He Did It

Something monumental happened this weekend: Chad finished his MBA. It still hasn't sunk in for us, and it probably won't until sometime in the coming weeks or months when we're hanging out one evening or weekend and realize that he's not working on schoolwork. That his time is his time again.

For the first time in 4 1/2 years there won't be any papers to write, discussions to post, team meetings to schedule and run, professors to check in with or textbooks to read. He won't have to add an extra full-time job of school on top of his already more than full time real job.

But aside from the obvious greatness of getting his free time back, there is the even greater benefit of having done it. There were several times over the course of the program where quitting seemed not only like a preferable option but sometimes like a necessary one. It was demanding, to the point of being all consuming at times, but he did it. He stuck with it and earned his MBA (with honors, by the way. He would never brag about that, but I totally can). His hard work paid off, and he finished, all the while working his normal job and being a daddy. I know for certain I would not have been able to juggle all that, at least not without excessive complaining and moodiness.

We're pumped about going through our first full summer in almost half a decade where our weekends won't need to be scheduled around schoolwork and due dates. For the first time in four years we can celebrate our anniversary in June without him having to plan weeks in advance to find ways to complete some assignments early to set aside enough time for dinner and a movie. Crazy! That's gift enough, I'd say.

We went out last night for a mini-celebration--to Barocco Grill in Lakewood (Latin street food, delicious) and for a walk around Lakewood Park in the sunshine. It was the perfect ending to the chapter of life that was Grad School.

~Stacy