PhD

Please forgive us for the lack of updates this spring. We have been incredibly busy, are loving the springtime (despite this recent wintry relapse), and are trying to move forward with everything that was on hold. I defended my PhD dissertation on March 18. That's right - no more grad school! Well, almost... I have to finish up my paper resubmission, submit my final dissertation to the grad school, and finish teaching this semester. But the stress level is way down, and for that I am grateful. Here is the only (current) photo evidence of my doctoral completion: Mia, Gabe, and Mike at my post-defense party. Everything else is in living on the Nikon, and liberating them is on my list of things to do once Mom and Dad ditch us :) Anyway, the defense went well, Kim hosted an awesome happy hour for me, and we had friends and family over to our house to celebrate. The weather was awesome, too - 80 and sunny - I couldn't ask for anything better. It's been great having Mom and Dad here - we've worked on the house, relaxed, and played with Gabe.

Now that my grad school career is ending, I'm feeling the pressure of not having a job lined up for next year. I volunteered to TA summer school here, so that will keep me busy (and paid!) until Mike finishes teaching in June. We're hoping to sell our house this summer (even if we stay in NC), and have recently started updating and repairing little items in that venue. All the more reason to find a job - I hate not knowing where we're going to live in August!

I missed a lot of events and birthdays in the last 6 weeks, so happy birthday to all of you! Especially happy birthday to Grandpa Steve, Grandma Nette, and Papa Sam! I hope to be back to updating on a regular basis - Gabe has so many new tricks to write about!