We Have Concrete Out There? Yes, Yes We Do!

So it has been like 3 months since we moved into our little duplex. I am loving it here even though it is quite old, but I kind of like all the little quirks that go with old houses. We did a deep cleaning of the inside when we moved in, but the outside I only just got around to a couple days ago. I wish I had taken before pictures, but oh well. Anyway, there is not a lot to be done since I have limited tools and we are only renting. In the back we have a little patch of grass that had a ton of dead grass that needed to be raked up. So I did that. And there is also a little square of concrete, which was totally covered in dirt and leaves. Apparently Sama didn't even know we had concrete out there! That is how bad it was. So, I went out a couple days ago and cleared out as much as I could. The grass still looks wretched, but the concrete area is nice and clean! I also cleaned up our front porch. It was not as bad as the back, but definitely needed some TLC. I couldn't get a picture of that because it is just too bright out front and all I get with my camera phone is shadows. The more pictures I take, the more excited I get about buying our new camera! That will be on Black Friday though :) Anyway, here is the photo of our little concrete square that you wouldn't have known existed until a couple days ago!

English Classes
We have awesome neighbors here, which is another great thing about our duplex. We are friends with a couple on the other side of the duplex as well as a Mexican family next door. My neighbor used to teach the mother of that family English, but was no longer able to after getting a new job. She asked if I would be interested/willing to do it and I said yes! Today was our first lesson and I think considering I have never really taught English it went pretty well. Our biggest barrier is that we have ALWAYS spoken in Spanish together. The only time I ever used English was if I didn't know the word in Spanish and was asking if she understood what I was trying to say. So we kept switching from Spanish to English and since she is at an intermediate speaking level, it would really be better to stick to English only during these lessons. I am really glad I speak Spanish (though not completely fluently), but I am also kind of envious of my neighbor who was teaching her before I was because she only knows a tiny bit of Spanish and so they are forced to use just English. The good thing is that the neighbor I am teaching gets a lot of practice outside of these lessons. She helps her kids with their homework and she also still talks to our neighbor in English when they see each other. I am hoping I can do a good job teaching her. We'll see!

Orchestra
I started playing the violin in elementary school, but I gave it up after about 4 years. In that time, my only lessons were in school, and I didn't practice enough to really excel at it. Then after I graduated high school I went to an orchestra concert with a friend and shared my desire to play again. Hearing pretty orchestra music makes me want to play. So what did this awesome friend do? My Christmas gift that year was a violin! I was so happy and started lessons again with a lady in the ward. Then I went to Southern Virginia University and took lessons there. Then I took a couple semesters worth of lessons while at BYU. Unfortunately I never stick with it long enough to make much progress, but I still love it. I have since gotten a really nice violin (the one my friend gave me was such a great gift and completely wonderful, but also an inexpensive model). I owe the nice violin I have now to my parents and to my brother Adam for giving up the bass. My parents had bought him the bass from a violin maker who stands behind his products 100%. I was able to trade the bass in for a beautiful violin. Anyway...I have been wanting to play again lately. We can't afford lessons or anything right now and with a new baby on the way, I don't think I would be able to continue for long anyhow. But, our stake is having a Christmas fireside/concert and anyone can be in the orchestra no matter what level he or she is at! I was hesitant to sign up thinking I might regret it or not want to stick to it, but I shy away from so many things because of that fear. So I just went ahead and signed up! Go me! I need to replace one of the strings on my violin, but then I am all set. I am going to go do that today and start practicing. On my own that is since I don't know exactly what I will be doing for the concert. But I feel really good about participating and putting myself out there a little bit. I am glad they offered places for all levels of players. I think it will be a great experience! Now, on to the store to buy violin strings!

Cribs
Thanks to all those who commented and left advice for me about cribs. For now we have decided to go with a more inexpensive model from Walmart. I hope to order it soon and be done with the stress of choosing a crib. I don't know why it is so stressful, but it is to me. Thanks to my sister for her comment that any crib I go with will be fine. I am sure it will. Still, I am excited to have it over with once we order the crib, which should be in the next couple weeks. By the end of November we will have purchased nearly everything we will need for Natalie. The main things we still need are the cloth diapers and the crib. Actually the crib isn't a necessity yet since we are using a pack n play in our room at first, but I still want to get Natalie's room all set up! There are a few little things like crib sheets and such that we need, but besides the cloth diapers we are pretty much set.

Cloth Diapers
I am still totally excited about using cloth diapers. I haven't been researching them quite so obsessively as I was before, but I still am excited about finally buying some and using them for the baby. I think I need to narrow down my list of the ones I want to try so that I can spend just a little less. But really, I want to try almost all of them! Oh well. I can always try more later on. And then I will just sell the ones I don't like.

San Antonio
I don't know if I wrote about Sama going to San Antonio or not. But he did go there for a job interview at the beginning of the week. They paid for him to fly out and treated him to dinner and a nice hotel and all kinds of cool things. He said it was a really good experience and that the interview went really well. My mom (and my sister a little too) were not thrilled at all that he went. Texas? Why Texas? You don't want to live in Texas, do you? The answer is no. No I do not want to live in Texas. But I would consider it if it were temporary. It is a really good company with amazing benefits. They treat their employees really well and pay them really well. Plus they will pay for him to do his masters. But overall we are wanting to stay in Utah for him to do his masters and then move to Oregon or Washington. Being close to family is definitely a priority for us. Plus Oregon is awesome! I love Oregon. I am sure there are other wonderful states and places to live, but I am an Oregonian and would rather go back there than trying out other places that are far from my family. But whatever happens will work out for us. I am sure that Heavenly Father has a great plan for us and knows what is best for our little family. And all the better if Oregon is a part of those plans! I miss my family!


I think I am done writing for now. But there are so many exciting things going on! I love my life!