What a glorious spring we are having at St. Matthew’s! Our community has had many opportunities to celebrate and count our blessings together in this season of renewal and hope. We began our spring with an absolutely beautiful evening at Lone Star La Noche, raising over $40,000 for our school. Many, many thanks to Delaine Teeple and Lissa Anderson and their committee for all their hard work!

At school, we had a rodeo, a road rally, a chuck wagon cookout, a buggy boogie breakfast, “Breakfast with the Queen” – and that’s in addition to the magic that happens even on “regular” days. (Though I don’t think there is such thing as a “regular” day at St. Matthew’s!)

A true highlight of this spring was our Lenten Service Projects and Day of Service. On March 31, 175 members of our St Matthew’s family gathered to work to serve others. Together, we made 88 sock dolls and 27 blankets for the Center for Child Protection, 55 braided chew toys and 24 sock toys for the Austin Humane Society, 60 picture frames and countless “happy cards” for the residents at Renaissance and Summit, planted 3 flower beds, and stuffed over 300 c-rats to send to our troops overseas – complete with letters and pictures! Wow!! It was such a delight to see parents, teachers, and children working side by side in service to others. We finished off the morning with lunch on the courtyard and Mr. Leebot. I am so proud of our school for embracing this opportunity to serve and eternally grateful to Kristen Casaubon for her tireless work in bringing the day to fruition. Thanks also to Carol Webb, Kristin Braun, Alexis Bagshaw, and Caryn Abraham.

Flowering of the Cross was glorious as ever! It is truly one of my favorite days. We honored Pattie McDonald for her 20 years of service to St. Matthew’s. Thanks to Leslie Wells for the beautiful reception and to Teresa Kumar for the beautiful, delicious cookies.

As I write this, we are in the midst of parent/ teacher conferences. The teachers have worked so hard preparing for these important meetings. I know you will find them helpful and informative.

But wait – there’s more!! Mark your calendars for these upcoming events:

May 1 – Spirit Night – 4:30-7:30 – Waterloo Ice House on 360. Send your child to school that day in his/ her blue St. Matthew’s t-shirt and then join us that night for dinner at Waterloo. It will be a fun way to hang out with your St. Matthew’s friends while helping the school out at the same time! See you there!

May 10 – 9:30 – Special chapel service honoring Eileen Cole. Mrs. Cole has been at St. Matthew’s for all 32 years of the school’s existence and she plans to retire at the end of this year. We will honor her with a special chapel and reception. Join us!

May 18 – Last day of school for 2′s, 3′s, and Pre-K.

May 21 – Kindergarten dismisses at 1:00.

May 22 – 10:00 – Kindergarten graduation with reception and showcase to follow.

This community is such a special one and I feel so blessed to be a part of it. I look forward to seeing you all as we celebrate the end of another wonderful year in the life of St. Matthew’s Episcopal School!

Flowering of the Cross

VIP Day

Friday, April 13

Don’t forget to join us for one of our most beloved traditions at St. Matthew’s, our annual Easter celebration, Flowering of the Cross.  Each child invites grandparents or a beloved friend to visit their class for some fun activities. Then we gather in the chapel for a special Easter service. The children bring flowers that transform a plain wooden cross into a glorious celebration of the resurrection.

10:15 – VIPs arrive in classrooms

11:00 – Chapel

11:30 – Reception in the courtyard

12:00-Dismissal

Be sure to join us, and bring your cameras for a beautiful photo opportunity!

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Join us at the

St. Matthew’s Day of Service

Saturday, March 31

10:00-12:00

In chapel during Lent, we make the sign of the cross to remind ourselves that “God loves us so we can love each other.” One way that we can show our love for each other is through service to others. Each class will work on a service project in their classrooms this Lent, benefiting several organizations that serve a variety of different needs – from animals to the elderly to our servicemen overseas to other children in need.

Then, on March 31, your whole family will have an opportunity to gather with your St. Matthew’s friends and work to serve others. While the activities are geared towards pre-school children, they are meant for WHOLE FAMILY to enjoy. Bring siblings!  We will have a station set up with a project benefiting each organization, and you can rotate through as many as you choose.

