A Confirmation, A First Birthday and a Last Piano Recital

On Saturday May 23 I had the privileged of being m niece Lily's sponsor when she received the Sacrament of Confirmation which took place at the Cathedral of St John the Evangelist in downtown Cleveland. It was a beautiful Mass in a beautiful church on a beautiful day. I cannot explain the feeling of being at her side as Bishop Lennon confirmed her. After Mass and a little maneuvering to get out of Cleveland we enjoyed a delicious dinner at the Cleveland Heights Melt Bar and Grilled with its unique decor and every kind of grilled sandwich you can imagine. Thomas had a fried mac and cheese  sandwich which stood about 4 inches tall. It was a special day that I will always remember and I pray Lily will always feel the working of the Holy Spirit in her life!

This little sweetie turned 1 in May and Gary and I were invited to come celebrate with their family. I feel so blessed to have this little one and her mom and dad in our lives. 

Time for cake!

                                                                  Proud daddy Keith!

John had his last piano recital with Donna Sturts. He played his own  piece and a last duet with Thomas. Mrs Sturts bought him a flower and a cross pendant. What a blessing Donna has been to John and our family. I am so proud of John that he stuck with piano through his senior year!

2 Senior Masses and a Walk Across the Stage!

Well here it is July and I am finally able to blog about John's graduation. 

It. All. Went. By. So. Fast! 

Everything was lovely. It worked out that John was able to attend Resurrection's Senior Mass on Saturday evening May 16th and St Mary's Senior Mass on Sunday morning May 17th. Two separate and very different celebrations but equally lovely. 

                                                           A rose from my son.

                                                           Resurrection Seniors

St Mary Seniors...love all the colors!

The last week of school was fun  in that they had something special each day and exams didn't seem to stressful for John.  He especially enjoyed the second to last day where the seniors met at Bicentennial Park and rode their bikes to school with a police escort. The last day they had a senior breakfast cook-out in the parking lot before school.

and then graduation....

The ceremony was held in the gymnasium due to the threat of rain. The ceremony began with the National Anthem and the singing of the school Alma Mater. Then they had all the veterans stand and be recognized, then all the current service men and women, and then all the graduates who would be serving our country. I shed a few tears and I was grateful that all present were  given the opportunity to express our gratitude and to remember that serving others is the true measure of success. The speakers were brief and their words meaningful. The superintendent stressed the importance of taking the high road and he ended his talk with "we love you and God bless you".  

John walking across the stage...love the smile!

Proud parents!

After graduation it took us a while to make our way through the crowd to 

meet John in the auditorium. When we got there it was practically empty.

 Colleen found a cap on a seat in the auditorium and the 2 started clowning around! 

One of my favorite shots from the day.