Like Father Like Son

After Jared's mom read my blog post from yesterday she sent an adorable picture I thought I'd add. Remember this picture of Parker from my previous post? 

Looks a lot like his Daddy in this picture:

I love it!

Constant

We've moved a lot. A LOT. People have asked me a lot recently if I like change. Not really. I've learned to get used to it and embrace it out of necessity. In that I've found that the differences in each place we've lived really make life interesting. Every place has it's positives and negatives and it depends on my attitude and optimism to make the best of it. There is always an adjustment period and the things that remain CONSTANT make change manageable. My list of familiar places may seem funny, but they make me happy! 

One of the first days we were here I was having a particularly hard day. I tend to worry a lot. It was a big worry day! I was really overwhelmed and honestly felt a little lost (probably had something to do with my kids not being here yet. They came the next day with my Mom. It's amazing how lost I feel without my kids!). I had to go get groceries. I was warned that groceries here are 3 times as expensive as in Idaho and to prepare myself for some sticker shock. For this reason I was avoiding the grocery store like the plague. I decided to go to Costco in hopes that the prices would be similar there. I can't tell you how thankful I was that those prices are the same as in Idaho. I found a CONSTANT. It sounds funny, but going to Costco totally cheered me up. I was reminded that even though things here are very different there are still things that remain CONSTANT. (I have since found the Target also! ha!)

 When my boys got here I decided they would probably benefit from the same process I just went through. The first week they were here I worried less about unpacking and more about trying to find the activities here that are their "constants". We put together their beds and got out their toys first. We found two libraries and storytime, a carousel at the mall, the park, the school Brody will probably attend in the fall, and the zoo. One of the most exciting things I've learned is concerning the zoo. Jared's wonderful Grandparents got us a Boise Zoo season pass for Christmas. I was really bummed when we found out we were moving because I thought that it would just go to waste. However, after some online searching, we discovered that there was a reciprosity agreement between some of the zoos around the country. One of the zoos that ZooBoise has an agreement with is the Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport, CT (the only Zoo IN Connecticut!). That means that even though the admission here is double what it is in Idaho, we get to use our pass here and go for FREE!! It's further away (about 40 min.) so we won't be able to go as often, but we are so excited! One of the first things we did this week was find the new zoo. My boys loved it. It is very similar in size to ZooBoise but with some different animals. The only thing missing was our friend Blake or Hailey who we usually went with. Brody kept asking me if we were meeting any friends at the zoo! Poor guy is really missing Boise.

Cheyenne had taught Brody about a snow owl when he was at my Mom's house, so he was very excited to find this snow owl and take a picture with it for Cheyenne! 

The boys also loved these bald eagles. Parker was still eating a granola bar, so this is his attempt at a smile with his mouth full. Funny boy!

 One of their favorites parts about our new zoo was the peacocks that just roam the park. We saw the same one a few times so Brody was convinced it liked us and was following us around!

 They also had a very cute little otter!! I think I have a cute one, though. :) That's Parker on the left trying to peek through!

 There he is!

 I just love this little face Parker makes. He studies everything like his brother.

 Brody talked about this peacocks "eyes" ALL day!

 The little farm area...

 They have a "jungle" here in CT. Brody found this little bird that would talk back and forth with him. It would follow him along and he thought it was so funny. That's another constant: most people here don't go to the zoo in the winter either! It was pretty empty like the Boise Zoo, which is great. We were all alone in there and Brody was able to have quite the conversation with this bird!

 I suppose one of the best parts about this move has been that my boys have become better friends. Since they are each other's CONSTANT they have been playing a lot more and a lot better than before. It makes me happy to see them being friends. Even if it means they make me nervous with their wrestling, jumping off things, etc. They are pretty cute. :) 

 After all the fun, I did finish getting my house unpacked this week. I have a few more boxes in my room and the garage to finish organizing, but other than that it's all done. Hooray!! It drives me batty not being able to find things, so I'm a happier camper now. These are a few pictures of our main living area. We left our couch in Boise and our recliner at my parents' house in Idaho Falls (it was actually theirs so we were really just returning it). We had limited space in our truck and whatever didn't fit got left! So, we are now without couches, bicycles, my single jogging stroller, and one of our TVs. Our living room looks a little bare, but Jared doesn't want to buy couches that we will have a tough time getting into our townhome and then having to move them again in a year. So, I think for the time being we're going without. We have our TV and everything up in our room, so that room is just a playroom for now. They aren't the best pictures in the world, but you get the idea. :) 

