After the dissertation defense

My wonderful prof threw a party for me after the oral defense of my dissertation. The defense was... well, it was rough. My work was laid out in front of all of us, and we picked it apart and discussed all of the mistakes and shortcomings for a couple of hours. I was so glad my best friend was there, b/c he helped me to see it through his perspective.
Mine - I sucked. This was horrible. They hated it.
His - They asked you questions, and you just kept answering girl. You knew studies, authors, etc. You rocked it.

The end result was a "Congratulations Dr. Richardson" from my wonderful committee. And then it was time for the gathering. Dr. Bothe's daughters picked out the decorations - fun red and black balloons, a UGA-themed cake, etc. So cute. Friends and family gathered to happily chat and eat. The evening ended with almost everyone gathered around the piano singing tunes from The Sound of Music. Perfect.




More pictures to come!