Before I get to the end-of-school pictures, I thought I'd share a couple other recent, fun moments.
The boys and I (Burke was at a meeting and couldn't come with) drove with my parents to Chicago on June 3 to visit with Steve on his birthday. Joey and his family met us for dinner and ice cream. I think it's amusing that this is the only picture I could get of the Ponka cousins!
Ryan: 9y 1m - Evan: 7-1/2 years - Caleb: 3y 9m - Emily: 1y 9m
On June 6, my adult tap class performed in the studio's biannual mini-recital - a smaller, more informal performance than traditional dance recitals. Burke, the boys, and my parents came to cheer me on. I don't think Burke and the boys have ever seen me tap. So, I felt a little silly, but appreciate the support of my family. I'm thankful for music, tap, and the people I've met at this studio.
That leads us to June 9, 2017 - the last day of the 2016/17 school year! In some ways, it feels like yesterday when I was preparing to begin Evan's school year as the long-term sub in his class. It has been a year of ups and downs.
Evan came home with a story every day about how some classmate had behaved poorly, or hurt his or someone else's feelings. He's very much a reporter in this way, and is almost always involved in these incidences somehow. We've also seem him become a kind, reasonable, confident leader socially, and hope that positive attitude with peers continues. He also excels academically, but mostly enjoys the socializing, I think.
Via classmates, Ryan was exposed to mature concepts, choice words, and a lot of media content. I'd prefer he hadn't had this exposure, but such is life and it led to some quality conversations. He also won the Ren Baldwin logo contest, and was elected to student council again. He really matured academically, and continues to enjoy learning.
Both are silly and fun at school!
First Day / Last Day
[Not sure they changed much this year?!]
We are so grateful for and proud of these boys!
Evan and his 1st grade teacher
Ryan and his 3rd grade teacher
We have a tradition where we go out to eat on the last day of school to celebrate another year well done. This year we went to a restaurant in downtown St. Joe. While we were there, we perused the annual street sculptures. This year's theme is Fishing for Fun. The boys love to climb on these sculptures, whether we condone it or not, no matter how unclimbable they are. Geez.
These two fish were my faves, I think. The front one is made with children's artwork, and is titled Buoys and Gills. The back fish is the Rainbow Fish from the children's book by Marcus Pfister. The boys are climbing on the cannon in the background, as per usual.
We don't have many concrete summer plans yet, so there will be a lot of last minute experiences, playing our schedule by ear, and some much needed relaxing. If you don't mind, I would appreciate any positive vibes you can send my way as I'm applying for full-time teaching jobs in the area. Next school year may look and feel a lot different, so for now, deep breaths, relax, enjoy the sunshine. 🌞
