Graduation and Philly

Well, we have returned from my graduation in Philadelphia at Salus University. It was so much fun! It was a great opportunity to celebrate (yet again) the completion of a long journey and what an honor it was to have our family, my parents, and my brother with us. It was also fantastic to meet so many of the students that I have known online and to meet so many that travelled far to celebrate the occasion. I sat next to graduates from New York City, Houston, and London. All in all, we had over 200 graduates that attended the ceremonies at a Jewish Synagogue (used to accommodate the large crowd).

It was interesting and unique to attend a graduation from a private University because so many of their traditions were different from the State school graduations I have attended. For example, the ceremony began and ended with an invocation and benediction and visiting a Jewish synagogue was also neat. I have never been inside a Jewish Temple (as they call it) and it was beautiful. There were nice stained glass windows, as well as neat architecture that included the Ten Commandments engraved on the walls. The procession was also fun, as the graduates walked from Salus, down the street, and across the street where police had stopped traffic for us. Other highlights of the graduation include an honorary doctorate given posthumously to one of the greatest audiologists in our field and was accepted by another one of the most respected audiologists. I really enjoyed shaking hands with highly respected professionals within the field. Of course, the best moment was when I was hooded and there was thunderous applause, tears, and blinding lights from all the photos....or maybe that is just how I remember it. :) Okay, the truth is when I walked on stage I couldn't hear a thing and focused on not tripping and falling on my face in front of everyone. I succeeded! Steve tells me that he and my family gave whooping cheers but I honestly didn't hear any of it! The ceremony ended with all of the graduates taking an oath of professionalism (similar to the Hippocratic oath) which was neat. The graduation was full of traditions that have been continued since the school was established as the Pennsylvania College of Optometry in 1919. It was really very cool to participate and I feel lucky to live within driving distance so we could attend this celebration. Thank you so much to Mom, Dad, and Michael for making the trip to celebrate with us!! And thanks for the neat clock and awesome doctor statue :).

My fantastic new graduation outfit, courtesy of Gma and Gpa Dallin! Thanks!

The water was colored blue, which the kids loved!

How fun to be together.

The kids were so good!!

We earned it together!!

I love Dallin's hugs!

Steve should have received an honorary doctorate for support!

The hood

Mom and me

Mom, Dad, and Me

Awwww.....

This is a business card holder/awesome statue!

The beautiful clock is engraved with "Dr. Mary D. Hunting, Congratulations! May 22, 2009, Love, Mom and Dad"....it is so beautiful!
The next day we had a fun time in Philadelphia seeing some historical sights. I can't decide what the highlight of the day was because it is a toss-up at this point: the first ever Philly steak off where they were giving away free cheese steaks or the Duck tour with the hilarious tour guide. Tough choice. Needless to say, the cheese steak was awesome and the street magician entertaining us in line was a hoot. Still....the Duck tour was fun and memorable. Emma also had a special honor bestowed upon her during the Duck tour when she was named "The Keeper of the Cork" so that when the duck boat leaked then she could run up and plug the leak with a cork. She also got a badge for her efforts. Thankfully, there were no leaks and she did not have to complete the dangerous task. Okay, it's a tie. Anyway, the kids enjoyed themselves and I think that Grandpa loved sharing his great knowledge and love of history with Emma. Grandma also shared a fun story about her mother: she had a small Liberty Bell that she would ring if they were outside with a boy for too long after a date. So, in honor of this tradition (and I suppose the history of the Bell itself) my mom got Emma her own bell, which Emma is so excited about. I am confident I will never need to use the Bell to bring Emma in from a late date....she will most certainly come in at her 9:00 curfew!

The Philly skyline

The kids loved their balloon animals: Lauren's is a bunny that she named "Blueberry" and Emma's is a mouse.

Dallin's balloon sword....it popped loudly inside the Liberty Bell visitor center

Emma was really excited to see the bell

Lauren with Blueberry, her precious bunny

The kids were psyched to see independence hall, thanks to the movie "National Treasure"

Here we are on the Duck tour...ummm, Michael and Dad wouldn't pose with the Duck beaks. Oh well, we had a ton of fun quacking to such songs as "YMCA" and "Thriller" during our excursion on land and sea, er, river. If you are not familiar with the Duck tours (they are in every major city with water nearby) these vehicles drive on land and then go on water like a boat. Here in Philly, you get to take a nice ride on the Delaware River right next to Penn's Landing. In DC they take you on the Potomac and in Boston you either go into the Boston Harbor or on the Charles River. If you have a chance to do it, I highly recommend it!

Just thought I'd repeat this photo of this good looking couple. Hard to believe we have been married for 10 years next month!!

Anyway, it was a fun trip and a memorable time. Unfortunately now, Steve has bad allergies or a cold for 3 weeks and my brother, Michael is sick too. I hope it is not the illness that knocked me out for almost two weeks with bacterial bronchitis and pleurisy and caused Emma to have early pneumonia! I can only hope that they recover soon...I'm not sure what I can do for them! So let's keep them in our prayers and hope that we can all be healthy soon!