Computer Area:

Okay, now onto our basement. I guess I have some organizing down there to do also! It's nice to have this storage space. Having the laundry in the basement is taking some getting used to, but at least I have a washer/dryer! One of Jared's co-workers that lives in NYC has to have a laundry service do their laundry because they don't have one (they are also about to be a family of four). I'm not compaining one bit! 

 It kinda cracks me up that my boys still follow me all around wherever I go. They are never far!

 Our entry way...

 Our front door...

 One last story for this post. Parker has decided that he needs to sleep with ALL of his animals. He piles them all around him and I think it's very funny. This particular day he said he needed to hold Mickey Mouse's hand so he could sleep. Such a sweet guy!

We are now ready for visitors. :) Have a great weekend! Keep reading if you missed the first post about our new surroundings!

Welcome to Connecticut

I'm not sure I could ever adequately put into words how crazy/stressful/emotional these last few weeks have been. If you talked to me during that time I apologize as I'm sure I was an utter mess. Thankfully I think I'm getting back to normal and would love to chat again! :) Truthfully, it is all sort of a blur! Let's just say we had to go on faith for a lot of the last few weeks. Things in CT work very differentlly and let's just say we left Boise with all of our belongings in a truck on Monday without a place nailed down to live when we got there on Saturday. They make you work with a realtor here and put offers on rentals and people apparently don't understand the urgency required when you have 2 weeks to move across country! Finally 48 hours before we were to move in an offer we had put on a rental was finally accepted. We drove into CT at noon, picked up our keys and moved in that night. We were just really grateful we didn't have to live in a Penske truck for a while until we found a place to live! I'm not kidding when I say I think the experience gave me a few more grey hairs! 

In addition, our plan was to put half of our things in storage in Boise and take as little as possible to CT. The night before we were to pick up our truck and book our storage unit we both felt like that was the wrong decision. We went back to the drawing board, said a lot of prayers and felt like we should bring all of our things even though we didn't yet know where we were to live and what that meant for when we are done here in CT. Have I mentioned before how much I dislike uncertainty?! I think Heavenly Father is trying to teach me something. Anyway, that night I found a new place online that would be big enough to house all of our belongings yet was just a little more than an apartment plus storage unit in Boise. We put offers on another couple of places but that is the one we finally were able to move into. It was a foreclosure that the owner bought last year and spent a year renovating so everything is brand new. I think it was actually underpriced as everything else with 3 bedrooms was much higher. There are a few problems/inconveniences here and there but the owner has been great and we're hoping they get taken care of. We are really happy with our place so far. The boys have loved having their own rooms and are actually sleeping better! Hooray for all of us! 

The bright spot of our trip out here was getting to stop and see our great friends along the way. We stayed with our family friend's the Bartletts in Des Moines and loved seeing their new place. Then we got to see Mike and Megan Armstrong as we passed through Indianapolis. It was so great to see you guys! Then we got to stay at my Aunt Tracy and Uncle Miles' house which was fantastic. I don't get to see my cute cousins Eli and Emily that often so it was so nice to see them. Finally, I got to see Kaylene on my way through Pittsburgh!! It was so nice to see all of you and it certainly brightened our otherwise overwhelming journey. Thank you for making the sacrifice and opening your homes to us. We hope to see you again soon! 

Well, we ended up moving to Danbury, CT. It's a nice city about 40 minutes from Norwalk where Jared is going to work. There is a train station a mile from our house where Jared picks up the train and it drops him off right at his work. It's more affordable also which is obviously great for us. The apartments right next to his work where most of the guys doing Jared's job live were $2200/month for a 950 square foot apt. No thanks! We will take the commute on the train. We have another 3 story townhome with a one car garage, finished basement storage area, with 3 bedrooms, 1 1/2 bath. When I came to visit I loved this little town called Bethel, CT that is right next to Danbury. However, I spoke with several girls in the Danbury Ward and they were all so nice and there is a large primary in the Danbury Ward (Bethel is more affluent with more older, established families). So, I was really excited when this place came up because it's right on the border of Danbury and Bethel. We get to be right next to Bethel and use all of the fun parts of a small town but get to be in the bigger ward. I'm really happy about it! 

