Break a leg, little hyena

All of Paige's hard work on Lion King Jr. came to a head this weekend with 4 performances. We saw her on Friday night with Patrick's mom and the Currys. We got great seats right up front thanks to my volunteering the hour before. It's a sweet deal...save seats, volunteer and get a free ticket. Done!

Paige was a super cute and dramatic hyena. She was also very interactive with her adoring fans. We might need to work a bit on ignoring the audience! Let's just say there were a few waves and smiles during her performance. Ha!

Those 4 heads up front are there to watch the best hyena they know!

She also worked hard on her wildebeest part which involved carrying a large mask and some choreography that was action packed. Overall it was a great performance by all the actors and I'm so proud of all the hard work Paige has put into. She had a great time and has asked to do another production. The only thing she did NOT enjoy was the black eye liner as it's hard to get off. You just never know what's going to tick the boxes and what will be a hands down, no way!

On Saturday, my parents came to watch Paige for her early performance. She loved all the flowers and attention. Saturday night, the Powells and her teacher came to watch her. Finally, this afternoon our sweet friend and school secretary, Ms. Angie is watching Paige for her the last production. 

While we are sad to see the end of our theater season for now, we are glad to have some more free time in the afternoons and regular bed times. We look forward to our next time we can tell Paige, "break a leg!"

So.Much.Stuff.

There's only one way to get you caught up and that's to do a speed round of posting. Ready!?

1. We decided on Anna's middle school. This is such a testimony to prayer and leaning into God for a clear answer. The week before we heard about whether Anna was accepted to the magnet program, we all committed to pray for the week. We hadn't had the chance to really talk with each other and seemed to be coming to different conclusions. Then Anna came to me one night and said she felt like God was leading her to our local school (NOT the magnet program she really wanted). We talked it through and I felt like she was excited about that choice. Turns out that was also the choice Patrick was leaning too and after some prayer myself, it's the one I couldn't really stop coming back to. So after we found out Anna got into the magnet program, she happily logged in and declined it. We feel a lot of peace about the decision and Anna keeps saying things like "I'm really excited about middle school next year!"

2. Patrick has been working non-stop for the last three weeks. This past week he wasn't home before 9 and left at 5AM for a conference in New Orleans on Friday. He returned last last night and is back at it today. Just hoping he doesn't collapse.

3. We had the awesome opportunity to host Jessi and the kiddos on their way to TN from NC. They came in on Thursday and spent the night with us. It was so fun to play with them and see how big the kiddos are getting before they head off to England in just a few short weeks. I have plans to take a family trip that way next year!! Jessi and I stayed up until midnight talking and boy did I pay for it the next day. But so glad we could catch up...it was totally worth it.

These two thought the new doll house was the bees knees!

4. Paige is gearing up for the big performance this weekend! She has rehearsal every day this week and I am just praying her little body and mind can make it as that girl NEEDS her sleep. She got her costume this weekend and will begin wearing make-up for the dress rehearsals soon. We're excited to have friends and family come and watch her. Meanwhile, Anna represented us at a friend's play recently since the rest of us were occupied. It's so fun to have several of our friend's kids on the performance circuit because we all just take turns watching each other!

Sisters, cousins and dogs

My sister and nieces spent the weekend visiting with us. They were out on their spring break and decided to head this way before spending the rest of the week at the lake with Mom and Dad. It's always a fun time with the girls get together....lots of giggling, silliness, sleepovers and general antics. I'm hoping they're making lots of memories!

This time was extra special because we were able to celebrate Riley's birthday which is on Thursday. Anna wanted to make a special cake for her. Knowing she likes ice cream cakes and not frosting, Anna settled on a triple chocolate cake with a layer of cookies and cream ice cream in the middle, topped with a homemade oreo buttercream. Let's just say it was a huge hit!

We enjoyed lots of outdoor time with mild temps. The kids and Rachael's two dogs ran around in the backyard for hours. Patrick was able to take them on a nature trail one afternoon.

Our other activities included egg dying because they have done this with once before, church and generally hanging out. It was nice to relax and enjoy some time with them. I even managed to get my garden planted with a few things after unloading a truck full of dirt!

And finally, Rachael and I had a little tutorial with the Instant Pot where I taught her how to make carnitas. They were a huge hit with everybody.

