Ethan and Ehlana:
Happy Mother’s Day to all of our favorite Moms!
We have a three-day report to offer tonight; so let’s get started from Friday morning and try to keep the news in order – at least as much as possible.
Our Friday morning started with a blast of busy as we skipped Tai Chi; had a quick breakfast and clean-up; loaded up the minivan and truck; left Silkie with Brianna; and hit the road. Naomi and Ehlana went with Mom for the first half of the trip while Aiden and I were with Dad in the truck; and we had both vehicles so that we had room for the loads of gear coming back with us today. That’s partly why the other parents and families were driving too, but we didn’t try to leave or stay together for the drive time. On a side note, we’ll mention that all business owners had coverage this weekend while we’re away; and Jacob and Miranda were the only early departures today because they wanted to be back to help with the Mother’s Day buffets.
The first graduation ceremonies of the day began at one o’clock, so we drove straight to the college and the arena where many of the ceremonies were held this weekend; and then we began our adventures with the first round of Master’s degree awards. Instead of detailing each ceremony over the past three days, let’s just report that we attended a bunch of them; cheered on as Michael, Rowen, Tim, and a bunch of their friends earned their Master’s degrees in Economics, Computers, and Engineering; Cassie was our only doctoral grad; and they each won one or more of the top honors awards; and nobody will be shocked to read that Cassie earned a lot of honors – especially if you include everything she’s won for each of her degrees. We’re very proud of our big sister; and will not brag about those awards in any detail here – though her academic record is available to review elsewhere in the archives. ;^)
While we spent a lot of time at those ceremonies – including for some younger friends that Cassie and Michael have made through their T.A. work, we also had a few special meals that we got to attend; there were celebration entertainment options including some family-friendly fun; and you already know that we had late nights on Friday and Saturday. There was so much going on that we won’t be able to detail everything, but along with the graduation-themed fun, we should also mention that Jacob and Miranda’s anniversary was celebrated too – including with the five-star hotel adventures that all of the parents had this weekend that we do not need to detail here in our journals! We did have gifts for them; they thought that sharing their special day with Michael’s graduation was pretty good, and most of a weekend away from home worked for them too. We’ll also add that not all of the parents joined us for each meal; and we definitely do not need to comment on why missing breakfast on Saturday morning was popular.
Moving along, we did not play all of the time. All home-town vehicles needed to be juggled as trucks, SUV’s, and minivans were loaded with all of the personal gear for our four graduates; and we helped out with all of that work. We don’t want to make that sound worse than it was, since they each donated a lot of clothing to local charities; and all of the furniture at both townhomes is staying for the collegians that are taking them over starting in August – including Patrick, Jessica, Jaimie, and Micah. There were still suitcases, boxes of clothes and personal items, musical instruments, bikes, and more; so it took time to get everything loaded up – even with almost all of the packing done over the weeks before we got there. The last of that work was done this morning; and then we were at the college again for a special breakfast, church service, ceremony, and a final luncheon. We already mentioned that Jacob and Miranda didn’t stay for that, and neither did Tim’s parents, but Rowen’s did; and then we were all together as we hit the road for home. We took turns with travel companions again with a half-way switch; we got back to town in time for the late buffet but not in time to unload vehicles; and Cassie and Michael didn’t get to see their house first because the rest of their families wanted to be there to share the fun with them. We all got ready for dinner at our house; headed for the Inn; and got there shortly-after the last buffet of the day had started.
This is a good place to offer Mother’s Day news. Yes, we had gifts for our favorite mothers this morning, but we also missed out on the annual fun at church; and there were family meals at breakfast and lunch that we missed too – though they needed to be indoors due to a sometimes-wet day that included some thunderstorms. We’d had that same issue at the townhouses and college, but that really only affected the grad celebrations that were kept indoors instead of having outdoor meals or ceremonies. There was bonus fun for the mothers at the buffet meal – including the gifts that we had for the Moms we hadn’t seen before then. We loved those cameo moments, but we were also put on kid control with younger cousins and friends for the meal while Cassie and Michael were with parents and grandparents. That reminds us that we should mention that we did have grandparents at the most-important graduation ceremonies; and then they came home again yesterday instead of staying a second night. The buffet was definitely a highlight of our day, but by then; we really wanted to see Cassie and Michael’s reaction to their new home! We were among the first to be ready to head over there; and went over with Dad in his truck because it needed to be unpacked today ahead of his trip to the city in the morning.
That work didn’t get started right away. The big house reveal happened first; and Cassie and Michael had a huge family gang with them by the time they were invited to lead the way into their home. Their house really is amazing and looks great even without the furniture being set up or final touches of decorating done, but that also means that it isn’t ready for a magazine photo shoot either. That didn’t keep Cassie and Michael from being amazed at the progress since their last visit; and we all loved getting to do that first tour with them. We spent nearly an hour doing that; there were lots of hugs and kisses along the way; and then we helped out with unloading Dad’s truck. That wasn’t a huge deal, since he’d been given some of the biggest items including four bikes and the bigger, heavier boxes. Nobody really wanted to leave yet, but it is a school night; and we do not need to comment on why Cassie and Michael might want the rest of the night to themselves in their new home! ;^)
Moving along, we walked Aiden and Naomi home along with a small gang of cousins; collected Silkie from Brianna’s house; and even got home ahead of Mom and Dad because they stayed a bit longer and had to drive around the block with Dad’s truck. It was past-ten by then, but we needed to get some chores done including loads of laundry from our weekend away and getting ready for school in the morning. Bath or Jacuzzi time was fit into the mix; and now we’ll be heading off to sleep a bit too-late for the early morning we have ahead of us with Dad’s trip to the city. None of that will be a problem because we’ll self-heal if needed; and everything feels perfect tonight now that we have Cassie and Michael home to stay!
That is going to be part of our big story over the coming weeks and months, but we should also mention that we were not part of that same story for Rowen and Tim tonight – though they were at that late buffet with their own families tonight; and had them with them for their big apartment reveal too. We’ll get the rest of their story sometime soon, but we are also sure that they’ll be very happy with their apartment and the jobs they’ll be starting soon at the computer store or the auto and farm equipment shop. To the average person, their education will seem like overkill for their jobs, but we have plans for Rowen and Tim; and they are going to have an amazing life ahead of them!
It is getting late and we wouldn’t want to spoil any future surprises, so that’s all for tonight. We want to be up early to see Dad before he hits the road for Crystal Springs, so we’ll go and get some sleep; and you can stay tuned or flip a digital page in our future to read all about Cassie and Michael’s first full day in their new home – or at least the parts of it that won’t be too-hot for us to write about in our journals or anywhere else! ;^)
Until next time, live with love, fellow Magi of the Light!
