Tansy got to participate in Operation Spirit this year.  It's for kids 5-12, and they get to spend the morning with a parent pretending to deploy.  They get a call at 7:00 Saturday morning with instructions to report to the deployment center.  They have briefings, go through legal and medical stuff, and get to check out some other stuff.  She had a great time with her dad.

Sydney turned 9 on April 23.  Since Ben is on swing shift, I wasn't sure how to go about this.  However, with our move coming up, he had a short meeting that morning at 7:00 a.m.  When we got home, I had Syd open her presents really quickly before heading to the bus.

That evening was her piano recital.  She did a great job.  Although she is ready for a break until fall when we will have our piano back.

After the recital, we dashed home to scarf down some birthday cake and get Ben back to work.  Syd had a good day, which is all that matters.

Since it was her ninth birthday, I kept the birthday party small.  She had a movie night with her best friends.  They were too crazy for me to get a good picture, so here's what I got.

Yesterday was her last day of karate.  She has done an amazing job, and I am so proud of this little girl every day!