Hallelujah!

Phew! I got a job. I will be starting work next week as a school counselor at North Salem High School. I will be working with the freshman, and I am not sure I could be more excited about it. I think I may have only gotten it because the school was desperate since school is starting soon, but I don't care, it's a great job, and its only about 3 miles away from my house. I don't think I've ever worked that close to where I live, and it will be a nice change from the different commutes I have had for the past few years. I also am only about a few blocks away from Willamette University, where Nick is going to school.

It's been a stressful few months for me, trying to figure out if I can find a job using my degree and still support Nick and I, but now I am feeling very blessed that it's all working out. And I feel really lucky that I will be able to do something I love.

Wo, wo, wo, I haven't been here for the longest time

Before I begin my post, I have to say that I get a small personal satisfaction from finding post titles that are song lyrics. I don't know why.

So I apologize for not being up to date with my blog recently. Times have been hectic. Well, for a while, times were extremely boring (I was at my parent's house looking for a job day in and day out). But the last week has been hectic. Nick got into town with his Dad on Wednesday night. The truck was freakin' huge!!! It was seriously like a semi, and it had a car hitch on the back. It's amazing how much crap we collect. Luckily, my parents have a really big driveway, so it fit fine. All day Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, I was on the phone. Seriously, the whole day, maybe minus two hours. We were having trouble with our loan, and I have NEVER been so anxious in my life. I was drinking so much Diet Dr. Pepper, I should have just had a straight IV. Thank goodness that didn't go on any longer. I think I broke down a few times each day each day, and my father in law saw a very scary side of me. It was exhausting as you can tell.

Poor Mike and Nick very tired from all of their hard work. They were snoring simultaneously. Julie and I were the only ones not surprised.

Saturday, we moved all of our stuff in, and had a moving party. Nick and I brought along, Mike, Julie, Dave, Stacy, Sierra, and some of the parent's friends. It wasn't too bad, and I have to say the one good thing about moving, is that its like Christmas. Everything that came out of the truck, I was like, "Oh yeah, I forgot about that!" I guess if I have nothing else to show for being married for four years, its a truck full of stuff. Sunday, we went back up to Lake Oswego with the in-laws to go the ward. We spent the day there, and had a great afternoon with the Cottles.

Sydney, MJ, and Nathaniel- Cottle cousins

Nick with some more Cottle cousins- Sam and Maddie

Playing Badminton in my parents backyard.

Sunday night Nick and I drove back down to Salem, and we have been unpacking, organizing, etc. since. I am extremely excited about my cute little house. I will probably post pictures of the inside (now somewhat decorated), because, well, let's be honest, it's the only thing I've got to think about these days :) A lot has happened that I would like to share in length, but to spare you, I decided to make a list of good and bad things that I have experienced since moving to Oregon.




First, the bad:



- I have seen and killed two spiders already, more than I would like to, and Nick told me yesterday that I better toughen up because I better plan on killing a lot. There are a ton in our yard.



-I have had to make promises to Nick in order to bribe him to get him to do stuff around the house for me, and I am in serious debt!



- I miss Palmer and Portia so bad, and my stupid sister won't come to Oregon. I think she's afraid they'll discover that they would prefer me as their mom. Come on Bri, you know it's true! Palmer left me a message a little over a week ago, saying, "Hi Lexie, this is Palmer. I love you. Bye" It was the cutest thing, and I have played it for anyone who will listen . . . a few times.



- I have learned that I am going to have to get in better shape for running, because everything is hills around here.



- I get terrible cell phone reception in my house (I'm sorry if I haven't called you back, see description of my last week above).



- The radio stations here suck. Nick misses Cozy.



- I still don't have a job :(



- I miss my friends. :(




Good news:



- I have trees all around me in my yard, and privacy.



- A home has already made me more domestic. I have cooked, and I have been working in my yard. I even almost planted a garden, but then my Mom told me it was too late to plant seeds. But next spring, I may have some deformed tomatoes and peas, so watch out!



- I have been able to spend time with a lot of family here. Nick, my Mom, and I went to this great swimming hole yesterday, and it was so much fun.

Nick and Mom at the swimming hole. Only my Mom wears a dress hiking. What a weirdo!

Me next to the waterfall at the swimming hole.

-I have so much space in my house!



- I love all of the flowers there are here. There are hanging baskets everywhere.



- This weekend we are going to the cabin, and are going to play on our uncle James' boat, and my parents jet skis, go swimming, and probably on some hikes. Life doesn't get too much better.





- I have a garage!





- We haven't gone yet, but the beach is close, and I will probably go soon. Just the possibility is liberating.





- It is beautiful to run here, there are trees and vineyards and fields and parks all around my house, so as much as I'm panting very very heavy, I am at least distracted while doing so.

- Everyone is very friendly in Oregon. People talk to me wherever I go, and I'm not really used to that. Pretty much the only time I've gone out this week, to the grocery store, I was asked if I was Mormon (I informed a person I moved from Salt Lake City). I was like, huh, oh, right, yeah, I am. It was a good thing I was wearing my conservative outfit, and not one of my bell shirts.

-The last and perhaps most important thing that has been great about moving here is my new love of Arrested Development. We don't have any cable yet, so we have been watching the first season on DVD. I will probably devote a whole post to this, because I can't explain how much I love the show. I think I will probably post something about each character now that I mention it. I don't know why it took me so long . . .

Until next time, please send me e-mails and tell me what you're doing. I miss hearing from you.

