It is About Time: Goodbyes and Moving

I meant to post these weeks ago...but time has gotten the best of me. We have been in Mississippi exactly a month now and things are going very well. Below are pictures of us saying some goodbyes and on our travels.

If you recall the "Before" picture...this is a drastic change and for a while I never thought we would get everything moved out! But we did and even cleaned to boot! This was Carter's playroom in our basement. The pic below was our storage room.

Josh and Carter say goodbye to "The Noy" My dad drove it to Twin Falls for us where it will patiently wait for our return meanwhile storing a lot of our stuff inside. She is a good van and still runs well for being in her old age. We miss her!

Here is Carter with his girlfriends Lydia and Leauna. Yes, these girls are twins. The turned 2 in January and welcomed twin baby brothers as well!! I took a picture with their mom, my friend Leah...unfortunately it didn't make it past editing.

Carter fell asleep on top of a mountain of blankets and pillows during our moving fiasco.

Cody and Casey are two of Carter's most favorite people!! He really adores them! He can't wait to see them again soon!!

Carter and Grandma! I am so thankful my mom spent a few hours that last day helping us get everything packed up and was able to cuddle Carter a little bit before we hit the road! It was really hard to say goodbye!!

Behind schedule a few days we finally just threw anything left straggling around our house into the back of the truck and hit the road! This is a picture taken while driving in Wyoming.

Here is Carter and Abe Lincoln. Abe hangs out at a rest area in Wyoming.

My plan was to take a picture in front of a sign with the name of every state we drove through. Well my plan was never brought to fruition as this is the only picture of the sort I took. But isn't my little man so cute in front of this big sign!

Carter lounging it out at the Holiday Inn. These were seriously the most comfortable beds we have ever slept in...both Josh and I slept like logs...oh so nice!

I thought of returning him with the cart. But he was such a good traveler that I didn't mind him tagging along;)

This is Nebraska. It was pleasant.
This is a play place we stopped at in Nebraska. This is a really fun one because adults can go in and as well. All 3 of us had fun running around and Carter loved that we could play with him. In the middle of this thing there are a ton of foam balls and you can put them in guns and shoot at each other or send them through lots of different tubes and buckets. We had a blast and took a 3 hour break here before getting back on the road.

I did a horrible job documenting this trip on camera because now this last picture is what we see everyday we walk out the front door. So in case you were wondering to yourself "hmmm, I wonder what Josh and Laura see when they look out their front window"...well here ya go! It was just starting to rain so my camera is spotty.

The trip went very smoothly with the exception of finding out our air conditioner did not work in the truck. Once we hit the warm weather it became unbearable so we spent a whole afternoon in Kansas City in a trucker's lounge waiting for the air conditioner to be fixed. It was well worth it and made my mood so much better. I get REALLY grumpy when I am hot and uncomfortable. We had plans to see things and stop along the way...but ended up just driving as much as we could, so nothing too exciting went on.

We are still getting settled and unpacked. I have taken on the project of remodeling one of our bathrooms so that is keeping me busy as well as getting to know the tenants and taking on all the responsibility that comes along with the job. We really like the town in which we live and hope to be getting out and about more to discover all the area has to offer.

I have a post coming with pics of the zoo and Carter's birthday!

Thanks for reading!

WE ARE HERE!!!

After spending 4 nights on the road we are finally here!!! We got to Mississippi at about 5:00 today and I must say I was pleasantly surprised! This is a very nice town with the East part being all new and modern and then the West is old and historic. So we have olden day charm with modern day chic....perfect!

The only things worrying me is the weather. Right now we are having a severe thunderstorm. Driving into Memphis today we stayed just ahead of the dark sky and Josh and I really thought a tornado was going to drop down. It seemed the funnel cloud was forming but never took hold...phew! I was actually really scared for a little bit. Living in Idaho I don't remember ever being scared of the weather, now we will have to stay alert to our surrounding because the weather can shift at any moment down here and become dangerous...eek!

Well...I will take some pictures soon of the area and also post a few from our trip, but for now I am going to relax and watch TV before bed!

Goodnight!

Travel Journal #1

Hi Everybody!

I was thinking I wouldn't be able to post again until we made it to Mississippi, however, in this day and age there is Wi-Fi everywhere, which makes blogging all too easy!

Well we did it!! After removing every last item from our house, cleaned, cleaned carpets, packed a 24 foot Budget truck, hitched our car, sent our van off to Twin Falls to hibernate, spent an hour on the phone with Qwest canceling our services(I loathe Qwest..I can never be on the phone with them less than an hour...rip my hair out now...good riddance) and leaving 3 days late...we are finally on the road!

