Sunday School Graduation

Shortly after school got out for the summer, Cody and Jaden moved up to a new Sunday School class. This is a big deal at our church because they go from being a part of Discover World, the infant to preK group under Ms. Amanda's care, to Discover Club, the K-2nd grade group which is led by Daddy! To recognize this big transition, Ms. Amanda holds a graduation ceremony for all of her outgoing preschoolers.

The after-church celebration kicked off with ice cream sundaes. Cody and Jaden were fairly nervous about the idea of walking across the stage during the ceremony, but the ice cream sure helped to put them in the right spirits! Grammy and Papa joined us at Salem for the ceremony as well.

Ms. Amanda dressed all the kids in graduation caps & tassels, gowns, and "Congrats Grad" necklaces. How cute is this?!

Jaden and Cody were NOT happy with me when I continued taking their pictures even after their friends started walking into the clubhouse to begin. Can't you just see the urgency in their expressions?-- "Mo-om, we're supposed to go in!"

The program officially began with Ms. Amanda talking with the class about how much she had enjoyed them and their high-energy this year. From all that she said, I gathered that this group had been a somewhat rowdy bunch.

The preschoolers then sang two songs together.

First, the "Hippo Song"...

...and then a cute, fun song called "The Fruit of the Spirit." The kids energetically waved around their instruments and laughed along with the CD of the guy shouting out, "The fruit of the Spirit's not a BANANA... or a WATERMELON!"

Next, it was time for the boys to get their graduation certificates. Each boy walked nervously across the stage after his name was called. This was a big moment for them to be singled out in front of a crowd!

After all the kids got their certificates, Daddy a.k.a. "Mr. Jason," talked to the whole group and welcomed the kids to Children's Ministry.

The program ended with a large confetti explosion! Ms. Amanda sure pulled out all the stops. :)

The boys really enjoyed their time with Ms. Amanda over the past two years. She has been a great leader for Jaden and Cody-- seeking to know them individually and modeling Jesus' love to them. We're so thankful for Ms. Amanda!  

Jaden & Cody with Ms. Amanda and their buddy Joshua

The Proud (and tired) Discover World Graduates!

We pray that Jaden and Cody's knowledge of the Lord continues to grow each day and that their love for Him deepens as well!

5 Year Old Photo Shoot

It's hard to believe that these growing boys were born FIVE years ago! We are so thankful for Cody and Jaden's love for life, their creative minds, their silly personalities, their eagerness to learn, their loving hearts, and their trusting faith in the Lord. Jason and I are quite proud of these two!

I tried a new local photographer for the boys' birthday pics this year and was mostly pleased with the results. Getting authentic smiles isn't the easiest task these days! Here are Cody's pics first...

For Jaden's set of pics, we got smart and started using "bathroom words" (not allowed for use at home!). Nothing brings out laughter in a little boy better than that! :)

What a blessing it is to have the adventure of parenting these two crazy kids! Love you bunches, Cody and Jaden!

Bike Party - Part 3

After being out in the heat doing bike stations, all of us were ready for a break inside with air conditioning. We gave the kids ice cold water while I read them one of the boys' birthday stories, "The Berenstain Bears and the Bike Lesson." I had read this story to Jaden and Cody a couple weeks earlier, and they thought the pictures of Papa Bear doing silly moves on the bike were just hilarious.

 

After the story, we went outside again-- this time for some bike decorating! Our supply table included bike spoke beads, colored straws and pipe cleaners for spoke decorating, crepe paper, and colored ribbon to make handlebar streamers.

I wasn't sure if the boys at the party would enjoy the bike decorating as much as the girls, but everyone stayed on task for longer than I thought. 

For some reason Jaden wasn't interested in decorating his own bike. Instead, he spent the whole time helping Ryan. (Several days after the party, however, Jaden changed his mind and decided he wanted handlebar streamers. Good thing Mommy still had all the extra supplies handy!)

I had brought out a few bottles from our pantry to help make the task of tying the handlebar ribbons a bit easier (a helpful Pinterest tip). It seemed to work fairly well.

Despite his non-excited expression here, Cody did seem to be fairly proud of how his bike turned out. :) All of the bikes looked pretty fancy!

Our last party activity was to take the kids' decorated bikes out into the cul-de-sac for a game of Red Light, Green Light. This was one of Cody and Jaden's favorite parts of the party.

By that point, we had all worked up quite an appetite for lunch! Everyone served up hearty portions of food-- baked ziti, PBJ sandwiches, chips, veggies, and fruit.

And for dessert, of course, was bicycle birthday cake, decorated with Skittles, with Texas Blue Bell ice cream on the side.

It was Jaden's turn to receive the Happy Birthday song first this year.

Cody was next with his chocolate cake with chocolate frosting.

How fun is this to have my sister and brother by my side, working to make my boys' birthday party a great one?! Gotta love it! 

When the kiddos left, we sent them home with a treat bag filled with some bicycle treats....

...a small water bottle labeled "Hope you had a WHEELIE good time," their laminated bike driver's license, some candy bars, and a really cool bike light that I had found for a great deal online. Of course, the kids got to take home their bike baskets and bike decorations too.

And that's Birthday #5 down in the record books! Happy birthday to my bike-loving, energetic, creative, silly new 5-year-olds!