Boots, BBQ, and...Bairds?

The night before my graduation Michael invited friends and family to celebrate with us.

I need to just take a minute to brag on my husband.

He has gone way beyond making me feel special for my graduation.

He got me new cowboy boots for graduation back in March (which I wore to the party)

he organized the dinner/party and invited all my friends,

and he worked hard to make the party all that I would want it to be.

It was perfect!

Michael even arranged for my FAVORITE cupcakes to be there!

They were so good!

And graduation themed.

The best part was having so many of my close friends and family there to celebrate with me.

All of these people have been so important to me,

and have been the greatest support for me during these past 3 years of school.

It meant so much to have them all there with me!

The boys entertainment during the party

It was the perfect party, and I had such a great time!!

I feel so blessed to have these amazing people in my life.

Graduation Day

Sunday was the big day - my master's graduation day.

I'll be honest, I was a little worried that I would get there and they would tell me,

"I'm sorry, you're not on our list" and I wouldn't graduate.

But, I WAS on the list, and I did graduate.

Of course, I was one of 10 people that actually followed the directions to be there no later than 2 hours before the ceremony,

which gave me plenty of time to gown up, and take a picture with the mascot.

Eventually, my friends from the program arrived, and we had plenty of time to catch up and take some pictures together.

I haven't seen most of these people all year, so it was great to have this time with them.

I'm so happy I got this picture with Misti too!

We have spent the year working together at Shield Bearer, and I am so thankful for the support she has been for me! What a blessing she has been!

Then it was time for the ceremony.

Walking in

It was pretty boring as far as graduations go.

Not to mention a weird video with space music at the end,

but I was just so happy to be finished,

and even happier to have my family there cheering me on!

I am so thankful to all of them for making the trip to Houston to be here for graduation.

My grandparents were even able to be there in spirit, as they watched me walk across the stage via the live stream on the internet.

I am one lucky girl to have such wonderful family!

After the ceremony we took a few more pictures with my friends.

 Oliver was so excited to try on my "square hat"

We were all hot, sweaty, and extremely hungry by the time the ceremony ended, 

so we waited until after church that night to take these other pictures.

It was a crazy, and surprisingly emotional day, and I am so happy to be finished!

My family has been such a great support for me these last 3 years, and I am beyond grateful.

I could not have done it without the help of my amazing husband though.

He would let me role play different therapy models,

pack my lunch while I was reading articles,

take care of the house while I was writing papers,

and love me even when I was stressed out and at my worst.

He has made me feel so special this past week with different gifts and celebrations, 

and I am so lucky to have him for life!

*Thank you to all of you for your prayers, encouragement, and love these past few years as I completed my Masters.

This blog has been an incredible outlet for me, and I am thankful that you have taken the time to share in this experience with me!

First to Finished

I still don't think that it has really hit me that I am done with school.

Forever.

I will never have to write another paper, take another test, or read for a daily quiz.

I will never have to stress about getting an A.

I am finished!

Okay, maybe its starting to sink in.

With my graduation ceremony coming up this Sunday, I thought I would look back to my very first day of school - preschool.

Crimped side pony, lace socks, suspenders and all.

I was ready.

Little did I know that this was just the first day of 21 loooong years of schooling.

But now I am finished.

And it is a little sad.

I'm sure that sadness will pass quickly though,

and I will spend the weekend celebrating with my family!!

Happy Friday!!

Mother Daughter Weekend

Happy Mother's Day!

This weekend has been all about mothers so far (which is a good thing!)

Yesterday I held the Mother Daughter Tea for the Junior and Senior girls in our youth group and their mothers.

This is the 2nd year that I have done this, and I absolutely love it.

It is so much fun to decorate, prepare, and then spend time with all the ladies.

I even got my very own teapots to use this year.

I used most of the same decorations from last year, but added some more fabric bunting,

and changed up some of the table decorations.

My favorite part is the flowers. 

