Campus

Greg's diploma is framed.

Sadly, that's all the formality he's getting for his PhD.  There was no commencement in August.  So we planned to go back to Wisconsin for graduation in May (and swing up to Door County).  But with his deployment, he'll be on the other side of the world in May.  So then we decided we would go to graduation in December, which is the Sunday before Christmas.  But now he has Evasion and Conduct After Capture training in San Antonio next week.  Darn.  Greg doesn't get to walk and be hooded.  (And I don't get to see my friends.)  But he has a diploma!  And spot on the wall in his office!  (Not that he'll be in his office for much of the next year...)

It would have been nice to go back to campus.

But we did go to campus for a final family outing right before we moved.  It was very hot and humid that day in Madison.  Today in Ohio there is snow on the ground and school was cancelled.  It was an entirely different season back when we moved.  It's been months...over four months.  That's like a third of a year.  Why do I feel like we're still brand new?

Anyway, here is a walk down memory lane ... pictures from campus that I would swear were taken just a few weeks ago ... but it was the end of July ... back when Sara wasn't quite seven months old and David just  barely eight and Mary's sixth birthday was ages away still.

Time marches on.

Q&A

Time's up.  We moved here to Madison nearly three years ago so Greg could get his PhD in Systems and Industrial Engineering at the University of Wisconsin.  The Air Force gave Greg three years to do it, and then we would have to move on, whether or not he was finished.  So here we are ...

Did Greg finish?!

Yes!  Well, except for a few little loose ends that will be neatly tied up in the next few weeks.  Greg had his dissertation defense yesterday, and it went really well.  His committee was so excited about his research that they want him to broaden its applications.  This means rewriting a few pages in the introduction and conclusion.  So there's that and some paperwork to be turned in and then he will be Doctor!  Or Doctor Major?  Or Major Doctor? 

What was his dissertation about?

Nuclear power plant accident evacuations.  It's about a better way of deciding who should evacuate in the case of a radioactive release, particularly in a large-scale disaster like Fukushima.  It was a huge undertaking.  But worthwhile, and timely.  (He has already been out to the NRC a couple of times.)

Isn't three years pretty fast to get a PhD?

Yes. Five to seven years is probably more typical.  The Air Force only gives you three years though.  The advantage is that the Air Force is giving you your normal salary and benefits besides paying tuition.  This means you don't have to dedicate any time working as a research assistant or teaching or competing for grants and fellowships.  But three years is still fast.  It was especially fast for Greg.  Since his Master's is in Engineering Management, it didn't apply to his PhD program.  He essentially had to start over and squeeze a master's degree in there too.  There was a HUGE learning curve at the beginning.  Also, his dissertation required an enormous amount of work and didn't build off research he'd done previously.  

So how did he do it?

Greg is a smart guy.  And a very hard worker. Perhaps more importantly, he's efficient, organized, and he never procrastinates.  He created a plan, set deadlines, and then followed his plan, meeting each deadline.  

Greg was also extremely lucky to have an amazing adviser.  (A few years ago, back when Leah's husband Chris was finishing his PhD and Greg was thinking about getting his, they impressed on us the importance of Greg having a good adviser.  They were right!)  Greg's adviser is super smart and super experienced and super well-respected.  She knows how to crank students through the system.  Greg was in such good hands.  I cannot adequately express my gratitude for her.  

Most of all, though, this has simply been a miracle.  A real, true, undeniable miracle.  When I look at what Greg has accomplished on top of everything else we have had going on in our lives, there is only one possible explanation:  God.

What is Greg going to do in the Air Force next?

Greg is going to teach at the Air Force Institute of Technology, which is the Air Force's graduate school.

So you're moving to Colorado Springs?!

No.  The Air Force Academy is in Colorado Springs, and that's only for undergrads.  AFIT is only for graduate students, and it's in Dayton, Ohio at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.  Greg will teach at AFIT for about three years, and then he'll receive a different assignment ... and we'll pick up and move again. (He will be well-positioned to teach at the Academy, but he is much more interested in doing other things.)

So you're moving back to Dayton?

Not quite.  Greg will be working in Dayton.  But we decided to live in the north-eastern suburbs of Cincinnati instead.  I will write more about how we came to this decision another time.  Long story short is that we are going to live close to Greg's brother and family.  Greg will have an hour-long commute.  But he won't work long hours, and he doesn't have to go up to campus if he doesn't have class or office hours.

When are you moving?

We close on our house here on July 26, and we close on the house in Ohio on July 29.  More about the houses another time.  Suffice it to say that the PhD isn't the only miracle in our lives.

Wait.  Wasn't Mary registered at a Montessori school in Dayton?

Yes.  Despite a long wait list, they had even created an opening just for her because of the quality of program she was coming from.  But that was when we still assumed we would be living in the Dayton area.  (It took a while to realize where we really should live.)  So we withdrew her registration.  (Which is okay because I had mixed feeling about the school.)  Fortunately, we found a wonderful, marvelous Montessori school near the house in Cincinnati.  But after many many tears, I decided Mary is going to go to school with David next year.  

Are you excited to move?

Madison is a wonderful place to live.  We have a good life here.  So of course we are very sad to leave.  But it doesn't really matter.  Fortunately, there are things I look forward to in Ohio, like being near family, seeing old friends, and living in a great community.  

What will you miss the most?

Don't get me started!  The long autumns, the gourmet chocolates behind our house, the history (and diversity) of European immigrants, fresh cheese curds, the University, Door County, our house, great health care, fun beautiful places to visit, ice fishing (well, the idea of it--not that I ever went), downtown, caring about football, the farmers' markets and CSAs, the small dairy farms, Larry Meiller, Sprecher soda.  People.   I will miss people.  That is always the hardest part, isn't is?

But my very very favorite thing from Wisconsin is Sara.

And she gets to come with us!

Bratfest 2013

As David and Mary pointed out, "Sara's first bratfest!!!!"  Definitely an important event in a baby's life.

Here are some pictures of "Sara's first bratfest!!!!"

Oh, Sara, my sweet little winter baby who never went anywhere.  It's been good to finally start getting you out into the city where you were born.  And any baby born in Madison has to go to Bratfest!



(What did we do on Memorial Day weekend before Bratfest became a part of our lives???)

Uncle Daniel came to visit

Waaaay back in April, after BYU's final exams, my brother Daniel came to visit.  It was great to see him, and he was wonderful with the kids.  (David and Mary loved playing with him, and he was a doll with Sara.)  I loved talking with Daniel.  Man, I love my baby brother.

We had a great visit.  One day I picked David up early from school so we could take Daniel downtown.  We visited the Veteran's Museum (small, free, and very well-done) and the capitol.  The next day we took Daniel to the National Mustard Museum (Wisconsinites love their brats which means they take their mustard very seriously) and then next door to the yummy Hubbard Avenue Diner.  I am very grateful that he spent his precious few days between winter and spring terms with us.

(You can read/see a little about the visit from Daniel's point of view HERE.  The picture of Daniel and Sara melts my heart.)

P.S.  Daniel, you have now survived both "The Mary and the Flies Incident" of long ago, as well as the more recent "David and the Ticks Incident."  You may never want to get in a car with either of my kids again.  Thank you, as always, for your calm in face of a crisis!