Our First Paycheck!

It's been another week of ups and downs. The pressures of trying to work out a plan for the debt we gained from the move, the weird exhaustion cycle that comes from living in a labyrinth of boxes (too tired to unpack, too 'not unpacked' to rest), and the lack of emotional (and physical) support from not having a local community have really been taking their toll.

Ben has been working to connect with his team and learning the ropes at Schell. It's always a bit uncomfortable to move through that transition but things are going well overall. 

I, personally, have been learning to cope with the fact that my world has suddenly become small. Because of that the kids and I have just been living quietly at home. Learning, cleaning, and unpacking when we can and taking naps when we can't. ;)

(Darcie made her toast crust look like Kristoff's shoe)

(This is the one picture I got of Adelaide before I was not so politely told to stop.)

This past weekend was a nice treat  because my dad came up to visit! He even got to experience church with us-- which we are still, by the way, liking a lot.

Another thing we are really enjoying is the weather! It hasn't necessarily been a typical summer for Pittsburgh because we keep having these random Fall-like days but I am the last person you will find complaining about it!

(Pictures from the Weather Channel app. MY FAVORITE APP EVAR.)

And, to end on a happy note, Ben got his first paycheck from Schell the other day! We celebrated by making a massive grocery shopping trip. And by "massive" I mean we were there for three hours. Three. Hours. At one point Darcie fell on the floor and just decided to pitifully drag herself down the aisle instead of getting back up.

Hahaha, I felt the same way. Needless to say the kids slept like the dead last night (insert mental picture of me doing air punches). In fact it is now 10am and they are STILL sleeping (more air punches).

Time for me to enjoy the last few minutes of quiet and maybe another cup of coffee.

Until next time!

Liam's Sixth Birthday!

Today Liam turned six! He got some presents, pizza, and basically got to boss everyone around all day, which I'm pretty sure in his opinion is the best way to spend a day. 

We also made a visit to a place I have been wanting to see since I first heard of it three weeks ago.

It is an entire bakery of gluten free and dairy free cakes, cookies, and pastries! Could there BE anything more perfect for our family?? (#teampibsburb)

They didn't have any ready-made cakes today but that was okay because we got to buy a bunch of different flavors of cupcakes (red velvet, vanilla, and carrot cake) and tried them all out. We liked all of them but the carrot cake was out of this world!

Even better was that we got to enjoy our cupcakes at Schell Games (in their kitchen & eating area that is aptly named Ten Forward) (can you marry a company? Because we're considering it) because Ben was able to give the kids a tour of it today.

Ben, I think, has especially been enjoying this birthday because it reminds him of turning five right after his family had moved to a new state. He says it was a landmark year for him and that he remembers being of an age where he could make his first neighborhood friends. Now he is getting to experience the dad side of that equation.

Liam is definitely loving living around other kids and families so we did some "neighboring" this afternoon which was wonderful for the kids and wonderful for me but wrapped in a blanket of anxiety and awkwardness. Happy birthday, Liam! You are worth any amount of uncomfortable social interaction.

Speaking of neighbors though we have some pretty great ones next door! They aren't noisy, brought us cookies yesterday, and have a dog named Mr. Tumnus. Looking forward to when the boxes no longer look like they're the ones who actually live here so that we can invite them (the neighbors, not the boxes) over for dinner.

Before I go I leave you with this parting image.

Until next time!

Second Week Rollercoaster

My, what a week! Ben had three days of work as his first work week. I know. Super grueling.

Especially since they treated him so terribly. /sarcasm

But no really, in Ben's own words it was his best first day at work ever.

He even got a new iPad Air (see above) and a gift bag of goodies! I am green with envy (insert last-name puns here).

The kids and I had a quiet week at home since we don't have access to a car. There might be some mornings in the future where it is feasible for me to drive Ben to work and have the car for the day but it hasn't yet been possible. Since Ben has no one to carpool with and we only have one vehicle we are really hoping God drops a car in our laps by this Fall so that the kids and I can be active during the week.

The good news though is that we are within walking distance from a park and we took advantage of that last Thursday.

Then, on Friday, we celebrated Independence Day with our neighborhood. Several of the local families chipped in for a big pack of (legal) fireworks and then shot them off for the kids enjoy. 

We even got a bonus of being able to see someone else in the distance shooting off some slightly-less-legal fireworks.

On Saturday we did more unpacking (oh my word are we done yet??) (nope) (still only about 40% done) and then Ben and I completed a task we've been working on for weeks. That is, finishing the second season of Once Upon a Time. :P

On Sunday (today) we tried out a new church! We got to enjoy a lot of Pittsburgh architecture while there.

I think we're probably going to go back. And not just because of the surrounding beauty. The church was full of young families and was really good about reaching out to newcomers so we felt very welcomed. :) After church we got a lunch we could ill afford but which was nonetheless delicious at a restaurant (appropriately?) called Burgatory.

DE. LISH.

It was a week of ups and downs emotionally. Sometimes it feels like we are at home but most of the time it feels like we're at some sort of extended family summer camp. I personally am struggling with the duality of loving being here but also being extraordinarily lonely. I'm looking forward to making some friendships and to that end, again, praying for a car.

That said, we at least don't have to wonder if the cats are adjusting well.

Until next time!