My Calendar

Everything that has already happened is "yesterday" for Grace, whether it happened 5 minutes or 3 months ago, so I used an Excel template to make a calendar for her of May and June. Hopefully as she starts summer pre-K, it will also help her to know when she goes to school and when she stays home. I added pictures for Lifebuilders, school, church, swimming lessons, doctor appointments, etc. Grace had so much fun looking at it because it was her calendar, "not Mommy and Daddy's." She put her first X (which is actually more of a T) on the calendar today right before she went to bed.

She is so excited about going to school "to play with the kids." I hope that she doesn't get frustrated when they want her to color, sing songs, etc. She really doesn't care about anything except playing with the kids. We read a book before bed the last two days about a little bear who was going to his first day of school. As we were talking about Gracie going to school, she looked at me very seriously, scrunched up her nose and asked, "My teacher no a bird?" I had never considered how literally she would take the book. Yes, the teacher in the book is a bird. I'm so glad that we are giving her a short experience with school now, so that the fall transition will be a little bit easier.

I have been worrying about sending her to school, and I'm sure she can tell it regardless of how hard I try to make school sound fun and matter of fact. I was wondering if she could climb onto the toilets in the Intermediate School bathrooms. Will the teachers be understanding if she is worried about where I am? Will she think I am leaving her at the orphanage? Will this separation confuse her as she is learning to trust us?

So, to ease my fears I took Grace to school today. We looked into her classroom and mine, and I showed her where I would be working in the computer lab while she was with Mrs. Born and the other teachers. She seemed fine, of course, but will Mom be okay? I've don't like it any better this time than I did with the boys!

Ink Pen and a Tantrum

I think that vacation was stressful to Grace, because she had a hard time transitioning back to home. Today she threw a fit because she wanted to write with a pen and I told her, "No!" She ignored me and I put her in one of the kitchen chairs for "Sedni." She didn't like that and started yelling, "No sedni. I want to write, I want to write, I want to write!" Then she got out of the chair and went to get the pen that I had taken away from her. I put her back in the chair, she raised her arm up to hit me, but reconsidered, and then got back out of the chair.  I know we have been told not to isolate adopted children because they are afraid of being alone, but I picked her up and put her in her bed anyway. I told her that if she wouldn't be quiet and sit in the chair that she would have to sedni on the bed.

Well, after 10 minutes of screaming, "No sedni. Gracie the boss! Gracie the boss! No sedni! No sedni! Mommy no make me sedni!" Her kicking, flopping, and screaming stopped, I went into the room and picked her up, and she gave me a hug. "Gracie a good girl!" she said. I agreed and told her that Mommy was the boss and Gracie had to do what Mommy said. Gracie looked at me and said, "Gracie do what Mommy say. No sedni on the bed." And that was exactly the lesson she needed to learn.

My guess...This was the first, but probably not the last tantrum she'll throw.

Dolphins and More Swimming

We loved SeaWorld so much (and our passes gave us a second day free) so we went back today to see the dolphin show, play in the climbing area, and even hit the splash park at the end of the day. Grace had as much fun today as on our first trip, and the dolphin show was amazing with trained birds, a diving show, etc.

One of her favorite parts, and her parents' least favorite, was the playground. The whole 3 story complex is a series of tunnels, rope ladders, tire swings, etc. that are designed for children and small, agile adults. Think McDonald's playground on steroids... I was able to duck walk through most of the tunnels, but poor Mark was climbing on bare knees most of the time. I may feel like I fell off the thing when I wake up tomorrow...Perhaps I will have to start working out to keep up with Grace...Then again, maybe I'll buy a really big camera and just stand around as the chief photographer...:-)

At one point today, Grace wandered ahead of us, and the way that the sun was shining when she turned around, we could tell that she couldn't see us. Since we had been struggling to keep her near us, we stayed back a minute, watched her, and waited. She ran to the left, stopped and looked around, then ran right, stopped and looked around before she saw us behind her. She started laughing and said, "I couldn't find Mommy and Daddy." We hugged her and talked about staying close to us, but I doubt that she will remember for very long. She did stay closer for the rest of the day.

