Graduation Day

It is a beautiful Saturday morning it started a little cool and a little windy but we were excited because we were all together to celebrate Samantha becoming a U.C. Davis Grad.

Bubbie and Morgan were so excited because they found pink roses Celia and I found a pink lei, Kathy and Ash found more pink roses... now all we needed to find was Samantha.

But they were opening the doors and we wanted to get a good seat (we did). Once were were situated Celia and I went out to see if we could find her....

we were looking where they were lining up ...but there was no Sam.

We called her and she said she was on her way she was riding her bike over....

yes you read that correctly...

she was riding her bike in full graduation garb.

But she made it and she wasn't even the last one in line...and she did graduate and then it was time for the picture taking...

We have the Sisters....

The Parents

The estrogen

And the family.

It nseems like just yesterday

I can't bellieve that we are on our way to Davis for Samantha's graduation... it seems like it was just a few weeks ago that we were going up for her orientation, and now she is a graduate.

So we have 3 cars going up (Kathy and Ash, Celia and Morgan and the Barry, Bubbie and me in the last one) to help her celebrate this moment.

So many lasts, the last time we will drive up the 5 and think we are one third of the way there becase we see and smell the cows.... the last time looking for Patterson as a stoping point the las time we sill be wondering where all these truck come from ...but then next week we will start a whole new set of firsts...as we take Ashleigh for orientation at Sonoma State.

May 24, 2011

So many moments and so little blogging..... so what has happened since Sept 2007 I know that was not a date you were expecting, but that was when we left Samantha at U.C. Davis.

Our little Sammie who first started school in 1990 managed to make it all the way to graduation from Calabasas High School in 2006. And now we are waiting just a few more days until we

get to go back up to Davis one more time for another graduation.

When sisters are together it always requires a celebration

And this time we had more to celebrate than just being together (although that would have be a good enough reason) Celia had just recently turned 25 ( I know can you believe that I have a 25 year old daughter) So after a little bit of discussion we decided on dinner at Pasta?

But the opportunity for the sisters to be together happened because of Family Weekend for Sigma AEPie and even though we tried to have all the Big Girls Club together but alas we only had half the group in person the other half in puppet.

I was a great weekend and a great reason to celebrate.

We are proud Sigma Parents

What a lovely weekend with Sam and her Sigma sisters. After a slight change in our schedule we started our drive a second time and made it to Davis just in time for Shabbos. I was a very nice dinner (that Sam cooked with the help of her Sigma sisters). We had dinner on Friday and then brunch on Saturday followed with a trip to the farmers market, shopping at the Davis MU (student union) and then a little down time where I built her shelf that we didn't get time to finish before I had to leave the last time I was here. Barry watched a little football and the girls had some time to be together. We had another brunch on Sunday morning and it was all over.

Sam I just want you to know that you planned a beautiful weekend and we had a great time. I am glad that The Bear and I got up here for a Family weekend and now we just have to get up her for picnic weekend.

327 miles to Davis...

You would have thought that by now I would have some cute pictures of what Barry and Ashleigh are having for breakfast since we got out of the house so early and after all we were ahead of schedule.





But you know one of my favorite lines..."man plans God laughs" well he might be laughing but we (Barry, Ashleigh, Celia and me) are not laughing. We left the valley ahead of schedule at 10:00 and everything was good... dropped Celia's car off for some work ...as we were driving past Der Wienerschnitzel we stopped got them some breakfast (not my choice) and we were on our way...but just before the tunnel on the 5 coming out of the valley something happened that changed our plans...we don't know what but something hit our windshield and well the pictures tell the rest of the story...so we went back home changed to Allegra and left the valley right on schedule by 12:00 noon.....so Sammie we are on our way just a little delayed.

Bringing Sam South

Nothing too eventful..just a town full of caps and gowns ...it is graduation weekend, but the only real effect it had on the plan is that there are no hotel rooms in Davis....So we are in Sacramento staying at a Four Points...very nice,, completely off the beaten path the gps says the address doesn't even exist but still very nice.

Ahhh but I have gotten off track ( I know what else is new) so Sam met me at the airport after an evening of celebrating (yes she is 21) the end of the term and that her 21st birthday fell during finals so they couldn't celebrate...

after a quick stop at Home Depot for some supplies we were back at Sam's Sorority House










to deal with the task at hand.... getting Sam packed up for the summer and bring her home.

This would be the before picture.

So we packed a little and then stop for lunch and to meet up with Adi at the Black Bear Diner and we even went to see Sam and Adi's new apartment

Yes that second floor balcony is theirs ....

so is the one little staircase to bring everything up....
but you will have to stay tuned to the blog for further updates on the apartment in September.

but I digress (again) we packed most of Friday and then went to Sacramento to sleep a brand new Shereton Four Points near the airport....

very nice but the only place I could find with
vacancy's because of graduations weekend.

so this was the before picture




and this is the after one.

Time Marches On

I can't believe it... I know I say that all to often but it was just 10 months ago that we were packing up the car and heading off to take Sam up to UC Davis and now Calli and I am heading up to bring her home...

True it is only for the summer and she already has a place to go back to and her classes have been picked (no classes before noon and noon after 4 and nothing on Friday, what a life) but she will be home for the summer. Well actually she won't be in Davis for the summer but that is another issue.

Making a Dorm Room a Home

Talk about a blank canvas...

we arrived at Sam's dorm room to find it very very empty..... but not for long.

We started to fill it up

I didn't realize how much stuff she had.

and it didn't take long before

the room started to take shape.

what does it look like to send a kid off to school

It was a beautiful September morning, it was very early we were going to get on the road by 6 get some coffee and some gas and be out of dodge by 6:30 in the am at the latest... so we were right on schedule when we saw this beautiful sunrise at 7:00 in the morning... (1 block from the house)

Now remember back to when your kids were in elementary school and the teacher will prepare a list in advance of all the school supplies that a kid needs for what ever grade he or she is in? And as a good parent you dutifully go out and make sure that you buy everything on the list even if your kid won't need them... and then in high school you rejoice because you are the last person your kids want out shopping with them .... but don't celebrate too much because as soon as they get accepted into the college of their choice you get to start shopping for school supplies again. And let me tell you I would trade any ones crayons and pencil list for lists of items that we were filling for Sam, now don't get me wrong I am as excited as can be that she is going to U.C. Davis.... but what I have learned is all the online sites offer free shipping or pulling service for orders over $50 and for those of you who will be doing this soon.... take them up on it!!! But I digress we had a very nice drive up we stopped at Harris Ranch for Brunch where Ashleigh actually did fall out of the car when we opened the door (yes, we were that packed).

Do you know what an Aggie is?

Why Sam of course.....yes she has been offered acceptance and she has taken it at U.C. Davis in the wonderful Sacramento Valley.

I am sure that Samantha has called the entire population of Davis to let them know that she is coming...

Sammie the Aggie

It has an interesting ring to it.