Heart of Gold

Dear Luke,

Today was your last day of 4th Grade. I just got home from your award ceremony and I am still a little teary eyed. Mrs. Battaglia gave you the citizenship award and she gave a speech about you and what a great kid you are, how hard you have worked in her class and how caring you are. She also said how you make everyone laugh and she is right. No matter what stresses may be going on in my life you can take any moment and make me smile. That truly is a gift and I am so glad that I get to be a part of your life Luke. You worked so hard and were so close to being on Honor Roll but just didn't quite make it. I am so proud of how hard you worked. I know it is hard sometimes for you and you think you are in your brother's shadow, but you are not you are just as smart as him. You have come so far this year and I love that you get excited to learn! Mrs. Battaglia also said you are the first to help out and are always willing to give. She said you had a heart of gold and she is absolutely right Luke you do have a heart of gold. You have so much empathy and sympathy and love it sometimes amazes me. As you know I am not always the nicest person, but you make me want to do and be better. You are the epitomy of what a good citizen is Luke. You have been having a tough time because of the accident where you stepped on the 3 inch piece of glass and you are all stressed out about soccer tryouts tonight. You are not going to be able to make it and your coach has assured us that is ok and they will place you accordingly. I am sorry you have been in pain and I am sorry you are going to miss out on something that is so important to you. I just know it is all going to be ok. We will get you where you need to be. I love you so much Luke! Thank you for being such a sweet, sensitive, giving soul. We are so lucky to have you in our lives!

All my Love,
Mom

Amazing!

Dear Tye,

We had your 6th grade continuation last night. As you know I was pretty emotional about all of this. I am still waiting for a pause button to be invented so we can pause these moments because it is going way too fast. We got there early so we could get great seats and you were sitting right in front of us. It couldn't have been better! We sat there looking you all dressed up looking a little nervous and then you flashed us your beautiful smile. I couldn't help it, I tried to hold back but the tears started rolling. I remembered when you started kindergarten. You stood on the wall of Mrs. Burris' room on the first day of school with your spiderman t-shirt and your magic button pants and looked so scared. You sensed my stress too and there you did it again you flashed your big smile. Oh Tye, you are growing up too fast! It was a lovely ceremony. You got some awesome awards: Honor Roll for the trimester, Honor Roll for the whole year, the P.E. award for being an amazing athlete and good sportsmanship, a recycling team award, and last but not least a citizenship award. I am proud of all your accomplishments but probably most so of the citizenship because it means that you are listening and practicing what I preach about hard work and being a good person. Mrs. Scheppers gave a heartfelt speech about you. She said how you set goals in basketball and in school and how you meet those goals. She talked about what a hard worker you are and she said in her teaching career she has not had as many kids that work as hard as you do and you have been such an asset to her classroom. Ok so by this time I am full fledged crying. I am so proud of you Tye. You are such a hard worker and you are such a good person too. You have reason to brag and boast and yet you do not do that and that shows true character. I hope last night is the first of many nights when you will be receiving awards and be honored. I have a feeling it will be. Your speaker was Representative Andy Kerr and he kept going on and on about how you only have 6 years left until you graduate high school. I was like ok we get it, stop saying that! We have less time left with you at home than we have had so far and it makes me sad Tye. I know growing up is inevitable but I really wish we could slow it down because I do enjoy you so. You all ended your continuation with the "Coal Mine" dance which you did up in Outdoor Lab. You were absolutely adorable. You are so shy yet you did the moves even if it was begrudgingly. And no worries I taped it so it will be with you always! When we went into the reception I had teachers and aids coming up and saying what an amazing family we have and how great our kids are. Dad & I could not have been prouder, not because of what others were saying but because in are hearts we knew they were speaking the truth. The last thing Mrs. Scheppers said to me was and I quote, "Your son is amazing April, but you already know that right?" You are amazing Tye and yes I did already know that. I knew it the day you were born. I cannot believe in a few short months you will be in middle school. I hope and pray those years are easier on you than they were on me. I love you with all my heart and then some Tye. I am so proud of you! Never stop working hard. And if you ever invent something make sure it is something to slow down time so I can have more of it with you!!!

All My Love,
Mom

FUN DAYS!

What a glorious Day! 4 basketball games, 2 soccer games, and a sleepover! Very hectic and crazy but honestly I wouldn't have it any other way. Tye played amazing in his b-ball games. He did the best twist, turn, jump layup that the ref called him on travel. We were all like what? He said there is no way a 6th grader could have done those moves and made the basket without travelling. The coach is all did he travel and the ref said I don't think so but I don't see how he couldn't have. So proud of you Tye! You are on such a great team and you are playing great! It has been hard for you because you are so shy and these boys are so aggressive but you are sticking with it and we are so proud of you buddy! Luke had his last rec soccer game. He has tryouts next week. He played so well. The team never scored when he was on defense. When he was pulled out for a break they scored. The fouled us and Luke got to take the penalty kick and tied the game. So proud of you Luke! Your toothless smile said it all. I can't believe how far you have come in soccer. Everyone says what a boot you have and you do! You are going to make a great team and get even better! Alyncia had her first sleepover tonight. At first we weren't going to let you go cause youare only 6 and we were so nervous. But, you persisted and begged and you were so excited we had to talk daddy into it. I am so glad you love life so much and are having fun! You are so carefree and spirited! I just love it!! That doesn't mean I will sleep well tonight. I am nervous and worried about you but I am so glad you have friends and others get to see what an amazing personality you have. At first I didn't want to share you but now I know I have too. I love you Boo! Grandma went with us to a few games and of course they were all across town. She kept saying how nuts we all are. Maybe we are, I don't know but I love how hard each of you work and how you are learning at a young age how important it is to be a part of something, to have people rely on you and to be a team. So maybe we are nuts. Some days are better than others. However, I love our hectic schedule. I love watching you all shine and I love that we are a crazy, nutty "T TEAM"!!!

