May

May flew by! It was busy with lots of celebrations and special events. We started out the month with Erin's final two dance shows for school - possibly her last-ever dance shows! There were two shows on Thursday and two on Friday. She had an audience at each show, thanks to Anna and friends, Olivia's family, and Bob and me! The theme was "Music Through the Ages". Her class dance was "Under Pressure" by Queen, and her small group choreography project piece was to "Mambo Italiano". 

After a very busy week of rehearsals and shows, Erin kept going that weekend to her piano musicians' meet-up on Saturday, then straight to work for 6 hours! While she was working, Anna went to swim at Juliet's neighborhood pool and Bob worked at Peakfest. Meanwhile, I washed the porch windows and was Anna's chauffeur and emergency change-deliverer to the Knights' tent at Peakfest. Sunday the 4th, Erin was back to work for an early shift. Bob and I enjoyed lunch at Doc B's in Fenton with Liz and David, and we all went to the final 6pm youth mass of the year that evening.

Finley was back to the vet on Monday the 5th for a recheck of his liver enzymes, which were still elevated, so he is continuing two more months of ursodiol and the liver supplement and will be checked again in July. He is ok with taking the meds, but doesn't really like the supplement tablet. It seems to be really hard and difficult to chew. I think that is less critical than the ursodiol, which he takes easily in a pill pocket (it's a small tablet). 

After school on Monday was the small group choreography dance performances, where again Erin had a nice audience of Anna, a few of her friends, and me. Tuesday, we had a nice mass for Grandma Harvey. Wednesday, Bob headed to the Bay Area for a few days. Sadly, he had to be gone on his birthday, but we celebrated the night before with presents and blondies! 

While he was gone, our long-awaited kitchen remodeling project began! A crew came on Thursday afternoon to remove the cabinet and drawer fronts for painting and assembled the new island cabinets. Friday, some tile guys came and removed all of the backsplash, and the countertop people came to do final measurements. Thursday evening, Erin and I enjoyed attending Olivia's last-ever band concert, where she was in a small group flute piece and did wonderfully! Anna babysat for the Lemons family on Friday evening, and Bob returned from California.

Saturday the 10th, Anna enjoyed lunch and a nail appointment with Lyla, Erin worked in the afternoon/evening, and Bob and I had a nice afternoon on the lake. Sunday was a rainy but very nice Mother's Day, including visiting Erin at work, getting Krispy Kreme, and having a delicious dinner of pork tenderloin, pasta salad, and cake by the girls! 

We all went to the NCSU campus mass at the cathedral that evening since Erin was working in the morning, and enjoyed it very much. Monday, the real work began on the kitchen, which took five days and went very smoothly. We were most impressed at how clean, organized, and thorough all of the crews were! The designer, Bekah, would stop by every day to check on things, and her husband, Jerry, acted as the GC, being there most of the time and supervising/coordinating all of the work. We were even able to use the kitchen most of the evenings (though we did take advantage of the opportunity for lots of takeout!). What we really missed was the laundry room for the week, and the kitchen sink for two nights. Thanks to neighbor Karen for sharing her washer and dryer with us many times!

Bob and Tom enjoyed attending a Carolina Hurricanes playoff game on Monday evening as a part of Bob's birthday gift. The Canes won that game and ended up winning the series, but are proving to be having more difficulty in the eastern conference round (down 3-1 to Florida). 

Erin visited the Cathedral School on Wednesday with Service Beakers, and Anna stayed after school for the final Cooking Club meeting of the year. Most of that week, my job during the day was watching Finley, which ended up being intensive because he was so upset about the workers that he needed some anti-diarrheal medicine. We are happy to report that he has made a full recovery, with the help of some (more) meds.

Other than the kitchen project, that week was pretty calm. Erin had her final piano club for the year on Tuesday. She did a great job driving herself to/from her lessons the last couple of months this year. The kids had an early release on Friday, and Anna hit the pool for the first time this season that afternoon. The water has been cold, but the air temps have been nice! Saturday was one of the best days of the year: piano recital day! Erin did a wonderful job, as did the Tierneys and other music friends who we got to see. 

