Adjusting

We have been in our new home for over a week...and we are still adjusting. There are moments when I see my kids and I think, yeah, they are feeling comfortable here. And then they have a meltdown over nothing (that I can see) and I realize they are still figuring this new place out.

My husband has been in the Air Force since 2005. We are going on 9 years. This is our fourth move and it seems a bit more tough than the previous ones, albeit time has a way of erasing the past. I don't recall being so nervous to move to FL, and I certainly wasn't in going back to OH since we had been there before. DC is new to me. A new way of life. A new schedule. For example, I have been told to steer my errands between 10am and 2pm to avoid the DC commute traffic. One day I was heading out at 2pm and guess what? It took me 30 minutes to drive 2 miles. It was bumper-to-bumper traffic and the a/c had just quit on the van...so you can imagine how pleasant that was for me. I am more careful now!

I don't understand why there are no street lights here. When you drive at night, you know, after 7-8pm (evening traffic), you can't see anything and since I am new to the area, it's kind-of scary. There are many twisted roads and hills, which makes it worse. I told Tyler about it and when he and I went out one evening (grocery shopping, we have yet to go on a date) he could see what I was talking about!

The phone reception here is awful. We currently have AT&T and when I called their customer service, they said we are in the "no service zone". This makes sense because all my calls go to voicemail unless I am out and about. We are hoping to switch to Virgin Mobile today. *happy dance*

Despite the scariness of a new area, the lack of street lights, phone reception, and feeling generally lonely, there have been many tender mercies. I know that Heavenly Father is looking out for us and helping us in the way He tends to do - through other people.

I thought that moving to DC would mean lots of rude people as opposed to the country folk we love back in Oklahoma. Perhaps it was due to my low expectations, but people have been so kind here. I was wearing my Eskimo Joe's t-shirt while moving into the home and we had one neighbor stop by and ask if we were from Stillwater, OK! Other neighbors have stopped by to introduce themselves. The Bishop and his counselors came by the day after we moved in to say hello. We had brownies and banana bread dropped off by local church members. Everyone at church has been so kind and sweet. And let me tell you, they are on the BALL here in our ward with callings and church programs. Our church records were transferred here within a WEEK of moving in. Yeah. I can tell that they want us here and I know, in time, we will feel right at home.

The summer has been long without a place to call home, so that was a huge drive to get our house set up. We had all the boxes unpacked a week after moving in. Things are still around and need to find their place and the house is somewhat a wreck, but I am happy there are no more boxes around. Tyler went in to work one day last week and they gave him the rest of the week off to help around the house. Such a blessing! He is such a hard worker and he does things so well. I am not allowed to hang up pictures without his help because he is exceptional in making things symmetrical. And I do love symmetry.

The medical fields here are army-run and I am having some trouble getting appointments made for my kids, especially to fit in 5 physicals before school begins. Speaking of school - they don't start until after Labor Day here. That is SUPER late compared to what I know. The kids are eager to go back to school and I am excited about the schedule it will provide. Poor Keith is bored out of his mind and keeps asking what we are doing next...I wish I had more for him to do.

I have been pretty emotional the past couple of months, due to lots of stress. Tyler gave me a priesthood blessing and that has helped me a lot. I am so grateful for the priesthood. I am trying to pace myself and lower my expectations so I don't become overwhelmed. Some days it works and other days I have crying meltdowns, like yesterday. But my family loves me and I am grateful for their unconditional love. I know I am blessed. I feel God's love for me.