Goodbye, Grade School

If you ever question how quickly kids grow up, just look at pictures of Carter in kindergarten versus sixth grade. An amazing transformation!

Today was a special day for Carter and the other sixth-graders at Grant Elementary. It was graduation day! The day they mark the passing of grade-schoolers to middle school (aka junior high). Due to some restructuring plans for next school year, Carter's class also was the last 6th-grade class ever to "graduate" from Grant. (Next year, all the 6th-graders will be part of a middle school.) So they made a big deal out of it.

Daddy and Mommy worked a half day to get home, meet up with my parents and sister and head over to the school for the 1:30 p.m. ceremony. I knew as soon as they started playing Pomp and Circumstance that I would get choked up. Then, when they had a DVD presentation later -- which included "before" and "after" shots of the kids (like the ones above) -- I pretty much lost it.

Other features of the ceremony were two numbers by the 6th-grade band and a commencement address by state Rep. Marlin Schneider. Then all 64 students also got a certificate and memory book. So yes, it was more than an hour on hard chairs. I felt bad for my elders but was so glad both sets of grandparents, an aunt and an older brother got to share Carter's day with him.

Afterwards, we gathered here for some cake and ice cream and pats on the back.

We didn't have long to just sit around and relax, though, because the ball tournament is still going on. Carter's team played their second-round game at 5:30 tonight. This one went better than round one. Tonight the Reds soundly beat the Orioles 7-2. Carter did not get a hit but did get walked on and did some good base running (and stealing) to add to our total. So Grandpa and Grandma Hedberg and Aunt Romey got to share in the glory.

When we got home, we played cards (Dirty Rummy) until after 10. While this was sort of Carter's day, I just couldn't let him win at everything. So I took the honors... for tonight anyway. Now we're just tucking everyone in so we can do some of this all over tomorrow.

Well, the baseball part anyway. Unless we have cake for breakfast (which I will not oppose).