The Inter-what???

So we've decided to take the plunge and get the internet!!! YAE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Here's the story: Since we're living off of student loans and savings right now, we've been going without a lot of things that aren't *necessary*. But after months of internet runs to our apartment complex office and local library (cut short by Felix's curiosity about the fans in the back of the computers and his newfound ability to climb stairs--fast), and walking around outside with our laptops trying to pick up an unsecured wireless network (note: frostbite inhibits your ability to type your password correctly), we've had enough. So we're done with Stone Age Living.
I'm super excited, and I know that having the internet in our home will make it possible for me to finish (umm...start) my thesis.

School Daze

So classes have been going well for Brian. He enjoys the courses and most of the assignments, and really feels like he is able to grasp the concepts quickly. I'm glad he's enjoying business school so much, even if he is in group meetings until 9 or 10 many nights.

Culture Shock

Twenty Signs We’re Not in St. George Anymore:

1. I took Felix outside to witness his first thunderstorm the other day. He was mesmerized the entire time. :-D
2. We walked through puddles the next day, because they hadn’t dried up overnight
3. I haven’t worn lotion for like a month. And I’m slowly getting over my addiction to lip gloss too.
4. I have wavy hair? No way!
5. Fans are dead serious about football (but it isn’t helping)
6. Cereal gets chewy if you forget to fold the bag down
7. Lightening Bugs!
8. No more cockroaches!
9. There are no Jello aisles in the grocery stores
10. There are separate beer, wine, and liquor aisles…
11. Our church ward is more than 3 blocks wide!
12. Temple trips take a whole day
13. Roads change name and direction without warning
14. Towns that are right next door really aren’t right next door, because there’s 3 miles of unincorporated nowheresville separating everything (thanks to the public land survey system)
15. An LDS temple recommend is not a valid form of ID
16. There are “Impeach Bush” signs everywhere
17. Pop cans are like gold. Or at least dimes
18. The soothing sound of a lovely Midwestern accent
19. People here know where Akron is, but not Kirtland anymore
20. When I make a comment about the nice weather, people quickly remind me that winter’s coming, and it’s going to be cold this year. Very cold.
    
    Can you think of more? Leave them as comments!

Isle Royale Pics 1-4

Summer Fun

Now that we’re unpacked and settled in, Felix and I have decided to get down to business having fun. So of course we called up our dear friends the Shakespears. Hyrum is so cute with Felix, and he knows just what to do to keep him happy: give him cheerios, find his pacifier, hold his hand. So precious! He’s going to be a great big brother.

So far we’ve been berry picking, to a lake, on a temple trip, and have had a few playdates together. Actually, the playdates were more like Laura goes over to the Shakespears and spends the whole day there because Brian’s gone at M-Trek. And Felix comes along to eat their food and sleep in their crib. Megan and Jeremy are awesome. My only question is, when are they going to start taking advantage of all of this free babysitting that they’ve built up? I think I owe them about two weeks worth!

Another discovery we’ve had is that little Felix is an absolute water baby—he just loves to swim!! He’ll splash around when I set him on a step in a couple inches of water, and when I carry him out into the deeper area he kicks his legs and almost propels himself across the pool, laughing out loud the whole time! Too much fun. But the funniest part is the size of his diaper after an hour in the pool. WOW. Oh, and all this time at the pool is giving him a tan that I’m becoming jealous of, so I think I need to work on that.

Speaking of laughing out loud, I think Felix likes grocery shopping. When we were at the store recently he got into a really goofy mood and started cracking up at anything I would say to him. His laugh is soooo cute, and contagious too—he soon had other shoppers laughing with him. My favorite is when people pass us, and then turn around and come back to tell me how darling they think he is. I just feel lucky that I’m the one who gets to stare at him all day!

More later.

This is the PLACE!

Hello from beautiful Ann Arbor! After our last long day of travel, we arrived on Wednesday and since then have been unpacking, taking care of errands, and meeting lots of new people. We're living in about a mile and a half south of the business school (safely out of the undergrad zone!) in an apartment/townhouse complex called Woodbury Gardens. People refer to it as "MBA gardens" sometimes since lots of other MBA families live here too.

Maybe it's because Michigan is so similar to Ohio (demographically, socially, and climate-wise) but I really feel like I have come home, without actually going home. My mom is planning monthly trips up to visit us too, which is awesome! Felix could never have too much of Grandma in his life!! (And I could never have too much of my mom!)

Brian has dove right into school with a pre-term Accounting course. That's 5 days straight of 8 hrs of class, and then a big exam to see if you learned enough to not have to repeat the material this Fall. Brian will take the exam after his M-trek, which begins next week. I'm tired just thinking about all that he's doing! The benefit of cramming this class in now is that it will open up his schedule (a little) for a music class or two, helping him check off a couple of the 20 credits required for that degree.

