new coordinates

* first batch of bread in the new house - helped things feel homier

* still waiting for hinges so we can hang our cabinet doors

* countertops are dark gray; phone camera warps them to look blue

Tonight my sister told me she was sick of checking the blog and having "popping in" pop up every dang time.  I'm sick of it, too.

Goodness, it's been a happy, full, emotional few weeks.

Our new house is finally starting to feel like home.  It was a strange amalgam of feelings I had during the move/first few weeks here.  I would mostly describe it as homesick.  I felt so homesick.  I lay in my unfamiliar bedroom listening to the strange sounds of our new life (and fridge) and ached for our little house on Mallard.  And I felt guilt for not being giddy and excited.  I mean, I was happy and I felt lucky...but everything felt strange and foreign and big and far away.
But then I would wake up and watch the sun rise over the mountains from my kitchen window as I made lunches, and I would tell Nate in a gentle voice, "yea, this is going to be ok.  This is going to feel like home."
I've been reading this great book about introverts (Quiet: the power of introverts in a world that can't stop talking) - I've learned so much about myself.  I knew I would feel this change deeply, that it would take my heart some time to reprogram itself (when I talk about this, I imagine pixelated green lasers funneling down around my heart making clicky, beepy tech sounds - like the home coordinates had to be dialed in anew and the algorithm was complicated).

But anyway.  We're here.  And we're settling.  And loving our little piece of the countryside evermore.          

This afternoon Henry and I mowed the lawn.  We bought a second mower so two of us could mow together.  It took us an hour and as we were pushing our mowers around the yard together, I was thinking how much I love to work (outside especially) and how thrilling it is to teach my kids how to be good workers.  This is one of my greatest hopes for them -- that they'll be willing workers.  Our family home evening lesson tonight was about blessings & responsibilities and the correlation between the two.  We talked about what a big blessing it is to live in this home and have a big yard to play in.  And then we talked about all the responsibilities that come along with it.  We made a long list of all the jobs that need to be done to keep our house & yard functioning and clean and then we each agreed to be responsible for certain ones.  We'll see how well it plays out, but dinner clean-up was sure quick & cooperative tonight :)

Unrelated, but cute: Lil's hair is getting pretty long.  Today she asked for braids.  They were adorable.  I wanted to call her Brigitta :)

More soon...