8th Grade Graduation Card for Emily

My best friend Darcie and I had babies on the same day, 6 hours apart. We had labor rooms that shared a wall (allowing her and her husband to hear Bob shouting the numbers 1 through 10 as I pushed), and we recovered for the 24 hours that insurance allowed back then in the same room. Needless to say, I am experiencing some emotion about the fact that Emily Joy, the dearest girl my son calls his best friend, is graduating eighth grade and moving on to high school in the fall. While Michael is 6 hours older, he had no interest in school when he could've gone at almost 5 (school starts a few days before their birthday each year), but Emily went because you don't hold back a little girl who's already doing simple math in her head!

They've experienced lots of life together, and share many memories. When they were babies, we marked the months of their first year by photographing them at significant milestones: rolling over, sitting up, crawling, drinking from sippy cups, climbing stairs, etc., and as they grew we marked their birthdays with joint celebrations. They went to the same school--and were photographed by the school's cornerstone each year--and played together each day at recess. They really have never known life without each other. She has been his steadfast friend, and is becoming a beautiful young woman, inside and out. Bob and I consider her our almost daughter. So while I knew this day would come, I can't believe it's already here.

I hope that she and Michael will remain friends, but I realize that this could be the beginning of some significant challenges for their relationship. Besides the distance that separates them, this fall Emily will experience all that is high school, while Michael remains in middle school for his last year. Being the sensitive girl she is, she'll try to keep the ties that bind them, but it's going to be tough...and even tougher when she goes off to college and he remains behind in high school. I'm getting way ahead of myself.

This next week, we'll join in as we can from afar and cheer for Emily as she marks this milestone. This card, in the school colors of Brilliant Blue and Summer Sun and Whisper White, is simple. I wanted to incorporate the school's initials in the design, and I girlied it up with some flowers from Wonderful You. It may be hard to tell, but the SS circle actually sits on the inside of the card, and the ribbon holds the card together. Now that the card's done, the question is what gift do you give this dear girl, to let her know just how special we think she is? Whatever it is, it won't do justice to the girl who means so much to our family. Way to go, Em! We love you!