It should be a nice weekend to get out and explore.

My niece and god-daughter, Suzanne, will graduate from George Mason University in Fairfax this weekend. Her dad, my brother, has been a single parent to her since she was about six. My mother helped too. And I would like to think I had a hand in it too. We talk often about all sorts of things, including her love-life, potential career and life.

I've never been a person who likes to be the center of attention. As a kid, I cringed when people at school remembered my birthday and wanted to sing. I once got so nervous when waiters at a restaurant brought me a cake that I struggled blow out a single candle.

It should be a great weekend for those who want to celebrate Mom. Being a mom, I really do not want fancy gifts. Like most moms I just want to be out of the kitchen and still eat well. I do not want to clean or remind anyone that the Sunday newspaper belongs on the coffee table not all over the family room floor. I want no whining, no arguments, just cooperation.

We just came off a big weekend complete with out-of-town relatives visiting, two events my daughters were involved in and a lot of fun. Getting ready for the big weekend was not fun, it was work. Something we tried to make our daughters understand.