1/2 day

All 3 kids are asleep. It's been a long day!

 

Last night before bed we made a cake, like we had last year, and read The Night Before Kindergarten. Last year's cake was funfetti ( my favorite) and this year we tried a Duff brand Camouflage cake. I didn't pour it into the pan well enough to be a true camo, but it worked and was fun to make.

 

 

 

Thankfully Luke was home and able to do all of this with us.

 

Landon was ready to be awake this morning at 6:00 AM! I told him Mommy wasn't getting up for 30 more minutes, but he could go watch TV =)

I haven't had a daily set schedule to set my alarm for since he was 12 weeks old. I woke up every day at 5:30 AM to pump before I went to work. After that, I've just woken up to a cry or to a face IN MY FACE every morning.

 

Luke made muffins, we got them all dressed and ready, and we headed off to Kindergarten!

I'll add a collage from last year's picture as well.
 

 

 

 

Today was just a half day for K5-2nd grade, & the rest of the week the other kids will filter in with everyone having a full day together on Friday. The 1st grade lined up in the gym & followed their teacher to the class, then the 2nd grade lined up and followed their teacher to the class, and then it was time for the Kindergarten classes!

 

Of course the Headmaster then said something about this being one the of most memorable days of your child's schooling. ALMOST HAD TEARS. But Ella started squirming and screaming and Lucy sat in my lap. They called the kids up by name to line up and walk to their classroom. Of course he is by his friend alphabetically =)

 

He had already found his backpack hook, found his seat, and was ready to go by the time I made it down the hallway.

 

 

 

 

 

A few last words, pictures, and good-byes and we were out the door!

But not without a gift from the teacher:

 

 

 

3 hours later, and it was time for pickup.

He got into the car to tell us kindergarten WAS BORING! ALL WE DID WAS SIT AT OUR DESKS!

 

 Then throughout the day, he would remember and tell me one more thing he had forgotten.

He wouldn't tell me what song they sang this morning, and then before bed he was teaching Lucy 'Tootie Ta'. I'm not sure if he didn't want to tell me about the fun things since he had told me it was boring. And everyone knows you don't sing Tootie Ta sitting at a desk. =)

 

He's excited about a full day tomorrow ( and getting to move around some).  He is NOT excited about rest time. He has informed me that he does not have to close his eyes or sleep during rest time. He only has to lay down and relax.

 

Alarms are set. Lunch is packed. Uniform is out. And we are ready to do it all again!

 

 

 

One more picture from before we left his class =)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kindergarten?!?!

Tomorrow.

Tomorrow, I give one of my most prized possessions to the care of someone else.

My first baby, my only son, my Landon starts kindergarten tomorrow.

I know he is smart. And he is so ready to go!

I'm worried that I've not done enough to get him prepared.

I'm not worried about him forgetting his letters or numbers or how to count by 10's & 5's. I'm not worried about not learning to tie his shoes.

I've had 5 1/2 years with my boy. I took off 12 weeks after he was born, went back for 10 weeks, and have been home with him ever since ( besides subbing, teaching swim lessons, and the pumpkin patch). He was my reason to get out of bed so many days. He always has a hug to give. I love him so much & I have enjoyed my time with him.

But, this is the start of the rest of the next 13+ years of his life. And it's scary.

Did I teach him enough about LIFE?

Does he know how to be kind to everyone? Does he know how to help someone who is hurting? Have I taught him how to answer adults politely? Did I teach him how to speak kindly? Did I teach him what to do if he is scared?

What if he gets hurt ? Oh, I hate to think of not being there with him to help him through. I pray that I've given him the tools to get on with this next chapter in life.

He knows I'm a little upset about all of this kindergarten business. He keeps reminding me that he will still be my baby. He still sleeps with this bear (Maximus) and his Lovey ( Lovey).

I tucked him in with both tonight.

I pray he is a friend to everyone.  I hope he enjoys school. I hope he knows just how special he is to me.

