For those of you who don't know - we have officially decided on Western Michigan University for grad school starting this fall. It took some serious pondering to decide where we should be, not only for Brandon for school, but for the kids and the family as a whole. We had several schools that we were laboring over so it was with difficulty, but surety, that we accepted an offer from WMU. Brandon is super excited about the program, he was also offered a service assistantship in the publications dept, so that will be good experience for him.
They only offer a Masters, so his PhD will be done elsewhere, but that is a couple/few years away still - we are in it for the long haul! But we are excited to finally know our next step in life!
We are currently looking for places to live in Kalamazoo - that's right, Kalamazoo - Dr Seuss wasn't kidding.
It is somewhat cheaper than here, which is nice - but what isn't, really? We are about 1/2 hour from the beaches, an hour from Chicago (that's our temple), and not far from awesome camping and dunes - lots of trails and lakes in the area for camping. It was dismal and brown when we went there, but we could tell it will be beautiful when it greens up. We also met some awesome people while we were there, so we feel like we already have friends - which is a big deal in a new and scary place! :)
We will be moving the end of June, as of right now. It could change.
We have been in Colorado for more than 12 years so it has really become home. We will miss our friends and family here terribly, but at the same time, we are excited for this adventure - and I am excited for a change - I have been chomping at the bit for quite some time. I like change. I actually have a few high school and mission buddies out that way, that I haven't seen in years - so that will be fun to reconnect with them too. The kids are also excited - they are sad to be leaving family and friends as well, but look forward to the adventure of a new place.
So I am officially in packing mode - it may be early, but with my "issues" - the more I can get done in small increments, the better.