Fresh flowers make any party just a little bit fancy,

and of course, you can't have a tea party without hats.

We all had such a great time at the tea.

We ate DELICIOUS food, prepared by some of the ladies from our church.

We played some fun party games.

And we got to listen to my friend Apple and her Mom share about their experience when Apple moved to college, and how they kept their relationship strong.

This year's tea was extra special because I got to have my Mom there with me!

I am so happy that my Mom got to be here for the tea, and that she was here to help me.

I could not have done it without her, 

and it was just fun to have her here to share in the experience with me.

Today, we all went to church together and then we got to take my Mom out to lunch.

We only had to wait at Olive Garden for 45 minutes, 

so we had plenty of time for a little photo shoot.

I can't say enough how blessed I am to have her for a mother.

She is the perfect example of a Christian woman, 

and exudes all things that I hope to be one day to my own children.

I love you so much, Mom and am so happy that I still have a whole week with you here!

Friday's Five

1) Birthday lunches

 Last week my birthday crew finally got to celebrate Helen's Birthday.

We ate a delicious cafe in Houston where the basil sauce was to die for.

YUM!

 I'm so happy that I have these ladies as friends - what treasures!

2) Puppy

I'm just going to go ahead and predict that this little guy will always make it into the Friday Five posts.

He is just too cute!

3) I'm almost a GRADUATE!

9 days and I will be sporting this thing!

Hopefully sans a few of those wrinkles.

4) Tea Time

Tomorrow is the Junior Senior Mother Daughter Tea!

I am so excited!

The decorations are coming together, and the food is arriving.

And, best part...

5) My Mom is here!

We have already gotten our nails done and bought 4 pairs of shoes collectively.

I'd say the trip is already very successful!

Happy Friday to you!

End of Internship

Today was my last day as a Graduate Student Intern.

I can't believe that it has already been 11 months at Shield Bearer.

I have loved every minute of working there.

It was absolutely the most perfect fit for me.

That doesn't mean it wasn't a challenge though.

I have grown so much in the past 11 months, in ways that I didn't even know I needed to grow.

I have been pushed, pulled, and stretched, but mostly I have been blessed.

The people I got to work with were a picture of Jesus.

They are love, encouragement, support, joy, patience, kindness, and hope.

The beautiful warriors at Shield Bearer

 And then there were my clients.

I can't even tell you the ways that they have touched my heart.

The girls struggling with cutting, the guys lost in their substances, the couples fighting for their marriages, and the parents striving to have a good relationship with their kids.

There was abandonment, bullies, abuse, miscarriages, depression, anxiety, rape, alcohol, anger, bipolar, addiction, trauma, divorce...

and the list could go on.

Today was actually the perfect ending because I spent all day writing case summaries.

Since this is a new requirement at Shield Bearer, I got to write them for ALL my clients.

It was kind of fun to be able to think back on the people that I have worked with.

To think about their struggles, their goals, and their triumphs.

I hope I never get too big of a case load that I can't slow down and remember each person that has trusted me with such a personal part of their lives.

I am forever grateful to these wonderful people for the way they showed me the grace, mercy, and power of the Lord,

because I know that I would not have survived this year without Him. 

Thank you to all of you who have prayed me through this final year of grad school.

I am so happy to be finished, and can't wait to celebrate my graduation with my family next week!

Church Picnic

I officially have my first sunburn of the year!

The great part is, I had no idea that I was getting sunburned, which is unusual for May in Houston.

Today it was only in the 80s.

Perfect for our church picnic today.

 Last time we had a church picnic is was at least 95 degrees, and awful.

The picnic was so much fun.

We played games, ate great food, and had wonderful fellowship with our church family.

The best part of the day for Michael was playing in the children's bouncy house.

He only had to hurdle about 12 kids to get through that obstacle course.

Worth it.

Then the wives beat the husbands in a relay race and all was well with the world.