We Bought a House

Last week we celebrated our 4 year anniversary. In 4 years of marriage we've lived in: 3 cities, 5 apartments, Chuck's sister's basement (for a summer when we moved back from Boston) and now, at last, A HOUSE. We close on it TOMORROW and move in this Saturday!

 

We have been casually looking at houses on Zillow for probably a year to get an idea of what we like and don't like so when we went out with a realtor to actually look a couple months ago, we knew exactly what we were looking for. Funny enough, the house we bought is not really what we were looking for. But we walked in and fell in love with it and think it's the perfect house for us where we are in our life right now. It's a ranch. It's a new build. It has a finished, walk-out basement. The kitchen is the definition of the Heart Eyes Emoji. The yard is small. There are built in bookshelves. We CAN. NOT. WAIT. to move in and be homeowners for the first time!

Like I mentioned, we have lived in 5 apartments in our 4 years of marriage. Two in Boston, two in Seattle, and one in Louisville. As we leave apartment life behind, maybe (hopefully?) forever, I thought it would be fun to look back on the apartments we've lived in and some of the ugliness and prettiness that sums up apartment living.

Our first apartment was in Eastgate, a students only apartment building on MIT's campus. We really wanted to live in Eastgate for our entire time in Boston, but the building is in such high demand we didn't win the apartment lottery and only got to live there for our first summer as we were subletting from someone. You might look at Eastgate in this previous post and wonder why we wanted to live there so badly with the 550 square feet, scary hallways, broken ovens and cockroaches. Ask me sometime in person and I'll tell you the difference in rent at Eastgate vs the rest of Boston and you'll understand. Also, the views of the Charles River and Boston were pretty unbeatable and Chuck's walk to class took approximately 30 seconds.

Our fancy AC unit in Eastgate

After one summer at Eastgate, we moved to our "Married apartment" in Central Square. We loved that apartment. It had the fun speaker system to talk to people at the front door that Chuck would sing into and entertain passerbyers with, a nice kitchen, a parking spot in the garage underneath the building, and some of our friends upstairs and in the buildings next to us.  We also had a lady next door who I liked to make up stories about to entertain Chuck with pretty often, including the one time I tried to convince him she had been killed by her creepy cat because a pair of her snow boots sat outside her door untouched for 3 weeks straight.

Small but cute!

In our short 6 month stay in Seattle, we lived in 2 different fully furnished apartments. The first one we lived in we rented site-unseen. Online it all looked great. In person, while clean and cute, it smelled basement-y, had lumpy floors, had plumbing issues, and no cell service on account of we were in the basement of a house. Also the lady in the conjoined apartment smoked outside her door aka outside our door and the smoke crept into our apartment. Fun times.

We had to sit in that exact spot on the counter to get cell reception.

So after about a month, we moved to a different fully furnished apartment in a different part of the city where we could walk to work and downtown easily, and most importantly, could talk on our cell phones without having to sit on the kitchen counter. That was an OK apartment. The best things about it were the location and view of the mountains from our living room and kitchen. The worst things about it were the ants we couldn't get rid of and the dogs next door that barked at every sound they heard all day and night. Also we had no AC and with all those windows it got a little toasty in there during the summer.

Mountains

When we moved to Louisville, we chose to live at the Meridian Apartments which were brand new at the time. I've talked all about this apartment before and how wonderful it is. We have granite countertops! The carpet is super soft! Our closets are huge! This apartment has been amazing and I really think we will miss living here but we are also ready for a change of scenery. The past two years have had their ups and downs as you know, and unfortunately now this apartment is associated with those down times. We're hoping to pack up all our belongings and leave any bad juju behind!

My favorite pic of our Meridian Apartment. So homey!

All of our apartments have had their pros and cons and while it wasn't always enjoyable sharing a wall with strangers or dealing with ants/cockroaches/dogs/cats, all of these apartments have been special to us in their own unique ways. We are so excited to move and can't wait to see what adventures are ahead for us in our new HOUSE!

