Graduation Day!

It's official: we have a doctor in the house!

Paul walked in graduation ceremonies on Sunday, marking the end of this incredible, difficult, exhausting and enriching journey toward the PhD. It was an exciting day for all of us.

We arranged for Cindy to watch the kids, since the 5pm ceremony was going to take at least 2 hours, and honestly, I didn't want to have to split my attention and risk having to miss seeing him walk to that stage because of a Kid Meltdown, which was very likely to occur given the hour. But we promised them a little celebration upon our return, complete with cake and balloons and a later-than-usual bed time.

Had to get the stadium in the background, just for the irony of it!

I had a good seat and could see Paul clearly, but unfortunately the camera's zoom was not as powerful as I had hoped it would be, plus the lighting in the Bryce Jordan Center was awful. The pictures are not great, but they'll do.

The graduates

line to receive degrees

That's Paul's dissertation director on the left. I can't tell if this is before or after the hooding ceremony which happened en masse right there on the stadium floor. They both look rather pleased, don't they? And rightly so.

Dr. Bilger! Look at the RELIEF on that face!

While we were gone, Cindy helped the kids decorate the house. They are still fighting over the balloons.

We hadn't had our dinner yet, but the kids had eaten, so we had cake right away when we got home. That blue frosting is actually called "Penn State Blue!"

Dinner was caprese salad, crusty bread, buttered spaetzle and the most delicious dry-aged steaks I have ever had. They were still resting on the counter, hence no photographic evidence.

I have been wanting an occasion to buy him this artisan beer forever. Perfect, no? (we also had champagne, of course.)

That is a 1/2 yard of beer. It comes with its own holder! Dramatic and festive, I thought, and I believe Paul agreed:

Such a great day and I'm so glad I got to share it with him. We're looking forward to celebrating with friends at his party in two weeks. Wish you all could be here, too!