Last night we bid farewell to Pocatello at about 6:00 PM...which means we didn't get very far. I think we drove 244 miles. With crappy weather and a big huge truck with a car hitched...we can only average 55 mph. So right now I am writing from Rock Springs, Wyoming and it is SNOWING outside. YUCK!!! I should enjoy though because it is in the 80's where we are heading so I know I won't be seeing snow for a long time.

Carter did very well on the drive yesterday. He talked to us most of the way and nodded off about 9:00. I really thought he would have fallen asleep sooner than that. He is fun companion so far. (knock on wood)

I want to thank my parents for making one last drive to Poky to help us get all packed up and take the van to Twin for us. I bawled my eyes out saying goodbye. I really love being so close to my family, so this will be a hard transition. I can't wait until we come back to settle down and live close to my parents. Carter sure loves Gramma and Paw Paw!! Thank you Casey and Cody for all your help as well and for keeping Carter entertained while we tried not to go insane!! We will miss you guys so much!!! Thank you KATIE...coming over numerous times throughout the week and not to mention getting the entire basement cleaned!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!! I can't wait until you come visit. And thank you Leah for coming over as well and playing with Carter and helping us load things out!! I am glad we got to see you one last time!!

Okay...now we are going to head out. On to Nebraska! Hopefully we can get out of this snow!!

Hopefully I will have something fun to report next time!!

On a Roll

Whew...3 posts in a day! Look at me go!! But now don't expect anymore until after we get settled in Mississippi. I know, it will be a long wait. You will most likely get bored and not know what to do with yourself in my absence, but I assure you I will return. Oh shush shush shush now, no need for tears. Okay who I am kidding! :)

So I am so frustrated and so over this moving thing!! We wanted to be all packed up and have our house all spic and span by May 1st. HA!! We missed that objective by a long shot.

I am happy though because we have known for a while we would be moving, therefore, having ample time to sort and sift and get rid of A LOT of unnecessary items and throw away a lot of junk. Josh and both decided we hate stuff and want to take as little as possible with us! You don't understand...we live in a 5 bedroom house with every room being full!! We are getting rid of a small village!! I have narrowed Carter's toys down to one plastic tote. This boy had more toys than all the children in Africa have combined. (oh that is sad) I should send them there. I am now inclined to give that tote away too and just start anew once we get there. Then I look at a toy and get all emotional because Carter smiled at it once and can't imagine how I could give it away. Get a grip woman!!

Here is the basement family room. We used it for Carter's playland and I am sad I didn't take pictures of it when it was a happy place. The stuff in the very back we are keeping...the rest is going!!

The storage room. If you can believe it, it did have order at one point. Now it is just a monstrosity. I am keeping the bassinet (one of my favorite baby items)..the rest can go.

So here are a few pictures of the hazards I am facing right now. Slowly but surely we are getting there!! UGH!!!!!!!!!!! I really don't want to continue. I am thinking of dowsing a little gasoline and striking a match and slowly backing away...actually quickly would probably be best.

You Don't Know What Long Is!

***Written 04/16/2007***

Here I sit, in the waiting room of the dentist's office, awaiting the return of Josh. I imagine he will groggily walk out with red, puffy cheeks. I am hoping he will somewhat resemble a chipmunk. I think he would make a cute chipmunk. He is no doubt having the most UN-fun time a person can have right now. He is getting his wisdom teeth yanked, all 4 of them. Poor bloke. I only had 2. They were on top. It was a very speedy recovery. I pray the dry socket gods will avoid him. I can take care of little babies, but I have found it harder over these almost 6 years to take care of bigger babies, i.e. Josh. When he is sick I throw things at him from a distance and then bolt the door and leave. I am a bad wife…well maybe just a bad hospice nurse. What makes it worse is that he takes care of me like I am princess when I am sick. Except for now he always thinks I am faking at first and I have to convince him of my illness and try and find some respite without being bombarded by mothering/wife-ing requests. But how did this turn into being about me. Poor Josh. Poor, lousy feeling Josh. (although I haven’t seen him yet…maybe he will come out of the procedure room doing cartwheels!) I won’t hold my breath.

SOOOOOooooooo?!?!? Do you want to know if we have made a decision about moving??? Do ya? No? Is there even anyone reading this? Hhhhmmmm.

