It's Over!

A little under two months ago, my sweet boy graduated from USU! Woohoo! And since he refused to actually attend graduation, and refused even more fervently to let me take a picture of him in my cap, or any sort of graduation picture for that matter, this is what he gets!: 

Woohoo! A very quickly thrown together photo from Germany with some awesome/crappy clip art :)  Love it!  Doesn't he look so cute?! :)

In all seriousness, I am so proud of Brig for finishing his Bachelors degree.  I'm even more proud of the main reason that it took him longer than most, and that is the 3.5 year break he took to serve this wonderful country full time as an honorable member of the U.S. Army.  I'm getting emotional just sitting here thinking about all of this.  Brig always had plans to go to college and get an education, but he also had a strong desire to be a part of something that he knew to be good.  To unselfishly put his plans on hold to do something that would make a difference.  I am so proud of him for taking that time to serve all of us.  I wont go on and on about that again though, I think I got that all covered in this post here.

I think that everyone in this life has a different path, and that one is not necessarily any better or worse than the other.  Some people go straight through school, some take time off for missions or other service opportunities, some work full time and do school part-time, and some choose to start families right away.  Any way you look at it, all anybody can do is to do what they feel is best for them and their family. And whatever that is, I think its ok.  Just as long as we are always striving to make ourselves and our relationships with one another better.  Just something I've been thinking about lately.

  I for one, am so proud of all the things that Brig has accomplished in his time since High School, not just on an academic level.  He has learned and grown so much and he would not be who he is today without all of the many experiences that he's had, both good and bad.  He is one of the most selfless people I know, and I am thankful every day that I am married to such an amazing man.

After the Army, Brig pretty much started school over.  One degree change, a minor adjustment, and a few years later, he earned his degree in International Studies.  Not quite sure what that means for our future, haha!  There is a good possibility that there will be more school, but it sure feels good to have that BS out of the way ;) (I actually think it might be a BA, but BS was funnier).  We celebrated graduation by going out to eat.  If any of you know Brig, you'll know that he's not one to make a spectacle of things :)  Although thanks to Brig's parents, we are going to Hawaii in September! Woo!
Thank you from Brig to all the friends and family members who sent cards and graduation gifts!  It was so nice of you to think of him :)

We may not know what life has in store for us, but if the last 4 years have taught us anything, it's that we can face any and all challenges with a little help from each other, our families, and most importantly our loving Father in Heaven and brother, Jesus Christ.  And along with those challenges has come many blessings, great times and unimaginable happiness :)  I am grateful to my Heavenly Father for protecting Brig while he was away, and for helping us both get to where we are at in our lives.  It is such a wonderful place to be!  Can't wait to see what the future will bring :)