The M-trek is an optional experience for incoming MBAs, which offers them the opportunity to travel and bond with their classmates before school starts. There are Mtreks that go to different places all over the world, and students can sign up for one that suits their preferences. Brian chose the one that went to Isle Royale here in Michigan (12 hrs North--above the UP), since it was cheap, involved lots of strenuous hiking, didn't have too much partying, and also, it was cheap. He's really looking forward to the trip!

More from the Road

We're one time zone closer to our destination--in Iowa now, after a pretty long drive from Denver on Saturday. Did you know that Nebraska is really the longest state in the country? Because of the way maps are drawn, Texas appears bigger. But in reality, Nebraska's nearly six thousand miles wide. So says our recent experience.

Well, before this long drive we had a great time in Denver with Brian's dad and brother. Spencer taught Felix Cat language, and they're now working on Cow. I wonder what will come next? This kid is going to want to be a zookeeper! Since Dave is self-employed he was able ot take a few days off and drive us around to explore the area. We went to Pike's Peak and the Anasazi Manitou Cliff Dwellings (real sandstone 'apartments' built ~700 years ago that visitors can walk around in)! Both were incredible!

On the way up to the peak:

At the top!
At the Anasazi dwellings:
Peek-a-boo!

Luckily, Felix found a fast food place... (aka, mom)

So well preserved for how old they are, and how much traffic they get! We can hardly build a home to last 100 years now.

Now we're in lovely Cedar Rapids for a while. Felix met the LAST close relative on his list: Aunt Christy! They had fun together, and when we first arrived Felix showed off his new speaking skills by saying, "ma ma ma". He had been working on that in the back seat in Wyoming (another deceptively LARGE state!) Way to go Felix!

Of course Felix and Grandma Hall can't seem to get enough of each other, which is just the way it should be. Felix love to rock with Grandma, and he even made up a little jig for her! Hopefully now that we'll be living closer we can make more trips to visit family out in this area.

Onward Ho to Michigan!

So we're all packed up and on our way. All of our worldly posessions are the truck of a man named Steve, hired through uship. We're praying we'll see it again. If not, oh well. We can start over. :-)

For sanity's sake we've decided to take our time driving east. It will be a 5-stop, 10-day trip.

It helps Felix to not have to stare at the back seat for more than one day at a time, and plus it's been GREAT to visit family. We went to a Barnes family reunion in Standrod, ID, effectively quadrupling the population of the town for the weekend. We loved spending time with close family, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, and of course Felix's Great-Grandma Barnes!

Felix LOVES great-grandma!!MORE DADDY TIME!!

Felix got to meet Aunt Rachel!! (finally!) They hit it off well :-)

And a Hall family trip would never be complete without a little hiking.

Felix met a kitty at our fiesta on the last night of the reunion.
I think blue is his best color...

Someone loves grandma!!
What a sweetheart!!

After leaving Idaho, we drove to Yellowstone in Wyoming. And a trip there would never be complete without a visit to...


There are other guisers in the park too, and beautiful pools colored by mineral deposits:
That's my favorite. It's called sapphire pool. It made me want to jump in. But, the water's like 200 degrees. OUCH!
Some more hiking.
Nature baby!
AHHH! You'd never believe it, but Bigfoot came out of the trees and tried to run away with Felix. Good thing I caught it on camera.
Just kidding, I LOVE YOU BRIAN!! AND YOUR BEARD!!

Surreal, isn't it?
They totally just walk right in front of your car. COOOL.
More later!

The Big Move

Our time in sunny St. George is drawing to a close as we prepare for our move to Ann Arbor to begin Brian's grad programs. It's funny to think that "someday when we're in business school" is here, and that "someday after business school" is just around the corner!

Well, in between taking care of Felix, I have been spending my time packing, packing, and--you guessed it--packing. This also means dejunking, restocking the shelves at DI, and cleaning my apartment to a level that could only mean I soon won't be living in it anymore.

Unfortunately, Felix didn't seem to be a big fan of this work, since I can't do most of it one-handed. So he was acting a little more fussy than usual. That is, until the other day when he discovered a new, handsome playmate.

They've been best friends ever since.

Solo Hiking in the Zion Narrows

On Tuesday June 5th through Wednesday June 6th I hiked the famous Zion Narrows from top to bottom. Here are just seven photos (of the 150 I took) and a link to a mini-video diary I composed for those not fortunate enough to join me on this amazing adventure.

Zion Narrows Video Diary

Attack of the Baby Toys

During the last six weeks Felix inherited, acquired or borrowed an alarming number of baby toys and paraphanelia that are apparently beginning to multiply at night, slowly taking over our small apartment's diminishing square footage and creating a sort of micro-Disneyland for one in our living room.


















Of course Brian has recently had some fun with one of his favorite toys--the family convertible. Since 2004 our poor car has suffered at the hands of loose gravel, chipping paint, several parking lot door dings and two large trucks so we decided to treat our car, named Parker, to a new coat for Spring. This time we went back to the original factory color--Toyota 040 Super White!


Tell us what you think!