Con.GRAD.ulations!

We opened the "Frederick Street Hotel" Friday evening and hosted an outdoor celebration honoring Chloe's most recent educational accomplishment-- her master's degree. {Well done, Chloe! WHOOOOOT!}

The party was complete with twinkle lights, international guests, and plenty of celebratory food.  According to my calculations, there were ten of us who spent the night in our half-a-house Friday night.

Home

My visit home was full of special times:

celebrating Brian's graduation

visiting Dow Gardens

being home for a full Sunday

catching up with my former law professor

touring Josh and Betsy's latest house updates

eating fresh asparagus and rhubarb

baking with Naomi

and of course,

drinking tea with Amy

Dow Gardens

Last week when I was home, Dad, Mom, Amy, Naomi, and I visited Dow Gardens.

Such loveliness!

blue

Amy's collection of dishes in the living room at at the Cookie House.

BINGO

1/3 of Dad and Mom's children are now SVSU alumni!

If you're honest, you know how BORING graduation ceremonies usually are.

Graduates endure such events for the tiny moment of individual recognition (can't say it's for the diploma... because sometimes they just present the cover ;) )-- a time when others recognize the major accomplishment of years of effort and growth through which they have persevered.

[I remember sitting through my SVSU graduation thinking, Come on... All we really want is to walk across that stage and shake the president's hand and receive an official-looking paper. I doubt we're going to remember a word that's being said anyway, so can we get a move on?!...]

Audiences attend the ceremonies because they're proud of a specific graduate's achievements.

And... I think any others attend out of obligation (the band, etc.), or maybe because they are re-living the past-?? (not sure).

---

Last week I got a text from Amy. She was brainstorming a family activity for Brian's upcoming graduation.

I'm pretty sure everyone in our section of the bleachers was jealous of our family Saturday morning, because as the hours dragged on during Brian's commencement, we were having fun. There were periodic snickers and an uncanny sense of excitement in our row as we played a private game of Graduation Bingo.

My card included boxes with statements such as: "Balance work/life/school/etc.," "Picture painted on a graduate cap," "Microphones squealing," and, "Graduate wearing five-inch heals." Of course, we all had "It's a great day to be a Cardinal!" as a wild space in the center of our papers.

Libby, Dad, and Aaron all walked away from the ceremony with Bingo's. The rest of us left with scattered X's on our papers-- wishing that someone would have wished the graduates, "Good Luck!" or dropped something on the stage, or used a quote from at least one US president.

It was great to celebrate Brian's achievement, and the Bingo game was good, silly fun.



Oh- and if you want to build your own Graduate Bingo game here's a suggestion based on a space our Bingo sheets lacked: "Graduate snapping a selfie with the president."

Red Pride

I forgot my camera, and my phone pictures are not so great...

On Saturday, Brian graduated with his bachelor's in mechanical engineering. Red Pride welled up as I cheered for the most recent group of graduates at my alma mater.

Since Saginaw Valley State University is a relatively small university, and I've spent the past number of years wandering outside of Michigan, I'm used to no one knowing about the school. In fact, when people inquire about my education, I usually just say, "I graduated from a state university in Michigan," because no one knows what "SVSU" is, and "Saginaw Valley State University" is just an extra-long way of saying the same thing... and still no one knows what I'm talking about.

Even though most folks have never heard of SVSU,  I'm proud to call SVSU my alma mater. [Side note, SVSU's College of Business and Management is an excellent AACSB accredited business college.]

It was quite special to be home for Brian's graduation and to celebrate his accomplishments together as a family. 

concert

there were hundreds of people!

Our Morley friends invited me to a concert in Lancaster last Sunday. They were one of several different groups-- a chorale, bell choir, orchestra, brass ensemble-- who shared throughout the afternoon.

Niece Nessa came with me, and we had a nice afternoon together. I was afraid the concert might be too boring for a six-year-old, but she told me she had fun.

the Morleys playing the bells