Kiarra has Graduated

Kinder Graduation

High School Graduation

A quick snap of the fingers and just like that my first born, Kiarra Jayde, graduated high school.

I know, it’s so cliché to say “they grow up so fast” but they do! I remember walking this beautiful little girl with long brown curly hair into Kindergarten on her very first day of school as if it were just a few weeks ago. Then the milestone of graduating elementary and going into a large Jr High School. How would she navigate and find all her classes, would she be able to get in and out of her locker without problems, would she see the wrath of mean girls and experience drama? We moved before her 8^th grade year and she had to attend a different Jr High School where she didn’t anyone. From there it was onto High School, a school that is 1/3 mile in length and just absolutely massive.  Brand new, so no Juniors or Seniors on campus but non the less, massive.  Again, would she see the wrath of mean girls, or start drinking or doing drugs??

The years flew by, friends came and went. She’s encountered some really hard times but has come through stronger as a woman and in her faith. Had it not of been for those hard times, she wouldn’t be on the walk she’s on today.

I’m so proud of the young lady she is today and so honored to be here Mommy (MaaaaM, Mama, Mama T, Ma) and friend.  I will always be her Mom and here for her to offer guidance and support but am so glad we can finally be friends.

Our calendar leading up to graduation was insane. I’ve had friends with kids who’ve graduated high school and I’m pretty sure I thought they were exaggerating at the amount of activities the last year of high school. Not only the activities, it’s also an emotional roller coaster. So happy and proud and yet so sad that this chapter is coming to an end. Have I done enough?  Is she ready for the real world? Why didn’t I spend more time doing xyz with her??  From Prom, the end of April to Graduation, is literally a blur in my mind. Thankfully I have lots of pictures documenting the days.

Speaking of Prom, did you see this gorgeous daughter of mine that day??  I am in awe of her strength and beauty. She unfortunately gained some weight this past year but was determined to lose some before prom. She found a dress online that she loved so we went shopping one day to find a similar style so we’d know what size to order. In that process, she found a dress she loved even more than the one online and even better, we could purchase it that day!  She decided to buy the dress 2 sizes smaller than the one that fit her so she would bust her tail and get into it before prom. We had 8 weeks! I thought she would need to lose about 25-30 pounds and you know what, she DID!  We worked out together each morning, 6 days a week, and she often went to the gym after work for extra cardio.  One morning, two weeks before prom, she called me crying.  “Mommy, it fits!!”  YESSSS!!! Praise the Lord. I love it when hard work pays off.  I was driving to work and thought I was going to have to pull over, I had big crocodile tears. She worked hard and deserved to fit into that dress.  Prom day arrived and we spent the day together getting her all dolled up. I love that she trusts me with her hair and makeup. We did have my professional hair lady blow out and curl her hair with the flat iron but then we got home and I had the honors of braiding and putting final touches on it. It’s times like these that I’m going to miss the most.

Testimony

The A couple of weeks ago we had student Sunday at KCF, the church we’ve attended for over 6 years.  As our youth pastor was preparing for this day, she asked Kiarra if she’d be willing to give her testimony. Kiarra agreed and began putting her testimony on paper. This was no easy task. This girl has been through some serious stuff.  Freshman year of high school was brutal; she made the wrong friend and got involved in some serious and scary stuff. We spent many hours praying and had many sleepless nights. I spent 3-5 hours every single day, sometimes more, dedicated to keeping her safe. I felt like it was hell on earth, no joke! Those close to us know what has happened and for everyone else, the details of her situation will one day come out. For now, I ask you not to speculate and please don’t judge. I’m sharing her testimony here. If you are looking for juicy details, you won’t find them.  Kiarra’sTestimony

The Dance

Leading up to student Sunday at church, several girls began learning a praise dance to perform during service. They met once a week for months to learn this dance.  As time went on, some of the girls dropped out for whatever reason, and only 5 girls ended up doing the performance. I didn’t want to know anything about it ahead of time so I didn’t even know the song they were dancing to. The first time I watched this dance was during service, just moments before Kiarra was going on stage to give her testimony.  Was it perfect? No (just watch Taryn’s ribbon whisk Kiarra’s right out of her hand – LOL). Was it absolutely beautiful and powerful?  YES!!  It was incredibly powerful actually. I’ve never watched praise dancers before so seeing my girls up there, dancing for their one true love, our Lord and Savior, was an incredible and overwhelming experience. I just finished watching the dance again now and was in tears.  Before clicking this link, turn your volume up, listen to the words and watch with your whole heart. Praise Dance

Beautiful right?  I hope you felt the presence of our mighty savior! God is so good y’all.

