General Update

So, I already updated on my kids - well here is a general update.

So about a year ago (when Sammy was born), we realized that 820 square feet just isn't big enough for FIVE PEOPLE to comfortably live in. Yep. We were living in a two bedroom, two bathroom, 820-square foot middle floor apartment. We had cranky, mean neighbors downstairs, a cranky, mean home owners lady, and were living in a ward with a total of eight kids in the primary. Granted the apartment itself was pretty nice, and the grounds of the complex were nice (minus all the stupid, stupid geese and their stupid, stupid poop all over the sidewalk and grass). There was also a pool and hot tub, which was fantastic. But, a combination of itty bitty living space, mean neighbors, mean home owners lady, a kind of crappy family ward, and the lack of non-pooped covered outside play areas...led us to believe "Hey! We need our own place!" Oh, and the fact that my baby brother was going to move into the unit when he started school in the fall.

Sooooo, Tom and I started the house hunting. Surprisingly, it only took about a month before we really found the perfect house for us! We actually put in an offer on a different house first...then when I saw our house pop up online, we walked through it the next day, put an offer on it, got in a little bit of a bidding war (which was really annoying) and finally signed the papers! We got everything in order with our mortgage guy, and moved in less than a month later! Yep. Super crazy fast. But awesome :) I love our home. Tom has a little buyers remorse because it is more than we originally wanted to spend on a house, but I am thrilled. I love our house. I love our ward. I love our neighborhood. I love everything about it. It has four small bedrooms, a master bedroom with master bath, and then a common bathroom upstairs. The basement has an unfinished bathroom as well. There is a living room that fits the piano, a big open kitchen, and a big family room. The backyard is HUGE and has big rocks and trees. There is even a fenced in raised garden area and a peach tree and a plum tree! I love it. We are at the end of a culdesac, too, so no fast traffic! Our neighbors are super great and everyone is so nice and friendly. AND the house is yellow :) I LOVE IT! It isn't huge, but is just right for our little family. Both Ella and Tommy have friends within walking distance, too!

The next update has to do with Tom. As you may recall, Tom works for Real Salt Lake. He started as an unpaid intern...was hired in the ticket box office doing season ticket renewals...was promoted into sponsorship coordinating...and was promoted again (with a SUBSTANTIAL raise) to a ticket box office manager. All within a year and a half. Pretty impressive. The owner of Real Salt Lake, Del Loy Hansen, even knows him by name and is constantly reassuring him that he "likes to take care of his best employees"...yep. Pretty sweet :) Tom is doing fantastic at his job and he really enjoys it. Hopefully after a couple years of experience he can transfer to an even better job in a larger sports market...ya know...somewhere like LA?? Or Anaheim?? Or San Diego? I'm not picky :) Either way, though, it is super cool.

As for me, I'm still doing what I do. Working at Summerhays Music...selling bowed instruments. I really like my job, but am starting to itch for something more. I don't know what...but I want to do something bigger and better and make more MONEY! :) We are gearing up for our Fiddle Fair month, which is my biggest month of the year. I have been going around to Jr. High's and High Schools doing "step up clinics", which is pretty much where I take a bunch of way nice instruments...show them to the kids and say, "wow! See how much better these instruments sound than yours??? That's cuz you're playing on a crappy instrument and you really should come buy these ones!" And hopefully they do...so I can make lots of money :) Yay for commission. hehehe :) It's really win/win/win though. Win = I make lots of money Win = they get a better sounding instrument Win = my boss is happy 'cause I make him money too. Yep. Win/win/win. The only "lose" part, though, is the fact that for the next four weeks, I'll be working six days...and probably get a bajillion hours of overtime. Boo. Good for the paycheck, but bad for everything else! That's a lot of working. Blah.

Anyway, Tom and I really like our new ward. Everyone is super friendly and nice. I teach the five turning six year olds in Primary and they are SO CUTE! :) They say the funniest things in class. Tom is the second counselor in the Sunday School Presidency...so pretty much he doesn't have to do anything, which is kind of convenient because Sammy is a royal pain the A-S-S during church. Hoooooly cow. He wiggles and cries and runs around and is just HARD. Six more months, though, until he can go to nursery! HOORAY!!!!! :D Too bad they don't have nursery during sacrament...someone didn't think that all the way through...

Well, that's about it for now. I'll try to update again if anything exciting happens in our lives :) Bye!