June 5th marked the end of the 2014-2015 school year.  I cried.  I always cry.  I cry because my babies are growing.  I cry because of the teachers we have been blessed with yet again will no longer be a part of their lives.  I cry because another year has gone by.  Most importantly, I cry because I'm proud of my little people.  Proud of their growth and accomplishments during the year.  Proud of the people they are becoming.  Sigh.  End of the school year is a tough moment!

They lucked out and got a half day on Friday.  We did not go until June 18th, like last year.  The beginning of June dismissal was refreshing and welcomed by all.

Violette has grown so much over the last year.  I can say that about all the children, but Kindergarten really is a huge year.  She entered kindergarten, unsure and nervous, she leaves, confident and sure footed in learning.  She was a leader, a listener and always on the receiving end of "happy notes" from the teacher.  Violette made many friends and a social little girl!

Beginning of the year:

 End of the year:

Max had an over all good 1st grade year.  We had one phone call home from the teacher at the beginning of the year (just a heads up that Max was making over students laugh when they were supposed to be quiet) and that was all.  He excelled in Math and greatly improved in reading.  Max loved gym class and has a knack for sports.  He was challenged and learning a lot over the year.  He joined a peer to peer mentoring program and helped out special needs students an hour each week!!  I was very proud he wanted to do this and it seemed to be beneficial for all the students involved!  Max also earned several Leadership Awards for his willingness to go above and beyond in the classroom.  

Beginning of the year:

End of the year:

Noelle wrapped up her 3rd grade year as well.  She has stated it was her favorite year so far.  She has become a very studious student, who is learning and finding herself during the year.  She has learned a lot about friendships and hard lessons on being made fun of and how to ignore those with less than the best of intentions.  She is a bit of a loner, and her stories about sitting on the bench, alone, during recess bring tears to my eyes, but she is ok being alone.  She choses not to play a grade wide game of tag, she would rather get lost in a book.  Hearing that she is confident being by herself helps, but as a Mom I just want to sit next to her and hold her hand.  

Beginning of the year:

 End of the year:

It was so nice ending school at the beginning of June, as it should be.  Last year's dismissal of June 18th was ridiculous!  

After their half day, I picked them up, and we headed home so we could drive up to gorgeous Traverse City to celebrate my Mom's birthday!  More in the next post about our amazing adventure up there....