The Emotions Of Graduation

Friday was the big High School Graduation Ceremony. Leading up to it I was fully prepared to be a blubbering idiot during the commencement…I’m a sap. I also invested a lot of time and emotion into raising our children to be great students, and really good people.

To my surprise I didn’t shed a tear! I had this huge pile of Puffs in my purse, and only touched them to move them to an outside pocket of my purse, for easy access. I had worn the waterproof mascara also.

It probably helped that it was chaotic just to get into the gym. The seating was first-come, first-choice on seats. The doors were to open at 6:30...we arrived at exactly 6:30...you should have seen the huge lineup of people outside waiting! My hubby dropped my daughters and I off so we could get a spot in the line while he parked the car.

As we made our way to the gymnasium I kept thinking “Please let us get good seats to take photos from!”

Of course, all of the premier seats were taken by the mass of people in line ahead of us. We did manage to find seats pretty close to the front, but pretty high up.

So, back to the topic…why didn’t I cry?

Maybe it was the lady in front of us who was crying at everything…and I mean everything! The student speeches, the choir’s 1 song, the School Board member’s speech….everything.

More than likely it was seeing how truly happy our son was to be there. As he walked in and took his seat he was looking for us. He really wanted to find where we were. In the masses he finally saw us, and has the best smile on his face! And when he accepted his diploma he looked at us a waved a few times on his walk back to his seat.

The good news is that when we go thru this 2 years from now with our twin daughters we will be the ones “in the know”, and we will be at the head of the line. I wonder if that’s the time I be a blubbering idiot?

Jon & Kate Plus Eight...Love It or Hate It

Many of you either watch, or have heard of the 'Jon & Kate Plus Eight' reality show. The story of a couple who have a set of twins and a set of sextuplets. And now with tales of infidelity, they are in the media even more.

It's one of those shows where you either Love It or Hate It...I hate it!

I disliked the show from the beginning. Why? Here is a couple who is blessed (with the help of fertility drugs) to have beautiful twin daughters. Then the wife decides she wants "one more baby"...and they have 6 more, again with the help of fertility drugs. Fine, you are blessed many times over, and very fortunate that none have severe health issues.

The final straw is this ongoing reality show. I've only seen bits and pieces over the years, and like many I think Kate is a bitch & Jon is a wimp. Yep, no sugar-coating. I know the importance of being a strong parent, but I also know it is a team effort and you have to earn and show respect to the other team member(s).

With this latest infidelity scandal, all I can do is think of the children. What the hell are these parent's thinking?!?! Even IF Jon isn't cheating, and she's "just a friend". DUDE...you are a t.v. reality "star", and the paparazzi follow you! And Kate...gee, maybe if she didn't doll yourself up so much and dress like a *insert your own word* while out without her hubby, people wouldn't "assume" she's having an affair with her bodyguard. And her arrogance is disgusting...a whole lotta Humble pie is needed.

Because of all this recent fodder I saw a before-and-after picture of Kate. The before was shortly after she gave birth to the sextuplets, the after was a recent photo with her blonde peacock-do. The article talked about how the show paid for her tummy tuck, tanning sessions and a personal trainer...basically her overall transformation. What I find utterly sad is that this transformation has turned this mother into a material-money grubbing-media star. Even Jon admits in a recent magazine article they are doing Season 5 because of the material benefits. Material benefits are NOT what make a family a happy family! It's the non-material things that set a solid foundation to build on, and to grow in a positive & healthy way.

I do love that her own brother said in a recent interview that they shouldn't let fortune and fame destroy their family.

Jon & Kate have truly lost touch with reality.

Family Traditions...Creating Your Own

Does your family have any traditions...either for the Holidays or for Birthdays? Like many families we all have some favorite things our parents or grandparents did, that we have carried forward for our own children. And there are some we have chosen not to...like eating Lutefisk during the Christmas season.

Creating new traditions for your family doesn't have to be elaborate or expensive. Sometimes it's a special phrase you may say to each other at bedtime or when one leaves for the day. It could also be something you didn't even realize had become a habit or tradition. It's quite endearing when these things mean a lot to your children, as they do to you. Here are just a couple of our examples.

*Birthdays

~The Birthday person gets breakfast in bed on their birthday. If, for whatever reason, it is not convenient for the Birthday person or for the rest of the family, we postpone it for another day in the week.

~The Birthday person gets to pick out what we have for supper that evening. In our house the kids have chosen my meatless Taco Salad 90% of the time.

*Friday Movie & Pizza Night

~Every Friday (a few times it is delayed until Sat) we have movie and pizza night. And this means that whomever's friends are over, they join us as well.

Please share your own traditions...we'd love to hear them!