Rochester, Minnesota December 31, 2013-January 4th, 2014

 

We drove into Rochester Minnesota on December 30, 2013.  It was strange to be back and yet feel instantly at home. The city has a few new things, like a Costco, steakhouse, and Cherry Berry, to name a few.  Tyler didn't remember anything of our home.  Britton said he did, but had to ask which room was his and was surprised to see the laundry room. "Hey, that's cool. There's a washer and dryer in here. This is a nice home."

 

The following morning, I ran to Walmart.  I documented it because it was the first time in 5 months that I had driven a car.   I honestly didn't notice or miss driving when I was in NYC.  But it's nice to be back in control and it makes going places with all the kids so much easier than by taxi or metro.

 I was excited for Camden to get some baby toys and gear from Rochester.  Here he is in the Bumbo.

 The boys, not having their regular toys (still being transported) took to the old ones.  It's so cute to see them working together on some kind of project and 'earning' pieces from each other.

 Cam Cam's neck is pretty strong! Good timing to get the Bumbo for him. And....Camden rolled over from tummy to back! And he suddenly found his voice! It was as if Minnesota was so much quieter that he needed to start making some noise :-)

 Below, I was trying to capture Camden's eyes.  They're basically brown near the middle with dark blue around the edges.  Except for when you look at him, the eye on the left has more blue on the outer side. I haven't seen this eye color before and I hope it sticks!

 Mom and Dad drove down to meet us and help out.  They came on the 31st and then took the boys back with them on Jan 2nd.

On Friday, Landon had his first real day at work.  He is really happy there.  He has been successful with adjusting prices to be much more affordable for patients.  And staff is very happy to see him back.  Not only to see him, but to pass back the patients they have been covering in his absence.  Landon told me that Dr. Mynderse even hugged him he was so happy! :-)  Dr. Leibovich, the Urology Chair, gave us the present below.  It's a nice silver frame engraved with "Camden Hinckley - September 16, 2013".  That was very thoughtful of him.

 On Friday night, I went to City Looks (at Apache Mall) to get my hair cut.  Sadly, the girl I usually see is no longer there.  I wasn't in love with the new person, so the new hunt begins. I took a pic because I realize that I never have documented things around Rochester.  I thought it might be fun to take a few pictures of 'normal' things around the city.

 

Because our things haven't arrived, we can only do so much at home.  It was nice to have a few days to sort what had already been delivered in August and decide on room arrangements. We are going to keep the boys together to allow one room to be a workout room and the other room to stay an office. The downstairs family room will be a playroom with the trampoline. Surprisingly, Britton doesn't hit his head on the ceiling yet, even though he can reach it with his hands.

So, during Camden feedings, I have been working on preschool/ kindergarten lesson plans.  I have been considering buying fish and stopped by PetSmart.  After considering, though, I decided I need to wait on fish - or even the cute cats I saw - until I get my home in order.  I just don't want to add more until I can handle what I have.

During the night and day time feedings, I have been reading THE SAVIOR IN KIRTLAND. Below, they are describing Sidney Rigdon.  It's a big testimony builder to learn details about church history.  People were so severely persecuted.  It was like bad people were coming out of nowhere to make Joseph Smith and his family's lives miserable.  The fact that they didn't retract their testimonies (which would have made their lives so much easier) and yet suffered (being laughed at, mocked, beat up, and having to move from place to place for fear of losing their lives, etc.) is a confirmation to me of its truthfulness.

We are deciding how to decorate the house.  I prefer real to artificial plants, so here I am deciding on what will go where.  I feel like crazy plant lady, if there is such a thing.  Don't worry, it's not staying like this!