Avery's last soccer game

Avery had her last soccer game on Saturday as well. And she just happened to be playing against one of her very best friends!

Kaylee and Avery

this is how griff entertained himself during avery's game! yes, he is playing with a dead snake! gross, I know! what kind of mother lets her kid do that kind of thing?!?

Griffin's End of Year Party

Its hard to believe that our little Buddy has finished his first year of preschool! He had a great year and absolutely loves going to school. He loves his teachers and apparently, has captured the hearts of teachers school-wide! Everyone loves his hugs and smiles! I think school was good for Griffin because it gave him something of his own, something separate from Avery. (with as close as those 2 are in age, they have been constantly together since day 1 - so this helped griffin gain his own identity!) He also thrives in the constant activity of his days at school.

(Hannah, Charlotte, Griffin, Brendan, Camryn, Emma - this picture is a little blurry but i had 6 moving targets!)

Griffin had a really small class this year - only 8 kids with 2 teachers - so he has been well loved and taken care of. They had the parents come in for the last 45 minutes of class today to eat and hang out and celebrate their year.

Leslie, Griffin, and Camryn - enjoying their lunch

griffin and charlotte (he's a ladies' man!!)

Mrs. Meg with Griff

Mrs. Beth with Griff

Season # 1: Finished!

The kids finished their first soccer season on Saturday. Overall, it was a really good experience for both of them. Griffin loves playing and is pretty aggressive on defense and he recently discovered the position of goalie. I think that as he gets a little older, he will really do well in soccer.

Griffin had his last game, followed by a pizza party on the field with his team.

ready to be goalie

Coach Chad and Coach Duffy and their fearless purple team!

Go purple!

Graham and Shane, watching from the sidelines

Avery's End of Year Party

The kids' last day of preschool is on Wednesday so we have a busy week! Avery's class had their "end of year" party today. We ordered pizza and had cupcakes and icecream. They had several baby pools, a water table, and tons of water toys to play with. Avery's class made tie-dyed shirts last week and they all wore them today - they looked adorable! Most of this class has been together for the last 2 years; we have loved getting to know them and their wonderful families. Avery will miss all of her sweet friends! (and i'll miss their sweet mommas!)

Avery and Katie

Maddox, Kaylee, Avery

Mrs. Jenn with Avery

Mrs. Leigh with Avery

(notice graham playing in the background - tongue out and everything!)

Avery and Emma

Baseball

Brent is out of town again this weekend at a conference for work. That definitely can make for a long weekend on my own with the kids...thankfully, I am blessed with some wonderful friends to help out and to keep me company!

The Fitzsimmons invited us over for dinner last night. We ate outside and the kids had time to run around and play. Leo is a PE teacher/coach so they play lots of sports around their house. Leo played baseball with the kids last night - both Kaylee and Bryce could nail the ball...Avery hit a few good ones and when Griff hit one, he had no clue what the bases were! (or that he should run them!) Looks like we need to do a little work! Regardless, the kids enjoyed it and i enjoyed their energy release.

(maybe we need to first work on Griff keeping his eyes open while at bat!)

even the little dude wanted in on the action!

Shane attacking me from behind!

Interview with Avery

I interviewed Avery this morning and here is what she said...

How old are you: four and 12 months

What is your favorite color: pink and gold

What is your favorite food: bagels with cream cheese

What is your favorite toy: rapunzel (note: she doesnt even have this toy!)

Who is your best friend: kaylee and katelyn

If you could do anything, what would you do: go to kaylee's house

What is your favorite thing to do at school: play on the monkey bars; I can go all the way across them

Where is your favorite place to go: chicken-fil-a

What is your favorite game: playing mommy baby

Who loves you: Jesus and mommy and daddy

Anything else: I like alabama and tar heels - I root for both of those.

Avery is just a few weeks shy of being 5 years old. So hard to believe. This last year has been really fun to watch her learn things academically (counting to 100, memorizing how to write words, etc) but also watching her develop friendships and seeing the dynamics of her relationships.

Avery loves school, especially making arts/crafts. Her teachers laugh that she is "oh so girly" yet doesn't hesitate to dive into paint, shaving cream, or anything messy. She has a little boyfriend named Garrison who hollers "Bye my girlfriend Avery" every day as we leave school. Hysterical!

