12 month photo project is a challenge started by Tara Whitney. Here’s what you do:

• Take a photo of your family once a month.
• Write a few things about that month.
• Make it into a book at the end of the year.

June just might be my favorite month. Well, actually, I have 4 favorite months and June just happens to be one of the four.

Hannah turned 1 two weeks ago. It was an amazing time of fellowship with our friends and family. Having her turn 1 seems far more surreal than with Julia. Now that Hannah is getting older, that just means Julia is getting even older. A very bittersweet feeling. As for The Bear, she’s a walking machine. From her first step, it took her a few weeks to really gain confidence – but now – now she wiggles out of my arms until I put her down so she can walk. She refuses to wear shoes, which doesn’t surprise me in the least given Julia’s original reaction to them.

As for Julia Mabel, we are getting some where in the “Why?” department. Last week I started a new rule that she needs to ask full sentence questions {“Mama, why are we going for a walk?”} to help 1) stop her asking so many why’s and 2) make her think through her questions. Oddly enough, the full sentences haven’t slowed her down nearly as much. They did for a couple of days, but not any more. But, I think we’re both less frustrated by the question/answer conversations because we are having just that, a conversation. Secretly I wish there were a way to get paid every time she asks “why?”. I think I could easy use that money to pay for both girls to go to an Ivy League university.

Jonathan officially left his PhD program. He had resigned in May, but after some processing, decided that perhaps he needed to stay in the program after all. As it was, he was enrolled in the Department of Engineering {DE} but doing research under the School of Library and Information Science {SLIS}. Jon regularly sees his advisor from SLIS but never from DE. When he went to speak to his DE advisor, he was informed that too much time had lapsed between his comprehensive exams and dissertation so he would need to retake the comprehensive exams {and a few classes?}. Well, long story short, he decided enough was enough and he left the program. It was hard on him at first, but as time goes on he’s feeling like he made the right decision.

It seems like every month goes by faster. It’s been a joy to reflect back each month a really take everything in.