That evening was Anna's friend birthday dinner at Colletta in Cary/Fenton which went very well. Erin and I dined at Superica nearby as well as served as the photography crew and gift carriers (Bob was cooking at a BBQ at church). It was a lot of fun! 

Sunday was Anna's actual birthday, which was a nice and calm day. She and I got to go shopping in the afternoon and enjoyed that. Erin worked in the afternoon/evening. 

The week of the 19th was pretty normal; it was the kids' last week of classes. Anna had her first-ever DMV experience on the 20th and passed her written and signs tests to get her permit! 

She's already driven 1.5 hours and is doing well so far. Erin worked the afternoons on both Saturday and Sunday. Anna and I hung at the pool with some neighbor friends on Saturday, and Anna went back to Juliet's pool on Sunday while Bob, Finley, and I enjoyed a great afternoon at the lake. We will get the whole family out there together soon! 

We had a fun evening with the McGee ladies on Monday, cooking together for Memorial Day. Olivia gave us some great pointers on making homemade pasta, and Dawn whipped up a delicious pork sauce. Josie decorated a cookie cake with fruit in the shape of a flag, and then we all feasted! The kids have exams this week; Anna has one or two each day Tuesday-Friday, and Erin has two each day but is off on Friday.  So far, so good! I'm looking forward to book club tonight and neighborhood bunco on Thursday.

Friday will be a big day for Anna and Bob: going to Australia! He has go to for work, and Anna ended up being available and willing to tag along! They'll be in Sydney for the first four days while he works, and then they're heading up to Port Douglas to check out the Great Barrier Reef and rainforest! They're so excited and are going to have a wonderful time. Meanwhile, the other three of us will be here working (Erin), getting a haircut (Erin), going to a 50th birthday party (me), and heading back to the DMV for Erin's Level 3 appointment.

May was lots of fun and busy, too! We are looking forward to some relaxation in June, as well as a visit to the Catholic University of America on the 10th!

April!

April was great!  It started out on a sad note with Grandma Harvey passing away in Fort Wayne on April 1. We were thinking of and praying for her that week and beyond.  Bob and I went to the countertop store on the morning of the 1st and picked one out (victory!).  Finley had his liver ultrasound on the morning of the 2nd, which came back clear, so they put him on 30 days of a liver supplement and Ursodiol.  We go back on May 6th for the next step in the saga.  Anna babysat for her favorite family, the Lemons, on Thursday evening.  My car got new tires on Friday the 4th (a few weeks before it hit the big 50,000 miles, right at 2 years from buying it!).  

I went to confession on the morning of the 5th for Lent, and Erin worked that afternoon/evening.  She's usually been working a 6-hour shift on Saturday and another one on Sundays most weekends, except when she's got something else going on.  She's also had a 4-hour shift one weeknight most weeks.  The Harris Teeter job is going very well, and she's feeling comfortable there - yay!  

Because of her work schedule, she was not able to attend Logan's Eagle Scout ceremony on Sunday the 6th, so Anna and I went to Harrisburg for that.  Way to go, Logan!

I went to Fort Wayne early Tuesday morning until Wednesday evening so I was able to take part in all of the funeral-related events.  There was a family rosary on Tuesday afternoon at the funeral home, then a 4-hour visitation that was very well-attended that evening.  Wednesday, there was a family viewing/closing of the casket, then the funeral mass, then burial, and luncheon.  The driving on Wednesday was: funeral home, church, funeral home/cemetery, church, airport.  Everything is fairly close, though.  I didn't have any flight issues (through Charlotte both times) and enjoyed my Chrysler minivan rental.  Everything went smoothly, and thanks to Bob for holding down the fort at home!   He and Erin even went to a college fair at school on Wednesday, where Erin got to talk to several reps.

I was back to CPO and also went to adoration at Gibbons on Thursday.  The kids had a half day on Friday the 11th due to the prom (only juniors and seniors go, but the whole school got the half day).  On Friday, Erin did a make-up piano lesson for a week when she was sick awhile back.  Saturday, Erin was back to work and Anna did some shopping and saw a movie with Lyla.   Anna had another babysitting job on Sunday, and Erin was back to work.

