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.

Have money? Dont spend it when you can save it.

Everyone knows that the economy is in the crapper right now. Jobs are being lost by the thousands, more and more people cannot pay their bills, and those who used to think they were in secure jobs are starting to sweat. All hell has broken loose on the financial front. It is just not good.
So far our family has been extremely fortunate, thank God. While we have had steady work so far we are realistic. We know that it could end because right now, anything is possible.
Today I decided that I wanted to go shopping just to go shopping. I know that Kyle is quickly growing out of, well, everything and that I am picky about clothes. Because of that, it is best to shop early in anticipation of him outgrowing things. I also wanted to look for a few things for myself.
So I loaded Kyle into the car and we set out on our journey. We looked at some things from Old Navy, some from The Children's Place, some really cute Levi's, and some things from boutiques that I have never even heard of. Some things were cute, some looked a little cheesy, some were just to die for!
However, I did not actually GO to Old Navy, or The Children's Place, or any boutiques. I went to a thrift store. Yes, a thrift store. At this time in our lives we actually COULD go to those places and spend $15+ on any given shirt and more for pants/shorts. Honestly though, Kyle grows out of things so quickly, what is the point? And I am so hard on clothes (stains, holes, etc) that I feel guilty when I ruin a shirt I got at Wal*mart, so I cannot imagine how guilty I would feel if I had gotten a new shirt from somewhere expensive.
Yes sirree, I am a bargain shopper. I cannot bring myself to spend more money on clothing than I need to, and when there are perfectly good clothes at thrift stores still in great shape that have a lot of wear left in them, I feel like I am being extremely wasteful buying clothes somewhere else. My job is to save this family money whenever I can. That means home cooked meals instead of eating out, fixing rips in pants a few times before throwing them out, and cutting costs for food and other things we need. I will, on occasion, buy clothing at full price. At Wal*mart. I figure $8 for a brand new shirt is not bad. But I don't do that often. I feel really good when I go to a thrift store and can get a cute shirt or a great pair of pants for $2-3, even less if that color tag is 1/2 off that day. Super score!
So anyway, all of Kyle's pants and shirts in 18 month sizes are used. Someone else's castoffs. And to be honest, most looks unworn. I have found 2 pairs of pants that still had the tags on them. 1 pair were Faded Glory ($2 used, probably at least $10-12 new) and 1 pair were from The Children's Place ($2.50 used, at least $15 new). Just with those two pairs of pants I saved our family a minimum of $20 so that means that I 'made' $20 at my job today! Yay for me!
If you are smart you will take my advice- buy used when it will do. Or take the Duggar's advice and "buy used and save the difference." Either way, your long-term financial goals will thank you!

*NOTE* All the pictures of Kyle looking super duper cute in this post contain USED, SECOND HAND clothes. Can you tell? Didn't think so!

Oh Gracious

My poor boy is so miserable with his molars coming in. He is so crabby and unlike his normal, happy, giddy self. I miss my baby! Sometimes he comes back, once the Tylenol and baby orajel kicks in. Poor baby...
Poor Mama! I have been listening to crying, screaming baby for days and I will be the first to say it is grating on my last raw nerve. I am so thankful that Larabee has ALL weekend off this week and I will get a bit of a break from the monster that has taken over my son. Or at least help wrangling that monster LOL.

Ears, Nose, Toes, Piggies

You are thinking right now, what do these things have in common?
Well, I will tell you.
Kyle can show you where all of these things are on himself and on others! I am so proud! Especially about the ears since he cannot see his own but he still knows they are there. Also, being able to show you his toes AND his piggies is big too because they are the same thing. He understands that things can have more than one name. Yay for my big boy! I am such a proud mama right now!

Juno- Such a great ending!

I finally joined the real world and watched Juno. I know I am behind, but give me a break. It was a witty movie, and even got Larabee laughing. The best part, by far, was the ending. I cried buckets. I could feel the very raw feeling you experience when you hold your baby for the first time, and I think that is impressive for a movie to be able to make me feel that way. Very very touching!

Darn Molars

My poor baby. These molars are just kicking his little butt. Load up on the Tylenol Mom! I feel so badly for him, especially before the Tylenol kicks in. I think they are hurting so badly at times that he cannot suck on his sippy cups. I am going to try to time his Tylenol intake better tomorrow so that he will have as little pain as humanly possible when he eats. A child cannot survive on raisins and fruit snacks alone!

Real life, good people

I love life. I love reality. I love nearly everything about, well, everything. There are, however, things that annoy me.
I am annoyed that I find it hard to accept the fact that there will always be someone out there who does not like me. I know that seems strange, but to me it matters. I am a Leo, constantly seeking approval, desperately wanting people to like me. I am likewise annoyed that I find it hard to admit that there are people out there I just do not like. Plain and simple, I am not required to like everyone I meet just like they do not have to like me. Why is that so hard for me to get? What is it about that concept that escapes me?
I am annoyed when, after giving many people the benefit of the doubt numerous times, I still get burned. I know that not everyone is going to live up to all expectations people have of them, myself included. I do, however, believe in constructive criticism. I believe that if people can dish it out they should be able to take it. I wish that more people would give me constructive criticism because I know I am not perfect and that I have a ton of room for improvement. Sometimes it is hard to improve if you do not know what you need to work on, and I invite a third party to let me know the areas in which I need to grow.
As annoyed as I can get, I am also heartbreakingly thankful for the wonderful life I have. I just have a few beefs, ya know!