Snow and Sugar Cookies

Today is the first official day of winter, and we are definitely believing it. We have over a foot of snow on the ground here in Boston! It started a couple of days ago and is still snowing this morning. Most churches are cancelled, and I'm not sure if the bus will run to work in the morning.

After Matt finished his last paper yesterday, we walked through the snow to our new friends', the Stroups', house. Chris Stroup is also studying at BU, and Amy runs the international house where they live. They have a son named Micah who is so cute! We had pizza and decorated Christmas cookies. We are so thankful that we have started making friends, and that we have had such great fun preparing for Christmas!

The Busiest I've Ever Been!

I'm watching a movie for the first time in well over a month. The day's agenda is fairly open and doesn't include typing anything but this post. After finishing 85 pages (divided between two papers) and a nearly "all or nothing" final, I can breathe a bit easier. While the upcoming week involves some necessary reading toward a paper due my first class in the next semester, I offer this post as a tribute to my wonderful wife for her graciousness and encouragement these last four weeks.

The 390 square feet in our apartment make studying a bit difficult. Shannon graciously agreed to wear earphones to watch tv...




...although this was done with a bit of loving resentment :>)



What a wonderful woman!!
We miss you all!!
-matt :>)

"The Office"...the Clinic, rather..

So something about Halloween at the cardiology clinic made me feel like I might run into Dwight Schrute, or get to drink out of Pam's coffee mug. For those of you who are unfamiliar with these great characters, the belong to the show The Office (which is brilliant, by the way). Anyway, we were supposed to dress up like a Disney character of our choice for Halloween at the hospital. Most did not follow the Disney protocol, as you see in the pictures. We only had like 5 kid trick-or-treaters, but we certainly entertained ourselves. Even one of the doctors had a dragon tail hanging nonchalantly from his conservative khaki trousers.

Hope you enjoy the pictures of this particularly quirky day at work! By the way, I'm supposed to be Wendy Darling from Peter Pan.
Shannon

A Connecticut Wedding

This weekend Matt and I rented a Zipcar and traveled down to West Hartford, CT for our friends David Wofford and Sarah Gross' wedding. We met David and Sarah at Asbury (Matt and Dave were roommates in the house where Matt and I--and David and Sarah--first started dating).

We decided that since this was peak weekend for leaves in the area that we'd make a mini-vacation weekend out of it. The wedding was beautiful, and the church was even having its annual pumpkin sale on the lawn, which added to the beauty of the fall day. The reception was like none I've ever attended--it lasted nearly 6 hours, but we weren't bored for a second! Wonderful food and drinks, great music and a very lively dancefloor made for a truly celebratory night. It was really great to reflect on our own wedding, now 8 months ago (!!), and to see our friends so deeply happy.

Today we got up and took the extremely scenic route home. We stopped in Wetherford, apparently another town known for witch trials and also considered "the most ancient town" (in CT maybe??). We stood in front of the house where George Washington met with the French delegates to plan for the Battle of Yorktown. Many homes we passed along the road had dates from the late 1600's. Also in Wetherford, we enjoyed their local scarecrow competition. You may see a few entries in the pictures above! The town was very "Gilmore Girls", which I loved, of course.

Now we are back home in the city, already longing for another outing into small town New England. Back to the real world tomorrow for us, but we wish David and Sarah the best on their honeymoon!

Sunday at Smolack Farms

We haven't posted in a couple of weeks, but we have definitely been soaking up the last few weekends before the cold sets in! A week ago we went with my friend from work, Katie, and her friend, Kevin, to Smolack Farms in Andover, Massachusetts. Andover was beautiful--apparently home to most of the private boarding schools in New England. In fact, Katie grew up living on a campus of a boarding school where her father taught philosophy.

But our goal last week was not only to explore New England academia, but to pick apples! We each picked a peck (like Peter Piper) and spent the rest of the day throwing fallen apples at trees (fun explosion if you hit it right), and taking in the beauty of autumn in Andover. We walked through a rather shabby pumpkin patch and had cider donuts, all while listening to a cover band playing (interestingly enough) Jack Johnson. All-in-all it was a great day!

