Boxes and Boxing Matches

We learned quickly that Hunter's dog does not like boxes. Every time we picked one up during the move, she would jump and run away. I have to admit, I am feeling a little bit like that dog right now. I start twitching every time I see a remnant of packing tape or boxes. Thankfully, most major moving disasters were averted.

Anyhow, we are now in Texas. We have been Texans for a week now! It is still so surreal, and weird that we no longer live in Arizona, and everything we own is living in a tiny storage unit, and we are living with my brother-in-law. Sometimes, I wonder if this could turn into a weird sitcom.

We are settling in quite nicely. We have tried some of the local flavors....crawfish...spicy but surprisingly good....kolaches....odd, but also quite good. Natalie and I searched out a european bakery and Ikea in our down time from unpacking this week as well.

The most interesting adventure though, came last night...Denver and I were in need of a date, and so we bought a Groupon for what looked like a nice restaurant and followed the GPS directions. We ended up in a hospital parking lot. Then, the boxing match ensued. Denver insisted that I look up directions again, and I insisted that I had looked up directions, and here we were! So, he turns and looks at me, "Well, Erin, We are in a hospital parking lot, unless the restaurant is in the cancer center, we are in the wrong spot." Fine then, I looked them up and sure enough, here we were. It was in fact, behind the cancer center :-) Lesson learned. And the worst part of it all was when we got inside, I got dirty looks for being underdressed. What a night!

Thanks for all your prayers and well wishes! We made it!

Pack and Move

It's an odd experience watching other people pack your things. On one hand, I am so grateful that they are doin this work and not me. Their hands move quicker than a wind up toy bustling around our apartment. On the other hand, my need for control kicks in and I want to know exactly what is in each and every box. O well... I guess this is God teaching me patience and to let go of control. :) Houston, here we come!

J'Aime Paris

10 things I have learned about myself and about Paris…

1. If you look closely, or actually just look around at all. You will realize it is  a very dirty city.
2. Parisians make the best crepes. Period. You can’t beat it. I had one everyday.
3. I am not made to ride a metro system. All the running and scurrying and pushing makes me a nervous wreck.
4. People are apparently supposed to be far too close for comfort on the subway, and it is expected. Sometimes you even get lucky enough to have a couple making out right in your personal bubble, and you can’t move. That’s fun. But what makes it even more fun is when an old man starts hissing and stabbing at them with his umbrella.
5. Notre Dame, The Eiffel Tower, and the Arc de Triomphe are incredible masterpieces.
6. Be ready to walk everywhere, and then walk some more. My leg muscles cramped in places I didn’t know I had muscles.
7. They tell you to beware of pickpockets, but if you are hyper-paranoid like me, you think every person with a foreign accent will try to steal your wallet if you give them a window of opportunity.
8. I love sidewalk cafes! The elegance and beauty of sitting outside in the cool, beautiful weather was stupendous.
9. The French military is not the most polished. We spent 20 minutes at the most painful changing of the guard ceremony ever. No one knew what to do or when to do it, and the policeman standing next to us was laughing at his comrades the whole time.
10. It is a very romantically beautiful city at night. I could have stared at the eiffel tower all lit up like lace in the sky for hours. 

Now we are London bound….

Cheers!