The Bedinghaus' in Bloomington

I'm back, finally. (Side note: I have a new appreciation for people who have slow internet or no internet where they live. It probably helps with things like not wasting time on Facebook, but really, it must stink sometimes not having Internet. We finally got ours installed yesterday and now I can update you on our brand new life in Bloomington!)

Last Friday, August 14th, Bob, Lori, & Lauren Bedinghaus came to our house and helped us load up the Budget truck. We were so thankful for their help because we had so much stuff! I was embarrassed about how much stuff we had really.

At this point there is still room in the van for the family

Stuff in our old house still waiting to be packed. At this point I was starting to panic that we weren't going to get it all in. But we did. Whew.

This is how you eat breakfast when your kitchen table is packed...

It was a good reminder that we don't really need all this earthly stuff, but sometimes, you just don't know when you're going to need to use something! So Saturday we packed up more stuff -- the Budget truck was full, then we had my car, Rob's car, Lauren's truck, and Lori's van with more stuff....yea....it was quite the caravan that traveled to Bloomington.

We all made it in one piece and started unpacking. The Bedinghaus' stayed with us until Saturday evening which was great because they were so helpful in carrying all our stuff into our apartment....it was a lot of stuff.

Too bad we didn't have magic to move because this is in our new apartment, but it looks just like all the stuff in our other house

Sunday Rob and I spent the whole day unpacking because I do not like boxes sitting around. By Sunday evening we had almost everything unpacked and put away which really was quite a feat. Yea! No more boxes! It actually started to look like a home.

When we got married we didn't register for dinnerware because obviously with Royce Yoder Potter for a dad we didn't need to. For the past year we've been waiting for our dinnerware and using dishes that came with our rental house. Here, Rob is eating oatmeal out of a saucepan because we're still waiting for our dinnerware....which apparently is coming this week...thanks dad :)

Monday, my mom flew in from Pennsylvania and stayed with us until Thursday. It is honestly an understatement to say that my mom is a creative decorator. She helped us so much, especially in my kitchen where I have way less cabinet space than in our last house. We had a fun few days shopping for stuff for the house (she bought the "fun stuff" like new throw rugs and pillows and I was in charge of buying the "boring stuff" like a toilet plunger.) It was so good to have her here and I think she was able to relax too. Unfortunately I don't have any photos of her being here which is a bummer.

Then, Thursday night we were on our own for real. It was kinda overwhelming, but after a few tears, I was ok and we moved on to Friday & the weekend. We've made some new friends and have already had some people over to indoctrinate them with Settlers. :)

Our office

Our bedroom. Definitely bigger than our last one

This is a view from our front door into the living room and kitchen. You can also see our little patio out to the left.

Our apartment is under the stairs

And now, this all is starting to feel like real life. We've been preparing for this move and life in Bloomington for a while now and I'm glad to finally be here. Rob starts his week of orientation on Monday and then class the next Monday. I decided that starting tomorrow I will stop watching TV (at least cut back -- we have cable here, but they haven't put in our basic channel filter yet so I am learning how addicting Food Network is...) and start actively looking for a job. I am excited for this process and to see what the Lord has for us now.

So...anytime you find your way to Bloomington, Indiana, don't be afraid to stop in and see us. We'll blow up the air mattress for you and take you to a favorite restaurant we haven't discovered as of today. But we will find it by the time you come...!