 

Letters to Boston

As the reality of leaving Boston creeps closer and closer, I've reflected on some things/people/places I like and dislike in Boston and written some short letters to them. Enjoy.

Dear Pepper Sky,
I am so sad that it took us until January 2013 to discover you. I regret those 7 months we were in Boston and failed to recognize your greatness. Your Pad Thai is one of the best things I've ever eaten and I'm afraid I will never find another like it. Whether it's in the restaurant or take-out, it's always perfection. I will hold every future Pad Thai to your standards.
With Love,
Your number one fan and customer

Dear Boston Pedestrian Crosswalks,
I love the power you have over cars, buses, bikes, and taxis. You are the most powerful crosswalks I have ever witnessed in my life. I love the power I feel when I walk across a large, main road during rush hour. Because you are there, I have the power to stop buses full of people and it feels amazing. It's the closest I will ever get to having a superpower. I wish crosswalks in other cities would take note.
Love,
An Adoring Fan


Dear Upstairs Neighbor,
You are the loudest walker I've ever heard. You wake up earlier than us and go to bed later than us. And you stomp the whole time. You also move furniture a lot, vacuum suspiciously frequently, and run some kind of machine that also makes noise. What are you doing up there? We're not sure if you are a Dexter, a Walter White, or maybe just a hairdresser or work-out enthusiast. But whatever you are, it's loud. I want to leave you a note asking you to be quiet but I'm not a grouchy 79 year old woman so I won't. Also, Chuckie won't let me.
Not with love,
Your annoyed neighbor


Dear T,
I love you and hate you so much. I love that I can easily travel around the city without sitting in traffic. I hate that people invade my personal space when it's overcrowded in the mornings. I love that Chuck and I never have to decide who will be DD because we can just take the T home. I hate that you are sometimes ridiculously delayed which makes me late to work. Once we're gone, I will simultaneously miss you and be happy to be rid of you forever.
Sincerely,
Sometimes happy/sometimes grumpy T rider


Dear Hi-Fi Pizza,
The only reason I am slightly ok with visiting you is because I found out Matt Damon and Ben Affleck used to get their late night pizza there when they lived in Cambridge back in the day. I think you are kinda gross but Chuckie loves you. You've brought him so much joy. When he's ready for the 4th meal at 2 in the morning, you've provided it. You may have the greasiest pizza I've ever seen but I guess that's all there is to eat at 2 am.  One thing I know for sure is your to-go bags (aka the pizza on a paper plate shoved into a brown paper lunch sack) are second to none.
Fondly,
Rachel on behalf of Chuck


Dear Really Old Yellow Lab in our Apartment building,
You are so old and so cute and you make my day every time I see you in our hallways. I didn't know dogs were allowed in our building and I see a lot of your hair collecting on the stairs, but it doesn't bother me because you are adorable. I wish you lived with me.
Love,
Dog Whisperer


Dear Snow,
NOBODY LIKES YOU.
Sincerely,
Rachel and 98% of all people ever

Chuck turns 27

Last year you may remember I basically failed at celebrating Chuck's birthday in Seattle. We went to brunch and I gave him a gift, but overall it wasn't a very exciting birthday. I forgot to make him a cake or dessert of any type and gave him a lame (in my opinion) gift. In my defense, we had JUST moved to Seattle, our furnished apartment had no baking appliances or pans, I had only a day or two to find a birthday present, and we didn't know anyone else in Seattle yet who could celebrate with us. On top of all that, he had to fly to Phoenix the night of his birthday, so spent most the afternoon packing and getting to the airport.

So this year I made an extra effort to make the whole weekend fun and birthday related. Unfortunately, Chuck's birthday weekend happened to fall right before the due date of the first draft his thesis. Stupid thesis trying to ruin my plans! So he had to spend a majority of the weekend writing, but we got to squeeze in a little fun here and there.

