Graduation Time!

My baby has graduated from high school and seminary!     

Here's what I wrote about this milestone on Facebook (the first time I've posted since Christmastime):   

We called Ellie our "bonus baby" when she arrived at the end of our five kids. She was our easiest going baby by a mile and she really did feel like a sweet gift to round out our family perfectly. She's had a bit of a rocky road in her life including a seizure disorder that started right at the beginning of her kindergarten year. Despite visiting several doctors over the years and trying countless medications (and natural approaches), she never has had perfect seizure control (even now), she has faced fear and ignorance from her peers, can’t get a driver’s license, and ended up in a school situation that became untenable when she did not qualify for an IEP and the 504 plan the school came up with was completely worthless. So her education has included 3 years of public school, 8 years of homeschool, and 2 years at a private school....plus 3 moves in the last 4 years. Yet she’s still a rockstar! She has found wonderfully supportive friends, has an optimistic attitude, is thoughtful and empathetic, and has grand plans for the future. We are so proud of all she’s overcome to get here and we are excited for her to start at BYU-Idaho this fall. Happy Graduation (from high school and seminary), Ellie! We love you!

 Here's a little glimpse of some of her graduation events:   

First, there was a senior dinner at her school.  We enjoyed a delicious meal together...

While we ate, teachers read a 3-5 minute tribute for each of the graduating seniors.  Ellie's graduating class was about 60 kids, so it was doable for one night, but a little long.   Ellie's tribute was sweet and meaningful and  read by Mr. H--one of her favorite teachers.  

 It was a long night, but a wonderful thing to be a part of.  Ellie attending American Heritage School is absolutely one of the reasons why we needed to live in Utah and I love, love, love that she got to attend there for the past 2 years. It's a truly special place and was the perfect step away from homeschooling that we were looking for when we moved here.   

Next on the graduation docket was seminary graduation! 

 This age got a rough road with seminary because COVID made things difficult right when they were just starting out as freshman.  As such, it definitely took an extra bit of tenacity to be able to finish all 4 years and we are proud of her for this accomplishment.  This picture is with a couple of the seminary graduates from our ward.  There were a couple more that we couldn't track down for the picture.    

During her high school years, this girl has lived in 3 different houses, 4 wards, had 2 of those years marred by COVID, and she is still smiling!  

We are so proud of her hard work, positive attitude, and ability to go with the flow.   

Her future is bright and we are grateful for the light she brings to  our family and to the world!