Bob went up to New York from the 14th to the 16th for some meetings.  The rest of us did the usual stuff, though it was a short school week before they got out for their 10-day Spring Break on the 17th!  We all toured Elon that afternoon and were quite impressed.  It is a mid-sized school just over an hour from us.  It has grown a lot and seems to have a lot of great programs and activities.   It's a solid contender.  

Friday, we had an early flight to Tampa for our 4-day Spring Break trip to Anna Maria Island!  The flight went smoothly, we picked up our car, and headed towards the island, stopping at a Walmart in St. Petersburg and then for pizza/pasta for lunch in Bradenton.  We couldn't get into our house until 4pm, so we went straight to the public beach at Bayfront Park and got started soaking up some rays until we could get into the house.  Then, we unpacked, I picked up some (fish) tacos for dinner, and we tried out the pool at the house.  Saturday morning, we did some shopping/biking around town, checked out the kayaks at the house (which is on a channel), 

had lunch at the house, and then checked out the larger beach along the gulf.  After heading back to shower, we biked to a very good dinner at The Sandbar, walked on the beach after, and got ice cream.  

Sunday, we went to St. Bernard's church for Easter mass (it is on the island, 10-15 minutes from the house), then got a delicious cinnamon roll and shopped at a place near our house and had lunch at the house.  Then, we went to the pool or various beaches, and got takeout from the Beach Cafe, which was fish tacos for the parents, a chicken sandwich for Erin, and chicken tenders for Anna.  We then biked to Bean Point, the tip of the island, and walked around.  Monday morning, we had to be out of the house by 10am, so we packed up and started driving back towards Tampa.  We first stopped in Clearwater for a Mexican lunch, and then walked around that area.  Erin and Gina were nostalgic for our trip there 3 years ago.  From there, we went to the Clearwater Aquarium, where we had a very nice afternoon touring and enjoying the animals.  

After finishing at the aquarium, we drove into downtown Tampa, walked on the Riverwalk for a little bit, and walked around downtown.  We had a delicious pizza dinner at Tampa Pizza, then proceeded to the airport for our 9pm flight, which was uneventful.  All in all, it was a great trip, and we enjoyed seeing a new area!  Much of the area is still rebuilding from Hurricanes Helene and Milton which both hit the area in 2024, but most places were still open.  We noticed a lot of construction, and homes being rebuilt with cinder blocks to withstand future storms.  Finley did well at home with Camden, and it was a successful trip!

Upon returning, the kids had dentist appointments on Tuesday, and Erin had piano that evening.  Wednesday, Anna went to Defy with Bella, and I had a piano lesson and took dinner to a family from church.  The girls and I all went to CPO on Thursday, and they did a great job assembling carts and running them to the families' cars.  Bob and I had a fun time getting dinner at Neomonde and then attending a Wolfpack baseball game that evening.  The #25 Pack swept #2 Clemson in that series!  Friday, Anna and Bella went shopping and hung out at our house, and Erin had another piano lesson to make up for the one she was going to miss during dance rehearsals the following week.

Saturday, we all loaded up bright and early and ventured to the Charlotte area for a tour of Belmont Abbey (dropping Anna off with Ansley at Concord Mills on the way).  We enjoyed the tour; it's a smaller school with a very pretty campus.  

Erin needs to decide if it's too small, and if it has enough options for a major that she might want to do.  After the tour, we met up at Elliott's baseball game (he did great!), then on to their house for pizza lunch and April/May birthday celebration.  What a fun day!

Sunday, Bob and Erin went to church in the morning before her afternoon work shift, and Anna and I went to the evening youth mass before the last youth group session of the year (Erin used her second of 3 allowable absences for the year due to working).  Anna had two simultaneous cat-sitting jobs between Sunday-Tuesday.  I hosted book club on Monday evening as well.  Erin started her busy week of dance rehearsals/shows on Monday, plus Confirmation on Wednesday!  