Graduation Day

And here we are… its graduation day!  My family all arrived yesterday and we had a nice dinner with everyone at Los Cucos. For some of them, it was their very first trip to Texas. It was so great to see everyone.  My nephews and niece (and her boyfriend) stayed here at the house with us; along with my Mom who had come in a week early to help me out (I could write another whole blog just thanking her for EVERYTHING). My brother Talan stayed here as well. My brother Teige, sister Kathy, and rest of the family all stayed in nearby hotels. Tamia was even here with us. It was a beautiful time and I felt complete. We had everything ready for the party. We were expecting heavy rain and sure enough the heavy rain came. It was torrential downpour and our backyard was soon flooded.  We had rented a huge tent (to keep everyone from the heat) but wasn’t able to use it as the ground was too soggy.  We were not going to let a little rain keep up from having a great time…but first, graduation.  The ceremony itself was only 2 hours. 480 kids walked that stage to receive their diploma.  The speeches were excellent and the ceremony was nice.  The only challenging part was getting out of the parking lot afterwards.  It took us an hour and 10 minutes to get out of the parking lot!!  You’d think with as many years as they’ve been doing graduations, they’d have a better system down to get us out of their in a more efficient manner.  Jayden’s class will have over 1000 kids, I sure hope they get it together before 2020.  While at graduation, Teige and Kathy were at the house keeping an eye on the food.  My dear friend Regina had offered to come and take over the kitchen for the party so I could enjoy the party and speak with our guests. The other 4 ladies from our Life Group came as well and they had all the food set up when we got home and they continued to work the kitchen throughout the party. I owe them BIGTIME! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, God puts the right people in our lives at the right time. I don’t know how I would have managed this party without their help.  We had 140 people in our home that evening and not one time did I see empty platters, containers or trash sitting around anywhere.  They are the best and I thank God for them!

The party was so much fun. It was great catching up with everyone. Her Kindergarten teacher came and that just made her day!  To see so many people come and love on her made my heart so happy. It was overwhelming.  At one point I stood and stared at everyone here and tears began to fall down my cheeks.  Three years ago, we almost lost her but here we are, celebrating her high school graduation. Her biggest accomplishment to date and everyone who loves her is here, celebrating her. Some have known her since birth and others just met her this year.  Jeff’s cousin flew in from California; my family drove in from Iowa… I’m so grateful to everyone who made it a priority to come to the party, hug her neck and congratulate her. I know we have lots of family who were not able to make the trip from Iowa and we totally understand that, we missed you and are so thankful for the love you sent from afar.  

That evening, Kiarra had project grad so she had to leave her party at 11:30 to head to Main Event for the all night lock-in.  While she was gone, we all played hide-and-seek in the dark!  So. Much. Fun.

Saturday, we spent the day with my family chilling out, checking out traders village and playing games.  That evening, my family departed and I collapsed. I was up until 3 am for 3 nights the past several days and was completely exhausted. The PowerPoint, with hundreds of pictures documenting her life, almost did me in, but it turned out great and I’m so happy I spent the time to pull it together. 

In Closing

I am extremely proud of the young lady she is today.  She’s not had it easy but I’m grateful for all the paths we’ve walked because we’ve walked them together and have grown stronger through it. She is amazing and caring and has a heart of gold. I love her around the world 2017 times and forever pray we have a relationship as good as we do today.   I’m so proud that she wants to stay home and attend a local college to be around to watch her siblings grow up. She could easily run off to college but her priorities are different and I love every ounce of that. I love that she wants to serve in our church and keep God first in her life.  Although I selfishly want to freeze time, I’m excited to see what the Lord has for her as she enters this next chapter in her life.