Nearly February

It's hard to believe it's the end of January! But here we are, and time doesn't show any signs of stopping. David and I are keeping busy - he with his grad school stuff, and me with mine! I'm (more or less) on track to finish my thesis and graduate in April, although there is much to be done between then and now. I'm still working part-time as a teaching assistant, and I've recently taken on the role of part-time accounting assistant at the photo studio.

In my free time, I like to sleep.

Work and school aside, it's been a busy couple of months! David, Callie and I spent the holidays here in Montreal for the first time - a bittersweet experience, but one with its own kinds of fun. Early in the month we hosted a 20-person Christmas party, which featured a game of "yankee swap" and lots of festive beverages! And if you're on facebook, you already know that the party also featured a really, really large tree. We had a great Christmas tree this year. (:

On Christmas Eve we went out for a goofy movie, took a walk through the artistic lighting displays at Place-des-Arts, and eventually went to eat our favorite dumplings in Chinatown. On Christmas day we spent hours and hours opening our gifts and playing with each one in turn, which was silly and a lot of fun. We skyped with both sets of our families, made a HUGE turkey dinner, and even went outside to play in the snow. It's always lovely to have a white Christmas, and Callie is just too adorable to believe when she gets in the snow and starts frolicking!

Christmas Eve

Opening Gifties

Cookin' supper!

Frolic!

January hasn't slowed down much, which is fun in some ways and challenging in others. The fun things have included (among other things): toasting the New Year with pals, celebrating several friends' birthdays, throwing an "Extra-Classy Engagement Party" for two of our good friends, and attending bridal fairs (ladies' road trip)! And it's not even February yet!!

Happy New Year!

The best (view of) fireworks EVER.

Extra-Classy!

It was cold in Picton, ON that day. But fun!

The road-trip-sunset that WOULD NOT QUIT. (Blast those highway railings... but you get the idea!)

Also, we've gotten some snow. At one point it was over a foot deep on our back patio! It's hard to really appreciate it from this angle, but look under the chairs (on the right) to get an idea of the depth. The temps have been up and down (sometimes in the -15 range, sometimes above freezing and rainy), and right now it's more of an ice slick out there, but I thought I'd show you what it CAN be like when winter really gets going.

Today David and I spent hours and hours doing our respective "work" for the day (accounting, reading, writing, highlighting, emailing, even blogging), and at 8:30 p.m. realized we hadn't yet considered dinner. So naturally we went out for (you guessed it) dumplings! On our way home we discussed possible dinner options for Valentine's day, and inadvertently stumbled onto what we believe could be the setup for an episode of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia." It all started when I had a brain fart and said "restaurants" instead of "reservations," and it spiraled out of control from there. We imagine the scene would go something like this:

Dee: (after trying to convince Mac that a guy is taking her out to dinner on V-Day) I sure hope that place takes restaurants for dinner.
Mac: (looks at Dee quizzically) Wait, what? Takes restaurants?
(Mac looks over his shoulder at Dee who has stopped walking; she goes rigid, then begins to have a seizure and drops to the ground)
Mac: Whoa, are you having a stroke or something?! (pauses, watches Dee)
Dee: (close up as she flops on the ground)
Mac: (pause, still looking down at Dee, who is out of frame) You better hope the hospital takes restaurants.

[cut to opening credits and chipper music]

Hopefully if you've seen the show, you'll appreciate the mood and comedic timing we were imagining.We haven't worked out a B-story yet, but yes, writers for "It's Always Sunny" - you can send the check directly to me.

Following our moment of creative genius, we've decided it's time to reward ourselves with salted caramel hot chocolate and mini peanut butter cupcakes. Now that's the way to end a Friday night!

Catching up

I suppose I only have Facebook to blame. That silly site has allowed me to feel much more connected with many of my friends and family than I did when I began this blog. Not to mention that the lure of regularly posting short updates, in clean paragraph-form and followed by near-instant "likes" and "comments," was just too strong to resist. But almost a year and a half later I've begun to lament my lonely little blog, so at last I present to you an update! (Although perhaps Ryan on "The Office" was truly right when he said "blogs are out.") Well, I'll be sure to post a link to this on Facebook.

