Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Hugs

Is there anything as precious as a hug? Can anything lower your blood pressure more quickly than a hug? Can anything make the world right again like a hug? I think not.
Kyle has recently learned how to really hug, you know, by actually squeezing his arms around your neck. It is wonderful. Every time I change his diaper I stand him up and he just hugs me and hugs me. It fills my heart with an unexplainable joy because Kyle has never been a cuddle bug. He is way too busy for that, so the fact that he takes time out of his busy day to give his Mama a hug (which sometimes lasts for 2 or 3 minutes) makes it all the more special.
My heartstrings are being tugged just thinking about it!

Getting our bearings

A new city, a new routine. I am such a routine oriented person that it is really irritating to break routine or change routine. I am not having such a hard time this time around though, which is surprising. Maybe I am simply glad to be here. Maybe I needed a change. Maybe I will be able to be more efficient this time around. Not a bad thing if you ask me.
I have scoped out the Library, which we went to today for story time. Kyle had a blast playing with the other kids close to his age and I really loved watching how well he interacts with everyone. He is such a little love. I always joke that he is forever running for Mayor. He will go to anyone, is perfectly sweet and adorable, and leaves a group gushing. If that doesn't scream politics I don't know what does. As long as it only ever goes as far as class president.
So now we get to get into the routine of being here. I am glad because I was tired of my Texas routine.

Our big move!

I know I am a few days late in posting this, but better late than never, right?

We are finally out of Texas. I hate you Texas. I love you Texas. I never want to go back. I miss you. It is complicated. I miss the winter weather (which is like summer at home) and I never want to see the summer weather again (which is somewhat like living on the sun).

Our family made a lot of wonderful memories in the state you don't mess with. Kyle spent the better part of his first 15 months of life there. He learned how to crawl there. Though he learned how to walk in good 'ol Idaho, as any good Idaho boy should. He got to go to the ocean, to amusement parks, and to the Zoo. He even acquired a new dog there. We naturally referred to our trailer space as home, however temporary it was, but if you ever ask me I will tell you that I never lived there. I just stayed there for a while. I believe 'a while' is an undisclosed amount of time, so it is still true.

As of now Texas is simply a memory. We may have to go back someday, but I will be the first to say that I hope we don't ever have to. It is hot, it is dirty, and it is just not home.

Now we are in Salt Lake City and I am ever so glad to be closer to home. I know it is still 11 hours away, but it is much much closer than San Antonio. When we crossed into New Mexico, my heart sang. When I first saw real mountains, snow, and beautiful landscape, my soul rejoiced. I feel whole again. I feel like myself. I feel as if I have snapped out of a mundane existence and back into real life. It makes me sad to know how uninspired I was in Texas. I need visual stimulation, I need nature at it's finest, and I need fresh air and open spaces. We have only been here three days and it already feels more like home than San Antonio ever did. That seems strange to me. Perhaps it is because we are now in more of a groove and not so homesick. I think that the way the economy is we have stepped away from the 'woe is me' attitude about not being at home and stepped into the idea that we are truly thankful that we are still surviving. We are blessed.