Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Graduated!

 Last Friday (May 23) I donned my cap and gown and joined 4 other homeschool seniors from our church for a graduation ceremony.  The planning and whatnot took quite a bit of time but the end result was an enjoyable evening.
Yes, I was the shortest one.  At 1/4" shy of 5' I usually am the shortest. : ) 

I cried through pretty much my entire speech (which is ironic considering I'm not usually a crier) but thankfully was still intelligible.  I probably wouldn't have started if I hadn't looked at mom but I did. She started crying after I did, which made me continue, which in turn made her continue. 
One set of my grandparents flew up as well as my aunt Lisa and uncle Dave.   It was special having them come up for it.  (someone somewhere has a picture of me with them but I don't.)  


The biggest surprise of the night was turning around after walking in, and seeing Tasha and Hank sitting with some of my siblings.  The day before Tasha got my invitation she and Hank made plans to see a play, and he bought the tickets.  I was more than just a little disappointed to find that out but seeing how bad Tasha felt already, decided not to let on how much.: )  Well, long story short Hank sold the tickets and bought ones for the following night, and they kept it a surprise from me.  I was very surprised and very happy. They did a good job keeping it secret, I never suspected. : )

 (You can't really see it in this picture, but my dress is the lace and coral project I hinted at a while back. It is my new favorite dress)



We each had a table that we were able to decorate and have things on it from growing up ( i.e. things we had made, liked, were special to us, pretty much whatever).  I rather liked how mine turned out.  I sewed a table cloth out of scraps of denim that have been taking up space in our material storage.  On it, I had a book filled with pictures I have taken, some of the books I have enjoyed reading, as well as an incomplete list of the books I read between the ages of 7 and 13 ( total was 143).  In one corner, was a pair of my boots with some of my favorite flowers (sunflowers and daisies).  My pink and black bull whip, made by Matthew, as well as my samurai sword joined the display.  Mason jars held two of my favorite kinds of candy M&M and peppermint patties.  I also brought my saddle and bridle. : ) Last but not least was my sewing mannequin wearing my karate gi and cowboy hat. 


After the reception and cleanup a group of us went bowling at a crazy hour to do so , but it was fun.  I didn't get to bed until almost 1 that morning because I wanted to read cards and open gifts. 

Sorry for the lack of pictures... Seeing as how the photographer of the family was the one graduating, we didn't get too many pictures.  That's ok though, except I wish we would have gotten a good one of me with my parents. : (

Oh, my official senior photo, is on my about page, if you want to see it. 

 If you were/are going to be a homeschool graduate did you/would you have a ceremony?  Did any of you graduate this year? 

~ Maria 

8 comments:

  1. Oh my!! How fabulously exiting!!
    It must have been SUCH a nice surprise that Hank and Natasha ended up coming! They are such an adorable couple! *grin*

    I just loved your table setup! Your church always sounds so nice!

    And yes, I am graduating this year! Yippee! :)

    Your dress is just beautiful! Splendid work!

    And. Your senior photo is stunning!! Beau.ti.ful!

    All the best!
    Cassie

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  2. Hey Maria!
    CONGRADULATIONS!
    I was very sorry to miss the evening, but I'm very glad you posted and included pictures!
    I was at church Friday morning to put the card in your basket, and so I at least got to see your very nice table! =) It would have been wonderful to be there with you though.
    I like your dress — wish there was more pictures of that! =D
    I'm glad Tasha and Hank got to come — very fun!
    I look forward to next time. . .
    Katelyn =)

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  3. Congratulations! I graduated this month as well. =) It looks like you had a wonderful day!! And, I was so surprised to see Hank and Tasha! Hahaa, I didn't realize that you were friends, that is awesome. I'm so glad that they were able to come!

    I decided not to have a big party. We had a small ceremony and dinner, with my family members, earlier this month. It was really nice! Instead of a having party I chose to go on a graduation trip. =)

    I'd love to see more pictures of your dress!! Which pattern did you use?

    Blessings,
    Bree

    coverupforchrist.com
    coverupforchrist.blogspot.com


    P.S.
    I'm a long-time reader, but this is my first time commenting. I love reading all of your posts! Thank you for sharing.

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  4. Cassie- Yes it was such a nice surprise that they were able to come! I agree with you, they are adorable! Congratulations on graduating this year!!

    Katelyn- I know, I wish you could have been there too! Oh, so that is how that sweet card made its way into my basket.: ) You will be able to see my dress in person soon after we get back!: )

    Bree - Congratulations to you too!! That sounds like fun to go on a trip instead if having a party. I may be doing a post later this summer, after getting back home, about my dress. I didn't really use a pattern. It was a combination of ready made, copied, and made up patterns.

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  5. Congratulations!!!! Sooo exciting!!

    Naomi

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  6. Aww, I am so, so happy that having us there made your evening better!! I'm so glad that we were able to come. I felt bad keeping it a secret from you, but the surprise worked out rather nicely, I think. For a moment I thought your sisters would squish me, they were hugging me so hard. ;D

    Love and miss you so much, girl! I'm sure you're having a wonderful time on your trip/visit, but I sure miss seeing you at church! :(

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  7. P.S. Your dress is sooo beautiful! Love that color and the lace!!

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  8. P.P.S. BTW, I was the shortest in my graduating class, too. And since they arranged us from shortest to tallest, I had to walk out first. I hated that. ;)
    And now I'm thinking very carefully...is there anything else I want to say before I publish this comment? Not that I can think of... ;)
    Love you!

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