Out Like A Lion

It's been a really long time since I last posted anything. Sorry for the wait for all my religious followers out there. Things haven't been what I would call "smooth" around here. First, for the good news:

December 14, 2011: Plain old Leland Page became Dr. Leland Page! Yes folks, Leland finally finished his doctorate! I took a whole day off from work (which for those who know me, is the hardest thing for me to do) and went to listen and not understand a word coming from my amazing husband's mouth as defended his dissertation on opto-acoustic imaging. I understood words like MRI, CT Scan, wood, plastic, glass and, well, that's really about all I understood. The whole time I was texting my MIL and giving her updates. I think she was crying the whole time I was texting her. I love her, she's amazing and the cutest thing ever! It was fun watching Leland present and seeing the people in the room get into what he was talking about. I am so proud of him! I love you!

Christmas! We went my parent's place in EP for Christmas this year. I was so upset the day after we got there. Why? It snowed! I live in south Texas because it doesn't get that cold and we don't have snow. It is quite perfect weather for me. The only good part about the snow was watching Tyson run around in it not knowing what to do. It was pretty funny. That day the entire west side of EP closed down. In the valley where my parents live the snow was not that bad. It wasn't really sticking to anything but cars and roofs. Up on the mountain though it was almost blizzard conditions. We left the valley to take my dad's car to get the repairs it needed. Thankfully it was the Grand Prix that need the repairs and the Santa Fe was okay because that is what got us through the snow and crazy drivers. That and a husband who grew up in Utah and snow. I now understand why the city shut down. No one knows how to drive in snow in EP. People were gunning the gas to get going and spinning out. Others were trying to go as fast as possible to get out of the snow and others were skidding because of the ice on the road. It was not the best of times. Thankfully I was able to hand the keys to Leland and have him get us home safely. Other than the snow, Christmas was great! It was the relaxation I needed. Thanks Mom and Dad for all the fun!

December 29, Our Anniversary! Crazy it's been two years since I was sealed to Leland for eternity. I am grateful for that blessing in my life. The time has gone by so quickly! We had a fun anniversary. We went to Cheesecake factory at La Cantera for lunch then it was off to work the Alamo Bowl. We volunteered at the Fan Zone and had so much fun watching all the fans and families from the schools play and have a great time. We were suppose to have a break during our time there but over half the people that were suppose to show, didn't. We ended up working the five hours straight. I don't mind because it was so much fun! After we were finished with the volunteer work, we went to the game. It was a great game! Baylor, and the Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III (RG3), and Washington were the teams playing. It was a back and forth battle, but Baylor ended up victorious. I love that a Texas team won the Bowl. I also toyed with the idea about making a sign for the game saying "I have the greatest wife ever! It's our anniversary and she let me go to a football game." for Leland to hold, but I didn't. Oh well, there will be other years. You have to admit, Leland does have the greatest wife ever ;) For me, that is the best way to spend an anniversary, doing activities that allow us to spend the entire day together, because it's more about the time we spend together than the romanticism and gifts.

New Year's was, meh. We spent the evening with a couple of friends. The older I get the less I care about New Year's activities because I am so tired that all I want to do is sleep. I made it, I stayed awake until we got home then I crashed. Happy New Year to all!

The day after New Year's I got some good news. We have a new principal on my campus. I have no idea what happened to the other one, but the new one is awesome! I love working with him. He helps come up with solutions to problems rather than making everyone else come up with them then throwing them away. He is talking to the students and teachers to get their thoughts on what would make the school better and what they would like to see happen in the future. He is actually talking to people and getting them more motivated to do their work. It has been a refreshing change.

The other evening we went to an Alamo Bowl volunteer thank you dinner and Leland was surprised with a "Distinguished Volunteer Award". I was wondering when he was going to get the recognition he deserves. I know it's volunteer and you shouldn't want recognition, but after five years of him working every event possible and always asking where he is needed all the time while working on his doctorate and all the other things he does, it's nice to have a "Thank you" from the organization.

Now, for the not so good (but could be good in the long run):

Back in October I said something about having great news that I couldn't share at the time. Well, the news was that Leland was going to have a job in SA when he finished with school. well, that news is no longer great. Since there have been budget cuts all over the place, the job he was going to get when the original person left was cut. The company is not going to hire anyone else for that position. On the other hand, Leland was recommended for a residency position at MD Anderson in Houston. The position was suppose to be filled at the beginning of January but it is still open and he has his interviews this week. I think I am more nervous about all this he is. Here is the dilemma in my mind: I love SA and don't want to leave, but I feel like it's time for a change. I have one more year until my 6th grade babies graduate and I would love to be with them until they graduate in 2013. On the other hand, I can always come back and still be a part of their graduation. Neither of us want to live in Houston, but there is nothing around SA and Leland is going crazy not having a job. The other night he even talked about working at a pizza place again. I quashed that idea very quickly. If we moved to Houston, there is no guarantee that I will be able to find work and we don't know how much the residency position will pay. I told Leland that if that is to be an option he has to be making more money than me or the same amount as me. If he does get this position, it is a great career started. Doing any type of program through MD Anderson puts you in the spotlight. You can go anywhere in the world and get whatever job you want in the medical field if you do anything at MD Anderson. There are so many mixed feelings about this. I just have to trust in the Lord and where he wants us is where we will go. Even if he does get this position at MD Anderson, it's only a two year stint, so we could always end up back in SA. Right now, it's just the thought of not knowing what's going on that's killing me. I just hope I know in early February what is happening.

That's the look into my world since the last post. Mostly good things have happened. The end of the year was busy and crazy, but when is my life ever not busy and crazy, right?