The month of May has been full of so much fun!  The same week as Millie Janalee's school program, she also participated in her first gymnastics recital.  We have really enjoyed our little gym. They cater to younger children, and they only take kids up to age 8.  So it was a perfect place for Millie Janalee to begin.  Misty and Amanda were amazing with the kids!

As with any performance, Millie Janalee had her own little fan club front and center.  Even Smith got to attend this one!  Bless his little heart.  He never gets to come with us to things like this!  But he loves his babysitters too.

As you can see from the picture above, this child loves an audience.  Yep.  She is winking!  Such a ham!  It was right after this that her teacher asked her to pay attention, and she said, "But I'm getting a picture!"  LOL!  God bless this child of mine!

The kids were so proud to show us all their tricks from the year.  They did their back bends, tricks on the beam, flips, cartwheels, bars, vault, and more.  It's so fun to see all their little personalities shine all over the gym as they rotated to different things.

Her biggest improvement was on the beam.  In the beginning of the year, she struggled keeping her balance on the beam and some other activities that were specifically for balance.  We finally figured out with the help of our ophthalmologist that her little bifocals were giving her problems with depth perception.  So we sacked the glasses for gymnastics, and I think that helped her out a ton!

I am so proud of my little gymnast!  I was really hoping after signing her up for dance and gymnastics...that she would choose a favorite.  But I'm pretty sure she would love anything she did as long as there were other kids doing it too.  Haha!  

She still asks to go to gymnastics multiple times a week.  I think this is how our entire summer will be since all her activities are over for the summer.

Russ had to work, so he missed it.  The recital was at 4:15, so most working daddies couldn't come.  We took lots of video and will show it to him soon.  He doesn't need to see the video to be proud though!  She loved telling him all about it!

And of course, Smith was so proud.  Haha!  Mostly, he just wanted to be out there running around with the girls!  Pawpaw held him back by this straps.  Literally.  Hahaha!

We finished off the evening with a hibachi dinner where Russ was able to join us after work.  All's well that ends well!

ABC…123

A week or so ago, Millie Janalee's preschool had their end of the year program - ABC…123.  It was a precious musical filled with little voices singing about all the things they learned this year.  Some of the songs were "Splish Splash", "C is for Cookie", "ABC123", "The Color Song", "Please and Thank You", and "You Gave."

Since Millie Janalee is our first, all of this is so fascinating to us of course.  But comparing this program to her Thanksgiving program back in November - it's like night and day!  These little 3 year olds have grown so much over the school year!  Even over the last few months!  Each student sang their hearts out and did their little hand motions with enthusiasm.  If I were being honest, I would say that I had to wipe the corners of my eyes a couple times.  I just love this age!

Of course, wherever we go…we have our Millie Janalee fan club.  Haha!  She had her own little section right at the front - since Susu and KayKay arrived very early to save seats.  I'm that mom and there's no shame.  But I love that she can find me right off the bat and wave from the stage.  She's so proud!

The whole Smith crew made it with our cameras, phones, and video cameras all aimed at the star.  Of course afterward, she was most concerned with getting her cookie she was promised after the show.  We bribed her with some pictures and Russ took her to get the cookie she had been talking about for two days.

We are so thankful for our preschool!  They have been such a blessing, and Millie Janalee LOVES them!  Saying that she loves school may be an understatement actually.  The teachers and staff love on Millie Janalee better than I could have hoped, and they are so enthusiastic each time we see them.

It wasn't easy leaving our little girl behind on that first day of school.  I remember sitting in the car and crying.  She, however, didn't think twice.  "Bye Mama!" is all she had to say.  I love this little independent girl of ours.

I just wish she would stay little a bit longer!

Happy Mother's Day

I hope everyone had a very Happy Mother's Day!  I'm doing my best to keep up with our May, but it has been quite busy!  Starting off my Mother's Day week, Millie Janalee's preschool class had a Mother's Day Tea for their moms.  It was such a sweet tea!  The tables were decorated with things the children made for us and the inevitable fill in the blanks about their moms.  That's what I was most nervous about!  Haha!  You just never know what they will say!  In the center of the tables, there were small bouquets of flowers and precious teapots filled with tea.

The children began by lining up in the front of the room to recite the Pledge of Allegiance and sing a couple of Mother's Day songs for us.  They ended by singing a sweet blessing over our tea party.  The children had worked to make monkey bread for us, and we had strawberries with powdered sugar.  And, of course, we poured tea from the cute teapots!  All the while…Smith was walking around trying to eat everyone else's food.  By the end of the party, all the moms decided I needed the monkey bread recipe.  He was a fan!

Millie Janalee's teacher, Mrs. Becky, gathered the children as they finished their food to read I'll Love You Forever.  I had this book when I was growing up and can probably recite it myself.  But I still found myself in the back of the room blubbering like a baby as she read to the class.

Our time is just too precious.  And I am so guilty of wishing the minutes away and waiting for the next nap.  THESE are the days I will want to have back.  The innocence of toddlers and preschoolers.  Oh, they are so precious!

Millie Janalee is the one who first made me a mama.  After years (6 to be exact) of waiting and praying and hoping and crying…she entered this world and brought nothing but pure JOY to our family!  I really do not know how she got from that 6 pound 13 ounce baby to this 3.5 year old preschooler.  Why does it sting to think about it?  I do love watching her grow and learn, and each stage has been so much fun as we experience it together for the first time!

This Mother's Day, like every Mother's Day, my heart was full of joy and heartache.  I am reminded on Mother's Day, more than any other day, of the privilege I have to narrate these babies' loves stories.  It is one of my greatest joys in life!  A love story that involves two mamas.  One who carried them in her belly and one who carried them in her heart.  Twice loved!  What a testimony and gift God has written for their lives!  What an honor to be their mother!

After church, Russ and I ran into his mama on our way out.  I am forever thankful for this woman...for her sacrifices and love raising her own family.  I am grateful she raised Russ to be a caring, thoughtful, and humble man of God.  I married way over my head, and he knows I will  never live up to who his mom was as a young mother.  But he loves me anyway.

My mama had already left church to work on lunch for our family.  And THAT's what happens a lot.  She's busy taking care of things behind the scenes and rarely gets the spotlight or makes it into the pictures.  I am thankful for my mom and the lessons she continues to teach me about life.  Mainly - enjoy it!  And own your pitfalls.  Laugh it off and move on!  Life is too short.

Life is good.  And it is nice to be reminded of that from time to time.  Us moms can get into "the trenches" of life with littles and forget to soak it in.

Happy Mother's Day to all of us!