testing complete

Greetings from 30,000 feet! I'm currently on my way back to New Mexico after finishing the bar exam yesterday in Minnesota. The test was exactly what I expected - hard. I felt I did well on the essay portion, but I have no idea how to judge my performance on the multiple choice questions. The results don't come in until early October. I'm going to do my best to forget about it until then.

Now that the test is behind me, I'm looking forward to spending more time with my family without feeling like I should be studying. Brenda and I will also be attending some dinners with opera supporters in Santa Fe to thank them for their generous support of the opera and to get to know them a little better. Many friends and family members will be coming to Santa Fe in the next few weeks to see Brenda's opera, and we're really excited to see everyone. Also, Brenda and I are hoping to get in a few more hikes before we have to leave the Land of Enchantment next month. I'm so glad I get to enjoy some time there without having to study!

While I've been gone it seems that Rowan has developed an interest in helping my parents work on a big puzzle (1000 pieces, I think). It also seems that he's cutting his first molar. A full set of chompers are on their way.

Drew was kind enough to let me stay with him in Minneapolis. Brenda and I are very interested in moving there, so it was fun to drive around the neighborhoods a little bit and get a feel for them. It seems like it would be a really good fit for us.

I'm about to be offered peanuts or pretzels, so I should probably wrap this up. I hope you all have a great weekend, and we'll talk to you next week!

two weeks and a day late

Hello all! So sorry we didn't have a chance to write last week. Chad is using all his spare time to study for the Bar Exam, and I have to say, I'm really impressed by the way he's balancing having a kid, a wife who still has to work sometimes, AND studying for many many hours in a day! I know he's looking forward to being done by this time next week!

We had a great week hanging out with my twin, and wish he could have stayed longer! Chad looked after Rowan so Drew and I could go on a hike for some twin time, and the next day we even took Rowan for a short hike! Well, Rowan didn't do much hiking, since he just rode on Chad's back in our Ergobaby carrier! He seemed to have fun treating his Papa like a horse!

Drew and I at the summit of the Circle Trail. We needed to do a short hike since he had hiked about TWELVE miles the day before!! Good ol' crazy Drew!

The day after Drew left, I got to see what it would be like to have two kids for about five and a half hours. Our good friends Alek and Daniela are both singing here this summer, and they lost their childcare on rather short notice, so I offered to help look after their 2 year old, Eva. She and Rowan had a lot of fun playing together, and I have to say I was surprised at how well it went! We got together the next day as well (although she had a babysitter that day) and went to the park and then the mall for some much needed air conditioning! Young kids are so cute: any place is fun to play if it's new and different! They each had fun running up and down a ramp in the middle of the mall. They were then rewarded with their own cup of ice water, which Eva seemed totally excited about. Adorable!

Three days after Drew left, one of my oldest friends, Olivia, came to visit us from Portland. It was her first time meeting Rowan, and she was also supposed to come see me sing Lucia, but because of some flight attendants that overslept, she missed her connection and ended up arriving a day later than planned. I still got to show her the opera house though, since The Golden Cockerel was opening that weekend, and she and I went to the final dress rehearsal. I actually went to see the show twice, since Olivia was kind enough to babysit while Chad and I went to the opening night! We had a great time seeing our awesome friends onstage, and our friends offstage were shocked to see that I let Chad out of the house. Haha... 

Since Olivia and I hadn't seen each other for two and a half years, some catch up time was needed, and Chad again came to the rescue! He looked after Rowan while Olivia and I went to a new destination (since 2016) in Santa Fe called Meow Wolf: The House of Eternal Return. So, it's hard to describe how cool this place was. I'm so excited to take Rowan there at some point in his life, because this place is so magical and simply imagination come to life! 

A view from a fantastical indoor treehouse. 

Olivia with her 3D glasses on!

Driving a tipped over school bus through space!

Chad also let us go on a short hike, and we went to our old stomping grounds, the Dale Ball trails!

