Para Sailing- WooHoo!

While on vacation in Panama City Beach, I got to go para sailing for the first time. I got to go along with my Aunt Becky, and it was so much fun! I am a bit afraid of heights, so I was worried at first, but it turned out to be an amazing experience. It was such a smooth ride. Very relaxing. You could really see a lot of the area. We were pulled along for 4 miles, and they dipped us into the water 2 times. Just a fun little bonus to get in the water a little farther out then you might actually swim. We had to ride a banana boat out to the speed boat, and that was actually half the fun! I would love to go out on a banana boat adventure the next time we hit the ocean!

Florida Family Vacation

What a great vacation! We picked the perfect time to head to Panama City Beach, Florida this year. The weather wasn't too hot, the condo and beach weren't ever crowded with people and we made it back home before the big oil spill made it to shore in that area. I'm so glad the girls got to go to the ocean while it's still beautiful! This was our first family vacation so we weren't too sure of how it would all go, but it was wonderful! The girls learned to swim while we were there so we couldn't keep them out of the water. We enjoyed an awesome Pirate Ship Cruise, para sailing, geo-caching, shopping, walking to the Pier, etc. We attempted a pontoon ride over to Shell Island, but that ended quickly once the big storm came our way. I'm almost positive we could hear the Gilligan's Island song playing while we tried to make our way back to the dock! We got to share our trip with Granny and Grandpa, Uncle Bob and Aunt Becky, too.

The First Airplane Ride

Kaylen and Kendall took their very first plane ride today! Granny and Grandpa got to expirience it with them on the way to Florida for their very first Family Vacation. They were so excited about getting to go up and see the clouds. Once they finally made it in the air, Kendall decided she'd had enough excitment and fell asleep. Kaylen enjoyed using the headphones. All in all, it was a great trip for them all.

Anthony Shawn Lucas: Class of 2010

I am so incredibly proud of my nephew Shawn. Today he graduated from Bloomington High School South, honored at Indiana University's Assembly Hall. He finished his schooling after the first semester and went hard to work with Grandpa right after that. He's set to leave for Georgia in July for his Army training. He's convinced it's exactly what he wants to do so we're all just keeping him in our prayers. He celebrated his graduation with his best friend Kyle Tapp. Two peas in a pod! Kyle graduated from Edgewood so that is the difference in the colors on the cake. We let Kaylen and Kendall have the camera for a bit to keep them entertained at the party and these are a few of the pictures we came home with!!!

Kaylen's First Grade Award Ceremony

We are extremely proud of Kaylen's accomplishments this year. Kaylen entered the first grade with a reading level of 2.0, but ended the year with a reading level of 4.8 and a math score of 3.2. Those levels are way above average, and she just keeps going. She is eager to learn and always strives to do her best. She began the year in Mrs. Hartweck's class, but they quickly moved her into the 'Cluster Group' class when they saw just how quickly she was pulling ahead. By moving into Mrs. West classroom, she was able to receive more challenging work. She ended the school year as a member of the 100 club, meaning she scored at least 100 AR Testing Points throughout the school year. This is quite an accomplishment for her age group. She also received an Honor Roll award and Good Conduct award as well. We are VERY proud of her!

Kendall's last day of Kindergarten

Kendall had a wonderful year in Mrs. Castleman's PM Class this year. She made many friends and learned so much. We are very proud of all her accomplishments! On Kendall's last day of school, they got to take a field trip to Boonville City Lake for some play time and a little picnic. The class decided they had found a new class pet while they were there.......a worm. The poor little worm was actually no longer living, but the kids were convinced it was indeed alive, AND having babies. It was very cute watching them try to protect this 'new class pet'.

Kaylen's 1st Grade Field Trip

Kaylen's 1st grade field trip was to Mesker Park Zoo. It was so much fun. The weather turned out to be awesome. Not too hot, not too cold. Kaylen went to the St. Louis Zoo when she was 2 but doesn't have any memory of it so this was kind of like her first zoo experience. Mom and Dad were both able to go along. It was a lot of fun!