let the games begin

flat screen tv in possession (jed's well-earned "mancheivement"), slight hints of fall already in the air (yay for the north!), and the newest member of the eagles' family recently welcomed to the flock. as espn so nicely put it, a "new eagle has landed."

our jerseys are clean, we've been practicing the fight song, and every press conference has been analyzed. it's going to be a good season. possibly the season. only first downs will tell. what do we have to lose? nothing. what do we have to cheer for? philadelphia history, familial and brotherly love, the most riveting sport of all time.

all we can say is:

GO EAGLES!

"normal"

normal is so relative, subjective, original, abstract, illusory, all of the above. it can change at the dawn of every day, and even throughout the day. it's one thing that i, as a somewhat letter-of-the-law person on the inside, am okay with being fluid in the area of "normalcy." i'm okay with the fact that one person's pink hair can be a completely normal thing after last month's purple shade, but for another person, only brown can satisfy them. one person can think it's okay to sleep in the day and use the night as a work day, others shun the thought of seeing the sun rise. some couples are double-income-no-kids families, and some couples are more flexible in their definition of income, living from show to show or job to job.

jed and i have recently achieved (by God's kind grace) a state of "normal" life, albeit somewhat temporary. (and when i say temporary i do speak in the term of years. i just had to say temporary for the people out there who plan in ten year segments.) it's kinda weird to be here because we've only thought about it for so long, but yes, we're here.

we both have jobs, and we live in the city we love. it's a wonderful normal for us. we're so thankful for jed's job. he's finishing two weeks tomorrow at devry college of new york as an educational advisor in the undergraduate admissions office, and monday he leaves for a week-long training session in chicago. (side note: if you want to come to the city and keep me company, you're more than welcome!!!) it's such a great job for his background, our intentions for the future, his desire to have a job that works with people, and even the field that he's intended to work in. how good God is to give him a job that is a "first choice" job and not a "settle for" job. we're amazed!

consequently, this called for celebration. (you may think we look for a good excuse to celebrate, and if you do - you're right.) we decided an afternoon in brighton beach would be the choice for this particular celebration, and wow did it end up being fun! we started out at the beach right as the sun and heat had calmed down a bit, followed it up with a delectable and fantastic russian meal at a restaurant we found on yelp called cafe glechik, enjoyed a nice time watching the moon over the ocean, and then ate skittles on the train ride home. when we celebrate, we include the commute because it's usually a good part of the trip. below are some pictures from our most recent celebrations (walk in the rain to a newly found mexican restaurant, pics of li'l russia)