Schenectady, New York

Our next stop on our month long adventure was Schenectady, New York, which will be our new home in January. Andy's parents graciously agreed to meet us there to spend time with us and to care for Carsten so Andy and I could get more things done while we were there. We spent the week seeing a few rentals, trying to get to know the neighborhoods, test driving cars, buying a minivan, meeting with Union, and spending time with family. It was a super busy week trying to do all of these things, and it was made a bit harder by Carsten's slow adjustment to the new time zone. We were expecting him to adjust easily like he did last Christmas since he really doesn't sleep on planes, but he really did not this time and it was a really rough first four nights in the states.

We met with Union College for two days, and we left feeling energized and excited about the opportunities for both of us there. They have a great campus and a fantastic chemistry department. This was especially great for me because I had never been there before, so I was feeling nervous about what our future place of employment was going to be. Andy will be starting as a chemistry professor in January, and I'll start in the fall of 2013 teaching adjunct in chemistry. Here's a few photos of Union College:

Union College!!

We had an excellent tour of the campus, but it was cold!

We spent a lot of time test-driving different vehicles to see which ones fit our needs (and Andy!) the best. We ended up choosing and buying a used 2012 Toyota Sienna AWD minivan!

Our new minivan! 

We also spent some time exploring the Schenectady area and one night right before we had dinner at a restaurant on the Mohawk River, the sun came out lighting up this bridge for us. The weather was pretty cold and wet the entire time we were there, so this was a nice change.

Mohawk River in Schenectady

In Schenectady, our new home!

Grandma Bonnie and Grandpa Tom did an amazing job of caring for Carsten while we went about our errands. It was so nice to get so many things done during the week, and I know Carsten enjoyed some good quality time with his grandparents. We also got to celebrate an early Christmas with them since we will be in Switzerland for the Holiday season. Thanks so much Mom and Dad for coming out to NY!!

Grandpa playing with Carsten. 

Grandma playing with Carsten in the hotel lobby (the weather was not great while we were there).

Christmas came early this year for us! Thanks Mom and Dad!

Mom Huisman makes these wonderful quiet books for her grandkids on their 2nd birthday. Carsten loved it! 

Grandpa playing with Carsten at the mall.

We did manage to fit in some family time as well, and we took advantage of the indoor hotel pool since the weather was so poor. However, we only went in once because it was SO COLD. Carsten was blue and shivering when we got him out after about 20 minutes. I endeavored to touch as little of the water as I could :). Andy was the better parent and got in all the way with Carsten. Mom Huisman also got in, but Dad Huisman wisely chose the hot tub over the cold pool.

Coldest indoor hotel pool ever.

The week left us exhausted, but also excited about the opportunities in Schenectady. We are still working on a place to rent, but hopefully we'll sort that out before our move in January :).