Grace is so friendly, confident, and out-going that we worry that she may not really be bonding with us like she should. Is any adult fine with her? Would she walk away with a stranger and never think twice? Does she recognize "family" as a list of names, or does she understand that we are her only caretakers and protectors? Is her friendliness an outgrowth of her orphanage upbringing where being charming got her more attention, or is she just a social butterfly? "Bonding" is such an abstract concept...

At the end of the day, Grace hit the splash park for a few minutes right before the park closed. We will have to go to a splash park again soon. She layed on the ground, jumped around, and squealed the whole time.

Back at the hotel, we swam in the pool again. Grace is so brave. She jumps in from the side and swims to us, opens her eyes under the water, splashes, and even will swim about 8 feet between Mommy and Daddy. Maybe she thinks she is a dolphin...

This is only part of the playground area...

Sand and Water...The Beach!

Today we headed to Ft. Lauderdale, checked into the hotel, and drove to the beach. Gracie figured out first hand that sand and water make a beach. Here's how she would probably describe it:

1. The water tastes yucky.
2. The waves push you down so you have to hang onto Mommy and Daddy.
3. The sand gets stuck on your feet.
4. You can push a button to make a shower go on outside.
5. The water knocks over the sand houses you made with the bucket.
6. You have to go into a restaurant to find a bathroom.

Pretty much, she figured out after 10 minutes that she prefers the pool. In fact, we went back to swim at the hotel in the evening. Gracie is getting to be a daring little swimmer. In the pool, she counts to three and will swim between Mark and me. Tonight we stood about 8 feet apart, she pushed off from standing on my thighs, stretched her arms out under the water, kicked her feet like a bicycle, and would grab Marks hands to pull up her head. She stays under the water for about 5 seconds. She also jumps in and goes under to touch the bottom, lays out on her back if we hold her head, and loves to splash. In fact, the hardest part of swimming with her is convincing Mark that she is okay. He is so protective (and uncomfortable in the water) that he expects her to be scared, too.

Where's Curious George?

With so many different venues to choose from, we really struggled to decide where we should go today. In hindsight, we made the wrong choice...

After reading online revues, we chose Universal Studios because Gracie loves Barney and Curious George right now. I even asked the attendant at the gate if the tickets we were buying were for the part of the park with those two character areas. She didn't bother to mention that the entire Curious George section of the park was closed for maintenance. Ugh!

I do think Gracie's experience with Mickey and Minnie helped her to warm up to the idea of full-size, furry characters, though, because she loved seeing George, Woody Woodpecker, and Scooby-Doo on the traveling character trolley. She even hugged Curious George and followed him around, still waving as the trolley drove away.

The E.T. ride and the Barney Show were the favorites for the day, except for the ball pit! She loved singing along to "I love you. You love me. We're a happy family," catching the snowflakes and leaves that fell from the ceiling during the Barney show, and even getting her picture taken with the purple dinosaur. We sat in the front by the stage, she danced around to the songs, and "ooohed" and "aaahhhed." I will never forget the joy on her face. I guess that half hour was probably worth the admission cost to the park.

After the show, we headed back to the ball pit even though it was pretty grimy from being outdoors in the middle of construction and repairs. She jumped, squealed, threw herself backwards, and tried to bury herself under the balls. By the time she said, "I have to go potty," it was too late and her panties were wet. I took her to the bathroom, rinsed out her panties and skort, and put the skort back on without her panties. She was not happy about that at all, but we didn't have too many options and it was time to go back to the hotel. I'm sure that the damp, cotton, shorts were really uncomfortable. She was even more unhappy when I wrapped the damp underwear in some dry paper towels and had her carry them back to the car. She kept telling me, "No, Mommy take it!" but I told her, "No, they are Gracie's panties." I really believe that the best lessons usually are learned when kids have to deal with consequences that flow naturally from their actions. I just hope that her strongest memory from today isn't a wadded up paper towel...