Confirmation was wonderful!  The bishop was there (Bishop Zarama), and Erin, along with 118 other kids, got confirmed.  Erin was asked to read the first reading, which she did a great job! 

The bishop was so friendly and down-to-earth; he spoke to them about the importance of being themselves, loving others, and keeping the faith.  Grandma A. was Erin's sponsor, and she and Grandpa drove up for the mass.  Gina was Olivia's sponsor and felt pretty cool getting to shake the bishop's hand afterwards!  It was a beautiful evening.

So- we packed a lot into April, but it was a lot of fun, and very productive as well.  Other smaller notes include making selections for the kitchen project, doing some yard work, and the usual other stuff.  We are looking forward to the end of the school year and summer ahead!  May looks to be a little more relaxed, with 3 more weeks of school and then a week of exams.  The end is in sight!  We also look forward to celebrating Bob's and Anna's birthdays and the completion of our kitchen and laundry room renovation in the middle of the month.  Exciting times!

May!

Whew!  We made it through May!  We had a fun first few days, including Anna's end-of-season soccer party on the 3rd and Peakfest in Apex on the 4th.  Erin also had her last musician's meet-up for piano earlier in the day on Saturday.  I hosted book club on the 6th and helped a little extra at school for Teacher Appreciation Week.  Bob had a nice birthday on the 7th, even though it was a work day!

Anna had a quick 3-day cat-sitting job and then a long 1+ week other cat-sitting job in the neighborhood.  I had a super fun moms' night out dinner on the 10th, and Erin did a beautiful job in her piano recital on the 11th!  

Anna had a fun time babysitting that evening as well.

I had a nice Mother's Day, including an afternoon at the lake.  The water wasn't very warm yet, but the air was beautiful!  Bob spent 3 days in New York that week, then was home for a day before heading to Sydney for 9 days.  Guess who he saw there from all the way across the world?

That week was the kids' last regular week of school.  Anna had a fun birthday weekend and had a great time with her 2 friends over on Saturday and Sunday!  They went to the pool and out for a Mexican dinner on Saturday, and then shopping on Sunday.

Erin took her final exams from the 20th-23rd, and all went well.  She was finished as of 10am on the 23rd and is now settling in to summer!  She is trying something new this summer:  volunteering at the library!  She had an interview and has also been to orientation.  Her first shift is June 6th.  She's also hoping to get some more driving practice in over the summer (especially night hours).  

Anna also took her final exams over the week of the 20th, but had full school days through the 28th and a half day on the 29th.  We had a really fun visit with my uncle Tom and aunt Lillian from Thursday afternoon to Saturday morning!  They got to see some of StMM on Thursday, and Friday we (minus Anna, who was at school) toured the cathedral, NCSU, and went to mass at Sacred Heart.  That was a lot of fun!  

Anna went straight from school on Friday afternoon to Lake Norman with Lyla's family for the weekend.  After our visitors left, Erin and I attended Kate's graduation party and had a great time!  We also took dinner to Anna's babysitting clients who just had their third baby.  We had a super fun day on Sunday the 26th, picking Anna up from Lake Norman and then spending the day in Concord for her birthday/catching up.  We ladies got our summer pedicures on Monday, and Anna also had a haircut on Tuesday after school.  I had my last-ever cafeteria volunteer shift that day.  

The 29th was Anna's last day of school, and we had a fun clap-out for her and her friends.  

She then hosted her 5 friends that afternoon to "get ready" for the dance that night.  Bob and I helped chaperone the dance, and it was a blast!  Anna is lucky that a parent in her grade owns a beautiful venue and allowed the dance to be held there!  

Anna's 8th grade graduation was on the 30th, and it was very nice.  It was fun to see the kids one last time (though all of her friends and about 2/3 of the grade will see each other at Gibbons). 

 

We enjoyed some yummy ice cream at Mama Bird's after the ceremony.  We had a relaxing day on the 31st and spent a beautiful afternoon at the lake.  The water was not quite warm yet, but 3 of us still got in for awhile!