Our little priss loves princess dolls and polly pockets. She has quite the imagination and rearranges her stuff while creating elaborate games by herself. She has her afternoon "rest time" in my room (since griffin naps in theirs) and I never know what kind of mess I might walk into when she's done! Other than her doll stuff, there aren't too many toys that hold her attention. Most of her time is spent at the kitchen table doing artwork. We go through markers, paper, and stickers like there is no tomorrow.

Avery is super excited about going to kindergarten next year but doesn't really know what "kindergarten" is - she asked me if I know how to get to kindergarten?! I must admit that I am thankful that she is only going 1/2 day next year so that I have a little more time with her!

Interview with Griffin

I interviewed Griffin this morning and here's what he said...

How old are you: free and a half

What is your favorite color: blue and red

What is your favorite food: waffles and pizza

What is your favorite toy: buzz light year

Who is your best friend: bryce and brendon

If you could do anything, what would you do: play games with mommy/daddy/avery; cut down a tree

What is your favorite thing to do at school: play with brendon and bryce on the playground

Where is your favorite place to go: park and playground

What is your favorite game: candy land and hi ho cherries

Who loves you: mommy and daddy and big daddy and nina and gammy

Griffin is now 3 1/2 and so much fun! Yes, he is still extremely active and constantly on the go, but he is much easier to manage! He will actually be stationary long enough to build blocks or legos or play dinosaurs. He loves to be outside - his favorite pastime in the outdoors is digging! We have several small holes around our "swing set", compliments of Griffin. I am still amazed at his love for bugs/birds/squirrels. I know that is a common obsession of many little boys, but Griffin sits perfectly still for long amounts of time just observing them - kind of funny for such an active little guy.

We've made huge strides in the "eating dinner" department, thanks to Brent. (he took on a battle that I wasn't up for fighting!) Griffin actually eats dinner every night now! He's still funny about foods though - you have to force the first bite but then he realizes he likes it so he eats the rest.

Griffin has been playing soccer this spring and likes the "act" of soccer - kicking, blocking, running, etc...but he doesn't love the actual game. I think that he doesn't understand the concept yet - during his last game, he kept crying and telling me that "the orange guys are being mean to me!" (in his mind - why would anyone kick the ball away from me?!)

Griffin loves loves loves school this year. His teachers have been wonderful and he loves his classmates. I think he probably thrives with the constant stimulation and activities that preschool offers.

I am proud of our little man and all that he is learning and becoming. He is our best mannered child and caught on quickly to the yes mam/sir, please/thank you, etc. He is super lovey and tells me multiple times a day that he loves me and has a big kiss for me. It has been so fun to watch him become his own person!

Mothers Day from Avery

Avery made this "flower" at school for me as a mother's day gift. Per her instructions, I am supposed to pull off a petal and give it to her - and each petal contains a different "job" for her to do for me...things like: wash the dishes, set the table, water the flowers, give me a hug. Within 10 minutes of handing it to me, she had asked to do every job possible!


Today, she was so excited to WASH DISHES! She asked me all morning when it would be time...so she spent about 15 minutes washing dishes after we ate lunch. She said, "This is so fun. I want to do this all the time." I told her that when she's 15 I would remind her she had said that!

Seis De Mayo

On Friday night, we celebrated the Cinco de Mayo a day late. Thanks you Crochets for the delicious fajitas and festive evening! As our time in Durham is drawing to a close, it makes times like that even more special!

Brooklyn and Jonathan

Ms Rian with Bailey, Kinleigh, Ethan, and Avery

The kids had a pinata and they loved it. It was a hoot watching them attempt to break it open. After 10 minutes of wild kiddie swings, Dr Matt busted it open so the kids could get the loot.

Tinkerbell, about to hit the pinata

wild man's turn

Griffin and Kinleigh

Graham's first haircut

Following in the footsteps of the first 2 Parnell children, Graham doesn't have a ton of hair...however, he has had these long, wispy pieces around his ears and the back of his head for quite a while now. Brent hates them and has been complaining about them for months. But, I am notorious for delaying first haircuts - I hate losing that "baby look" and making them look older than they are. Also, when Graham gets sleepy, he rubs/pulls the long hair right behind his ears - and I didn't want him to lose that!

I finally gave in on Friday night and let Brent give Graham his first haircut. Graham did not hold still, even though we gave him his first sucker in hopes of keeping him still.

I was really nervous as Brent was cutting because Graham was SOOO wiggly and Brent was saying thing like "This is such a hack job!"

Talk about a moving target!

All in all, the cut turned out well! Graham does look older though!