May 30th, 2023

Austin and Alaina turned 19 years old!

They asked for the same burnt birthday cake that they got last year.  (when I burned their cakes to a solid black, and then saved the day by turning the cake into a trifle.)

We didn't actually burn the cakes this year, but the trifle did end up being very yummy.

We felt so lucky to have them home for their big day.

These two love each other so much.

Squishy Family.

Happy Birthday Twinnies!!!

 

Alaina was ready for a change...

So she cut off all of her hair!

I think the shorter hair makes her look more adult.

This girl is so beautiful.

 

First day of summer vacation, we took a night walk down to the school.  (Ironic, right?)

Here is our strange neighbor with their fake cannon and their confederate flag.

Spring has brought the most beautiful flowers to our area.  There are two trees right outside out house that flower in these huge bunches of light and dark pink blooms.

 

This kid Graduated 5th grade!  I am so proud of Jason.  I have loved all the teachers that Jason has had through his journey through elementary school.  So many of them have been so kind to Jason and helped him in many ways.  However, Jason has not had an easy go through the last few years.  He has struggled with ADHD and dyslexia which has made learning harder than it should have been.  

During 4th grade Jason had a boy who bullied him all through the year.  We spent so much time trying to work with the teacher and councilors trying to help the situation, but nothing we did ever seemed to help the situation.   We kept getting the run around because the teachers were overwhelmed with terrible behavior from so many students who came back after Covid.   Even so, it was unacceptable that Jason had become the target of one of these children.  

There were days he would cry and cry not to have to go to school.  He'd get stomach ache and super anxious to go.  After we intervened, things got a little better, but they didn't stop.  This whole situation made the move to West Virginia a little easier.

Jason worked so hard at Blue Ridge Elementary.  He was chosen for the that State Children's Concert and was able to make some friends at school.  Those things really boosted his confidence.  He loved the councilor Ms. Friend, (her actual married name) and his teacher.  We will always be thankful for all the teachers who helped Jason and who treated him so well.

Jason got one special award for being kind, another for being in Chorus and a third for being chosen to the State Children's concert.

Mrs. Friend

So proud of this kid!

 

One day when the boys were at school and Rob was at work, I decided to take the twins to Harpers Ferry.  I was really excited to take a bunch of picture of the twins, but my battery failed a few minutes after we got there.

These kids are so awesome!

And...this is when the battery died.  The rest of our visit will have to live in the annals of our memories.   

 

May 2023

May brought around the boys' end-of-the-year concerts.  The boys were so lucky that the twins were able to be able to come and see them perform.  Thomas was also nice enough to come down for both of them.

Jason's concert.

Emmett was so excited for his concert.  We had to go shopping and get this specific shirt and shorts.  He practiced his music and his solo lines over and over.  

When he got out there in front of all the parents, Emmett started to get very nervous.   I could see him started to panic as they started to sing.  The longer the concert went, the more miserable Emmett looked.  I think what was happening was that Emmett was feeling anxious, and the more anxious he felt, the hotter he felt.  Robert stepped into Dad-Hero mode, and he went behind the chorus, and basically pulled Emmett back through the kids and behind the concert without very much fuss.  When they were behind the other kids, no one could really see them.  While they were back there, Robert helped calm Emmett down, and cool him down by taking Emmett's undershirt off.  When Emmet was ready, Robert popped Emmett back into place and Emmett was able to finish the concert without any problems.  He was also able to get back into place in time for him to step down and say his solo part.  I was so proud of Robert for being able to help Emmett in a way that let him get back into the concert without any embarrassment, and I was so proud of Emmett for being able to overcome his nerves and anxiety and rejoin the choir. 

 

Happy Mother's Day 2023

For Mother's Day, I decided what I really wanted was a walk down by our Shenandoah River.

Robert and I had heard that there was a hidden ruin along the river, but we had never seen it.  So, we decided to take a different path, thinking we might be able to run upon it.  Unfortunately, the road not taken, added an extra hour and a half to our walk.  It also took us pretty far away from the river.  :(

We did, however, find some cool hanging vines that the kids decided to swing on, despite my good mom-advice that those vines could break at any second.

Fun won out.

Amazingly, enough, at the end of our never-ending-path, we somehow stumbled upon the old ruin.

It's a half-buried bath house (or so Rob tells us.)

It was pretty cool.

The funniest part of our whole hike, is that we found out that the ruin is directly next to the river.  Alaina and I had walked along the river the week before and we had stopped literally about twenty feet from finding the ruins.  (There is a bench right in front of a few trees that were right in front of the ruin - and Alaina I had sat on that very bench.)