We are happy to have had so many fun celebrations in the month of May.  We are ready for a bit more relaxation and lots more fun coming up this summer!

May!

May was insane, but we are still thankful that we are able to do all of these fun things.  After the pandemic, I will never again take things like recitals and parties for granted!  The month started out with Erin going on her class trip to YMCA Camp Harrison near Wilkesboro, NC.  They spent 2 nights there doing teambuilding, hiking, outdoor activities, and some retreat-type activities.  She had a great time, and the weather was perfect!  

Thursday the 4th was the end of Anna's soccer season.  They were "on the bubble" of making the playoffs, but sadly lost a coin toss for 4th place.  The good part was that they got to end the season with a great win, versus going to the playoffs where they may or may not have won.  She enjoyed the season and tried her hand (actually, foot) at playing offense for the first time ever.  

The kids had a half day of school on Friday, and Anna went to Lyla's to sleep over while Erin and I went to the Gibbons spring dance show, which was really good!  Erin will be in it next year!  Saturday morning, Anna and I went to volunteer at the Miracle League with her soccer team and had a blast! 

 After that, we went to Josie Mae's First Communion party which was lots of fun.  Anna also pet-sat for Ruby and Luna over the weekend.  

Sunday was Bob's birthday!  We had a great family day with church, lunch, and a few hours out on the boat for the first time this year.  Anna was brave enough to get in the water and reported that it wasn't too cold.  Finley enjoyed his boat time as well.

I hosted book club on Monday, and Bob went to Vancouver from Tuesday-Friday for work.  Otherwise, it was a fairly routine week.  Saturday, we met Aunt Pam, Jimmy, and Danny at our pool and had a great time!  That evening, the girls went to see their school musical, Willy Wonka, Jr.  It was an awesome performance, and it was so fun to see some of their friends onstage!  I had a great Mother's Day on Sunday, with breakfast cooked by Erin and Anna and a nice family hike around Bass Lake.  

Bob headed back out west from Sunday-Friday to the Bay Area.  Erin had a fun last week of school with some special dress days only for 8th graders and a clap-out with the whole school before they left early on Friday!  

Anna had the first of 4 cat-sitting jobs over 2 weeks for neighbors Louis and Lilly, and enjoyed her birthday on Thursday!  

Friday night was the 8th grade "Red Carpet" dance, which was a blast!  The kids walked the red carpet into the gym building with parents there as paparazzi cheering for them.  They had some really nice treats and Italian sodas, plus great music and lots of fun!  

Saturday the 20th began Anna's second cat-sitting gig, a week watching Cherry and Pie near the front of the neighborhood.  We also had Erin's piano recital that afternoon, and she did a fabulous job!  

She went from there straight to Zophia's birthday party, which was lots of fun.  I had the 3 moms over who were going on the Virginia trip to do a little planning while the girls were at the party, and Anna had a babysitting job that evening as well.  Busy day!

Sunday, we enjoyed a visit with Grandma and Grandpa F. and got to catch up, which was great!  Monday was the school golf tournament, and I helped set that up and see the golfers off.  Then, Erin and I went out to lunch, and she had her final piano lesson of the year that evening.  Anna began her third cat-sitting job on Monday, watching Louis and Lilly again while their parents took a second trip. This week was Erin's last week of dance classes as well. Wednesday was Erin's practice for graduation followed by a fun picnic on the field in beautiful weather! 

Thursday the 25th was the big day...graduation (technically called "promotion" since they don't actually get diplomas).  It went great, and Erin was thrilled to receive the English Language Arts award!  That was very surprising to us, but we were so touched that her wonderful teacher, Mrs. Henning, recognized how hard she works in that area and the great progress that she made.  Go, Erin!  

Anna stayed home sick from school that day with some congestion, but was better in time for the evening ceremony.  We had some yummy ice cream after to celebrate!

