Mariah, the Graduate! - Provo, Utah

Walking across the stage!

I have to admit, between trying to watch out for my toddler son and my mom during all of the graduation festivities, I was not the most diligent photographer. There were three DSLR cameras between the relatives, and so we agreed to share photos, which of course never happens. So anyway, here are the few photos of my sister, Mariah, graduating from BYU that I did capture on my camera. One could call Mariah the blonde sheep of the family. Somehow, she's the only sibling with gorgeous blue eyes and blonde hair. She also has a softer, more amiable personality than the rest of us, which explains why she is going to be an awesome elementary school teacher. She finished her student teaching early and even hosted Landon and I at her house for the days leading up to graduation. When my family came into town, we rented a cute house in Provo so we could cook together and stay all together as a family. Mariah had applied to several jobs already, and received a call to go for an interview the morning of her graduation ceremony! She went to the interview, came back, and did commencement. Elder Snow spoke, as did the former President of BYU, Cecil Samuelsen. He was the president when I was in school at BYU, so it brought back a flood of memories listening to him speak. Another honorary degree awardee gave a marvelous speech on defending religious freedom and keeping religious schools religious. He was Catholic. I find that Mormons and Catholics are allies on many social issues facing the world today, and it was great to hear his perspective. Landon did great sitting with a variety of siblings, eating a variety of snacks.

We all went out to dinner at Gloria's Little Italy, and a man with an accordion came around and serenaded us with many a Disney tune in accordion style. I ordered gnocchi in a spicy sauce and they were delicious! Landon ate enough of his dinner that I rewarded him with a scoop of gelato. I thought it was going to be a small scoop, but she scooped us gigantic gelato scoops! YUM all around. 

Early the next morning, we reported to the Smith Fieldhouse for convocation. My sister, Hannah noticed that Mariah had graduated Magna Cum Laude! The funny thing was that Mariah was not even aware of that, which perfectly sums up my sister. She quietly goes about doing everything her very best, and doesn't expect external rewards or accolades to show for it. She really is a gem! My mom and I sat on the floor of the Fieldhouse in handicap seating because she couldn't make it up the stairs on crutches, so we had a great view of Mariah walking across the stage to receive her diploma! 

After the ceremony, we took a few pictures and went to BBQ at our rented house. Mariah received a call from the place where she interviewed offering her a job! After considering it with her husband, she took a job as a third grade teacher at a brand-new charter school in South Jordan. There, she will be able to work in after school programs like cross country for older students because the school is K-12. She is excited to start her career, and Zach and Mariah will be moving up closer to her work soon. 

We helped Hannah move out of her dorms, and sent Mariah and Zach off on a Caribbean cruise, which was a fitting celebration for the new graduate! We also got to see Grandpa Karl and Grandma Betsy who came in for the graduation, and Zach's family who graciously came to support Mariah. We had a grand time at the BBQ and Landon had a blast playing with all of his aunts and uncles. Although Mariah wants to get into teaching before starting a family, watching them play with Landon tells me that they are going to be great parents one day!

Our family has never done really well with family pictures. My dad passed on his droopy eyelids to every one of his children, so it is extremely difficult to get a picture where everyone is looking at the camera with eyes open! Add a squirmy-anti-pictures toddler to the mix and it was a challenge to get good family pictures in at Mariah's graduation. It was still a wonderful time to reconnect with family we had not seen for awhile and to celebrate an awesome girl doing awesome things. Congratulations, Mariah!

A partial family picture- there are better ones out there, just not on my camera