Happinessprinciple: Riverfest Finale & Graduation Party & Hannah's Zoo Trip

Another week has passed, I am finished with my grading which was really a big job. I was constantly thinking about the papers and wanting to get the grades in so students could have the info. I hate feeling like I'm hanging on to something that they don't know about, when it actually belongs to them. So it's done. I did make a mistake though and looking back I should have planned differently. I did not realize that our entire department attended graduation (in regalia) in support of the students. It makes great sense, but when I was advising we just had a choice and it wasn't a big deal. It really did not dawn on me until it was too late that I should be there to support the studnets. So I did not rsvp and I could not get over the grading obsession. Next year, I will definitely go. Sometimes we just have to learn from our mistakes.

We attended our cousin Joe's High School graduation fiesta the day of the Riverfest's fireworks display. So we had a pretty tight schedule of fun planned for the day and it worked out well. Joe has become interested in the guitar in the past couple of years so John wanted to get him some kind of book related to guitars. He mentioned his idea and then took an afternoon nap...how convenient for him. He was tired from his gig the night before, so that left me to try to find the perfect book with really no knowledge of what is good...but nonetheless, I am a professional shopper (or I should be...) and I found the perfect book:

Willie Nelson's Guide to Happiness. Check it out... http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5430460

We hope he will enjoy it. One of our friends works at Borders and she is a very cool, Kirby's girl and she told me she had given it to almost every rocker she knows and they have read it on tours with rave reviews from all. Even though he is in high school, I'm sure he can come into that kindof word sooner or later.

The girls had a great time at the fiesta. They ate and broke a pinata then rode on the back of uncle Dale's riding mower with a trailer attached! Fun! Joe was hilarious when he finished off the pinata, he spun around the stick to get dizzy and fell when he tried to swing. John was cracking up, we all were.

The little kids are all cousins in the family on John's side.

John's first cousin Jeremy & his wife Lori have adopted two children in addition to having a birth child. So they have a neat family. Little Leah is from China and their brother Ryan is African American and I believe he is from Wichita originally. They are a neat family.

My girls have a magnet within them that detects and draws them to candy of any kind. They spotted this little machine with M&Ms inside and a nicely placed dish full of nickels to buy the candy. They surrounded it like bees and went to town. Hannah was stashing them in her little dress which was white with flowers, goes great with melting chocolate!

Very cute cake. The 2008 was actually a cookie and they had a basket of these cookies also on the table. Great idea. I am assuming the school colors are blue and black.

The Fireworks were awesome. We have a secret place we like to go and hope the rest of Wichita does not figure it out. Each time, though, it is getting a little more crowded. Luckily, our friends Jon E & Jessica made it there before we did and MeeMaw & Papa Bruce also came. We laid out the blankets right as the daylight ceased and the children ran around in circles. We only lost Sue Sue one time and that was terrifying. In one second, we noticed she was no longer running in the circle of kids. We started yelling her name and she was down just a ways looking at plants under a tree with cousin Jimmy. But in a crowd like that, it easy for a grown up to get confused much less for a little one...

John was the bomb this year! He had said that he was never going to spend big money on glow sticks and he remembered to go to Hobby Lobby before the event. He bought 50 glow sticks for like 5 bucks and all of the 10-15 children had them. We even gave some away to strangers so that was awesome and no buyers remorse! Maddie & our neighbor Charlotte made bunny ears and glasses with theirs!

Next, was Hannah's zoo trip. The end of school years really bring on the events! Her Montessori school went as a group and I offered to drive since we have the van and can fit many children!