The school hosted its annual Back to School Picnic on August 1st. This is always a great way to catch back up with lots of friends that we haven't seen over the summer along with meeting new families. It was awesome to see so many new people this year; Stonehaven is growing rapidly! Lily was excited to see Annie Harvey. Lily had made a beautiful painting for Annie at Crestridge this year, and this was the first time we've been able to see them since getting back. Annie's mom told me later that she had placed this painting prominently in the middle of her room. Such a sweet bond these girls have.
We headed over to Birmingham the first weekend of August which was a fun way to wrap up our summer. We couldn't wait to get over there and meet our newest niece, Emma, who was born while we were in New Smyrna Beach. Of course, we were happy to see the rest of the family too. Decker enjoyed his I-20 ride in Lily's lap; I don't think he left it the entire ride. He and the girls stayed at Bama's home with her while Ryan and I stayed at a nearby hotel. On Friday evening, we enjoyed a wonderful evening with Kyle and Shannon Kline; it's been so long since we have seen them! The girls had a fun dinner out with Bama which ended with a delicious visit to Steel City Pops.
Look at this precious little one! Oh, we all loved meeting sweet Emma!
Sunday night arrived, and we had fun looking back at all the fun things we did and people we saw over the summer. It was a great one!
Lily made this cool unicorn dreamcatcher that afternoon, and she did a beautiful job styling Mia's hair that morning.
The first day of school is here! It was a beautiful day, great for stepping outside for our annual "when I grow up" pictures. A baker and a robot engineer...I love my girls!
We are ready for another great year at Stonehaven!
Lily read me a short story one evening that her class had read earlier in the day. I love seeing how their materials grow and deepen as they mature. I always enjoy reading with my kids. Ryan took Mia on an after carpool date one day while they waited on 7th grade to return from their first Pathfinders trip of canoeing down the Chattahoochee. They stopped at the Marietta Food Hall and had a crepe; I may have been a little jealous!
There's a couple of new things going on around the school this year. 5th grade is enjoying an expanded orchestra period this year, and they got to choose their instruments recently. Mia was super excited to pick the trumpet. She's had a few lessons in school and is enjoying it!
I'm so incredibly proud of both the girls. They decided in the spring that they wanted to try out for the 5th-8th grade girls volleyball team at school this fall. Neither had played before, but they worked hard over the summer. They went to all the evening camps that Miss Keesee offered, and they would practice at home too. The week before school started and the first week of school, they went to tryouts/practice. Then they found out they had made the cut! How exciting! They've had a great time already being a part of this team.
Mia is the only 5th grader on the team, but I think she has more heart in it than anyone else. She's picking up the game very quickly, and the coach said she's very good at making adjustments when she's corrected.
Lily has jumped right in to this team sport which has been something new for her. Several of her best friends are on the team, so she's loving getting to spend more time and having fun with them.
So far, this school year is starting out amazingly well!