It's unbelievable how time flies. Lately, we have been . . .
Homeless: We finalized the sale of our house on July 7th and moved all of our furniture and boxes into a storage unit for the duration of our time in Austin (6 weeks). In the meantime, Janssen and I are staying at friends' houses, mostly while they're out of town for summer travels. They're extremely generous!
Traveling: Janssen traveled during most of June and a good part of July. Her last trip was a huge success! She found a great little apartment for us in Boston. We're thrilled about the location, the price, and just about everything we could be thrilled about. I couldn't go with her since I had a final exam and an upcoming CPA exam section, but Janssen's wonderful mother saved the day by accompanying her and acting as a sounding board as Janssen made the decision of where we'll live for the next year (at least).
Studying: I found out in June that I had passed the first of four sections of the CPA exam (woohoo!). Since then, I've taken two more sections on July 1st and July 18th and am studying to take the fourth and final section in one week from today. Scores take 1-2 months to be reported, so I won't know until mid-September whether I've passed all four sections or not. I also have two weeks left of classes to finish my degree. I'm definitely seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.
Reading: Janssen's last day of work was 2 weeks ago, so she has been enjoying a bit of extra time to read, babysit, help friends clean and paint their house, and plan our upcoming move (August 15th). I think she's up to 110 books read this year. At her suggestion, I've been reading Pearl Buck's The Good Earth, which has been good if a bit difficult to read since the protagonist makes some really unfortunate choices. I also just finished listening to the audio CD of one of Janssen's recent favorites, Wednesday Wars. It was excellent. Janssen makes all kinds of good book recommendations on her blog (not to mention all of the excellent non-book related posts).
Boating!
More Health Conscious: Janssen and I have been trying to change our lifestyle and eating habits for the good (to be fair, I've had more to change than Janssen). I think we have started to achieve a sustainable balance that now just needs time to settle in and become permanent.
Planning: In 23 days I'll start as an accountant doing audits of large corporations. In one month Janssen will start as an elementary school librarian. We're both very much looking forward to the new challenges, opportunities, relationships, and experiences our new jobs will bring. And we're planning all kinds of fun things to do in Boston and surrounding areas!
Saying Goodbye: Some of our favorite friends just moved back to Utah for a new job opportunity. Other good friends are moving on Tuesday to Arizona for school. So Ralphie and Meleah threw a going away party for all three of our families a few nights ago and it's all starting to feel very real and permanent. I used to love change for the new and exciting things it brings. I still do. But I'll be sad to leave behind the good life we've had here. Much sadder than I would have thought. Janssen, on the other hand, already knew she'd be sad.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
Boating on Lake Austin
One of the highlights of this last month was boating with friends (thanks Dan and Sara for taking us!). We had a great time checking out the beautiful homes on the shore and eating a picnic/take-out dinner on the boat. Ralphie posted a few photos of us on her blog.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
First Week of June
It's hard to believe June is here. Things are happening very quickly. Here's a quick rundown of recent events for us in Austin:
1 - We put our house on the market in late May and had an offer - a good offer - within four days. We were surprised and grateful, and have passed the option period. It's now looking very likely that we'll be homeless on July 7th. We plan to put most of our things in storage and stay with friends/house-sit for the 6 weeks we'll have left here before our move to Boston in mid-August.
2 - School started on Thursday for my summer semester. There are two 5.5-week sessions that move at a pretty fast pace, and I'm also taking the remaining three CPA exams on July 1st, July 18th, and August 8th. I can retake them if I don't pass any or all of the sections. But it will be a great blessing and a load off my plate if I pass them all before starting work in August.
3 - Janssen graduated last month and is completely finished with school. Currently she's working about 25-30 hours per week. Also, after recently completing her semester-long internship at an Austin elementary school where she worked with a wonderful librarian and really got to see good librarianship in action, she is now volunteering at the local library where they've promised to give her advanced volunteer responsibilities because of her degree and background. Her blog continues to entertain us all, and she is constantly approached by people looking for good book recommendations, especially young adult literature (her chosen specialty).
4 - Since we're soon going to need help moving our stuff in and out of the storage unit, and then in Boston when we arrive, I've been volunteering to help with as many of the recent moves people have made into and out of our ward boundaries as I can (Other reasons I generally volunteer: There's no better way to welcome and get to know new people or make sure people leave on a good note, I certainly need all the points in the hereafter that I can get, and moving heavy furniture and boxes saves me a trip to the gym. It's a win-win all around).