A cute little house that was by one of the trail markers. I like the little cactus heart!

Chad and I are without visitors for just four more days, and then we're joined by Chad's parents again. They're coming to help me look after Rowan while Chad is in Minnesota, and I'm so grateful to them! I know Rowan will love to see his Iowa grandparents again too! 

Well, I'm going to wrap it up here. Hope you all have a great week, and we'll try not to be as late with the blog next week! :-D

Lucia madness

Hey all! Brenda and her castmates had a wonderful first performance of Lucia di Lammermoor on Saturday. We found a babysitter so my parents and I could all go to the show. Rowan ended up sleeping the whole night so the babysitter had a pretty relaxing evening (I think she might have even taken a nap). Normally I would tell you about how amazing Brenda was (which she was), but this time I'll let you discover that for yourselves. Santa Fe Opera posted several video clips on YouTube from the final dress rehearsal. I hope you enjoy seeing a bit of the show!

I've got just under three weeks until I take the bar exam. I'm looking forward to taking it so I can be done studying for it. There are way too many hiking trails in Santa Fe for me to be stuck in doors all day sitting at my computer.

I hope you all have a great week, and we'll talk to you next time!

Circle Trail

Hey all! All is well here. Brenda has her first performance on Saturday, and I'm looking forward to getting a sneak peek of the show tomorrow night at the final dress rehearsal. I'm still very much in study mode, but we managed to get out of the house on Sunday for another hike (thanks to my folks for looking after Rowan while we were gone). Here are a few pics from the hike.

 The first mile or so of the hike was pretty steep, which made for a good workout

Surveying the land at the summit.

Brenda still had plenty of energy. We'll have to find a more challenging hike for her next time.

Time to call it a night. I hope you all have a great week, and we'll talk to you next time!

a Sunday stroll

Hey all! I decided to skip a day of studying on Sunday and go for a hike with Brenda on one of my favorite trails in Santa Fe. Brenda's parents were kind enough to keep an eye on Rowan for us while enjoyed the sunshine and exercise.

The hike ended up taking us three hours total. Brenda is at the highest point in this picture which was 1,100 feet higher than where we started.

We came across some interesting creatures along the way.

Brenda's parents headed home early Tuesday morning. We already miss them, but we look forward to seeing them again later in the summer. My parents arrived on Tuesday and have picked up where Brenda's parents left off with babysitting Rowan. We feel so fortunate that we get to spend so much time this summer with our families.

I should get back to studying. I hope you all have a great week, and we'll talk to you next time!

all settled in

Hey all! Brenda and I are in the kitchen in our lovely Santa Fe digs making a late dinner. We're all fully adjusted to the new time zone, and Brenda and her castmates have already staged their opera. They even had their first rehearsal on stage today. The first performance isn't for two and a half weeks yet, so maybe they'll get a week off to just hang around the pool on the opera campus.

 Brenda posing for a picture with herself next to the Santa Fe Opera box office.

Brenda sent me this picture during her lunch break while I was locked in a room reading about the Federal Rules of Evidence. 

 Brenda's parents, Rowan, and I joined Brenda for her lunch break a couple of days ago. Rowan got to meet a bunch of new people, and he enjoyed pushing his stroller all around the grounds.

If you like sunsets (and sunrises for that matter, although you have to get up pretty early for those) then this is the place for you.

I need to get back to the grind. I hope you all have a great weekend, and we'll talk to you next week!

Santa Fe

Greetings from Santa Fe! We arrived late Monday night after a very long day of travel. Rowan was a champ and managed the flights and the long layover really well. He's been having a great time this week with Brenda's parents who kindly came to Santa Fe to look after him while I study for the bar. The bar prep is still quite intense, and I couldn't do it without the help of Brenda and her parents. They've been great.

Not a bad place to study.

I should call it a night. I hope you all have a great week, and we'll talk to you next time!