Skip to main content

I got my Ph.D!!!

 On October 28, 2020 I successfully defended my dissertation to fulfill the final requirement to receive my Ph.D! Little did I know when I began this adventure just how much life would be thrown my way. However, we did (yes, I say we because it was a family commitment). This is the Facebook post made by my husband. 💓


WHAT A DAY!!!! To understand, I need to put this into context. Amanda started her doctoral degree in 2014. She will say that she didn’t want me to share that, but it’s significant. You see, in those 6 years, we had a son that spent 99 days in the NICU. She took time off for that (as anybody would), but she started back the day before his open heart surgery. In addition, our home flooded in 2019. While she didn’t take time off for that, she worked very hard on getting our house back together AND worked to complete her dissertation. Today, I listened in awe of the women presenting her dissertation defense to her committee. The confident, intelligent woman that shared her research and took so much pride in her work. The committee members were very complimentary of the depth and completeness of the study. Today, Mom/Wife/Daughter went from Mrs. Amanda Dickinson to DR. AMANDA DICKINSON. You are a wonderful example of dedication and hard work to our family, and the boys and I could not be more proud.

Congrats

Dr. Dickinson!!!!!!!!

PS: Thank you Adam Augustine Lisa Augustine and Emily Voelkers for coming to dinner and helping us celebrate!!

Photo credit also goes to Ms. Emily.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

My letter to Alex Gordon

Alex, I wanted to share a few pictures with you that show why I'm writing to thank you. You see my three year old, Kaden, knows more about baseball and the Royals than many adults I know. He loves as he would put it "all of the Royals" but without a doubt, without any hesitation when asked who is his favorite player is his answer is always one player; you.  I'm not kidding when I say Gordo was one of his first words. In fact anything baseball for the longest time was called Gordo. I'm not exactly sure why he took such a liking to you. I joke it's because his first ever game at the K and you hit a grand slam when he was not even a year old. For what ever reason he adores you. He even has a little Gordo plush doll that he likes to take everywhere.  This past year has been the toughest year for our family. Our second son, Kaleb, was born 12 weeks early at 2lb 2oz. We also learned of his diagnosis of Down syndrome two days after his birth. He spent...
5 comments
Read more

Home

Sitting here in Kaleb's nursery rocking him I look around his room and think about how many people have contributed to his room. How incredibly loved he is. I look at the decals I searched for and then put up with the help of his daddy. The chair I am sitting in given to us by Heather who sometime soon I will trust to oversee his care during the day. The little bear on the nightstand that Haley helped me pick out for him before we left the NICU. On the bookshelf sits the Curious George from Nana. I also see the Panda bear from Rance, Jessica, and Heath.  Baskets purchased while shopping with Courtney. Even the cart that his Grammy and Gramps found so that we could put all of his medical equipment on so that we could wheel it around the house. Everything in his room all the way down to the baseboards and doors finished by Daddy and Dalton were a work of love as we prepared the room for our little K2. The NICU family print that will soon be on the wall above his dresser, signed by th...
3 comments
Read more

Extra Chromosome and All

When I began my blog I admitted that while people were often commenting on my positive outlook I am not always sailing through on a cloud of positivity. I struggle, I have days where the reality of the past five months sets in or the uncertainty of the future can seem daunting. I told myself that if I were going to write about our journey that I would be open and honest, and that includes the hard moments. The moments, days, or weeks when the emotions hit. Some might wonder why I would write and share those moments with people. Why I would open myself up to that level of vulnerability, especially when those who know me know how I value my independence and strength. In those first few days after Kaleb was born and we had received the diagnosis of Down syndrome I had many emotions that I was ashamed of feeling. “What loving person would ever have these feelings?” would often go through my head and result in me feeling even worse. They were feelings that I could not even bring myself t...
1 comment
Read more