the church brew works...one last time.

We LOVE this place! Today, we met some of Matthew's friends from work there and it was oh so good. We will definitely try to copy the "pittsburgh-style salad" from here.

the cheesecake cafe.

We had lunch today at The Cheesecake Caffe. It's this neat little cafe in Irwin, PA which is about 30 minutes to the east of where we live. They have some amazing sandwiches and of course, we got a piece of cheesecake to share. So yummy!

We have one more place that we plan to go to before we leave Pittsburgh...The Church Brew Works!

Nancy B's bakery

We are starting to make our rounds for "last stops" in Pittsburgh before we leave. Today, we went and did some shopping (snow day for me...yay! and M had the day off) and stopped at Nancy B's bakery. It's kind of a hole in the wall place but has the most delicious chocolate chip cookies. I'm not usually a fan of chocolate chip cookies but these are soooooooooo good.

there's no place like home.

We are moving! Kansas City here we come...

(on one of our many trips to KS this past year)

At the end of January we are heading west. This is such a blessing for us! There is a lot we like about Pittsburgh but there is so much in Kansas City that we have missed dearly.

We had anticipated for a while to move back and prayed that a job would open up for Matthew. One did, he interviewed this past July, and he was offered a position in December. He will start in February! We are so thankful for the opportunity he will have to continue his career and know that he will be working for an awesome company. It is also our hope that this move will allow me to find a teaching position. I have kept my teaching license current in Kansas so I will begin substitute teaching when we move.

God never ceases to amaze us and we have learned so much in the past year and a half that we have lived away from family and friends. While there have been moments that were not so enjoyable and many tears, we have laughed a lot and experienced things we would not have had the opportunity to had we stayed close.

We have learned lessons of patience and trust.

We have learned about gratefulness and love.

And most importantly, we have learned that God's love for us never fails and that His timing is always perfect.

(p.s. the new blog background fits what's happening this year with moving to kansas city (i.e. sunflowers)!)

pitt vs. cincinnati

We went to the Pitt vs. Cincinnati game on Saturday (basically, the Big East championship game). BRRR!!! It was sooo cold and snowy but we did have a great time. We went with a couple of people from M's work that went to Pitt. Sadly, Pitt lost by 1 point in the last minute of the game. And the best part, I think we've finally thawed out from the game!

light up night.

We went downtown on Friday night to experience Light Up night in Pittsburgh. We loved walking around downtown! It's the night they turn on all the Christmas lights, Macy's unveils their holiday windows, and there are fireworks. We took the "T" downtown and back and avoided crowded roads and finding a place to park. They had a lot going on for people of all ages...ice carvings, carriage rides, bands, games, fireworks, and food. It was really neat and actually not too chilly!
In front of the tree at PPG Place (where we've previously ice-skated).

These are the Macy's window displays. They were really neat! The theme this year was letters to Santa, as you can read in the first picture.
We loved seeing the names on the Santa letters. In fact, we saw the name Lilly & Caroline. (If you know us, you know those are most likely our girl names when we have children. We have middle names, too. Ha! And boy names...but we did not see those anywhere.)

(Joseph & Amber, if you read this...this one is for you.)

The mayor's Christmas tree.

Now I think we're in the Christmas spirit. (although we're really waiting for the snow to fall because it still doesn't feel like winter...yet!)

shopping.

Matthew and I had a pretty good weekend. On Friday night, we ventured to the North Hills to go to a fancy mall and eat at the mexican restuarant, Mad Mex. We drove through downtown at 5:30 (which may not have been a great idea) and while it was already dark, it's so neat to see the city lit up along the rivers once we popped out of the tunnel. Then on Saturday, we putzed around at home and then went to the outlets to do some birthday and Christmas shopping! We bought a few things and enjoyed our time looking through the shops. It's hard to believe the stores are already playing Christmas music!

matching t's

The only Steelers gear we own. We had to buy Superbowl Champions t-shirts. And we match!

The Pittsburgh Steelers

Did you hear? They won the Super Bowl. Matthew and I haven't decided if we're fans yet or not. We enjoyed watching the game and we were cheering them on. We have definitely seen that their fans are truly devoted to them. It's Steelers everything!!!

But since we live here and the Steelers are here, I suppose you'd call us fans. We were happy they won and even plan on buying some Super Bowl Champions t-shirts (when they get re-stocked because they sold out f-a-s-t!).

Can you say that you live in a city that the NFL team won the Super Bowl 6 times? We can!

Kari and Neal Visit!