5 - We were invited to join some good friends for a boating trip on Saturday at a local lake. We hadn't been boating for almost three years, and we had a fantastic time! We both went wake boarding and I also got out on a huge slalom ski. Afterward, to my happy surprise, Janssen said that she may have been converted to the idea of owning a boat some day if the right circumstance presents itself. She realized more than she had before that boating can be a great way to bond as a family and with friends. I heartily agree.
I'll update later with a photo or two from the boating trip if we receive them from our friends.
1 - We put our house on the market in late May and had an offer - a good offer - within four days. We were surprised and grateful, and have passed the option period. It's now looking very likely that we'll be homeless on July 7th. We plan to put most of our things in storage and stay with friends/house-sit for the 6 weeks we'll have left here before our move to Boston in mid-August.
2 - School started on Thursday for my summer semester. There are two 5.5-week sessions that move at a pretty fast pace, and I'm also taking the remaining three CPA exams on July 1st, July 18th, and August 8th. I can retake them if I don't pass any or all of the sections. But it will be a great blessing and a load off my plate if I pass them all before starting work in August.
3 - Janssen graduated last month and is completely finished with school. Currently she's working about 25-30 hours per week. Also, after recently completing her semester-long internship at an Austin elementary school where she worked with a wonderful librarian and really got to see good librarianship in action, she is now volunteering at the local library where they've promised to give her advanced volunteer responsibilities because of her degree and background. Her blog continues to entertain us all, and she is constantly approached by people looking for good book recommendations, especially young adult literature (her chosen specialty).
4 - Since we're soon going to need help moving our stuff in and out of the storage unit, and then in Boston when we arrive, I've been volunteering to help with as many of the recent moves people have made into and out of our ward boundaries as I can (Other reasons I generally volunteer: There's no better way to welcome and get to know new people or make sure people leave on a good note, I certainly need all the points in the hereafter that I can get, and moving heavy furniture and boxes saves me a trip to the gym. It's a win-win all around).
5 - We were invited to join some good friends for a boating trip on Saturday at a local lake. We hadn't been boating for almost three years, and we had a fantastic time! We both went wake boarding and I also got out on a huge slalom ski. Afterward, to my happy surprise, Janssen said that she may have been converted to the idea of owning a boat some day if the right circumstance presents itself. She realized more than she had before that boating can be a great way to bond as a family and with friends. I heartily agree.
I'll update later with a photo or two from the boating trip if we receive them from our friends.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Ward Talent Show, May 2009
After almost three years in what is widely known as the "live music capitol of the United States", I finally realized last December that it was time to gather some of the talented musicians (including, coincidentally, the drummer from my high school band, Not Too Shabby) in our ward to play some music. Within a few weeks we had a nice little group of friends who, despite busy schedules, have been able to get together to practice about once a month for the last five months. It has been a huge blast and a welcome reminder of how amazingly fun it is to play in a band.
Last night we played a couple of songs at our ward talent show. It wasn't quite as well received as last year's lip sync with Janssen, which people kept asking us if we'd be repeating this year, but it was fun, and the bishop came up to me afterward, gave me a big, firm handshake and said, "You guys rocked!"
Last night we played a couple of songs at our ward talent show. It wasn't quite as well received as last year's lip sync with Janssen, which people kept asking us if we'd be repeating this year, but it was fun, and the bishop came up to me afterward, gave me a big, firm handshake and said, "You guys rocked!"
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Good Fortune
Janssen took the car visiting teaching today, and just minutes before our home teacher was scheduled to pick me up to go to the church building to practice a song for a musical number we're singing on Easter Sunday (don't worry, the other singers are quite good, and I just have to hit those base notes and stay in tune), she called and informed me that our car wasn't starting. The engine wasn't even making the slightest effort of turning. Just a click here and there.
We discussed our options briefly, my home teacher showed up, and he agreed to help us jump start our car. It worked like a charm, and we sent him on his way to the church and I said I'd be along as quickly as I could, hoping I might be able to drop by Auto Zone (the ox was in the mire on this one) after dropping Janssen back off at home. Fortunately, Auto Zone's 3-year warranty on our battery was still in effect, and after confirming it was dead, they quickly replaced it at no cost to us. I arrived at the church 30 minutes late, but the practice was scheduled for 60 minutes, so I caught half of it.
Please welcome our newest car part into the family (he's not beautiful, but we love him):
In another stroke of good fortune, I came across an abandoned white rose on campus on Thursday. It was in perfect shape, but quite lonely. I decided to show the rose real beauty by presenting it to Janssen, who said she'd rather have a free rose over a purchased rose any day. Our friends were wrong when they told Janssen recently that we've changed since we moved into the ward acting like "newly weds." We've still got it! :)
We discussed our options briefly, my home teacher showed up, and he agreed to help us jump start our car. It worked like a charm, and we sent him on his way to the church and I said I'd be along as quickly as I could, hoping I might be able to drop by Auto Zone (the ox was in the mire on this one) after dropping Janssen back off at home. Fortunately, Auto Zone's 3-year warranty on our battery was still in effect, and after confirming it was dead, they quickly replaced it at no cost to us. I arrived at the church 30 minutes late, but the practice was scheduled for 60 minutes, so I caught half of it.
