Graduation

 He did it! 

Aric worked so hard and it paid off. The days were long, like 12 hours and longer. I have never seen him so dedicated and stressed in my whole life. Week after week he would kill it.

He met some really great people in his class...they were so good to him even though he was the old man of the group. His main partner in crime was Eric...or 'Lil E as we liked to call him. They spent a lot of time together and we loved having him around.

Shane and Krissy

   

Chris

I'm not sure how we didn't get a picture of JT and that makes me sad. He is a great guy who was such a huge help to us and a good friend to Aric.

So at the end of the program the class nominates someone to represent their class and speak at graduation. Aric was the big winner...he was like the big brother of the group, so I guess they thought it was fitting.

He was quite the comedian, which is no surprise...

He even managed to get one of the directors of the school to dance with him during his speech.

He did a great job balancing the humor and the seriousness of what they all had accomplished. I was very proud of him. 

 He was sweet to mention me in his speech and the whole room clapped for me...acknowledging my sacrifice and hard work to support him and take care of our three kids during this crazy ordeal. I felt a little embarrassed but mostly I felt loved and appreciated.

 

Aric couldn't have had a better group of people teaching him and guiding him through this process. I am so grateful for every single one of them. They were so supportive of Aric from the very beginning and had all the confidence in him. It made a world of difference for us to have them in our corner.

The graduation was nice and not too long. C still couldn't handle sitting for too long. He was the only little kid there and tried his best to be quiet and attentive...

 Aunt Carolyn and Roscoe came to show their support. It meant so much to us to have them there. They had been there from the beginning and knew how hard Aric had worked. I know that I couldn't have stayed sane without them.

I still can't believe that Aric's dad was able to be there. It was such a fluke that the only way to explain it is that GK had something to do with it on the other side. It was a neat surprise and we loved having him there to share this accomplishment with us.

I will never forget this night. The fact that we made it to this day still amazes me. It was the culmination of hundreds of miracles big and small that made this moment possible. Words fail me at this moment to adequately express the joy/pride/gratitude and relief that I experienced. Aric's name is on the diploma but we all felt like we accomplished something amazing as a family.

We are team Albrecht and we rock!