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Semester is almost over - Updated: December 5th, 2006

I can't believe it. The semester is almost over. My last day of class is on Friday and I have two weeks of finals (glorious!). Then I'll be staring at 4 weeks of nothing but Christmas and relaxation. Well actually, that isn't true as I'll be studying for the patent bar exam, but it is better than school.

Gretta is growing like a weed. She is now screeming around the house getting into anything and everything. She has learned several words, her favorite seems to be "No No No No No No". She doesn't say it in a mean voice, just matter-of-factly.

We had a great Thanksgiving vacation. Christine and Dave (My sister and brother-in-law) came up and we had a royal feast. It was nice to have a break from school and just relax with family. Benjamin and Thomas played video games while Sophie sang at the top of her lungs (Check the video page for proof).

We'll be in Utah for Christmas. For any of you who are in Utah, lets be sure to rendezvous and catch up. Till then... - Michel and Melanie

Have A Look @ Our Pictures

Our pictures are hosted on Snapfish and more recently, flickr. These are both private so creeps can get in and see them. If you need access, shoot me an email (bohnman at hotmail.com) and I'll hook you up. Once verified, you can print pictures or share them with others.

Watch Our Videos!

Clicking on the videos opens them up in a large viewing window.

October in New Hampshire - Updated: October, 2006

Just before the move - Updated: July, 2006

Here are our old videos as well.

Click On The Links Below To See Our Videos. Click Open When Prompted. **Note: the videos are in RealPlayer format. Please download realplayer by clicking on the links if you don't already have it. The file sizes are fairly large so if you are using dial-up it may take a few minutes to download.

Hey Hey - Updated: October 1st, 2006

Have a bunch of video for you to watch. I've been testing this video service called VideoEgg that makes posting and sharing videos a snap. Plus you can keep what you want private private and what you want public public.

Be sure to check our our blogs for other updates. Hope all is well with everyone and be sure to leave us a message on our message board. - Michel and Melanie

School's Underway - Updated: September 1st, 2006

Well, I'm a student again. I can't believe it. It's crazy to think that I don't work @ IBM anymore. At least for the time being. For those of you who didn't know, I left IBM to go to law school in hopes of being a patent attorney. Crazy, probably, Scary, definetly, Stressful, Absolutely, but hopefully worth it.

The craziest part was selling the house, buying another, and moving all our junk. We had our hand at 'for sale by owner' and were quite pleased with the results. It real wasn't bad, just had to be organized really.

I left the map of Franklin Pierce up on the site so those of you who don't know where it is can have a look. We like the Concord area. It's very different than Vermont, must more conservative and certainly more developed. However, it still has a lot of that good ol' New England charm that makes this region so fun.

We tried to live up our last month in Vermont by taking little trips and partying as much as we possibly could. Paul and Eileen came out in July and we spent a lot of time recreating in Vermont and Canada. Unfortuantely for my parents, they came in August and had to do slave labor to get our house readied up. I love you Mom and Dad :).

A good friend from work took us on a boat ride accross Lake Champlain to the Naked Turtle for dinner. Gretta love the boat ride so I embeded the video for you to watch on the right.

Well, that about it. Send us and email sometime or leave us a message on our message board. Your Loving New Hampshire(ites) - Michel and Melanie

Gearing up for a crazy year - Updated: February 12th, 2006

2006. Can't believe it's 2006. Life is screaming on by. I (Michel) have a theory that kids just increase the warping of time, because ever since Gretta was born, it has gone by even faster.

A lot has happened since we last posted. My sweet grandmother (Mother's side) passed away in October. Fortunately I was able to get over there before she passed to say my goodbyes. It was very sad to see her leave this world. She was such a wonderful woman who had an incredible way of making you feel special. I miss you Meme.

I spent last few months waiting (trembling) for an answer on whether or not I'd realize my "Patent Attorney" dreams. I applied to schools in California, Virignia, Illinois, and New Hampshire. I finally got the answer I wanted late last month. I will be attending Franklin Pierce Law in Corcord, New Hampshire next fall. They have a great Intellectual Property program so it's a great fit. For information on where this school is, look at the map on the left.

