Catching up on six months!

Six months ago today, I flew across just about all of the United States I possibly could in one shot--3,000 miles later, Josh scooped me up from the airport, and gave me a moonlit tour of our new home.


There's a lot to love here. Our house has plenty of rooms, cubbies aplenty, a blackboard sprayed onto a wall in the kitchen, giant windows that spill light into the south half of the house, a wood-burning stove that was manufactured in Asheville, NC (not too far from my hometown), and an old and slightly cantankerous piano in the unheated front room of our basement. (I practice while wearing tough-guy gloves.) We love having a useable outdoor space, and an ambitious herb & veggie garden is already in the works! Of course, Seattle itself is stunningly beautiful. There's one part of the drive home that drops you over a ridge, and if it's a clear day, you get to look eye to eye with the Olympic Mountains, and I can't help but clap. 


I should have started this blog then, but I was a little overwhelmed with a lot of new in my life. Now that we have more of a groove, I hope to post at least weekly. To catch us all up, here's a recap!


September: I made it into town hours before Josh's birthday. We celebrated that weekend by walking in every direction, and began our search for the best coffee in town. I made him a peach pie with our very limited kitchen setup. He took me to a pick-your-own (free!) apple orchard, we made our own blackberry jam from wild berries in the park, and we saw a bald eagle at a park one day while we were eating amazing grilled cheese. We drove out to Index to do a little reconnaissance on some big rocks he wants to climb, and we pushed farther down the road until we made it to Washington's very own faux Bavarian village. Danielle was our first visitor, and, true to form, we ate our way through the city--Ethiopian, seafood, pastries, coffee, chocolate, more pastries, gelato, coffee again, cheese, salami, AND a winery. It was so good to have her here! All of our stuff and my car finally arrived (a story that deserves its own post--teaser: we hired the two most unfit manual laborers on Craigslist and I had a root canal) and we vowed to get rid of all Ikea stuff before we move again. Josh started his first quarter of his program late in the month, riding his bike about 11 miles roundtrip. 

See, it IS sunny here!

Near Index

October: My goodness, October was gorgeous. Josh got me a pass to a yoga studio two blocks away, and I think it really helped the transition. I started cooking almost every day, and began simultaneous part-time careers participating in focus groups and teaching a couple a first dance for their wedding. Aaron visited, and we went to Canada on a Tuesday (and got our passport stamped!) and toured a chocolate factory, making sure we got our six dollars' worth. (We did!) Svetlana visited a few days later, and we traipsed around the city in the rain, and visited our favorite food blogger's pizza place. Aaron and Svetlana are both so much fun to explore with--they're the kind of friend that doesn't take any energy away from me. On Halloween, we had about six trick-or-treaters. You can probably guess where the rest of those Reese's cups went.

Our view from our front window

Green Lake is my favorite midweek 5K route

November: I started volunteering in the gift shop at the stunning Central Library downtown. I work once a week for a few hours, and I really enjoy it. I knew that I wanted to give some time to the community, and the library is a civil service that I use a lot. At any given time, I have about 20 items checked out. (I joined Goodreads.com recently, and just heard that they've acquired an algorithm akin to that of Netflix that will predict books you'll enjoy based on your previous ratings.) Josh and I had Thanksgiving dinner here, just the two of us. He made a Spanish tortilla, and I made spiced cranberry sauce, roasted root vegetables, yeast rolls, and a pear/walnut/goat cheese salad, and my favorite apple pie.

View from the top of the library

Our first Seattle snow!

December: Actually, I wasn't in Seattle much during December. I did some contract work back in DC for a week, and then spent a deliriously perfect Christmas at home for 10 days. DC highlights included seeing great friends, a haircut by my favorite stylist (David), and finally meeting baby Xander! I made it back to Seattle just in time to welcome Casey & Laura, half of best bluegrass-for-bikers band The Bloodroots Barter I've ever heard. We rung in the new year with a view of the downtown fireworks from the outside of a bar next door, and a chocolate cake that does not mess around.

A real tree!

Ooooh, festive!

January: I joined a gym through a Living Social deal, and quickly became addicted to Zumba! On one of our most memorable days, we trekked out into the Olympic National Forest and spent the afternoon snowshoeing. It was perfect.

Near Steeple Rock

February: Josh's parents visited, so we played tourists again. We picked up some of the best scallops I've ever had and watched the Superbowl. Josh had to work while they were here, and they were lovely--they took me to a movie and to a meat-loving restaurant I'd been salivating over for a while. I had another two weeks of proposal work, so that kept me very busy for half the month. I like working at home, but often work at a local library or coffeeshop.

  February 5, and we had flowers already

There you have it! It's our own personal highlight reel. Come back again soon, and I'll tell you a more focused story, perhaps about our ridiculous moving day, or maybe about our slightly embarrassing TV habit. Any guesses?