will I ever laugh again?

I guess there are going to be some pretty big changes in my life. we found the best apartment. we moved in 2 weeks ago, and now we're moving out. for the first time in 7 years I am in my own. I'm feeling... a lot of things. my heart is broken and I'm trying to learn how to breathe again.

no place like home

well, today I made it back to Ann Arbor after a long vacation away.

I love spending the holiday with my family. for the past two years, I have been out of the country on Christmas Day, so I've been savoring my time at home while I had time off from work. my birthday, Christmas, New Year's Day, and my dad's birthday are all crammed into a 2-week span of time, and it's always a ton of fun.

when I arrived home, a ton of goodies I ordered had arrived including some hats from Lindsey Nicole's etsy shop, my Burt's Bees holiday grab bag, and this lovely notebook from Kinsey. how awesome is this? Kinsey created these beautiful notebooks, sold them on her blog, and the proceeds went to charity. perfect gift with the bonus of warm-fuzzies for donating to a very worthy cause.

we also went to downtown Rochester, Michigan for my birthday dinner before I left for Mexico. the city of Rochester lights their buildings downtown from top to bottom during the holidays, and it's awesome to be down there at night. when I returned, we celebrated Christmas. my mom and I cooked up a storm (including crawfish macaroni and cheese) for New Year's Eve, and we went back downtown for my dad's birthday dinner before I had to jet back to Ann Arbor. it was all wonderful, and I always get sad leaving my family after the holidays. it will definitely be difficult to start working again.

I hope you all had a wonderful season, and that you all got everything you wanted this year. I know I did.

lucy

rest in peace, Lucy. I will always remember how you used to bark, and how you loved to play with your red ball, and "Jack." you could always make us laugh with your silliness. it will be a strange holiday season without you, but I hope you will be watching over us all. we love you, Lucy, and we will miss you every day.

lately...

this weekend I visited my parents. my mom was a crafter at a local craft show and I helped. or tried. the car I drive also some issues, so my dad took a look at it for me. I helped. or tried. a few weekends ago when I visited them, we went to the haunted corn maze just around the corner. they have moved to a small town, but at least there are a few fun things nearby. I really like spending free weekends with them. it's nice to just hang out and relax. it will be nicer over Thanksgiving and Christmas, when I have a longer break, and I can spend a few more days.

in a semi-related note, I have been sorely disappointed in my own photo efforts. I've barely been taking any, and I don't really find myself in many situations where I would want to. how sad is that? I think city life or living in very rural areas helps. in Grand Rapids, I would take photos all the time. at my parents' house, there are some interesting landscapes if you can see beyond the plane of the houses. I keep trying to do daily photo challenges, and failing. it's pretty frustrating.

anyway, the apartment hunt is still on, and all is well for now.

life update

well, well, well.

about time I actually wrote about life.

starting this week, I am no longer unemployed, yay! I am officially a parapro at a local high school. as someone with a teaching degree, this feel like a bit of a step down, but I'm thankful for any opportunity that comes my way. plus, this particular district is super flexible should an offer for a teaching position come my way, which is super awesome.

my dad recently went to Austria for a week on business, and I'm excited to go hang out with my parents next weekend. I can no longer take long weekends to visit them, but c'est la vie. I'm happy to have a job, anyway. it was getting a bit monotonous, being unemployed. I was spending way too much money and spending way too much time vegging out. I occasionally found some productive ways to spend my time, though.

but I think I'm ready for a new chapter. with this readiness comes lots of anxious feelings to find an apartment, but the amazing autumn weather and changing leaves (and lots of retail therapy) are helping sooth my nerves.

I hope I'm happy at my new job. I hope I find my place there, and work well with the people around me. I also hope I remember to take time for myself, and to work harder at being healthy and exercising more. I will try my best to keep life simple, and to embrace the little things that make me happy, and to spend more time with my best friend. I hope you all do too!

fathers' day

so I spent this past weekend at my parents' house. despite the usual madness, it was nice being home.

I played with puppies all weekend, went out for dinner on Saturday night for my parents' anniversary, and had some yummy french toast on Sunday morning to celebrate Fathers' Day. I would have liked to stay for Fathers' Day Indian buffet, but I had to work at 2 and no one would take my shift :(

stupidly, I dent take any photos of anything worthwhile. I have been taking my K-x with me practically everywhere, but the last time I used it was at the beginning of the month for Mothers' Day.

and since I don't have any photos from this weekend (sorry, Dad), I guess I'll share those.

ahaha, they're going to kill me for posting that first one, but it's just too good.

all in all, I'm grateful to have such supportive parents. I wouldn't be where I am today if it weren't for them. they put up withe through my shy childhood, my awkward teenage years, and my very mixed-up young adulthood. thank you, Mom and Dad for being you, and for letting me be me.

in recent news...

...I graduated!

unfortunately, we didn't get many good photos together because there are mobs of people around after the ceremony, so we met at a restaurant across the street. my mom didn't meet up with us until after the ceremony so the opportunities just weren't there until later when we were back at our apartment.

I'm not sure how my dad found me in the sea of graduates (or how I found them), but he pulled it off! I like how in the second photo my friend John is looking at me like I'm crazy. Jordan was easier to find - he ended up right on the end of the row. I, however, was swimming right in the middle of the sea of graduates.

after the ceremony, we went out to one of our new favorite spots, Graydon's Crossing. lots of yummy choices of "traditional English fare" and tons of Indian-inspired dishes as well. not to mention 46 beers on tap.

back at home, we had a celebratory drink before we all parted ways. my parents and brother back home, and Jordan's parents to their hotel.

Aussie pride! I wore my flag under my robe ;)

thouuuusands of graduates

I might have cried a little

I have the most wonderfully generous parents ever.