A Fill-Up

Where have I been?!

Florida!

Jeff won a prestigious award in his field, and said he would love it if I could be there when he received it.  That would take place in Orlando, Florida.  So of course I said yes.

Jeff's mother flew out to take good care of our girls and dog.  It even snowed once while we were away.  She's one nice mother-in-law.

We ate waaaay too much.  Sunday night we ate at a steak and seafood place that has received much critical acclaim and sells $1,000 bottles of wine.  (Of course we didn't!)  Monday was a perfectly gorgeous day.  While he was at the conference, I took my work down to the pool to soak up some sun.  We drove over to Cape Canaveral National Seashore to walk on miles and miles of undisturbed beautiful beach.  We went to a spot on a canal where manatees are known to hang out, and we saw some poking their noses up and gliding past.

We saw old Michigan State friends, and the MSU dinner was at a super fun tapas place.  It was nice to get time to hang out with Jamie especially.  She and I tried to catch some rays at the pool Tuesday afternoon, but it was cold and cloudy and we ended up huddled under our towels.  But it was still fun. And it was really fun to see Jeff get his award.

What surprised me the most was the glimpse I would get into a part of Jeff's professional life that I had not really witnessed before. At least half of a research professor's job is publishing work that contributes to the field, and these conferences give them valuable opportunities to make connections and get ideas. It seems irritating when he has to go out of town for a conference, but now I understand the significance of going.  Just being there with him helps me be more supportive of him.

And just drinking in all that sun was good for my soul.  And it looks like maybe I was able to bring a little back to our neck of the woods.