Last Day of School

The last day of school for the 3's class included a party that gave the kids a chance to say goodbye to their classmates and teachers, Mrs. Halt & Mrs. Strange. The kids performed for the parents to show off some of the fun things they had learned this year. Alex was unusually sad that day, but managed to smile big for a photo opportunity with Mrs. Halt. The teachers gave each of the students a bucket full of fun to enjoy over the summer vacation.

Alex's classmates this year included an Alexandra, Alessandra, Alec and Aidan. This could be a little confusing at times! Alex stopped eating his picnic lunch long enough to take a photo with Alec, one of the happiest kids in the world. Alec's laugh is totally contagious and he always seems to have a smile on his face. Alex will miss being in the 3's class, but is looking forward to being in the 4's class with Mrs. Goldberg in the fall!

Grandma's Art Class

Grandma Sandy brought over Alex's birthday present Monday afternoon- 3-D chalk. Grandma got busy right away teaching the kids how to use it the special chalk. Before long, the whole driveway was decorated. We had talked about the commercial for this product for weeks, so Jeff was particularly excited about this present. It is fun to put on the 3-D glasses and look at the kids' masterpieces.

Grandma had one last suprise up her sleeve. She has been collecting empty bottles for weeks and brought a big bag of them over the kids to play with. They made great water guns and tools for watering all our flowers. It doesn't take much to entertain kids at this age!

Alex's Birthday

After much deliberation, including THREE trips to the cake store and countless conversations, Alex picked a Cars theme for his 4th birthday.The special day started with a donut cake for breakfast. Elizabeth was still recovering from the stomach flu Elena brought home, so it was a low-key family day. Alex opened presents all day long. A Speedy shirt and racetrack were among his favorite gifts from Mom and Dad.Grandma Liz and Papa sent an awesome robot dinosaur that has different moods and tricks it can learn to do. Elena is a little scared of it!Jeff took the kids to the neighborhood pool after naptime and they stayed for hours. When they got home, we grilled out one of Alex's favorite meals- "special hot dog." After dinner, it was cake time. Since it was his special day, he got extra frosting, his favorite part of cake. The kid could eat a whole can of frosting withoug any cake if we let him.

Happy 4th Birthday Alex!

Sick Day

Elena brought home the stomach flu on Monday. The poor girl finally fell asleep in the middle of the floor after crying and throwing up all morning. Unfortunately, Elena managed to share her cooties with Mom later in the week.

5K Run

The Walker family participated in the first annual 5K run for the Kids First Adoption Agency. Proceeds from the event paid for a playground at an orphanage in Russia. Most of the orphanages do not let the kids outside until age 2 or 3, so it should provide some much needed entertainment for the older orphans. The weather on Saturday morning was gorgeous out at Fort Benjamin Harrison park. Thankfully, the rain held off until the car ride home. The kids enjoyed the scenic trail, but their frequent requests to stop and walk ruined our efforts to set a 5K record time. We enjoyed the chance to see so many children from all over the world join together for this good cause.

Alex's Shabbat Nosh Show

Alex's preschool had a special evening to celebrate Shabbat Nosh with the families. Alex's class sang Happy Birthday in Spanish and Alex got to hold the sign since it was so close to his birthday!Mom and Dad posed with Alex after his terrific performance.Elena was thrilled Grandma Sandy was able to join us. She sat in Grandma's lap the entire evening and was totally distracting. At least Mom & Dad got to watch Alex.

Ballerina Girl

Elena dances around the house whenever she wears her tutu. Her favorite music to listen to is the Laurie Berkner Band.

Happy Mother's Day!

The Walkers, Robinsons and Galvins met for breakfast at the Cheesecake Factory to celebrate Mother's Day together. Grandma Sandy and Elena held onto their littlest babies.

Mom and her favorite girl took a break from the delicious food to smile for the camera.

Uncle Bill and Elena checked each other out while hanging out with Aunt Kathy.

Some of the boys were not very interested in posing for the ever-present camera.Elizabeth and Melinda take a much-deserved break from taking care of their kids.

Mom's Day at the BJE

Both of the 3s classes sang "Spring is Here" as part of the Mom's Day luncheon at the BJE. Even though Alex and Jack are not in the same class, they both chose to be the grass and were able to stand next to each other for the performance.

Aiden and Alex posed for the camera while wearing the tie dye shirts they made themselves
Alex did a great job saying cheese with classmates Alessandra and Megan. Caroline and Alex drew on the chalkboard while Elizabeth snapped away with her ever-present camera.

Alec and Alex sat next to each other at the Mom's Lunch. The kids made the Moms terrific gifts including a vase and hand print garden stone. Elizabeth's favorite present was Alex's drawing of the two of them together.

Before it was time to leave and pick up Elena from her class, some of the girls posed with Alex to make funny faces for the camera.