Moving in sundry

Sometimes moving in can seem as painful as this:

(by the way, Nate made me feel better about this picture by saying "the fire is giving him life")

Other times, moving in can be as exciting as spotting this:

I hope my phone did this justice...he was walking out of the museum completely covered in straw. I all but ran after him.

Fortunately, it's been a little of both (fire giraffe and straw man)

Ruth said the cats would just think they'd be on a vacation. She's right, except they've found a few new places they love.

I'm happy to announce the box tower can no longer be a favorite as it has been cleaned up.

Once the box tower disappeared, Mal decided there was yet another tower she could reach:

We are almost all the way "moved in". I don't count it as complete until we have pictures on the wall and I don't have to ask "where did we put ____________?" anymore. Both still are problems, so I'll end this here and get back to work!

Valentime's, Chicago and a nerd's dream

Last weekend, Nathan and I decided to venture to Chicago to celebrate Valentine's day. After a slight delay due to Nate's moot court schedule, we were off! I was anxious about the drive and the trip itself, but it was very relaxing and I'm glad we had the opportunity to go.

Our first stop was the Art Institute of Chicago. Maybe it was all the neatly hung pictures or the perfectly arranged room fixtures, but it was a beautiful, blessed departure from what our apartment looks like right now.

Nate outside the Chicago Stock Exchange trading room. I was happy to experience a nerd moment with Nate...I had been slobbering over the modern art all morning, so it was nice for him to have a turn.

Me and the bean. This was taken after lunch, on our way back to the museum. We found a Noodles location that was almost as exciting as the museum, so we were in good spirits and I was up for posing on a freezing bench.

Nerd destination #2: Medieval Times!

All that culture gave us a healthy appetite, so we were anxious for both the greasy finger food and the floor show.

See?

Because the museum is free this February, we took a second trip the next day. Luckily, we found this gem. It's garish and scary. Goya thought this one up; I was surprised, but maybe I shouldn't have been?

Liz and Mary Cassatt. This has been a favorite of mine for a long while, so it was a party for me to see it in person. I opted for the shadowy eyes look over the rosy cheekedness that the ladies in the painting sported.

Representative. Nate loved the museum, but lacks the museum geek stamina I've developed over the years. He chose to stay on the top level while I checked out the sculpture garden below.

Told you he was tired.

On the roof of the museum. The rock chairs really complimented the freezing temperatures.

Back inside, Nate showed off his talent for mimicry.

And I showed off how small my head is compared to Mars...hopefully it's obvious; my Utah driver's license may say otherwise.

Life imitates art? In the same gallery, look to the right....

I love good timing. :)

We loved Chicago!

Displaced, but happy

We just moved again. I love that we are back at our old apartment, but I hate that said old apartment is full of things we need to put away. We worked out a pathway last night, so huzzah for progress.

It's good to be back, but we shouldn't have left in the first place. Last September I sat on the porch, crying because I didn't want to leave our apartment. Last Sunday after we finished with the house we'd been in, I drove away without any hesitation or sadness. It wasn't ever fully our place, so there wasn't much to say goodbye to. I will always hate moving; it's mentally and physically exhausting (by the way, thank you to Marc for all the help!). It's also difficult to move when it's not convenient, or really your idea; that being said, I'm thrilled to be back to our apartment. A few reasons:

-Brand new carpet and linoleum. The carpet in the kitchen was beyond gross and while a runner covered up most of it, it was not fun to clean...and probably never stayed very clean.

-Birds!! Mal loves birds. Our first night we stayed back in the apartment, she discovered a chubby, napping bird and went crazy. Last night Mal proved her dedication to the cause when she planted her full body on the glass in an attempt to get the same bird. Luckily the glass stopped her suicide attempt.

Cat Watching Bird

-Shorter walk to any room. I fully realize how lazy that makes me sound, but walking down 20 cold steps to the bathroom to get ready in the morning was sometimes too much to take. And then, if I forgot something...back up the stairs. I blame that layout for making me late (I'm not sure what I'll blame it on this month).

-Kathryn enjoys the (unintentional) saloon door style of our bathroom entrance. I will spare you any stories, but she likes to know where everyone is at all times, clothed or not.

-Security. Our apartment has both an outer, then inner door that are locked at all times. It's a lovely, lovely thing.

Pictures of the new/old apartment once I dig it out!