I wanted to get another pair of thermals (it’s kind of cold around here) and I needed some snow boots so I wouldn’t ruin my suede leather bear paws. I wandered around the mall (it’s not too big so I hit most of the stores). I found some thermals and some snow boots but put off buying them until I looked some more. I did find a new jacket in Sears that I purchased. The Snowman jacket I bought before I left California is a little too warm so I found another that isn’t quite as heavy. I also sucked it up and got my hair cut. Not the best cut I’ve ever had but I think I’ll be able to handle it. I probably won’t go back there next time, however. I did go back and buy the thermals and snow boots. I think they’re kind of cute…purple snow boots. J

From there I headed across the street to Fashion Bug and Target. I had heard of Fashion Bug but never been in one so I checked it out. I think I might enjoy it and will definitely go back. But, today there were a lot of people so I headed over to Target. Plus, it was getting dark and I want to be home when it’s dark because that’s when the roads get more slippery. I did get a couple things at Target that I needed (including a new movie) and headed back to the house.

My new tires are awesome. I’m so glad I got them. I might go with All-season tires after these wear out but for now I’m definitely glad I have them. I did feel the car slip a little when I was pulling out of the parking lot but it wasn’t nearly as bad as when it slipped last time. The shopping center was a tad busy with cars so I drove around the block instead of trying to cross the two lanes of traffic…I think it ended up being faster.

It was so exciting, though. On the way home just as I was getting to our house my headlights sparkled off of something and I was shocked to realize it was a deer (I didn’t get a good enough look to determine if it was a young buck instead so we’ll stick with a deer). It was jumping over my neighbors fence when I saw it (they must like her yard LOL) but it was so exciting!

I got home and ate some dinner then watched my new movie. I also did my second attempt at starting a fire. But, this one was a SUCCESS! The real test, of course will be seeing if I can do it tomorrow also, but either way. I DID IT!!! It’s nice and cozy warm in here. And NOT from the heater! J

Well, my plans are to go to church tomorrow. I still need to figure out what time the service is and exactly where the church is located. I did some laundry tonight so I have something clean to wear tomorrow. I probably should figure that stuff out and get this posted but, to be honest, I so stinking proud of my warm fire that I don’t want to go downstairs. LOL

So, six days in Idaho. I still haven’t made a snowman. I haven’t even attempted a snow angel. But, I haven’t fallen on my behind and I have decided that snow really isn’t a bad thing. It sure is pretty. The only downfall is that I’ve been spoiled…I don’t mind the changes the only thing that’s a little irritating is having to put on shoes and a jacket to walk out to the mailbox. The rest I can handle.

I do have some pictures to post…but that will probably happen tomorrow or Monday. I’ll let you know when they are up. Nothing too exciting so far, but they are some photographs.

Also, I really don’t want to bombard you with all my updates and ramblings. I do plan on keeping this running journal of my life in Idaho (and other things I decide to ramble about) so, if you want to keep reading future postings just check back here for what’s happening. On the right you’ll notice a link to subscribe to the site…if you are interested I’d encourage you to do that…it’ll send you an e-mail letting you know when I’ve posted anything new. It’s free; I use it and have come to like it for getting updates on the blogs I enjoy reading. This is the only update I’ll personally e-mail out.

Till later…I’ll be sitting by my warm fire enjoying my time in Idaho.

So, I got up early to say goodbye to Brian, Faye and Ally. They left the house a little before 7AM. I got up for real a while later and got ready to face the day. I checked the messages on the machine and the guy from the tire store had called. I was grabbing the phone to get his number to call him back when the phone rang and it was him calling me a second time. I asked if it would be possible for someone to drive me back to the house while they put on my new tires. He assured me it wouldn’t be a problem. So, I headed out to the car.

And, oh my goodness that was a sight. See, I hadn’t driven or really even looked at my car since we’d arrived. And, YUCK, it was DIRTY. L Not that my car is usually spotlessly clean, but this was DISGUSTING. I could barely see out the windows it was so dirty. But, I did the best I could (because the washer fluid was empty) and drove down the street to the tire place. Joe was really nice and drove me back to the house. He said it would take about an hour but I had to work so I told him if it took longer it was OK.

I got back to the house and started working. The day went very well – my first day working virtually. I was very pleased with how productive I was. In fact, I glanced at the clock and five hours had gone by. Then I thought, hmm, my car should be ready soon. And, sure enough, the phone rang and it was Joe that my car was ready. I was just printing checks so I asked if it would be possible for him to leave the shop in about ten minutes – he said no problem. So, I finished printing, put everything in an envelope and off I went. Just as I opened the garage door to wait he pulled up with my car and my new tires. We headed back to the shop and I was on my way. I did ask for a recommendation on a good place to get a car wash, because that thing was embarrassing (besides the fact that I was having serious problems seeing out the windows).

I left the shop with my new winter studded tires and drove down the block to the car wash. Now, let me just tell you that is one job I DON’T want to have. Talk about a yucky job! Working a car wash in winter can’t be fun. But, I did get a nice clean car, and I have to say, it was one of the nicest car washes I’ve been to. From there I headed off to the post office to mail my first work package then back to Fred Meyer for some food and other necessities.

I got back to the house and had my first attempt at building a fire in the wood stove. My first attempt and I failed miserably. Thank goodness the house has heat or I would have frozen. A quiet day but I did accomplish a lot. I got my winter studded snow tires, I found a nice place to service my car, I got some work done, I purchased some needed items for my bathroom and I got a good book. So, I went to bed a little early and read.

You know what. I’m still loving Idaho.

We woke kind of early ready to unload the trailer. Brian decided to clear more of the driveway and Faye & I decided to go get some food. We took the Expedition (I had to drive because Faye didn’t really want to) and we drove to U-haul to return that silly dolly. It wasn’t too bad of a drive; we returned the trailer then decided to head to Burger King for breakfast. We went through the drive-thru, and THAT was a mistake. The car slid a little…FREAKED me out. All that and they weren’t even serving breakfast any more. L So, we didn’t get to eat. We headed to the grocery store to get some food for the rest of the week.

When we got back to the house our friend Joey & Shelli from California (who moved up here last spring) were here to help us unload the trailer. Brian finished clearing the driveways then we started unloading. Now, you need to understand something. The majority of the stuff in that trailer was mine. Most of the rest was office stuff. Both my bedroom and my office are in the basement. So, that meant EVERYTHING we unloaded had to go down stairs. OMG, I’ve never walked up and down a set of stairs so many times. It was, fun.

We took a break while we were unloading to catch our breaths and have some water. While were were taking our break we noticed a buck out front. Now, three days ago I would have said it was a deer, but I’m learning, it was a buck. It was also very exciting. There was a buck in our front yard. OK, actually it wasn’t OUR front yard but it was our neighbor’s yard. Either way, it was pretty cool.

So, we finished unloading the trailer and sat around the house. We made dinner and enjoyed our time with Joey & Shelli. Shelli, Faye, & I ran to Target for a short bit on the way back we noticed some fire trucks. Nothing big, we figured something had happened down the street. We got home and Brian had to go outside to get something. All of a sudden he came running (literally running) back into the house yelling “Santa’s outside” he grabbed Ally and went running back outside. In our bewildered state of confusion we all went to the front windows and sure enough SANTA was driving down the street. We grabbed cameras, camera phones, and video recorders and ran out front just in time to see the fire truck, and fire personnel, and SANTA going down the street. The pictures turned out pretty crappy but we saw Santa!

Welcome to Idaho, where Santa really does come to visit.