Little Gretta is growing so fast. Though she may still topple every once in a while, she's sitting up on her own now. She loves touching and feeling different textures including your lips, eyes, and nose so you have to watch out. She is very good natured and really is only fussy when hungry or tired (she's just like me!). One of the best things in the entire world is bringing her into our bed in the morning. She usually grabs my face with one hand, and Mel's face with the other, and just smiles and talks to us for a few minutes. Nothing in this world could be better! She loves to hear people on speaker phone, and will usually stop whatever she's doing -- even crying -- if the phone rings. She is quite the laugher and talker as well. Needless to say, she is well dressed as Melanie is constantly finding good deals on cute new outfits to decorate her in. We have a bunch of pictures of her in our snapfish account so feel free to have a look.

For Valentines this year I got Melanie tickets to Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers and O.A.R.. I figure she needed a good night out and we both love music so it seemed perfect. Plus, it came a couple of weeks early which is good because finding a sitter on Valentines Day would have been very difficult! Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers were so much fun to watch -- very dynamic performers. O.A.R., on the other hand, was good, but a little drawn out. Everyone around us was toking up on some good ol' Mary Jane, so we figure that is the secret to enjoying their music :)

I'm going to miss Vermont. When returning from Thanksgiving in Utah this year, it struck me that Vermont now felt like "home" to me. Previously I'd always felt like I was just visiting Vermont and there wasn't that sense of permenancy. Though it has begun to feel more like home, I am welcoming the change to New Hampshire where it is usually a good 10 degrees Farenheit warmer than Burlington.

In other news, Gretta's half brother "Hansel" is, thankfully, slowly making a disappearance. For those of you who never had the pelasure of meeting him, he was growing in my belly right around the same time Gretta was growing in Melanie's. He will not be missed.

Well, that about wraps it up. Your Loving Friends - Michel and Melanie

Hey Hey - Updated: September 17th, 2005

A lot has happened in the past couple of months, so I'll sumarize a bit. My (Michel speaking) cousin Thomas and his girlfriend Pia recently had a baby boy. They named him Benjamin Merz. He was born on the 14th of August 2005 at 11:32. He weighed 3670 g and measured 52 cm. We want to congratulate them on the arrival of their little boy and wish them the very best. If you would like to send them a card, here is a link to the hospital web page, documenting his birth.

As most of you may know, Switzerland was hit with torrential rain this past month which caused significant damage to several cities including Bern. Thankfully, we've heard that our Swiss family and friends made it through unscathed. Several members of my family (David, Ursula, Christine and Sophie, Marc and Missy) were in Swizerland just before the floods but had left before the heavy rain. They were in Swizerland to celebrate Meme's 90th birthday. Meme, we love you and miss you. Hopefully we can come and visit soon so you can meet little Gretta! Needless to say, Melanie and I were both incredibly jealous of them as we weren't able to go.

We are just infatuated with our little Gretta. You can view our latest pictures of Gretta here. She is growing up so fast (11 weeks as of today the 17th of September). We have noticed that she has long limbs. She is a skinny, long baby much like I was when I was just a pup. Gretta has recently been cooing and smiling just about every second she can. She loves going on nature walks in the forest with Mom and Dad which is awesome for us as we tend to feel the same way. One of our favorite moments includes when she falls asleep with her hands in various dramatic positions around her face.

Melanie has recently discovered eBay as a good place to buy kids clothes. She found eBay offers bundles/lots of kids clothes, many containing 10 or more items for under ten dollars. I can safely say that Gretta will be well dressed for years to come:)

This Summer is officially the Summer of Birth. Melanie's sister Wendy had a baby boy. His name is Gunnar and we hear the whole family is taken with him, especially Sienna. We will add a link to their pictures when they get some posted. We can't wait for our little Gretta to meet him. They'll be baby G's together :). In addition to Wendy and Nolan, Tomu and Pia, and us, our friends Shaun and Malena, Eric and Brandi, Mikelle and Matt and Cameron and Mike all had kids as well. Crazy.

