Yeah, we suck!

Okay so we definitely suck at keeping this thing updated. Thought I should though since I was complaining about other people not updating theirs and I wouldn't want my glass house to break from all my stone throwing.

So here's an update of our fabulous lives...

...Brian

Brian has finished his first year of his Masters. He spent an awesome time this summer in New York and has some great stories and pictures from that trip that maybe you will see some day. Currently he is working his butt off at one too many jobs and trying going to school. He will be needing lots of support, which I will be supplying! One of his new jobs is working at the UI Sustainability Center, which is a really amazing opportunity for him and he's really enjoying it. We're not seeing much of each other, but we still do see each other sometimes and are having a blast together (can't believe we've been married for almost four years)!

...Kelly

I finished up my Masters in Teaching this June. I'm happy I did it and really glad its done. Started being a TA for the chemistry department again (which is really nice...happy to be back in the Chemistry department). I also started taking a Nuclear Reactor Operations class to learn how to become a Reactor Operator. Yeah, you read that right. I started training on Friday and am looking to take the exam in January to get my license. It's been a really amazing experience just this week and I'm looking forward to learning doing more everyday.

The above picture is a picture of the core of the WSU reactor (the windows in the back are to the control room...that's where I sit!). The blue glow is from electrons moving faster than the speed of light through water, creating something kind of like a sonic boom. On Friday I got to actually start up and bring to full power the reactor. I myself created this glow...I'm a little proud. This new goal for me is something that is really exciting. I am really passionate about something for the first time in a while (at least since the whole education program bust). It's definitely something that I wasn't planning on in the beginning but is going to be really beneficial for Brian and I.

Be prepared in the next few months to hear a lot about this, and to learn more than you ever wanted to about reactors and nuclear chemistry...

...get excited people!

New Google Toys

So there are a few things in this world that I despise. First, dumb voicemail messages (see "After the Beep") Second, group projects. Third, syncing (see "Why Can't Microsoft Play Nice?" and "I am a Syncing Fiend").

The voicemail hatred should be self-explanatory as well as my syncing woes. The group projects thing ... basically it comes down to logistics. By the time the group figures out what time to meet, who should take care of what, when to collaborate, etc. etc. I feel like most of the time I could have just done the project myself. While I'm never going to get away from voicemail, group projects or syncing at least the good people over at Google have understood my pain and decided to make them easier to deal with by creating:

Google Voice (Thanks for the b-day present Turchins). Imagine never having to check your voicemail again to hear, "Hey it's me. Call me back." Thanks to Google Voice, you'll never have to again, unless you want to. Basically what Google Voice does is transcribe your voicemails and sends it to you in a text and/or email. You can read it instantly and then decide whether you want to call the person back or shun them forever. "Awesome!" you say? Wait, there's more. You can filter your calls to different voicemail messages based on who is calling. So now I can have a standard greeting play for whoever but let Kelly know I'm not ignoring her calls, I'm just in class. Plus, you have the option of signing up for a Google phone number that can then route your calls to your cell, your home phone, a business phone, or any combination based on who calls. Best of all, it's free.

Google Mobile and Google Sync. If you have Gmail, use Google Calendar, and have a smartphone, you definitely need to check this out. Before I had to use Outlook or something else to sync contacts, calendars and mail to my phone. Not anymore. After installing a free app on my iPhone and setting up my existing accounts I was all set to sync, no computer software needed.

Google Wave. I totally stumbled across this by seeing an ad on the side of a website for a Google Wave book for developers. "Google Wave? What's that?" I asked myself. Then I asked Google. After seeing a few videos on it here and here, I requested an invite because I had to have it. I was working on a group project at the time and we were having a really hard time working out times to meet and exchange information and files. Google Wave would have solved those problems. It's better to check it out for yourself but basically imagine combining e-mail, instant messaging, photo and file sharing, in a completely collaborative environment all through your web browser. I'm still figuring out all the quirks and I don't really have anyone to 'wave' with to test it out on a real project but I can't wait until I do.

In the end, thanks Google, for taking the things I hate and turning them into toys I want to play around with.

P.s. It's not from Google so it doesn't really fit the theme of the post but Prezi, is the next toy I want to use for a presentation sometime. Powerpoint and other slide based presentations just became obsolete.

