So, since the last post six months ago, we've had a lot of changes.
In August, we moved to Sunnyvale, which is in Silicon Valley. Our place is five miles from Google, eight miles from Apple, and soon, within walking distance of Linked In. We are renting a three-bedroom with a yard and a garage. Amazing how much stuff we crammed into our two-bedroom (with a storage shed) in Oakland.
In September, Lauren started a new job as the Bicycle and Pedestrian Program Manager for
Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority--VTA--the agency that, among other things, operates the transit for Santa Clara County, develops countywide transportation plans, and distributes local, state, and federal transportation money to the 15 cities within Santa Clara County. VTA is a 15-minute drive or a 30-minute bike ride from home. Micah now can bike to work, instead of having to sit in the car for an hour and half each way.
Kai and Xander are in the same preschool, and Xander will be attending the local elementary school next fall as a Kindergartner. We live three blocks away from our friends Arwen & Satyam and their two boys, and they have graciously adopted Cricket, since we couldn't find a rental that met our needs and took pets. We have kitty visitation every so often. We also get to see friends Tony and Cleo and their twins, since they preceded us in the move to Silicon Valley. We've made friends with some neighbors who have a 7-year old who often plays with Xander.
All in all, it's a lot of nice changes. The hardest thing to get used to is the higher cost of living (our grocery bill is 15 to 20% higher), and the fact that we can't just leave our car parked and bike, walk, or take transit for our daily living. It's suburban.
Despite all the changes, things are really still just the same around the house, though. Our children are calm and quiet all the time. As you can see in this video, entitled, "I'm a Rock Star!"
