After reading an NPR blogger's list of 50 Wonderful Things from 2010, we decided that we'd make our own list! In no particular order, here they are:
- OUR HOUSE! - In May, we purchased our first home! We can now be found at the address listed on the righthand side of this blog. It's a great house--newly remodeled [completely white inside] with two spare bedrooms [come and visit] and a nice yard [small campfires and compost]. We're within walking distance of downtown...
- Owego - This is the coolest small town in America, and we love it. It has a great bookstore and coffee shop, a particularly interesting cemetery, artsy shops, and now a Mexican restaurant, too! It's right on the Susquehanna River, and it feels like a vacation town, especially in the summer when both ice cream shops are open and kids are riding around on their bicycles.
- Broome County Public Library - Sarah started working at BCPL in July 2009, and in January 2010, she started as the Head of Youth Services [the best department]. She takes care of public relations for the library, and among other things, she purchases books for the teens, which has made her familiar with...
- Scott Pilgrim - Sarah is reading mostly teen books these days, and she's developed a special love for graphic novels and characters like Tiny Cooper. [And before we leave the subject of libraries, we can't neglect to mention our fondness for the Coburn Free Library!]
- Cornell Cooperative Extension--Tioga County - Eric began working for CCE as an AmeriCorps member, and when they received a grant, they hired him part-time to work with small-scale vegetable farmers to improve harvest efficiency and food safety. [Basically, he got to hang out on farms all summer, learning a lot and helping farmers to be more efficient.] He'll finish up with this project in February. [Videos of his work will be posted here in the next couple of months.]
- Achieve - Eric got to go back to Achieve! As the guardianship coordinator, he advocates for individuals for whom the agency is the guardian. He also gets to help with SibShop, Day Hab, and the greenhouse.
- Natalie - On Christmas 2009, Christie and Tim surprised us with a kitten! We have really grown to love this sweet and crazy animal, and she keeps us amused to no end.
- Ruthanne - Eric's brother [Doug] and his fiancee [Catherine] had a sweet little baby girl in May, and we've enjoyed the chances that we've had to hang out with her.
- Tabernacle UMC - When we came back from Kentucky [October 2008], we spent some time visiting different churches, and in the summer of 2009, we started to settle into attending Tabernacle UMC in Binghamton. We love the people, the pastor, and the philosophy of this church, and we feel right at home there.
- Sky Lake - We've been lucky to spend a lot of time at the Lake recently--directing Physically Special Camp, enjoying retreats and camping, and helping with gardening and composting.
- Photography - Sarah is having so much fun taking photos! [And Eric is being awesomely supportive of her doing so.]
- Glee - Eric used to say that he didn't like musicals. He can't really say that anymore.
- Live Music - Lilith Fair, Bob Dylan, K'Naan, Anna Vogelzang, Josh Ritter, Dr. Cetukski, Summer People
- Theater - Greater Tuna [featuring Uncle Shawn!], City of Angels, Monty Python's Spamalot, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
- Mix CDs - Eric turned 30 this past November, and many people responded to his wish and made him mix CDs for the occasion. [If you'd still like to make one for him, feel free to send one, and you'll get a fun present in return!]
- NPR - Our favorite source for news, music, good stories, laughs, etc. Sarah often says that NPR aims its programming for people just like her.
- Rural Health Network of South Central New York - This fantastic organization runs an AmeriCorps program that employed both of us (at different sites) while we were trying to find something more permanent. We met some pretty incredible people and learned a lot about our area.
- Tattoos - In an effort to cram as many life changes as possible in a short amount of time, during the same week that he became an uncle and bought a house, Eric also got a giant new tattoo.
- Beets - Sarah was reintroduced to beets this summer, and she LOVES them. We participated in a CSA this year, and we've also been getting a bunch of local food through Central NY Bounty. It's so great to be able to get so much locally-produced food so easily. [We love our Wegman's, but the local stuff straight from the farmers is FANTASTIC.]
- New York City - Because of the lack of vacation time this year, we were not able to take any long vacation trips, but we did manage to take a long weekend and go to NYC. Thanks to fantastic hosting by Andrew Dill and the Barneses, we really enjoyed our time there. [It was great to see Karyn, too!]
- Doing laundry at home - Thanks to Gramsy and to the people who lived in our house before we did, we have laundry machines in the same building in which we live. You have no idea how happy this makes us. Once we get a clothesline up [hopefully this coming spring], we will be ALL SET.
Those are some of the highlights of our lives during the past couple of years. Please let us know if there's anything you think we should add!
We love you all, and we wish there were more days in the week to spend time visiting with family and friends. Thank you for your love and support to us, and thank you for being the awesome people that you are!