remembering

last-minute plans

this friday, we are going to

ithaca
(new york)

to see our friends kristen and nate,
and meet their super cute little guy, canon.

this trip will involve flying on a prop plane... which should be interesting slash scary.
i've never been to new york, and todd hasn't been in a long time. we are excited!

domestic fail

remains of nalgene bottle, glass cup, drips of what once was a plastic cup

this afternoon, todd called me to let me know he was coming home and bringing his home teaching companion with him. our house was clean, but there were a few dishes in the sink. i hate dishes in the sink, and i hate even more for guests to see them. the dishwasher was full, and i didn't have time to wash them. i remembered an old trick of my mom's-- stash them in the oven! genious!

and i forgot about them... until i was was pre-heating the oven to broil some bruschetta for dinner.

anybody know how to clean up melted plastic?

hallelujah!

we're done with the graduate school applications!!!

i don't do celebration dances, but you bet i did one tonight.

and now we wait.

Apps and Blessings

 Wow, we are boring. I have basically nothing interesting to blog about except how cold it is here (very cold) or how soft our new towels are (very soft). Sorry people, I think we are as boring as our blog right now. All we do right now is eat, sleep, work, scrape ice off the cars, and apply to grad schools.

Applying to school sounds pretty simple, but don’t be deceived. There is studying the material, studying test-taking strategies, researching schools and programs, online applications, writing multiple essays per application, editing and formatting drafts, preparing for interviews, traveling… not to mention the residual cooking, cleaning, dish-washing, bill-paying, shopping, and chores that necessarily fall on the non-applicant. And so far, GMAT prep, applications, and interview travel have cost several thousand dollars. It has taken almost all of our time (and money) for six of the seven months we’ve been married.

We’re tired. But we’re almost done, and we can already feel the stress of the last six months starting to dissipate. We have one more application to complete, due this weekend, and then we’re in the clear until we’re notified of interview decisions for the remaining schools. We should know where we’re headed by mid-Spring.

When I was younger, I thought people said they were grateful for their trials only because they knew other people had it worse. I realize now that we can also be grateful for certain trials because they are evidence of blessings. We are so grateful for the past six months, because the end result is that Todd gets to go to graduate school—that means he’s smart enough to apply to good schools, we have the financial means to send him there, we have the time and energy to devote to the process, and numerous other great blessings. It would be unfair to complain or even call this stress a “trial,” and we’ll take it!

But we’re also looking forward to a break, and to having time to do more exciting things. We had time to play Wii and totally reorganize our closet this weekend. It’s a start.

whidbey island