When we are finished, we will gather in the courtyard for lunch from PTerry’s and enjoy entertainment by Mr. Leebot. It will be a fun way to end our morning of service!

Please let us know if you are planning to come to we are sure to have enough supplies. We have lunch order forms in the office if you want to order lunch from PTerry’s.

See you there!

Our service efforts this year will benefit:

The Austin Humane Society

Renaissance-Austin Retirement Home & The Summit at Northwest Hills

Center for Child Protection

Operation Interdependence

Grounds of St. Matthew’s Church and School

Things are busier than ever around here! We have had so much fun making (and eating!) heart shaped treats, wearing red and pink, and celebrating Valentine’s Day in a big way. Today we said goodbye to “Alleluia” in chapel as we get ready for Ash Wednesday and Lent next week. The Kindergarteners are busy getting ready to celebrate the 100th day of school tomorrow, Mrs. Loftin’s class is going on a bear hunt and having a teddy bear picnic, the Pre-K’s have blasted off to outer space, and the 2′s are happily singing and clapping to new songs in music – and that’s just today!! Another day in the life of St. Matthew’s Episcopal School!!

A few reminders about some upcoming events:

-Registration forms for the 2012-2013 school year are due back tomorrow, Friday, February 17. If you have not already registered your child for next year, please do so by tomorrow. We will go to our waiting list to fill remaining spots.

-La Noche class book project orders are due tomorrow. There are order forms in the office if you need them.

-La Noche is March 2. Invitations will be arriving soon, but make sure you’ve got your sitter lined up. It will be a great night!!

-The children will celebrate La Noche Day at school on February 24. Look for a flier with all the details.

-Please mark Saturday, March 31 at 10:30 on your calendars. Our first St. Matthew’s Day of Service will be a wonderful chance for your family to work together for the benefit of others and to teach your children the joy of serving others. We will finish the morning up with a picnic in the courtyard.

-NO SCHOOL ON MONDAY! Enjoy your long weekend!

We will be hosting a series of Open Houses this month for parents interested in sending their child to St. Matthew’s. Join us on  Thursday, January 19 or Wednesday, January 25 at 9:00. We will gather in the church sanctuary and attend chapel – a true highlight of our week here at St. Matthew’s! We will then hear from our Head of School and some current St. Matthew’s parents before we break into groups for tours of our classrooms and campus. Following the tour, there will be a reception and Q&A time. Please  call the school office at 345-3040 and let us know which day you would like to come and if you have any questions.

We will also hold a Kindergarten Open House the evening of January 31 at 6:30. This event is for current St. Matthew’s parents interested in our Kindergarten,  as well as those new to our school.

We look forward to seeing you here at St. Matthew’s and sharing what makes St. Matthew’s such a special place to learn, laugh, explore, and grow!

December is here! With it comes Advent, the season of hope, anticipation, and readying ourselves for the birth of Jesus.

We at St. Matthew’s are busy, busy, busy getting ready. Our halls are filled with trees, stockings, candy canes – and lots and lots of glitter. Our entryway is filled with the Heavenly Host; each child has made an angel to help proclaim the Christ Child’s birth. Pageant practices are in full swing and we have begun the Christmas story with the Annunciation in chapel. It is truly a magical time!

We hope you will join us for the many opportunities we have to celebrate the season:

Dec. 2 – Pre-K to “Holiday Heroes” at Zach Scott

Dec. 6 – Kindergarten to The Nutcracker

Dec. 8 – St. Nicholas visits chapel

Dec. 15 – 9:15 – MTTH 3′s pick-up pageant

Classroom Christmas parties
(times vary)

Dec. 16 – 9:15 – MWF 3′s pick-up pageant with parties to follow

11:00 – St. Matthew’s Christmas Pageant

12:00 – Dismissal for Christmas holidays

We look forward to seeing you here at school! Merry Christmas!!