Our pretty girls

The girls needed their hair long to put into buns for the dance recital...so...now that's over with, I took them for haircuts and look how cute they look!





(P.S. Julia was eating a blue lollipop so her tooth turned a little blue.)

Smile

My poor boy

Look what Nicholas has to wear for the next 8 months...

It's called a "maxillary expansion appliance"...huh?!?! And the cost? $1400.00. Who thought up this contraption anyway? We never had this kind of thing growing up. I mean really. Our mouths were just fine.

And you gotta love this...

"Because this is an orthopedic (bone) correction and not an orthodontic (tooth) correction, future orthodontic treatment (braces) may be needed depending on the future position of the permanent teeth."

Of course!!!

School is OUT

Today is the last day of 1st and 2nd grade. The kids had their school parties on Friday. Per usual, Julia's teachers were incredibly organized and had the whole hour planned out. Gianna came with us due to lack of babysitting. I'm glad she did though because she kept saying how much she loved their school and is now very excited to go there in the fall.

They did centers...like listening to a story about the last day of school...

And a bean bag toss. Look how cute my girls are. Julia wanted Gianna to participate too so she very protectively put her arm around her and rubbed her back as they waited.

They all signed visors for each other...

had a yummy ice cream snack...

and played bingo...

Then we went to Nicholas' classroom which was the complete opposite...unorganized with frazzled room mothers. They had ice cream sundaes and signed t-shirts for each other. They had fun. I am beyond relieved that Nicholas is done with 2nd grade and his nightmare of a teacher. I heard you can't go wrong with the 3rd grade teachers. Let's hope that's true. Both kids got their report cards today and did very, very well!

The summer will be filled with baseball, gymnastics, and various camps but I'm also hoping it will be fun and relaxing for all of us too!

Dance Recital

Last night was Julia's 4th dance recital and Gianna's very 1st recital. Gianna's dance, "Playmates", was an acro. She was so adorable up there! My eyes just filled with tears as I watched my precious girl. There were just six of them on the big stage. At one point in the dance they were all doing an arabesque and Gianna forgot to put her leg down. One of the girls pushed it back down for her!!! You got to love this age. They were beyond precious.

Julia did two dances last night, one was a tap to "Cheese Please" and the other was a jazz to "One Way or Another". She did a fantastic job!

I wonder what next year will hold for my dancers?!?!

Before the show...gotta love the bunny ears over Julia's head...

Gianna's dance "Playmates"...

They got into the ending pose way too early but it just added to the cuteness of the dance...

Julia's "One Way Or Another"...

Julia's "Cheese Please"...

The Finale...

Good-Bye Little Blessings

I asked the Lord
To show me the way
To teach my children
Through love and play
A place that is safe
And full of fun
A place that welcomes everyone
That place is Little Blessings

The past five years
Have gone so quick
My favorite memory
I cannot pick
The Feast. The Circus.
The Alligator Punch
I will always treasure
The Mother's Day Brunch
I love Little Blessings

They started school as toddlers
And leave at five years old
You have taught them independence
And to do just what they are told
The children have learned kindness
How important it is to share
Tender hands which gently guide them
Our children get special care
The teachers are Little Blessings

And now they have graduated
A time that is bittersweet
To say good-bye brings sadness
While new challenges they meet
What a great beginning
To give our little ones
From ABC's to Jesus
A learning journey has begun
Thank God for Little Blessings

~Written by a Mother from Little Blessings ~

"When I grow up I want to be..." and Gianna replied, "A pet helper."

Go now in peace

Go now in peace

May the love of God surround you

Everywhere

Everywhere

You may go

This Is Us concert

(Yes, that's me with The Boys...along with 3 other random people. That guy next to me was drunk. I really wanted to be in front of Howie or AJ...but of course I landed in front of Brian. Oh well.)

Kimmy and I went to Mohegan Sun yesterday to see The Boys for their "This is Us" tour. We went all out and bought VIP tickets. That meant we got to have a private show before the concert. We were let into the Arena around 5:00 with about 50 other people. Howie came out first pushing his little boy in a wagon. Very cute!

Then the others joined him. They asked us to request some songs. They sang three for us, "Drowning", "Masquerade" and "I Still". Oh, they sounded so good.

A.J.

Howie

Then there was time for Q&A. Right after that we got to have a picture taken with them. I got to speak to A.J. for a minute. I told him I really liked his solo album. He just looked at me, tilted his head, and said really surprised..."Really!?!" His reaction wasn't what I expected at all. It was only released in Japan so maybe not many people know about it here. He was so genuine and sweet.

I have to say I was a little disappointed in Howie though. When he first came out on the stage with his little boy, he was all smiles. But shortly after that he seemed a little distracted and disinterested. Not sure why. Oh and one thing that really bugged me...they were texting!!! I had to take a picture just to show how rude it was.

I mean...really?!?! Come on!!! Three of them kept checking their phones and at one point they were all texting at the same time. A.J. was the only one who didn't pull out his phone. We all paid a lot of money to be there and just out of respect for us they shouldn't have even touched their phones. In a way, I hope it showed the younger people there just how rude that can be. But hey, I got over it pretty quickly. I was on cloud 9 after meeting them! The concert was fantastic! The best out of the three we've seen in my opinion.

Thanks Kimmy for a great time!!!

Here are some video clips from the VIP performance...