Testing iPhone app

The Peterson Clan Year Two

For the second year in a row we took pictures of our dear friends the Peterson's!  You've seen them grace the posts of our blog before...they've got two adorable boys who are often the objects of our camera's affection.  Last year the difficult boy was Dainen.  At the ripe ol' age of 2 Dainen did not want to cooperate with the photographers.  This year though Dainen was a dream...saying cheese...smiling really big...guess if you photograph a kid enough you just train 'em.  This year the difficult Peterson boy was our little Caleb.  Caleb was a perfect baby, never cried, barely ever made any sort of fuss.  He's been making up for lost time since he turned 1, and today played the part of "trouble" like an Oscar winner.  Even with squirms and fussing we still got some great pictures and I'd like to share a few with you all...

How cute are they?

The Angel Child (how unusual for our "I need more bacon" boy!

Good giggles

The Pullman Wheat

A little Caleb attitude...

Some playful mom and dad time...

Okay and here's my favorite shot of the day...it was not posed just a random shot Brian took when he told Elise and Jaaron to center themselves in between giggles and poses and this is what came out.  I call it the Super Model shot... (oddly enough I think Elise looks kinda like my mom in this one)

So there's some of our latest work.  We have another couple that we're friends with who take pictures too, so hopefully in the next few weeks we'll take a day and do a photographer swap and we can finally get some pictures of Brian and I up here!

Love you all.  Sorry we're boring but things have been absolutely insane here.  Had a little "I don't want to be a MIT student" melt down this week but things are getting better.  We'll try and keep you all posted whenever we can!

A Week in the Life . . . Hubby

By popular demand . . . here's my 'typical' week, or at least what I'd like to be 'typical'. I mean, this is what my week should be like, but due to projects, church responsibilities and field trips to Portland I haven't had a 'typical' week since the semester began.

And next week doesn't look any better.

Monday: Wake up around 7:30 am by wife's alarm. 'Nudge' wife lightly with foot to wake her up because the alarm doesn't cut it anymore. Repeat every 9 minutes until 8:00 or 8:15 when Kelly gets out of bed 'nudging' (a.k.a. kicking) me as she leaves as if I was the one snoozing the alarm repeatedly. Go back to sleep while wife leaves me alone as she eats, works out, and showers. Finally wake up to glares from wife as she tells me to really get out of bed. Glare back. Get up, shower, dress and eat breakfast of dry cereal drowning in milk (it only gets gross if you don't eat it fast enough). Grab books and drive to Moscow. Finish up weekend's homework in studio until class starts at 2:30 and something is usually due. Finish class at 5:30 and scratch head figuring out what just happened and wondering what 'archiTECTONIC' really means. Continue to work on homework due on Tuesday until work. Work from 9:00 to midnight at the Library. Go home to passed out wife, tell her I love her, try to figure out grunted reply, and go to sleep.

Tuesday: Wake up at 4:45 am. Perform morning alarm ritual (see Monday) until 5:05 when wife runs out of room leaving me to sleep in peace. Wake up at 7:30, shower, dress, eat (only if I didn't actually wake up at 8:30) and drive to Moscow. Go to class from 9:30 to 1:30, eat lunch then work on homework (usually reading for class at 5:00 that should have been finished over the weekend). Go to class at 5:00, discuss philosophy and architectural theory regarding modernity and post-modernity until 8:00. Scratch head and try to figure out what mimesis means as I drive home. Eat whatever I can find for dinner, watch TV and proceed to fall asleep on couch. Wake up and go to bed around 1:00 am when wife drags me in there.

Wednesday: See morning ritual for Monday. Hopefully ride bicycle to Moscow instead of drive, 'shower' again with baby wipes in bathroom of architecture building, dress, work on studio homework until 2:30 when class starts and something is usually due. Finish class at 5:30, scratch head . . . . Ride bicycle home, shower (yes, again) because Kelly tells me I stink and won't get close to me. Spend time putting off homework, watching TV and discussing what to do for dinner. Go to bed.

Thursday: See morning ritual for Tuesday. Go to class from 9:30 to 1:30, eat lunch and . . . oh yeah, I haven't had a normal Thursday . . . work on homework in studio until work at 4:30. Work at the library from 4:30 to 9:00. Go back to studio and work on homework until midnight (Kelly's not home anyway). Go home, fall asleep on couch . . . see Tuesday and console Kelly while she cries.

