Blessings

Jake and I have been in Idaho for just over a week now, and already we're seeing blessings that have been too big to ignore or deem as being mere coincidences. It's really made me pause and be thankful for the fact that God knows who Jake and I are, and that He has a plan for us. 

Going to school in Idaho has been a dream of mine since I was a sophomore in high school, and when Jake and I were talking about getting married everything started to fall into place for us being able to live there together. Our apartment may be small, but it's just right for newlyweds on a very tight budget. We have loving family on both sides that are looking out for us and helping us in any way that they can. 

Every day this week we've received new information about some aspect of our financial situation, and things are constantly improving. Among other things, Jake's hours at work have increased, which of course gives us more income. We haven't even had a chance to pay our tithing yet, but God knows that we are making the right choices and He's blessing us. I'm so thankful for the blessings we keep getting! It's truly incredible.

Our Kitchen!

This week was a long & somewhat lonely one for me for two main reasons: Jake went back to work at his two jobs--delivering items for a furniture store and working several nights a week at a local pizza place, plus I haven't started school yet. This could easily have meant I would be bored out of my mind, wasting my time on the internet (which I did do a little bit of, I'll admit...) or just aimlessly watching TV. However, I've discovered something about myself...I CANNOT function in an unorganized house. For my whole life I've lived somewhere that was maybe not always clean (sorry Mom) but was organized, so it was still easy to find things even amidst chaos. However, now I'm the "mom" of this house (I don't mean a literal mom yet so everyone calm down) and it's up to me to make sure that things stay tidy and organized. If I don't do something, or tell Jake to do something, it doesn't get done. This may sound like a "well duh" thought to have, but it really hadn't occurred to me until one morning when I came out to the kitchen and shockingly...the dishes were still sitting in the sink where I'd put them the night before.

So basically, this week has been spent creating a kitchen that I can function in. With classes starting on Monday my time is going to be a lot more consumed with reading and writing and all that good stuff than it is right now, so I've been scrambling to get things somewhat in order before the madness sets in. As of right now, the one room that I have (for now) finished organizing is our kitchen. 

Thanks to Pinterest (my addiction can actually be useful) I've found some awesome ways to maximize the storage capabilities of our itty bitty kitchen.

Moving In

Jake and I made it to Rexburg! It was a really long drive, especially since we couldn't go faster than 60 mph towing the trailer behind our car, but we made it here! During the drive up Jake had been trying to get ahold of friends in the area that could help unload the heavy stuff when we got to Rexburg, but everyone we knew was either not back in Rexburg yet or had to work. It was starting to look like I would have to help carry in our bed, dresser, and other heavy furniture...which I wasn't exactly thrilled about. But when we got to our apartment and started unloading, a guy walked up to Jake and asked if he needed any help. Boy was I happy! Our new friend Felipe had just moved in with his wife and 6 year old son the night before (they'd driven all the way from New York, and here I was whining about an 18 hour drive--made me feel pretty guilty.) He helped Jake carry in all our furniture, and refused to leave until he'd helped us completely empty the trailer into the apartment. I'm so grateful for the blessing that the people here in Rexburg are--they understand the principle of charity!

One of the things we'd taken with us when we left California was a TV that my uncle Eric didn't want anymore. So we took our ancient little box TV out of our entertainment center, and I told Jake to just load it up in his car and we'd take it back to Deseret Industries where we'd bought it originally. But Jake wondered if Felipe and his family needed a TV, so he went over to ask. Felipe was THRILLED when Jake asked! Apparently they didn't have one yet, and Felipe's car was super small so picking one up at D.I. or anywhere else was out of the question. And with a 6 year old underfoot as they were trying to move in, things were pretty chaotic in their apartment. The TV would be a great way to keep their son occupied enough for them to get things accomplished, so it ended up being a win-win situation for both of us!

We've been here since Friday afternoon, and already we've accomplished a LOT more than Jake and I thought we could ever hope to get done. Jake started back at work this morning and we both start school next week, so this weekend was a really important time for us to get any big move-in projects done. Now this week I get to work on the nitty-gritty organizing, and adding the final touches to really make our apartment a home! Once we're completely moved in, I'll post pictures of what the final product looks like. For now here are some:

Our Honeymoon

Jake and I spent our honeymoon in San Diego, California! We woke up the day after the wedding feeling REALLY sick; both of us were extremely congested and just overall feeling pretty awful. But we made the best of things, and had a lot of fun exploring Old Town, the beach, and of course the LDS San Diego Temple. Here are some pictures from the trip:

Bridal Shower #2

Yesterday I had my second bridal shower hosted by my mom's best friend Katie. We had a lot of fun eating yummy food and played a game called "Who Knows the Bride Best?" My friend Shawna won, with only 9 out of 15 right! Even my own mother doesn't know me well enough...haha!

After opening presents, my mom thought it would be funny to have me wear my paper plate bouquet as a hat...and no one tried to stop her. Of course photos were taken.

I think I'm a pretty good sport. I AM the bride after all, shouldn't I be getting MY way?! :P