The Mergenthaler Family

 Managing Expectations. Found at Letters from the Nest:  im-not-a-professional I know a lot of Dad’s colleagues by name, but not by face, because I haven’t met them--only heard about them. You’ve probably overheard us talking in the kitchen about dissertations, reunions at conferences, and promotion or retirement news. Dad will refer to his colleagues by first name, but sometimes I get them mixed up and have to ask, “Which Spencer/John/Derek are you talking about?” If Dad talks about work life at home, you can bet he talks about home life at work. (“All good things!” -Frozen). When I do meet his colleagues in person, I wonder what they know about us. It doesn’t take long to find out. Last weekend, one of Dad’s PhD students, along with his family, visited our church. In an effort to help them feel more comfortable, I shared with this student and his family how much Dad values this student’s contributions to the department, how proud we are of his academic accomplishments, and h...

I often think about updating this more often so that I'm not cramming so much in one post, but thinking isn't doing. The kids had their last day of school on Friday, so we're thinking about summer plans--a family reunion in June, a wedding in August, bucket lists, to-do lists, some relaxation (but not so much that we wonder how we let the time go). Our spring was very nice. Here's some of what we did: The boys went on a trip to West Virginia for a BYU basketball game, and then again to Michigan to catch another game. We spent Spring Break in Puerto Rico and had some delightful adventures, including . . . Feeding pigeons, Tasting fresh coconut (looks cute and delicious and refreshing, tastes like it wants to be saltwater, but isn't). Rescuing a shoe stuck in the mud in the rainforest. Feeding pigeons and playing basketball in old San Juan. Lots of beach time with some intense rip-tides that worried us, but not enough to keep us out of the water. In April and May, we ...