school wrap-up #2 - jog-a-thon and play day

Sooo... somehow, every year, I'm able to pull off some kind of near-perfection in making sure the kids are able to attend all that is important to them and that I am right there with them for the year-end activities.  It has been no small feat with having them in different grades/classrooms with so many different activities on different days.  Every year I just hold my breath as I write things into the calendar and pray that one big thing doesn't land on top of another.  I knew at some point, it just wouldn't work out.  Unfortunately, on Grace's Grand Finale Year, it happened.

First up - jog-a-thon.  They held it on April 25th, the Friday before Harriet's birthday.  I was already stressed, thinking it would be difficult to be a volunteer for jog-a-thon for both kids' grade levels AND get Harriet's birthday treats to her class at lunch time.  She wanted Rebel Donuts - also a morning pick-up item.  Can't even get those the night before.

Then, the little darling found out that her only chance to test again for the gifted program would be THAT morning as well.  She would have to miss her jog-a-thon.  Luckily, David had the day off and was able to pick her up from the testing center so that I could volunteer at jog-a-thon.  At least Grace and I didn't miss her LAST one.

Harriet was so crushed to miss it.  It is one of her favorite things at school.  She cried.  I told her she didn't have to.  She could choose.  She didn't have to test for gifted.  We were not pushing her to do that.  But, she put the pressure on herself.  She wants to be in gifted SOOO bad, she thought it would be a fair trade-off and was willing to sacrifice one for the other.  (Another story for another day - she didn't get in! Again!  By ONE point. ARGH.)

It was a blast to be with the 5th graders and their teachers though.  I LOVE that group of kids.  I had the hardest time watching the year wind down for them, knowing that they would split up for the summer and never be all back together again.  They ran their hearts out.

Grace, Keely, and Kayla

Now, the other "favorite" year-end activity is Coach D's field day.  Despite her most-of-the-time-crotchety-self, she actually does pull of a really fun day for the kids at the end of the year.  It is a marathon, nightmare of a day, but the kids love it.  Grace has never had a good relationship with Coach.  We have struggled every year to just get through it with her.  So, I think it's even more important to Grace - to have ONE fun PE day during the year.

Night before 5th grade "play day", Grace goes to bed at 8 (weird) and wakes up at 9, THROWING UP!!!  ACK!  How in the H - E - double hockey sticks, did she get a stomach bug during the last week of school?

There is no way I can send her to school for 5th grade play day, nor can I leave her to volunteer.  To top it off, they gathered the 5th graders at the end and took a big fat 5th grade picture of all of them.  Dang it!  Missed that too.  So super sad.

I begged Coach to let her come and "help" me with 2nd grade play day.  She told me no (big shocker), but another lady let me do it.  Grace tried to have some fun and get involved with the 2nd graders, but it just wasn't the same and a few times, Harriet got really upset that Grace was treading on HER play day after she had missed her own jog-a-thon.  Still, there were definitely a few golden sister moments out there.  My absolute favorite was when they needed an extra person for 3 legged race and Harriet and Grace paired up.

They did it a million times until they were totally in sync.  

This was the DAY BEFORE Harriet's baptism, mind you.  Don't worry about me, girls, I've only got people staying with us for the weekend and 50 people coming to the house for lunch tomorrow!  I do try to put their magical childhood ahead of myself most days, but this time, it was "which magical child hood memory takes priority?"  Too. Much.  4 days left of school after this one... with the baptism in-between.