JC Squared Adventures

What better way to start off a new post in a new year, in a new decade, with an introduction of our second fur child. We’ve been waiting and waiting for another companion but we confined to apartment living until last year.

Lady Gwendolyn was born from the same lineage as Sir Percival. Not quite the same parents, but his parents are her great grandparents. While they have similar…

What Warms the Soul

Gooey Butter Corgi

Justin has been away from home for three weeks and has been living out of a suitcase as he travels for work, the holidays, and taking care of his mom after her recent surgery.

We were both able to spend some time together as we visited family for Christmas, but spent the New Year apart. I wasn’t sure how long long Justin was going to be home so I sent Gooey Butter Cakein…

Season’s Greetings 2018

Winter is here and the holiday season is under way.  It seems like just last week we moved were on a moving truck driving through snowy roads to begin a new life in Bloomington, Minnesota.

A new life it has been as we’ve reconnected with old friends, made new ones, and transitioned into new experiences in our careers. Justin’s working remotely and travelling once a month; Josephine’s back in…

Three years ago today Justin and I decided to have our first date. What you see in the image is a bracelet with the coordinates for Hartford Coffee Company, a local coffee shop around the corner from where I grew up that Justin and I had decided to meet at before walking over to the Festival of Nations in Tower Grove Park.

In the past, we’ve celebrated our dating anniversary by returning to the L…

Gardening is a budding hobby of mine, an activity that I grew to enjoy into from the many springs and summers I would help my adoptive mother in her gardens. There’s just something about the process of planting, sprouting, flowering, and harvesting that’s satisfying to be a part of. Now that we’ve been in Minnesota for eight months already, it’s time that we plant our roots here.

We’ve been on…

A Post for National Book Lovers Day (One Day Late)

Yesterday was National Book Lovers Day. For those who say that reading is boring, I was there with you when I was much younger. However, reading is far from boring. In honor of #nationalbookloversday, I’m going to share with you my first profound reading experience.   Those of you who know me, know that I’m adopted, but I wasn’t adopted until close to being a teenager. Growing up with my…

Josephine teaches online ESL in the wee hours of the morning before Justin gets out of bed. How he handles the repetition of words, Josephine will never know. After class, Josephine is off to her barista job, making delicious espresso and coffee beverages.

Josephine teaching “big” and “small” in her corner office space at home.

                  Often we have meals at home, opting for simple meals like chick pea or caprese salads, or soups. We do like to eat out, and our favorite restaurants so far include Red Cow, Hell’s Kitchen, and Chino Latino.

Date night selfie in an alley near Chino Latino

Grilled avocado and spicy tuna sushi at Chino Latino

Moroccan lamb shanks with couscous and pickled carrots at Chino Latino

  Weekend plans to a lake often seemed foiled by rain but we were fortunately able to drive up to Josephine’s grandparents’ in Battle Lake for a cousin’s graduation party. The winds made swimming a bit chilly, but it was a beautiful day to sit on the dock and relax. Even Percival braved the dock to be with us. Perhaps one day he’ll be brave enough to go for a swim.

Percival hanging out on the dock.

Josephine and Justin enjoy sitting on the dock.

                We’re in Day 350 of JC Squared Adventures, and hopefully we’ll be able to enjoy more of what Minnesotans dub “lake life.”

  – JNC

Day 243 – Letters to Our Future Child Project

Sometime in the past decade Josephine’s older sister, Cate, visited Italy and gifted Josephine a beautiful photo album. Years went by as printing photos became an exercise of the past, and memories could be retrieved with a click of a button. The lackluster for printed photographs left the photo album seemingly useless and thus remained among other items of memorabilia. These memorabilia are what…