On Friday, Valentine's Day, Chuck had made reservations for us at a restaurant in Cambridge we've been meaning to try forever. It was really good food and a lively atmosphere so we had a lot of fun.

Before dinner, Chuck gave me a Valentine's gift in the form of donuts. He knows me so well....  But seriously. Who wants a box of chocolates when you can get heart shaped donuts?

For his birthday gift I had purchased tickets to see a comedian, Mike Birbiglia, at a theater in Boston on Friday night. So after dinner we killed some time in a bookstore and a Starbucks and then headed into Boston for the show. Mike was pretty funny and I'd definitely recommend going to see him if he ever comes to your city. Also the Wilbur Theater, where we saw the show is a great venue to see a show in and it has this trippy ceiling thing going on that will entertain you while you wait for the show to start.

The ceiling design is oval, so it looked like the ceiling was crooked from our seats. Or is the chandelier crooked? (Neither are but tell me it doesn't look like something is off here?)

Saturday and Sunday we barely left the house on account of a blizzard and Chuck's thesis. At one point we left to go to a friend's house for dinner and some Olympics watching, but other than that we didn't really leave the house.

 On Monday, Chuckie's actual birthday, we were both home due to the President's Day holiday. He still had to write his thesis AND do homework for his Tuesday classes, so I tried to make his day still a little fun by cooking him brunch and a late lunch. I basically just kept bringing food to his desk all day.

A french toast sandwich, chicken and cheese quesadillas, and birthday strawberries, because Chuck isn't a huge lover of cake.

That night he took a break from working and we met up with friends at Green Street Grill, another restaurant we've been meaning to try forever that is literally 2 blocks from our apartment.  It was so nice of our friends to come out and celebrate his birthday, even though some of them were also in the middle of thesis writing!  We had a lot of food, a lot of drinks, and sang "Happy Birthday" to Chuck not once, but twice at the table.

Pinkies up!

All in all I think it was a birthday win this year, especially because on Monday night before bed Chuckie told me it was "one of the best birthdays ever." Mission. Accomplished.

Happy 27th Birthday, husband! I think this will be your best year yet!

Fish, Baseball, and Mountains

These last few days in Seattle have felt a lot like our life in Boston. Not only are there a few more LGOs in Seattle right now for internships, but there are also several of the Sloan students here for their summer internships. This means there are a lot more people making plans and meeting up. This is what Chuck and I have been missing about Boston, so it's been nice to reunite with some of our Boston friends!

Last Thursday, Amazon held a free night at the Seattle Aquarium for all of the MBA interns. 

The night included free admission to the aquarium, free food and drinks (one thing we REALLY miss about MIT- all the free food and drinks at events!) and a chance to meet and network with all of the interns currently in Seattle from schools all over the country. We didn't see much of the aquarium but I have to say from what we did see, it wasn't that impressive. I guess this huge tank was pretty cool though.

The best thing about the Seattle Aquarium was the location. It's right on Puget Sound. Awesome view.

After the aquarium we went out to a bar in our neighborhood for a little while with some of the LGOs and Sloanies. We had to take this picture of Chuck and two of his classmates, ZZ and Hector, because the 3 of them were on the same "core team" in the Fall. It's crazy that 3 of the 7 Puffins (their team name) all ended up in the same place for their internships!

Friday night, Chuckie and I ventured downtown to Safeco Field for the Mariners vs. Cubs baseball game. He had been to the stadium before with some of our friends on a night I had to work, but this was my first time at the field. It was beautiful!

The game wasn't sold out by any means so we just picked some seats in left field, and in the shade, and enjoyed the game.

For a reason I can't remember, my dad has always been a Cubs fan, therefore my family has always cheered for the Cubs. My dad also coached my little sister's softball team for a lot of years, and they were always the Cubs. So this was the perfect game for us to go to! I felt a little bad, cheering for the Cubs instead of Seattle, but no one seemed to mind and there were actually A LOT of Cubs fans in attendance! Sadly, the Cubs lost.

