Shurijo Castle

                                 

After 5 and a half years we FINALLY made it to Shurijo Castle.  I was told before that it wasn't very stroller friendly and to go when it wasn't scorching hot out.  The stars aligned perfectly  and we finally made it.

 It was a busy day when we went, lots of visitors.  The castle opens at 9 am, we left at 9 am ( took us about 30 minutes to drive there).   Unfortunately it wasn't early enough, all the free parking lots were full, but we were able to pay for parking pretty close to the castle.

Seeing the castle was pretty cool.  You are able to walk around outside and check our the castle grounds for free.  There is a small fee to go inside the castle and tour the rooms.  When touring inside the castle you are not allowed to wear shoes.  The staff hands out plastic bags to carry your shoes around.  Inside the castle was like a museum, lots of artifacts and information.  The kids were not that into it.  They shuffled quickly from room to room, while Morgan and I tried to read up on the displays.  All in all it took about 1 to 2 hours to tour the castle and the grounds.  It was a nice morning trip with the Oki Fam and finally checking this site off our Oki Bucket List.

Schools out for the Summer!

I cannot believe the school year is over!  It really feels like I was JUST school shopping for the new year.  This year was the first year both of the kiddos were in school. Amelia in kindergarten and Nolan in preschool.  

::Amelia::

Amelia had an end of year performance celebrating what they learned in kindergarten and being ready for first grade.  It was super cute! Each class had a song and in the end all classes sang "first grade" to the tune of New York, New York.  Amelia also received an award for most bubbly,  of course my daughter has a bubbly personality!I have to admit,  I cried!  I'm seriously so emotional when it comes to the kids.  I just can't believe how much she has grown and learned in just the first year of kindergarten.  My girl is doing math and reading! In my day of school I don't remember doing that stuff in Kindergarten,  I remember colors and numbers!  Kids these days are so smart and learning so fast.  

::Nolan::

Nolan started preschool this year.  He was in the toddlers class {2-3 year olds} going in on MWF.  The end of year performance was for the whole school.  It was also the graduation for the adventures class {4-5 year olds} moving on to kindergarten.  Nolan's class is pretty young so they just did one dance and got awards.  I was really proud of Nolan!  He kept dancing and didn't cry.  A lot better from his Christmas performance! Lol He also got most improved award.  So awesome because I've seen so much improvement from him.  At the beginning of the year he was shy and quiet and now he is talkative and has lots of friends.  I was worried about putting him in preschool so young, but it's helped his speech and confidence so much that I know it was the right choice. 

They have grown so much! My babies aren't babies anymore!  Just looking at these pictures and writing this post makes me tear up.  

On a happy note, summer is here in full swing!!! We are slowly but surely working on our summer bucket list!  Much more fun to come!