The Kassel Family Project Life 365

Our mint has already doubled in size. It is time for Sweet Tea Vodka and Lemonade Martinis. Summer is really here!

School is officially out for the summer and we have two middle schoolers. I still cannot believe that Laura will be in eighth grade and John will be in sixth grade in the fall.

To celebrate, we took our annual bicycle ride on the MKT and Katy trails to the Big Tree for a picnic. This year, we got on the MKT trail at the Stadium trailhead.

It was a beautiful day for a ride and we got a firsthand look at some of the flooding. It was shocking to see just how high the water actually is.

We only had to backtrack one time because of flooding on the way to the Big Tree. Once there, we enjoyed a picnic while we talked about the upcoming summer.

I am super proud of the kids. They rode nearly 18 miles round trip and that is their longest rides yet. It was the perfect way to start the summer!

Today was a nothing day in that I did nothing except relax and watch television. It was a perfect way to spend the day!

It was a day of projects. I started by entering new recipes on our online recipe database.

Then, I fixed the hole in John’s bean bag chair.

After that, it was laundry.

And we finished the day with hanging new shelves behind our bar. We have been saving glassware for years. You might even say that we have a glassware addiction. From beer festivals to winery trips to a shot glass from a dear friend’s funeral – all of them have meaning. We did not have a place for it all in the old house, so it went in box after box after box (totaling nearly 20 boxes). I emptied the last four boxes today! I found these shelves at Hobby Lobby about two months ago. Andy and I bought them yesterday on clearance. They match the décor perfectly! All our glassware is now stored in cabinets or on display.

It has only been 15 years in the making, my friends. As far as I’m concerned, my Memorial Day weekend is complete.

It was the perfect day to complete another project. I used four bags of potting soil and seven new pots to transplant various house plants and outdoor plants. Project #1 for Memorial Day weekend is done.

The end has come. Today, John graduated fifth grade and our time at Ridgeway Elementary is complete. I find myself wondering how his elementary years went so fast.

Laura wanted to see John graduate, so we took her to school after the ceremony.

It struck me as John was walking into school with his friends that this was my last time seeing him enter the doors as a student. It was a such a difference from the first time. As a kindergartner, he was scared and crying. Today, he was confident and smiling.

The Promotion Ceremony lasted about 45 minutes.  Individual awards were handed out first. Then, each name was called and the fifth graders came forward to receive their diplomas.

There was a short reception afterwards and I took some pictures of John with his friends and teachers. These are his best friends – Brady, Ayden, and Caleb. He will go to school with Ayden next year at West Middle School.

This is John’s teacher, Zach Gramke. The stars aligned, so that John had Mr. G for three years instead of two. John loves this man and he is going to miss him. To Zach, thanks for all that you did for John and being the kind of teacher that makes a kid want to learn even when school is not something he loves.

The only thing left to say is, “on to middle school!”

We have our first piece of railing installed!