First Half of June

We are cruising towards the end of a fabulous school year like a runaway train. Lots of endings and beginnings all wrapped up in fun!

This year's school wide reading contest ended with 5 students from each grade

being selected to go to a SeaDogs game with their librarian during the school day. 

This is a competition Caroline can get excited about :)

She was SO nervous about winning, but we knew all along she had a great chance

and then I knew a few days in advance which helped my anxiety that morning :) 

Swimming lessons finished for the summer and the kids really improved 

Now, on to some summer time pool fun of our own

George was asleep in the car when we picked up our newest addition

and remained asleep  :)

This is Munchkin, Hot Fudge, Fudge, Brownie..... Brownie, yes that's it!

3 weeks when we got him. Butterscotch needs company

Stealing Butterscotch's hay :P

George at school on a hike

Caroline biking the Eastern Trail with Alan

Everyday George sings and waters his plant he made at school :)

Making some ice cream! 

 

Caroline and her troop said the pledge and the school song

at morning meeting and then received their Pint Sized Hero medals

from the American Red Cross! 

Last week of school is always fun!

George and his classmates go to the beach! 

Eating ice cream in our Disney Dole Whip bowls

A rare bedtime story with both

Celebrating a friend's (Kiwi) bday

George's cards to his teachers, so cute!

His spring school picture last year and this year

What a transformation! 

George had his ice cream social for preK

and received this adorable t-shirt!  

He wouldn't put it on there though b/c he needed everyone 

to see his Stitch t-shirt :P

friends

Sprinkler day at school, second to last day of school

Finish off the school year with a dentist appointment :P

Caroline is off to the side being too cool for pictures

 

Second Half of May

If we thought the first half of May was busy, the second half was just one giant downhill slide! Field trips, concerts, Brownies activities, etc. Gearing up for the last few weeks of school means busy, busy, busy!

George and Will ready for an outside cruise

George showing Caroline his little birdie friend :)

Picture Day!!!

Chicks and ducklings at George's school

Caroline's bridging to second year Brownies

George having fun at school on a musical parade

*notice he is wearing his magic band from Disney

Caroline's flag that represents her

(Love, math, Disney, peace, Harry potter, guinea pigs oh my! I love this!)

We have some confused birds here

Caroline improving at swimming

Caroline and I enjoying a Blood Orange cupcake after

seeing RBG - Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the Portland Museum of Art

While we were learning about RBG the boys were 

home making a strawberry rhubarb pie ;)

George and Daddy being silly

Caroline and Kate ~ Best friends

KCT- River field trip

Dunking their PE teacher after raising over $16,000 

for Jump Rope for Heart. Caroline hit the target but it wasn't 

hard enough to dunk him. 

Dinner at Mike's to celebrate Grampy's Bday

More swimming lessons!

Headed to school and the Spring Concert

George hiking, making fairy houses and doing some

drawing of the meadow at school

KCS Spring Concert 

Caroline is on second row from bottom, slightly center

Grist Mill field trip

I got to chaperone. They learned about boat building here

were dressed (at times) like kids in the olden days, and learned about the grist mill

Hearing about Kennebunkport History from Tom Bradbury

Dairy Queen on a school night, ahhhh

BBCH ~ Dunkin' Donuts Iced Coffee Day!

As most of you know, Caroline has been working with the Barbara Bush Children's Hospital here in Portland ever since she work her elbow last Fall. One of her big projects is the Dunkin' Donuts Iced Coffee Day and she was chosen as one of their "kids." This project was especially important because it funds the Pediatric Emergency Room, which was key in Caroline's care. More importantly, the funds from this fundraiser also support the salary of the Child Life Specialists who was paramount to Caroline's care! Caroline still remembers Rachel and how much she made her Emergency visit better. Bethany and how much she made her post-op care better. These women played such a key role in making Caroline feel safe, happy, and distracted!

Dunkin' Donuts Iced Coffee day was May 23rd and we had a lot of work to do! Originally, Caroline was supposed to do so much more and miss two days of school but we scaled back. We would have loved to do more, but we were getting tired and it was for the best.

The day before Caroline and I headed to BBCH and met with the ER nurses, doctors, the head of the ER, and her Child Life Specialist, Rachel. This was the first time she had seen Rachel since we were discharged and she was ECSTATIC! We hung out and drank coffee and worked with the marketing and philanthropy teams. We were supposed to meet with any press that wanted to come and chat, but it was a heavy news day so on that end, it was a bust. But, it was still a great time.

We headed home to gather ourselves and have lunch at Duffy's with Daddy and George and then headed right back to Portland. The next stop was WGME to chat about the fundraiser. That interview was a bit awkward, but we did it :) Then time to go home and get ready for another day! We were told our segment would be on the 5:30pm show and we sat around my laptop waiting for it. We don't have regular cable so we couldn't get it to stream on the tv. We watched it and it was a VERY sort segment that was a little odd. Then we sent the kids up to get ready for bed. THEN the texts came in at 6:10 saying they had seen us on the 6pm show and it was so great. The next morning, more news that we were on again. Oh well :(  We never got to see the full length story and they only posted the shorter one online. Here is the link to that news story.

The next morning Caroline and I drove up to the Dunkin' Donuts in Scarborough to do a 7am interview with our friends from Frank FM. We had done an interview with them in March for the Radiothon and we weren't nervous about this one. This interview went so well, we were asked great questions and Caroline and I got all of our talking points out there. But, we never heard it on the way back to school or later that morning :/

We were supposed to then head to Portland and spend the rest of the morning at a Dunkin' Donuts there, but instead I drove Caroline back to school where she handed gift cards to the teachers and staff to make sure they bought some Iced Coffee's! Then I came home so Alan could head to work and I brought George to school where I handed out more gift cards. Then Alan and I played gift card fairies the rest of the day and I've found my new vice, Iced Coffee! It was such a fun day! I'm not sure how much they raised yet, but I know we did our share :)

Some hot cocoa before she meets the press at BBCH

Reading in her down time. 

She was shown their library at BBCH and she has

a new project in mind to help them out with her greatest love, reading! 

At the WGME studios with Rachel

She wouldn't let her go in the parking lot, just kept hugging her :) 

Watching herself on tv :)

Caroline on the news

Some support on Twitter from her Principal and Superintendent

Early morning radio interview

Posing with my coffee :)

Playing DD fairy