A Day in Gloucester

Today Matt and I visited Gloucester, Mass, pronounced by the natives "glawster" rather than "glowchester" which is what I would have said. It was perfect weather--50's and sunny with ocean winds. We opted to go for the coast one more time because the leaves aren't quite at peak yet. We took the commuter rail train and watched the small Massachusetts towns pass by.

We arrived in Gloucester at about 11am and our adventures began. The town is famous as the nation's oldest fishing village, and it is also the setting of the movie, The Perfect Storm. At first, we weren't too impressed, but after some substantial walking, we came to a tiny bordering community called Rocky Neck, home of the famous Rocky Neck artist's colony. It was pretty amazing. We met artists and walked through their studios--some really great art, and some not so great art, were in abundance. We decided to keep going after the artist's colony to a beach we saw on our map. It was truly beautiful, but then our hidden surprise began. We passed a beautiful private drive and were about to turn and walk back toward Gloucester when the crossing guard for the private drive called us over. He said we looked like we wanted to go walking there (and we did). He gave us the go-ahead and we walked past some of the most beautiful coastland I have ever seen. Wooded areas, beautiful coastal colonial homes, and then a wildlife preserve. Finally, we ended our journey at a rocky coast with a pristine white lighthouse. It seems that every time we journey outward for a fun day, the Lord surprises us more than we expected.

After this great exploration, we headed back into town to find some food. We ended up at a warm local pub where we shared fish and chips. Amazingly, the Auburn game was on, so we stayed and watched until our train arrived. In the midst of this experience, we found ourselves in conversation with a slightly sad-seeming, older aristocratic-looking fellow who had had a few beverages. He was quite talkative, but a "low talker", so difficult to hear. He spoke much about how he is against organized religion and how all roads lead to the same place; about all of his world travels; and his studies of philosophy. He and I even talked a little about art. My heart wanted to burst forth "What do you think of Jesus?", but it seemed a futile topic at the moment. I smiled and listened, and maybe that's all he needed. But I pray that God draws him to His love.

Finishing our last sip, and the first quarter of the Auburn game, and hearing the last few comments from our friend about the differences between "tourists" and "travelers", it was time to head back toward our train. We boarded and headed home, exhausted, a little sad, and refreshed all at the same time. I realized, even with all of the natural beauty, how lonely the day would have seemed without being with someone I loved, and without knowing Jesus. It is funny how strange it still feels to be somewhere different. But, as I sit here and write, I remember that every new place feels like this at first. And hopefully as we get to know this new home, we can discover more of God's surprises, and share a little more light in unexpected places.

Season Change

Fall is officially here up in Boston. The cool wind is nice, but I keep remembering how short lived this season is before we step into the cold cold winter! As things cool off here, Matt and I are finally settling into our city lives. I went for a run yesterday along the Charles River and had one of those moments where you just realize that things really are good. The sun was setting over Cambridge (across the river) and I watched Boston University crew teams train along the water's edge. Canadian geese were flapping around in the water, and people and dogs and colorful leaves surrounded me. Praise the Lord for being faithful to us!

Matt is still liking his classes and has decided to change degree programs from Practical Theology to Liturgical Studies, which is much more where his heart lies. I am really enjoying my job and love seeign the kids every day. I have also decided to take an art therapy intro course next semester because the hospital has an excellent tuition reimbursement program. We've also both made some friends and have actually had PLANS on the weekend! In the midst of all this, we have both felt the closeness of the Lord and realize more every day that this is the right place for us this season.

No pictures this post, but hopefully I'll have some next time--we're going to try to go up to Vermont this weekend to see the leaves!

My First Week!

