Pre-K Graduation

Henry’s Pre-K graduation ceremony was held at the end of June.  The children wore mortarboards and sang a few songs (“Lean on Me,” “That’s What Friends Are For,” and “The Candy Man”) for the parents before being presented with their “diplomas.”  Henry did a great job singing (and swaying—check out the video clips below), but seemed a little embarrassed when it came time to collect his diploma.  After the ceremony, we told Henry he could go anywhere he wanted for dinner, and he chose…IHOP.  So, we all headed over to Potomac Yard for pancakes.  Below are photos and video highlights from Henry’s big day: 

Henry has a few more months at St. Anthony’s and then will start Kindergarten at St. Mary’s in Old Town Alexandria in August.  Kindergarten will be a big change for all of us.  St. Mary’s will have four (4!) Kindergarten classes next year (it’s the largest elementary school in the Diocese of Arlington).  Fortunately, five other classmates from St. Anthony’s, including Henry’s best friend Jack, are headed there as well, so Henry will have some familiar faces in his new surroundings.  While Henry enjoys his last few months in Pre-K, we’ve been busy ordering uniforms and assembling school supplies.  We’ve also been trying to keep up with the flood of information about his new school.  We’ve read the carpool instructions several times and still aren’t entirely sure what to do at pick up/drop off.  And it’s still hard for us to imagine Henry buying his own lunch in the school cafeteria.  But friends assure us that it will all become second nature before too long.

In the meantime, we’re grateful to the teachers and staff of St. Anthony’s for providing such a great environment for Henry these last two years.  He has really grown, both emotionally and academically, during his time at the school, and we’re confident that he has been well prepared for his future at St. Mary’s  Below are a few pictures of Henry with his classmates/partners in crime (Jack and Wesley) and his Pre-K teacher Ms. Rina.

 

Play Date at the Zoo

A rainy Sunday at the end of June did not seem like an auspicious day for an outing to the National Zoo.  But the room parents from Vivian’s class were insistent that the 3A play date would go forward as scheduled, so we packed our rain gear and headed into town.  Fortunately, the deluge subsided shortly after we arrived, and because of the weather, we had the zoo to ourselves.  Elise was working, so it was just Bryant and the kids and a few intrepid families from St. Anthony’s.  After a turn on the carousel and a peek at the great cats, we headed over to the sea lion show.  Afterward, the children had great fun splashing around in the new tidal basin sprayground (check out the photos below).  After visiting a few more animals, including the elephants, we had lunch with our friends and headed home for naps.  Despite the weather, and Bryant’s intense skepticism, it turned out to be a great morning.

 
  

 

Father's Day 2013

As a special Father’s Day treat, Henry and Vivian took Bryant to the local Krispy Kreme for breakfast.  Apparently other children had the same idea, because the place was filled with dads and their families.  We first watched the doughnuts being made on the special doughnut conveyor belt (that curtain of icing is mesmerizing) and then ordered a box of hot doughnuts for ourselves.  The cashiers gave the kids hats and balloons, and we all proceeded to get a huge sugar rush.  Below are pictures from our morning out.

 

 

Spring Swim Lessons

Henry and Vivian wrapped up their swim lessons at the beginning of June, just in time for summer.  Henry started lessons in March, and Vivian joined him for a second session in May.  This was our first time participating in an activity without parents, and both kids did great on their own.  The rec centers near us tend to book up early, but we found an indoor pool near Mount Vernon that had plenty of availability and great instructors.  It also was nice to have a regularly scheduled activity to get us through those (sometimes) dreary months of early spring.  Although neither one is swimming on their own yet, both Henry and Vivian made great strides this spring and are looking forward to spending summer at the swim club.  Below are pictures from the last day of swim class.     

 

 

80s Night

Our daycare center—St. Anthony’s Day School—holds a silent auction every year to raise funds for teacher appreciation and special events.  This year’s theme was “80s Night.”  This was our first time attending the auction, and we decided to get into the spirit of the evening by dressing up.  Elise wore neon tights, a lace headband and fishnet gloves.  Bryant wore a Van Halen t-shirt and a fake mullet.  Amazingly, we were able to order all of this from Amazon (how would we survive without Amazon Prime?).  As you can see from the photo (above), the final result was pretty impressive.  So impressive, in fact, that we won “best costume” (beating out some strong competition from a couple dressed as Maverick and Charlie from Top Gun) and a free dinner at Joe Theismann’s Restaurant.  The auction itself was a lot of fun—a nice way to socialize with other families from school.  We walked away with a toy pirate chest (made by Henry’s teacher), a wine basket and an overnight stay at the New York Palace Hotel.  It looks like we have a trip to the Big Apple—maybe our first without kids—in our future.

Vivian's Dance Recital

Vivian had her first dance recital on June 2nd.  Bryant was surprised to learn that Vivian’s inaugural performance would be a “daddy and daughter” dance.  Along with the other girls from ballet class and their dads, Vivian and Bryant practiced after school for four weeks to get ready for the big day.  The instructors chose Rascal Flatts’s “Wish” for the Wiggletoes routine.  After some (very simple) choreographed steps, each pair got to perform a solo move.  Bryant and Vivian chose to soar like an airplane.  Below are two rough videos of our performance.  Elise had a little trouble holding the camera still because she was tearing up.  Despite some pre-show jitters, Bryant managed to more or less remember his moves.  Vivian was a natural and even gave out a little squeal of delight when the audience applauded at the end.  And of course, she loved wearing her frilly dance costume.  Well done, Vivi.  We’re proud of our little girl!