I imagine no one really wants me to write a wordy novella here, explaining every moment of the past 17 months that you can then spend a week or two trying to read. So the simplest thing I can think of to cover so much ground is by listing some of the highlights of what we've been up to! I realize this is more of a "starting off the new year" kind of thing to do, but begging your indulgence at my early start for a change, here goes nothin!





2010
August
- Derek and Hazel came up to visit us in Montreal for a week!
- David attended the ICMPC conference in Seattle, WA






September
- I started classes as a MA student in Anthropology at Concordia University! (Still working part time for the photo studio as well)
- We went to a ridiculous McGill vs. Concordia football game
- Joan and Jesse came to visit us for the weekend!








October
- I visited Arkansas for Elissa and Kevin's wedding!
- David attended a conference in Boston, MA
- Little Red Riding Hood and the Brawny Man (plus friends!) went to McGill's grad student Halloween party




November
- I was sick on my birthday, but still had a yummy take-out dinner at home followed by a couple of drinks with friends (:
- Found out that Callie would need surgery on her leg
- Attended a Bollywood dance recital, featuring my friend Jen!







December
- We went to a McGill music lab Christmas party at Meg & Ryan's place
- Had a Christmas party at our place!
- Spent Dec. 15-29 in Arkansas for the holidays
Highlights included:
   -A trip to Eureka Springs (and the best pancakes we have ever eaten, courtesy of The Crescent)
   -Seeing Tron in the theater
   -Christmas!
   -Attending a Razorback basketball game
   -Visiting grandparents and family in central AR
   -Dinner and drinks with friends
   -Shopping for items with US prices
   -I got a tattoo, along with my sister (who got two)! 




2011
January
- Celebrated the New Year with Meg and Ryan
- Cried when Arkansas lost to Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl
- Spent Jan. 13-21 in Rome, Italy - realizing a long-time dream for us both!
  (Also, David participated in a pretty exciting conference throughout this time... it was kind of our excuse for going!)

February
- Had a fancy French dinner at L'Express Restaurant with my hubby <3
- Attended Giselle (ballet) with David and Jen
- Went to Nuit Blanche in the Old Port with David, another David, and his wife Christy





March
- Our first niece, Elizabeth Hazel Sears was born (daughter to Chris and Laura)!
- I presented a paper at a local grad student conference (my first conference presentation ever)
- Hosted a well-attended concert, "Rockin' So Callie Be Walkin'," to help raise funds for Callie's surgery!





April
- Callie underwent a very successful leg surgery! And spent the next two months healing remarkably quickly. (:

May
- David passed his French language exam! (A big, exciting milestone.)
- We found a new apartment, right in the heart of downtown Montreal!



June - July
- We moved in to the new apartment!
- David went to a conference in Houston from June 13-17, then traveled to Fayetteville
- Callie and I joined David in Fayetteville on June 22nd, for a month-long trip in the US!
Highlights included:
   -Derek and Hazel's first yard sale
   -Our 5th wedding anniversary
   -Billy and Jenna's wedding
   -Bachelorette party for my baby sister Darby
   -Darby and Stephen's wedding!!
   -A cross-country move from Arkansas to California with Derek, Hazel, and 6 animals
   -Almost a week-long visit with Chris, Laura, and Elizabeth in California!

August
- David attended a conference in Rochester, NY, and visited Joan and Jesse
- I attended a Pride Parade that took place literally outside my door!

September
- We went to Boston, MA for a conference/visit, along with Hauke and Isabelle
- We attended ComicCon 2011 in Montreal, where we saw (and I met!!) James Marsters (aka "Spike" from Buffy)
- We attended another silly football game with pals, this time McGill vs. Bishop (oh McGill, can't you even try to win?)
- Our McGill B-League softball team came in 2nd place in the championships! Way to go, Ratbatsters!



October
-  We went to Oka, QC with Meg and Ryan for apple picking and engagement portraits!
-  David, me, Meg, Ryan, Mikaela, and Darryl went to play paintball for the first time ever! It was fun, although a little crazy to still have circular bruises on my legs two and a half weeks later!
- David and I went to see Evanescence in concert, at a venue right across the street! It was a great show.


