Today was a day I have secretly been looking forward to since the doctor declared "it's a girl!" nearly four years ago. Today was Caroline's first dance recital. She and her 7 creative dance classmates performed in the Dublin Dance Center's, Broadway Babies show. Their song was "Ease on Down the Road" from The Wiz. I have a video of the 3-minute performance, but of course am having a difficult time attaching it, so instead - here is a blurry picture of Caroline on stage, blowing kisses during the finale. Although I am just a tad biased, I thought the performance was just about the cutest thing I've ever seen! And, yes - those are french braids in Caroline's bobbed hair - I will proudly pat myself on the back for that accomplishment!
Earlier in the day we celebrated Caroline's 4th birthday with my mom, Chris's parents, my Aunt Dorothy and her husband Dick, as well as my brother Matt and sister-in-law Susan. Since the movers came last week and our possessions are already in route to England, I implored everyone not to go overboard on the gifts! Caroline is stocked and ready to go now though, for the long plane ride to England which we'll take on June 3rd. On Caroline's actual birthday (May 20th), we are having all of the neighborhood kids over for a pizza party. As resistant as I was to move to the 'burbs, I have to say I am really loving it. We have awesome neighbors, as houses continue to turn over with young families moving in. I've asked each kid to bring a picture of themselves instead of a present for Caroline, so she can remember all of her pals when we're in England. I am praying that our neighborhood in Claygate offers a similar family friendly atmosphere. Unfortunately Chris, who has been there on and off for two months now, has not so much as SEEN a neighbor let alone talked to anyone, so is not able to clue me into the neighborhood dynamics!
We spent 5-days in Colorado Springs last week for Chris's best friend Brian's wedding. I'd like to dedicate this post's shout-out to the new Major and Mrs. Brian Bone! Chris met the girls and me in Denver and we drove down to "the Springs" (as I heard the locals refer to it...) together. (I will not even get into heavy details about traveling BY MYSELF with the two munchkins, but let's just say I think I deserve a day to myself at some fabulous european hot springs for my efforts...) Anyway, I've attached a picture of the happy couple. I told Chris I kind of felt kind of sad when we were leaving the wedding festivities on Sunday. It was obviously awesome to see Brian and get to know Annette, but because Chris was the best man (and gave an incredible speech - again, I'm just a smidgen biased...), we really got to know the rest of the wedding party and families and had a wonderful time with everyone. So - Brian and Annette - thank you for including us in your special weekend. Hope you had an amazing time in Italy and we'll look forward to seeing Brian in England this summer. Additionally, Colorado Springs is one of the prettiest places I've been in the U.S. We had a great time with the girls exploring Garden of the Gods, Seven Falls, and the Zoo which has an awesome giraffe exhibit among other things.
This will definitely be my last post on American soil before the move. We've been easin' on down this road to England for awhile now, and while I'm still pretty excited about living abroad, at this point I'm just ready for the four of us to be under the same roof, whether that be in Ohio, England or Timbuktu! Please keep us in your prayers on June 3rd and the weeks shortly thereafter as we get settled. Until then....Cheers!