I Love Mickey Mouse! Not.

What would a trip to Florida with a toddler be without a visit to the Magic Kingdom? We had hoped that we would avoid long lines by coming during a low attendance day, and we picked the right time. We did wait about 15 minutes to ride on the Small World ride, but besides that we walked right on to most every other ride. Gracie's favorite was Goofy's Barnstormer Roller Coaster, which she was just barely tall enough to ride. As the coaster headed out of the station, her eyes got huge like saucers and she giggled through every twist and turn. "Do it again!" was the mantra we heard all day.

We caught an early show in front of Cinderella's castle and Gracie watched attentively from Daddy's shoulders. She loved watching the princess dancing and singing. Once Mickey Mouse came out she told us, "I go see him. Give him a big hug and a kiss!" So, we stood in line to visit Mickey and Minnie only for her to refuse to go near them. She seemed so scared and people were waiting in line behind us so there wasn't much time to settle down. Finally after sitting on my lap for half the pictures, she sat for a second in between the two characters for a photo. "They have really big mouths!" was her explanation. I don't know if she thought they would bite her or eat her, but she didn't like their mouths.

Grace also wasn't sure about the Country Bear Jamboree, which I thought she would love with the mechkas and music. She kept grumbling and climbing up to hug us as she said, "Mechkas eat me." As soon as we walked out of the theater, she told us she liked the little mechka that was swinging from the ceiling, though, so I don't think she was too frightened.

She is really fascinated with vehicles and asks everyone, "Where's your car?" when she meets them, so the Grand Prix race cars were also a favorite. For this one, Mommy waited by the track while Gracie drove Daddy around. She was so proud that she could drive all by herself.

The parade was impressive, as usual, and Grace was sure that Cinderella had waved at her. It was so fun watching Grace's surprise when the workers called her a princess all day long. Disney really does it right. The day couldn't have been better. We didn't get a stroller and Gracie was better about holding hands today. I guess she is learning.

After going to every area of the park and riding nearly all of the rides that didn't have a height restriction, we decided to do one last ride in Tomorrow Land before heading to the fireworks show. What we didn't realize was that the ride we picked was going to require to lines and an elevator prior to boarding. We ended up watching the fireworks show from the rocket platform at the back of the castle, so next time we head to Disney World, we will have to see it from the front. It was fun twirling around in the dark while the fireworks went off, but I think Grace would have liked seeing Tinkerbell fly over on a zip line...Oh, well, next time.

As we were leaving, Gracie asked us where Cinderella was, and we told her she was going to bed. She immediately looked up at the lighted window in the castle and said, "Cinderella is there, putting on her pajamas. She's tired."

"Yes, she's tired and so am I."
"I'm tired, too."

Disney Village

No trip to Florida is complete without a little shopping, so we headed to Disney Village. Finally we found a Minnie Mouse hat in the infant section that was small enough to stay on Gracie's head, a Christmas stocking for Grace, and a Christmas ornament (our usual vacation souvenir). While we were standing in line to pay for them a little dark-haired girl holding a Mickey Mouse balloon and her mother walked up to us. The mother said that the little girl had enjoyed her balloon for several days and was headed to the airport in a few minutes. They had decided to give the balloon to another little girl to enjoy and had thought Gracie might like it. Gracie's eyes lit up when she saw the pink Mickey Mouse ears and she hugged the little girl and told her, "Thank you very much." Little did that girl know how much her generosity touched Grace. She danced, ran, skipped, and played with that balloon all evening. She wouldn't let anyone else hold the Mickey Mouse shaped weights or the balloon and told us the little girl gave it to her. She even said "Good night" to the balloon and worried about whether it would still be here tomorrow.

