The First Week (almost)

Hello! I think this might be a first that we are writing two days in a row. I don't know if you should get used to this but we will try our best haha. This is Mike, if you could not tell and, much like my past blogs, I am writing to you from Panera. This must be my place for inspiration. Anyways, California has been a blast so far and both Mandy and I have had a great first week visiting some beaches and driving through Hollywood and Beverly Hills. I'll post a few of those pictures later, but I probably should mention why I have had so much time to sightsee. It has been a crazy week with the job. (This will be my attempt at making a long story short) So apparently the lady who interviewed me and offered me the job on Thursday forgot to mention she hired me to whatever person is in charge of her and when my agency contacted that person that person had no idea that I was hired and so the confusion started and has been going on for a few days now and leaving me all this wonderful time to sightsee *no punctuation and sarcasm intended* Well in any case, I hope that this will get cleared up and I can start working soon. If it has not been cleared up, there will probably be another blog with a much different tone next week. Alright back to more fun topics and conversations....

Santa Monica Beach and Pier with hills in background

So we are closing in on almost a week of being here in California and we have already been to Huntington Beach, Santa Monica Beach (Baywatch!), Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and downtown Los Angeles. All these areas were great, and I am sure as we find more free days we will have to dedicate more time to all of these places. When we are not visiting the standard tourist traps, we find ourselves hanging out at the extended stay where I am amazed that Mandy has been able to handle living in such close quarters with me. I am pretty sure this is a testament of her love for me :) With having quite a bit of time to kill at the apartment, we have slowly turned our very small studio room into a very functional living area not to mention we are becoming quite skilled in microwavable dinners. I almost feel like I am in college again except Mandy keeps everything much cleaner. Joking aside, the whole experience so far has been great for the both of us, and while I am sure we will eventually get a place with  a little more space, I have enjoyed the close proximity and time I have been able to spend with my significant other (except now as she is looking over my shoulder and correcting my typing and grammar). Well I am probably going to wrap up here since Panera is closing shop, but thanks again for keeping tabs on us and one of us will talk to you soon I am sure. Take care everyone! -Mike

Enjoy some of this weeks pictures below!

You can never be too prepared!

BEVERY HILLS

I heard about this street on a movie so I took a picture

Mandy at Huntington Beach

Santa Monica Bay off the Pier

Our hotel toilet. Notice the name and
insert the humor.

Road Trip

Huntington Beach, CA

So here we are in sunny California!  We have some catching up to do since our last post was 2 months ago.  First off, our first two months of marriage have been great and we have adjusted quickly to living with each other.  It didn't take long for us to settle into the routine of being married and adjust to each other's little quirks (such as Mike's ability to leave a trail behind him everywhere he goes and my need to schedule everything down to the last second.)  We really love being married and couldn't imagine a better fit for either of us :)  

On the job front, I found a job in early December for an early intervention position in Los Angeles. I will be working with children from birth to age 3 and their families in an in-home setting most of the time with a possibility of working in a clinic some days as well.  I am looking forward to the new setting and clients but admittedly, I'm a little nervous, too.  

Mike also found a job on our drive out to California.  He got a short term contract in a telemetry unit at a  Kaiser facility/ hospital in Riverside.  He starts this week as well.

Mike finished up his contract in Indy on Wednesday, December 28th, and I finished my First Steps clients that day, too.  We continued showing our house which was for rent up until that day and luckily got a renter to sign a year lease before January 1st!  After a long Thursday filled with packing up and moving the rest of the house (thanks to our families for all of their help!!) we left that Friday (Dec. 30th) for our road trip to Cali. 

St. Louis Arch: Mike's first time
seeing this!

At a strange rest stop in Kansas.
This was about all there was
to see in Kansas.

We made a few stops along the way starting in Tulsa, OK to visit my brother, Aaron, and his wonderful wife, Susanna.  We had such a great, relaxing time ringing in the new year with them and a few of their friends.  They are in the middle of renovating their master bedroom and were so kind to give us the guest room which they had been using and sleep on an air mattress instead.  Susanna made the room feel like a cozy bed and breakfast with candles lit and some yummy chocolates wrapped up for us.  On New Year's Eve we went out for sushi which surprisingly was very good (at least the un-fishy kind I had that was fried with sauce on it ;)).  We made some yummy and let's say...imaginative drinks afterwards back at the house with their friends Todd and Tiffany while playing a few games and watching the ball drop.  It was a great way to start off the new year!

Our next stop was Denver, CO to visit my sister, Dori, and her husband, John.  We stayed in Denver for just over a day and had a nice time catching up with them.  We had a fun Redbox movie marathon on Tuesday night and Dori kept us well fed the entire stay. :) And as a special surprise, Dori took me to the bookstore and bought Mike and I two great travel books on California and Los Angeles.  I have the BEST family EVAH!!

 

  

This is Mr. Sock Monkey; he is our
traveling companion
who was a gift to us from
Mike's family.  He likes
to have his picture taken
wherever we go

Ski lift in Breckenridge, CO

Driving through the mountains on interstate 70

On Wednesday (January 4th) we headed to St. George, Utah.  We were fortunate to have my brother-in-law's parents (John's parents) offer their house to us here.  They were out of town but gave us the place to stay for a few days.  The drive to St. George was GoRgEoUs!!  We took some pretty pictures on that drive (when I say "we" I mean Mike).  He also found an awesome app on his phone that lets him do really great photo editing so the pictures turned out even better!  Our stay in St. George was very laid back.  We tried out a fancy restaurant there called "Orchids", I got my hair trimmed, we watched a few movies, and explored Snow Canyon (also incredibly gorgeous!).  We left St. George on Friday morning for our final destination...

Snow Canyon in St. George, UT

CALIFORNIA!! We made it :)  We arrived in Cali on Friday afternoon and spent the afternoon searching  for a place to stay.  We originally had planned on living in the Pasadena area but when Mike got a job offer in Riverside we decided to find an area that was a better in between spot for both of our jobs.  We decided on Orange county and more specifically, the Anaheim area.  We checked out a few hotels and found a great rate at an Extended Stay near the highway and in a safe area with lots of shopping and activities nearby.  So far, we've liked the area and haven't minded our little room.  We have a kitchen and table and desk and it's big enough for now.  We included a couple of pictures below.

Mr. Sock Monkey at work in our room

Planning out things to do in Cali

Our first view of "wildlife" in California.
And no, it's not a jelly fish, Rose.  ;)

Our tiny but functional kitchen at
the Extended Stay

Adios, until next time!