16 years ago we moved to Colleyville. Part of the draw was the acclaimed school district. We had initially anticipated Brynne, our only child at the time, would attend the neighborhood elementary school across the street. When the pre-school years rolled around we were ready for a bump up from MDO (Mother's Day Out). Another pilot's wife was a teacher at St. Vincent's and she encouraged us to check it out. Much to our dismay it was full. However, a few weeks into the school year a space became available and we moved on it quickly. That began a long era of Brynne, Lacey and Jacob attending what we have always known as SVES. We were so pleased and our children so content that we elected to keep them. The years rolled one into another in a fluid fashion without an obvious break.

And then there was 9/11 and then there was a giant pay cut at AA and coincidentally the girls were middle school age. It became clear that it was time to move them, although we wanted to give Jacob the same educational foundation SVES provided for a couple of more years. Now the time has come for Jacob to move on to another school. This is done with great excitement, some confidence and a wee bit of uncertainty. Jacob is going a year before the girls moved to public school. He will become an OC Taylor Tiger and he is enthusiastic about the opportunity. I went to chapel with him one day this week...a daily part of the SVES routine. The opening song sung by the precious elementary voices went straight to my heart.
Praise Him, Praise Him all Ye Little Children
God is Love
God is Love
Trust Him, Trust Him all Ye Little Children
God is Love
God is Love
I was indeed full of praise for our many years our children attended this fine school.
I am trusting Him as the last of the Mattson children transfer to our local schools.

Each year started in the same way...a first day of school photo by the school sign. In the early years it was fun for the girls to walk through the dewey August grass in their plaid uniform. Down the road it was a bit more of a challenge to get the photo without a huge spectacle on the front lawn. I am not sure if we ever skipped a year and unfortunately those photos are hard copies tucked away in volumes of photo albums making it more difficult to share. However, I was bound and determined to have a a photo of Jacob on his last day serving as the second bookend to the first Brynne photo symbolically supporting all of the stories and tales from the past 13 years.