Category: Celebrate!

Celebrate!

Happy 2nd Birthday!!

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two year

Two years ago today, we hit ‘publish’ and joined the blogging world.

It’s hard to believe that much time has passed, but more importantly, we are thankful to each one of you who read and write for this blog. To those of you who have been willing to share your journeys with us through pen, you may never know who your story has impacted, but we literally receive emails from graduate wives/partners from all parts of the globe, often saying ‘thank you!’ for the support, inspiration, and courage your stories have given them. So, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you!

We are currently looking for new writers. Would you be willing to share your story with us?  It can be done anonymously, if you desire. Your voice and story are important! If so, please email us to let us know.

Also, if you get a chance and haven’t done it yet, please go to our Facebook page and “LIKE” us!

Walking this journey with you,

-Mandy  & M.C.

Celebrate!

Celebrate new beginnings!

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Keeley1
Written by Keeley, a current graduate wife
It has been one week since my husband, Jason, received an offer as Assistant Professor of Global Christianity at Arizona State University, and it still feels pretty surreal. We got the call in the middle of Old Navy, and when we didn’t recognize the area code, and he had been outside the store talking for over ten minutes, I figured I knew what was up. When he told me the news, I didn’t know whether to laugh, cry, or take a nap (odd impulse, I know, but that’s how I honestly felt). We are both so relieved and excited, if a little overwhelmed at the prospect of having our first baby in June and then moving across the country to his new job about six weeks later. But, I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s impossible for me to verbalize how grateful I am for Jason, for his hard work, and for the search committee seeing what I see in him–it feels as though all the mornings getting up before dawn and all of the papers, articles, and research trips might be worth it in some way besides general “life experience.” The only problem is that we will have to put our cat ranch plans on hold, but I think I can live with that for now!
(p.s. we will probably have to put those winter clothes away for a while too! yahoo!)
Celebrate!

Celebrate: May Flowers

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We haven’t posted a ‘celebrate’ piece in a while and to kick us off again we wanted to share something beautiful and worth celebrating – friend’s birthdays!  Enjoy below some lovely photos, as well as some great links and tips, from a ‘may flower’ themed party.  The cake was not only stunning, but was INCREDIBLY delicious as well.  (It even has coffee grinds included in the recipe, which would probably explain why I am still craving it to this day!)  Pick a fun theme for a party and find recipes and crafts that correspond! Celebrate with us and share some of  your journey on the blog!

Delicious chocolate cake recipe found here!      Ridiculously adorable frosting technique found here!         And basic buttercream frosting recipe found here!

Super easy and cute flower ring tutorial found here!

**If you have a celebrate entry you’d like to have posted, please let us know! It could be a little thing like a beautiful photograph you have taken or a big thing like a job placement!  Send us an email, we’d love to hear from you!

Celebrate!

Celebrate!! (And a give away)!

thegraduatewife10 Comments

Happy one-year blogiversary!

We really can’t believe it’s been one year…..where does the time go? This last year has been unbelievably amazing, as we’ve connected with graduate wives literally from around the globe. We’ve laughed, cried, and loved the stories you’ve taken the time to pen for us. If we could sum up in one word what your stories have meant to us, it would be: hope. On our absolute worst days, we can visualize you all going about your days, working hard to support your other halves, and suddenly we feel better. It’s so wonderful to know we’re not alone in this journey!

We are excited for the topics we’ll tackle together in this upcoming year. If there’s anything in particular you’d like us to write on, please email us.

Also, if you get a chance, please go to our facebook page and “LIKE” us!

Now…for the give away. :)

If you could sum up in one word what The Graduate Wife blog has meant to you in the past year, what would it be? Post in the comments below or send us an email by Thursday, 29th March, and you could win a box of Belgian chocolates. We will randomly choose a winner, announce it on Friday, March 30th, and pop your chocolates in the post – wherever you are in the world!

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for reading this blog, and sharing your graduate wife journey with us. We are forever changed because of it.

Much love to you all,

-Mandy  & M.C.

Celebrate!

Celebrate. IV

thegraduatewife1 Comment

Written by Nicole – a current graduate wife

I Got a Job!

In my last post for The Graduate Wife, I was really floundering with who I was and how to shoulder the weight of financial responsibility for our family despite the fact that I could. not. find. a. job. I filled out hundreds of applications and made innumerable phone calls and waited and cried and freaked out and felt, in general, very stressed. I thought the seemingly endless cycle of hope and disappointment with each rejection was going to be the death of me. How could I “fund the dream” without a job?