Well if there is…we said YES!!!! Yesterday, Mark, my main contact from Orion called me and gave me the full details such as pay, place to live, and so on. We are really excited and it will be a great opportunity!!! I am thrilled and scared to death at the same time. What I fear is just the unknown. I know Pocatello so well now. I know where everything is, my favorite places to go, what routes I like to take, and the best part is that I always feel 100% safe. I know in time I can feel the same way about our new town…but what if I never find a favorite place or I don’t feel safe? That is my biggest concern. But I also know I am just worrying for nothing because everything I have gathered on this new place seems nothing short of pleasant.

I worry to tell you the name of our new town because it is a smaller town that if some creepy, weird person wanted to find me after reading my spectacular blog they could probably do so. So for now, I will just say we will be living in Northern Mississippi. It is basically a suburb of Memphis, TN. The whole area is dotted with towns here and there and the county is booming. Like I said, our town is small, but one that is growing very quickly. I think that offers us many advantages. We are also a short drive to anywhere!! I am so excited for all the many road trips I see in our future to many numerous destinations. We will go north, and south, and east…and maybe west. On my list already is a trip up to Nauvoo and the many church sites in the area, a trip down to Picayune to show Josh and Carter where I lived as a little girl and to meet many relatives for the first time, and then of course to Memphis and get to know all the many things I hope it has to offer. NYC is in my future as well…it is only like 17 hours away!!!…that is so doable!!!

***Now present day-11:31 a.m.***

So wow yesterday was eventful!! Josh did come out of the surgery room almost doing cartwheels…but not by choice. He was so loopy he was tripping over his feet and saying really random things. I couldn’t help but sit there laughing at him. The doctor and a few others waiting most likely thought I was rather insensitive. However, the doctor soon joined in the fun and was telling me that Josh started talking about “agency” while under the influence of anesthesia. He said he thought he would soon be preaching the Book of Mormon to everyone! HAHahahah!! I sure am glad that is what my husband started rambling about when losing control of his mind…it could be worse…so much worse. Ha!! He stumbled out to the car with the help of the hygienist (who used to be a tenant of ours which was funny because Josh also brought up a story about her losing her hamster while he was under the knife as well) And then he was in and out of consciousness as I ran around trying to fill prescriptions, get him some necessary care items, and try and get a milkshake in his belly. After throwing up four or 5 times and spending a couple of hours in bed he gets up and gets dressed and says he is going to work. EXCUSE ME!! I told him to get back in bed but he refused and I had to go with him because there was no way I was letting him drive.

We went around and got some necessary stuff done and from there he just continued to get feeling better and woke up very early, and rearing to go. I could hardly see straight so I did not join him in his morning excursions. Ugh…still loathe mornings most of the time.

BUT…during all this our little man Carter is at school. We call it “school” because that sounds better than saying he is at “daycare” There is a stigma that comes with the word daycare…many stay-at-home-moms have been so great to put it there, along with the moms who turn up there nose to “non-breast feeders”, the moms who don’t use all organic products, the moms who don’t option for cloth diapers, the moms who let their kids watch TV, the moms who let their kids have sugar in any form and so help me if it labeled “candy”…and the list goes on and on for the snooty, judgmental moms club. Save it! Or I just might…just might swift kick you in the face…then there will be another thing you can put me down on your list for! J A few times I have had the comment “oh wow I could NEVER leave my child at daycare. Do you know what happens in those places” okay…someone please tell me how I am supposed to react to this statement after just explaining that Carter was indeed at “school” HUH?! My thought is well…I would never leave my child with YOU because you obviously have no sense of tact, communication skills, and are indeed judging me at this moment…all things I hope that Carter will avoid in his life. Save it…you are this close to me doing a roundhouse to your nose(if I could only do a roundhouse)

Anyways…sheesh nice rant Laura. I really am not feeling picked on at all. I don’t know why I decided to go off on the Martha’s but I am done now. At just so you know, the school Carter goes to is AMAZING and he asks every morning “Mom, school” and he will start naming off all of his friends and teachers. He goes in happy and starts playing and when I go pick him up he is always playing and happy and I feel very good leaving him there. Of course there is the majority of me that misses him all day and longs to be able to just be a better, “stay at home mom”(once we move he is stuck with me all day! So only a couple more weeks) but I know he gets a lot of activity and learning and friends there and he enjoys it! BUT yesterday was different. Yesterday was the day that the Martha’s would use to say, “See, I told you. Something like this was bound to happen.” After which we all know I would use some sort of karate move on the slanderer. Well…Josh and I were driving to one of our properties to get a tenant moved-in and turnover keys when one of Carter’s teachers calls.

