"You can just call me Nathan... PhD."

He did it! He passed his PhD viva with flying colors! He's Dr. Parker! He said, "You can just call me Nathan...  PhD." That's a reference to the movie Meet the Parents, by the way. 

We celebrated straight away in our usual way, with Gilesgate Tandoori. Yum!

A little later on we celebrated with cookies and milk and ice cream and beer with good friends.

And we got our dance on! He's movin' pretty fast. He was excited!

I am so, so proud of him, and I can't believe that he's finished. 

Questions?

1. When will you be back in the States?

Well, I'll be in Atlanta in April for my dear friend Beverly's wedding. She gave me the honor of asking me to be a bridesmaid, and someone in her church anonymously paid for my plane ticket. How amazing is that? 

But you weren't asking about that, were you?

Nathan passed his viva with no corrections, which was a bit of a scary thought for this reason: When you complete a degree in England, you have 60 days to leave the country after the university notifies the UK Border Agency you're finished, regardless of when you visa says it expires (which for us is August 2014). However, his examiners were gracious and are allowing him to turn it in in three months' time, which means we can leave after my school year finishes on July 6th (three months + 60 days = July 11th). 

2. Where are you moving next?

We don't know. We seriously have no idea. We could be anywhere in the world. It would depend on if/where Nathan and/or I got a job. We could be in the States. We could be here in the UK if a job opened up for him... or if no jobs opened up and I keep my job while Nathan keeps looking. That would require us getting new visas though, which is a complete headache on a lot of people's parts. I don't want to think about that right now.

3. What kind of job is Nathan looking for?

Nathan's gifts include teaching and preaching (and dancing and dish-washing and lots, lots more), which means we're looking for jobs at universities and jobs at churches. We're in the beginning stages of a new phase of searching (the first phase was before Christmas, which culminated in a lot of closed doors), and I'm trying hard not to nag, annoy, and/or pester him about filling out applications every day. But I kind of freak out about the unknown sometimes.

4. So, what will Nathan do until July?

Besides look for jobs? Well, he teaches two classes at the university here. He'll work on trying to get some stuff published (book ideas, articles, etc.). We are involved with a weekly Bible study with college students, so he'll get to spend a lot more time with the guys on his table. He's been lifting weights with Cullen a few times a week, which has resulted in a lot of flexing in front of the mirror. I'm hoping he'll take this opportunity to learn a bit more about cooking and perhaps practice making dinner once a week. So far he's just suggested that the two Italian boys I teach come over to cook for us. That's actually not a bad idea...

Dr. Parker doesn't know where the camera is on the iPad, but hey, there are all kinds of smart out there. I LOVE THIS GUY!