It doesn't really feel like it, since we've been in and out of town for 3/4 of the time we've lived here so far, but we are mostly settled here in Texas. Our apartment is 80% unpacked, but we can't really finish the rest of it until our complex fixes our outdoor storage closet, which has been flooded and rotting and therefore can't have anything in it for a while. (How pleasant, right?) But seriously, we are feeling great about our new place (other than the closet issue) and are really loving Frisco.
Things we love about where we live:
-Location, location, location! We are a seven-minute drive (including stoplights) to Tommy's office, a five-minute drive to the church, and across the street from the community college where I am going to teach! I mean, could this be any more convenient? There are also four grocery stores within a two-minute drive of our apartment, and basically every store and restaurant you can think of is close enough for us to walk to (if it weren't 100 degrees outside).
-We have two pools in our apartment complex that I can use with Dane! It is the perfect set-up for us, for those long hot afternoons while Tommy is still working. I've taken Dane almost every afternoon and plan to keep that up for the rest of the summer. We're using up a lot of swim diapers but it is soooo worth it.
-We are still getting to know all of the things to do in the area, but there are apparently some nice museums and lots and LOTS of nice parks. The library here is pretty big and has story times several times a week (although it's super regimented and you have to get tickets beforehand because they get so crowded--very different from the chill ones in Durham). The cool days we've had so far, Dane and I have just spent hours at the park and we are just spending lots of time exploring all the new places and things to do. We are right next to this water park/gym/athletic center too and although we haven't gone, I think it might be fun to try it out a few times to see if we want to get a pass.
-There are tons of very friendly, nice people here! We are lucky to have some family in the area (my aunt and uncle, and several of Tommy's cousins) and we have already spent some time with them. Our ward is really big and they have lots of new people moving in all the time, so they know what to do with us and have been really friendly. We are still getting to know people but so far so good.
All in all, we are really happy here so far! Of course, we've only actually been in our apartment for a few days total (after you take out all the traveling we've been doing so far) but I am so excited to be OFFICIALLY back and settled and into a normal-life routine here and to make some new friends. Our life is about to go from 60 mph to 0 and we're going to have to remember how to fill it up like we used to in North Carolina.
Here are a few things we've done in Texas so far, over the last few weeks:
On the fourth of July, we had a totally full day. We went to our ward's 4th of July breakfast in the morning, and met a bunch of people in our ward. Then, Tommy's cousin Loralee and her husband Taylor and their kids invited us to go to a little parade in the neighboring town with them. And by little, we do mean "little." It only lasted about 10 minutes, but it was perfect for Dane and the kids--there were fire trucks and police cars and people throwing candy at us. What more could you ask for? Afterwards, Taylor's parents (who live nearby) invited us over for some BBQing and swimming at their house, so we totally crashed their family party and spent about 7 hours with the Warners, eating and swimming and playing Killer Bunnies. It was really fun and we had a great time with them all day. Of course, I only got pictures at the parade, but we had fun the whole time we were there.
So excited to see the fire trucks in the parade! Ahhhhh!
Dane eating a sucker someone had thrown to him and waving an American flag. So patriotic! (P.S. His outfit says "Future President" on it and is from the FDR Library. We've never been there--it was from the Durham Rescue Mission thrift store! But I got it because I thought it would be a perfect 4th of July outfit and it definitely was.)
We got Dane this train set from IKEA and he is IN HEAVEN. He LOVES LOVES LOVES trains and trucks and talks about them all day long, and he is really into playing with these trains. I was so sad that most train sets I'd looked up online were $70+ until I found this one for $10. THANK YOU IKEA I LOVE YOU.
We wanted to do something fun together the other night so we went over to the mall to let Dane play on the mall playground. The mall also has this little train for the kids and a carousel, but we didn't bother to pay for those or show them to him. He had a blast just running around here.
Tommy started his new job! Here he is coming out from his FIRST DAY of work. Look how fancy and serious he is in his shirt and tie! He has since worked for two weeks and basically endured a lot of orientations and trainings. Not much to report so far--he likes it and is excited to get started for real.
Last Saturday, before we both left town again, we decided we should go out together for a family date (therefore removing the need for a babysitter) to the Heard Museum, a nature preserve/outdoorsy museum in nearby McKinney. They have a few animals, a butterfly house, and a lot of trails that you can walk around and explore on. Dane had a great time running around and seeing the animals. We saw this dead or dying butterfly on the ground in the butterfly house and he talked about the "sad butterfly" for the next week.
Dane ran up to this cage with the deer and yelled, "HIII DEER! HI DEER!" as if expecting a response.
Butterfly house.
The museum boundaries have some wetlands and marsh-like area (let's be honest, I didn't really read the descriptions or anything) so it was cool to walk around and see it. We both said it reminded us of the swamp in Charleston that we went to visit.
They also had some little play cabins for the kids to explore and play around in. Dane kept finding the kitchen pots and pans and making soup for us. "Hot! Soup! Hot! Soup!"
He was really happy to sit on this BIG TURTLE for us.
This next month or two is really about us trying to get to know this area and find more fun outings like this for us. Can't wait!
1 comment:
By the way, don't feel bad spending $50-100 on a good train set for his "birthday" or "Christmas" someday. I would spend that much every year. Have a good train set is worth $5 a day. It depends if he likes the cranes and stuff, but Wayne STILL plays with his set. I've learned that there's a max of train tracks that get used though, and all the extras always get left in the way. I love trains for my boys!
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