Friday: Wake up at 8:00 to wife's alarm, repeat alarm ritual until 9:00. Get up realizing wife is 'feeling wild' (a.k.a. dead tired), shower, dress and eat. Hopefully, ride bicycle to Moscow, 'shower' in bathroom, change, work on homework for studio until 2:30 when something is usually due. Studio from 2:30 to 5:30. Forget about scratching head because it's the weekend! Ride home, shower, see wife (remember her? She's the one that keeps kicking me in the morning). Hang out with wife, friends or whatever, the whole time feeling guilty because I should be working on homework. Go to sleep around 11:00 but probably more like 12:30 because I refuse to be old.

Saturday: Wake up at 6:00. Hit snooze button . . . oh how the tables have turned. Jump out of bed at 7:00 because I slept through the alarm or snoozed it saying, 'five more minutes,' and so did Kelly. Throw clothes on, forget about showering and breakfast, tell Kelly goodbye as she sleeps peacefully, and speed off to work. Unlock library door apologizing to Ian, my morning shelver, because I was 5 minutes late. Work at library until 1:30 (a.k.a. do homework, who wants to check out books that early on a Saturday anyway?). Go up to studio and work on homework until I get sick and tired of school, usually around 8:00 or later (Kelly's not home anyway) depending on amount of homework that needs to get done, or can't be put off any longer. Drive home, eat whatever I can scrounge up in the kitchen. Make a dent in the heaps of dishes that have been piling up all week, of which I've used very few. Watch TV, hopefully soccer that TIVO wonderfully records. Fall asleep before halftime, wake up when Kelly gets home and gets mad because the house is a mess and I was just sleeping on the couch. Go to sleep around midnight.

Sunday: ('The boys' only come over about twice a month so this account is what happens the other half of the month.) Wake up to 10:00 am 'nudging', (usual morning alarm rituals apply). Shower, dress, eat if there's time. Go to church until 2:00, come home and take nap with wife. Jump for joy because we are going to Elise's for dinner (she actually cooks) or 'happily' eat the 'adventure' Kelly prepared ('I don't care what it tastes like, it smells like feeesh'). Watch the rest of the soccer game from last night, unless Kelly wants to pay attention to the TV in which case watch something she likes to see. Go to bed.

Lather, rinse, repeat . . .

Like Kelly, this isn't a pity post. We choose to do this. It may seem like a lot, but usually we can handle it. One final note: Kelly's semester is much busier than what she's used to taking on, mine is intentionally less busy than I'm used to . . . the idea is that we still balance the equation out. I think Saturday night illustrates that this probably isn't the case.

A Week in the Life...

...of Kelly Henry. Wife, Daughter, Manager, Apartment Coordinator, Tutor, Student, and Chemistry Teacher Extraordinare!

So my mother wanted me to write down my weekly schedule...to amaze people, to explain my both physical and mental absences from society lately or to shock people....I'm not entirely sure but I figured since I had a few minutes sitting here in the theater late at night I would oblige her. So here it is a week in the life of me...Kelly Henry.