It has been, I feel, such a long road to this post, and I am so glad to share an encouraging part of my journey with you. When we moved to England last autumn, I was ready for a break from teaching. In fact, I didn’t think I would be able to apply for teaching jobs at all, seeing as how it takes so long to jump through all of the appropriate hoops. It turns out that I really needed nine whole months to get every last annoying, bureaucratic paper, stamp, and signature to work at this new school. And after a whole school year of wringing my hands and lamenting the ills of supply (substitute) teaching, I am ready to be in a place I can call my own.

You can read the details of how this came together perfectly on our blog here. Forgive me if toward the end I get a little “I’d like to thank the Academy…” on you. After scoring this job, I really did feel like I had won an Oscar.

Celebrate! · Community

Celebrate. III

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Today, we celebrate friendship.

A  couple of weeks ago, a group of graduate wives gathered together on a slightly rainy English Sunday to celebrate a dear friend’s 30th birthday and the impending birth of her second child.

In honor of her, we wore beautiful hats (indoors, no less!), and ate delicious treats prepared by serving hands. We were able to love and bless her, the same way she does to us.

As I looked around the room, I couldn’t help but smile at this amazing group of women whose paths have crossed in England. And it struck me that this is what community is supposed to look like.

I know everyone left that afternoon, feeling grateful and loved and, overwhelmingly blessed.

So to our dear friend, LL: We are so glad to celebrate you and your friendship,  and the joy you’ve brought to our lives!

Celebrate! · Children

Celebrate. II

thegraduatewife2 Comments

Heeding Mandy’s call to celebrate…I want to celebrate today because my daughter knows my name.  She calls me ‘mumma’, with the sweetest little voice and the slightest hint of a British accent (well almost).   She has been saying it for a while, like when I pick her up from the nursery at church or when she wanders into the kitchen and finds me cooking.  She definitely can recognize me, but it wasn’t until just last week that it was like she really got it.

She looked up at me, touched my cheek with her soft hand and said ‘mumma’.  She smiled from ear to ear and seemed so pleased with herself.  All day she kept saying it again and again and I felt my heart melt when she said ‘mumma’ and ‘dade’ repeatedly as we were both getting her ready for bed.

It is definitely the little things.  Celebrating the moments that make up our busy lives… the moments that bring us to life in the process.  This is such a wonderful challenge on this graduate wife journey.  Many times we get caught up in the big picture (where are we moving, where will we get a job, how can I support my husband during this hard time, etc.) and we lose sight of the beauty in the every day.

So, here’s to celebrating your identity and someone knowing, trusting and delighting in your name.

-M.C.

What are you celebrating today?

Celebrate! · Community · Family · Inspiration

Celebrate.

thegraduatewife5 Comments

I recently finished reading Cold Tangerines by Shauna Niequist, a collection of short essays on celebrating the small things in life. I can honestly say that celebrating small things isn’t something that I do naturally, but I now believe it is a discipline that needs to be incorporated into my daily life.  One of the ways I plan to celebrate is to keep a notebook with two things from that day that can be celebrated. I’m still not sure how I will incorporate celebrating into the rest of my life, and I know it will be a work in progress, but I am resolved to this: life is short enough, but even shorter when we don’t take (or make) the time to celebrate.

The graduate wife journey is often fraught with worry, shattered dreams, and crushed expectations.  The darkness crowds out the light, the bad outweighs the good.  Those feelings often define our journey.  What would it look like if we took the time to celebrate even the smallest of things?  Would it bring us joy amidst the pain?  This question has plagued me for the past month!

Because of my reflections on this issue and a few discussions with thoughtful friends, we’ve decided to start a ‘Celebrations’ section on this blog. We want to hear from YOU. What are you doing to celebrate in your life? It literally can be anything – a new baby, a husband passing an exam, a good day at work, getting a job.  Whatever you decide to share with us, we will post it.  Let us celebrate with you!

I am selfishly writing this post, celebrating a BIG event that took place in our lives earlier this month. My husband graduated with his PhD. (Can I get an AMEN?) We celebrated. We’re still celebrating. I think I will be celebrating for awhile. This 7 year chapter in my personal graduate wife journey is over, and I’m turning the page, greeting the future with courage and a hope of things anew.

So, I ask again. What are you doing to celebrate in your graduate wife life?

Mandy