But I did hear they beat Seattle on Saturday and Sunday. So yay!

Saturday we woke up early and met up with some LGOs and Sloanies to drive 2 hours to Mt. Rainier National Park for some hiking. Chuck and I had been to the park before with my parents, but now that it's summertime, the snow is melted and the park looked a lot different!

We started with a hike on the Rampart Ridge Trail. The trail was a loop and the whole thing, round trip, was about 5 miles. I think. At least, that's what the sign said.

The hike up to the viewpoint was not easy but not TOO intense. We did sweat a lot though. But when we finally made it to the top, the views were incredible. The weather was perfect that day as well which made it even better.

Hello, Mt. Rainier!

The way back down was a little intense because for a small stretch of the trail we were completely ambushed by mosquitos. Once we got away from them though it was a nice walk down the hill.

Because of the timing, Chuckie and I had to leave after that hike so I could get back to Seattle in time to work an event at the arts center, but the rest of the group continued up into the park to do another hike. I wish we could have stayed because it was such a nice day for hiking! Maybe next time, I won't have to work on the same day.

Sunday I had to work at Nike all day but Sunday night we met up with some friends to see the new Star Trek movie. We saw it partly because we wanted to hang out and partly because no one has air conditioning in their apartments and it was really hot on Sunday and seeing a movie was an excuse to get out of our houses and hang out somewhere with air conditioning.

So as you can see: networking events, bars, group outings, baseball games... Yes, Seattle felt a lot like Boston this week.

Up next for us is another trip to Louisville. Originally we didn't plan to visit home in July but Amazon wants Chuck to visit several fulfillment centers around Kentucky to shadow some people and see if he'd be interested in working in one of the fulfillment centers after LGO. Exciting stuff! I'm just going along for fun. We leave for Louisville on July 4th and we'll be there for 2 weeks! Chuck has to work the whole time we're home but I don't, so it's kind of like a summer vacation for me. Chuckie will work on his internship and I will work on my tan! (Don't worry- he gets to have a little fun too!)

A New Routine

A lot has been happening around here lately.

For starters, I turned 26 last weekend. It was one of the best birthdays I've had in a long time. When we woke up Saturday morning, Chuckie asked what I wanted to go do and of course, I said "donuts." If you know me, you know donuts are my favorite food. So what better way to start off my birthday than with some fresh donuts and coffee?

After donuts, I had an interview with Niketown in downtown Seattle for a part time position, which is in addition to the other two part time marketing/arts jobs I already have out here. Then Chuckie and I went shopping at Banana Republic because we had a Friends and Family discount for 50% off everything and we both had gift cards. Then, only 2 hours after my interview, I got a call from Nike letting me know they'd like to hire me and could I start this Monday?! Um, YES! So now I have 3 jobs.

The evening of my birthday, we decked ourselves out in Louisville apparel and headed to a hole in the wall bar a few minutes from our apartment to watch the Big East Championship game. Louisville pulled out an amazing win- the best birthday present! Then we were off to another bar to meet up with friends and participate in the early St. Patrick's Day celebrations! Like I said, a GREAT birthday this year.

Oh yeah and one of Chuckie's gifts to me was Girl Scout Cookies. Does he know me well or what?

 

So that was Saturday. Monday I started my new job with Niketown, and on Tuesday we moved apartments. Because, you know, we haven't moved enough times this past year already so we wanted to add one more move just for fun. No but seriously. The apartment we were in was ok for a little while. But there were several things about it that we decided we can't deal with for 5 more months. First of all, it was in the basement of a house. We had no windows, no ventilation, crooked floors, and probably some mold from occasional basement flooding. Also, it was a studio- so basically all just one big room, which is not ideal for hosting visitors.

