That's What She Said

It all began in January 2007, sitting on my friend’s couch in Baltimore. She said, "You just have to see this one episode of The Office.” It was “Casino Night” when Jim finally tells Pam how he feels and kisses her. From that day on I was hooked.

I was a recent college graduate trying to figure out my place in this new grown up world. I had recently started going to a young adults group at my new church and a few of them had recommended I watch the show, so when I got back from my trip, they let me borrow their copies of the previous seasons. The antics of this office helped me feel better about my 9 to 5 existence.And that is how a TV show came to define my post-college twenties.

A TV show define 7 years of your life? I know it sounds a bit extreme but hear me out. In those first few years out of college, friendships were built around watching this show. My closest friends were the five of us who always got together to watch the latest episode. They were the people who also thought it was hilarious my neighbors were named Dwight and Angela. We threw a premiere party and dressed in character. When I moved to DC we’d still chat online about the funniest lines. I gave up TV for lent except for The Office. And when Ross and I started dating many people referred to as “Jim and Pam”.

But when it was announced this would be the last season I was ready to say goodbye. I’d grown and changed over the years and so had the show. It was no longer appointment television for me, and rather something I’d catch up on when I could. (Don’t get me wrong, I’ve still seen every episode.) I’ve spent many hours laughing, crying, and cringing with these characters over the years and I’m sure my final hours with them tonight won’t be any different.

**Today I went looking for some of the daily calendar quotes I kept a few years ago, and this is the only one I could find. "I work hard all day. I like knowing there's going to be a break. Most days I just sit and wait for the break." - Kevin

Spring Is Here

With April came the start of spring weather which meant we started to do outside activities. I forget how much I miss the sunshine until I get to enjoy it again.

Cherry Blossom bike ride

We tried to outsmart the tourists by checking out the cherry blossoms on bike. Big mistake. Our regular routes that we can just fly down were full of cars and mass amounts of pedestrians jaywalking. We thought we would go around Hains Point, but even that was bumper to bumper traffic. Defeated we turned around to go home. Oh and did I mention that even though it was late in the season and "peak bloom" they actually hadn't bloomed yet? We did get our picture with the one blooming tree on the ride.

Purdue College of Science Distinguished Alumni Awards

Now before you get too excited, I wasn't at these awards as an honoree. This weekend marked my first meeting on the CoS Alumni Board. It was inspiring to hear from the award winners about how their time at Purdue was fundamental to not only their professional but also personal lives. I was also able to have conversations with fellow board members and I was amazed at how even though we were on campus decades apart we had some of the same memories. Boiler Up!

Capitol Crescent with Caroline

It only took us a year and a half to go on this bike ride. We planned to do this October of 2011 but the day before the temperature dropped and it snowed a few inches. This time the weather was perfect! A nice sunny but cool spring morning, so we biked to Betheseda and back and then ventured into Dupont for brunch. It was one of those perfect DC outings.

Landscaping day

This picture doesn't quite do our backyard justice. We spent WAY too long at Lowe's looking at their plants. The next day we planted a few junipers and rose bushes in the back and got flats of petunias and inpatients to add extra pops of color. The front has 3 rose bushes, a hanging basket, and an azalea tree. You can't live in DC and not have an azalea tree! We did one thing I NEVER would have done on the farm. We bought a bag of compost and manure to mix in the dirt. I guess that's what it means to live in the city...

Hello Again

I began the year with a simple goal: post our Weekly Family Photo. But then life happened. I don't necessarily mean the normal day to day activities took over (which of course they always do). I mean the kind of things that are big in your life and you can't think of the right words to say to truly share what's going on. Here we are almost three months later and I'm still not sure what to do about it. Instead, I'm just going to move forward. I'm going to post a monthly round up and then circle back to fill in the gap.

March

Caroline teaches her first yoga class

Our friend and co-worker Caroline needed to teach a yoga class to complete her teacher training. We got up early on a Saturday to catch our bus to the other side of town. For years I've heard her refer to her "urban family" which is a phrase I love. It's encouraging to know that even though our true families are far away, there are people here to celebrate accomplishments and life events with us.

Snow day!

We got our first (and only) snow day of the year in March. Since there wasn't anything more than a dusting in the city we couldn't even play outside. We spent the day painting the basement bedroom and discovered I inherited my mother's skills for doing trim. I'm very slow, but good if you're looking to hire someone. Also the lighting of this picture isn't very good, but it's a nice light blue/green.

Alison comes to town

One of the hardest parts of living in this city is that your friends tend to move away. Lucky for us, our friend Alison still comes back to DC for work and fun. She's great about scheduling a time for friends to gather and catch up and have fun. And no, I didn't plan to match my little pal.

Date night

We finally made it the "little Italian restaurant behind the liquor store" our former neighbors told us about. And it was worth the wait. The food was good and there was something special about being only one of about 10 tables in this little neighborhood spot.

Easter brunch with the CG

Our Community Group (CG) from church got together to celebrate Easter with a potluck brunch. Ross followed my family tradition by getting me a corsage even though the person left about six inches of stem. (Obviously the person has never had to actually WEAR a corsage...) After brunch we walked down the street to see a house on the market and walked past an Easter egg hunt in progress. Before church we were able to Skype with my sister and her family and with my parents visiting her, the whole family got to be together in a very 21st century way.

That's the month of March! Well, not everything, but our weekly pictures at least!