Life Lately...

We are three days from the big move out...ahhh!  Honestly, at least in the packing aspect, we are more prepared than we have ever been at this point.  In almost every room, the only things not packed up are the things that we are still using.  Bech has most of his pottery packed up, which is the area we've always struggled with.  He, understandably, doesn't want me to pack it up, but he doesn't always have the time to get it packed in advance.

On Wednesday, we will load up a Penske, then drive to Brookhaven/Jackson for seven days.  We will get seven days to just relax and spend time with our families.  

Then, after having loaded my sisters stuff up, we will head up to DC and then Pennsylvania.

For some reason, this move seems harder to me than the rest (or maybe I'm not remembering the rest!).  Africa was so exciting.  Jackson was coming home.  Vermont was for my schooling.  Baton Rouge was bringing my child back near his family.  

And now Pennsylvania.  This is the first time I haven't known ahead of time what I am going to be doing when we get there.  I have applied for (literally) seventy something jobs through the Penn State website.  I have also applied for several others through the local newspaper.  I have a phone interview this week (yay!), so please pray that it turns into an actual job!

But, deep down, I also know that I am probably going to fall in love with Pennsylvania.  The little victorian town we are moving to has a victorian Christmas festival every year.  There are local wineries, apple orchards, pumpkin patches, farmers markets, etc.  Plus, I am going to be right smack in the middle of Amish country.

And I know that we will make friends.  It's just that, to be honest, I'm kind of tired of making new friends.  Not like it bores me.  It's just so emotionally exhausting to keep making new friends and then leaving them in a year or two!  I am still missing Malawi friends, for goodness sakes!

I am hoping that the seven days in between leaving Baton Rouge and heading up North will be an energizing time for me...I am definitely going to need it!

Okay enough of my Eyeore-ing!  I will finish up with some Jack pictures:

I hate that you can see our yucky apartment porch in this picture (so ready to be in our new place in Bellefonte and out of our soul-less place now).  But, those saddle oxfords on him...they completely melt me!

I love this outfit.  It's so vintage Southern toddler.  In fact, I bought it off ebay, so it probably really is.  I only have a few more years of dressing him this way, so I am enjoying every minute.

The Weekend...

We were in Baton Rouge this weekend...yay!  

We have been traveling a ton lately (and all for fun things), so Bech and I were both relieved to spend a weekend at home.  And it ended up working out well because Jack was sick this weekend.  So we had lots of relax time.

Jack had a slightly high temperature Friday morning before we left for school, so I was not surprised when his teacher came to get me about 9:15 because his temperature had risen.  I was slightly disappointed, though--Friday was a half day for Field Day and I was already enjoying watching all of the kids compete.  But if I'm going to have to miss a day to take care of Jack, it was a good day to miss.

Jack and I spent Friday napping, cuddling, and watching Thomas.  That night, while Bech was cooking dinner and I was checking email, Jack grabbed my phone and started playing with it.  A few minutes later, I noticed that he was on a chair in the living room, watching The Lorax on Netflix.  I am actually pretty impressed that he figure out how to get on netflix from my phone and found a cartoon movie.  Well played, Jack, well played...

But that also means we watched The Lorax about 3 more times over the weekend.  Which is actually okay with me, because I had never seen it before and now I'm kind of obsessed.

And I also tear up at the end.  

And I can't stop singing "Let it Grow"...I think I have a problem.

Saturday late afternoon, we were fever free and decided to venture out of the house.

My child LOVES ice cream (well in this case frozen yoghurt).  And the shop was right by the Loft...so new dress for me and "ice cream" for Jack.  Win-win.

Then we went to the food court.  Ya'll, I don't know the last time I ate in a food court at the mall.

Correction...I actually do.  It was in Vermont and the only Taco Bell was in the mall food court.  And I was really really pregnant (like almost to my due date).  So I think I can be forgiven.

But I was neither pregnant nor eating at a Taco Bell, so there can be no forgiveness.  I was just hungry.

Then, Bech and I thought it would be fun to let Jack ride the carousel.  Actually Jack was begging to ride the carousel; we thought it'd be a good idea to let him.  Once we got on it, he was terrified.  He didn't want to ride on a horse.  But he enjoyed his carousel bench ride.

We left there and headed to a friends MFA thesis show.  Fun, but we will go sans Jack next time!

Sunday morning, Jack and I stayed home from church to try to rest up a little more before the week.  He's still grumpy and not eating much, but he's on the mend.

Sunday night, after a trip to whole foods, I made some spring rolls and coconut milk cauliflower "rice" for dinner.  Recipes here and here.  (And they're weightwatchers recipes!)

Bech and I then curled up and started a new series, Hemlock Grove.  Um, no thanks!  Anyone else tried this?  It's one of Netflixes original shows.  Bech loved House of Cards so we both thought this one would be good.  I have one word...werewolves...

