Celebrating the last day of school

Ahhh . . . . . I love the sound of that.  The last day of school.  We did our best to celebrate the occasion.  Dan was out of town for a business trip, so the kids and I partied on our own.  After school Aubrey found an awesome science experiment/craft on Pinterest. She, Joseph, and I worked together on making "Bubble Snakes," and they were super easy and fun!  This is the link to the blog where she found the idea. 

After awhile, we tried adding food coloring.  It is so cool to see the bubble snake up close. It quivers and sparkles as individual bubbles pop.  You've got to try it!

Festivities earlier in the day included an all-day luau party with Joseph's 1st grade class.  Parents and kids shared a luau potluck lunch, sitting on picnic blankets on the floor.  Then they played some games and receive their 1st grade scrapbooks.  Remember my story about the over-the-top 1st grade scrapbooks?  Well, the kids were presented with the finished versions.  They are amazing.  Each child received a 3-inch binder filled with pictures and projects from the entire year.  In all my years dealing with elementary schools, I've never seen anything like it.  The good news is that it completely absolves my guilt about not having scrapbooked any of Joseph's schoolwork or school pictures from this past year. The bad news is that I heard almost every parent mumble, "now I know to never volunteer to help with scrapbooks, because that is so intimidating." 

 The kids had a great time looking through their scrapbooks.

 Joseph and his best buddy Alex.

 The kids also had their classmates and teacher sign the "autograph" page of their scrapbook.

Goodbye 1st grade!  It was a wonderful year. There is something really unique about a 1st grader.  They aren't self-conscious or insecure yet - they are just authentically themselves. And they are full of joy and enthusiasm.  I thoroughly enjoyed being part of the 1st grade class this year!

Joseph with his 1st grade teacher, Mrs. Clarkson.