A Very Proud Wife

This was a great week! My neighbor Katherine and I just went on a fantastic walk around our neighborhood and I saw the first blooming daffodils of the season! It was 60 degrees and I was comfortable with a light fleece...ahh spring is here! As someone who is freezing all of the time, I welcome the warm weather with open arms.

After months of working on his resume, calling in the help of my fantastic colleagues (thank you Jack, Denise, and Everette for all of your guidance), interviewing, and waiting and hoping for a new opportunity at the University, Blake has a new job! He was offered a position as an Assistant Director of Annual Giving. While he enjoyed his 4 years with the Athletics Department (especially his time with Coach O'Conner and the baseball team), it was time for a new challenge. While we will miss our complimentary athletic tickets and working with friends (we love you Marty, Andy and Terri!), I finally have my husband back. We can spend more time with our friends on the weekends, attend more events in the community (no more skipping Fridays After Five and Starry Nights), and take ad-hoc trips to our favorite place in the world, Sandbridge Beach. Thank you to all of our friends and family members for your unwavering support (we have more time for you!)

Other highlights of the week:

--Grandpa turning 91! My grandfather, a Pearl Harbor Survivor and the toughest man I know, turned 91 on Monday. When I called he spent at least five minutes listing all of the people who came to see him...John, Kathy, Andy, Drew, Steph, Curt....you get the idea. After (almost) losing him on Christmas, this birthday was a blessing.

--Dave (my Dancing with the Darden Stars partner) telling me about his upcoming spring break trip to Sun Valley. For those who don't know, Sun Valley is in my home state of Idaho and is absolutely beautiful! Have a wonderful time and wave hello from me...while I love Charlottesville, Idaho will always be my true home.

--My parents attending a computer conference in Portland. I loved getting daily texts from my mom joyously telling me which brewery they were frequenting like "We r @ Hair of the Dog hooray!"

--Book club at Kate's House. Kate is my very best friend in Cville and is pregnant with baby Gracie (due on Blake and my anniversary of June 6!). She hosted a fabulous book club this week where we dined on peanut chicken, salad, broccoli, and brownies/mint choco chip ice cream. I had a wonderful time with the gals discussing "The Hunger Games".

--Two more important announcements that I will discuss later in more detail : a baby coming in October (it's not ours...sorry Kelly!) and an exciting proposal!

--Blake and I leave for Tuscany on Wednesday! I can already taste the amazing food (pasta, pizza, gelato, panini...will there be enough hours in the day?) and cannot wait for our cooking class in Lucca (great blog material) and our bike tour through Chianti.

What a great week it has been and I will have many stories from Italy when we return. Ciao!