onward and upward

i am coming to terms with the fact that my life is an ever moving journey. one where as soon as i get comfortable and familiar with it, it moves and changes. even ever so slightly. most of the time i think i'm standing still, i can't see the progress or change, but it's happening. i am making progress. and can see the ever so slight changes taking place right now, which really are huge markers.

onward. tomorrow matt will present his prospectus (proposal for his dissertation) to his peers and all the NT faculty. yes, a big day. they will grill him for just over an hour and hopefully he'll come out with their blessing to keep going.

i remember hearing about friends and acquaintances presenting their prospectus. and i can vividly recall the longing that filled me. the longing to be at that stage, to have that marker come...and go. and it felt so distant.

and yet here we are. it's matt's turn. it reminds me that we are continuing to make progress, continuing to move forward in this long journey of a PhD. and once it's passed, we won't have to do it again. i am grateful.

upward. sophia has decided that she can kind of walk... really she can walk, but she has to build her confidence. at this point she loves to push her new baby doll around in a stroller.

at the pumpkin patch she even walked around pushing her own stroller.

and with that my life changes. no crawlers. bigger kids. growing up. deadlines passing. not a completely new stage, but a slight shift that makes a huge difference.