I say that because we have been here for 2 years and we are finally coming to a point that we live like we own a home as opposed to living in a dorm. I think we are considering the bigger picture of life…a life that includes more than just us. Don’t jump the gun…I am not pregnant, but we realize that we don’t want it to just be us for long.

So what brings our house closer to being a home? A table. Growing up, my family would sit at the kitchen table and share our stories of what happened during the day. It was the only time of the day that we were guaranteed to be together. Every night would be a different dish - Wednesdays we would have pasta, Thursdays we would have franks and beans, and Sundays would be a feast that included baked mac & cheese, sweet yams, chicken and stuffing. It was a wonderful time with nothing but good memories - I hardly remember an unhappy time at the table.

While looking through the Sunday paper, the usual ads were there. This week, a Value City ad caught my eye. They had this cute dining nook on sale for $200 ($150 off!!) and we just had to have it. It took us 3 hours to assemble and it went from fairly easy to they gave us THIS to screw this in?!?!?!?! In the end, the frustration and blisters were worth the beautiful new table that graces our dining area. Prior to the table, we ate on TV trays on the couch. It worked for Will and I, but it wasn’t inviting to guests. We didn’t have company over much, so we decided that this was an okay way to eat our meals. I guess this goes back to the college life way of thinking. Now mind you we had a table when we first bought the house, but I thought it was too large for the area, so I gifted it to a Soldier in need. I don’t regret giving to someone in need, but we really could have used it. I think that the thing we needed the most was the extra seating it provided.

So now we are one step closer to making a our little house a home…it is an exciting yet scary realization that we are growing up. I’m not sure I am truly ready, but I am willing to let life take its course. I look forward to creating new table memories that are reminiscent of those that I had growing up.

I think I’m settled in enough to talk a little bit about the past couple of weeks.

During the month of August, I was consumed with finding a new job. I was at Prometric for just over 5 years when I landed the web developer position at Mindshare. I’ve traded my 30-minute drive to Baltimore for a 90-minute bus ride to Washington DC. Instead of having more playtime with my GBA or DS, I’m spending the time snoring. The commute will be worthwhile, as I am already enjoying the job.

My last week at Prometric was pretty much a brain dump. I tried to commit everything I had in my head to paper, CD, or DVD. For someone who was leaving the company, I was doing a lot of work. I should have been mentality checked out at that time. My last day was mostly spent at a happy hour that was longer than my average work day. While I was extremely disappointed in one work friend who did not show up, I couldn’t have been happier with those who came out to wish me farewell.

I’ve been at Mindshare for a week now, and I am slowly adjusting. Aside from the new commute, I have to become famliar with a myriad of technologies that I have passing knowledge of. Some I know very well, but others are new to me. This will be a great challenge!

The 27th Annual Bestest Day Ever passed two weeks ago. If not for Nadia, the day would have completely sucked. So preoccupied with the job search, I forgot to plan the Halo bash that I wanted to hold on my birthday. Before I knew it, I had a great new job, but no Halo party. So Nad and I spent the day together at home. I did enjoy the quiet time together, and I had fun reading the six D&D books she got me, but in the end it felt like any other Sunday, which I found depressing.

After nearly 40 hrs of gameplay, I completed Jade Empire for the Xbox. It is the first Xbox game that I finished and I must say that I was very pleased. I was so pleased that I started from the beginning immediately following the credits. For those who don’t know (or don’t bother to click on the link…), there are 2 paths that you could take - a good and a bad if you will. I chose to take the ‘good path’ (open palm) for my first run through the game with a balanced female character named Wu the Lotus Blossom. I am now starting the ‘not so good path’ (closed fist) with a magic driven character named Scholar Ling.

If you own an Xbox, you should have this game. It is truly engaging and will keep you very entertained.

Now only if I could finish Final Fantasy Tactics Advance…140+ hrs invested into the game with no end in sight!