I pray that all of his teachers this year love him like their own. I hope they know how to teach him. I hope he stays the same sensitive boy. I hope he continues to be a leader. I pray he leads others in the right direction. I hope he can enjoy every minute of this journey. I hope if he gets hurt or sad that he knows Who to call on.

I'm sure there will be a flood of tears tomorrow morning at drop off!

I'm leaving my baby in the hands of others.

I am praying for his safety and my sanity.

I know there's more I could have done. I could have been slower to anger. I could have yelled less. I could have napped with him more. I could have played in the yard more.

But I hope he knows I've done the best I knew how.

But  now I have all day to spend with the other 2 and work on this job of motherhood. I still have 2 years until Lucy goes through this, and then 2 more after that until Ella starts school.

Pray for me with those two all day!!! ;)

We made pizzas tonight, and made a cake ( like we did last year before pre-school) before bed. I've got his uniform set out. Luke has muffin mix out ready to make early in the morning. His backpack is packed with supplies. We've got gifts for teachers ready. We read( and I bawled) The Night Before Kindergarten. The camera battery is charging.  We've talked about what to expect. He has 2 friends already in his class.

I haven't woken daily to an alarm in over 5 years. The girls fought bedtime the past few nights and especially tonight. We are going to completely change their schedule to fit around drop off and pick up for Landon, and they will be waking( & napping) about 1-2 hours earlier than normal.

I've never been one to do good with change. AT ALL.

But I'm ready for a good routine.

I'm ready for him to learn!

I know he will do great!

{ Yes, I realize he isn't going off to college tomorrow, and it's only a half day the first day. }

I can't wait to see him grow in his academics, in the Lord, and in life.

I will add pictures tomorrow =)

Update Overload

It's been a while since I've blogged! A lot has been going on around our house. Luke has been unemployed for about the past 9 weeks , so the house has been full and busy and messy and un-structured and messy. He's finally back, and I actually have time to sit and write!
The March of Dimes was a success! We always have so many friends reach out and donate to this cause. They understand how much it means to us and how much the preemie world means to us. We had plenty of friends buy T-shirts, and we had some friends and family come walk with us! I'll dump some pictures now :

There was a special area in the family area call the Path of Hope. Families could donate $25 towards the walk & get a sign with their child(ren)'s name and picture and birth details. Some were in memory, some were in honor of the child itself, and some were pictures of their children in honor of family who had been in the NICU. It was a neat addition this year! Lucy and Landon loved to see Lucy's picture. We should have added Landon & Ella to it also, but it slipped our mind to even donate until after the deadline. We were able to still be included though =)

We got there early to help set up the family area, so we got to enjoy all the games before anyone really got there! No lines and a lot of fun!

She ran so fast to Elsa and Ana!

Princess crown, of course!

Our Team Lucy Loo picture ( minus 3). One day I hope that we can be one of the large teams! I think being able to see all the families, kids and babies, shirts in memory of babies, and people supporting others is AMAZING! I feel like crying the whole time we are there.

Landon & Jay. Their daddies played college baseball together and they have moved back from St Louis! They've actually been back a year but are moving SUPER CLOSE next weekend!

We loved the new location this year! We still have (all 3 years) ended up in the VERY BACK. It's way too crowded with all the people up front. Plus we walk and talk and take our time....and we had a lot of kids walking.

Lucy's friend Lexi ( and her mom and sister ) came too!

Landon said he was TIRED OUT!

Lucy passed out within minutes of getting into the car.

 

My individual goal for the walk was $325. Thanks to all our wonderful friends and family, we hit $453! Somehow the team goal was set at $600. Team Lucy Loo ended up raising $703!

We ended up doing 1 fundraiser with Funky Munky shaved ice.........and it was about 53 degrees that day! We were at a college campus in the middle of thousands of teens. So as soon as the truck pulled up , they wanted to spend their money. We are planning on teaming with them every year at the same event, hopefully next year it'll be in the 70's! We also had a big donation from a food truck here in Nashville-- Hoss' Loaded Burgers ! Check them out when you get a chance!

