Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Awards Day

Both Banks and Mary Reese had Awards Day at the end of their school year!  Mary Reese's was one day.  At Ben Davis, all the first grade parents start out in the cafeteria.  She was given an Honor Roll Award and a medal for completing the first ever incremental marathon...

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Mrs. Propst invited all her parents back to her room for her own awards ceremony...

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Banks had his Awards Day the following day.  He also received an Honor Roll Award, a medal for completing the first ever incremental marathon and physical fitness award...

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Sunday, May 20, 2012

field day 2012

Field Day...always a big hit in the Murphree household.  Mary Reese's school loaded up on buses that morning and headed over to Banks's school for one big day of fun!  They had tons of stations set up and rotated through all day.  As luck would have it, Mary Reese's class was right behind Banks's class all day long.  It made it so much easier for Jody and Nanny Nan to keep up with all the fun!

Inflatables...

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...a must for every field day!

They had hurdle races...

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Mary Reese's turn to hurdle...

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I love the look on her face!

Soccer goal kicking...

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...and field goal kicking...

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Popsicles...

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...and snowcones...

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AbbyMB&MRFieldDay

...always a hit but even better when it is HOT outside!  Best when shared with your friends at your side...Abby, Mary Bibb and Mary Reese.

A good old Mrs. Propst hug...

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Field Day always ends with a tug-a-war competition among each grade.  Go Mrs. Propst...

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I heard it was pretty intense.  Mary Bibb's mom said Mary Reese looked at her after only a minute of pulling and asked her if she could quit pulling.  Ginny told she had to keep going!  I heard there was lots of mad woman cheering to help crown Mrs. Propst class as the 1st Grade Tug-a-War Champions!

Then it was time for 3rd Grade...

3rdGradeTugaWar

Banks was very disappointed his class was put out in the first round.  I guess there is always next year!

A fun day spent with all our friends...

S&BField Day

All the field trips have been taken, all the school work is done, Field Day is over...Awards Day and End-of-the-Year parties are the only things left!

Saturday, May 19, 2012

1st grade goes to the zoo

Mary Reese's class went on the annual 1st Grade Birmingham Zoo field trip.  They were suppose to go the week before but the threat of rain postponed their trip by a week.  I avoided the ride on the school bus and opted to take my own means of transportation.  They got to the zoo a little after 10:00 and immediately ate their lunch [or maybe I should say brunch].  Then the entire crew headed in for a fun and excited day in the zoo.  They all came armed with a list of animals they wanted to see.  They had just finished their Survivor IB unit where they learned about all these animals and their habitats.  They were excited to make connections!

While the girls got situated and mapped out their plan of attack, Owen talked to some birds at the entrance...

OwieGoesToZoo

[It was the first time for him at the zoo and he LOVED it!  He was the perfect child, keeping up with all those girls just like he was one of them.]

The first place the group headed...the reptile house!  A place a was trying to avoid but they drug me in.  Mary Bibb's mom was laughing at a conversation between Mary Bibb and Mary Reese.  It went something like this:

MB:  Mary Reese look at their habitats.
MR:  I know.  Look how they make themselves cryptic.

It was way over our heads.  We had to ask Mrs. Propst what cryptic meant [just a fancy word for camouflage].

Mrs. Propst was even giving lessons along the way...

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The kids were hanging on every word and asking lots of questions.  Truly sponges.  After the reptile and bird section, we decided to catch a ride on the train before the line got too long.

Sweet classmates waited on their turn so they could all ride together...

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Eliza, Abby, Mary Bibb, Mia Kate and Mary Reese

Finally it was their turn...

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...they were front and center.  All I could here were tons of squeals and giggles coming from that first car.  It was priceless.

After the train ride around the zoo, we headed to the new African section.  [They were constructing it 2 years ago when I was on the same field trip with Banks's class.  I was excited to see the finished product.]  We saw moneys, giraffes and elephants...

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We found a fabulous Africa insprired playground...

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Complete with masks...

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...drums...

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...and a huge rock for climbing...

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It also had some pretty comfy, shady benches for us moms.  I didn't think we would ever get the girls off the playground.  We lured them out with the promises of a cold drink from the Safari Cafe.  We were recharged and ready to explore the rest of the zoo.  We headed through the predator zone and finally ended up at the Children's area.

We ended a fun filled field trip at the splash pad...

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Owie had a ball...