Well I think that brings us up to date! (Wow, we seem to have been rather busy..!) Here's a quick summary of how things are going now, and where we're headed in the near future:

I am 75% of the way through my master's degree in Anthropology. I've finished all my coursework, and I'm literally days away from completing the fieldwork portion of my research. Next up I'll be reading every reference I can get my hands on, organizing the data I've gathered, and by January I should be writing my thesis! If all goes according to plan, I will finish it (and graduate) in April 2012! I am also working as a teaching assistant, and still part-time for the photo studio. David, meanwhile, is in the very early stages of the six months of his program that make up his "comps," or comprehensive exams. A friend just went through this process (successfully!), and let's just say it will be intense! Starting with research, musical analyses, and paper-writing and ending in observed teaching, full-day tests, and a committee review, the comps are not going to be a lot of fun and will be celebrated mightily upon completion! Suffice to say, David and I will have our shoulders to the wheel for the next few months, while we keep reminding each other that there IS a light for each of us at the end of this academic tunnel.

In other news, David and I will be staying in Montreal for the holidays this year. It will be the first time ever that we won't come home for Christmas, and needless to say it will be a big change for us! We will miss everyone so much, but we're doing our utmost to make the best of it. I think the two giant containers of Christmas decorations sitting in the laundry room will make it easier for me, at least... After three years of having an apartment too small to decorate, I am ecstatic to be able to break out all the lights, garland, and goodies that my heart desires! Not to mention the live tree (7' tall) that we'll be getting this year! (Just imagine my joy at being able to use all my Christmas ornaments, and not just the 8 smallest ones that will fit on a 2' tall fake tree...) I've promised David that I'll wait til after Thanksgiving to start busting it all out, but it's definitely something I'm looking forward to!

Until then, it's my birthday next weekend, US Thanksgiving, the first snow of this winter (it hasn't happened yet, but I know it can't be far off!), and before we know it it'll be Christmas-time! Cheers to getting in the spirit early!

Better late than never!

Hey everyone,

At long last, a blog update! In some ways the time seems to have flown by, although when I look back through my pictures it seems a lot has happened since February. Many of these events have been chronicled on Facebook already, which is partially why I've been so slow to update here. But now I have months and months to catch up on, so let's get right to it, shall we?

At the end of February, David and I drove with our friends Meg, Mikaela, and Alison to New Hampshire. Alison's family offered to put us up in their home for a few days, so that we could take advantage of the nearby ski slopes.





We explored the frozen woods and a nearby lake, plus spent two days skiing at local resorts. Some of us were more advanced than others, but we all managed! We had a great time, and on the way back we visited the Cabot Cheese Factory. Remembering back to a time when there was snow is fairly disconcerting, but we had a ton of fun and I didn't want to skip it in the blog! For more pictures of our ski trip, click here:

2010-02 Ski Trip

In March, our good friend Tyler made the trip up to Montreal from Orlando to come visit us. It was so great to have him here! He arrived just in time to make it to the Muse concert, which started only a few hours after his flight arrived in Montreal. The show was fantastic, and we all got t-shirts. Although he was only in town for a few days, and unfortunately we were each sick during one part or another of his visit, we tried to make the most out of the time we had.



We toured the old port together, which was interesting given that it was still so cold out and much of the water was still frozen. Another evening we went out with a group of friends for some beers and a few games of pool. We were so glad Tyler was able to come see us, and we hope to return the favor in the near future!

2010-03 Tyler's Visit

In May, I worked as an assistant photographer at my first wedding. So far I have shot three, but the season will really pick up in the next month or so! I am really enjoying it, and definitely learning a lot. And now more than ever, I appreciate how much work mom and dad do at these weddings!!

Toward the end of May, David and I left Callie with our landlords and headed down to Jacksonville, Florida, where we met up with Andrew, Annalise, Hazel, and Derek. We had such a fun week with the family! It was great to recharge our batteries a bit, and the weather was perfect for several days of exploring the beach and the city. And it's always fun to see brothers (and family in general) reunited!

