The Last Day of School

Ahhh....here I sit on the last day of school. I look forward to this day starting at Christmas! The students are gone, my room is packed up, all files have been updated, and now I wait. I wait for a luncheon at 11:30, to bring closure to the this school year. I have been told that it is quite an event and that I wouldn't want to miss it. So I will attend and celebrate another school year gone by!

This summer will be eventful for us. First of all, it is the last summer with Julienne as a pre-schooler. She will begin Kindergarten in the fall. She is so ready, and amazes me with how mature she has become this year. One of the big initiatives in this area is preparing our preschoolers for school, and the phrase "Success by Six" has been used. I have been really happy with the education that Julienne has received at her daycare center. She has been there since she turned two years old, and she has been in the preschool room for the year. With the help of her teachers, she has learned so much. Recently, the teachers gave her an evaluation that will be sent on to the school she will attend in the fall. She scored perfectly in every area of the assessment. Things come so naturally and easy to Julienne. I hope that she will be challenged in Kindergarten, and continue to grow intellectually, emotionally and socially. I am confident that the school she will attend will help to achieve these goals.

Secondly, we have lots of mini trips planned for this summer. Last year, we took the mini trip approach and it worked well. Our first trip will be to Maine, where we are renting a camp with my Aunt Lori and Uncle Donald. It is located on the lake and we will be able to go fishing, swim in the lake, relax and enjoy the family. I hope that my parents will join us at the camp many of the days, and even David will be home during the week we are there. The kids are super excited to go, and especially to fish. Julienne said that going to Maine was more fun than any other vacation. She says that because both of kids love their Grammy and Grampy so much, and they are spoiled when we are in Maine. Mom has promised them some individual time with Grammy and Grampy. They will each get to spend the night at their house all by themselves.

Next we may spend a couple of days camping with our friends the Weisers and the Ludholtzs. We will not camp the entire week with them, since TJ has to work, but a couple of days might be possible.

Our next trip will be a four day trip to Virginia Beach/Williamsburg. We loved the beach last year, and definitely want to return this summer. We will go to Jamestown, so I can begin teaching my children about the first permanent English settlement in North America! There is always a History lesson to be taught! :-)

We will be camping for a weekend with the Fornadel family. I am really excited about this, because we have never camped with them. They have rented a cabin and we will take our camper. I know it will be a fun weekend!

We will celebrate our 8th anniversary on July 21st. We have not solidified our plans for our anniversary, but we are planning on doing something special to celebrate our marriage.

Our last trip of the summer will be to Pigeon Forge, TN and Dollywood. This will be the first time that we attempt a large amusement park with our children. Julienne is very timid when it comes to rides or water slides. We have explained that this trip will be the test to see if we can go to Disney World soon. She has told us that she is no longer afraid, now that she is five!

We will then spend the last few weeks of summer at home, relaxing prior to the start of the new school year on August 14th. I look forward to lazy days around our pool, and spending time with friends who come to swim. Of course, my girls will be coming each week this summer. I really look forward to these days, especially now that we don't work together anymore.

So I think that is the summary of our summer plans. I will try to keep my blog more updated over the summer when I have more time.