Please welcome our newest car part into the family (he's not beautiful, but we love him):
In another stroke of good fortune, I came across an abandoned white rose on campus on Thursday. It was in perfect shape, but quite lonely. I decided to show the rose real beauty by presenting it to Janssen, who said she'd rather have a free rose over a purchased rose any day. Our friends were wrong when they told Janssen recently that we've changed since we moved into the ward acting like "newly weds." We've still got it! :)
Sunday, March 22, 2009
All Good Things Come to an End
Janssen and I have had a fantastic Spring Break. Here are a few photos of our camping trip with friends.
Gathering for breakfast in the morning:
Steamy hot chocolate to warm the soul and burn the tongue:
This is Lucy. I love Lucy. She was born just two weeks after I arrived in Texas, and she'll turn three in just a couple of weeks. We put in a request to take Lucy with us to Boston, but our request was denied.
We've appealed, but Lucy's not so sure she wants to leave Texas.
The campground had some amazing climbing trees that I had to take advantage of even though it had been awhile and I felt less invincible than in times past (meaning I felt that scared-to-fall feeling a couple of times when I let myself think about my precarious situation):
It was a good group. Lots of fun kids. We taught them how to play Red Rover and they LOVED it. We even had a little talent show in this amphitheater.
And learned that Natalie is from Boston! Who knew?
That's it for now. Love you all! Pet the donkey on your way to the comment section.
Gathering for breakfast in the morning:
Steamy hot chocolate to warm the soul and burn the tongue:
This is Lucy. I love Lucy. She was born just two weeks after I arrived in Texas, and she'll turn three in just a couple of weeks. We put in a request to take Lucy with us to Boston, but our request was denied.
We've appealed, but Lucy's not so sure she wants to leave Texas.
The campground had some amazing climbing trees that I had to take advantage of even though it had been awhile and I felt less invincible than in times past (meaning I felt that scared-to-fall feeling a couple of times when I let myself think about my precarious situation):
It was a good group. Lots of fun kids. We taught them how to play Red Rover and they LOVED it. We even had a little talent show in this amphitheater.
And learned that Natalie is from Boston! Who knew?
That's it for now. Love you all! Pet the donkey on your way to the comment section.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Spring at the University of Texas
I snapped these photos while walking through campus the other day.
There are some pretty great trees around here. Big and old.
The Tower. Click here to see it lit up in burnt orange at night, like they do for many home games.
I haven't been able to decide if Texas has bluer skies than Utah or not. I think they're about the same, though Texas seems to have more blue-sky days.
Texas State Capitol Building
If I could pause the weather to keep it this gorgeous and temperate for most of the year, I would.
UT's campus is at the northern end of downtown Austin (the picture of the capitol building is taken from UT, looking southward toward downtown), and is pretty spread out with roads running through it, which makes it seem less consolidated than BYU.
The stadium can hold almost 100,000 people (compared to the approximately 65,000 of BYU's stadium), and since there are no professional sports teams in Austin, UT gets all the attention and support of Metropolitan Austin's 1.6 million residents. That's a lot of burnt orange shirts, skirts, boots, hats, etc., especially in one place. Here's a photo of a football game Janssen and I attended last Fall. If you can't tell, EVERYONE is wearing burnt orange and white (whoops - except maybe Janssen).
There are some pretty great trees around here. Big and old.
The Tower. Click here to see it lit up in burnt orange at night, like they do for many home games.
I haven't been able to decide if Texas has bluer skies than Utah or not. I think they're about the same, though Texas seems to have more blue-sky days.
Texas State Capitol Building
If I could pause the weather to keep it this gorgeous and temperate for most of the year, I would.
UT's campus is at the northern end of downtown Austin (the picture of the capitol building is taken from UT, looking southward toward downtown), and is pretty spread out with roads running through it, which makes it seem less consolidated than BYU.
The stadium can hold almost 100,000 people (compared to the approximately 65,000 of BYU's stadium), and since there are no professional sports teams in Austin, UT gets all the attention and support of Metropolitan Austin's 1.6 million residents. That's a lot of burnt orange shirts, skirts, boots, hats, etc., especially in one place. Here's a photo of a football game Janssen and I attended last Fall. If you can't tell, EVERYONE is wearing burnt orange and white (whoops - except maybe Janssen).
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