New Chapter--Graduation

June 7th marked the end of residency. It just so happened to also be the same day that the movers were packing up our home. Thankfully, my dad had come out to help me on our epic drive up to Utah so we could have the required adult there at the house at all times while the rest of us went to the graduation. The graduation was held in some building downtown San Antonio. In classic Tovar style, we slotted too much in with too little time. We raced downtown and dropped Fernando off with Mia near the entrance. I planned to park in our usual $2 place conveniently located a few blocks from downtown. Looking back I should have just forked out the $10 and saved us the hassle, but something in me just can't pay extra when I feel like we don't have to. The other kids were distraught that they didn't get to go in with Fernando and proceeded yelling and screaming which made me have a very difficult time navigating streets I never travel on which in turn made me miss my turn and put us on the freeway. We had only minutes before the thing started so it made me even more in capable of thinking. I finally looped around and found a spot. We jogged the whole 3 blocks over, dropping the keys out a few times and only once stopping for a cross walk. We found Mia waiting for us in the foyer and went in to what turned out to be the longest graduation in history. (or least it felt that way) I was then very grateful for the run with my two most restless kids.

We proudly watched Fernando pick up his diploma? and shake hands with special people we never saw before or will see again and then waited through a myriad of other specialities.

Did we bring anything to distract the kids? No. Thank heavens Tiago never leaves home without some little toy. (this time it happened to be some little Mario Bros characters which means the people sitting near us got to hear graduation proceedings to the tune of the mario theme song mixed with sound effects of blowing up things, Mario sayings, and stomping noises.) I had both of our i phones which was tricky splitting between 3 kids. Near the end, Tiago had finagled the boy next to him into letting him give running commentary on his iPad games of choice. Finally, after singing all three branches of service theme songs which was really kind of fun, we were done. Well, the kids and really Fernando and I were done probably before it started, but we left. As we were leaving, I felt the need to get the keys out. I am glad I did because I couldn't find them anywhere. Luckily, from picking them up several times on the run to the event, I knew that they could only be somewhere in the near vicinity. I asked the people in charge of clean up if they would keep an eye out for them. We looked on the floor near our seats, we looked everywhere we walked, we looked in the nearby hotels, and nothing. While searching, we bumped into some friends and neighbors who offered help, but really there was nothing to be done. My house was in chaos and I had no clue where the extra key would be. Everyone was off to special lunches in celebration and we had no extra car seats to send them home with people anyway. Here we are outside one of the Hotels we searched in vain for our car keys. Our friends kindly offered all sorts of help and to take our picture.

In the end, the only thing that could be done (and should have been done in the beginning) was to pray. So as a family, we gathered together and asked for help. We needed to find the keys to get home to the packers, get food in the kids, and get out of our too hot for Texas clothes. The prayer was short but sincere. Then, looking back one more time at our seats, I found the keys wedge between our seats. Tiago and I were the ones who found them and we instantly said a prayer of gratitude. Several prayers of thanks later, we walked to our car, keys in hand. And on back to our miraculous adventure called moving. poor quality due to iPhone video capacity while holding an infant and trying to walk in crouched position walking sideways