My granddaughter Mary is “graduating” from Kindergarten this week. She is so excited! So am I!

When exactly did kids start having graduation ceremonies from Kindergarten? My children just went from Preschool straight through to First Grade – no ceremony, no party, no big to-do. It just happened. Now it’s a “GRADUATION”. And you know what? I’m okay with that! I love celebrations. I love parties. And I love making any day a special day.

Mary and I were talking on the phone a couple of weeks ago.

“So, Mary, I hear you are graduating from Kindergarten soon.”

“Yes and Granny can you pleeeeeeease make a dress for me? Pleeeeeeease!”

“Sure, Sweetie. What color dress would you like?”

“Oh, pink please with a purple flower and a pink bow and lots of ruffles and lots of twirl and pink buttons and flowers and lots of pink and maybe some purple . . . . . and pink.”

“So, a pink dress?”

“Yes pleeeeeeeease! I loooooove pink, you know.”

“Yes, I know.”

“Okay. Thank you. Bye.”

Aren’t conversations with six year olds fantastic? The last two weeks I have been busy making a pink and green (have to broaden the child’s world) dress for Mary for her special day. Both of us are so excited – we can hardly wait! She gets a dress with a lot of twirl factor and I get pictures of a happy happy girl – and conversations to be remembered always!

Last week 7 yo grandson Mac had a piano recital – after taking piano lessons for about 8 months! He practiced for weeks, he said, to play his compositions. At first he said he had been practicing for months, until I reminded him he had not even been playing long enough for that.

The day of the recital was grand! Mac was dressed up and clean with combed hair and a big smile. Parents and grandparents all went with Mac to lunch (hamburgers and fries) before the event and then sat with great pride in the audience to hear him play “Ten Little Indians” and “Thomas, the Trombone Player”. He sounded great, cameras clicked and videos whirred.

Special days like these  sometimes come with a lot of fanfare and sometimes can be completely overlooked, if we are not careful. What I know is making days special for kids is important. It tells them they are loved, they are important, THEY are SPECIAL. It can’t happen too often.

Special days make a family stronger and a child happier. Special days can start traditions and make memories that last forever. Special days are worth the effort and provide a future worth looking forward to. What more can you ask of a day?