Seriously?!?!?

I just looked at the weather channel and it says, "Ann Arbor is currently 11 degrees but feels like -6". It literally hurts to breath on my way to school, and even though school is close it is still a long time without oxygen. Good thing I received a snuggy for my b-day (shout out to 'Zona!). I would post a picture of me in it, but even though I am not planning on ever running for office that photo would probably come back to haunt me.

On the school front I am still getting absolutely killed. Between school/recruiting/clubs I am swamped. Good news though, I received a check ++ on an assignment today...which I think is the highest grade other than a smiley face. Who knew business school had the same grading scale as preschool.

First Snow

Tonight we had our first snow that actually stuck to the ground. We've had a few flurries over the last week, but nothing like today.

So we both threw on our new winter gear and ran out into the winter wonderland. There were tons of students out walking around and yelling, "First Snow!"

Kris decided to try his luck at reenacting the famous Christmas Story scene.
It didn't stick.

Then we built our first very pathetic snowman.

And I took a rest.

...here we go!

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving you all!
We are spending the holiday at home in Ann Arbor and made our first Thanksgiving Feast for two. It was a lot of fun cooking in the kitchen together. Here's what was on the menu:

Rosemary Garlic Turkey (Our first Turkey)
Gravy
Kris' Mashed Potatoes
My Momma's Stuffing
Green Beans
Cranberry Sauce
Apple Crisp & Vanilla Ice Cream

The turkey was actually much easier than we expected, but I had to do some things to a turkey that I'd not care not to repeat. Despite the less than appetizing prep-work the turkey came out moist and delicious & I think we'll have left overs for a week, but who knows with Kris around. We truly feasted and then immediately fell into a glutenous coma.

Although we are are spending the holiday here in Ann Arbor our thoughts are with our family and friends. We feel so fortunate to have such amazing people in our lives who are so loving and supportive. Thank you thank you thank you! We love you!

When the Leaves Were on the Trees

About a month ago Kris and I wandered down to the Arboretum to take in all of the leaves and their changing colors. It's about a twenty minute walk from our house and has many trails to discover. There is even a place where you can canoe down the river. Since our visit the leaves have fallen and there are fewer colors along the trails, crazy how things can change so quickly.

One of the entrances to the "Arb." Along this path are some gorgeous peony gardens.
Cemetery located at the entrance of the Arb, which also happens to be right next to the freshman dorms. I can see how that might seem kind of creepy, but in this picture and in person it is so beautiful and serene.
This bench looks like the perfect place to take a rest or read a book.
The Arb is also the home of Fairy Woods & Troll Hollow.
We happened across this small fairy house complete with campfire.
What a beautiful place, we can't wait for spring when the leaves return.

Kris is 30, Time for Mustaches!

Kris turned 30 last week so we celebrated by having a Mustache Bash. Our friends Dane and Remy also had nearby birthdays, so we had a joint celebration. We hosted at our house and it was mustache mania, with mustache cupcakes and lip sweaters worn by all.
The birthday guests.
My mustache was crooked all night and I had no idea.
Lot's of people from Kris' class joined in the celebration.
The birthday folks with their birthday party planners.

More Visitors

We were fortunate enough to receive more visitors for Kris pre-birthday celebration, Peggy & Ed. The first night of the visit we all headed to the hockey game where we sat in the student section. The game was against Michigan State, a big rival, so there were some, um... interesting cheers coming from our section, such as, "Can't read, can't write" and "back-up school." And to top it all off, "Ugly Parents!" We lost, which seems to be a common theme at the last few sporting events we've attended. Hopefully things will turn around for us.

We spent one foggy morning walking around the Arboretum, and although the leaves had already fallen off most of the trees it was still a beautiful walk and we had a nice time exploring. Notice Peggy's gorgeous leather bag which she picked up at the local Farmer's Market. So functional, yet so stylish! The craftswoman had her at, "And look at all the different ways you can use it."
We had a great visit and think that it may be our last set of visitors until the weather warms up. We are supposed to get some snow flurries in a few days. Here we go!

Halloween

This is very late, but I wanted to share a few photos from Halloween. The week before Kris & I carved pumpkins and put them up in our window. We also roasted the pumpkin seeds and watched scary movies.

On Halloween Kris & I dressed up as Punky Brewster & her father, Henry. Kris looked especially distinguished with his silver hair. We joined Miley & Billy Ray Cyrus, Tinkerbell & Peter Pan, and a Madmen character for a night out.

A Few More Photos

Here's a few more photos of our visit with Katie & Rich. We had a nice leisurely Sunday filled with Brunch, a tour of Kris' school, wandering downtown and finished it off with an ice cream cone. It was really awesome having them here and we had a great time. We managed to take one photo with all four of us, but on a friend's camera, so hopefully I'll get to post that soon. Stay tuned!

Next week: A Visit with Peggy & Ed... can't wait!

Visitors

Katie and Rich arrived Friday morning after an exhausting red eye. We are so excited to have them here and have tried to share with them all of the things that we love about Ann Arbor. They must have brought the SF weather with them because we suddenly have 65 degree sunny weather, so weird, but very welcome. Michigan lost against Purdue yesterday, but Katie and Rich seemed to enjoy their first visit to the big house anyways. Maybe it was their great seats on the 50 yard line.

Perk at Work

Introducing Buster, my boss' 4 month old puppy who comes to work with her almost every day. Since I work right across the hall he often sneaks over and says hello, so far he is my favorite co-worker!

Help, it's Cold!

