It's hard to believe we've completed a whole school year! We took this week to finish up Beyond the Code 1 and the last bit of the 1st grade Horizons math workbooks. We skipped a few of the last lessons and went straight to the final test, which Ted aced.

Our friend Karen gave us a couple extra "Me" posters and Ted and Maddy had fun coloring (or scribbling) on these. Ted worked especially hard to do his own writing when he could.

On Wednesday Aunt Tammy babysat so I could go to an appointment, and she spent much of the time painting suncatchers with the children. They loved it, and the suncatchers are still hanging in our dining room window.

We also spent some time practicing for Ted's graduation ceremony .. they selected Genesis 1:1 as the class verse and "Jesus Loves Me" as a song to sing. We 'finished' school on the 16th of May with over 180 school days.

On May 21st we got to visit a fire station with our playgroup co-op. It was very exciting. The fellow leading the tour shared how he got to visit the very same fire station when he was in 3rd grade and got to slide down the fire pole (back when such things were allowed), and now that very same fire pole is right beside his bed. Our tour was briefly interrupted when the team had to respond to a call, but they were back quickly and demonstrated all the layers of gear they have to wear. After the visit we fed ducks at the park across the street and then headed home.

Mommy and Daddy got to have a date that evening, going to see the new Prince Caspian movie, with Grandpa Glenn babysitting. It was nice to go out on our own, though I was disappointed in the movie and came home with a big headache.

Graduation was on the 29th, and the kids did wonderfully.

We also got to observe some baby blue jays (none of whom survived, sadly) and dig up some very tiny potatoes from our suddenly dying potato plants. I think they were eaten by bugs. Anyway, we've got some very cute little taters that we're going to cook up in a mini-meal one of these nights.

We spent the week after 'school' building a Lego city on the dining table, we're reading aloud a Robin Hood version by Ann McGovern, and we've started both VBS and Summer Reading this week. Busy busy! But lots of fun.