He did it!

Well, after two years of hard work, Phillip graduated with his MHSA (masters in health services administration)! I am so proud of him. He has worked so hard and has learned so much.

Clem and Rita came out to celebrate with us! They flew in Wednesday night and graduation was Thursday.

The School of Public Health held their graduation in the Hill Auditorium. It's a beautiful building and was perfect for the occasion.

This is Dr. Philbert, the dean of the school.

The first speaker was an MPH graduate in health behavior and health education, who was done with classes in December and then moved to Boston to start working for the Boston Public Health Commission. Her first assignment was in one of the first-aid tents at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. She spoke about her experiences witnessing the bombing and the casualties. It was a great speech. 

This was the graduation speaker, Thomas Goetz. He did a pretty good job. Spoke about how he got interested in public health. He's a writer and entrepreneur. He did a pretty good job

Now on to the most exciting part, Phil walking the stage! Unfortunately, I did not document this very well. All of my pictures were VERY blurry. Bad lighting. But here's what I got

 Phil chatting in line with his friends. He's the blurry one in the beard.

Receiving his alumni pin. They didn't hand out diplomas, or diploma folders like BYU, just the pin.  

Here's a better picture in his grad garb. No hat because his was a bit small and didn't like wearing it. This is Garrett Bean, another LDS guy in Phil's program. He and his wife Ashley lived in the other Ann Arbor ward, but we still got together with them quite a bit. We love them and are going to miss them terribly. They just moved this week to Colorado!

Here's the four of us, plus baby Henry in the stroller. We love the beans and we're so grateful for their friendship. 

And here's the pants-less wonder...here's the story:

We knew graduation day was going to be a hard one for Felix. Graduation started at 3pm, with a department reception before from 12-2. So we knew Felix would have a hard time with skipping his nap. He was pretty good at the reception as long as he could walk around and someone followed him. Then we had to walk over to the auditorium to get our seats. When we got there Felix threw a huge tantrum. Screaming and yelling. All very embarrassing for me. I finally just gave up and let him walk around and climb the stairs. When the speeches began, grandpa offered to let me go in and enjoy the graduation ceremonies and he would follow Felix around. I was so grateful for Clem! What a great grandpa. After Phil walked the stage, I went out to find them. When I did, Clem told me Felix had just had a blowout. And instead of coming to get me and the diaper bag, he decided to tackle it himself! He offered a lady $10 for a diaper, but she just gave it to him free of charge (though it was a few sizes too small). He changed his diaper and then washed his pants in the sink and put them back on him. Oh man was that kid smelly when I got him! Poor Clem! I took Felix in the bathroom, changed his diaper into one that fit him and put his pants, shoes and socks in a plastic bag. When we went to go meet Daddy, Felix looked like this. I still feel so awful for Clem, who I'm sure hasn't changed a diaper since Phil was little! Felix hasn't had a blowout since he was a newborn, so of all the days to have one he choose this one. Needless to say, we didn't take many pictures afterward because we wanted to get him in the tub. 

It was a very memorable day! 

This will not be our last graduation! Phil has decided that 3 degrees is better than 2 and he's starting a PhD program here in the fall. We're really excited to stay here in Ann Arbor!