Walking Tour of the New Pad

So I had a few requests to see more pictures of our new house. I just went over there today for the inspection and took some. Especially since Nick hasn't even seen it yet!!! Also, I am posting them because I am SO excited about our new shin-dig. I can't wait for Nick to come up next week and see it, and for everyone else that comes and visits.

Another angle of our house outside. We have a cute little front porch. And I think I'm going to add black shutters and paint the front door black (you can't see, but its blue right now).

Our two car garage. I'm so excited for all of the storage space!

Our little backyard. It's not big, but its still nice.

Our stone patio off the side of the house. I would like to build a deck coming off of that, that wraps around to the backyard, but we'll see.

This is the view from the little patio. The area next to us is a flood zone so no one will ever build on it, which is a nice little buffer.

This is what it looks like when you walk into the house.

And looking back down from the top of the stairs.

So this is the living room area/ nook (to the left). The gas fireplace is very nice. I loved having one in our basement apartment. The wall is really red, but we have maroon couches and a maroon rug, so it kinda clashes. I am going to paint over it, but don't know which color yet. I was thinking a sagey green? Any suggestions, advice? I need it!

The kitchen with high counter tops and stainless steel appliances. (I feel like a realtor).

This is the laundry room off of the garage and kitchen. The washer and drier will be where the vacuum is. There's a half bath to the left.

This is the master bedroom on the first floor. But I think we are going to use it for an office. The two bedrooms upstairs are bigger.

The bathroom in the office.
This is one of the bedrooms upstairs. They're pretty much the same.

Both bedrooms have huge closets like this. LOVE it!
This is the upstairs bedroom with about a gazillion drawers.

So there it is, sorry so many pictures, but I wanted you to get a good idea of what it looks like. Any homeowner tips would be much appreciated! I really have no domestic skills, but am excited to at least attempt taking care of a home.

Here's our new address:

1327 Lupin Ln. NW

Salem, OR 97304

We Bought a House

Nick and I bought a house in Salem, Oregon today. It really was an absolute miracle because we made a very low offer and the people actually took it! We are going to be able to close much sooner than we thought we could, and I love the house. It's really nice and cute, and its in a great neighborhood. Nick is about 2.5 miles away from campus. It's also very strange because it was an older couple that I am assuming is LDS because they're moving to Utah. Crazy!

Now, I just need a job so we can actually pay the mortgage! I had an interview yesterday that I think went pretty well, and am applying like crazy to a bunch of other jobs. So hopefully something will pan out soon.

I'm going, I'm going, I'm gone

Most of you probably already know this, but I am moving to Oregon on Sunday! Nick and I have been planning to move August 1st, and all of our major stuff is still going to be leaving then, but I need a job, so I'm heading out. I have an interview on Monday, but won't hear about it for two weeks after the interview, so I am going to stay there in the mean time and try to find another job just in case I don't get this one. I am going to stay there also to try to find a house to buy or rent, depending on what I find. It's all a little hectic, because I've been trying to pack up my house, so Nick doesn't have to pack and clean all by himself. I was stressing a lot about everything, but for some reason today, I am starting to feel much more at peace and I'm getting excited about the change. The saddest part is that I wish I could spend more time with my friends and family, but these last few days are unfortunately going to be spent packing. There were all of these things I was going to do in the next couple weeks: float the provo river, lagoon, more seven peaks, hikes, bike rides, and say good-bye, so I'm bummed about that.

To those of you I won't be able to say good-bye to, I'm sorry! I will possibly be back a few days before we move (hopefully) and will try to see you then. If not, we'll be back at Christmas. And there's always a place for you to stay in Oregon. Come visit us!

Freedom Run!

Nick and I ran in a 10k on 4th of July in Provo. I have never before ran 6.2 miles, so I was just proud of myself that I finished. But for Nick, it was another walk in the park (who the day before, said, "I don't know if I can run 6 miles!") He then proceeded to run it in 53 minutes. We are slightly sweaty in this picture (and I'm sort of delirious).
I ran the 10k with Nick's aunt, Jen (the one in the hat). It was great, because we just talked the whole time, so I was distracted. We're not exactly experienced runners- we thought the mile markers were kilometers, so when we had passed the 4 mile marker, and one of the volunteers told us a little less than 2 miles, it clicked and we were so excited. Before that, we were a little concerned about not even being half way. We were like, man, this kilometers seem really long, and we are really out of shape!
Jen also pushed me in the end. The whole last mile was a hill, and it was getting really hot outside, so I was struggling. Luckily, some people in front of us that looked a little out of shape, were motivation. We were like, okay, we have got to be able to beat that lady with a ginormous butt! If not, than we're pretty pathetic.

Jen's daughters also ran. Maddie (14) ran the 5k, and Anna (10), Grace (7), and Sophie (5), ran the 1 mile. The best was all of the girls and Nick were waiting for us as we crossed the finish line. And Anna said as we're running, "Mom, what happened?" Hahaha. Maybe someday, I'll run it a little faster :)

This was, like, the best, like, show. No seriously, it was.

I have just recently rediscovered "My So Called Life," with Jared Leto and Claire Danes. It was my absolute favorite show in 7th grade (along with Full House and Beverly Hills 90210). It was a little edgy, but I didn't quite understand why. Now, watching it on Youtube as an adult (which I know, is slightly pathetic), I am understanding why my Dad told me I couldn't watch it. But Jared Leto was one of the very first boys that I really thought was hot, and I couldn't resist. For anyone who watched the show, this preview may bring back some memories.

This is what happens when you aren't working and are sick of applying for jobs.

P.S. I am very excited I have learned how to post Youtube vidoes. Expect to see more in the near future (see sentence above).