No Wonder...

...students are so POOR!!

John came home the other day from buying the rest of his books (he had bought a few used off of Amazon while we were still in Omaha), and they are ridiculously expensive.

What would you pay for the following binder full of papers, and 2 paperback books?? I thought $200 maybe $300 at most.

Nope, try $700! Yes, $700 for some paper in a binder. It is a thick binder, but it is just full of paper!!

Throw in 2 more real hardcover books, and you are looking at $1100. Gone!


So we may be living off of spaghetti and Ramen noodles, but at least John has a nice binder full of paper.

So Photogenic

We had a nice family picnic this past weekend, and I thought that it would be an ideal time to take some cute pictures of me and Makenna (since I'm usually the one taking the pictures, and am therefore never in them).

Well...when John or I ask Makenna to smile or say cheese, this is usually what we get:


and this:


and this:


Finally, on the last picture taken...she has her eyes open. Success!!


Also, I need some advice from you other moms out there. John and I are trying to decide if we should move Makenna into a "Big Girl" bed now, or wait until January. She sleeps great in her crib, and has never tried to climb out (that I know of) so part of me just wants to let her keep sleeping in it as long as possible. The other part of me knows that there will probably be an adjustment period as we make the transition, and maybe that would be easier to tackle now while we only have Makenna, than waiting till we have a 2 or 3 month old baby as well. What do you think?? Now before the baby comes, or in January after she is adjusted to having a little brother?

My Two Students

John's mom, "Grandma CeCe" bought Makenna this cute little backpack/suitcase that she loves to wear and pull around. On Thursday when John got back from his jumpstart classes with his backpack, Makenna immediately went and found her backpack and put it on. She and John then marched around the coffee table singing a made-up song about going back to school. Luckily she doesn't start school for awhile...I don't think I'm ready for that.


In other news, I love Bloomington so far! Last week Makenna and I (sometimes joined by John) went to 3 different parks, to The Wonderlab (Bloomington's equivalent of a Children's Museum), to a BBQ hosted by the MBA partner's club, went swimming, to the Farmer's Market, and to an ice cream social. We also spent Friday evening outside in our neighborhood cul-du-sac talking with 8 other LDS couples who live in our community while our 20 or so children rode their bikes, trikes, and scooters around. I know that things are going to get harder once John officially starts his classes, and is gone a lot more often, or is stressed out with studying, so I'm trying not to get too excited, but am also trying to enjoy the fun, stress-free days while they last.

Our Townhouse

Here are some pictures of our townhouse, which we are renting, but will be calling home for the next two years. Right now we seem to have plenty of space (that may change when the baby comes). I also love our little community. There are at least 10 LDS families that live here.

The Entry: There was a big empty space when you first walked in the door, and we didn't really have anything else to put there besides our desk.


Our Living Room: Notice how we blocked the fireplace with our couch and end table. The entertainment center is half-way covering up a window, and is facing the loveseat instead of the couch...as I said awkward!


The Kitchen: The eating area is on the other side of the counter.


John's Upstairs Office: John wanted to have a place he could study behind closed doors, but we didn't want to buy another desk, so ended up buying a folding table. Our 3rd bedroom is now the 2nd office/craft/toy/guest room.


Our Bedroom:


Our "Walk-In" Closet: There is maybe about 10 inches between John and my hangers.


Makenna's Room:


John started his Jumpstart classes today, and we are officially on a student budget. I am currently working on turning an old white sheet into a window panel for the long skinny window next to our door. This would have been an easy project with a sewing machine, but since I don't have one, and don't have the money to go buy one, I am hand-stiching the hem all the way up the side and on the top. It took me two hours to hand-stich the side hem...oh how fun to not have any money!

The Move

We finally have internet...hooray!! (It is amazing how much I have missed having the internet.) Here is what has happened since my last post:

John and I left Omaha on Friday the 31st of July for our move to Bloomington, Indiana. We loaded the truck up Thursday night, and then stayed at my mom and dad's house before heading out in the morning. John drove the moving truck, and pulled the Alero. I drove the Pilot, and luckily had my mother-in-law come along to entertain Makenna on the drive. We drove 3/4 of the way on Friday, and then finished the drive on Saturday. Makenna did great in the car, thanks mostly to Grandma CeCe!

John's Mom, Makenna, and my mom on Friday morning:


What I got to drive behind for 2 days:


We have spent this week unpacking, cleaning, shopping, and organizing. Moving has been a lot of work, but we are finally starting to feel settled.

Here is what our living room area looked like on Saturday evening:


We are now living in a 3 bedroom 2 1/2 bath townhouse with a garage. Now that we are almost done packing (we still have 1 more box of misc. stuff) I am really starting to enjoy our new home. There are some awkward things about it (the living room layout for instance), but overall, it is a big improvement from our 2 bedroom apartment. I haven't taken pictures of the "finished product" yet, but will post some soon. John starts his jumpstart classes on Monday, so I am sure that I will have more than enough time to blog next week, and for the next 2 years!

Makenna has done great with the move. She is still on her Omaha sleep schedule, which means that she isn't going to bed until 10:00 here, but other than that she has really enjoyed having more places to play, and especially being able to go play outside so easily (our previous apartment was on the 3rd floor). On Sunday when I took her to nursery, I was planning on staying with her since she didn't know any of the leaders or children, but she just walked right in, and turned and waved to me and said "bye bye ma ma"! She also went potty on her toilet for the first time yesterday, and then again tonight before bed. I am not planning on embarking on potty training yet, but we bought a little potty a month ago just to introduce her to it. I guess it is working...John and I are so proud :)!