Then Life Moved On

Not quite two weeks after graduation we picked up a moving truck and moved 30 miles south to our very first house. No, we didn't buy, we are renting. But it's a house!

this is how everyone felt on moving day:

and this was our next morning when I couldn't even find a bowl for some cheerios. Surrounded by chaos and excited to unpack and get organized:

 we moved in with the thought to do a rent-to-own type of deal. Within a few days we had quickly changed our minds. This home is not for us. We won't be here long, it's just a temporary rest stop. It has some quirks to say the least. The kitchen cupboards are all super skinny but really deep. You have to take everything out to find anything. There is a sprinkler system but it doesn't work. Beside that, whoever put it in ran the pipes through the house and out the laundry room. There's upside down doors, no sliding door handles, nasty thistle, crab grass lawn and this little gem:

Yes, all things we could fix if we cared enough to stick around. But for now, we're just dealing with it.
We are working really hard to get the yard somewhat green before winter sets in. We are so excited to have a yard and want to enjoy it. We have amazing neighbors. Several times we've been outside watering or fertilizing the yard and someone will stop by, 'yeah! Someone that cares about the yard. Thank you!' They are all really excited we want to take care of the yard. We were told he day the other family moved out one neighbor came over and was pulling weeds, another neighbor saw him and ran over with his lawn mower and fertilizer spreader. You pull, I'll mow! One of our neighbors told us not to buy any yard equipment he has everything we need. We use is lawn mower, clippers and all that fun stuff. Great neighborhood and an awesome church family. There were lots of people here the day we moved in. Some to help unload the truck, others to take care of kids, another with a tower of cupcakes, several others stopped by just to say 'hi' and introduce themselves.
A few days after we moved in I took a trip 4 hours south, just me and the kids, to visit family.
14 years ago my brother was excommunicated from the church. 1 year ago he lost his sweet girl Eliza due to an accident at home. On that anniversary he was being re-baptized. It was an occasion I wasn't going to miss. It was Jake's first week of work so he figured he shouldn't ask for any days off.
I didn't get any pictures at the baptism but a few while we were just hanging out.  My mom has a grandparent pass to a local attraction that has lots of museums, exhibits, acres of gardens and so much to see and do. This gets in any grandkids and an amazing discount on additional adults. She took us all to one museum, The Museum of Natural Curiosity
A few of my sisters and their kids were able to join us. The museum is several acres huge, indoor, out, several stories tall. I'm surprised we ever found the kids again. I did have to use the lost kid system they have in place. They were really quick and efficient about finding Kaleb.

 It's beyond description how much there is to do at this place:
They have a full size single seater airplane suspended from the ceiling. You get there by crossing through rope bridges:

I gave up keeping track of all the kids and just followed Breahna around.
There's a water area:

 Lots of ways to use your imagination and curiosity.
Alexander loves to pretend and use imaginative play, especially if it involves other people. He quickly makes friends wherever he goes:

My mom was put on Evelyn duty. She got to sit in one spot and hold Evelyn. She was also the one person who didn't move so if the kids got lost they went back to where grandma was (if they could find her):

 how high can you jump?

 It was quite the squeeze following the kids through all these tunnels and play structures:

 Did I mention, there is also an outdoor water area?
It was chilly but the kids wanted to play anyway. We didn't want to go back to the car for our swimsuits so we stripped down to underwear:

 mom, take a picture of me punching the water ... okay...

 Congrats to my brother. I am so proud of you and all your hard work. It was awesome being able to be there for your special day and to honor a very special little girl.

This month was quite busy with all the going-ons.
We began to teach the kids about allowance and tithing. At the end of each week if they ate whatever dinner we gave them and did small chores throughout the week they would get $1. They were so excited to hand the bishop their tithing envelope the next day. It's amazing how motivating a $1 bill can be.

 We love having a yard. It's a quirky house but as I said, it's still a house. It's our space.