Our unpacking is going a little slow, so I only have pictures of some of my house. I know some of you wanted to see where we moved to, so I tried to take a few pictures. You'll have to wait for the rest of my house to be done before I'll show it to you. It's a terrible mess right now! :) 

Our kitchen. If anyone has spent time in the East you will know that kitchens in general are not as big as in the West. This means less cabinet space which means shelves in the kitchen. My shelves house mostly my appliances that don't fit in my cupboards. I've been to two friend's homes here and they have the same shelves in their kitchen/living area! haha! It's funny what is considered standard in the East vs. West. The biggest "amenity" I'm missing ? A garbage disposal. I'm re-learning to do dishes! 

I really do love this kitchen. It makes me happy. Maybe that's because it's the only clean, clutter free room in my house at the moment, though. ha!

I guess that's one good thing about living in so many rentals. You get to try out different types of kitchens without being overly committed to them. I love this backsplash, but I'm interested to see how difficult it will be to keep that white. Our entire shower is this same tile sequence and I'm a little worried about how to keep the grout as white as it is right now.  We'll see!

Dining Room. Can I please tell you how wonderful it is to not have carpet under the kitchen table? Garbage disposal vs. hardwood under the kitchen table. Hmmm. That really is a toss up. Do you know how much food an independent 2 year old drops/throws that gets stuck in and stains carpet?!

Brody's room which doubles as our jungle gym guest room. Bunk bed bars are fun for little boys. :)

Closer up of Brody's little bed.

Looking the other way into his closet

Upstairs bathroom. 

Parker's little room. He's so excited to have his own room. He calls it Parker's special room!

Since I can't have a post without pictures of the boys :) 

I went around Bethel tonight for a little bit to get a few pictures. You may get quite a few scenery pictures posts from me in the next year as I enjoy the difference in scenery from East to West. I just really love looking for the beautiful places that each city has to offer. These aren't great because it was cold and Parker was my sidekick, but you get the idea. Also, the trees here are looking pretty bare in February, so I'll take some more in Spring/Summer/Fall as I know it's going to look much different. For now just use your imagination! This is the old Bethel train station that has been converted into a bicycle shop. Jared's train station is right down the street from this one. I'll have a separate post about the train later as it's one of my boys' new favorite things about Connecticut!

Parker in front of my FAVORITE part of Bethel so far. That white building is the LIBRARY!! We love it!

Walking downtown Bethel. 

Can you imagine how pretty those trees are going to be in the fall?!!

I love that even Wells Fargo is unique.

Just a little shop we passed.

One of a gazillion churches that are beautiful here. I may make a church architecture post someday. I find them fascinating! Even our Mormon church is cool (I should note this picture is a Presbyterian Church I believe?). It has a 3 level parking lot that Jared jokingly refers to as the three degrees of parking levels as he drives up. He's clever. :) 

Okay, sorry one last one of the library. We live less than a mile from here.

This is for my Dad aka Convenient-Store-Super-Shopper. Love the cuteness. Do not love $3.89/gallon for regular unleaded gasoline. 

Just two last videos of Parker from a trip to Chuck E Cheese we took with Jared's co-worker and his family this week. My Parker is always moving and LOVES to dance. My parents said the night they stayed in the hotel and had to wake him up at to take him to the airport he was even dancing down the hallway at 4 a.m. Such a funny boy!

Brody isn't as big of a dancer, but he encourages his brother's antics by putting more and more coins into the machine!!

Well, that's it for now. Jared is loving his job and the people that he has met so far. Our ward has been so great. It's a very diverse ward with very kind, welcoming people. We really miss our friends in Boise and it's definitely helped having nice people here also. I hope you have all had a great few weeks and now that we have internet again hopefully I'm back on the face of the Earth again! Thank you again to all of you that have been such good friends to me during this time. I'm so blessed!