Whales, Penguins, and Rain

Mark can officially say that he has been to Florida now, one of only a few states he hadn't visited before. Everything in our hotel feels damp, including the carpet and the beds, and these little "love bugs" are everywhere. Apparently they are annoying for only a few weeks every year, which must be now. So, it only made sense to make our first destination SeaWorld. This was a great choice.

We got a stroller, but she wasn't too fond of it, so we used it a lot for storage during the day. The highlights were seeing the penguins during their daylight hours, the Shamu show, playing under the misters, the pearl diver, and the manatees. We weren't sure how Grace would react to being wet, so we sat right behind the splash zone in the show. Big mistake. She wanted to go down and stand in the front so the water would "get me all wet," and was very disappointed she missed out. We kept diverting her attention from the slides and sandbox all day while we rode the rides and saw the exhibits, promising that we would go back at the end of the day.

Grace has no fear of getting separated from us. In fact, once she wandered away, turned looked around and didn't see us because of the sun. She did turn around and looked to see where we were, but she didn't seem too concerned. We, on the other hand, were fighting her much of the day to either hold our hands, walk between us, or ride in the stroller. She found out that she can "sedni" by the wall in the manta ray exhibit, on the curb, and even right outside the restroom. By the way, I was surprised to note that the bathrooms are all different, well, at least the 9, or was it 10, that we visited during the day. I should have listed bathrooms as one of the highlights since we stopped at every one that we passed...

When the dark clouds started rolling in, most people scurried toward the gate to go home, but we had a promise to keep--the sand and slides. Besides, the park was supposed to be open for another hour. When we got to the kids area at the back of the park, the slides were roped off but Grace didn't care. That white sand kept her busy until all of the trash cans around us had been emptied and the sinister clouds were right overhead. Then we headed toward the gate, feeling proud that we had gotten our money's worth. We just hadn't thought through the fact that to get to the gate, we had to walk across the boardwalk that cuts through the lake. As the winds picked up and the rain pelted us I picked up Grace and splashed along. (Does that count as my aerobic exercise for the day?). We felt so much better when we met up with two other drenched families who must have had the same thought. When you pay $80 per person to get into an attraction, you want to squeeze out every penny...

Surprise Flight to Georgia

Shhhhh....the secret flight to Georgia wasn't even announced to brothers until yesterday so that it would truly be a surprise. Gracie loved this flight since she actually knew she was on an airplane, it was daytime, and she got to look out the window. Still she wasn't very impressed.

After we disembarked, we took the train to the shuttle which took us to our hotel, rested a while, and headed to the track meet. Careful planning kept us using cheap public transportation to get around Atlanta. We hadn't really thought about the safety of riding on the MARTA late at night, until someone at the meet mention it, and it was probably better that we didn't ponder the thought too long. The most disturbing part was actually the mice that were running under the concrete benches in the terminal, right under the unsuspecting folks dozing on the bench, especially after we realized that we were sitting on a similar bench. Oooo, the thought made me stand up and walk around.

Blaise was really excited to see Grace walk over to where he was sitting on the bleachers. I wish I could have captured the look on his face with my camera. Later he even told us with watery eyes that it was the nicest surprise he had ever had. Everything was going great until it started to sprinkle right before his race and then it poured during the last mile. With our umbrella safely packed in our suitcase in the hotel, we threw our coats over our heads, Mark videotaped the steeplechase with Gracie's jean jacket thrown over the top to try to keep it somewhat dry, and generally we were soaked by the time the race was over.

As Murphy's Law would suggest, it stopped raining as soon as Blaise's race was finished, but he got lost in Atlanta on his cool down and all of us were waiting not-so-patiently for him to show up. We thought he was really disappointed in his Personal Record that didn't quite qualify him for regionals, but apparently, that wasn't it at all. He just took a wrong turn.  