2010-05 Jacksonville Visit

We were really grateful to have the opportunity to head to sunny Florida for a few days, and it was nice to have a little break from the ordinary. Since we don't get to see Andrew and Annalise all too often, this was an especially rewarding trip!

June was a pretty busy month for us. One of our friends here in Montreal finished up her program at McGill, so we all had a goodbye party for her. It was nice having such a big group of us together before she left!



A few days later, we got nearly the same group together for David's birthday. I got them all to assemble at one of David's favorite local restaurants, and then brought him in for a surprise birthday dinner! Afterward we went to Meg's for a little bubbly. (:



David got a pretty good haul for his birthday...



June 25th was our fourth wedding anniversary, and we celebrated with a picnic in Park Lafontaine. The weather was perfect and the park is really beautiful this time of year. We brought a ton of fruit, cheese, and sandwiches, plus little Callie of course. She had a great time too! It was just a really nice day. And that night, we had our traditional sub sandwiches in honor of the late-night subs we had for dinner on our wedding night! It wasn't Jimmy John's, but it was yummy as always!

2010-06

One of David's birthday gifts that came a little late was a small remote controlled helicopter. Some friends of ours found a copter supplier online a while back, and this thing is more fun than you can imagine! I ordered one for David, but since it shipped from Hong Kong it took until nearly July to arrive. But it was worth the wait! Callie isn't so sure about it, but seriously, this thing is great! (Incidentally we also got one of these for dad's combined birthday/father's day gift, and it seems to have gone over pretty well!)





On July 1st, David and I took a couple of buses to Niagara Falls, Ontario, where we met up with mom and dad. We spent all day Friday and part of Saturday exploring first the Canadian side and then a bit of the American side. The Horseshoe (or Canadian) Falls were truly stunning, and we had an incredible day on Friday doing almost every tour we could fit in! We saw the rapids, took a ride on the Maid of the Mist (just... wow), went "Behind the Falls," and even experienced "Niagara's Fury"! We were constantly getting drenched, but the weather was perfect for it and we had such a great time!

2010-07 Niagara Falls

After the falls, mom and dad drove us all back to Montreal, where they stayed with us for a few more days. Unfortunately the city was hit by a freak heat wave, but we tried to stay cool however possible! We ended up getting an A/C unit, which has just made all the difference! (Thanks mom and dad!) We also went out for a few nice dinners, saw Toy Story 3, and of course watched a few World Cup games. It's been nearly two years since my parents were able to come visit, and we loved having them here with us!

For now, things have gone more or less back to normal. I am still working with the photo studio, and have recently started assisting with some fashion photography, as well as the product photography and retouching work that I started with. Graduate school is getting closer and closer, and although I haven't yet spoken to the studio about it, at the moment the plan is to start classes in early September. Meanwhile, David is busy as ever with coursework, research, and preparations for a conference next month. We are also looking forward to a visit from Derek and Hazel, who should arrive at the end of July! We are lucky that we've been able to see so many of our friends and family this year already, and although we miss you all, we are having a great time up here!

At last - an update!

I know it's already February (!!) but I feel that I should backtrack and discuss Christmas. Christmas was great! We planned carefully this year and managed to spend more than two weeks back home in Arkansas, and it made such a difference. In 2008 we had around half that much time, and it just wasn't enough! This year felt a little more manageable, and we had a wonderful visit with friends and family. As always there are tons of pictures, and you can find them here!

The day after our arrival was Derek's birthday. We had a nice walk around the lake with the dogs and took a few portraits, as well as a break to swing for a bit. (:



Then we had cake and presents, and ended up at La Hacienda for dinner. I hope Derek enjoyed it as much as we did - I know David and I were starved for some decent Mexican cuisine!

The next day, David and I went with my parents down to south-central Arkansas, to visit my Mamaw for her 90th birthday. It was really nice, and gave me a chance to see some family members who I haven't seen in at least a year, some much longer. Plus lunch was good ol' southern fare - a buffet of fried catfish, fried corn nuggets, fried everything! All Mamaw's favorites, and definitely not the kind of meal we can pick up in Montreal.