It's dropped below 50 degrees and I would say that Kris and I are not adjusting well. We sit in our apartment under layers and layers of clothing and say to each other, "It's so cold, now do you think it's cold enough to put the heater on?" Even a girl from one of Kris' classes was teasing him because in class all of the girls were really cold and trying to stay focused on lecture, when according to her words, "You see big old Kris slipping on his puffer jacket and rubbing his arms for warmth." I think at that point she realized he was from California!

Employed!

I'm happy to share the news that I have secured a job! It was a bit rough out there, with not too much to choose from, but I've found a job that should be great. It's at a small local homeless family organization called the Interfaith Hospitality Network. So, I'll be continuing in the field that I've worked in for the last few years. The organization is much smaller than where I worked in SF, and the shelter only has the capacity to house 6 families at one time, as opposed to the 40 or so that we could offer shelter to in SF. But it has a really warm feeling and the staff seem to be very experienced, I think I can learn a lot here.

The position itself is their Volunteer Coordinator, which will be new for me. They staff their shelter year round with over 2,000 volunteers from the community and local congregations, so I'll be there to make sure that things run smoothly and recruit new volunteers. I'll also get to work with the Development Director some on fund raising events, which should be fun. I go in tomorrow to sort out the details and find out my start date. Thanks to everyone for sending encouragement and good thoughts my way.

Tailgate and Another Win for MI

This week we attended our first official tailgate hosted by our friends Kristen and Kurt from Chicago. It was on the greens of the golf course, which seems crazy to both of us. But we had a nice time soaking up the sun, while we have it, and learning to play corn hole and washers. After that was the game, which was fantastic. Victory came to Michigan in the last few seconds. It was a big win for MI and hopefully there are many more to come.

Welcome to the Big House

We attended our first tailgate and football game here in Michigan yesterday. The stadium, nicknamed the Big House, can seat over 107,000 people, and is the second largest college stadium in the country, with the highest rated attendance record. The fans are absolutely mad and the whole town turns into a sea of blue and yellow as everyone makes their way to the game. Kris has student season tickets, and I bought an alumni ticket in a different section from a friend. We made our way into the stadium with plans to meet up after a quarter or two. Unfortunately we had zero cell reception in the stadium and Kris was not to be heard from again until after the game. I snuck into the student section with some friends and watched the game with many of the business students in row 40. Meanwhile Kris was up in row 90 with a large group of incoming freshman. Apparently he had no trouble fitting in and made friends with his fellow schoolmates. At the end of the game one of the freshman he had met asked, "so are you like a senior?" Too funny!

Ross School of Business Incoming Student

Kris walked the 3 blocks to campus to pick up his schedule yesterday. They gave him a spiffy new name tag!

We've Arrived!

After 2,600 miles, a busted drive belt and a short stop over in Chicago we have arrived in Ann Arbor, our new home. Peggy came out and met us the day we arrived and has been helping us to set up our new place. Our apartment is technically located in the attic of a 3 story Victorian building (the first floor of which is a liquor store) so we have beautiful high ceilings paneled in pine, along with several sky lights that bring in a good amount of natural light. We've made a few trips to IKEA, Target and Trader Joes and I think our place is really starting to come together. Sunday our cable/internet is installed, Tuesday our bed arrives, and hopefully our stove will be repaired in the next few days so we can make our first home cooked meal in over 2 and a half months.

Other than that we hope to spend the next few days venturing out and exploring our new community. Thursday Kris begins a program at school that will last for about a week, and then starts full time classes September 8th. And, as I'm sure everyone knows by now, unfortunately due to budget cuts my position at the school has been eliminated, so I'll be volunteering the first week at the school and then looking for work. Hopefully I'll make some connections while volunteering that may lead to something. I also signed up for a class in metal smithing that starts in September, something that I've always wanted to learn.

So, here we go Ann Arbor, bring it on!

On the Road Again

We took off Saturday morning for our cross country drive and so far so good. After 11 hours of driving we arrived in Salt Lake on Saturday. A bit strange considering we arrived in town after 10pm and just about everything was shut down (even on a Saturday night!). We checked into a mangey Super 8 and enjoyed some fine dining at Denny's, where the converstaion at the table next to us included a few tidbits like, "Well technically you are my daughter, but you were raised as my sister."

And this morning we hit the road early and drove the 7 hours to Denver, Colorado. We arrived in town around 4pm and spent some time driving around downtown, which is beautiful, with classic brick buildings, an amazing amount of new looking condos, and their baseball stadium right in the heart of the city. We both agree that the city has a really nice vibe and we wish that we had some more time to explore, but it won't work this time. Tomorrow we take off for Omaha, Nebraska, then Chicago, until we reach our final destination, Ann Arbor, next Thursday 8/20, to a very empty apartment, in a very new town. Can't wait to see what adventures lie ahead!

Happy Birthday Obama

Yesterday Kris & I got to help Obama celebrate his birthday, lucky us!

Hiccup Along the Road

Well, we are back and officially over our jet lag, I think. We spent a day and a half in the OC catching up with the Swaims and Gills and then hit the open road. We planned to stop in Santa Barbara, Pismo, and San Francisco before we took off for Michigan.

Ricky, the truck, got a beautiful make over while we were traveling, including a much needed wash and a camper shell. We were 20 minutes outside Santa Barbara, when BOOM, we were hit from behind in stop and go traffic. Good news is that no people were hurt, but poor Ricky got his bumper bent up underneath. He's still driveable, but we are trying to sort things out with insurance to get the repairs done. In the meantime we are in Santa Barbara with Peggy and Ed, not a bad place to be stuck.

Just a minor set back, only 2,967 miles to go.