“Carter fell off the back of the couch and has been crying now for almost 20 minutes and he is holding his wrist” My throat dropped down into my stomach. My poor, little guy. He is in pain and I am not there immediately to hold him. So we rush off BUT we are as far opposite and as far away from where he is as possible! Go figure! When we get there he is no longer crying and just sitting subdued with his teacher. The instance he sees me he screeches and reaches out me for. He asks me to kiss his little wrist, which I do multiple times over. It may seem weird but at this time I didn’t feel like a bad mom. I didn’t feel neglectful. The minute he saw me he let his emotions gush and asked for kisses and love, which he knew he would get. He wrapped his arms around me and snuggled in my neck for a minute. I felt like the best mom in the world right then. My son knows me, and wants me. He knows I am the one who gives him pure love and nurturing. He knows I am the one to take care of him when he has an “ouchy”. So at that moment I knew I was a good mom despite not being with him every single minute of the day. As soon as he was in my arms there were no more tears…just kisses. And…I already had an appointment at the doctor by the time we picked him up…so another kudo for me!;)

Wow…this is REALLY long and if you are still with me then we should get married!

So at the doctor’s Carter really seemed fine. He played with the toys and was happy and laughing. But an x-ray later showed he had a little fracture in his tiny wrist. They put a splint on him and tomorrow he goes in for a real cast! I think we are going to make it blue! Carter is such an active, rambunctious boy and is so daring. He is always jumping off thing, jumping onto things, doing somersaults off ottomans…and so on. I think he actually had hurt his wrist a couple of times and this incident put him over the top. I am not mad at anyone at his school because this is totally something that could have happened on my watch with just one kid. It is just Carter. This is what he does. I told Josh today that this is probably the first a bunch of visits to the doctor for accidents because I just don’t see him slowing down any time soon!! I will post a picture of his cast on Friday! We also got a prescription for his eczema and eardrops. So it was a very beneficial visit in all!

So I could have said all of this in just a matter of sentences, but I guess I feel I have to always put in all of my commentary. I feel like I have to put every detail if possible because I might need it in the future. So thanks for sticking with me!!

I will post pictures soon! We went to the circus the other night and Carter got to see elephants…so look for more soon!!

So Here's The Deal...

Over the past few months I have been talking with the owners of Orion Property Management. Orion, along with their investors, owns an apartment complex we manage for them. They like us. We like them. Good thing.

Last night Josh and I went out to a really nice dinner with them and discussed further what has been discussed over the past few months. When taking on their property in October, it was mentioned that they could use us at some of their other properties, namely one is Mississippi. My heart skipped a beat. As, many of you know I lived in Mississippi when I was a little girl and it will always have a huge spot in my heart. I also have a lot of family in the South who I ADORE and miss everyday. So the thought of being able to live there for a time is so exciting to me. Josh on the other hand was less than thrilled. (he has never been there!! so he is totally pre-judging with no grounds to do so) Over the last few months we have talked about it a lot, praying, pondering, wondering what in the heck we are supposed to do!

So last night, they sat us down and said it is ours for the taking. Do we want to do this. So of course we would only go if financially it made sense. Yes, it makes sense. But money aside there are so many more reasons for me wanting to go. I would want to go even if the money wasn't there. Josh is torn because he has another property here that he is really attached to. It is a property that basically runs itself and Josh really likes it. Josh also is torn because he feels committed to the owner of a business he is currently running. Carter said "no" when I asked him if he wanted to move to Mississippi...his vote doesn't count yet.

We wouldn't be in Mississippi forever. The plan is we move there and "rehabilitate" the property. Get it running to its full potential, train new mangers, and then from there move on to another property(right now the next tentative location is in Indiana). Then when we want to settle we can pick a place and stay as long as we want...or buy out and leave completely.

So that is what we are up to. I have been wanting to blog about it for months but I was never quite sure if it was for real, if it was really going to happen. But it is totally up to us. They want us to go, but they also understand if we choose to stay where we are. These guys are seriously THE BEST guys ever. I trust and respect them 125.6%. So I am really excited, but nervous, and scared. The only thing holding me back is of course family. I like having my mom in arms reach. I like being able to drive only 90 minutes to see my most favorite people in the world. So that is the only thing tugging at my heart. The rest of me is ready to move right now.

What do you guys think?