Help on Handedness

How do you determine which hand is dominant for a child? We are really struggling with this since we would like to encourage writing with just one hand. Grace sucks both thumbs interchangeably, she usually eats with her spoon in her right hand, but she picks up finger food with either. She always kicks with her left foot, cuts with her right (because we have righty scissors) and would put crayons in the right hand to color on the right page and the left to color on the left page. Yesterday when she was "helping" Mark put the fence around the garden, she switched the hammer from her left to her right seamlessly. If she doesn't have a preference, I would really like for her to be right-handed because so many things in our world are set up for the majority who have a dominant right hand, but if she is a lefty, I don't want to confuse her either. If you have any resources or experiences to help me out on this one, please leave a comment...I'd like your input.

Don't Leave Me!

Confidence is one of the first attributes people notice about Grace. She wants to talk to everyone, says "No, I do it," and wants to strut around independently. She seems so very self-assured and spunky when she asks "What name it is?" to strangers, but that is all part of gaining approval and attention. Gradually, though, that is changing and she is revealing some of her insecurities. Recently she has been asking for assurance that we will be there for her. She doesn't really ask questions, she makes statements with a questioning tone, such as, "Mommy and Daddy no leave Gracie?"  or "Mommy will pick me up?" School has brought even more questions, and I wonder if she is worried that school is like an orphanage. She asks us if we are going to school with her. She says, "No go to school at night," or "I come home to play with Daddy when no working." She even has been wanting me to lay down with her at bedtime again. Last night she snuggled up next to me as I was laying in her bed and pressed her face as tight as she could into mine. She looked at me and saw how I was laying with my arm under my head and imitated it exactly. Then she took my hand, placed it onto her hair, and said, "Mommy rub my hair? Tomorrow Mommy wake me up? Mommy, as te obichem Gracie?" She loves to hear me say that I will always love her, and I will always be there to take care of her.

She also tells us about mechkas (bears) and Tigers that live in the dark. She wants us to tell her over and over that there are no mechkas in the house, or go with her to be sure she is safe when the light is off in a room. We have shown her how the baby monitor works and she has finally started to call for me if she wakes up on her own. She still won't usually get out of bed on her own, but she will yell, "Mommy!" and always comments when I hurry to her room. "I say Mommy. Mommy hear me and come for Gracie." She is learning that she can count on me in little ways to meet her needs. My arrival always makes her smile.

Tonight she wanted to pretend she was a baby, so we played along. We dressed her, snuggled her like a baby, and responded to her whiny baby cries. This lasted about 15 minutes, and she seemed comforted by all of the attention. When it was time for bed, she tired of the game and wanted to return to her normal routine of teeth brushing, books, prayers, and rocking. As she sat on my lap in the rocking chair, she put her thumb in her mouth and hooked her little finger inside the neck of my shirt as she often does. After a few minutes she said, "Okay, all done rocking," and was ready to go to bed by herself.

I'm glad we spent a couple of hours yesterday visiting Little People's Prep School because it gave her another taste of school expectations for next year. Gracie had so much fun that she didn't want to come home. She sang songs, played number BINGO, had a snack (which she didn't eat), and played outside on the playground. The children were all attentive and sweet to make her feel welcome, and one little girl asked why she couldn't come back tomorrow. All of the kids hugged her when it was time to leave, and I told her that the teacher said that she was a good girl at school and could come to school again later. She wanted to go back today. Since we signed her up for the summer pre-K program in Mt. Zion, she only has to wait a few more weeks before she will get to "play with the kids." That is her entire description of school, "I get to play with the kids!" Apparently, she isn't too worried about being left at school, since she can't wait to go back.

Back up and Running

Thank you for being patient with having my blog on "hold." If you are reading this, then all I ask is that you read and enjoy without reposting or sharing outside of your family. There are probably other prospective parents waiting to adopt from Bulgaria who would be encouraged by reading about our journey and friends who I have not thought to invite, so please have those friends send me an email. Then I can decide whether to invite them into our "family." Thank you so much. I have two weeks of news to post, so check back in the next couple of days for more friends, graduation, and updates.

