Just livin' the dream...

Here's what we've been up to lately...

Flag Football:
We have enjoyed getting to know the community at the school by immersing ourselves in a wide variety of activities. We joined a "newly weds" affinity group to meet some recently married couples, "The Well" contemporary worship community, Ultimate Frisbee club and....FLAG FOOTBALL!! It's true, both of us are on the "Back In Darker Black" flag football team that plays weekly. We have loved competing in sports again with games that play every Saturday morning. Our team is 2-2, but we have learned that we have qualified to make it to the playoffs. We even had team shirts made (Carly wears #8 and Chris wears #6). It has been fun and there's no better way to meet people than by running around, sweating (a Baldwin necessity), and high fiving people.This is the team we played last weekend, "The Fünkes" (aka Never Nudes). Arrested Development anyone?

Princeton vs. Harvard:
Thanks to friends on our flag football team, we were able to score free tickets to the Princeton vs. Harvard football game. The stadium here at Princeton is state of the art and huge. I think the stadium holds somewhere between 20,000-30,000 people when full. Key words here are "when full." The stadium was empty for this game which apparently is normal for this school. It turns out that Ivy League football (even when it's one of the oldest rivalries in the nation) is just a notch up from high school football that just does not get the draw of spectators that one would hope. Players here are much more academic than athletic. It was definitely still fun to go support the Tigers and hang out with some friends from the school.


Apple Picking & Ice Cream:
A couple of weeks ago, our neighbors below told us about a great orchard and local dairy farm. On a Saturday afternoon (post flag football game, of course), we decided to go apple picking at Terhune Orchard (http://terhuneorchards.com/). We had so much fun! The orchard was filled with tons of apples (Fujis, Jonagolds, Jonathans, Red Delicious, Gala and others) and we took a couple of bags full home with us. The Fall season out here is unbelievable. Also, Halo Farm is a local dairy that is famous for their unbelievable ice cream. In the downtown of Princeton there is an ice cream shop called Halo Pub where you can purchase Halo Farm's ice cream for cheap. Much to our surprise, we found that same ice cream at the farm and picked up 3 pints for fun. We had fresh apples and now local ice cream at our disposal. So, what does Carly do? She decides to make a delicious apple crisp cobbler topped with local ice cream!! YUM! The Fall season here is incredible!

















The Fall:
The colors of the trees are turning and there are bright oranges, yellows, pinks and reds all around. It is so pretty and unlike anything Southern California has! Our apartment is surrounded by trees and the campus colors are changing as well. The urge to run, jump and play in the leaves is pretty irresistible. Enjoy some of the pictures of the trees changing colors and a view of the campus.

We have now been in Princeton for 6 weeks and are working on getting a steady routine. This coming week is a "reading week" for Chris' class which means it is already time to prepare for midterms. "Reading week" is a full week without class/lectures on campus, but there is plenty to do. We're going to try and sneak in a visit to Philadelphia this week as time permits. We'll see!!

(F.Y.I - Chris' courses this Fall long term is Intro Greek, Orientation to the Old Testament, Systematic Theology & Speech Communications)