In other news, my Spring "Break" (let's just say there was little break involved) is over and I started my last class for the school year today. We're also going to be deciding on Anna's middle school this week. All three of us have been committed to prayer for the last week and the Lord has blessed us with unity and peace. It's been a great process to grow and develop our faith muscles. More on this later. And finally, Paige is ramping up her play rehearsals. Just two more weeks until the big production!

It's a jam packed week with decisions, new classes, activities, special visitors and even a trip to New Orleans for Patrick. Stay tuned for all our happenings!

Her first 5K

Did you wonder what Paige and Patrick were up to while Anna and I were out of town? Well, they were busy bees too! Friday afternoon, Patrick picked up Paige and brought her back to his office where she managed to find a cupcake and played computer games. Sounds like a good afternoon to me! They grabbed a bite to eat and then headed to her play rehearsal.

Saturday morning, Miss Small Fry had her first 5K. Patrick had accidentally signed the Run Club up for a race while Anna was out of town. No worries! Paige has shown a bit of interest in running a race so this was the perfect opportunity. Earlier this week, she joined the Run Club and was so happy with their acceptance of her.

I asked the other sweet mamas to take some photos for me. Her goals were to not walk the entire time and come in under 30 minutes. I'm happy to report she did both! Paige ran 28:59, 4th in her age division and 75th overall. The girls that finished first, stayed and cheered for all the other girls behind them and then the skies opened up when the last one finished.

When Paige called to describe the race to me, she first started with the post-race snacks. Totally her. They managed to find the baked goods tent where she ate another cupcake (definitely a Dad weekend). She then told me about her run and wanting to give up toward the end. Patrick talked her through it, but the true motivation came within. She let me know, "her unicorn power was released from inside" and that got her across the line. I tried so hard not to laugh out loud!

The runners spent the rest of the day chilling and playing games. They also managed to make it down to the pond and pick weeds in front yard. Winning!

Girls Retreat

We had quite the eventful weekend. A while back I arranged to take my 4th and 5th grade girls' Bible study group on an out of town retreat. I've been leading this group for about a year, although the members of changed once. It's been really special to dig into the Word with Anna and process what we are learning with these young hearts. Doing some fun events along the way has really helped us bond so it hit me that my parent's lake house would be the perfect spot. Friday after school we were off!

Let me first say, my parents were amazing and gracious hosts. They did the grocery shopping, made dinner for us when we arrived Friday evening, watched a movie with us and made sure the girls were nice and toasty on our boat ride. I am so grateful for their hospitality and love. And this was all after hosting three other visitors this week! I'm also super grateful to my co-chaperone in crime, Ashley. Her daughter, Caroline, is in my group and it was a treat for me to have my own buddy to share the time with.

Anyway, we arrived Friday night, ate some homemade lasagna, salad and strawberry shortcake. The girls found the bunk room. I could tell by the squeals! Then we all snuggled on the couch to watch Peter Rabbit which was really cute. I was impressed that they went to bed by 10.

The next day we had blueberry and banana pancakes for breakfast. Then we bundled up to enjoy a boat ride. It was nippy, but fun to see all the houses and test out their new boat. The girls picked up with some fun play time and then paninis for lunch.

After lunch, I led them in a great devotion time on Identity. It's so important to me they know who they are in Christ and not listen to the lies of this world. I know these are lessons they will have to apply their entire lives! We wrote some sweet thank you notes to end out time. (#lifeskills!)

Because the rain held off, we were able to head to a local waterfall for a hike. Let me just say the girls were less than enthusiastic and dare I say a bit grumpy about this. Well a quarter mile in and they were hooked. Attitudes changed, logs were climbed, discoveries made and puddles jumped. We even spotted some awesome mountain wildflowers thanks to some other folks on the trail.

After some dinner at Chick-fil-A, complete with a tooth lost, we piled back in my new car for the ride home. The car was great for toting everybody and in a brilliant stroke of genius I downloaded a bunch of podcast episodes before leaving. These precious, nerdy girls all love reading and were hooked on Eleanor Amplified and a game show called Pants on Fire. I was hooked on the silence from the back seat!

All in all, it was a great trip. We made sweet memories and planted some seeds I pray will grow deep. I also love seeing Anna with her friends, just goofy, silly and totally herself.