Todd's Graduation!

I went home for my brother's Law School Graduation from the University of Utah. It was a lot of fun. First I hadn't been to Salt Lake City since I was in college and it was actually a lot nicer then I remember. The graduation was great (you know for a law school graduation) and my brother was so proud...as we all were of him. I was telling one of my friends it was really cool to see Todd as proud as he was over this, because he has his BS and Masters and never had walked at graduation. Words can't even begin to express how proud of him I am. We got into SLC about 2am local time the night before graduation. Todd had to be there early so all of us drove to The U in Dad's truck. As we pulled up Krista (my sister in law) remembered she had forgot her camera and we were early enough that she could go back to the house and grab it. As the time got closer to graduation she still hadn't showed up and me being the worry wort that I am went out front to wait for her. My real panic set in as Todd's class began to walk in, I couldn't believe Graduation was starting and she wasn't here. I knew she wouldn't miss his graduation so I went to talk to her mom to see if I was worried for nothing, but she was concerned too. Krista had found an older gentleman who's son was graduating with Todd and he was lost. Being the sweetheart she is she walked with him instead of running ahead to make sure he made it to his son's graduation. Both Krista and I were a little unimpressed that so many people had brought children to a Law School Graduation...I was like "is this really the place?" then I remembered where I was. I was quickly put in my place when the class' awesome guest speaker who was from Africa said what a blessing it is to hear all the children crying and screaming during the ceremony....I guess we just weren't on the same page. She was really Awesome though telling her story about her struggle to be a Lawyer where most females don't even go through elementary school. After graduation The Kinard's were off to eat! As we walked back to the car the Coke man went after a few sodas that had fell off his cart and we watched (it seemed like slow motion) as the rest of the card got away from him and spilled. All of us in our dress clothes stopped and help him pick up the soda and the poor guy was so embarrassed, but at least we got it taken care of before everyone else started coming that way and saw him. It was a really great day and fun to spend it with family. That evening after my brother got all geeked out about his new lawn mower and mowed the grass his friends came over and we BBQ'd. He has a really good group of friends and I hope I can get back up to Salt Lake City to visit with him and Krista soon.

My brother and Krista just bought a new house and it is so cute. Krista doesn't let grass grow under her feet. Her mom Evelyn and her had been doing the landscaping the week before we arrived and it is beautiful. She didn't stop planting, watering, going the entire time I was there. It made me smile. Her mom is a ton of fun to be around....the two of us went in search of a grocery store and giggled until my stomach hurt. As we were leaving the store Evelyn remembered she had some onions in her hands we still needed to pay for it was too funny. On the way to the store some silly light popped on in Dad's truck and my first reaction was "OH NO what did I do?" All of you that know my dad knows as soon as I told him about the light he began to worry about the pick up. Thank God that we had no problems with it on the way home or since then for that matter...maybe the truck just wanted to give me a hard time :-) My mom had given me this book to read when I first arrived in Pierce and I totally got sucked into it while in SLC....so much that when we were all sitting outside Evelyn finally yelled "HELLO" to me to get my attention. Needless to say the rest of my visit home my dad kept teasing me and saying "HELLO!" It was a great weekend with lot of memory's and I can't wait to get back to visit....my brother and sister in law might get a bit sick of me and my dog :-)