Happy 4th Birthday, Noel David!

It is still hard for me to wrap my head around the fact that I am a grandmother, that I have a grandson!  It is even harder for me to come to grips with the fact that he is now 4 years old, no longer a baby or a toddler, but a preschooler, with his feet pointed firmly towards become a school aged child.  I highly doubt that he will ever set foot in a school, at least not any time soon, school did far too much damage to his mother for her to think it could be the right place for her to ship her son off to each day...but I digress....

Today we had the pleasure of being invited to share Noel's special day with him!  And surprisingly he let me take pictures and he is looking at the camera.  I LOVE how some of these shots turned out.  And I love that his mom made him a Max and Ruby inspired worm cake to celebrate!

Luke conquers the diving board

Luke did it!  He went off the diving board!  With his momma proudly cheering him on, he jumped into the water!  Hard to believe that you couldn't even get him to let go of the side of the pool last year!  My baby boy sure is growing up!

Totally AWESOME 80's Dance!

We had an AMAZING time at the dance!  Doesn't hurt that we got to rock out all night to some AWESOME 80's music!  I completely FORGOT what great music was around when I was in high school.  I think I had more fun creating the playlist than the kids did!  We mixed up traditional dance songs (chicken dance, YMCA, line dances), 80's favorites, and current popular songs.

We set up a photo backdrop so that all the dance guests could take pictures.  It was a huge hit and super simple to make.  We just created "records" out of black poster board and made the labels out of neon cardstock. We cut out our title using a stencil (old fashion I know but I didn't want to lug a die-cut machine with me!) and the same cardstock we used to make the labels.  We attached everything to some white paper that you would use when making a bulletin board in someplace like a classroom.  A little tape and some hot glue and we were all set!

 

Yes, even Jay and I got in on the fun!  Jay came straight from work so wasn't in his 80's garb but I was rocking my high side ponytail, blue eye shadow, Flashdance inspired cut shirt and leopard print skirt!

Here was the information for the dance:
ALIVE 4-H Club along with the Teens from the East of Cincy Homeschool Organization (ECHO) are hosting a FAMILY DANCE! We hope you can join us!

When: Friday June 7, 2013 from 7 PM to 10 PM
Where: 4-H Hall at the Clermont County Fairgrounds 1000 Locust St. Owensville, OH 45160
Theme: 80's
Wh...o: Homeschoolers, their family and friends
Cost: A canned good or $1 per person.

Please bring a snack to share (think finger foods that do not require forks or spoons to enjoy)! Drinks (Lemonade, Tea and Water) will be provided!

Dress in your 80's best! Raid your parent's closet or look in your own...you might be surprised by how much current fashion has a 1980's root! Don't let a lack of wardrobe keep you from joining us, we will welcome you no matter what decade your attire reflects!

Music will be a mix of 80s music and current popular music. I LOVE the playlist! 

UnMuseum

We were so excited to visit the UnMuseum at the Contemporary Art Center in downtown Cincinnati.  They offer free tours to school groups and we decided to take advantage of the last Wednesday of the "school" year!  They divided us into 2 groups and each group explored the museum with a docent.

I love this picture of Tori with "Shark Girl"!

Sophia, William and Luke were with the second tour, but I remembered to snap a picture of them with "Shark Girl" before we left! 

 

Luke spelled out both is name and Noel's name with magnetic letters and then wanted me to take their picture next to their names, only problem was they both stood right in front of their names!

 

Surgery Anniversary

Today marks the 2 year anniversary of Tori's "belly" surgery when the skilled surgeons at Cincinnati Children's Hospital removed 35 cm of her intestines. She wasn't even 24 hours old when they took her into the operating room and neither Jay or I had even held her! Her scar turned out BEAUTIFUL, as you can see, it is barely visible right above her belly button and it is hidden in the folds of her skin when she is sitting down! I thank God each day for guiding the hands of the surgeon that saved my daughter's life!

Tori's 2 year old photos