Catching Up - Kelly

I feel like I need to introduce myself because it's been so long since I've posted here! I was going to do a whole life update but to be totally honest there isn't really anything new going in my life- just a lot of the same old things keeping my busy. :) The quick run down is work is going well (I'm really loving my job this year), life is great in Chicago, Lucy is cute as ever, and I'm really happy!

I really just wanted to take a minute and write a post tonight about how much I really love living to close to where I grew up. I think a lot about how lucky I am to get to spend so much time with my sisters and parents but another added benefit of being in Chicago is staying connected with so many of the people I grew up with that live close by. I mean how ridiculous is at that I go to yoga three mornings a week with the girl who was one of my best friends in 7th grade? And how crazy is it that I can meet up on a Sunday afternoon to watch a Bears game with two of my best guy friends from high school? I seriously don't think it gets any better than living in a huge city that has every opportunity in the world while still getting the perks of having people who have known you your whole life constantly around you.

Here I am with aforementioned 7th grade friend, Kirby, at her bachelorette party a few weeks back. I wish I had a 7th grade picture of us to post... actually scratch that. If I remember correctly that was a pretty rough period for both of us looks wise. :)

On a completely different note I have a bunch of traveling coming up (which makes me really happy). New York (where I get to see some of my favorite cousins- Sammi and Matt & Jordan) and New Jersey for work then Juarez/El Paso to visit a good friend. As expressed above (and in about every post I write) I love Chicago but always get a little antsy when it's been too long since I've been on a plane so this is very good for me.

As my grandpa always says, it doesn't get any better than this. :)

Work That's Actually Work - Brady

So, normally the work I do every day doesn't feel that much like work. I like to read, I like to write, I like to think about education policy and teacher labor markets. There are times, of course, when I get bored or tired of a task or stressed out about a paper I have to write or a bad meeting with my advisor or something. But these days (my first year of grad school was a different story), I rarely dread going into my office.

HOWEVER, this week and next I have to do something that actually feels like work. It has me staring at the clock willing the minutes to go by because it's so awful.

The task is...calling people and asking them to complete a survey.

I. hate. this. I get a little nervous to talk to strangers on the phone anyway. That tendency, combined with the fact that I'm calling these people to ask them to do something is a recipe for an unhappy me. I have lots and lots of other work to get done these days, so I've been telling myself that I only need to make the calls for 30 minutes a day. I spend all morning dreading 10 a.m. - when I usually try to make the calls. Right before, I get so nervous that my heart beats faster, and my hands get shaky. As the phone begins to ring, I just keep my fingers crossed that no one will answer and that I can just leave a message. I watch the minutes tick by, and half an hour seems to take FOREVER.

So far, no one's yelled at me. And I only have to do this for 6 more days. But I hate every single second of it.

Here's What I Did This Weekend - Brady

This is the first weekend in a long time that Kevin and I have been in town. As much as I love traveling and all of the time we spend at Lake Wawasee during the summer, it was so nice and so relaxing to be in Chicago for a change. Here's what I did:

Friday Night:

- Drinks at a champagne bar (doesn't that sound fancy?) to celebrate our friend Kristin's new job

- Pizza at a neighborhood place

- Pumpkin ice cream at Bobtail with whipped cream on top

Saturday:

- Yoga in the butterfly haven at the nature museum in Lincoln Park. Such a cool experience, and a surprisingly hard class. We wandered through the museum after and were really impressed. The grounds are beautiful, too.

- Apple cider donuts, cheese curds, and apples at the Green City Farmers Market

- Lots of walking - to and from yoga/the farmers market

- Brunch at Bleeding Heart Bakery (Yum! This place is incredible, and the baked goods selection is overwhelming in the best possible way.)

- Shopping for mums for our balcony and a plant for my office

- Computer shopping with Kelly

- Burritos, followed by red wine with Kelly and Kevin

Sunday:

- This is the best part of the weekend. Kevin and I woke up at 7:30 to run, saw that it was raining, couldn't fall back asleep, so I made coffee and we just stayed in bed and read for over an hour. I haven't had a morning like that in ages. It was fantastic.

- While Kevin went to church, I worked around the condo.

- Lunch and shopping with my sisters

- Work around the condo and dinner

And that's that! It was just about perfect - a great balance of activity and rest and work. This coming week I start to TA classes, and the semester gets back into full swing. It was really nice to chill out a bit before all of the action begins again.

Door County, Wisconsin - Brady

Okay, okay. I suppose it's time that I update those of you who are breathlessly waiting to hear where Kevin took me on my mystery trip last weekend. Of course, 99% of the people who read this blog are my Facebook friends, so you probably already know. The rest of you also likely figured it out, as I put the answer as the title of this post.

Door County, Wisconsin!!!!

It's really beautiful up there. I think I wrote this a few posts back, but I have just been so into the Midwest recently. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip.

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This is where we stopped for dinner on the way up on Friday. Hinterland Brewery in Green Bay. No one was at the restaurant. There was apparently a football game of some kind going on. Did you all know that Green Bay has a team?

This is the absolutely delicious beer flight I ordered - all from Hinterland. I also think the rocks left on your table on the outdoor patio to hold down menus were pretty brilliant.

Coffee in the morning at our B & B - Reynolds' House in Sturgeon Bay.

My favorite place at the B & B - the swing on the big front porch.

This is from our hike Saturday morning. Can you see a trace of fall way up there?

Kevin and me at this tower you could climb and look out over Green Bay. Gorgeous.

Sunset Saturday night.

Sunday we drove around the country a bit and ended up at this gallery in an old barn.

We stopped at Cavepoint Park on our way home, and it was the best decision we made all weekend.

And then we extended our weekend just a bit by stopping in Milwaukee for dinner on the way home. I had no idea that city was so cool! Check out the pictures.

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And that was the weekend! Thanks, Kevin. You plan a mean mystery trip.