Life has been busier lately for me. It took me quite a while to find a job here, but as of a few weeks ago I have not one but two jobs! I applied at a few Starbucks stores and got hired at a store only a couple miles from our apartment. I wanted to work at Starbucks so that when Mike and I go back to school, we can still get health benefits — and at Starbucks you only have to work 20 or more hours a week to get benefits! I also accepted a job at a tutoring company, and do group tutoring at the location Monday thru Wednesday. Last week I finished my training at Starbucks, and I have had some early morning shifts — we open at 530 so we have to get there at 430 when we have an opening shift. It’s weird to work that early and I hope I get used to it, but I’ll always look forward to working later in the day. Our store closes earlier than some, so we get out at 10pm, which is not bad at all.

Mike is still working from home — he misses seeing his coworkers at the office, but it’s going pretty well for him. In our spare time we have gone to the American River a few times and walked around, and gone to the movies once or twice. I have been gardening in our patio and saw my first few morning glories last week from the seeds I planted, which was very exciting for me! This Wednesday is my birthday, and being excited about finally having work, I forgot to request the day off. I’ll be opening at Starbucks and then tutoring in the afternoon, and if I have any energy after that we will be going out to dinner. Happy working birthday to me

Hope you all are well.

- Jess

Mike and I got into Sacramento as of June 15th, after a long day of driving. We made it safely, and two of our friends who live in Oakland met us at our new place to help us unload the Uhaul truck. Let me tell you — unloading is so much easier than the tetris-like puzzle of loading a truck, as I’m sure most of you know. We did have quite a few friends in San Diego help us load the truck, and thanks to all for the help!

Mike and I hadn’t actually been able to view our new apartment before we moved in (though we saw two other models), so I was a little nervous about how we would like it. When we got the keys and grabbed the tired kitties from the car, we saw our new home! It’s bigger — it’s a two bedroom with more storage space and a big patio. The apartment complex is huge, has lots of trees, two tennis courts, and three pools. The kitties were really out of it at first (they were sedated for the car ride), but within a couple days they had checked everything out and found it suitable, well, I put words in their mouth
Also, our new place has a dishwasher, which sounds silly to mention — but after 2 and a half years of not having one, I was soooo excited to get one. And as if all that wasn’t enough, we are paying less than we were for a one bedroom in San Diego! Eat that, SoCal!  … Don’t mind me, I got bitter about housing costs while living in San Diego.
So far we’ve been spending our time unpacking and getting to know the area. Mike has been working from home, and while he misses seeing his co-workers, it’s going well. I’m in the process of looking for a job, and getting my letters of recommendation for Sacramento State University so that I can attend in January. We’ve also spent time with my grandma, aunt, uncle, and cousins who live here in Sacramento. On the Fourth we went to the American River and  a nearby pond and did some walking. I have never lived so close to a river (10 minutes away), and we are both excited that we can hike or fish whenever we want. Even though we are close to nature, there are all the stores and restaurants we could ever want within a  two mile radius — pretty amazing!

I still have to upload photos. Be looking for those in the next week or so
Feel free to post questions about our move! We’ll happily answer them.
- Jess