Over Labor Day Weekend, we ventured out for Gretta's first campout with the Vicks. Ever since we moved to Vermont, we have tried to uphold a tradition of going camping with Christine and Dave and family. This year we headed off to Woodford State Park near Bennington Vermont. We enjoyed a short (too short) weekend of canoeing, swiming, hiking, and sightseeing. Gretta faired well as we had bought a new family tent from good ol' Costco. Little did we know that it came with two bay windows and a front porch. The thing was enormous, much bigger than we had anticipated. We had to re-situate camp just to get the thing set up. On the upside, it fit Gretta portable crib just fine so she was quite comfortable. Too bad we live to far to have the Moraths join in on the festivities:(

We are sad to have Winter closing in on us. It's a tough time of year for me as Summer just seems to go by so fast and the long cold Winter looms just around next month. I do love the fall here in the Northeast. It has become my favorite season. Moderate temperatures, beautiful foliage, and great weather. If we do move next year I will miss this place.

Your Loving Friends - Michel and Melanie

She's Here - Updated: July 05th, 2005

Gretta's Here. Select For Pictures Yippee. Don't have much time to say a whole lot here but here's a quick summary.

Melanie had a very difficult labor that ended in a cesearean birth. As such, there she experienced a couple of complications and had a slight uterine infection from the mirconium in her water. The doctors want to keep a close eye on her.

Despite the troubles, She is in great shape and very happy to have people visit. She is located on the 5th floor of the Shepardson wing. Basically take the main lobby elevator to the 5th floor and follow the blue line.

Lastly, Thanks to everyone for all their support, prayers and love during this process. It has made such a difference.

Much Love - Michel and Melanie

Congrats Are In Order - Updated: June 19th, 2005

Where do I begin? I guess I'll start with Rebecca and Chris' Wedding. I flew out on the 18th of May and stayed at Nicole and Dan's new house in Sugarhouse. It's a great little place that's actually much bigger than it looks on the outside. Everything was newly remodeled when they bought it and it looks fantastic. I spent some time snapping some video of the place so the rest of the family could get a feel for it.

Rebecca and Chris got married on Thursday, the 19th of May (Click Here For Pictures). It was a good ceremony and the sealer was quite insightful. You could tell he was a seasoned temple veteran as he cracked some of his run-of-the-mill Mormon relationship jokes, but it made the air light so it was good. Their reception was held at Memory Grove (not far from Temple Square). It was so nice to have most of the family back together again. It seems like there are fewer opportunities to get together like that nowadays. It was also very touching to see Rebecca and Chris' affection for one another. They seem to fit just right.

Mel hasn't had the baby as of yet. Little baby girl is still hanging out in her belly and not wanting to exit. Mel has tried every home remedy in the book to help induce the labor but to no avail. Looks like they'll induce her come Tuesday if nothing happens.

Well, as most of you know, I have decided to defer law school until next year. We did much reflecting and soul searching and feel that we should just be here another year. We'd like to thank everyone for their love and support during this process as it was dificult time.

Well, we should have another update shortly. Thanks for stopping by. - Michel and Melanie

It's Real Wet! - Updated: April 4th, 2004

Rain, and lots of it. Vermont is welcoming Spring with some really wet weather. The good thing is, is that it is a lot warmer. Like the 80's glam rock band "Cinderella" put it, 'been a long cold winter.

This Winter wasn't all bad. I (Michel) was able to go back to Switzerland with my Mom and spend some time with Meme and Oppi. They are both doing quite well considering their age. It was nice being able to spend the days with cute little Meme, watching TV, eating lunch and playing piano and guitar for her. Did a lot of shopping with my Mom as well. All told, I brought back 220 lbs of goodies with me, which was just under the limit.

February and March also provided us with a bunch of snow so I was able make good on my season's pass at Sugarbush. Yeah, I know, Alta and Snowbird have recieved record amounts of snow (600 inches) while Sugarbush has recieved only a total of 180 inches but I have to make due with what I've got.

