(Unofficial) Last Day of School

Yesterday the girls had their last day of classes! That means no more early wake-ups, packed lunches, and bus rides until September. Yay!

Last packed lunch until September

School isn't quite over yet though, since high school students are now writing exams. Emily has three exams coming up (Grade 11 Physics, Chemistry, and Grade 12 Math) for which she's been studying very hard! Jessi only has an interview to complete with her Art teacher; the rest of her classes this semester didn't have exams.

Yearbooks were distributed and lockers cleared out this week. Jessi also received a medal for achieving the highest mark in the Pascal Math Contest. Way to go, Jessi!

School will officially be out next Thursday, though Jessi will be done by tomorrow morning and Emily by Tuesday afternoon. We're all looking forward to it! Hello, Summer Break ♥.

Nathalieland Update - School/Birthday/Strawberries/Summer

Final School Events. June was such a busy month with school activities. For Jessi, this included a frisbee tournament (champions!), a public reading of her short story, and a 3-day field trip to Québec City (not to mention grade 8 graduation). For Emily, it was finishing big projects in drama and careers, and studying for her final exams in math and history. Fortunately all events went well!

Belated Birthday Party. Jessi enjoyed her belated birthday party last weekend with a pizza dinner, chocolate fondue dessert, sleepover, pancake breakfast, and a mall trip. Our basement seems well suited for multiple sleepers and lots of fun!

Strawberry Pickin'. While Emily was busy studying for her exams, Jessi and I joined my parents and sister's family for some local strawberry picking. The berries were huge and yummy this year! The crowds were also big since we were all avoiding the upcoming major heat wave.

The woes of biting into strawberries with braces...

Hello Summer and Accounting. Summer break started on Friday -- yay! We celebrated with swims in our neighbour's pool. Emily's break is about to end though, since she's taking a summer course in grade 11 accounting. She wasn't able to fit the course into her schedule for next year, so this was the next best option. It'll keep her busy for the month of July and then she'll get to rest in August.

♥ My shopping buddy

Last Day of School

The girls had their last day of school yesterday!

All done grades 9 and 7

Emily and Jessi continue to amaze me with their positive experiences and attitudes towards school. Both girls thrived at their new schools -- making friends, succeeding academically, and participating in extracurriculars. Transitions are not always easy, but these girls made it seem like a breeze.

Now they are both looking forward to a relaxing summer break. The calendar looks pretty empty, save for our yearly visit to Cambridge/Waterloo, a 4-day math camp for Jessi, a 16th wedding anniversary for me and Steve, and a 15th birthday for Emily.

 

Hello Summer!

Graduation & Goodbye

Emily's Grade 8 Graduation Photo

On Tuesday Emily had her grade 8 graduation. We spent two days decorating the gym (Beach Theme!) and many weeks preparing for the event. Everyone worked hard and was thrilled with how it turned out.

Rehearsing

When the night finally arrived, we got dressed, did our hair, and made sure to capture the moments in (many) photographs. What a special time in a teenager's life!

Time for a little Mario Kart before Graduation...

Now time for pictures!

Go time!

Testing out the photo booth

Welcoming guests

Emily's classmates waiting for the ceremony to start

Emily won four awards at the ceremony: the Citizenship Award, the Academic Award (her most coveted!), the Creative Arts Award, and the Principal's Leadership Award. What an accomplishment!

Can someone turn on the lights please?

Valedictorian Speech

Photo Slideshow made by Emily

Finally, today we said goodbye to WJ Holsgrove Public School as it was the girls' last day of school there. What an amazing 10 years it's been! Now on to a new chapter.

Last lunch packed for 2 months

Last day of grades 8 and 6

2016 - 2023

Last walk to Holsgrove... ever!

I'm gonna miss this ♥