Merry Christmas 2009

Merry Christmas!

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Giving Thanks

This year we hosted our first Thanksgiving. My dad, my niece Tristan, Aunt Christina and Uncle Bob visited us. Hosting was such a big job that I think we overlooked taking the time to reflect on all that we have to be so thankful for. So, here's the post-Thanksgiving list of some of the things we have been blessed with.
a beautiful, spacious house
an active, smart little girl to share our lives with
our jobs
the special bond we have as partners, friends and confidantes
a new little life we'll get to meet in April
our wonderful friends and family who support and love us just the way we are
though we grow older we continue to be in good health

I'm really looking forward to Christmas this year. This is the first year our family has been able to have a regular size Christmas tree. It's up and it's decorated. I can't wait for Christmas day with Ava. This year it'll be just the three of us enjoying the day together.

Until then, I'm going to keep reminding myself of all I have to be grateful for. I hope you and your family have a joyous holiday season!

The Mecca of College Football

Yesterday we visited my old friend Andy who works as a university librarian. Her library is famous not for the number of volumes it houses, or its collection of texts, but because its exterior is the canvass of a well-known mosaic, "Touchdown Jesus."

It was a pleasant two hour drive to South Bend. In our nearly five years here, we had yet to explore the north eastern part of the state. An Indian Summer made it remarkably warm. I had always wanted to visit what many consider the Mecca of college football, and thanks to Andy, I got my chance. Erin and I watched the movie "Rudy" the night before to rekindle the positive sentiments towards the Irish. As of late, they have not lived up to their reputation. Yet, no matter how often they lost, they still received media attention, and even Top 25 votes. This, along with their cocky QB,Jimmy Clausen, had led us to wish bad luck upon the Irish. It didn't help that they beat Purdue on the last play of the game a few weeks earlier.

The campus lived up to the hype to say the least. The stadium however, was a little disappointing. The renovations (done after the making of Rudy) took away much of the character. The place would have seemed so small in comparison back then. It seemed a little sterile to me. So it goes when making money trumps all. After attending Purdue games, it was nice to be in a full stadium again. Thanks to the Midshipmen, this stadium was quiet for most of the day. Navy ran all over ND and pulled out only their second win over Notre Dame in many, many years. It was a great day for us. Not so much for Jimmy Clausen.

Uncommon Passer By

After dinner (a recipe from the blog, Half-Assed Kitchen), I was doing the dishes and saw something interesting out the window. There is a bike lane on the road, so many walk and jog past us all day long. I usually don't pay much attention to the pedestrian traffic, but this guy instantly caught my eye, and eventually the lens of my camera. I knew right away where he'd come from; he was traveling with a a Little Caesar's Pizza box. As you may know, LC's offers a $5 large served almost on demand.
Clearly, Pizza Dude had a long week, and a long walk. The joint is at least two miles down the road. As he approached I could tell he was getting antsy...and hungrier by the step. He was in the midst of a mental struggle. It didn't take a mind reader to understand his dilemma - venture on, or give in. The debate did not last long. Smack dab in front of my living room window his appetite overcame his stamina. The guy plops down on the yellow painted curb, cracks the cardboard lid and goes to town on his pie. He devoured a piece or two, in a matter of seconds. Before three cars passed, he was up and beating it on down the road. Oblivious to the rest of the world, Dude got his eat on. And good for him; even a $5 pizza should be enjoyed hot. I suppose the stomach is mightier than the legs.

Saving a Few Cents

So, at our old house we had a fabulous clothes line courtesy of our favorite neighbor, Ross (he found the T poles for us at a garage sale) and Michael (he set the poles in the ground and strung the line). I loved that clothes line and really enjoyed hanging diapers and laundry out every weekend. We had a routine on Saturdays and Sundays of waking up and starting a load of wash so that we could hang the clothes to dry for the day. It was such a peaceful routine standing there in the bright morning sunshine methodically hanging each piece on the line, and then of course, we'd periodically check on those clothes to test the dryness of each piece. On a good day it would take just a short hour to dry, on a slightly chilly, cloudy day the clothes could hang out there for 4-5 hours before drying. But, we didn't care about the length, it was our intention to line dry our clothes rather than use the dryer. We used the dryer sparingly knowing that our clothes and Ava's diapers would last longer and that we were saving by not using electricity.

Flash forward to our new house. No clothes line. We've been in the new house 3 weeks now and finally found a clothes line solution. Attempting to avoid permanently setting poles in the ground, we still wanted to be able to use a line for drying. So, we found a retractable solution online, we ordered it and the thing arrived days ago. Our Sunday was spent trying to get the line installed on the side of the house and then a pole at the opposite end of the yard for said line to attach to. Michael was the real handyman in this case and put up a pole with materials we already had at the house. With that done, it was time to install the line to the house. The only trip we had to make was to Lowe's for screws. Said screws in hand, we installed the line to the side of the house. We put up the line, tested it, but it was already 5:30 pm so we have yet to hang clothes on the line, but I can't wait to try it out.

Hopefully our neighbors don't go postal about seeing our clothes flapping in the wind. Check out this story, where the neighbors aren't nearly as nice!


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House Warming/Art Opening

We came up with a great spin on the traditional house-warming party. Instead of the basic wine, cheese, and 50 cent tour, our plan was to concurrently display our friend's paintings. Ross & Amber, our old neighbors, helped us immensely during our move. Without them, and Ross' nephew Jordan, we never would have been able to get it all done in one day. As a thank you, and for motivation to get the house ready, we offered to hold an art opening for them. After all, we had plenty of empty wall space and a beautiful new home to show off. Two weeks after the move, they came by with a van full of their best pieces. We invited our friends, co-workers, and anyone we could think of who would appreciate the idea, and may also make a purchase. The event was a success. We all enjoyed ourselves, the house showed great, and prices were discussed. Spread the word. You too can be a patron of the arts simply by returning a favor.

Our Little Bitty Pretty One

Here it is, the latest music video from Ava. She's all the rage with the pre-Tweens! Enjoy.

Our New Home

After four and a half years in our beloved 1920 Sears Bungalow we've made a move. While the distance was less than two miles, it was quite a step up. We went from 850 sq. ft. to over 2500!

I have to say we made a very wise financial decision in living in such a small place for so long. Its low mortgage payment allowed us to save a great deal. While our careers developed, so did our financial capabilities. But, our monthly bills stayed the same. My sister, Maureen gave me a good tip after I got my first "real" job after college. She told me to not change my lifestyle simply because I now had a steady paycheck. My advice to any young person, or couple would be similar. Start small, live not only within your means, but slightly below for as long as you can manage. When you need to make that step up, make it a substantial one. Instead of moving multiple times as your needs grow, you may find it possible to take an extra step from the beginning. Chances are, you'll have earned it. We certainly feel like we have.

About the Blog

Bitts of Us is a way to document the happenings of our family. It is part journal, part scrapbook, and part family record. Our main objective is to keep track of what has gone on in our lives. However, in sharing these thoughts, events, pictures, and videos with others we welcome comments, critiques, and even advice. So, follow the lives of Erin, Michael, & baby Ava Bittinger to learn a little Bitt about us.

Ava at Ten Weeks

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