Today is the last Friday of the school year and I'm as full of emotion now as I was the day they started.  Last summer was full of dread.  You know that your whole life as you know it is about to change with homework, new friends, new fears and all that.  It's the milestone that really sets in your mind that you don't have babies anymore, they're children.  My fears were multiplied by TWO!!  Now, I'm overwhelmed by how fast it has all gone and how much they have changed in the last 9 months.

I can not say how much I love Ms. Daniels.  She is exactly what Emily needed.  She is VERY creative and celebrated Emi's imagination.  She helped give Emily the tools she needed to take her stories out of her head and put them to paper.  She also recommended Emi for the kindergarten Challenge class which is an enrichment program for gifted and talented students.  This class helps students by bringing them into some deeper learning experiences, as well as expanding off of skills they learn in their home rooms.  I'm super proud of her for this because I was in Challenge classes in elementary school as well, and I remember those fun experiences and am so glad she will get to enjoy that too.  She tells us that Emily was a joy to have, but believe me when I say the joy was all ours.
Let me echo what I said for Emily, by saying that Mrs. Mazzant was EXACTLY what Sara needed.  Sara is easily distracted and can be easily wound up.  Mrs. Mazzant is quiet and loving and attentive.  When Sara started to slip with her numbers, Mrs. Mazzant found her a tutor to help.  She helped me realize and develop different teaching strategies with Sara.  I personally learn the same way Emily does: quick.  Sara doesn't.  She needs repetition and patience.  Mrs. Mazzant helped me with ways to help Sara.  Sara says daily how much she is going to miss her.  It often ends with both of us crying about it.

They have both made a lot of new friends this year that I hope we will stay in touch with through the summer.  Some days I hate living in this small town that I grew up in.  Most days though I think it's neat to see the kids of some of my friends growing up and thinking about us when we roamed these school halls.  That's usually when I start to freak out and start researching home schooling!