Kari and Neal (my sister and brother-in-law) came to visit us for the weekend! I picked them up on Thursday afternoon and we had a busy, nice weekend! Here are some highlights:
Birthday present for Matthew...a Michigan hat!
Hudson got a present, too! (He always does when visitors come...what's up with that?) A minty smelling football - he loves!!!
A hand-me-down Halloween costume from Tucker. It even glows in the dark (that's why we are in the bathroom).
Happy 3rd Anniversary to Kari and Neal...just a few weeks late.
On Friday night we went to the Andy Warhol museum. There are some very interesting paintings and photographs here. On Saturday afternoon, after watching KU play (for Neal) we headed to the Tanger Outlets in Washington, PA which is about 40 minutes south of where we live. We had fun shopping and there are some real nice deals! I already bought 3 Christmas presents....oooo, I wonder who they are for....
Then we headed to the South Side and ate at this Tapas and Wine Bar. Very yummy food and sangria (although we're not sure there was actually any wine in it)!
At dinner with Matthew.
On Sunday afternoon, we did a Ducky Tour. What is a Ducky Tour your might ask??? You ride in a 1940's World War II amphibigous vehicle around the city for a tour. I must say it was hilarious and very informative and only a little scary when the boat was leaning towards the right (our side). I took tons of pictures of Pittsburgh and learned lots of facts (to post later...).
It was a tight fit but fun! The boys...And Kari and I...
And we had to go to Church Brew Works for the traditional Pittsburgh salad...it was once again yummy!

Thanks, Kari and Neal for a fun weekend. Can't wait to see you and the doggies at Thanksgiving!!!

Amber and Joseph Visit!

This past weekend, Matthew's brother and sister-in-law came to visit us in Pittsburgh! We picked them up on Thursday night (sign in hand!) at the airport. We were so excited and happy to have visitors again.
They were so generous to us - a housewarming present for Hudson (from his cousins Kota and Matty) and one for Matthew and I.
A very cool Nylabone (I must say!). He LOVES it!!!
And this very neat cutting board, made in the shape of Kansas with a dot where Manhattan is for where we met, dated, and got engaged!!!
Happy Birthday to Matthew!
So I found this restaurant, Big Mama's House of Soul, and planned to take Matthew there for his birthday last Tuesday but we decided to go there with Joseph and Amber instead. Well we got there and walked right into the kitchen. Amber thought it was a buffet in the kitchen with no seats! :) We found out we walked in the wrong door and headed around the corner to a plywood door with a Steelers flag outside. No sign though...interesting. We walked in here and found two tables, some folding chairs, lots of Steelers paraphernalia and line to pick up food. Little did I know (when planning this) that it was a take-out restaurant. Ah well...we got a picture with Big Mama herself and decided to order it the next day for lunch and take it home. Lesson learned! And the food was great...well the ribs and BBQ chicken sandwiches.
On Friday we played some games (Phase 10 and Skip-Bo), went to Target, ordered pizza, and rented a movie to watch. We don't really recommend Leatherheads.Saturday we got up (late! - wahoo!) and headed to Station Square to go up the Monongahela Incline. Matthew and I had been up the Duquesne Incline so it was great to head up a different one.
In the car to the top.
My hubby and I.
Amber and I at the top of Mount Washington.
All of us and the skyline of Pittsburgh.
The Point State Park fountain is dyed pink for Breast Cancer Awareness in October.
Back at the house, Amber graciously offered to take some pictures of us with our Hudson. Thank you!!! This is on our front steps.In the backyard. We can't wait to see all of the leaves change colors!
Saturday night we decided we would head downtown to watch the big fireworks display to celebrate Pittsburgh's 250th Birthday! This was a little more involved than Matthew and I planned. We'd like to think we do pretty well finding our way around the city but heading from the Waterfront to downtown to Station Square proved to be a task...mostly because of traffic. After crossing the Fort Pitt Bridge (which does not circle down to Station Square where we needed to go) we ended up in the Tunnel going towards 51 (the Highway that leads us home). At that point we saw many, many cars parked down at Station Square and decided we'd try and catch the "T" into Station Square. Apparently, everyone else had that idea too. But not at our "T" stop....it was the stops before us that caused the trolley to be packed! Two went by...and we were getting ready to head out and figure another route when a trolley passed on the other side and said they were sending one for us in 10 minutes! YAY...we waited, got on, and did not have to pay...awesome! It was busy in Station Square and we found a place to watch the fireworks on the 4th floor of the parking garage. It was totally-worth-the-adventure to watch them. They were wonderful! A thirty-minute show and me asking, "Is this the finale?" was entertaining! It was very crowded to get home but we made it and were very entertained on "T" home as well...
On Sunday, we went to church and Rita's, and then to the dog park in the afternoon.
Rita's Italian Ice
This was Hudson's second trip there. He's getting better at running around with the other dogs. But he still likes his daddy to protect him when necessary. Check out that tail. He's pumped!
Running!!!
Such a great picture Amber took. He was running around and having fun (for some of the time)!
Sunday evening we went to the Church Brew Works for a yummy dinner.
We really enjoy this restaurant, The Church Brew Works, although it is kind of weird to drink beer in what used to be a church.
Thank you so much for taking the time to come visit us, Amber and Joseph! We had a lot of fun having you here and only wish Kota and Matty could've joined us. See you in a little over a month!!!