our graduate

my baby brother graduated. 

it's no secret that i am so proud of this young man. he really is an anomaly. and i'm biased. but it's true. 

i wanted to write a letter to our little boose. but, it's still emotional. and there were tears with dear mark. perhaps his first day of college the lump in my throat will leave? because i have so much to say. to keep his heart light and full. to remain sensitive to the world around him. to stay involved and work hard. to make people laugh. to seek new opportunities and be adventurous. to never be afraid of the unknown. to give and it will be given. to make mistakes, but to be wise. to just continue to be himself. and that will always be enough. because he's a special one. 

such a special moment with grandpa bender

 graduate!

...

and here's the celebration. with a three in the morning firepit finale. it was real good. 

 it is kind of hard to throw a party for a boy. i had to fight my urge to purchase watercolor and floral and fabulous prints to splash all over the room. but, then i remembered it was a garage instead of a room. and it was mark, not tori. alas, we stuck to a neutral palette with classic tulips and succulents to bring life into the space.

to avoid the typical graduation scrapbook madness, we chose our favorite images of mark throughout high school and blew them up into engineer prints. with about sixteen photos placed every two feet throughout the room, the concept really turned into a gallery of sorts. the classic lines and black and white photos were simple, but packed a big punch in the space. plus, it was real cheap. brilliant idea, momma b!

 the food, the drinks, and the decor came together with ease. those are the best kind of celebrations. the ones that have impact, but are low stress. 

hmmm - sounds a lot like our graduate - high impact, low drama. yes?

 congratulations mark!

you make us so proud every day. 

love you in big, huge ways. xo