 Evie finally figured out how to really sit up:

one of the few babies I know that loves the grass. We put her on a blanket and she finds a way to get her hands and toes in the grass:

Then things around here took another unexpected turn:

 We drove just over an hour away for a Costco trip. We filled the truck and began to head home when a light blinked on to check the guages. Whatever that means. Then the truck began to knock, getting louder and louder. Then everything screeched to a halt as black smoke billowed from under the hood and a pungent burning smell enveloped the inside of the car.
Our beloved Moby had, in sense of the word, blown up. He was done for good.
Jake was able to get our insurance to send out a tow truck. Almost 1 year ago exactly we had to call for a tow ... our insurance covers 1 tow a year. Lets not use it every year, please.
There we were stuck on the side of the freeway, an hour from home with 4 small kids. We had forgotten the snacks and water and didn't know what we were going to do or especially how we were going to get home.
Jake remembered someone from our new ward had called him earlier that week to get our info. He scrolled back through his phone log and called the gentleman. That guy called around until he found someone with a big enough car that was available to come pick us all up. The good thing about have a big truck is that the tow truck that comes will be big enough for all of us to fit. We all climbed in so we wouldn't have to wait on the side of the road.
The kids just thought this was all a grand adventure, especially when the two truck showed up:

 I don't think Jake thought it was that awesome:

 goodbye Moby, thank you for getting us through school. We created lots of memories and had many grand adventures together:

The kind neighbor, whom we had never met before, drove 52 miles to pick up the 6 of us, refusing any sort of payment. The next day was Sunday, only our 2nd Sun, Jake's 3rd in this area. Two different families showed up on our doorstep wanting to give us a ride to church. We we walked into church the 2nd councilor in the bishopric came up to me and handed me some car keys. "I heard about what happened to your car. Here's the keys to our van. Our kids are older now so we don't drive it as much. Use it until you get your feet back under you. But, you have to speak in church next Sunday". It's a deal!
What an example to me about service. Our neighbors didn't know us but how many times they've quickly jumped in to help out and take care of us. We are so grateful for their generosity and kindness.

Then we had a quiet week hanging out before school started for Kaleb:

 

We spent the next 10 days as we borrowed our neighbors van looking for a 'new' car. We both loved the Suburban and wanted another one but couldn't find one in our price range with lower-ish miles. Driving the minivan around we decided vans weren't too bad. Plus, the gas mileage would be nice. Before our truck died we had set up a budget with so much for transportation each month. If we got a van we would stay in our budget even with a car payment because the fuel would be less.
Through family connections we found a great deal on a van, but it was 500 miles away. This was ok though because Jake's mom and dad now lived in that area so we could also visit them in their new cabin. I began to price out a way to get us all out of town. A rental car one-way was $800! We live with an airport in our backyard and I discovered, it was only $37 a seat to fly within 2 hours of our destination. But, the flight times didn't work with Jake's work schedule so I would have to fly by myself with 4 kids and Jake would have to find his own way there. I finally decided to rent a van here and bring it back here, this was only $300. What a fiasco! But it all worked out in the end. Even having to drive two vans home.
We had a really fancy rental van. It felt like an executive van. It had leather seats, a DVD player, the whole works. The kids were kind of disappointed (ok, I was to) when they realized our new van was as basic as you could get. No automatic sliding doors, no DVD player. But, it was a car.
It was so nice spending the weekend in the mountains.

 Jake helped mom and dad do a bit of work around the cabin:

 and of course, there was lots of 4-wheelin' rides:

We didn't have a helmet small enough for Evie, nor did I bring my front carry pack so she didn't get to go for a ride. Instead we stayed in and discovered her hair can be pulled up into a bop-bop

Alexander's birthday was fast approaching in only a few days. We were planning on going to the zoo this weekend. With us moving we didn't plan a friend party so he wanted to go to the zoo. Then the car happened and the zoo plan was scrapped. When we were at the cabin I drove 45 minutes to the "local" grocery store that had a bakery. I asked them for a Spider Man cake. They didn't have a set design but they would see what they could do. I was mighty impressed with it! I didn't give them any ideas for a design, colors, or any help really. Just that it needed to be a vanilla cake. I was very pleased with the results:

 and I think Alexander was too...

 how old are you going to be? 5!

 his dreams came true, he finally got a number candle for a birthday :-)

 mom, dad, Jake's sisters Raygan and Shawna and family friend Kimberly were there to help us sing an early happy birthday to an amazing little guy:

 Then Alexander asked for the camera and wanted everyone to make a silly face:

 I can't believe this hidden gem!

thank you mom and dad, we really enjoyed our last minute "vacation"
Things are settling together into a routine. You don't realize how much you use a car until you don't have one. I am so grateful we were able to get another vehicle! And the van isn't too bad, it's kind of grown on me. Although Jake and I are excited for the day we can get a truck again.