Around Here: Chelsea, Masters Degree, and Moving

 If it seems like things have been particularly quiet around here again, they haven't.  That is, unless by "around here" you mean "on the computer," in which case they have.  I have had more problems with my hands, and working on the computer just doesn't really work for me at the moment.  If you were thinking yourself, "Why in the world are you typing this blog if you're having so many problems with your hands?"  The answer, thanks to my amazing and full of helpful info brother, is that I am currently using a Siri like device on my computer.

And it is awesome.  Awesome.

 Anyway, the first and biggest change around our household in the last week is that our fifth family member moved back to the US.

 You might be wondering to yourself, "Sooooo, does that mean that Chelsea is finish with her masters degree?" And the answer to that is yes!  In fact, she killed it.

Almost 3 weeks ago now she submitted her Masters Thesis and presented her research, and it went great!  She passed and did a phenomenal job. :)

 After telling the story to Chris at SMUC and celebrating with her friends, her and I headed out to an old favorite since the first time that either of us laid eyes on it, Pitcher and Piano in Richmond, which I've written about before.  (The restaurant on the far right below, with the outdoor seating surrounded by a stone banister.)

 It was a cool and comfortable evening, so we walked down to Richmond, sat outside for drinks, and then moved inside for dinner, dessert, and tea. 

 We spend the next week and a half celebrating with Chelsea and trying to give her a good send off.   We went to Nottingham that weekend for her and Chris to run the Robin Hood Marathon, (which I'll write more about later) and now that she wasn't working every day, she was able to hang out with me and Hannah.  We squeezed in a few girls trips where we could, went for coffee, did a little shopping, and enjoyed it all. 

 We are so so proud of her.

 There's something very special about watching someone work at something that is the hardest thing that they've ever done.   It seems easy to talk about once everything is all over, but when you're in the middle of it, there are late nights, and doubts, and stress, and chocolate.   There are periods of trying and implementing new ways to work, to manage stress, to learn, and to move through your to-do lists.  

I imagine that at the beginning it seems like a long race with a big hurdle at the end.  But when you're in it, you realize that it's actually many many hurdles along the way, and then the big hurdle at the end.

 I'm so proud of Chelsea for making it over each of those little hurdles and that big hurdle, and for holding her head up high.   She has always been a smart and capable adult, but now she is a smart and capable adult who also knows that she's fully capable of doing hard things. And that is significant.

She moved back to the states last Tuesday morning, so only five months until she's back for graduation. And we can't wait. :)