Graduating First Friends!

Last week was a sad one for this mama!  My sweet baby girl Kate graduated from preschool!  I feel like I just had her or that she really just got started there.  Its so true what everyone tells you, it flies by so fast and in a blink your kids are grown.  I feel that Cohen just graduated and here she is finishing 3rd grade.  I hate this all so much but yet I love every minute with my kids and I love getting to experience all of this with them.  So bittersweet.  Kate has had the best year.  She has loved school and has had so much fun.  She has loved having Nolan at her school and our playdates with him each week after school.  We have had so many fun trips and activities at the school.  It has been so fun getting to soak it all up with her too.  It seems that you don't get to do much at all with the kids once they walk into elementary school so I have loved getting to have this fun time with her.  Her teacher Amy is also one of my closest friends and it has been awesome having her teach Kate and bond with her.  We like to cut up and laugh every chance we get so it was fun having a friend get to be with Kate.  My first year teaching preschool at First Friends is when I found out I was pregnant with Kate and my second year there was when Amy was pregnant with Sam.  I can't believe the years have passed so fast and now these kids are 4 and 5!  I really had a hard time saying goodbye with her last week.  I'm so sentimental and I would literally sit and think about everything each day.  I really torture myself! Ha!  We still had a lot of fun during the last week.  Tuesday Kate had a field trip to Blue Haven Bee Co.  This was one of my favorites for the year.  It was so neat learning about the bees, the hive, and just how they work.  It is quite amazing how they work.  They are another reminder of how great God is!  I hate bees and it was all so fascinating to me.  I also loved the gift shop!  Honey, soap, lotion, and so much more.  It was so much fun!

seeing the queen bee

tasting honey...she just knew she wouldn't like it but she did!

As close as you'll ever see me to bees!

 After the field trip Kate went to Suzy's while I headed to Cohen's field day.  Just before I left she had already caught a lizard!  She came in telling me, "Look Mama I caught a lizard, do you want to come take my picture with it?"  She then let it go only to catch it again...so I could video her "lizard catch". This girl is so funny and she loves her critters!

one with the lizard on her shirt

Another fun thing was the sheriff from Hart County brought the alligator to school.  I was shocked when Amy told me Kate had been a little hesitant.  You know my animal lover and I would have thought she would be all in it.  I can remember Cohen doing this and she loved it too.  I think the alligator and the kids letting their butterflies go were just more animal excitement for Kate.  

Thursday was the actual graduation ceremony.  I had cried leading up to the graduation and I did cry at it.  Those slideshows with the sweet songs just get me!  I did love all their sweet songs and they were all smiling so big.  You could tell they loved their songs!  It was so sweet.  If I could freeze these kids in their safe, fun, and small preschool environment I would.  That is one thing that makes me so sad, they have all been together and had so much fun and now they will be scattered to different schools.  Everything was so safe and innocent at preschool and it seems that big school can sometimes corrupt that.  I know God has big plans for Kate and each of these sweet kids though and it is all going to be so fun to watch and be apart of!

training black dog

I loved the "Hollywood" theme.  Here was Kate's "Star"

Don't they look so excited!?

She could look so serious during some of the songs.  She was cracking me up

 

Friday we were back at the preschool for the official "last day" picnic.   She didn't have to be there until 10:00 which had me going to my Pilates class with no Kate to walk over to school.  Another cry moment for this mama.  Can you tell I'm having a hard time?!  Anyway...my awesome Pilates class cheered me up because those ladies are just fabulous.  Soooo....at 10 we made our way to the playground for some playtime fun and then a picnic lunch.  The kids loved the bouncy house and water guns!  Kate and her sweet friend Hannah were loving the water guns and the swings and found a way to enjoy both at the same time!  They were so cute.

you can bet Bryce was right there in the middle of all the fun!

Here are some fun pictures from the beginning of the year until the end.  So many sweet friendships made and I know more fun is still to come.  You'll see a lot of pictures of Kate and Nolan too.  These 2 were friends before this year and have grown up together but this year they just grew so close and have been the best of friends.  They may not be headed to the same school next year but we will be sure these 2 stay close!

 Butterfly catchers!

She found the leprechaun's hat of gold 

nature hunters!

Super Hero Day

Chinese New Year! 

eating with chopsticks 

Kate fell asleep and Nolan's face is priceless

Bryce has a huge love for the livestock barn.  We made a few trips there and this was the first.

Kate's birthday celebration at school.  Since she has a summer birthday we chose to celebrate a little early

At the end of April the preschool had a field trip to the Greenville zoo.  I think Kate had been waiting for this one for most of the year.  Who would expect anything else from Kate.  And even though we had been to this zoo several times, she loves it each time!

The poor goat is just waiting patiently

silly girl 

Kate's Boo hoo breakfast

last full day of school!

Thank you for the great memories First Friends preschool!  We have loved Mrs. Lori and Mrs. Amy! My sweet girl is now ready to take on LES!  Watch out kindergarten!

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