Home Sweet Connecticut

I love my new home in CONNECTICUT. I love being here with my HUSBAND. One thing I thought I would never say and the latter one I had only dreamed I could say one day. I love where life has taken me, I love that after months of daydreams and some good moves on my part, literally that I won the heart of my sweet Jeff. I love that we are on our own, together, and experiencing so many new things. I love love love making our home here in Connecticut and traveling to nearby states to explore and play as well. We have truly been blessed since becoming married and we know we are living a dream of many people and we are so thankful for the chance and opportunity to do so. I knew before moving here, even before Jeff moved here that Connecticut existed but I never knew how beautiful and unique it really is. I want to share a few things I love and a few things I'm not too fond of, funny qwerks and other odd/fun things about our new home.

-The foliage. Connecticut is green, so green! The view from the 12th floor of the smilow cancer hospital where I work is magnificent. I look out daily and from one corner instead of looking out and seeing tall buildings, homes and streets all you can see is a sea of trees. Imagine how beautiful it is starting to look now that the leaves are changing colors. Gorgeous.


-Small town feel. Connecticut is home to some very big cities like New Haven where I work and the capitol, Hartford but away from those cities they are surrounded by smaller towns and cities that are so small, quaint and old fashioned? Maybe. I love the small town feel, being able to drive down a small two way or one way street and seeing businesses that are actually housed in homes, ma and pa shops and restaurants that you won't find anywhere else. It's nice living in a small community but knowing you are so close the big city as well.

Boston

NYC


-Being a minority. Not all of the time but in certain areas, or situations I have experienced this for the first time both culturally and spiritually. It can be very refreshing and also makes me appreciate the differences in people and the learning we can do from one another.

-Pizza. They claim it's the best in the country here on the east coast. Some places even boast to be written as the best in the state or whatever. It's good don't get me wrong but my favorite part of a pizza is the crust. I always eat Jeff's crusts that he refuses so while I enjoy the thin crust pizza here I can't wait to get some good thick crust pizza when I get back to Utah for a visit.
No offense Pepe!


-Humidity. Ah, feels like vacation, does wonders for my skin but my hair and I enjoy the days when it's not in the air.

-The houses. I could drive for hours and look at all the homes here and never be bored. They're so different and unique both from the cookie cutter homes in utah and from each other. Brick, wrap around porches, tall columns, long driveways with tall lights, they sit up on tall hills or are tucked away in the foliage so deep you can't blink or you will miss them. They are tall and thin or short and wide. They are all the colors of the rainbow and I have even told Jeff I wish I could look at both sides of the street at the same time while we are driving for fear that I will miss one that is awesome. I love looking at them, now if only I could go inside....

Big house on the hill or oops! forgot my pill?!

-The ocean. Connecticut doesn't have the likeness of the beaches of Cali or Florida but it has a beach and the ocean and I'm not complaining!


-The people. At first I found the people to be horribly rude. I felt they were always short with me and I couldn't handle the bad attitude they all seemed to have but maybe it was me? Maybe I had a bad attitude? Anyway, I love the people. They are so different in every way and once again I find it to be refreshing. Although, there are the occasional dealings with people I would just as soon forget right away, I know that can and does happen everywhere. Also I would like to note that the people here eat fried chicken and macaroni and cheese like it's going out of style. 9 am or 11 pm makes no difference to them. Curse them for tempting me and sending me home from work everyday craving that very thing. Curse them all and their chicken!

-Our ward. Our ward is awesome. I am so grateful for them and the friendships we've made since being here. Although I feel like the worst church member/nursery leader at times because of my weekend schedules at work I am thankful for the opportunity to serve and am always amazed that the sweet spirit is the same and can be seen and felt everywhere you go as long as you are worthy of it. I am thankful to have a wonderful husband who not only holds the priesthood but beyond that takes on his callings and never complains despite his hectic schedule, he is such a good example to me.
Our best friends Gavin and Hallie


-The History. Connecticut is full of history and it's been so fun learning about it this summer as we have enjoyed many tours and things of the sort. We are going to take a tour of the church on the New Haven green that has a crypt in the basement if it's the last thing we do before we leave here! Have to see it.


Yale. Both historical and educational.

-The Education. I love being surrounded by intelligent hardworking people. I love being one of the many wives of husbands with busy medical school schedules and boasting about my awesome, smart and handsome to boot husband. I love telling people my husband goes to Quinnipiac University and see the lights go on in their eyes, I love working @ Yale New Haven Hospital and while I am not a student these days I am grateful for the education I am still receiving everyday.

-The drivers. Sometimes I love it, other days the road rage is flaring up! The freeway systems out here might as well not even have a speed limit. Everyone drives how, where and at what speed they choose. At any given moment there are people driving 50-95 mph on the same stretch of road. It's crazy, convenient and obnoxious. If you can imagine. Connecticut is home to one the most dangerous stretches of road. The Merritt Parkway, or as we call if the 15 for short. On this highway there are no merging onramps it's 0-60 in seconds and the off ramps are even worse. They are all complete round-abouts and they aren't kidding when the speed limit says 25 mph. Any faster and you will go off the road or flip your car. It's scary.
I don't even know...


-The Fall. My favorite season, home to my favorite holiday Halloween. People travel from all over the world to New England to experience the fall here. How lucky are we to have a front seat view from start to finish from our own front door. Holla!
Can't wait to see what this will look like in 2 more weeks!



Most of all though I love this handsome guy. And home for me will always be where he is.


Finally I would like to educate you with a few new words I learned since moving here:

Carriage: not the baby kind. It's actually a shopping cart. Strangest thing ever to call a shopping cart a carriage and it still catches me off guard every time. I even once had to pay a quarter to get one from the grocery store. Never been back!

Johnny Coat: a hospital gown. Strange I know, I prefer to call it a gown myself but of course monkey see, monkey do and I have said it once or twice and hated myself each time. Sounds so... eh. Gown. Gown. Gown. Gown. Gown.....

-Guido: An Italian person. They're a pretty big deal here I guess or something to have their own nickname. I prefer to still pretend to have no idea what it means when people say it to me. I like to see them squirm in their seats like how rude am I to not know!... hehe I'm so mean.

Don't worry, while I love it here and am happy to call it home there are plenty of things I love and miss about Utah. And I am taking it upon myself to educate the people here about "The stix" aka Utah. Haha they have sooooooooo much to learn!