Class of 2024 Senior Awards Night

After earning his spot in the Top Ten of the Katy High School Class of 2024, the awards for Connor weren't yet over. As one of the last events to wrap up his senior year, Connor was invited to the Senior Awards Night where the senior class awards and scholarships were handed out. When we received the invitation, I had a moment of panic because I was already scheduled to be traveling that night for Kaitlynn's cheer event in Florida. Thankfully, we had some amazing friends who helped me shuffle our travel plans for Kaitlynn and allowing me the ability to attend Senior Awards Night with Connor. It was the culmination of his hard work for 4 straight years in high school, and I wouldn't have missed it!

These awards nights are always fun for the kids because while they are invited to attend, they are never informed which awards they've received until their name is called on the stage. For each grade, the teachers and administration select students for Academic Awards (top students in each class) as well as Honor Awards (character qualities of citizenship, service, achievement, and leadership). For Seniors, the Awards Night also includes the announcement of many local scholarships that have been awarded to the graduating seniors. Most of these awards had not been announced prior to this night, and it was an honor to attend and recognize these deserving students.

Connor had been blessed to attend the Underclassmen Awards for the past 2 years, but now it was his turn to attend Senior Awards and sit on the stage as the awards and scholarships were announced. By the end of the night, his name had been called multiple times as the recipient of Academic Awards in AP Environment Science, Academic Decathlon, and PALs; the Honor Award of Achievement; the Top Ten Students award; and the most exciting of all, a $1000 scholarship from the Katy High School PTO. Wow! 

It was such a blessing and privilege to watch as Connor was recognized for his hard work and achievements at Katy. He enjoyed sharing the stage with several of his buddies, and he was on cloud nine for earning the awards and scholarship. I was beaming with pride for my boy, this hard-working student who set sights on his goals and never gave up, sacrificing so much along the way!

Job is Finished

Earlier in Connor's high school career, he recalled seeing the fanfare at the end of the school year when the senior class Top Ten Students were officially announced and celebrated. Each student would received a balloon with the number of their rank that they would walk around with for the entire school day, and Connor thought that was so cool. As a top student himself, a seed was planted and he began wishing and hoping for the day that he might be honored in the same way when he was a senior. Fast forward to his junior and senior year, we knew that Connor had a high ranking in his class, and he became intently focused on making As and preserving his rank in order to earn one of those Top Ten balloons. Every time we thought he was secure in earning his spot, Connor would reply with "job's not finished" as an homage to the phrase from Kobe Bryant when he was up 2-0 in the championship series with 2 more wins needed to secure the win. The difficult AP courses, the sleepless nights of studying, and the weekends Connor gave up to focus on school work... he made sacrifice after sacrifice to work towards his goal and earn his spot in the Top Ten students of his class. It evolved into a joke at home when Jeff and I would see his late nights from his intense academic schedule, and we would offer to buy him a balloon to end the stress and pressure he was feeling. Through it all, Connor stayed focused to finish the job. When the final placements were calculated in late April, it was now official and the ranks were in. Connor's GPA qualified him as the #4 student in his senior class of 750+ students! Wow! He received his #4 balloon, and he paraded that hard earned and much deserved balloon throughout his classes and the hallways for the entire day. It was probably his favorite day of his entire high school career, and rightfully so.

As the ultimate tribute to Kobe Bryant, Connor finished the job and took the photos to prove it!

We were beyond proud of Connor's hard work and perseverance for his years-long goal. He was prouder of that balloon than anything else he had ever earned or achieved. What an incredible accomplishment!

Connor's Senior Prom

The weeks seemed to be flying by and before we knew it, it was time for Connor's senior prom. He decided to ask one of his friends to be his date for prom, and he picked up her favorite candy along with a custom poster he made for his "promposal" to Riley. They had a group of friends that planned to attend together and we scrambled to order a tux for the big night.

When the big day arrived, I wanted to make sure to capture photos of the big occasion. I was on autopilot and not really grasping that it was his senior prom, one of the last big events of his high school career. Connor looked so handsome in his tuxedo, and he and Riley made a beautiful couple. We snapped some photos at our house, and then the group headed to Hermann Park in Houston to get group photos (along with every other prom couple in the city, it seemed).

It was a bit chaotic with traffic near the park, but I really enjoyed being with the kids and seeing their excitement for the night ahead. The group split up into multiple vehicles, and I had the privilege of walking with Connor back to his car before he set off for the night. The kids met up for dinner at a nearby restaurant, and then they went to the Galleria hotel and enjoyed the prom festivities with all their fellow classmates. Connor and Riley seemed to enjoy each other's company, but she ended up heading out with friends for Galveston later in the evening. Connor shared a few pics with me from the event, and overall it sounded like they had a nice time. One more big milestone checked off the list as the countdown to graduation continued!

Spring Photos

 As the months were winding down in the school year, Kaitlynn attended events for Joy Prom and the Katy High School Special Prom for her friends in the special buddies group at school. She has been volunteering with the special needs community at her school for several years, and these relationships have been such a blessing to her and her friends.

Kaitlynn was also busy with her normal cheer practices, preparing for the end of year Summit competition in Florida. Between cheer and hangouts with friends, it's always a busy spring schedule for us.

Another big milestone in the spring is Jeff's birthday. He celebrated with one of his favorite meals - Treebeards red beans and rice with homemade chocolate cake. He continued his push-up challenge but attempting - and successfully completing - his 61 push-ups for his 61st birthday. He would say that these shouldn't count because his form wasn't perfect, but I can't imagine there are many others his age that could even get close!