Happy New Year!
January 2008
We hope each of you had a wonderful holiday season and are off to a great start in the new year. We'll try our best to give you a snapshot of our 2007 using the questions that we were most often asked.
Q #1.) Did Jason find a job after he graduated?
A: After about 4 months of grueling interviews, many leads and some dead-ends (and approximately 2 weeks before Jenn was going to make him apply to flip burgers at McDonald's), Jason found the perfect job. He landed a job with a small startup company, OpSource, located in California. His formal title is "Senior Manager of Client Services." (Don't be fooled, he's not that senior, small companies give out big titles.) :-) Fortunately, we didn't have to relocate for the job and Jason continues his reign as "Captain Underpants" working most days out of our home.
In all seriousness, OpSource has been a great company to work for. They provide "managed hosting" (super computers) for companies who want to deliver their software over the Internet, especially "Web 2.0" companies (for non-geeks… imagine all of the computers necessary to provide Yahoo e-mail or Google search… someone has to manage those servers. This is an example of what OpSource does for their customers.)
Q #2.) Are you two thinking about having kids?
A: Yes, we think about it. Thank you for asking. :-)
Q #3.) Jenn, since you're not a classroom teacher, what DO you DO?
A: This is Jenn's second year serving as an "Academic Coach" at Bluebonnet Elementary in Round Rock ISD. She works with teachers to help them improve their instruction, which ultimately helps kids learn. Some days she teaches the lessons, other days she "coaches". Part of her day is spent working with small groups of kids in grades 2nd-5th. She likes the variety and loves not having to write report cards quarterly!
Q #4.) Should I quit asking if you're going to have kids?
A: Yes, that would be fine. Please ask Kim, Gina, or Amanda instead of me! :-)
Q #5.) How about visitors?
A: Jenn's brother and his family made the long trek to Texas over Thanksgiving break. Conner (8) and Ashley (5) were wondering if "they were there yet" in York, NE. Fortunately, everyone survived the 15 hour drive with minimal trauma! We spent a day at Sea World (San Antonio) where we fed the dolphins, watched Shamu, and took in lots of amazing shows. It was a blast. Back in Austin . . . a tour of the Capitol, a visit to Build-a-Bear Workshop, eating Tex-Mex and BBQ, and playing the Wii until our tennis elbow would allow no more were just a few of the other delights we enjoyed while they were here.
Also, a few of Jason's friends, Heather & Stephan, that he met in Germany made it for a long weekend this summer. We treated Stephan to his first American baseball game in Austin (not exactly the Yankees, but a good start). The heat was stifling, so a trip to the water park Schlitterbahn was in order, which was lots of fun! We shared it with about 1,000 of our best friends under the age of 9. :-)
In-between visitors, Jason also found time to have LASIK surgery, which turned out to be a fantastic decision. 20/15 and no looking back!
Q #6.) Are you going to move back to Nebraska?
A: After being back in NE for two weeks of sub-zero temps and "sideways" snow, we think Austin is looking and feeling just fine for the immediate future! In fact, as of sending this letter, we just had our offer accepted on a new home. If all goes accordingly, we'll be in our new home by March! Here's our new address: 1303 David Cove, Cedar Park, TX 78613.
Q #7.) Did you make it to a Husker game?
A: In October, we watched the Huskers get beaten by the Texas Longhorns in what started out as a good close game. (You'd think we would have known better by that point in the season…) We ended up leaving early once the scoreboard started to tip out of our favor. Fortunately, a few stalwart Huskers stayed behind to cheer on the team! (See the picture…) :-)
Q #8.) Did you vacation anywhere fun?
A: Lake Tahoe, Nevada was our vacation destination this summer. Fortunately, we were there just one week before the fury of forest fires came. We hit the casinos, went on a boat tour of Lake Tahoe (some of the clearest water in the world), saw a grizzly bear (Arr!), blazed some interesting mountain trails, drove the 72-mile loop around Lake Tahoe, visited a vineyard, and attended a renaissance festival. (It was a very strange, yet enjoyable experience—see Jason getting fitted for a medieval bra below!)
Q #9.) Surely you would tell us if you were going to have a baby, right?
A: Of course! You can now stop wondering . . . we are expecting a little Cumberland in early August! We apologize for the little white lies that we (and our parents) told many of you at Christmas when you asked, "Are you pregnant?" We wanted to be sure we were "out of the woods" to share our news. Oh yeah, if you were at Johnny O's and saw Jenn with an adult beverage over Christmas break—it was filled with water! We had to do something to throw you off as you definitely had us figured out! :-) We will be calling on many of you for parenting advice and babysitting favors, so you may want to screen our phone calls in 2008!
We hope this finds you happy, healthy, and enjoying the new year!
With love,
Jenn & Jason