Today I stepped off of the bus into my first true weekend after my first work week! My new job is great--mostly because I work with really wonderful people. The Children's Hospital is an unbelievably positive work environment so far, and I've already met a friend. I am working as an "Ambulatory Services Representative" in the Cardiology clinic, the hospital's most prestigous area (their cardiology department is in the top 5 in the nation). I am basically one of two people that schedule echocardiograms for the entire group of hospitals in the central Boston area. We bring echo machines to other hospitals, too--these are called "portable echos". I'm already learning the lingo! And I've already learned a ton about cardiological diseases and disorders. It is quite interesting. I have truly been pleasantly surprised with the job. I'll try to get some pictures of the inside of the hospital sometime--it is almost as much fun as a theme park, with waterfalls, murals, sparkly colorful things, and beautiful children. I am so thankful that God provided this place for this time. Thank you all for your prayers!

Airy Autumn Space

Just thought y'all might like to see our new curtains! It's the little things, you know!

Smell The Sea Air...

I'm sitting with my laptop during halftime of the AU-State game--War Eagle!--after our first adventure to the North Shore. It's hard to describe the emotions we had when we, for the first time in a month, walked down a quiet street without the constant hum of the city. To top it off, we found our way to a little rocky cove dotted with sailboats on the horizon. The perpetual grins stayed on our faces for the better part of the afternoon.

Shannon spent about an hour watching the host of sea creatures swim arond in a tidal pool. Serious, an entire hour--I love my wife!! I took pictures, listen to the gulls, and thought about the Mayflower, Kennebunkport, Myles Standish and maise. But most of all we relished the fresh air and relative quiet during our day outside the big city. We miss you all!

matt and shannon :>)

By Popular Demand...

I've had a few people ask for more pictures of our wonderful little apartment, so here ya go! It is not totally clean, but these are some decent shots. The living area and kitchen are all one room. We have a small bathroom (not pictured because it is not much to look at right now) and a small bedroom with a great window! I'll put some pictures of the bedroom up once we get our new bed soon!

Celebrating in Style

Well, Matt started school this week and also got a new appointment at Starbucks. I also FINALLY got a job! I got offered a position at the Boston Children's Hospital cardiology department. I'll be doing administrative and scheduling work for the families that come in. The hospital is wonderful--it doesn't even feel like a hospital--it is filled with art and color. All medical facilities should feel that way. Both Matt and I are really looking forward to getting in the swing of things in our new life, but we decided to have one last fun night to celebrate before he hit the books and I hit the bus to work!

We got dressed up and went to a fancy martini and appetizer bar downtown. I had the most festive drink ever--a gummi bear martini! Matt had a crantini that was great, too. It was alot of fun! Wish you all could have been here to celebrate with us! Thanks to so many of you for all your encouragement in the job search.

Freedom Trail and Food!

For one of our first ventures into the big city, we decided to walk the "Freedom Trail". The trail is a walking tour of all of the historic sites in Boston from the Old South Church to the Bunker Hill memorial obelisk, and many more. Of course, Matt (a history major in college) ate it up. I loved being able to see so many facets of the city. The trail takes you backward in American history while also being surrounded by the modern art and architecture of a developed city. We stopped in Little Italy at Mike's Pastries and had one of their famous canolis! It was UNbelievable--a crisp pastry tube filled with sweetend ricotta cheese and chocolate chips! And at the end of our walking tour we stopped at an old Oyster House that claims to be the oldest restaurant in America (we're a little skeptical), and it was great. Matt had oysters on the half shell and I had their catch of the day, Haddock with sweet cornbread and red potatoes. And to wash it down, of course, a Sam Adams! So, maybe I've focused too much on food here, but y'all know me!

Welcome Home!

Well, as it begins, we pulled up to our new apartment at 80 Bay State Road exhausted, but excited. Things had gone smoothly except for some major traffic in Connecticut. We pulled up and double parked the huge Penske truck and waited for our movers to arrive. Yes, we hired movers, and it was the best money I've ever spent! After unloading the truck in only an hour and a half, we realized that even though we had already downsized by half, we still had WAY too much stuff for our 398 square feet! (I had remembered it larger in my head....) After about a week, we had finally settled in. We took things to Goodwill and got really creative with storage. Now we have a small space that we truly love--especially the bay windows in our living area. Welcome to our home! We hope some of you can come see it in person sometime!