Homewood Summer Swim

Every summer for the past six years, the kids have been swimming on the Homewood swim team.  It started off slow, with the kids only swimming free and backstroke.  However, they quickly learned how to swim all four strokes legally and even swam year around for five years.  For the first year in a long time, neither kid swam this fall and winter.  We were wondering how they would do this summer after the long break, and if they would slip greatly with their times.

However, Bennett and Preston surprised us and did fantastic at their first three meets (before our summer travels started).  They cut time on individual events, and joined friends to do well with their relays.  They had support from Walker, Mimi, Papa and Uncle Dan - even with rain delays!  Each Tuesday lasted several hours, so Walker was entertained by hanging with friends, coloring, and eating A LOT of food!  We survived though, and here are their best times for the summer 2019!

Noah, Graham, Luke and Pres

Bennett (12 yrs old): 
50 yd free: 36.45
50 yd back: 47.31
50 yd breast: 50.90

Preston (10 yrs old):
50 yd free: 34.18
50 yd back: 41.72
50 yd breast: 48.58
50 yd fly: 41.82

Rain delay with rainbow in the sky!

Though summer swim is only half over, our kids are done swimming meets due to travel and camp.  Preston qualified for senior county, but would need to cut even more time to place there.  Since he will be returning from camp on Saturday, the first day of the meet, we will skip the whole event for the first time in a long time.

It has been a quick and fun summer!  Of course, we love that the kids enjoy participating on the Homewood swim team, but I love even more that they are getting some exercise 4-5 mornings a week and that it is such a good overall conditioning sport.  Even with the 7am practice time, the kids don't complain too much. :)

B, Ella, Katie and Claire - 11-12 relay

Lots of candy!

Mimi and Papa made it to 2 of the 3 meets the kids swam!

Homewood Revolution

Bennett Nix, Pres, Collier Hicks and Luke Serotsky

Every year baseball begins a little earlier.  It used to be that rec ball would start March 1st, and all stars would start at the end of rec season and go into mid June.  However, the last couple of years the all star season has been starting earlier and earlier.  I should have known that would happen since all sports are super competitive around here.  Sadly it is difficult for children to really get to experience a lot of sports because they almost have to play one sport year around to excel enough to make a middle or high school team.

However, Preston seems to be content playing baseball March-June and then part-time Aug-Oct.  His coaches, Quin Snipes and Justin Hicks have certainly taught him skills, and he continues to improve.  Over the past year,

Preston has become a much stronger pitcher, and he continues to play middle infield (predominantly shortstop, but sometimes 2nd and 3rd).  He loves the sport and some of his closest friends are on his team with him.  

He has loved playing on the Homewood Revolution the past two years.  They certainly have some talent, but their team's talent isn't quite deep enough to excel tremendously in tournaments.

We will see how Preston's future in baseball turns out, but here are some pictures from the past spring/summer season with his team.

Little brothers have fun playing together during all of the games (Bowen Nix)

Pres and Steve on Father's Day (the last day of summer ball)

Happy 12th Birthday Bennett!

A selfie I found on my phone of B which I adore!

So our first born just continues to get older, and more beautiful before our eyes.  This year her birthday fell on the last day of school, which wasn't very exciting for her.  We tried to find a date that worked for friends, but she hadn't been feeling well the whole last week of school, and then many friends left immediately for vacations.  We ended up having a low-key celebration at Taco Mama as a family and with her bestie, Ada McElroy.

Our plan was to postpone her celebration until mid June when folks were back in town, and things were a little less hectic.  She asked to have a sleepover with a handful of her friends.  Thankfully her friends are super easy, so I accommodated.  We ordered pizza for them, they watched movies and

presents and donuts are 2 of B's favorite things

talked until late, and then we went to Waffle House for breakfast.  Afterwards, I dropped them off at Target so they could walk around and shop.  These 12 year olds are just growing up and turning into mini teenagers.

Bennett continues to be a responsible, caring friend/daughter/sibling with a tad of attitude and lots of sarcasm.  She worked her butt off all 6th grade, and did great with all A's and only two B's all year!  She made show choir and peer helpers, and I look forward to watching her blossom even more this next year.  We love you B and hope you have a terrific 12th year!!

homemade cookies for the bday girl!