Baby Dedication

It has been a busy weekend with baccalaureate on Friday, graduation Saturday, and the baby dedication ceremony at church on Sunday! Our church only has this ceremony a couple times a year, so we didn't want to delay it until next time. Grace was so excited to be on stage Sunday and she wanted to sing like Daddy. She got really tickled when she noticed herself on the big screen by the stage and started pointing and saying in her big voice, "Look, it's Gracie!" and waving at herself. She loved carrying around the white Bible that was "Gracie's. Not Mommy's!" and she wanted us to read it to her at bedtime, so I turned the pages and gave her the Reader's Digest condensed book version:

God made the world, the trees, the sky, the animals, and all the people. Then God sent Jesus to Earth to save us because people did bad things. Jesus died on the cross and went to heaven. One of these days, Jesus will come back and take all of us to heaven to live with him because heaven is a wonderful place where no one cries or is ever hurt or sad. Her response was, "I love Jesus. I want to go see it. I go tomorrow."

Monday morning the first thing she said to me was, "We go to heaven today. See Jesus. Okay?" Children have amazing faith.

Mother's Day 2010

After church, Mark and Grace gave me gifts before we headed to Mason City to see my parents and Grandmother. It was purely coincidental that the denim jumper Grace was wearing and the fountain-like hairdo resembled the Precious Moments figurine Grace gave me which is called I Love You This Much. Just as I have done with all of my children, we play an "I love you" game where I ask them, "Do I love you this much?" and hold up my fingers an inch apart. "This much?" and increase the space, and finally "This much!" and throw my arms out wide. Grace loves to do this for Daddy and me, too, so the little figurine with her arms thrown wide open was a perfect gift. You can tell from the pictures that Grace liked showing me what the little porcelain doll was saying, too.

Mark gave me a gold, family necklace. He said that he looked and looked and finally found the setting he wanted in a supply catalog at the jeweler's, ordered the setting, and drew out how he wanted the stones placed. It is one-of-a-kind with a heart at the top and all of our birthstones in a swirl beneath. I have the most thoughtful husband in the world!

Then we headed to my parent's house with a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken that we picked up in Lincoln. Between the chicken and mom's dessert we had a great lunch.

Grandma Wharram gets really disoriented and can only handle short excursions anymore. Ice cream at the Dairy Belle was fun until Grandma started wanting to walk home to the house down the street where she used to live. She started asking about Pawpaw and was noticeable upset when she found out he had been gone 20 years. I thought she was going to cry when she asked, "What happened to all of my things? Why didn't anybody tell me? Who got the money for the house? This is the first I have heard of it." Mom told her that she had just forgotten about how Grandma attended the sale, but her frustration just increased, so I tried my "change the focus with a toddler" routine on Grandma.

I told Grandma that we missed Pawpaw, too, and that all of her treasures were safe with us. I explained how she used to cook bacon and eggs for the boys when they would stay at her house, and how they remembered eating on her blue and white china with the little houses on them. I told her how Adam bought the china at the sale, and how excited he was to get it out of the attic to take to his new apartment. I told her that he thinks of her every time he eats on those plates. When we drove her back to the nursing home, and passed the house, she looked longingly at the home where she had lived for so much of her life.

Sometimes I think it is a good thing that we don't remember everything as we grow older because by the time we got back to the nursing home, she seemed to have forgotten the whole conversation. 

Do They Celebrate Mother's Day in Bulgaria?

When I look at Grace, I sometimes wonder what her birth mom is like. Does Gracie look like her? Is she spunky and talkative, too? Does she wonder about the premature little girl who had such a bleak future? But today, on Mother's Day, my heart broke for this woman who I have never met and yet has blessed me beyond her imagination. I cried through the entire sermon.

