Monday, September 12, 2011

a house, a cat, a job, and a church.

I figured it was time for a little life update on how things are going here in Tampa.  We're pretty settled in and are loving our little house.  It definitely took us a little while to get everything we needed, (since a desk, 2 chairs, a twin sized bed, and a night stand were literally the only pieces of furniture we owned when we got married) but we've pretty much got everything we need now and are loving sharing this home together.  We love our neighborhood too; it's full of cute little unique houses that reminds us a little of New Orleans.  We're also loving our next door neighbors.  They're just a few years older than us and have two adorable little boys, ages 3 and 6.  We went to the beach with them on Labor Day and I'm pretty sure Cori is hoping we'll have boys someday (not for a while though, folks!) because he loved playing with them- they were way more fun than his 'I just want to lay out!' wife. :)

We also got a cat!  It was completely unexpected; while we'd talked about getting a kitten sometime down the road, we certainly weren't thinking that it'd be after just a month of living here and 2 months of marriage.  But apparently God had different plans. ;)  Our across-the-street neighbors knocked on our door last weeked, saying they had to get rid of their cat, and did we want it?  Before I knew it, Cori was saying yes, and this adorable black, white, and orange calico cat was being brought across the street.  I have to say, she is the sweetest cat ever!  She came with the name Tabitha, but after some thinking, we changed it to Willow, after the street I lived on for 3 years in New Orleans.  She's 2 or 3 years old, so while she's definitely not a kitten anymore, she's still got a lot of playfulness in her.  She LOVES to be held, a quality I've never experienced in a cat before, and she's a good cuddler- when she wants to be. ;)  Our next door neighbors came over for dinner on Saturday, and we were so impressed by how well Willow did with the kids.  For 45 minutes, these little boys played with her... and being that they're 3 and 6, by played, I mean, chased around the house.  The 3 year old was so proud that he could pick her up- he walked around the house carrying her, and each time he'd say, "I'm strong!"  It was adorable.  And while Willow was more than happy to have some alone time when the boys got busy with dinner and the playing the Wii, she didn't once hiss or bite or scratch or snap at them.  Good news, since she should be around when we have kids of our own someday.

Cori is enjoying his job and has been getting familiar with the infectious diseases of Tampa by looking at DNA and blood cultures from chicken and geese around the city.  At least, that's my perception of what he's doing... my non-science oriented brain tends to dumb down his explanations a bit...

And- drumroll please!- I have a job!  I'll be the lead teacher in a 3 year olds classroom at a daycare here in Tampa, and will start later this week or the beginning of next, depending on when my background check clears.  I'm excited to get back to work and am looking forward to being with even littler ones than before.  Although I gotta say, after 3.5 months of not working, it's going to be hard to get back into the routine!

We've also been so blessed by our church here.  When I was in college, I went to a church called aletheia, and was reminded before we moved by a good friend that aletheia planted a church here in Tampa.  We went our first Sunday here- literally about 8 hours after our 3am arrival- and have been hooked.  It's been wonderful to reconnect with some JMU friends that are part of the church plant here, and also to slowly but surely make some new friends.  We've really loved the way they make it clear that this life is about Jesus and the salvation He brought us, and have been reminded by how much we need Him.

Phew, that's all for now!  It's time for this girl to do a little Bible reading and then look at her to-do list and make sure life is in order before work starts up... and maybe take a shower, too. ;)

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