March 22, 2013, Amy's Primary School Graduation, 9am to 11:30am.

March 22, 2013, Erica's Kindergarten Graduation, 11am to 12pm.

March 22, 2013, Lena's 11^th Birthday, all day event (phew!)

Anyone detect a wee problem?

I find myself now dearly wishing I could bring back the indifference to official ceremonies I so blissfully had several years ago when Amy was just starting out. We missed her kindy entrance ceremony to go to New Zealand. If I could blow off one, or the other, that would be so much more convenient!  But I've become fonder of these events over the years, and I would really feel I was missing out! 

Of course it would be the Erica's ceremony that got the boot – and here is where I pause. Amy's feels like more of a big deal because it's a family first – but is it really more important? Little ones just don't get fussed over like the precious first born. You try, but it can't be helped, it's just not as big of a deal the third time round... which is even more of a reason to make the effort to go.

So the plan at present is to do our utmost to make it to both ceremonies. Luckily, Lena is being remarkably gracious about the whole thing, probably because she has been promised an entire Birthday Weekend, complete with sleep-over!

My first idea was to slip out of the first event early, thereby arriving late for the kindy graduation, but still managing to do both. But then I was told that the final activity of the primary school graduation was quite a big deal - walking out of the school with your parents, clearly symbolizing the end of the school's influene over you and your being handed back to your parents' care. Amy's face dropped when I suggested I leave early. She clearly doesn't want to miss this. After having watched this ceremony for the last five years, she's keen to be the one finally doing it, and obviously wants both her parents beside her for what must seem to her to be a huge step in her life.

Sigh. Next on the list then is trying to get the date of the kindy graduation changed. I have a meeting scheduled with the kindy, and I have a few little reasons tucked up my sleeve explaining why it might not be pure madness to hope for a date change.

1. There are only six students graduating. Small numbers makes for easy changes!
2. I've worked for the company that owns the kindy for nearly 15 years – employee loyalty might count for something!
3. It's the last graduation for the kindy, which is closing this year. Since the Big Girl was in the first graduating class, they might like the idea of having her there too.

Still, it's a long shot. Failing this, my second plan of attack is to beg for a time change, and switch the kindy graduation to the afternoon – then our smartly dressed family can race from Graduation No.1 to Graduation No.2., eating sandwiches in the car on the way.

The final option, and probably the most likely, is an alternate graduation just for my precious. I know this sounds astonishingly self-entitled, but honestly I would never have considered it if they hadn't done this last year for a boy who could not attend the final graduation. Failing ALL of these options, we will probably recruit the girls' aunt to attend the kindy grad for us, perhaps with Baachan, and arm them with our cameras, and also lean on the kindy to provide me with lots of prints and a video.

Wish me luck in sorting this out!