Monday: Wake up at 8:00am. "Nudge" husband lightly with foot to get him out of bed too. Eat a breakfast of dry Rice Crispies ('cause with milk they get too gross). Talk to self and mutter to the workout DVD ladies about doing the DVD. Work out and sweat like a pig. Take a shower to feel like a real human being. Go into bedroom and tell husband to really get out of bed. Get dressed and ready for the day. Go to class from 10am-1pm. Learn about teaching high school science classes and try not to get slapped by people for your opinions. Go home, eat a quick lunch of...who really knows. Go to work at the movie theater at 2:20pm. Work until 7pm. At 7pm, rush to Stephenson complex and tutor chemistry students until 9:00pm. Drag self back to car and drive home. Say hi to imaginary husband as you walk in the door so as to confuse the creepers in the parking lot. Work on homework until 11:30 or midnight. Go to bed. Wake up at 12:45am when husband crawls into bed and grunt some sort of goodnight.
Tuesday: Wake up at 4:45am. Snooze alarm until 5:05am. Run into shower cursing self for using stupid snooze button. Shower. Eat breakfast of dry cereal again. Put on makeup (hopefully the full face not just half but who knows...). Attempt to dry and do hair to be presentable. Get dressed. Grab a lunch, typically peanut butter, banana and honey sandwich and some dry cereal to snack on during school. Get in car and blast the music to keep self awake. Drive to Safeway parking lot. Sit in car and wait for Gage and Tony (the other poor saps heading to student teaching in the lovely Clarkston, WA "the slums of Lewiston...which is saying something"). Get in respective car for the day and drive down to Clarkston. Listen to music and chat with boys about the ridiculous-ness of the MIT program. Still driving, cause it's a freaking long way to Clarkston. Start singing to the music with the boys and giggle inside at how we've all become so close in such a short period of time! 7:20am arrive at CHS and walk through the halls waiting for Mr. Snook. 7:30am, Snook arrives. Ask him if you can help in any way. He tells you no. So you wander the halls feeling both like a student and a teacher (don't ask how). "Teach" (right now that consists of helping students with worksheets and labs...soon it should be more;) ) Physics, Chemistry, Physical Science, Consumer Chemistry ("real life" chemistry, aka. chemistry without the math), LUNCH (FINALLY!!!!), and Chemistry. Gather self together and meet the boys at the car. Leave Clarkston at 2:45pm. Drive and drive and drive, fighting sleep and talking about our days. Arrive in Pullman around 3:30-3:45pm. Then at 5:00pm (*for the next week thank goodness) go attend a Housing BBQ. Feed and serve strangers for two hours and pack up food. Leave BBQ at 6:45pm trying not to think about hamburgers or hot dogs. Drive down to the theater again and pull in. Rush into the manager's office and change quickly into something more work appropriate. Work at the theater again until closing, which happens to be 12:30am to 12:45am for the past few weeks (stinking Brad Pitt movie!). Try and do some homework after all the employees have gone home. Get home around 12:45am and eat a snack while watching TV over the sound of husband snoring on the couch. Drag husband and self to bed around 1:00am.
Wednesday: Wake up at 8:00am. Same as Monday but school until 12:00pm (whoo! one hour less). Get home and take a cat nap. Do homework until 5:00pm then go to the next BBQ. At 7:00pm come home and see husband. Spend time together doing homework, watching TV and fighting over who has to decide what to do for dinner. Go to be around 11:30pm after doing homework and realizing it will never get done.
Thursday: See Tuesday. Then cry.
Friday: No class. Sleep in to 9:00am or 9:30am if feeling wild! Get up and get ready, doing work out video again because that stupid skinny, buff girl keeps taunting you from the cover of the DVD. Clean around the house (as it has been horribly neglected all week). Do errands that have been put off all week. Do some homework. Then at 2:20pm go to the theater again (aka. second home). Work until 7:00pm. Head home to see husband...who is he again? Hang out with friends or hubby and eat dinner and enjoy self for a brief amount of time. Go to be around midnight or earlier cause you're old.
Saturday: Sleep in a little again...oh what sweet luxury! Try to tune out noises of sad husband as he leaves for work at 7:00am...that was you all week! Do work out. Shower and clean more around house. Do much needed homework and any extra errands. Maybe see...what's the word again?...oh...friends! At 5:00pm go to the theater and work until 10:30pm or 12:30am (depending on how generous Stephen is feeling...normally he's pretty generous...love that guy!). Go home and spend time with hubby. Go to sleep around midnight.
Sunday: Wake up around 8:45am and get the house ready for "the boys" to come over. Help out best friend by taking care of her two little boys (3 and 1) until church. Try to get ready with little boys following around and asking to share your cereal (even though they already had there own...I'm totally NOT selfless enough to be a mom yet!). Leave to go to church and be grateful for helpful husband and the fact that these boys, while precious and wonderful, are only a part time deal. Get home from church. Take a nap with hubby. Next, either go to Elises' for dinner...'cause she actually cooks, or eat something from home...depending on if feeling adventurous or not! Do homework. Watch some TV with hubby (tragically some soccer is usually involved). Go to bed.
...Rinse and Repeat!

I hope that that "brief" (cough!) explanation of my week helps you to see why this blog hasn't been updated and why I look a little crazy. This isn't a pity post, don't feel sorry for me. I chose this and therefore cannot complain. I just wanted to update you all on...well me!

Champions

Let me present the 2009 University of Idaho Intramural Men's Rec-Indoor Soccer Champions. They even captured the score in the background. I'll be signing autographs later this week. (Left to Right, Back: Brian, Brooks, Dustin, Dane, Trevor; Front: Harmon, Conrad, Ryan)