my sins, and He’s so faithful in answering the prayers of His children that He protected our students for 175 days. WOW! God is Good!
Last week was a long and emotional week. It was very hot in the first part of the week as it was practically in the 90s. But with only three days left of school, we did not want to miss out on the fun parts! Wyatt’s class had a field trip to an animal park on Monday, some classes were going to play mini golf, and I took my class to the beach. Another mom helped me out with my field trips all week long, and I am so thankful for parents that are willing to volunteer in the classrooms. It was a beautiful day to go to the beach, and my class had a great time playing. Travis’s class had a field trip to play mini golf, and my parents offered to help drive students for that field trip. It was an “all-hands” on deck kind of week as all of our kids were going off to various field trips, Garett was graduating from 8th grade, my parents were here, I had my own class field trips, and we had the end of the year wrapping up with field day on the last day! Praise the Lord we made it through!
Garett’s graduation was on Monday night. None of his siblings were real excited about going, but they came anyways. It was a small group on Monday night, but it was a bittersweet feeling watching our oldest son graduate from middle school. Roger was running late due to work, but he made it shortly after the program started. Garett had one of the best teachers in the world for the past two years, and he has improved so much in his education. Oh, it’s still really hard for him, but he has learned so much. I’m so thankful for all of his hard work, determination, and character traits that have been developing. He earned the “Knight Award” for Christian character all four quarters, and his gentle and helpful spirit has helped so many younger students. We are so proud of him. We don’t want to raise “church kids”, rather we want to raise “Jesus kids”. Kids who will mature into adults who are on fire for God, love their Savior, are committed and upstanding citizens and patriots. Garett is not perfect, by any means, but then his mama is full of faults also! We will continue to pray and give the Holy Spirit opportunities to work in the lives of our children.
On Tuesday it was so hot! I had actually moved one of my field trips due to the heat. We were supposed to go on a hike, but instead we played water games at the school. It’s probably one of my favorite memories as almost the whole school jumped into playing water games with the kindergarten class! Chandler’s teacher had also bought a bunch of water squirters, so the air in the morning break was filled with the delighted shrieks and shrills of children loving life! My friend, Christine, came along on our next morning activity for kindergarten and that was to get ice cream! We took the kindergarten class to McDonald’s for ice cream, but then it was disappointing as their dining room still isn’t open. So instead we brought the kids back to school, and they ate their ice cream there. It wasn’t quite as much fun, in my opinion, but they certainly didn’t seem to mind!
My dad has been busy working on raising the deck this week, so Wyatt came home with my parents on Wednesday after the awards program. It was still a very warm day, and we had a good number of parents show up for the awards program. Garett, Chandler, Travis and Emma all received the “Knight award” for their leadership and character, so we were rejoicing with them in that. It was a bit of an emotional morning as our kids received some awards and I handed out some awards to my class-what a year! My dad and Wyatt were able to get a lot done on the deck project, so that is another thing we are thankful for this week. My parents were planning on leaving right after the field day activities on Thursday to head back to Wisconsin. This meant that on top of all the school activities, we were also trying to get the boys packed for their trip to Wisconsin. I didn’t even have time to think last week, but by Thursday morning, I sure was emotional!
Thursday came all too quickly, and we were out the door for our last and final day of the school year. I felt emotional just looking at my own children, plus the emotions of saying good by to my students. I’ve come to love and appreciate each one of my students, and saying “good bye” to them was hard! We spent the first half hour of the school day praising the Lord through music. I felt the tears on my face as I listened to the young voices of those around me worshiping the Lord through song. I’m happy for summer break, but I sure am going to miss these moments!
It was a crazy morning with games, outside play, snack time, lunch, and taking home all the miscellaneous items! Garett had been roped into dressing up as a unicorn for the last day of school, and the students loved it. I think some of the 8th grade girls thought that Garett would be too embarrassed to actually follow through with it, but he did it, and the preschoolers loved every minute! School ended at 11:30, and my parents were waiting to pick up the kids. I hardly had time to cry, but when my boys hugged me good-by, it was hard to not cry. I’m going to miss them so much! I’m so thankful that they’ll have the opportunity to go to camp, spend time with my parents and my sister (Jen), and to create some fun memories. But, I’m going to miss them! We had a staff meeting to discuss the school calendar after school, and Emma was thrilled to have the opportunity to go over to her friend’s house to play. I was happy that Emma got the opportunity also as it would’ve been a long afternoon for her!
On Friday morning, I had plans to meet with two other teachers to clean up my classroom and pack up for the summer. My friend, Hannah, suggested that I drop Emma off at her house, and that I should send along pajamas for Emma to spend the night. Hannah said that then Roger and I could have a date night. Well that text came at 7:30am. And by 8:00am, I had messaged my two teacher friends to tell them that I was going on an over night with Roger and that the classroom could wait! I dropped Emma off around 9:30am, and Roger and I were on the road by 10:30am. We didn’t really have much of a plan, but we knew we wanted to make the most of the next 24 hours. We decided to go to New Hampshire as we really haven’t spent any time in that state, and they also have a lot of great parks and trails too. We ended up in North Conway where we spent the afternoon tromping around on hiking trails. We had so much fun hiking together, eating dinner, finding a place to stay for the night, and just being really spontaneous with everything we did- we are so not normally like that! It was a great 30 hour get away, and one that we made the most of together. We haven’t been away on an overnight together for over two years, so this was truly a wonderful opportunity for us. I’m so thankful for friends that love our children and are also willing to invest in their lives. Emma was very tired when I picked her up in the afternoon and she barely made it home with her eyes open.
It’s been a totally different house around here with just Emma at home, but we are treasuring our time with her. She’s not the loud one in our home even though the boys say she’s so loud! She’s content to play on her own, but she does enjoy taking bike rides and trips to the park with me. On Sunday afternoon, we had another spontaneous trip. Roger needed to fly in the float plane, and he asked if Emma and I wanted to come along. So we did! We flew out to Isle au Haut, and Roger did a great job landing the plane. We hiked around on the island for about an hour, and then we flew back. It was such a spontaneous adventure, and a rare opportunity with just one kiddo!
I already miss our boys! We are excited to have the school year wrapped up, but there is still plenty to do at the school. My classroom still needs packing up for the summer, and its amazing how many things I use to teach kindergarten! But, we are getting there.
We are going to enjoy these moments and memories. What are your plans for the summer?
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