I can't say that I feel too terrible about being such a sporadic blogger this summer because from the looks of my Google Reader, it seems that mostly everyone else has scaled back on their writing too. There are bike rides to be had and snowballs to be consumed and evening walks for not one, not two, but three "can only walk by myself" dogs. Truth be told, Jonathan and I have settled into a pretty nice routine at my parent's house.
It's up at 5:25 AM for me, out the door by 6:00 AM and at work by 7:30 AM. Then I'm headed home at 4:00 PM, arriving on the doorstep anywhere from 5:30 PM (on a very good day) to 7:00 PM (on a very, very bad day, usually Fridays). If I get home early enough, I'll head out for a quick bike ride or run so that I can actually enjoy the summer air for a bit, then I head right into the kitchen where either I help my dad prep dinner or he helps me. We enjoy cooking together and always get a laugh out of the three furry sous chefs just waiting to lend a paw (or floor cleaning duties!). Jon has also been contributing a meal a week lately but I know better than to be in the kitchen with him. Three years of cooking in our cramped condo kitchen taught us that it's better if just one of us handles the cooking at a time!
Speaking of my husband, he has just one whole class left in his MBA program. Just one measly three to four hour class and he's done! To say that he is thrilled would be an understatement. He can't wait to take back his evenings and weekends and to never again have to worry about exams or papers or group projects. I just can't wait to have Jonathan back full time! He starts his new job in Maryland the beginning of August and we're both relieved that his sucky commute to DC will be over in less than a month. Did I mention that we'll be working for the same government agency? We'll be in completely different departments, of course, but it will be nice to do lunch with him every now and then and perhaps carpool together if we have the same schedules.
As for my new job, I'm still waiting for my clearance to come through. It's been a really long road involving polygraphs and psychological evaluations and a ridiculous ten year background investigation into my past jobs and neighbors and frankly, I'm just anxious to be done with it and get on board. I mean, really...ten years takes me back to jobs I held in high school. You try remembering your supervisor's name for the job you had at the mall at seventeen! I keep telling myself that it will all be worth it in the end and really, the knowledge of what an awesome opportunity it is is the only thing getting me through the horrible commute at this point.
That's one of the reasons I'm so looking forward to autumn. I have never, ever wished a summer away like I have this year but there's a thought lurking in the back of my head that the sooner it's over, the sooner I'll be in my new job (which is only a 20 minute commute) and we'll be that much closer to having our own home again. There are so many good things in store for us that it's really hard to live in the moment right now. I'm trying my darnedest to enjoy the present and to be thankful for what I have right now, because my life really is quite wonderful as it stands. Luckily we've had a lot of fun distractions with more to come and I really can't help but feel blessed, right now. Life is good!
Last year (and quite timely reading back on it!), I mused about my marriage and how grad school was a stressor for us.