Friends

A friend and I have had a major falling out this past weekend. A lot of hurtful words were said that unfortunately cannot be taken back. I am not claiming innocence in this matter, but nor do I think I am totally at fault. I have tried to talk to her but she doesn't want to do that. At first I was mad then hurt then mad again. I spent a large part of my weekend reflecting on my past relationships that I have let go. I did what I am best at, put up a wall and try and ignore my feelings and just move on. The problem is this is not working in this case. I am not sure if it is because I am older so things get to me more. Or is it I am just really hurt that she is willing to let a disagreement end our friendship that meant a lot to me. Or is it what my husband says that I always need to have the last word. I am just not sure. I do know that I used to be able to not let things like this get to me and it was much easier to deal with. The problem with that is I have lost some great friends because I did not put the necessary work in to keep them. I always remember hearing friends come and go and they will let you down and don't worry about it that's just how people are. My family tended to isolate from others and my mom, grandma, grandpa, aunts and uncles didn't really have a lot of friends. So I was raised in believing you rely on your family not friends. Now again the problem with all of that is I am a people person. I love people and I especially love the late night phone calls, the coffee talk, diverging your deepest feelings to a girlfriend that is there for you and is really listening. I love having lunch and drinks and shopping with my girls. I have lost some great friends, 3 in particular. We didn't necessarily have a huge falling out. Life just got busy and we went in different directions, moved away, got married and had children and I didn't put in the effort needed to nurture a relationship. I have thought about initiating contact again, but as time goes on I have gotten busy with raising kids, PTA, soccer and basketball practices and I have never reached out like I should have. I so dislike having regrets because I honestly feel like it is a waste of time. Focus instead on what you can change not what you can't. I didn't feel I could change those instances so I didn't even try. So, in hopes of not losing another great friend I have tried again to call her and hopefully she will call me back. Only time will tell but I will not let this go without trying. I hope each of my children know the joys of having great friends. As we all know with those joys there will be sorrows too. You will get hurt, you will be let down, you will be disappointed, that is part of relationships. However, you will also smile and laugh at silly things until your jaw hurts and your muscles ache from laughing so hard. You will have those special "aha" moments when you realize you have reached a milestone such as graduation, marriage, your first child being born. You will have a shoulder to lean on and you will be a shoulder for him or her when they need a friend. You will shed tears over lost or missed loves. You will have those special places that only you and your friend understand how meaningful they are. You will have stories oh the stories those are the best part. Put the effort in and don't be so quick to readily let people drift out of your life because I do believe the joys will in the long run outweigh the negative.

WOW! It has been a while since I last posted. Life just has been too busy. The end of the school year is winding down and I must admit I am a bit saddened by it all. All 3 kids had extraordinary teachers this year, and really how often does that happen that you love all 3 of their teachers? I can't believe Tye will be in middle school next year. He is still hoping to get into Manning but so far no word. He will be fine at the other school, but for some reason he doesn't want to go there. He has decided not to continue to play soccer. It makes me sad. He is so good and he has been playing since he was 3 years old. He wants to focus on basketball year round. I worry he will get burned out, but it is what he wants. So I am trying not to be the control freak that I am and let him make the choice. He is playing club basketball with a new team. They are very good we just worry Tye isn't getting the ball handling that he needs with them. They just want 2nd place in a tournament today. Luke is doing so much better in school. I am so proud of him. He is finally putting in some effort. He and I have been butting heads a lot lately. I know I am too hard on him at times, but boy when he gets that mouth going it really gets to me. We had a long talk about both of us making better choices and what it is going to take on both of our parts to get a long. I really tried to make him see that I realize I need to work on it too. So we made a deal and it has been a great couple of days. He is wrapping up his soccer season. He has one more game next week then he has tryouts the first week of June to play competitive. He has some great ball skill and he has his size and strength on his side. We are hoping he makes the 2nd level team. He really likes it. We are getting his passport for Iceland tomorrow. He leaves in 1 month. So excited for him. It is going to be an amazing trip! Alyncia just had "The 3 Piggy Opera" a play at school. She played the part of the narrator and she played the piano before it began. She is such the performer! She looked absolutely adorable and spoke loudly and clearly. We had so much fun watching her! She is doing great at gymnastics. She goes 3 times a week now for 2 hours which at times is a bit grueling to sit through but she loves it so I make it through. I must admit somedays are better than others! I just do not understand why people allow their children to run amok and scream and yell and sit on their butts and just watch them! I just don't get it.