Back to School

Several months ago we had the feeling that a change was imminent.  Both Ben and I independently felt somewhat unsettled yet unsure of what was missing.  I tried to move us to Arizona on a whim (I've always wanted a pool!) but after a quick google search for jobs and houses, that idea got the kibosh.  In the end we came to the conclusion that it was time for Ben to go back to school for his doctorate.  Within a few days we researched the local educational leadership doctorate programs and settled on Saint Mary's College, where Ben also got his masters.  All the other programs we looked into were full time, held classes on days that didn't work for us, or had an emphasis that didn't interest Ben.  Saint Mary's classes were starting right away (we actually had missed the application deadline by more than a month!) and there was less prep work involved in the application process (no GRE) because he was a Saint Mary's alum.  When Ben called the school to express interest applying he was told that his chances of getting in were slim to none, but that if he could get an essay and three letters of recommendation turned in in 24 hours than they'd maybe consider him.  It was a bit of a scramble.  Ben was out of his comfort zone for sure, but he pulled it off and was accepted into the program!  The sheer fact that he was accepted so quickly confirmed to us that this was the right direction for our family at this particular time.  We realize that this will be an incredibly time consuming endeavor for Ben, requiring a lot of patience from me and the kids, not to mention the financial cost, but we're sure it's what's best for Ben's career in the long run.  So, cheers to four more years of study.  Bring on the late night reading and writing.