Friday morning, Erin and I hit the road for our super fun trip to the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia with friends Olivia, Vera, Elena, and their moms.  We had a fabulous time and got to see a lot!  First, we met up with Elena and Kathy at Poplar Forest, which was a summer home/retreat for Thomas Jefferson in Lynchburg, VA.  It is in a beautiful setting.  We checked it out a little bit and then decided to go eat lunch at a local BBQ place.  Everyone else met us there, and we had a really yummy lunch!  From there, it was about 1.5 hours to our rental house, but we got a call from the van (Sophie, Vera, Dawn, and Olivia) about 20-30 minutes from the house saying that they had gotten a flat tire.  I turned around to pick up the girls, and Kathy stopped as well but then we decided that she should continue on to the house and start unpacking.  The positive here was that we all got to get a peek at the Blue Ridge Parkway.  I brought Erin, Olivia, and Vera back to the house while Dawn and Sophie called Honda roadside assistance and AAA, and the AAA guy ended up showing up very quickly.  They got the spare put on and drove to the house.  While they were doing that, the rest of us hit the Food Lion for the first of 3 visits there over the weekend.  We all went back to the house and had pizza and salad and settled in. 

Saturday, we cooked breakfast at the house, stopped at Food Lion, and then had a really great hike in the Shenandoah National Park followed by a picnic lunch there, then picked up the van with its brand new tire on the way to touring Harrisonburg on foot and doing a little shopping there.  

We then had dinner at Billy Jack's Shack, which was a lot of fun!  Sunday, we all divided up for a little while in the morning - Erin and I went to church in Harrisonburg, Kathy and Elena checked out the resort activities, and the other 4 went to tour the JMU campus.  Erin and I headed towards JMU after mass and we all walked around for a while and then had lunch at a dining hall there, which was very good!  

While we waited for Kathy and Elena to eat and head towards us, we shopped at Barnes and Noble nearby.  We then all met up at the Luray Caverns and really enjoyed seeing such an unusual place! 

 After the caverns, we headed back to the house for a dinner requested by the girls - dino nuggets and macaroni and cheese.  We hung out and played games after that and then made a roaring fire for s'mores in the fire pit out back.  Monday morning, we made breakfast, packed up, and headed out with a lunch stop at Jersey Mike's in Danville, VA.  The whole trip was so much fun, even with the flat tire!

While we were gone, Bob, Anna, and Finley had a weekend full of rain.  Anna finished her two cat-sitting jobs from last week and started the fourth one for a new family in the neighborhood.  Anna also had a sleepover at Lyla's and Bob went to a Knights gathering on Saturday night.  They went to church on Sunday and walked Finley between all of the rain.

Tuesday was back to school for Anna for her final 2.5 days, but at least those days include an ice cream party, Field Day, and basically nothing on the last half day.  She is very much ready for summer and to move on to 8th grade! 

Coming up next are Anna's birthday party on Friday and Erin's dance recitals on Saturday and Sunday.  Then it's on to Concord for Ansley's confirmation, THEN to Hilton Head for a week of fun and hopefully some relaxation!  Bring on summer!

May

May was busy!  I've heard people call it "May-ember" to imply that there are as many events in May as there are in December in preparation for Christmas.  Those people might be on to something.  Bob was in Australia and New Zealand through the 10th, and he had a really great time, especially seeing a bucket list item (New Zealand)!  He spent most of his side trip there in the Christchurch area on the south island, hiking in a national park, and seeing the sights.  He also spent part of a day in Auckland, the main city, on the north island.  The work portion in Sydney beforehand went well, and all of the travel went smoothly!

Meanwhile, we ladies had a nice time at Joey's first communion at the cathedral on the 1st, followed by a fun party at their house.  The week of the 2nd was busy for me at school with it being Teacher Appreciation Week.  Anna also had 3 school soccer games, a school soccer party, and the girls had their first middle school dance on the evening of Friday the 6th!  

The dance was beach themed, and the kids turned out in full force and had a blast!  There were severe storms in our area that evening, but thankfully the dance was indoors and the storms didn't prevent people from driving their kids to/from school.  

That was quite a week.  We wished Bob a virtual happy 40th birthday from halfway around the world on the 7th.  We had a more laid back weekend, and a nice Mothers Day complete with Panera takekout!