Bennett and Ada McElroy

Annie McBride, Ella Serotsky, Ada and Bennett

4th Grade Wax Musuem

Pres as Andrew Jackson - serious on purpose

As if the end of the school year isn't busy enough, Shades Cahaba decided to hold the 4th grade wax museum the week before school lets out (insert eye roll).  Thankfully Preston didn't get a very difficult person that he had to dress up like, Andrew Jackson.  We did our best with the costume, and Preston stayed in character when I came to walk through, even though he wasn't supposed to break character and talk or move.

Miss Lyon's class all dressed up!

Walker is Kindergarten Bound

August 2018 - 1st Day of Yellow Door

In some ways time flies by, and in other ways....time crawls.  There is no doubt that our time with Walker over the past five and a half years has gone by in a blink of an eye.  He was our easiest and happiest baby by far.  He was the one that we could pass around at dinner parties, the one that slept through the night at 8 weeks and the one that began walking at 10 months old.  It was at that time though that things shifted, when our easy, happy baby became a busy, wild toddler.  Then he became a needing-to-be heard, loud and crazy bigger toddler.

Going to preschool five days a week was exactly what this mom needed!  He thrived, started talking, started dancing and loved every minute of it.  Those 3.5 years at All Saints Preschool went by super quickly!  This past year in yellow door with Paula and Michele has been great.  He colored, created works of art, played outside with friends, did imaginary play, got read to often, sang songs, learned about Jesus and was kept safe!  Thank you for an end of an era!

Kindergarten Preview - May 2019

Class of 2032 - WHAT???

Before graduation

Receiving his diploma

Recession after graduation, smirking

So proud of our boss baby

Brothers (Bennett couldn't miss school)

Last day of 4K Preschool at All Saints

Now Walker is kindergarten bound!  He attended kindergarten preview last week at SCE, and is excited about starting a new chapter.  One that includes making new friends, going to school all day and learning how to read!  I am so excited to watch this one grow, and become a big boy!  Here he comes Shades Cahaba.....watch out!!

6th Grade was a Success!

When Bennett started at Homewood Middle School, we really didn't know what to expect.  We had heard it was better than elementary school, but wasn't sure if that would truly be the case.  It started off great when we learned who Bennett received for her teacher team (Adams, Bates and Tanner).  She did very well the first semester of the year, with all A's and only one B.  In addition, she made new friends, and kept many of her sweet ones from SCE.

It starts to get more real the second semester, when the 6th graders begin trying out for extra curricular activities that they can do in the 7th grade.  They limit what the kids can do their first year so they can really focus on their academics, making new friends and just adapting to the new environment.  Bennett had set her eyes on cheer, peer helpers and show choir.  All three are super competitive, like all of the sports at this level.

Sadly, Bennett did not make cheer.  It broke her heart, and ours too seeing her so sad.  However, after it settled in, she began texting and calling her friends that did and congratulating them.  THAT is what I admire most in this girl.  She is such a kind friend.

About a week before cheer tryouts, she submitted her application to become a 7th grade peer helper.  She was thrilled when she was pulled out of class unexpectedly a couple of weeks later and interviewed based on her answers (which does not happen for all applicants, and is the second stage of the process).  When she came home from school after the interview, she was so excited!  She knew she answered their questions well, and felt good.  A couple of weeks later, we found out Bennett was selected as a peer helper!  This is a great honor!  Peer Helpers are in the middle school and high school, and are good representations of character.  They are expected to be role models for their peers, maintain good grades, and serve a minimum of 30 hours of community service.

As the year is coming to a close, Bennett shifted gears and started focusing on show choir.  I hired a voice coach to help her perfect the song that she needed to sing for the judges at tryouts.  Mr. Litten, the show choir instructor, provided about 6 songs for the girls to choose from (and a different 6 for the boys).  They needed to each sing a solo acapella in front of a panel of three judges, and then perform a dance with a group of 9 other kids (which they wouldn't learn until the week of tryouts).  Bennett chose to sing "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music.  The week of tryouts, the children stay after school on Monday to learn the dance (which they later post online).  Later that night, she practiced with another friend and a couple of high schoolers at the rec for two hours trying to get it memorized.  She practiced hard each day, with her final day - over 5 hours!

Bennett gave it her best shot on Thursday after school, and on Sunday night (mother's day), we heard that her hard work paid off, and she made it!!  We couldn't be more proud of her, and are so excited to watch her performances next year!  Several of her friends made it too, so I know she will have a lot of fun wearing make-up, singing and dancing!

To top it all off, she has maintained good grades!  If she finishes the last week where she is now, she will end the 6th grade with all A's and only 2 B's for the year!  Go Bennett Go!!!  Here's hoping that she has an awesome 7th grade year too!