Lauren’s Institute For Education recognized two students who graduated this year. One was our sweet Lauren. There was a lovely ceremony held at L.I.F.E. with family and friends in attendance. It was heartwarming to watch these two young people be honored for completing many intense hours of disability therapy and education.
In lieu of a party, we took Lauren to Disneyland. It was a girl’s trip, with Carrie, Diana (Lauren’s therapist), Bev (Dennis’ friend) and me, along with our guest of honor. We had a fun time, and stayed at the Pixar Pier hotel. It was my very first time staying on site, and we got a military discount due to Bev’s status as a veteran widow. It was a nice experience, but one I will not repeat often; the rather ordinary hotel rooms are quite over-priced.
Steven graduated from high school this year, and the ceremony was on Memorial Day weekend. That made a slight challenge in booking airline tickets. I ended up finding the best deal by flying in on Friday and home on Wednesday. Ken’s parents were also in town for the grandson event, but since I had “reserved” the Holsinger guest room first, they ended up in a hotel for a couple of nights. (It pays to book early.) Fortunately, they have recently bought a second home in the Boise area, and it was ready for them to occupy it by Sunday, so they had their own place for the rest of the week.
Graduation was on Saturday evening. Steven graduated with honors, and also got mentioned in the Vice Principal’s speech as the senior who was most responsible for helping the school to win a multi-school spirit competition. Leave it to Steven to shine among the masses.
There was a big party on Monday afternoon, with lots of Steven’s favorite foods, outdoor games and swimming.
On Wednesday, Robin dropped me at the airport at noon for a 1:40 flight. As I was checking my luggage, I got the first of eight text updates from the airline announcing delays for my flight. The explanation was an issue with the brakes on the plane at the last stop. Well, I certainly wanted the brakes to work properly, but I didn’t enjoy sitting in the gate area for over seven hours. Finally, at about 7:00, I approached the agent and asked if this flight was going to make it at all, and she said, “I don’t think so.” She searched for other flights to get me to Phoenix, and I ended up booked on one the next morning through San Francisco. I took an Uber back to Robin’s and climbed back in the guest bed until 4:15 the next morning. That plane did take off on time, and I got home about five hours later. Luckily, Daryl picked me up, saving me an additional Uber ride.
Thursday was Mom’s 99th birthday, and in memory of her, several of us gathered for lunch at Joe’s BBQ, one of her favorite restaurants. I made it home in time to join everyone. From there I hurried over to Brian & Carrie’s to pick up my happy puppy and bring her home.
