Summer In The Great White North

So here we are, newly transplanted Minnesotans, you betcha!

Things are moving along here in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.  Summer is in full swing because it is, after all, July.  Life here is still a little bit surreal.  We're living in Sara's hometown less than a mile from the house she grew up in.  We're fortunate enough to be staying in a full-furnished garden apartment, with a great backyard, that a friend of the family owns.  (We plan to find a place of our own in the surrounding area within the next few months.)  I was lucky enough to transfer stores with my job and have rolled right into the new work routine.  Things have kinda just fallen into place.

Sara hears the same question all the time, "How is Ty adjusting to Minnesota?"

"How are you finding life in Minnesota?" I often get asked.

It's not Mars people, it's Minnesota.  It was the 32nd state in the Union and it is the same country that I've lived most of my life.  I mean, sure, the evenings have been a bit cooler, apparently there is a cultural phenomenon called a cake walk*, and the accents are pretty amazing.  Before moving here I've only heard the accent from, shall we say, older women and/or family members but everybody here sounds like an old Minnesotan grandma when they open their mouths.    It's funny to me how prevalent the accent actually is and it's everybody.  (Well, not everybody but all ages and races.)  Another funny thing I noticed is that Minnesotans often exaggerate their own accents at times when talking with each other.

It's been 3 weeks since the move and we're still a hot item around town.  We've had a constant flow of visitors, invitations, and social engagements to keep our little family occupied.  Sara and the girls are enjoying the Summer with play dates, street festivals/farmer's markets and dance camps.  Evie Sue is a little fireball of energy from the moment she wakes up until the moment she drifts off to sleep after continually claiming to not be tired.  Her selective listening skills are in full swing and she is constantly testing limits.  Ronen continues to gain weight even though she seems to crap twice her body weight every day, she is smiling and cooing now and is starting to display a neat little personality.  Of course, she is a baby and can be very fussy and/or challenging baby.  One night she'll sleep through the entire night and then turn around and keep us up the next night.  One day we'll figure this kid out.

The job is the job.  I'm working in a slower store but I was kinda looking forward to a change of pace.  I've already been given an order/larger role in the store and I've only been there a few weeks.  I am enjoying being in a state that allows the sell of beer & wine in the store; it gives me another section of the store to familiarize myself with and more product knowledge to acquire.  Can you say wine tastings?  The biggest change in the work routine is just being the new guy in the store.  I don't have close friends working side by side with me.  I'll make friends, that's never a problem, but for the time being I'm kinda on my own.  It's funny how easy it is to take work friendships for granted until you move into a new situation.  I've received several text messages from former coworkers telling me how much I am missed and similar sentiments.  It's nice to know that I'm missed.

On that note, I must mention that this week it has been 6 years since my Mom passed away.  The anniversary of her death, and then her birthday all fall within a week's time.  To say it's a difficult 7 days is an understatement.  Time has marched on without her, and today I find myself a father of two beautiful little girls who will never know the amazing woman that was my mother.  Well, not in person anyway.  Evie Sue is aware of her Grandma Sue, and knows that she is no longer with us.  She recognizes pictures of my Mom, and sometimes brings her up out of the clear blue sky.  When she is being extra dramatic and looking for sympathy she'll sometimes pout, look sad and then say, "I miss my Grandma Sue."

I just pout, look sad, and add, "So do I.  So do I."  Happy Birthday, Ma.  Miss you.

*  A cake walk is a Midwestern tradition where people pay to walk around a cake and stop, with the music, on a number.  A random number is drawn and the corresponding participant wins a cake.