Things are a bit crazy for us right now. Most of you know that Melanie is pregnant. We are expecting a little girl on June 21st so we are busy with the learning the curve. Melanie has faired quite well so far (knock on wood) with the whole process, aside from the fact that when she laughs her whole belly shakes like Santa Claus.

I am still in the thick of the application process for law school. So far I've been waitlisted at a couple of schools and am waiting to hear back from several others. Personally, I think they derive great pleasure out of stalling this to the last minute. They are probably laughing, while we, the poor applicants, wait on pins and needles until they decide it is time. I'm becoming synical, aren't I?

In other family news, Rebecca is getting married on May 19th in Salt Lake City. Her fiance's name is Chris Wallace. We think he a perfect match for her and We are very excited for them. For future family news, We will be posting our almost monthly news letter (maintained by Christine) to our website when available.

That does it. We miss and love you all. - Michel and Melanie

Merry Christmas! - Updated: December 19th, 2004

We have some very good news. Melanie is pregnant with our first. We announced it to our family over Thanksgiving and are now making it public to the world. Our due date it June 21st. Here is our announcement:

Other than the baby, not much has happened. I took the LSAT in early December and get my score on Friday the 24th. It could possibly spoil my holiday:). I would like to thank all those people who offered me so much support in my preparation for the LSAT. I really felt your love and prayers. I am eternally grateful. As for Melanie, she is still working at the hospital. She hasn't felt too sick but get hunger pains like crazy.

Christmas is right around the corner and everyone has been asking us for our wishlist so here is the updated version. Our Wishlist (PDF)

Thanks for coming by. Please drop us a note in our Guestbook so we know you stopped by and have a look at our pictures as well. We are so excited for Christmas. We will be spending it down in Massachusetts with my sister, Christine, and her family. We will be out in Utah for new years so hopefully we will see many of you then. Love Michel and Melanie

Happy Halloween! - Updated: October 30th, 2004

It's been a few months since our last update. Lots has happened so here is a short summary. I (Michel) have been studying for the LSAT for the past few months. I took it in October and felt terrible about it so I canceled my score and am retaking it in December. I never realized that getting all the pre-requisites together would be so much work. Other than that, we've been doing a lot of painting and fall cleanup here at the house. Our old little house is finally coming together.

Melanie started a new job at a local hospital as an EEG technician, where she is receiving on-the-job training. She works in the Clinical Neuro-Physiology Lab at Fletcher Allen Health Care. The work is interesting, the people are great, and the hours are normal, so it's definitely been a good move. She still works at JCrew one night a week as well.

Christmas is right around the corner and everyone has been asking us for our wishlist so here is the updated version. Our Wishlist (PDF)

Thanks for coming by. Please drop us a note in our Guestbook so we know you stopped by and have a look at our pictures as well. We are so excited for Thanksgiving. We will be spending it down in Massachusetts with my sister, Christine, and her family. My parents are coming out as well, so we are very excited to see everyone. Michel and Melanie

Summer Flew By - Updated July. 26th, 2004

Here is the shortlist. Melanie graduated in May. We went to Russia for three weeks in June. Holly got married when we got back. We then went to Christine and Dave's (Boston) for the Fourth of July weekend. Since then we have been hiding away here in Vermont exhausted from our world travels.

I (Michel) signed up for an LSAT Kaplan course. We'll just have to wait and see folks. That and house projects have been keeping me plenty busy. Melanie is applying for jobs now that she is in the "Real World".

We hope everyone is having a wonderful Summer. Please drop us a note in our Guestbook so we know you stopped by and have a look at our pictures as well. Michel and Melanie

Spring is Coming - Updated Mar. 14th, 2004

Winter is over. Thank goodness. It has been a long and very cold one here. We were stuck in the -20 degree region for practically the whole month of January. February wasn't much better. I am looking forward to spring.

This year has a lot of changes in store for us. I am considering applying for law school this fall and Melanie graduates this spring (Yipee). She will receive a double major. (Food Science and Nutrition) Intially she was planning to complete an internship for her Registered Dietician's license but opted to wait.

