Halvorsen Tales: The first "20-10" Post

Well, now that we're about three weeks into the new year, I figured I better get busy and post something =). Not too much has been happening around here so far, pretty much the usual, work, work, work, and just a little bit of time for play =).

Justin and I rang in the new year this year with a little vacation to New Braunfels, TX. It's only about 40 miles from Austin, and is a really neat little town with a couple of good wineries. We enjoyed having a couple of days just the two of us after having spent the holidays with our family and being really busy during the fall semester. The best part may have been that the hotel TV was awesome, and of course had cable, so we were able to watch the Huskers CRUSH Arizona =)!

Last weekend we got the pleasure of babysitting Abigail, Hailey and McKayla so that Andrea & Kyle could have a much deserved date for their anniversary. Once the twins got used to the idea of being left with Aunt Michelle and Uncle Justin, they settled down and we all had a great time. One of the funniest moments was when McKayla was role-playing with some of her dolls and said very loudly, "And THEN, they KISSED and fell in loooovvveeee and got married!!" I just cracked up. It wasn't until later that we figured out she picked up the phrase from her Mickey Three Musketeers book. She is a non-stop talker and always has a story brewing. I wouldn't be surprised if she turns out to be a writer some day...she has quite the imagination!! Hailey and Abigail are just as cute as ever and it is fun watching them continue to grow and develop. Abigail finally has a pretty good head of hair, and three teeth! Hailey is trying to catch up but only has a little bit of hair and one tooth. She does have the greatest smile and the cutest dimple though! I can't wait until grad school is over so I can spend even more time with them!

This weekend we enjoyed spending some time with our good friends, Justin and Serena. They bought a new house last fall and Justin just finished putting in their media room. It is SO COOL. It was truly like being at a movie theater, but way better because you can push pause and you don't have to deal with any annoying people, and you don't have to pay an arm and a leg! He did a great job setting it up, and we hope we'll be able to enjoy more action-packed thrillers at their place =).

That's about the most exciting news for right now. We have a busy spring ahead of us, especially me! I'm working on one research paper right now for my first class and will have another paper to write in the next few weeks. My other class starts Tuesday, so at that point I will know how much work that is going to require from me. I truly can't wait until that last week in April when everything will be turned in and I can just sit back, relax and wait to graduate! To keep me even more busy I'll be doing some traveling. In a few weeks, I'll head to OK with my academic bowl team (see the team below), where we will hopefully do very well and make it to nationals =). I'm super excited because my parents will be driving down from NE to watch the competition. I'm also presenting at two conferences this spring, one in Springfield, IL at a deaf-ed conference, and another in Philadelphia at a national science teachers conference. Sooooo...if I'm not a great blogger the next few months...those are my excuses =).

Here are a few pictures from our trip to New Braunfels...just for you Amy =)!!