DONE!!!

Can I just tell you about my amazing husband? He has been working on his Master's degree for the past ~5 years. This has included all of our dating and married life and more. On more than one occasion, he has been threatened with being kicked out of school due to having received a "C" grade (barely passing for grad students) in a class in 2006. Because of this "academic probation", he has had to work extra hard to pull his grades up in his classes, all the while fighting the removal with appeal after appeal and working full-time (not to mention all that has gone on with Boo and I over the past two years!).

He finally got two "A" grades and was able to get off academic probation for good. He finished his coursework in December, after which he had to take a comprehensive Master's exam - over all his classes. 6 years worth of studies!! Well, he worked super hard and PASSED the exam on the first go (one only really gets one try, but one could, in theory, appeal to take it again) on Feb. 26, 2010!

Now we get to take our long awaited trip to Tempe for his graduation. We are going to stock up on ASU alum paraphernalia. :) This is like a dream come true - and a hardly likely outcome, considering all that was going on with his schooling last year at this time. Having him free of study demands has afforded us liberties we have never known. Like being able to go places all day on Saturdays or Fridays off. Or having Dada help out with Boo's bath - something I always felt guilty asking for before, since he really needed to study. Or having him help with much of anything for that matter (even though he always found time to help out with things I REALLY needed). Now we can finish painting our house and get tile our kitchen and dining floors, and take care of our lawn (which I think is suffering from pink snow mold...), and do everything else we always talk about but never do for time's sake.

And did I mention we get to go to Arizona? Yeah, I know I did. :) I am SO looking forward to the warm or hot weather, be what it may. And not worrying about Boo getting sick (assuming there is not much sickness going around in mid-May...). And a LONG road trip (Boo cannot fly very easily with oxygen) - seriously, I LOVE road trips. And spending time with family that we don't see very often/that I have never seen at all!

If S were to read this post as I am writing it, he would remind me to "take joy in the journey", as I am often reminded around here. Admittedly, I do get caught up in looking forward to the future quite a lot. But, I must also admit that life around here is going well, we are happy, spring is coming (oops, there goes the journey again...), Boo is learning and having fun and so am I. Lest anyone remain in doubt, we are not waiting until this much-awaited graduation ceremony to be happy. :)