 

So we found this new apartment through the same company. It is also fully furnished, so moving would only require moving our few belongings we brought to Seattle, in a better location close enough for Chuck to have a 10 minute walk to work and close enough for me to walk to Niketown, a one bedroom so much bigger, a designated parking spot, and a brand new kitchen and bathroom. Oh yeah, and we have tons of windows. I am not exaggerating when I say my overall mood has improved SO much just in the few days since we moved here. I think it's the windows.

Oh and I love what we named our WiFi router.

View of the Olympic Mountains from our living room? Ok!

We love it.

So, in addition to turning 26, getting a new job and a new apartment, we're also trying to get out of the rut we've been in lately where Chuck gets home from work, we make dinner and then proceed to spend our evening watching Raylan Givens mess some people up on our new favorite show, Justified. And while we love our Raylan Givens and plan to keep watching so we can catch up to the current season, we have a new plan to start getting a run in or some type of exercise after work before the dinner and Justified routine starts. I know it's not a profound idea- this is what most normal people do on a daily basis. So we need to become normal. We need to get healthier and stop being so lazy. Plus, now that I'm working at Nike I'm required to wear the Nike Fuelband so I gotta hit my daily Fuel points goal, people!

This weekend we're looking forward to watching a lot of basketball and exploring more of Seattle. My parents come to town next weekend for their Spring Break visit- I can't wait.

Happy Friday, everyone!

 

2012: The Best Year Ever

2012 was a huge year. My life in 2011 and my life in 2012? Completely different. In a good way. But seriously. Things could not be more different now than they were just a year ago.

January
- We got engaged. (Not technically January, but December 28, 2011 is pretty close.... So I'm going to count it.)
- We started planning our wedding and picked a date, location and I found a wedding dress.

February
- Chuck flew to Boston to interview for LGO.

Interview Day!

March
- We found out Chuck got into MIT which meant we found out we'd be moving in a matter of a few months.

Out celebrating LGO, two days after we found out.

April
- I went to LA with my best friend to visit our other best friend and we went SKYDIVING. The decision to do this went something like this (via texting):
Liz: "Hey we should go skydiving in LA!"
Me: "Ok!"
Liz: "Seriously?!!?!?!?"
Me: "YES!"
Group text:
Liz: "Hey Emily, we think we should go skydiving when we're in LA in a few weeks."
Emily: "HELL YES."

And so it was decided.

Right before we got on the plane to jump out. So jealous of Liz's purple suit.

I promise you, riding in that rickety old plane was way scarier than jumping out of it.

May
- Chuck left his job at GE and I left my job at the Kentucky Center.

The Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts.

 - We packed up our entire lives, said goodbye to our family and friends, and moved to Boston.

We look thrilled. This is what 16 hours in a car will do to you.

 June
- Chuck started school at MIT.

- I started a new job at MIT.

July
- We spent the 4th of July in the birthplace of America! Probably my favorite thing we did all summer.

August
- Chuck finished his first semester of grad school.
- We moved into a new apartment in Cambridge.
- We got married and I became Rachel Cummings!

Gettin married.

Thank you to the cranky desk clerk who took this picture for us at almost 3 am when we arrived at the Seelbach.

 September
- We went to Maine! A state I was pretty sure I would never visit.

- Emily visited us in Boston.

October
- We camped in New Hampshire.

- Hurricane Sandy happened.

November
- My sisters visited us in Boston!

Sami, you're supposed to lay ON the air mattress, not UNDER it.

Laura, enjoying a tasty beverage at an Italian restaurant in the North End.

- My childhood best friend Lauren visited us in Boston!

- We found out Chuckie got an off-cycle internship with Amazon and started planning to move to Seattle.

December
- End of Chuck's 2nd semester of MIT.
- Traveled to Louisville to spend 2.5 weeks with friends and family for Christmas!

2013 is going to have a hard time living up to 2012.

Happy New Year, everyone! Here's to new beginnings, new friendships, new challenges and everything else new that comes with a new year!