New Year, 2009

Ok, so here’s that second entry I promised you all, talking about New Year’s Eve. It’ll probably bring us up to date. Anyway, on Dec. 30th Kristin and I had an appointment to go get our military IDs, so we could finally take full advantage of the fact that I’m in the army. When we got down there, the recruiter also took us to sign up at an office there that arranges activities and fun stuff for people. We got put on their email newsletter, but while we were there, the lady asked us if we wanted free tickets to Boston’s “First Night” celebration (what the city does for New Year’s Eve). Basically a bunch of places in Boston have shows and activities that are free to anyone who buys admission. Performers come from all over the nation and even around the world. So we got to participate, just for having been in the right place at the right time. :-)

So the first place we went to see was the Boston Aquarium. It was a cold and snowy New Year’s Eve, but when we got there (about 10am), they had a tent set up for everyone in line and they had hot chocolate and graham crackers while we were waiting to get in. When we got in, they had displays of penguins and seals that were really neat. We went around from one display to another, having a blast. Some of the things were really cool, like the anaconda they had (of course, it was behind glass. . . ;-). Their giant ocean tank was really impressive, with big sharks, rays, tons of funky looking fish, and even a giant turtle or two. Speaking of turtles, Kaela also made a new friend.



After the aquarium, we went to the convention center where they were having a bunch of different performances by various local artists. We went and saw a professional puppeteer named Wayne Martin that was really impressive. I'd recommend the show to anyone if he's ever in your area. If you're interested in learning more, his website is at the bottom of this entry. The coolest one, I think, was when he brought out a marionette of a little puppeteer, running a tiny marionette. :-) After that we went and listened to a storyteller, and she was really incredible. She was from Cuba, so she threw a lot of lationoamerican-isms into what she was saying, but translating everything for the audience. It was great.



After that we went and saw a professional trampoline group. It was extremely impressive to watch them doing flips with hoops, snowboards, etc, all at about 25 ft up in the air. After that we left the convention center and decided to head home, thinking that Kaela had probably had a big enough day. We stopped by the Boston Common on our way back, where they had ice sculptures on display. Kaela was adorable in the Bunting Suit that Kimberly sent us – Kristin even had random Asian tourists stopping her, asking (in a very Asian accent) if they could take pictures of Kaela, because she was so cute. It was kinda weird, but flattering, I guess.



So we finished and got back home, thinking we would enjoy the countdown by ourselves. Unfortunately, Kaela awoke about 10 minutes before midnight, crying. I guess she just wanted to be part of her first New Year celebration. :-) So Kristin nursed through the New Year.

Since then, school has started up and Kristin is still working at Dr. Laby’s office. I don’t know if I mentioned that in the last entry. I was assigned to do clinical work last semester at a Pediatric Ophthalmologist’s office. Late in the semester he was starting up an Optical and having trouble finding help, so he asked if Kristin would be interested in part-time work (because naturally I had talked her up all semester). Since it’s a pediatric clinic, he sees kids all day every day, and he said it would be fine for Kaela to come along. So two or three days a week, Kristin and Kaela go to work. It’s been good for Kristin to get out of the house, but it’s a little hard on Kaela’s schedule, so we might not keep it up for long.

But anyway, slight detour there, but Kristin is still working there, though she’s having her hours cut down a little. I went back to school about two weeks ago and have been trying to work hard to stay ahead this semester, be diligent and responsible, etc. We’ll see how long I keep it up :-). Oh, but I also have finally started work on all the proposals I have to submit for my Master’s thesis. My advisor and I are hoping that I’ll be able to start collecting data really soon. Kristin is excited to come into the school and be a subject for me.

Well, this is getting long winded, so I’ll let you all escape. That’s our life in a nutshell. We’ll try to keep you all updated more regularly.


The Wayne Martin Puppets
http://www.waynemartinpuppets.com/index2.html