We're staying!

Kendall has decided that we should stay in the area instead of moving.  This is a "Yay!" and "Darn" all in one. 

Pros:
The hussle and bussle of moving + 33 weeks pregnant + small children = no fun.  I wasn't looking forward to having to implement more time on moving and less time towards my kids and Mary Kay (which has taken a beating due to preparations in a huge garage sale Kendall had and will have once more. yay).  And having to redirect our mail- AGAIN- is a pain.  I think we still have some mail forwarded to Kendall's brother which annoys everyone. 

Decor?  I'd like to decorate our home.  We have been living on the minimum since March because we didn't know what we were doing.  What if he got a job?  2 hours south?  Or in South Dakota?  Then we'd be that much closer to having everything packed up.  Now, I feel like I'd like to hang some pictures.  Maybe bring out some things that I'd like to show.  Make the place feel more like a home than a warehouse basement.

Friendships.  Both Ethan and mine.  I am a social butterfly by nature.  I do not mind telling the Coborn's cashier her earrings are pretty. And they always seem amazed that I notice their new hair cut and color.  The guys at the meat market no longer ask if we need assistance because the only reason we slow down in that area is to check on "Ethan's lobsters".  It is my nature to notice people and to be with them.  (Isn't there some scripture or something about people are the church or bringing the church to the community?  Something like that?  Yo?) 
The first thing I do when put in a new enviroment is to find a church.  Second, what kind of mom/ladies programs do they have?  When we first moved here and tried a church out they had AWANA's for Ethan because we could NOT take him out of Cubbies.  Bless his little heart but the kid just loves Cubbies and has been to three different Cubbie's programs this past year.  That church had a women's indoor walking shindig so we could walk in the sanctuary and not outside on ice (hello we live in a frozen tundra).  We ended up not staying at said church but I developed GREAT friendships with GOOD WOMEN there.  Plus, I'm the youngest in the group so I get to sit and listen on all of their wisdom and smart stuff. 
Then I met another friend at the park.  And another friend at a GARAGE SALE!  Seriously, she was having a huge garage sale and everything was, like, a quarter or something ridiculous.  But I didn't know what I gender the baby was yet so I held off.  The next week I found out Eleanor's a girl, which is good because that'd be weird if she were a boy.  Wait. Anyway... and I went BACK to that garage sale ladies house, left her a note saying "I'm having my first girl after 2 boys.  If you have another garage sale, call me because I need your girl stuff!" and she called the next day and said "I'm taking it all to the used clothing store so come get what you want".  Now, my daughter has at least something to wear until she's two.  Plus, she has 6 kids ages five and under (yes, there are twins in there) so it's so much fun hanging out with her and her crew.  So I don't wanna make new friends!  My other pre-Texas friends are an hour south!  And to start all over, a THIRD time, is just plain poopy.  Plus, Ethan is at the friend making age and asks about other kids and people and when can we go visit.  Awwww. :-)

Cons-
I am petrified of what our electric bill will be.  It was $200 in March.  For a one bedroom basement apartment.  Dude.  So what's it going to be in January when it's twenty below?  And with a newborn you can't just say "Go put on another sweater!" like I can to the 4 year old.  The temperature needs to be manageable! Liveable!  Any suggestions?

Parking.  We park on the lawn because the upstairs people park in the driveway (1 way street type of driveway).  I'm wondering where we are going to park when there are four foot snow drifts.  Will the owner plow the lawn?  And whatever happened to that concrete slab he said he was going to put in for us?  Hmmm, I'd forgotten about that. 

Space. Uno bedroom thats houses a playpen, toddler mattress, king mattress, future bassinet, drawers, and clothes.  Squiiiiiiiiiiiiish.  Long living room that has (from left to right) kids area, ebay area, Mary Kay area, desk, dining room table, 2 bookshelves. Tiny bathroom that nobody fits in.  Large kitchen, though.  Weird.  Our landlord LOVES us because we do pay rent on time, are quiet, and we are have no criminal record.  Plus, we're the family of almost-five living in his rental houses basement.  He fixed up an unused room  for us to use as storage in the back of the house, which is so nice because our storage place was costing us $70 a month.  We have in storage stuff from Texas, different holiday stuff (and I only have the BARE MINIMUMS, nothing crazy), childhood stuff, scrapbooks, and off season clothes.  It'd be different if it were eighty degrees all year round but there is a 120 (140 if you include windchill) difference here so we have a LOT of clothes in a LOT of different sizes.  I finally gave up on my 'mediums' though, gimme some credit!

Getting ready to hunker down for the winter, new baby, and life in the cave!  I think I'm going to look into getting a Happy Lamp.

"It's good to be one."