Andrew, Annalise, Chris and Laura joined us at Hazel and Derek's house shortly thereafter. There were lots of games played (including poker and Star Trek Scene It), as well as a trip to Lokomotion Family Fun Park. When we got there it was all but deserted, but the staff seemed more or less happy enough to set us up with go karts, mini golf and arcade games. The weather was gorgeous and it was a really fun afternoon!



We also visited Taste of Thai for dinner one night, followed by our traditional walk around the square to admire the (always beautiful) lights. Other activities during the week included David and his brothers playing frisbee golf, the ladies going out for shopping, and Derek and Chris repairing the ailing fish pond. We had a lot of fun opening stockings on Christmas Eve, and of course exchanging presents on Christmas day. Dinner that night featured Christmas crackers full of little toys and golden crowns - very regal!





On the morning of the 26th we headed over for Christmas at the Gieringer house, where Darby and Stephen joined us. Callie also met Dex, mom and dad's exuberant (and large) puppy, for the first time, and by the end of the week Callie had really put him in his place! But for the most part they got along just fine.



The family opened presents and had a really nice boxing day dinner together. Darby was still a little uncomfortable because of her foot surgery, but she looked cute anyway.



We also realized how much fun the Wii can be, and had a ton of fun playing the sports games. Turns out most of us are pretty darn good at Wii golf! (Although personally, I particularly enjoyed the archery.)



One night David and I walked through campus, and finally found our names on Senior Walk. I can't believe it took this long to go find them, but it was cool once we did. Especially since there wasn't too much ice on top of our names, and we were actually able to read them! (And if you're wondering, yes, Cara Gieringer is my cousin. Way to go, Cara!)





We also got to see some of our friends a couple of times while we were home, and it was really great to catch up. As always we would have loved to see them more! I also was lucky enough to get to photograph Courtney, Amos, and their two children Maddie and Jude in mom and dad's studio one afternoon. Those pictures are already up on facebook and flickr, if you want to see more of their beautiful family.





Our last evening at home was New Year's Eve, and we celebrated it with mom, dad, Darby and Stephen. Mostly we played Wii, and then raised our glasses at 12:00 to bring in the new year!



We left Arkansas on the morning of the 1st and came back to Montreal. Thankfully this year we had zero travel problems, and the trip went very smoothly. We were sad to leave, but so happy that we were able to have an extended visit.

Since we got back, things have been an odd mixture of busy and slow. January seemed to be the month of birthdays, so each weekend we had a celebration to attend. One weekend we went bowling downtown (under blacklight) in a trendy club, another weekend we went to see the opera Tosca, and still another weekend was a pancake dinner followed by a visit to an electronic music festival called Igloofest! It was cold and crowded, but very cool.



Other than the birthdays, the month was fairly slow for me. I tried to find projects to do around the apartment, including making a set of stairs for Callie to get on and off the bed with. I used some old shelves we had sitting around, and actually had a lot of fun planning and then building the stairs. And Callie seems to like them!



David has been very busy with work and school, but it seems to be paying off for him well. Recently a research project he is involved with was featured on a Quebec TV show! In that particular experiment, the lab was studying the effect of different musical styles on the physiology of listeners. It's actually an experiment that I participated in once, too, but I guess that was a different session than the one that was videotaped for this show! Stephen McAdams, who you'll see in the video, is David's advisor. Unfortunately the video is in French, but if you watch it you'll see David attaching electrodes to participants in the audience. :) Fun stuff! (Also, you really only need to watch about the first 1/3 of the video - the rest of it is just the talk show! But if your [Quebecois] French is pretty solid, then by all means feel free to enjoy it.)

See the video here!

In other news, I have finally gotten a job! A local photo studio has hired me to work as a studio photographer and assistant, and also as a 2nd shooter for wedding photography in the summer. On top of that, I will probably also end up taking on some administrative and managerial responsibilities within the near future. I got the phone call today and I will start on Wednesday. I am super excited, and SO glad that I held out, stayed (more or less) patient, and didn't give in and get another clerical job! This place seems like it could be a great fit for me, and I can't wait to get started.

Overall David and I are doing great, although the winter itself is as cold and gray as last year. Brr! Thankfully we have exciting prospects on the horizon, and that always helps to get us through the snow. The miles and miles of snow... (;