Finally!

I graduated.

{super cheesy smile, I know, but it's allowed}

It's been a long road, seven years to be exact. And it all culminated in one fabulous, exhausting, family-filled weekend.

We started off Friday night with Honors Convocation for the College of Pharmacy {as in it is an honor to graduate, not as in you have to graduate with honors to attend...in which case my Friday evening would have been much less full- ha!}. Some of my family and Josh's family came over that afternoon, and we ate and ate and ate: Jason's Deli mini focaccia sandwiches {which I highly recommend}, chips and salsa and spinach dip, and my mom made strawberry cake, chocolate cake, AND her famous chocolate-in-between cookies just for her favorite daughter. {I'm the only girl. ;) }

We took a quick couple of pictures {see above} and then left early so I could get all jazzed up in regalia {because all important events are bedazzled with fluffy striped gowns, puke green hoods accented with crimson and cream, and bang-hating hats affixed to the noggin with 17 bobby pins}. Jacob, Kevin, and Devin so graciously {after being forced} accompanied me, so they could save seats for my army of support. Against my better judgment, this left the rest of our family and Josh to fend for themselves.

Miraculously, everyone made it on time. They watched the hooding {where the Lord's grace shown down and allowed me not to fall on my face during my journey across stage and to successfully complete the "hair flip" to ensure that I did not look like a boy in my picture}.

Two of our favorite professors hooded our class. See that one on the right? He is still one of my favorites despite the fact that on my very first test in pharmacy school, he stapled the pages out of order causing me to skip the last page {a 24 point page, just for significance's sake}. Did he let me make it up? Nope. Did I cry? In my car. And in the shower for like an hour. And at Josh's parents' house that night after I backed over their brick retaining wall. It was a baaaad day. If only the me from that day could have seen the future, perhaps that me would not have gotten so very dehydrated.

Sidetracked. So eaily sidetracked. The final product: all hooded and regaliad {probably not a word...}

Beth Ann Davenport, Pharm.D.

And here is the aforementioned army. I am so thankful for each of them.

The rest of the weekend was equally jam-packed but less photographed. It consisted of two brunches, one grandmother, one more graduation ceremony {with 914 other graduates}, one presentation as Dr. Beth Ann Ponder Davenport ;), and a whole lot of pizza. Now I have one week to relax {and study for the Boards} before I enter the real world!