Slow Transition

After we moved everything and were back in the house for real, we had our first overnight guests. Charlie, Chelsea, Macy & Andrea drove down from Idaho. It was great for Evan & Ryan to have someone to play with and Charlie & Chelsea were kind enough to take the kids to the park on two separate occasions so that we could unpack some more things.

Grandma drove up from Utah County and gave us a child safety gate that Charlie helped me put together.

Then Charlie and Chelsea gave us a beautiful gift of a patio set. It was a great transition into our new home.

The following Monday my mom flew in. Back in June when we decided that we were going to be moving and last week I would have freedom to do whatever I wanted, I bought tickets for Mom, Natalie and I to attend the indoor performance of The City of Joseph that was going to be performed during Education Week at BYU. I also bought tickets to see Vocal Point. So on Tuesday, we drove down to Utah County. We had a slight detour though. It was RA Training week. The last time I wasn't tied down to work, I don't really know. Before I was hired as a Hall Advisor, I had been working at the front desk of Deseret Towers, a housing area that was working with Education Week. So I've always been busy I feel. I spent so much time planning the week for RA training that I knew what they were doing and when. Mom, Evan, Ryan & I drove to Salt Lake City to say hi as they all walked to lunch. Oliver suggested we make signs. So we did. And it was awesome. We got hugs and I smiled a lot. It was great.

Ryan took Grammy's camera and took some awesome pictures.

 

Ben

 

Lacey

  

Tess

  

Spencer

 

Crystal

Then we took the boys to the Creekhouse while we went to see Vocal Point which was great. We stuck around a little while because we ran into Don Oscarson and his wife. Don is the author of The City Of Joseph. A play that kind of identified my youth and part of my current identity too.

 

Sister and Brother Oscarson, Me, Nat.

 The next night we saw the adapted play which was wonderful. I also crashed another RA Training session for the returning RAs at Spring Haven. It was pretty amazing. Let's be honest, that's the only time I was going to be able to get away with crashing training, so I did. It was great and I'm sad I didn't take a single picture.

         

 Visiting Natalie in her new classroom.

I was going to leave on Thursday morning to head back to our new home, but decided to stay until Friday night when there would be a City of Joseph reunion in honor of Don Oscarson and Jerry Bench(the original director of the outdoor pageant in Nauvoo). It was great. Traumatic for Evan because we stayed too long, but still good. 

 A photo of Maughn McMurdie(the composer who has since passed away), Don & Jerry.

 Luke & his cute family. One of the few people I actually new well during the pageant years ago.

 Dancing the City Of Joseph dance together.

 Some of Jerry's family's old costumes

 Elmer & the Bear!

 Hearing Don recite the last lines of the play and then singing Bend of the River together.

Then we drove home, got Mom to tell me her conversion story(and I wrote it down... I should let her know that), and the next morning got Mom to the airport where she had an interesting security experience before getting on the plane. So our first few weeks of being in our new home involved me not really being in our new home and Oliver being left alone to attend meetings and prep for the beginning of the school year. Only now are we actually getting into a pattern. But I'm grateful for the slow transition I've had from my "old" life to my new. It was a wonderful week with my Moms, sisters, and bits of Residence Life and reminders of things I love.