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!  Now back to reality...

This Weekend...

Well it's Monday and we are back in the swing of things around here.  We had a wonderful, busy weekend!

We started things off Thursday night.  Bech's coworkers came over, and I made yummy sweet potato soup.  We played Settlers of Catan--Bech and I hadn't played since last spring! (If you know us, you know that's a LONG time!)

Friday night, Bech taught a class at Workshop, a local pottery co-op.  I fed, bathed, and put Jack to sleep, then caught up on my Bones watching!

Saturday morning, Jack woke us up bright and early (okay, I'm totally complaining--it was like 7:30).  Bech suggested heading to Coffee Call, a local Baton Rouge beignet place.  SO good.  It was like a calmer Cafe du Monde.

Here's Jack's "cheese" face.

This boy can put down some beignets!  We have a little Louisiana boy on our hands!

Also, can we just talk about this outfit?  Yes, I know...my child is in denim.  It's a big deal.  But seriously, the cuteness.  I could die.  If you can't tell, the overalls have embroidered trains on them!

We stopped at Whole Foods for groceries on the way home.  Little man is slightly anemic, so we wanted to get some meat for him.  Whole Foods actually sells grass fed beef and free range chicken, so we made that fit in our weekly grocery budget this week.

Saturday night, we played a dice game with our neighbors.  I don't think I've talked about them before. They have a boy a day younger than Jack, which has been great.  The boys play together a lot, we swap free babysitting, and we love to hang out, too!  It's a great situation.

Sunday, after church, we stayed for a potluck.  I absolutely LOVE our church here.  There are so many people our age.  It's a small group, which makes it easy to try to know everyone.

When we got home (almost 2 hours after Jack's normal nap time!), Jack ended up sleeping for 3 1/2 hours!  Ah-mazing.  Bech and I both took super long naps too.  

We ended the weekend with yummy chicken, acorn squash and lime salsa verde tacos.  I have incredible husband who makes amazing food.

It's Spiritual Emphasis Week at my school, which means things will be a little busier than usual.  But only 2 more weeks until Mardi Gras break!

Isaac

Isaac is headed toward land, and we are getting nervous!  

If you check out this map from weather.com, you can see the path of the storm.  Baton Rouge is a little north of New Orleans and right in the path!

And according to this map (which was adjusted over the night...scary!), we are in the action section.  Um, what does that mean???

I went to the store and we have milk, ice, peanut butter and other non perishables, matches and some candles.  Plus we have some charcoal and our grill.  

For right now, we are staying in BR.  We don't know if and when the power will go out and how long it will be out.  Once the storm hits and the power is out, then we'll decide if we are going to head north to Mississippi.

Or, as the Weather Channel has so sweetly renamed it..."That landmass between Mobile and New Orleans."

Life lately...

Remember when I actually updated?

Remember when I actually had time to update?

Yeah, me neither.

Needless to say, we have been busy around here!  I actually have a little bit of time to relax because Jack is sleeping.  He had a fever this morning, so we had to bring him home.  Bech came and got him and missed part of the morning at work; I got a sub for 8th period and came as soon I was finished with my other classes.  I don't know whats going on with Jack--he hasn't had a fever since he got home, but he took a 2 hour morning nap and he's been sleeping for 2 1/2 this afternoon.

Unfortunately, that means one of us is going to have to stay home with him tomorrow...we haven't figured that one out, yet!

Other than that, life is good.  Very busy, but good.  Here's what's been going on/random Baton Rouge observations:

1.  Our neighbors are about our age and have a boy 1 day younger than Jack.  We are doing babysitting swaps with them.  A week and a half ago, they watched Jack and we went out for some sushi!  We found a great place here in Baton Rouge.  It's not Little Tokyo, but it's pretty yummy.

2.  Bech was in a car wreck this past Saturday.  He is fine, it wasn't his fault, but the car is a little banged up.  I am so proud of him--he got on the phone Monday morning with USAA (the best insurance ever), dropped his truck off at a local body shop, and got a rental car.  So hopefully the truck will be fixed soon!

3.  I am still enjoying teaching, and still working hard!  I know that in  another week or two I will get ahead enough in lesson plans/quizzes/handouts/etc. that I won't have to do much work at home.  The only problem is I teach 1st through 4th, have three periods off, then teach 8th again.  So I will always have to do a little work at home, just to prepared for what I'm teaching!

4.  I have been listening to the radio some on the way to and from school...and I have heard "Pour Some Sugar on Me" 6 times in the past week and a half!  Really???  Any Baton Rouge readers want to enlighten me on this?  Why this song?  Is Def Leppard from here?  Anyway, don't worry, I promptly change the station when it comes on.