 

This year the MOD had a campaign called 'be your best for babies'. The family who had the greatest % increase from their best year is going to be featured on the MOD Christmas card. Team Lucy Loo did increase by 36%! Thank you for that. I don't think we will ever be a top fundraiser team, as you can see below the top team here has raised $53,115!!!!

 

Maybe next year I can have a little better success with business donations and sponsorships! And our goal will be to have at least 20 walkers come out and enjoy the day with us! The goal I sent in on our paper was 14 walkers, and we had 15 people out to support the March of Dimes.

If you know of a company that might be interested next year, let me know!

 

Sunday!

The March for Babies is this Sunday! We are very excited! We are thankful for our friends & family who know how important this is and come out and join us. If you don't have plans Sunday afternoon, come down to LP Field. There will be booths from hospitals and other places as well as bounce houses, face painting, balloon artists, food (usually hot dogs and cookies from Publix)& water, and some characters from Enchanted Entertainment. There is a new little section called Path of Hope that will have signs with pictures of the local babies that families here are walking in memory or in honor of. We did one for Lucy ,& she had no problem posing on the porch for a new picture in her Easter dress :) 

If you want to come out, activities start at 12:30 and the 2 mile walk is at 2! The pictures below show where everything will be located & the route of the walk. 

 

We will be there early to help set up in the family area. Send us a message or text if you want to meet up! I will set up a time for a team photo,& will try for it to be close to 2, right before the walk. I also want to take one ourselves by Lucy's sign. 

Parking and event location:

• General parking is available in LP Stadium lots A, B, C, and D.
• LP Field’s address is 1 Titans Way, Nashville, TN 37213. For driving directions, visitwww.titansonline.com/stadium/directions-parking.html

ALSO-- we are about $90 shy of our goal. Think about donating $5 or $10 , every little bit helps! 

Thanks to Funky-Munky Shaved Ice for doing a fundraiser Saturday with us! LIKE them on FB to see where they will be throughout the summer! 

 Marchforbabies.org/lucyemilia is the link if you want to donate.

AND👉👉👉👉Anyone who donates up until the 12th will be entered into a drawing for a Ham & Biscuit Pack from The Loveless Cafe! I'll draw a name Sunday afternoon. 

March for Babies news!

We are just a few weeks away now from the March for Babies!  If you still want to walk, PLEASE join us on April 13th! We will be at LP Field this year. The walk is a 5K and goes across the pedestrian bridge, down 2nd Avenue, back across the other bridge, and back into LP field. You don't have to sign up or pay, just show up, & have a good Sunday afternoon outside with the family. There will be kids activities before the walk, and our kids will all be there with us.

We ordered some team shirts last week, and we have gotten the preview of the shirts. They should be sent soon! If you ordered one, I will let you know when they are in. You don't need a shirt to walk, so don't let that stop you =)

We got charcoal shirts, the National Team shirt, with Team Lucy Loo on the back.

We have gotten a few donations--from friends and from a few Nashville businesses. We are almost to our goal, but are still short a few dollars. ( We do have another donation that was sent to the office, and isn't showing on our ticker yet). BUT, we have gotten the go ahead on a fundraiser we will be having NEXT WEEKEND. If you are a friend of ours from church or growing up in church with me ( Emily) or from college, you know what TNT is. It is coming up next weekend, and we have teamed up with a Shaved Ice Truck ( Funky-Munky) that will be at TNT. They will be giving 20% of all sales to our Team Lucy Loo! If you or your youth group or your own kids will be at TNT next weekend, send some cash for some shaved Ice! The truck will be by the softball field, and I will know the exact times soon. Right now, it will most likely be a little bit on Friday and a little bit on Saturday. We are excited, and hope to see some friends there!

If you do still want to donate, our team page is TEAM LUCY LOO