Observations of Utah...

I know everyone wants to see the house. I will take and post some pictures probably over the weekend. Everything is just such a mess right now and I can't make myself do it.

So far we seem to be settling in fairly well. Jamie is getting along wonderfully with a couple of the guys at work. We have a family picnic to go to on July 31st. I'm surprisingly looking forward to it.

Since Jamie is working on the UTA (Utah Transit Authority) designing the rail system bridges, he gets to ride the bus and train for free! That saves us $165 a month and lets me have the truck anytime I need it. There is an express bus from our neighborhood that lets him off almost at the door of his office. Also, less than 1/4 mile from the house they are building a new light rail station. He'll be able to walk or bike to that by next year. YAY!!! So that also saves us the expense of buying a second car. We like having only one payment and one insurance bill.

No one has tried to convert us. The county we live in is only40% LDS while the county below this one is nearer to 75% LDS.

Supposedly the Mormons don't drink coffee. Yet, there is a Starbucks on every corner. If there isn't a Starbucks, there's another name coffee house. We have two less than a mile from our house.

I met people from Elkins at the airport the other day. They saw my WV sticker on the truck. Only other WV would drive up and talk to a stranger like they were a long-lost relative. Of course, given WV we may have been long-lost relatives. It was fun talking to them, they were getting married and moving to Idaho for a job. They said they have met several people from back home that have moved here for jobs and such. So, I'm going to have someone send me a WVU flag for the front porch. A lot of people in our neighborhood are transplants from "back East."

I love the mornings and the evenings here. The breeze really blows and the air comes down out of the mountains. It's so cool and refreshing. I can't wait to be able to open the windows. It has something to do with the Great Salt Lake rising a falling during the day. When it falls at night it draws the air down out of the mountains. It can actually be almost cold by 9:30 at night. You would never know it was 100 degrees during the day.

Our neighborhood has a homeschool group that meats at the beach of our lake every week. Nicholas and I are looking forward to joining up with them in a few weeks.

Jamie cut the grass last night. Took him 15 minutes to cut and trim. He was not unhappy about that.

We haven't been to check out the rec center yet. We are waiting for our resident access cards. We get free canoe and sail boat rentals for the lake. I think that sounds like a great father and son experience. I'll sit on the bank and wait for them. I asked what happens if your sailboat gets stuck. Jamie said you blow on it. He thinks he's so funny.

And now I should go back to unpacking. It's certainly not getting done by itself.