Switching It Up Again

Well, because our family likes to move much, we've decided to do it again.

We have lived here with my parents for almost three months now and I'm so grateful to them and sad to leave. They have been so generous in letting us figure out our future while living on their turf that I have to say, who could ask for more? Really, we have such a supportive family and we feel very blessed. The girls are going to hate it when reality sets in again and they have to go with me to run errands and I am probably going to complain at the daily chores I'll be bearing on my own again; however, I'm looking forward to being a responsible adult again.

It actually looks as if it was serendipitous that Juan just happened to meander on over to the KSL classified section that one night to take a peek at homes for rent in the area we had our eye on. A home well within our price range was being rented just a block from the school we wanted to get our children into. We took a look at the house and decided that it would do just fine for us until we decided to buy. We'll be moving on the 2nd of February, so our days in Salem are coming to an end. It's quite bittersweet, actually, because while we are excited for another new adventure we've grown to love a lot of things about this small town.

We have told Siena that, once again, she will be switching schools. This is soooooo not fun to do to your child. Period. I absolutely hate that she has had to go through all of these changes so quickly, but she is just so optimistic that I'm reminded that I should be too. We are just making friends in lots of places, right?

On a separate note, the girls have started a few new activities. They are enrolled in a Community Ed Gymnastics class and are still excited about it after three weeks. Score! Siena has also been taking piano lessons for a couple of months. We have seen her really excel in this and I think it was just what she needed. I love Love LOVE teaching her! The next thing we need to do is get Qiana started on some kind of regimen like Siena; hers has worked wonders for her. The first thing Siena does when she gets home from school is review her homework and backpack contents. Then, after lunch, she starts working on her daily checklist: empty clean dishwasher utensils, read out loud for 15 minutes, write in her journal (which I'm ever so glad I'm making her do,) and practice the piano. She is becoming more responsible, literate, understandable, and focused because of those 4 things, respectively. It's amazing what a little more structure can do!

The Ez has just gotten over a month-long battle with virus after virus. We all have, for that matter. Thank heaven! His bottom two teeth budded a lot earlier than the girls so I am still getting used to how to feed a baby solids. He seems to have hit a growth spurt, so the little guy is eating constantly. We will see if he ends up a beanstalk or a lil' squirt when he's older. My bet is the beanstalk.

I want to write something new about Qiana, believe me, I do. However, she is just the same little teasing cutie pie she has always been. Her temper is still volatile at times, but for the most part she has mellowed. Yay! She is still Ez's number one fan and Grandpa's teasing prodigy. She calls me Grandma sometimes (a humorous hazard of living with her actual grandma) but I don't mind because that means they have a good relationship.

Juan is working at Payson Family Dental, Mountain Ridge Dental, and in the Platinum Dental group. Things are definitely looking bright for our future here in Utah, the land where everyone says it is impossible to successfully practice dentistry. To that, we are saying, "Ha! We'll show you." (Fingers are still crossed, though, in case I ever have to retract that statement.). :)

It's going to be a good year for the Chavez Family, mark my words.

Pics: Ez shopping with me at Stokes, Qiana making Ezra and the rest of us laugh until we cried, making Grandma Peg's Ginger Cookies, reading bedtime stories, the hired help peeling shrimp, ...and doing such a lovely job, matching guapos, and the perfect back porch view.