End of the School Year

Summer is here! Hooray!!!

It has been a busy last couple of weeks we are ready to kick back and relax. I have such mixed feelings about another school year ending. On one hand I get all my sweet kids here all day long! Love that! But on the other hand another year has passed and they are growing up too fast. 

Last week Hema's class had their Authors Party and did some cute skits about what they've learned this year and gave us a book of stories they wrote throughout the year. 

Hema's Authors Party skit

Hema wrote some fun stories.

Hema and Dad at the Authors Party

Hema and Mom at the Authors Party

Mom and Hema

I've made about a bazillion candy leis for the many graduations we've had lately. We have a graduation today that will be the 7th one we've attended this year. Yikes! People seem to like the candy leis a lot and the kids love to give them to people. 

A few of the many, many candy leis I've been making.

I also attempted my first money lei this year. I think it turned out pretty cool. And getting some cash plus lots of bubble gum is a good thing right? 

My first money lei. 

Vela's preschool ended last Friday. Her teacher, Mrs Sanborn, has been fabulous and Vela already misses her. 

Vela and her awesome teacher Mrs. Sanborn

Here's a picture of Vela's preschool class. 

We gave the kid's teachers candy leis for an end of the year thank you. I made these cute little cards to go with them and the kids wrote them a message inside. I think they turned out really cute!

Candy lei with cards I made for the kid's teachers.

I asked Hema what he wanted for breakfast on the last day of school and he said a buffet. So I made a big breakfast. He was a little disappointed that there wasn't any chicken.... crazy kid!

Cora and Hema ready for the last day of school breakfast.

Hema and Mrs. Johnson on the last day of school. She has been such a great teacher for Hema and has really built up his confidence. We have absolutely loved her!

Hema and his awesome teacher Mrs. Johnson.

I saw this cute idea on Pinterest and decided to do it for my kids. You have teachers sign the book and write a little note to your child every year up through their graduation. I hope they appreciate it some day!

Book and instructions I typed up. 

I wanted each teacher to use the same format when they signed it so I typed up some instructions to go with it. I did the same thing for Vela. I had Hema's past preschool and kindergarten teachers sign it too so I'd be caught up. Now if I can only remember to have the teachers sign them over the next decade it will be great!

It had my phone number and our last names but I took them out of the photo. 

It has been a great year and so fun to see how much the kids have progressed.

Vela has loved preschool and has started reading which is really exciting. She finished up her year of speech therapy and has improved so much this year. She has a few sounds that are still tough so we'll do speech again next year. Everyone thinks she should be going to kindergarten next year because she is so tall, but she won't be 5 until October so she is excited for another year of preschool next year.

Hema has really become a great reader this year. He is loving math and science and has decided he wants to be a scientist when he grows up. Actually he first wanted to be a full time dad, but we explained that he will need to work and support his family so he settled on scientist. He is such a happy and friendly kid. His teacher said he is nice to every single person in the class and can make everyone smile and feel important. I love that about him. He loves to learn and came home form the last day of school and sat down and did some reading first thing. He is excited to be a big 2nd grader next year.

I'm excited to soak up every minute of every day with these kiddos and enjoy summer! 

Graduation! It's party time

Congratulations to all our family members who graduated this year!

 Our cousin Dillon Forsythe (Timpview HS) with Aunt Kristine & Uncle Clayton

 Our Nephew Atunaisa Havili (Stansbury HS) with his mother Tapenisi and brothers Alani & Sitiveni

Our beautiful niece Chalet Katoa performing a traditional Tongan dance at her Graduation party! Chalet actually graduated with her associates degree. So awesome!

(Her proud parents are Sam & Angie)

And here are my kids dancing at Chalet's graduation party!

And our amazing fast running cousin Natalie Shields will graduate next week from East High!
(I stole this picture off her facebook page.  ;) )

Nat's parents are Pat and Jeff.

Thank you all for being a wonderful example to our children.

Good luck in everything that you do.

Best Visit Ever!!!!

Our family has been blessed with three little miracles, three children all that came into our family because each time a very brave and amazing young woman chose to place her baby in our family through adoption.

 These wonderful women our children very affectionately call their birth moms. 

We are double blessed because we have open relationships with each of these beautiful women. And triple blessed because they all live within about 40 minutes of our home. It's pretty great! We have lots of friends who have birth families that live far away, across the state or country or even the world. That just makes it a little more complicated to get together. So yeah, we have it pretty good! 

Our children know their birth mothers. They love them, They talk about them and look forward to visits. We get to see each of them regularly.

But these awesome ladies had never met each other...

until yesterday.

Last year over Mothers Day I thought how nice it would be if they had the chance to meet. I tucked the thought away until it came closer to Mothers Day this year and asked each of them and they all thought it sounded great. It didn't have to happen near Mothers Day, but somehow I wanted the all the women who are my children's mothers, all 4 of us to meet up in close to Mothers Day. So we did yesterday. 

It was awesome!

(Oh and if you've ever wondered why my children are so stinking cute just check out these pictures with their gorgeous biological mamas!)

Krychele and Cora

Vela and Chelise

Katie and Hema

I wanted to get a good group picture... but they all ended up something like this...

Baby Alysha (Chelise's daughter), Krychele, Chelise, Vela, Me, Cora, Katie and Hema
Oh and where is Bubba? 

Or this....

Krychele, Bubba (Vela's full biological sister), Chelise, Vela, Cora, Me, Hema and Katie
Where's Baby Alysha?
Where is Hema?
How did I not get one single photo with Hema in it? 

 (For the record Katie and I are notorious for always wearing the same color shirts when we get together. It is kind of freaky! From our first face to face to today I think there was only one time ever that we didn't have on the same color.) 

Vela and Bubba - GORGEOUS! They are full biological sisters. 

It was really awesome to have these amazing women meet face to face and talk and get to know each other in real life. We ate, played, visited, ate some more and visited some more. It was amazing how well we all just meshed. I think it was really comfortable. These ladies are each different in so many ways - age, race, interests...but we all share a special bond through our love of the same 3 children that together sort of make us all family.

I have said it a thousand times, but I am so grateful for open adoption! I am eternally grateful that I am a mother, thanks to these 3 women. I am so grateful that these women allow me and my family to be part of their lives! We are so very blessed to know each of them! 

Can't wait to all meet up again! We just might have to make this an annual tradition!