Goodbye Oregon...Hello Ohio! (for the next 5+ years)

After 4.5 days of driving we finally made it to Girard, OH last Monday. During our trip we stayed in Meridian, ID, Rawlins, WY, Lincoln, NE, and Kokomo, IN. We are happy and blessed that no accidents or car troubles occurred during our 4.5 day travel. Here are a few pics of our road trip:

 Wyoming

 Sketch hotel from a scary movie in Rawlins, WY

Nebraska (very flat with corn fields)

Illinois. This could pass for Iowa and Illinois both of which have rolling hills and corn fields.

Indiana (notice the layer of fog?)

Pictures of the duplex:

Front

Back

Front Entry

Some handsome guy that came with the duplex ;-)

Living room

Kitchen (with new self-cleaning oven!)

Second bedroom (upstairs)

Bathroom (upstairs)

Laundry room (next to the kitchen

  Living in Girard has been a roller coaster ride this past week. Let me tell you! For starters we arrived Monday. Based on the company's ETA of 5 business days our trailer was supposed to arrive Wednesday. It finally showed up yesterday. We also had our gas turned on this week. Unfortunately our water heater and furnace were red tagged due to a minor gas leak and lack of ventilation to both sources. After talking with our landlord we got it all worked out and we now have hot water! We love the space of our new duplex/townhome and while it wasn't what we were expecting we're happy here and have started to make it ours.

  On a better note: Tuesday Dan had a job interview with the principal for 1-year substitute contract at a nearby high school. The interview lasted about 10 minutes and then Dan was hired as an English teacher! He has 4 freshman classes, a sophomore class, and an AP class. Since we have no washer and dryer the principal let us do our laundry at the high school which was a great blessing! I picked up my lab coat yesterday, what do you think? (Excuse the greasy forehead, we live in humid times!)

 So far we really enjoy Girard. Everything you need is within a 10 minute drive. We also have a lovely store  that does not exist in Corvallis or Beaverton....... WALMART! This store has just about everything you need and at unbeatable prices! Along with the necessities, we also purchased an early birthday present for me:

 We got the chance to meet our Elder's Quorum President yesterday and were officially welcomed to the ward. We've been told there are several other young couples our age so we are looking forward to meeting them. We've also made great friends with our neighbors. The duplex next to us houses Tina, her two daughters, Andrea and Alicia, and Andrea's baby, Markessa. Last night Tina and Alicia treated us to an amazing Japanese restaurant! Alicia (who is 9 years old) has deemed me her new best friend and thinks Dan is weird.

 On describing Ohio: When telling natives that we've come from Oregon they ask "Why in the world would you move from Oregon to a place like this?" That can give you an idea of what it's like here. It's like viewing things through foggy lenses. Due to the humidity the sky has a low and thick fog. In the 70's this area was brand new and hip and since the 80's a lot of big plants have closed leaving the area run down. I've told natives that Oregon is fresh, crisper, and a lot less diverse.

So, overall, we're still alive and adjusting fairly well in Ohio!