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One last photo op...

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...before heading north.  We pulled through a Chick-fil-a for a milkshake to help cool us off.  I looked back a few minutes later to this view...

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Little brother was still going strong...and lasted without snoozing all the way home.  I should have made him drive so I could have rested my eyes!

Tomorrow was another big day...FIELD DAY!

Friday, May 18, 2012

signing THE blue jeans

Mary Reese has been working on getting AR points since Christmas.  Her first goal was 10 points so she could go to the vending machines with Mrs. Propst for a special snack.  Then she set her sights on 15 points so she could go on a special afterschool outing with Mrs. Propst.  The week before spring break she hit 15 points and got to join Anna, Hampton and Eliza.  Mrs. Propst took them to Sonic for a snack, the playground for a little play time and then back to her house for a little cooking.  This is what I found when I got to Mrs. Propst house...

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They made sugar cookies and icing.  They were having a ball.  Mrs. Propst is a mighty brave woman!

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I didn't think I was ever going to get Mary Reese to leave.  They all threatened to spend the night in Mary Grace's room [and I think Mrs. Propst would have let them].

Fast forward to May 17th.  When the 1st Graders hit 25 AR points, they get to sign "THE" blue jeans.  Mary Reese has been working hard towards that goal.  She was dying to sign them next to where Banks signed them two years ago.  We stayed up a little past our bed time so we could finish Ramona The Pest to help push her over the mark.  She got to school a little bit early and went straight to the computer to take the test.  She passed and ended up with 25.1 points!  She immediately grabbed her Sharpie out of her desk and headed straight to the blue jeans...

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So excited she finally reached her goal...

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She signed it right next to her big brother...

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I hope there is room for Owen to continue on the tradition in a few years!

A perfect start to a fabulous day...her class was heading to the Birmingham Zoo in less than an hour!

Thursday, May 17, 2012

dragon boat racing

The hospital foundation decided to try a new fundraising endeavor.  Dragon Boat Racing!  Our friends with Domino's Pizza found me in the parking lot of the baseball fields the night before the event and asked me to row for their team.

The Saturday before Mother's Day was the big day.  Our first race was scheduled for 10:20 am.  We did pretty good for never have practicing as a complete team and we were also down a rower.

We earned a spot in a second race and then a third.  We ended up winning our division...

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Go Team Domino's Pizza Paddlers!

I had the best time.  Such a fun new fundraiser for our city.  There were people everywhere.  I can't wait to see how it grows next year.  Here are some professional pictures of the day.

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

two wheels

Mary Reese went home with Nanny Nan and Owen after her big Disney Dazzle performance.  When I pulled down the driveway, this is what I saw...

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She finally got it!





She took her bike out there at the end of last summer when I went back to work.  She wasn't quite ready in her eyes.  Today she was ready...she just hopped on and took off!

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Little brother is never left out of the fun...

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He has no clue he is only 3!

My three babies on their bikes...

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I have a feeling we will be on 2 wheels alot this summer!

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

disney dazzle

The fine arts department in Mary Reese's school always puts on a show towards the end of the year.  This year it was a Disney inspired [just like when Banks was in 1st Grade] showcase called...

DisneyDazzle2012

Each class came up with questions about Walt Disney and his empire.  Then they researched until they found out all the answers.  They mixed in the trivia facts with some Disney music and voila...Disney Dazzle...Ben Davis Style!

Mary Reese's class was in the final performance (MR is on the back row second from the right)...

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They opened up with a favorite from the Lion King...



Then a little medley from Mary Poppins...



Finally came her speaking part. 

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Did you know Mickey was not Walt Disney's favorite character?  Do you know who was?



Goofy was his favorite!  Can you believe there are over 850 Disney characters...WOW!

A favorite tune from Toy Story...



And from Jody's personal favorite ride at Disney...



They concluded the show with another tune from the Lion King...



***Owen was wiggling in my lap the entire time...so the video quality is not the best!***

I think she was laughing at Owen...

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...who loved the show because he loves anything Disney!

Sweet friends after the big show...

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Mary Reese, Abby and Mary Bibb

These two consider themselves sisters...

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Mia Kate and Mary Reese.  They have so much in common.  Both have double names, both are the middle children sandwiched in by boys, their initials are almost the same and they have the same lunch box!

What a fabulous job!  I can't wait to see what they come up with for next year.