Tuesday May 19 – Richland MO

Graduation Day!! Everyone is very excited this morning!! New haircuts, a new refrigerator and chest freezer coming, then Graduation!

As usual, I stay under wraps while everyone gets ready to go to work and school, although I hear them loud and clear. Once Pat was back from taking Logan to preschool, she got down to business baking the cake for graduation. I was the assistant, but she did 90% of the work. We decided on an “upside down” graduation cap, white cake with vanilla icing. Our hiding place is the oven!!

Around noonish, we got a call that the delivery men were at the bottom of the hill, which barely gave us time to finish emptying the old refrigerator (the freezer section food we had dumped into ice chests) and finish moving stuff off the patio (that the kids were supposed to have done last night!) I ran out to open the farm gate, then I had to move both Blue and the Safari van. The delivery truck was huge for this little road!

I think John is more nervous about this new refrigerator than Anjanine, as he has called twice and mentioned “don’t let the kids touch it!!”

The guys were young and very polite, and pretty speedy. I showed them where the refrigerator was going, and how to walk around the house, down the slope and around back to the patio and family room downstairs. They unloaded both appliances (still boxed) and started unpacking them. I talked them into leaving both boxes for the kids to play in when they got home.
The delivery men also discovered that they would need to remove the front door to get the new refrigerator in, and zip!! The door was off and leaning against the wall. These boys were quick!Instead using a dolly, they used a strap system that went over their backs in an “X”, over their shoulders to a thick strap that went under the appliance. They talked their way through all obstacles and had the new refrigerator in place and the old one out really quickly. Then they marched around the house and down the slope with the chest freezer and put it in the family room downstairs. John will be putting it in the storeroom for long term use.

Once the men left, I rearranged the van and Blue, and helped Pat put what food there was back into the refrigerator for now. Anjanine will need to rearrange everything to suit her.

Pat and I went to get Logan. On the way back we encountered a BIG DIRT TRUCK on the river road!!! ARRGGGHH! (Someone is attempting to build something across the road from the gate to here, and it seems to actually be low ground, which means a flood hazard). We were so close to the edge, I could look straight down to the drop off to the river! Glad I wasn’t driving Blue!
Once home, we waited to the older kids. They did their chores and had a great time playing with the boxes. Ajay and Logan had the small one, and I cut a door, a window and a “spy hole” in it. Aeden and Audrianna had the big one, and they made a blanket door and had me cut a window. Hopefully the boxes last for a bit!!
Once Anjanine got home from work, the kids started getting ready for this evening with makeup and Sunday clothes being donned. John came and hustled to get out of his uniform. At 5:15pm Pat and I took Annelise back to school for her graduation ceremony. Everyone else came at 6pm. Most folks were dressed nicely, but some were in shorts and flipflops. The graduates were mostly dressed well, with some in evening dress, ties, etc., and a couple with white t-shirts and jeans.

The ceremony started promptly at 6, with the high school band playing and awards being given out. There weren’t that many kids graduating, but there were a lot of honors going to technology knowledge, math and other skills. Smart bunch of kids. Once the awards were done, the students went row by row to have their names called and they had to walk and shake hands (or hug) the various school board members, counselors, principals, etc., before they received their certificates. Quite a nice presentation.After the festivities were over, we all went to dinner at Chopsticks, a Chinese restaurant/buffet in St. Robert. Food wasn’t too bad!

Everyone piled in the van and Yukon to come home, and everyone was ready to call it a night. Guess we will do the piñata and cake on Thursday, as Annelise will be going to Silver City Amusement Park near Branson tomorrow for her 8th grade trip.