Grad week flew by! The first half of the week, we visited my mom at the hospital and my Mimi. My mom came home mid-week, and by Thursday, Kerry and Brad were headed to Columbus for lunch with Brad's fam and Pickle and I picked up his parents at the airport and headed toward Athens. We have them a quick driving tour around campus, and my father-in-law (who LOVES all things graduation...he was, by far, the most excited of all of us to be going to a commencement ceremony!) went with me to pick up my regalia. We met up with Kerry and Brad for dinner that evening at China Panda, one of Pickle's and my favorite places to eat (for genuine Ohio sushi at a Chinese restaurant!).
The next morning, we were up and at 'em early to head for the convocation center. I met my advisor, Teresa, and a few of my fellow PhD IT grads for some quick pics before lining up...
While I waited to head in, Kerry, Brad and Pickle entertained themselves by tweeting grad day messages to show up on the jumbotron...
Then it was time to walk. The entire ceremony was about 2 hours: here's the 4-minute highlight reel...
After the ceremony, I had a chance to catch up with my Master's advisor, department chair and committee member, Dave, chat a bit more with Teresa, and see some grad school friends at the College of Education reception. It was really great to see everyone in person again!
And, of course, before leaving Athens, we all took some more pics too...
After leaving Athens, we stopped in Columbus for a Smith Family get-together. My aunt had reserved a dining room for us, and my aunts, uncles, cousins and all of their families met us. I had SUCH a great time seeing my extended family for the first time in a year and a half that I unfortunately didn't even have time to take pics! My mom and dad had a special cake made for me though, and I did get pics with that before we devoured the peanut butter chocolate masterpiece.
I'm so glad that I was able to make it home for my hooding - it was a special way to celebrate the culmination of years of hard work and the end of a life-changing chapter in my journey. My parents were able to watch the ceremony from home via live stream, chatting with my sister and me on Facebook the whole time. I'm so grateful to Warren and Diane for coming all the way from K.C. for the occasion and to Kerry and Brad for coming from Texas. It was wonderful to see my family and catch up with everyone on such a happy weekend.
AND it was wonderful to have Pickle, my new-science-guy-in-the-office-next-door-turned-boyfriend-turned-fiancé-turned-husband there to celebrate with me. Thanks to Ohio University for my M.Ed., Mrs. and Ph.D. titles and all of the growth that has come with them - it's been quite the experience! - Jamison Lorraine, Ph.D. |