The two scripture verses in church service today made me think about the weight of the decision to give Grace up for adoption. What must it have been like to give birth 14 weeks early, to a tiny 12-inch long, 1.65-pound underdeveloped child who was hooked up to machines and tubes, and to know that this little girl would need medical care that you could not provide. How heartbreaking. This mother who experienced labor and delivery, had to have loved her child or she would not have attempted to go to the hospital in the first place. Surely she has strong maternal instincts since she nurtures 4 older siblings. What must it have been like in the following weeks after Grace's birth? Did she cry as her body returned to normal? Did she mourn? Did her arms ache for the child she didn't get to hold? Was she pressured by family or hospital workers to make this decision? What did she say to Grace's siblings when she came home without her little girl? Does she think about Grace, or does she avoid those thoughts completely?

The Bible suggests to me that it is impossible for Grace's birth mom not to have cared for her, and I believe the gentle, loving spirit that I see in Grace is the same love her mother showed when she gave Grace the best chance she could at a future. She gave her "whole baby" into our arms where she could get the care and love she needed, instead of risking harm to her. She loved her enough to give her to us just as the woman in the Bible who was willing to give up her baby to keep him safe.

The real mother of the living baby was overcome with emotion for her son and said, "Oh no, master! Give her the whole baby alive; don't kill him!" But the other one said, "If I can't have him, you can't have him--cut away!" 1 Kings 3:26 msg

Can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for a child she has borne? But even if that were possible, I would not forget you! Isaiah 49:15 nlt

I hope that someday, especially with the advances in technology, Grace can meet her birth mom and siblings with a thankful heart. Just as Joseph saw God's hand in his life, bringing him through enslavement and imprisonment to eventually save his family and a nation from starvation, I hope that Grace will understand her adoption as a part of God's divine plan for her life and ours. And today, even though it isn't Mother's Day in Bulgaria, I am sending an extra prayer to a special woman who gave birth to a beautiful little girl, our Gracie. I pray that God will comfort her mother's heart and fill her life with blessings.

Vince, the College Graduate

How can Vince be graduating? He was going to preschool with his pink and purple backpack just yesterday and passing out on the floor when he bumped his knee...I have been amazed at how much he has matured and changed since he has been away from home these last 4 years. Is it the guidance he got at Indiana Wesleyan, required self-reliance because he has been far away, the spiritual lessons he learned from his pastor/mentor Steve DeNeff, or is it just that I see him as an adult instead of just my child now? I'm not sure, but I know that he is someone whom I feel blessed to know. I value his opinion and respect his character. Today is definitely a milestone in his life.

Even though we were told that Grace would have to have a ticket to get into graduation, the door monitor told us that if she sat on our laps, she didn't need a ticket. This allowed both Grandma and Grandpa Swaar to see another one of their grandsons walk across the stage at graduation in addition to attending baccalaureate.

I really liked baccalaureate better than graduation because Steve DeNeff spoke about his two hopes for the graduates: That they don't ever get a job and never follow their dreams for success...Obviously the message was wonderful or I wouldn't still remember it. Steve even told Vince after the graduation ceremony that he was one of the graduates who was doing what God had called him to do by teaching children ages 0-3 and making a difference in our world. He will have a great reward awaiting him in Heaven. I know that he will be great in the Early Head Start program because he has such a generous heart.

Picture time is always a little awkward when you have divorced parents who have poor communication, but everyone from both families was cordial and cooperative at the event. I know that meant a lot to Vince, too since the boys tend to worry about keeping people happy all the time. Grandma kept Grace busy counting bushes and looking for flowers while everyone was congratulating Vince and taking pictures. It was nice not to have to load up all of Vince's things before we left because he is staying for another month to finish his Theology minor and he is left with the chore of bringing 4 years accumulation home in his car... Jacob is hosting him at his home a few blocks from campus which saved Vince hundreds of dollars in room and board, too. When he gets home, he will move into an apartment with Adam, so he is officially emancipated. The house is going to seem very quiet this summer, even with Grace talking constantly and Blaise stopping by for meals. I will miss the trash talking during Super Mario Brothers' video game challenges, serious dinner conversations about politics and religion, and even the locker room smell...NO! I won't miss that at all.

Check out the beautiful dorm room couch!