Let me start off by saying both Hubby and I are happy and healthy, and hope that you and your family can say the same.

Hubby is still a project manager for the Navy, which keeps him very busy. He is away from home in three day spurts about twice a month. Usually he travels to such social centers like Norfolk VA, but every now and then he gets sent across the country to San Diego or Seattle. He's been to Seattle twice this year. Obviously Hubby loves this, and calls me in the evening saying how he had hiked Olympic National Park and saw grizzly bears. Hubby is currently managing an automated manufacturing project which would allow ships to produce weapon system parts on demand while forward deployed. [This is what he says he does. I don't know what it really means.] Go Navy!!

I have been equally busy. In late March my mother decided to give my brother and I our college graduation gifts (mine was a little late) and we planned an impromptu vacation out west. Now, if you have ever called the Grand Canyon on the spur of the moment you know they laugh at you when you ask about rooms. Thus we spent the week in tents, group youth hostels, and cheesy motels. Nonetheless, we had the time of our lives. We saw two sunsets at the Grand Canyon, and hiked to the Angels point and back. We also visited Zion national park, Bryce park, and the North rim. We ended our trip checking out big horn sheep at the Hover damn and an evening of gambling at Vegas. What a great trip!

In other news, in early October I started a new job. I am still with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and actually still in my same office! When I mentioned I was trying to find a new job, the manager for the National Longitudinal Survey offered me a position in his little division. (I am currently one of 5) Anyway, a new survey of 12 to 17 year olds is planned for 1996. I am to be the contact person for that survey, meaning: I will be in charge of overseeing the people who actually go out and ask the questions, I will put out all the preliminary statistics, and answer reporters questions! Unfortunately, I'm not totally sure what it is that I am doing (or just how to do "it") and neither is the director since this is the first new survey in over 10 years. The survey award will be given out in January, and then I will fly out to meet who the contractors will be.

What is also useful is the director has a great interest in seeing me get my masters, and is willing to pay for 2 classes a semester. I took a labor class this past semester at George Washington University- which was the dumbest thing I ever EVER could have done. Never do anything during the last months of wedding planning! However, despite missing several classes I did quite well and will be taking the second semester follow-up.

Last, but not least, Hubby and I became Mister and Misses in late October. It was a beautiful ceremony and a great reception afterward. Many people came up early in the week and stayed late, so it was fantastic to get to see everyone. For our honeymoon we chose a tiny island in the southern Caribbean, Dominica. It was definitely paradise for us! After a brief 2 day stop in Puerto Rico, we spent a week hiking mountains, exploring rain forests, and swimming in rivers in Dominica. We hardly ever saw other human beings!! Dominica is a third world country with no fast food or night life - but if you love unspoiled nature and like to hike, this is the place for you. I cannot say how beautiful it was, or how much fun we had. It was so hard to come back to the noise, dirt and huge amount of people in the United States.