End of the year celebrations!

So school ended about TWO weeks ago and I'm just now getting around to posting about it. 
Oh well. My only excuse is that summer is here and time on the computer is just not a top priority right now;) We're too busy having lots of summer fun;)

The last week of school was C-R-A-Z-Y! Our days were chalked full of end of the year celebrations. Each of the kids had parties to attend BUT thankfully there were no schedule conflicts in party dates and times. PHEW! 

 Monday was Corban's special day. 

His class did a "Minute to Win It" themed party! I was in charge of the games, and I think the kids really enjoyed participating in each challenge.

Corban had THE SWEETEST teacher this year and she was such a blessing to both Corban and I.  It was definitely hard to say good bye to such a wonderful lady. We are REALLY going to miss her!

Tuesday was Riley's special day! His class had fun performing in a readers theater and then enjoyed a yummy pizza party out in the courtyard of the school.

Riley was the recipient of the "Kindest Kid" award this year and I am so proud of him.
What a wonderful thing to be recognized for;)
Go, Ri!!!

And then on Wednesday we headed to Addy-Kate's classroom for her end of the year celebration. She was sooooo excited to have us in her class room and didn't waste any time showing us all around her room.

I just cannot say enough wonderful things about AK's teacher this year. She was absolutely AMAZING and did such good job with our girl. We have seen so much positive change and growth  this year and owe so much to our sweet, Mrs. Taggio.

So schools out for the summer and we are loving every single minute of it. 

More about what we've been up to coming soon...

The Dunk Tank!

 Last weekend, some of our sweet neighbors hosted a "School's ALMOST out for the summer" block party! 

The afternoon was made complete with a delicious bar-b-que dinner,  awesome bounce house and a carnival-like dunk tank. My kids had a BLAST partaking in all the fun with their friends, but their VERY favorite thing was the... DUNK TANK!

Sophie girl was the FIRST of the Bruce's brave enough to try it out.

Big shocker there, right;)

 After our girl showed ALL her brothers up...the boys quickly got in line and wanted to give it a try too!

 Look at that grin. A brother's ultimate dream come true...dunking his bigger brother in the tank.

What a FUN afternoon spent with friends, and a great way to celebrate the end of school and the beginning of (what's-sure-to-be) a wonderful SUMMER!!!!

Corban turns 11!

June is a month FULL of birthdays for our family. Addy-Kate's was on Monday, Corban and my grandma shared the day on Thursday, and my sister, KK's, is coming up on the 17th. Throw Father's day into the mix, and you have a month chalked full of celebrating;) 

It's the absolute BEST!

Although I will say, having a birthday fall on a busy weekday makes celebrating a bit tricky. 

We tried to make Corban's day special though, and did our best to honor him amidst all our normal weekday activities.   

He woke up to a yummy chocolate chip pancake breakfast...

and then Sophie and I brought him a surprise lunch at school! 

We also brought three dozen Krispy Kreme donuts for him to share with his classmates.

 That afternoon, we headed to our first swim meet of the summer. 

Corban is quite the social butterfly these days, and he had a blast hanging out with his sweet friends! He had a great meet and was blessed to receive MANY birthday wishes during the evening.

The MC even announced Corban's special day over the loud speaker before Cor swam in one of his events.

 And our Riley had a pretty AWESOME meet too. He placed FIRST in two of his heats. Way to go, buddy!

We ARE so proud of BOTH of our sweet boys!

Addy-Kate is FOUR!

 On Monday, this sweet girl turned FOUR!!! 

SERIOUSLY, FOUR!!!!!

I cannot believe it!

Miss Addy-Kate has brighten our lives with immeasurable joy and filled our home with contagious laughter. She is a true gift from the Lord and we are beyond blessed to call her ours! 

Her day of celebration was simple and SWEET!

Chocolate Chip Pancakes for breakfast...

A trip to the donut store after the gym...

And then a fun picnic in the park!

 She was very excited about her special day and proudly announced to everyone she met that it was indeed HER birthday!  

Our friend, Charlotte came over and we ended the day with dinner, cake and presents.

Happy 4th Birthday, sweet Addy-Kate! You are such a special little girl and we are so blessed to celebrate your day with you!

We love you to the moon and back!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Celebrating Adoption!

 

 Saturday was spent at Dan Nicholas Park, celebrating life and family with Christian Adoption Services (our adoption agency) at their annual reunion. 

 Families who have adopted, or who are in the process, were there to enjoy a fun day together.

 I have to tell you...just being there,

 and seeing all the beautiful forever families which have been created through adoption is truly remarkable!

 Nothing excites me more than seeing families come together to celebrate the beautiful gift of adoption!!!

 We are beyond grateful to CAS and for the role they played in making our family what it is today! 

 They helped make our biggest dreams come true!!!