This weekend, my husband and I traveled to Maryland for our nephew and great nieces’ graduations. Ryan is graduating from High School, and Gwen is graduating from pre-K. Both are important milestones we need to celebrate. We take the time to celebrate these milestones as they give us time to come together as family and friends to recognize the work the graduates have done and the how they are tackling the stages in their lives.

In Ryan’s case, he has done well and is a well-rounded student. He played sports and was an excellent student at the top of his class. To reward him, he was given several awards at his graduation ceremony. He will be entering the University of Maryland in August. In talking to Ryan, I was proud to hear about his goals and that he realizes the work that will go into accomplishing them. Seeing the transformation that have taken place from when he was a baby to the young man he is today is amazing. He has grown into a very nice person; and we are all proud of him. As I wrote on his card, The Sky is The Limit. He is excited about his next step, and we will be there cheering and supporting him along the way!

We also celebrated Gwen’s, our 5-year-old great niece, graduation from pre-K. Gwen is an energetic five-year-old who keeps everyone on their toes! She had fun in her pre-K class and is moving on to Kindergarten in September. She is learning to be patient, share, and obey her parents. I watched her dad stand over her so she would eat her dinner. She wanted to play with the other kids who had finished their dinner, but he had to stay at the table till she ate her dinner. Her parents knew she was too excited to eat, but her dad negotiated with her to eat something, and then she could play. He was specific about what she had to eat, and this helped her focus. Once she ate her dinner, she was sent off to play. I was amazed at how patient and consistent her parents are with her. They make the experience of having to eat her dinner fun and allowed her the time to do what she had to do. It was fascinating how much she had changed from when we saw her at Christmas. Gwen will go into Kindergarten in September. She will be going to a different school and meeting new kids. She doesn’t realize what this means, but she will do well if her parents and teachers support her.

Being a bystander and watching our nieces and nephews grow over the years is fascinating. In talking to the adults in the room, we were all amazed at how fast time has flown by and what each family has experienced over the years. My husband and I are the oldest of both our families. We do not have children, so we live vicariously through our nieces and nephews and their children as they grow.

I am sure all of you reading this post have family events, graduation, and weddings you are participating in this time of the year.. Enjoy them as they allow us to look at the past, the present, and the future for all of us.

Have a good week!