We have a lot of travel plans for the summer. We are hoping to make it to Russia this year. I haven't been back since returning in 1997 and dearly miss all those wonderful friends I made over there. Holly, Melanie's Sister, is getting married in June so we'll be out to Utah at least once this summer. Hopefully again in August or something.

We miss everyone greatly and hope that all is well. God Bless! Michel and Melanie.

Utah Was Fun - Updated Jan. 16th, 2004

Christmas Vacation was great. We spent three weeks in Utah with our family. Marc, my brother, got married during the break. We had a wonderful time seeing our families and regret that we weren't able to visit everyone. I have posted pictures from our trip. Click the links below to see them.

Happy Halloween! - Updated Oct. 5, 2003

Fall has hit the North Country with a fury. Leaves have begun to change to their fiery reds and oranges, and the weather went from balmy to freezing within what seemed like just a few days. Home renovation projects have been on hold for us for a while, which has been nice. Just a little painting and finished carpentry--petty in comparison with last year's projects at this time (the infamous bathroom!). In just a few weeks, the electrical system in our house will be completely updated, so we can finally lay our emergency fire extinguishers to rest.

Michel has been spending most of his spare time playing his guitar, working on winterizing the house, and various projects on the computer. He has also been busy in the kitchen fixing monster-size batches of borsch, marinara, and marinades. And in the rest of his free time, he has been sure to record many season finale's and premiers for me (Melanie) to watch when I get home from long study sessions. On the more serious side, he has been doing a lot more research into law school and patent law, and was fortunate enough to meet for a lunch date with the Vice-President of Intellectual Properties at IBM Microelectronics. He also has some plans to patent some of what he is developing at work this year.

I (Melanie) started school again on September 2nd. My sister, Holly, and her boyfriend, Kevin were still out here visiting so I missed the first day of classes, but it was well worth it. I have been able to catch up without problems. Classes this semester are, for the most part, exciting, offering much in the area of clinical dietetics. It's so nice to finally be learning material for which I chose this course of study. In addition to school, I picked up a part time job at the local J.Crew in downtown Burlington, just off Church Street. I enjoy the work and my co-workers, but unfortunately, will not be able to fully enjoy the discount until our electrical is finished!

Alas, Summer is officially long gone, and the Fall harvest is upon us. It ceases to enchant me to see the various farmer's markets at this time of year and the incredible variety and bounty which they produce. It helps me realize that even a little, sometimes seemingly forgotten place like Vermont can produce not only a bountiful crop from the frozen earth, but also friends and blessings around every turn.

Loving The Lazy Summer - Updated July 27th, 2003

Summer is flying by. We can't believe that we only have a few months of warm weather before the brutal Vermont Winter sets in. We have been keeping quite busy.

I (Michel) took on a project a built a log bed using a 13 foot lathe a friend of mine owns. I made it out of red pine and it looks huge. It barely fits in our bedroom. I have also been busy maintaining and renovating our duplex. It is a very old house that has a lot of needs so there never seems to be a dull moment. I have also had a lot of fun camping with the scouts in the Adirondacks. Michel has been spending most of his spare time playing his guitar, working on winterizing the house, and various projects on the computer. He has also been busy in the kitchen fixing monster-size batches of borsch, marinara, and marinades. And in the rest of his free time, he has been sure to record many season finale's and premiers for me (Melanie) to watch when I get home from long study sessions. On the more serious side, he has been doing a lot more research into law school and patent law, and was fortunate enough to meet for a lunch date with the Vice-President of Intellectual Properties at IBM Microelectronics. He also has some plans to patent some of what he is developing at work this year.

My little brother Marc proposed to his now fiance, Missy (can't even say her last name), in Las Vegas a few weeks ago. They are planning on getting married on January 2nd, 2004.

Melanie has just finished up summer school. She took organic chemistry and hated every minute of it. She spent last week staffing a Girl Scout camp trying not to go crazy entertaining twelve 6 year old girls. She has a job at the local hospital until school starts up again in September. She will be graduating in May in Dietetics and Nutrition and Food Science.