Marisa graduates from preschool!

Today was Marisa's last day of preschool! It's sort of a bittersweet moment...for the first time in 5 years, we will have NO monthly tuition! Mama gets a raise!! But, our baby is off to kindergarten next year. Wow, how time really does fly when you're having fun!

Marisa has absolutely loved her time at Courthouse Christian Preschool. She has made so many new friends and learned so much. She adores her teachers, Miss Angel and Miss Jenny, and has even requested that Miss Angel be her kindergarten teacher next year! We have really been blessed with a terrific school.

As a graduation gift, her teachers made her a Prayer Pillow. The poem on it reads:

This prayer pillow is just for you,
to remind you that God's love is always true.
Whenever you are sad or happy, too,
Remember God is looking after you.
This pillow is meant to remind you to pray,
and to give thanks to God each and every day!

After her graduation, we went to Harris Teeter. On the way out, one of the employees said to me, "boy, she sure is growing up fast." I just wanted to cry!

Happy graduation, Marisa!

Cub Scout Bicycle Safety Event with Officer Davis

Marisa's End of the Year Party

Marisa - Dentist appointment

With two loose teeth, a sliced gum and one chipped tooth, our dentist wants to see Marisa tomorrow at 4:15. I will post another update then. In the meantime, it isn't stopping her from eating or playing! Her face is a bit scabby from all the road rash and cuts on her lips, but she's acting totally fine :)

More Marisa pictures

Marisa's face and gums are looking much better tonight. Here are some pictures of her just before bedtime...goofing off, as usual!!

Marisa takes a dive

As you can see from the pictures, Marisa crashed big time on her bike today. We were at the bus stop...she was riding around, Colby was climbing a tree and I was talking. I heard her crying in time to turn around and see Emma's dad picking her up off the ground. He told me that she took a turn too sharp and landed on her face. She was bleeding pretty good, but I just thought it was a split lip. I looked at her bottom teeth and could see the blood pooling up around them. Since they were already loose, I then assumed the bleeding was coming from them. Everyone was really nice - running to get ice packs and offering to drive us home. I declined, thinking it was nothing.

Half way back to our house, I stopped to assess the situation. I lifted up her upper lip and secretly wanted to freak out. Her upper gums were almost completely black, bloodly and, dare I say, a bit chunky. There were black specs in there (from the road??) and they were really swollen. I sped up the pace, cleaned her up when we got home and immediately called our dentist. They basically told me to clean her up, have her swish water around her mouth, give her Motrin and just watch her 3 top teeth. Marisa was really great about having ice on her lip for over an hour, which really helped with the swelling.

UPDATE: Marisa did great tonight. She ate chicken lo mein for dinner and complained of pain only a few times. Let me tell you that it did not stop her from eating 3 helpings AND a fortune cookie!! I brushed her teeth before bed and examined them a little more thoroughly. She does have a chipped tooth (which you can see in the pictures) and her front teeth are both loose and not perfectly aligned with each other anymore. The dentist said that even if they are loose, they may tighten up again, so I guess only time will tell. Her gums look so much better now than on that way home from the bus stop. We'll see how they look in the morning. All I have to say is thank God that these are still her baby teeth!

Strawberry Pickin'!

Yesterday, we went strawberry pickin' at the Flip Flop Market (just past Pungo) with Kim, Westin and Madison. The strawberries are delish!

Jungle Party Tonight!

The first graders at North Landing put on a GREAT show, "Jungle Party Tonight." They did a fabulous job :) The kids had to dress up as jungle animals, and Colby chose an alligator. Thankfully, we already had a costume because mama don't sew!

Meet Ava

Nicole (Jason's cousin) had her baby! Meet Ava Diane Lawrence. She was born on May 7, 2008 at 5:37 p.m., weighed 8 lbs. 5 oz. and was 20 3/4 inches long.

She is beautiful and reminds me of Marisa with all that hair!

Congratulations to Nicole, Kevin and Addison :)

Mother's Day Tea at Marisa's School!

Marisa's school hosted a Mother's Day Tea on Friday for all the moms! They sang a couple songs, presented us with beaded bracelets that the kids made, and prepared food and drinks for us. They were all adorable :)

I have to highlight a questionnaire that she filled out about me (double click it to enlarge it). She put my favorite food as vegetables. Seriously??

Rest In Peace Grandma Tutz

Wii like to play?!?

A little Wii Mariokart action while Brian and Jana were in town this weekend!

If we did not go to the dentist...

If we did not go to the dentist, here is what our kids would look like...

If you double click on the pictures, you can get a better look at the teeth!

(By the way, note Colby's new haircut. He was trying to grow it "long" since that is the style is now, but decided he wanted a high and tight just like his uncle Brian. Whew!)