5. Jack is such a boy.  His nickname at daycare is "Destructo."  He can tear up a room in 5 seconds flat.  Oh goodness...

6. 1 1/2 until my translation comprehensive test...AHHH!!!  Bech and Jack are going to New Orleans this weekend, and I am going to stay home and get some hardcore studying/translating done.  I'm sad that I won't be with them, but I need to work on this!

That's all I've got.  Hope everyone is having a great week so far!

Getting settled in...

We are almost completely moved in.  This weekend my grandparents came to visit, so that gave us a little bit of a push.  Bech and I always say that having people over is so good for us--after we've moved it helps us get everything put together, and all the time it makes us really clean!

So we got curtains and pictures hung and everything tidied.  And we had a great time with my grandparents.  We even had our first cookout in our new place.

Tomorrow we go to Jack's daycare for a "meet and greet."  I am excited but nervous.  We LOVED our last daycare.  It couldn't have been any better for us.  So I am worried about how the new place will measure up, especially because he will be going 5 days a week instead of 3 like last year.  But the daycare is at my school, so at least if he gets really upset, I can go check on him.

The highlight of the week is for sure my new washer and dryer (well, new to us)!  We picked them up today from a guy (gotta love craigslist) and Bech installed them.  The past four years we have been washer and dryer-less--I am SO excited to have a washer and dryer in our apartment!  Especially with cloth-diapering--Any readers who cloth diaper, imagine doing that in a laundromat!

Jack's room and our room are almost completely done.  The living room still has a ways to go.  We sold our big bookshelf, another bookshelf/entertainment center got damaged in the move, and we got rid of our coffee table a few months before we moved.  So we will slowly be replacing these pieces.

But I have clean clothes...so I am happy!

Mid Move...

Whew!  I am TIRED!  

We started moving on Thursday, and I am seriously just now getting a chance to relax.  We moved everything in on Thursday (with the help of Bech's two brothers), unpacked a little and spent the night.  We headed back to Brookhaven on Friday to pick up Jack (I spent my first night away from him!  Bella  and Doc kept him so we could move in peace) then headed back to Baton Rouge.

It has been a long few days, but we are almost done (okay well maybe 75%...that's almost, right?).  I like to go room by room.  With the exception of hanging his curtains and pictures on the wall, Jack's room is done.  Again, with the exception of pictures, our room is done.  The living room is getting close and so is the kitchen.  So, yay!  Almost there.

I will put pictures up soon.  I love this apartment!  It is a little dated, but it is clean and it is big!  We have so much storage space, and that makes me so happy!

Update

I know, I know...I have been a bad blogger.  I have a lot more time right now, but, since we are living out of suitcases, it is a lot less structured.  I don't have my computer set up on a desk and my laptop was broken (but it's fixed now).  Soon we will be moved into our new place and getting back into a routine and schedule.

Here's what we've been up to:

* Bech just got back from Honduras.  He went on a missions trip with his parents church and had a great time.  Jack and I, though, are glad to have him home!

* We went to Baton Rouge Friday and Saturday with two goals: job for Bech and place for us to live.  And we accomplished both!  

* We found a great 3 bedroom 2 bath condo in Baton Rouge.  I am so excited!  It is huge...lots of storage and lots of room.  It is a little dated looking in the kitchen and bathroom, but it is clean and well kept up (which matters more to me).  Plus, it's in our price range, which is the most important.  I am sure I will put lots of pictures up when we get moved in.

* I STILL need to put up Jack's 12 month update.  Maybe I'll get it up before he turns 13 months!  

* Also, I am debating whether I am going to keep going on the month updates.  I think I'll just put updates up for every 3 months.  

I think that's about it.  We will be moving in a week, but for now, we are just going to enjoy time with family!

Randoms and Updates

Ugh, I've been an AWFUL blogger!  My computer's hard drive was having major issues, so it went to the shop for a little while.  I just got it back two days ago, but we were enjoying the 4th and getting Bech packed for Honduras so I've been busy with that.

So here is what we've got on our plate right now:

* Bech left this morning and is spending the next 8 days in Honduras on a missions trip with his parent's church.  I am excited for him, but Jack and I are definitely going to miss him.

* Bech and I need to find a place to live in Baton Rouge.  We went this past Tuesday, but it was so depressing.  I know I have a couple of Baton Rouge readers--any advice???

*  I am going to put pictures up soon from our family vacation to Boca Grande.  We got caught in Tropical Storm Debby, so we weren't outside much.  But we had a great time, regardless.

*  I also need to put up Jack's year update!  

* Monday we celebrated my 27th birthday!  Bech's family took me to my favorite restaurant (Little Tokyo) for lunch, then my family ate at Babalu's for dinner.  Both meals were so yummy, and we had a great time.

That's about it for now.  I'm going to try to get back into my normal blog groove!