Wow

Let's start this week by a look at my teenage daughter :) She's so adorable since she found her pockets. This is an unposed picture. She does it all the time with these particular pants.

Next we'll move to the reason for this week's title:


Jason threw me a "surprise" graduation party from my mom. The cake was from them and the girl posing next to me in the second picture did my hair. I thought it was quite cute :)
That was last week sometime. Today we just got home from the actual Business College graduation Convocation. It was very cool.

The lady was letting us go a little to fast so she made my row wait for about 5 minutes before we could get up and join the line. Once I got up there it was very cool. My name was announced and I shook the hands of people I've never met before and then the head of my department was there and all of my professors were there and then I felt like it was real. They called me by name, shook my hand and gave me warm and real congratulations before I stepped down. Jason broke the rules and was standing by the piano to get the picture of me with my diploma. I posed all pretty like and only realized afterward that I was holding the darn thing upside-down. Luckily he got another shot later and I corrected my error :)

The look on my face in the first picture is because I just took off my cap and my hair was so static-y I didn't know what to do. I spit on my hand and tried to get it back down. . . gotta love spit.

This was a great experience. The speakers talked about our role as we move forward. The need for us to remember that God helped us through and to use what we have learned to help Him in His work. They also reminded us to be humble. The whole thing was fairly quick, but it was long enough to help it sink in. I have actually graduated. I made it! I feel awed and grateful to so many people for this moment. I have had so much support from family and friends. I just wanted to thank you all. Everyone who would be reading this has contributed to my ability to succeed here. So thanks.
School, especially this school, has been an amazing experience. I am changed. I am thrilled and happy, but mostly I am humbled and grateful. Once again, thank you all for helping me.

Graduation Choir

This is what we look like . . .






Okay, maybe not, but we are singing this song, so it fit. :)

Approaching Christmas

This week is obviously a feature of Alisabeth :)

Her dad did a really cute job on her hair and she spent quite a while in front of the mirror admiring it :)

She also looked adorable while wearing her sunglasses. Granted it was dark out. . . and there was no reason to, but she was so cute!

She is mostly potty trained, of her own doing. She doesn't like going number 2 but number one is her favorite thing! Now all we have to do is break the connection between "potty" and "candy" and she'll be all set :)

Jason got a couple of pictures of the main window. The other one has 2 stars and then the lights going in every direction :) It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.
Plus it's snowing again and the temperature hasn't gotten above 20 this week.


The last thing I wanted to include this week was an accomplishment :) Even though the pictures won't cooperate, I finished the last of our stocking this afternoon. Shown above is Alisabeth holding her own. She's very possessive about it and can definitely tell the difference between hers and "daddys" and "mommys."
They are super simple to do and I really loved the pattern!
The smaller things are Christmas Tree ornaments. One is for an ornament exchange that we're doing on Tuesday. The second is for us and I have one more to make that I'm going to give to another family so that they'll always remember us . . . .ahhhhh.
I might make more since they're so easy and I have plenty of material, but I don't know if anyone else would want one.
If you do. . . let me know :)

I graduate in 12 days!!!!!

The coolest thing I've seen in a long time.