Last Week of Freedom

This week is my last week before I start student teaching. I actually don't know when I officially start taking over the classroom. All I know is I have an orientation meeting this Saturday. I'll probably be stuck observing for a week or two before I actually start teaching. I feel like the people in charge of student teaching could utilize this down time way better than they do. How hard is it to ask the coordinating teachers what should be taught in the next 14-18 weeks so we can use all this down time to start brainstorming how to teach? Makes sense to me...

We finally MOVED!!!! I am THRILLED. I thought we'd be stuck at Paradise Square for the rest of the month, but the stars aligned themselves this week and we made arrangements to move. All day Thursday and Friday I packed and cleaned like a mad woman. Justin and I agree that that apartment has probably never had a deep clean EVER. It was awful. I'm so glad to be gone from that yucky place!!!! Todd and Christine helped us move and they noticed the blood on the sidewalks...yeah....

I cannot express how happy I am in this new apartment!!! WE LOVE IT! This apartment is huge compared to what we're used to, and it's really nice! It has new carpet too! We could easily have our first two kids here. Electricity transferred over no problem but our gas isn't getting set up until tomorrow (Tuesday) so we've been freezing! We boil water to do dishes and bathe....brrr!

Sitting in blankets, pjs, coat and hat

Sitting in blankets, pjs, coat and hat

Trying to stay warm!

We were so blessed to have our friends help us move. They have a trailer so we were able to take everything in one trip. They moved into a friend's apartment who left their TV and a nice shelf so our friends gave it to us for free!! After a year and four months of marriage, we finally have our first TV! Still no channels, but we got a Chromecast for Christmas so we've been playing netflix and pandora from our smart phones and it plays on the TV.

Still in our camping chairs... Through the glass doors is a patio with another huge storage closet and another closet that has our own WASHER AND DRYER!!! They keep it outside because having the washer and dryer inside adds a lot of heat (not good for summer time). It also keeps the noise down in the house.  Still in our camping chairs... Through the glass doors is a patio with another huge storage closet and another closet that has our own WASHER AND DRYER!!! They keep it outside because having the washer and dryer inside adds a lot of heat (not good for summer time). It also keeps the noise down in the house.  Lots of room for our future couches/sectional Lots of room for our future couches/sectional Another huge closet for storage. Another huge closet for storage. New TV and shelf - with pictures of Christ, the Rexburg Temple, and a framed The Family: A Proclamation to the World New TV and shelf - with pictures of Christ, the Rexburg Temple, and a framed The Family: A Proclamation to the World There's so much room in the kitchen. We don't have enough stuff to fill all the shelves! And it comes with a microwave and dishwasher (last place didn't have either of those)! Woot! Future dining room... Future dining room... Our new shelf Our new shelf Our huge bathroom! Our huge bathroom! Our trusty air mattress. It is surprisingly cold to sleep on an air mattress... Our trusty air mattress. It is surprisingly cold to sleep on an air mattress... Our bedroom has two closets. Naturally, I claimed the huge walk-in closet... Justin's closet. Ha! Justin's closet. Ha!

The apartment complex has a very nice lounge. There's a theater room, fitness center, pool, racquetball court, tennis court, basketball court, and sauna. It's unbelievable! 

We went to our new ward yesterday and loved it. The family ward is huge and there are tons of kids. Everyone was really nice and welcoming. A few sisters teach in the surrounding schools. They said they have science openings in their schools so I have a connection for teaching in the fall if that's what I choose to do! Awesome.

Saturday night we got together with the Brooks and hit downtown. We walked up and down Fremont Street watching magic tricks and looking for a place to eat. You have to be selective when you breathe - someone blew cigarette smoke right in my face. Ugh! 3,000 people die every year from lung cancer from second hand smoke. We went to Container Park which is an area where all the shops are constructed from left over train box cars. Outside the park there was a giant prey mantis that blew fire every few minutes. It blew fire right as we were walking out - I screamed so loud! We finally picked a place to eat: The Heart Attack Grill. A man actually died of a heart attack after his triple by-pass burger! You can read more here. The restaurant plays up the fact that it's so unhealthy. First thing the waitresses do is put you in a hospital gown - and they're all dressed like nurses! Oh, and if you weigh more than 350 pounds you eat for free...

Single by-pass burger...meaning it has ONE patty. Double has two, triple three, and so forth until it maxes out at 8!! The quadruple by-pass burger alone is 10,000 calories!!!

A taste worth dying for...

The small writing says, "Calories? I don't give a damn!" Rhett Butler is wearing a hospital gown and Scarlett O'Hara is dressed as a nurse.

All the other fast food mascots eating at the heart attack grill.

They put a slice of butter in the brownie shake....oh my.

Justin is now walking distance from work and my school is just a five minute drive down the 215 from here. Life is good! Now I'm thinking what I can do for my last week of freedom...what would you do?