Monday the 9th, I went to book club in the evening, and Anna had her last Y soccer practice as well as Erin's last piano lesson on the 10th.  The year is winding down!  Finley had a blast at that practice, which was at a different location than usual and had a great walking trail.  The girls did their traditional egg toss at the end of practice, and it didn't seem to get too messy.  Bob went straight from the airport to Anna's practice.  We had a couple of consultations to refinish our hardwood floors that week; we are casually considering doing that this summer when we have some more flexibility in our schedule.  It doesn't sound fun, though, to move everything out!  We had to reschedule the school spring festival from Friday the 13th to the 20th due to impending storms, which ended up not being that bad.  I spent a lot of time worrying about the weather this month!

Saturday the 14th was Anna's first-ever soccer tournament!  It wasn't too far away, in Clayton, and she played 3 games at 8:30am, 11:00am, and 2:45pm.  Her team won all 3 games, AND they won the tournament!  We managed to avoid any weather issues (though it did rain through most of the last game).  It was a really fun day for the girls and the parents.  

That evening, Erin branched out of her comfort zone and went to Marvel movie night at her piano teacher's house to celebrate the end of the year.  I don't think she was a fan of "Ant Man and the Wasp", but she hung in there until 10:15, which is definitely a stretch for Erin!

Bob left on Sunday the 15th for Valencia, Spain, for a work conference.  We ladies (and Finley, of course!) held down the fort.  I had to spend all of Monday at the school golf tournament (which was super boring, no offense to golfers), and we celebrated Anna's actual birthday on the 18th!  She had a nice day with some special food, gifts from us, and she got to dress down for school.  

Friday the 20th was the spring festival at school, which was insanely hot.  All I can say about it was that it was hot!  There was a good turnout, but one sports team didn't show up to work their cotton candy and popcorn tent, so another mom and I were stuck at that the whole time.  But, it was successful, and was thankfully the last of the PSO events for the year.  Due to a few factors (covid, Lent, and scheduling), we had a bunch of stuff packed into the last month of school.  But, it's over now!

The weekend of the 21st we girls were all a little sick, but it worked out well that we didn't have much planned.  We had to miss Danny's birthday party, but we got his gift to him and we are going to see them this weekend!  We had to reschedule Anna's birthday party at the pool, but it ended up storming during the originally scheduled time anyway.  Anna went to the eye doctor on the 23rd and got some badly needed new contacts.  Her right eye went up by 0.25 and her left eye stayed the same from either last May or last December when she got contacts.  

Wednesday the 25th ended up being the last day of school due to a covid "outbreak" within the school (5th grade).  I am still pretty confused about what exactly went down and I definitely don't agree with them closing the school a week early, but what can I do about it?!  I would say that as PSO president this year, I got a little too close to the "inside" of the school and plan to never be that close again!  ;) 

So, it was a lot of mixed emotions surrounding the end of the school year, but we are now into summer mode and are making the most of it.  The girls joined the Y and did a middle school orientation class on Saturday morning, and we all went to work out together this morning, which was great!  Bob and I took a boat training class on Sunday at Falls Lake for our new venture - boat club!  We are super excited to be able to reserve boats and have some outdoor family fun on the lake!  

Monday was Memorial Day, and we mostly did some projects around the house and hit the pool with Olivia in tow, which was lots of fun.  

Tuesday, we ran some errands and Erin had her dress rehearsals for her dance recitals coming up this weekend - it's her first year taking 2 classes, so that ended up meaning she will be in 2 recitals!  Sometimes multiple classes are in the same recital, but it's just luck of the draw.  Her dress rehearsals ended up being just an hour apart on the same night, though, so that was nice.  Her recitals are this coming Saturday at 1:30pm and Sunday at 7pm, and this year they are back at Fletcher Opera House in downtown Raleigh for the first time since 2019.

So, that was May!  It was a little crazy but all good, and we are happy that we were able to do so many normal things again. Here's hoping for more of the same, especially when school starts back up!