I can't believe that it has been three months and two days since we moved to the suburbs. Typically when we tell city-dwellers that we moved out to the burbs, we are met with gasps and pity. But the truth is, we are loving it out here.

Here are some reasons why we are happy with our decision to move to the suburbs of Washington D.C. after nearly 4 years of living in the city:

1. It’s quiet. Oh. So. Quiet.
2. There’s much less traffic.
3. Sometimes when I open the front door after dark, there is a rabbit sitting in my front yard.
4. I have a front yard. And a backyard too!
5. I can walk barefoot outside.
6. We could not have purchased a one-bedroom condo in the city for the amount we purchased our three-bedroom, two (soon-to-be three) bathroom house.
7. Friendly neighbors. We have met more neighbors in three months here, than we met in 4 years in the city.
8. I can paint the walls, hang artwork, change light fixtures, even bust out a wall without panicking about whether or not I'll get my deposit back.
9. Our monthly mortgage payment is an investment in our future - no longer a rental payment toward someone elses.
10. No more worries about our cars being scraped, bumped, or even totaled (!!!) while parked in the street.
11. We have a driveway. No more parking in the street.
12. I can plant flowers, vegetables, and herbs in places other than my windowsill.
13. Grilling.
14. I no longer need to share laundry facilities with 100 other people.
15. It only takes 20 minutes to drive to the Baltimore Airport.

And most importantly

16. Salinger has a large yard to run and play in.

R got stung in the face by a bee yesterday :(

It occurred to me today that I might be more like the person I dislike most in my office than I ever realized.

I've got some changing to do.

I just looked out my window and saw the cutest thing. The little boy that lives across the street is working with such concentration to clean his bike with Windex and a rag. This boy is about five years old. He spends a lot of time outside, playing by himself. While there are other children in the neighborhood, he is the youngest and rarely plays with the other kids.

He just took his bike out into the driveway and walked it around, looking at his detailing job. Noticing a spot, he wheeled it back into the garage and returned to his cleaning.

The train to Union Station was very very crowded this morning.

I'm psyched about composting.

I realize garbage is a strange thing to be excited about, but I am.

This weekend Ryan and I built a dual-action compost bin. It is "dual-action" because it will eventually be composting two different stages of compost at the same time.

Since our last trip to Asheville, where we met some great people and learned a lot about living a more environmentally-friendly, back-to-the-earth, sort of lifestyle, I've been interested in how we can apply more earth-conscious elements to our life.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, "Yard trimmings and food residuals together constitute 24 percent of the U.S. municipal solid waste stream. That's a lot of waste to send to landfills when it could become useful and environmentally beneficial compost instead!"

Since I am planning my vegetable, herb, and flower garden for next spring, I figured I'd get a head start on my compost. I will save money on bags of soil and I'm significantly cutting down on the waste that's hauled off to the dump.

Links I used to research composting:
CompostInstructions.com/what-you-can-and-cannot-compost
www.composting101.com
www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=howTo&p=LawnGarden/compostBin.html

Hello world! It's been a long time.... Since buying a house my blog has suffered, I haven't seen a movie in ages, and the only music I hear is in the car on the way to the train station. Every waking moment is either spent at work or working on the new abode...

We did, however, manage to get away for a long weekend in Asheville, NC. That was wonderful.
We may have found the next place we'll live.

I have plans to get back to the blog soon.