Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Omaha, Somewhere in the middle of America

We are grateful to my parents for letting us stay with them for a few days while we packed up and cleaned our house. My mom was great and took a few days off of work to help out with the kids and packing. I got to a point where I just kind of stared at boxes and things I needed to pack and couldn't get anywhere. My mom took charge and started packing boxes for me which really helped me.

The yellow Penske moving truck. Andrew could have spent a lot of time in that truck!

We are also grateful to Landon's parents who helped us make the trek. I don't know what we would have done without them. His mom was a trooper and sat in the back seat with Kinnie and Andrew in our small car, in between their car seats, to keep them entertained when they needed it. His dad was a great truck companion. Kinnie constantly wanted to be out on the swings next to our house constantly with Magga Bell. When I was pushing Kinnie yesterday she said "Push me Magga!"
This is the view we have from our house. It really is beautiful. The Missouri river runs under the freeway bridge but you can't actually see the water from our house. It is neat to know that it is there though. I am excited to see what fall looks like.

The Omaha zoo is about a 2 minute drive from our house. I was very impressed with the zoo. We went at 9:30 in the morning and the parking lot was already busy. When we were inside the zoo though we were by ourselves a lot...it must be a really big zoo.


The baby gorilla was a hit for Kinnie. She was so fascinated by this cute little guy, I was too. I love the gorillas and how human-like they are and how the big ones just kind of sit there and look at you like you should be minding your own business.

The polar bear kept swimming right up to the glass and that was a little too close for Kinnie. This is her "get me out of here" look. The polar bear would swim on its back to the window and then scratch its back on the rocks by the glass and then push off with his paws on the glass. It was cool.

They have an awesome aquarium. They had this huge penguin exhibit with maybe 75-100 penguins in it. We kind of felt like we were the ones on display how the majority of them just sat and stared at us. It was cool to see them dive into the water and swim so fast.

This was in the tunnel at the aquarium, amazing. It was pretty mesmerizing walking through it and Kinnie was pretty fascinated.

We are slowly learning what Omaha has to offer. It still kind of feels like we are on vacation but everything is going well. We are feeling homesick but we know that feeling will go away eventually with time.

8 comments:

Andrea W. said...

Oh Nicole, it's GORGEOUS! What wonderful parents you both have. Reading about your getting overwhelmed by packing took me right back. I so remember getting to that point and a friend came in and totally saved me.

Tiff-E said...

Wow! I can't believe you guys are already gone, and starting to get settled. Gorgeous view! Yeah, it will all continue to get better with time, soon enough you won't even miss us Utahns! j/k! :)

Ute Family said...

So you're officially there huh? It seems like you're getting the hang of things so far. That's one thing about the midwest...it's very green and incredibly beautiful. The grass and trees don't get much greener!!
Good luck with everything and can't wait to see what other adventures you embarke on while living out in my old neck of the woods :)

Melissa Morgan said...

Nicole....the view from your place is beautiful!! How lucky!! I can't believe you have already made it to the zoo...it looks cool. Still can't believe your there!!! I will call you later.

Lisa Chin said...

Amazing views you have! I can't believe you've taken the time to go to the zoo already as well. You must have unpacked pretty quick because of having the grandparents there to help with the little-uns. How was your first Sunday at church?

Jeff&Rachel said...

Yay! I recognize the description of all of your feelings over your move - that was us 4 years ago (down to the frizzy hair and leaky roof evan). Enjoy it, I LOVE THE MIDWEST! (we loved the penguin exhibit too)

brooke and chad coon said...

That view is amazing!! Definitely beats the view of 20th east. Hope your adjustment is going well. Last week when I picked Addison up from nursery she said, "no Kinnie here."

little mossi said...

Nicole! I was missing you before you left and I never even got the chance to say goodbye! If by some miracle we travel to Omaha this summer (one of my mom's really good friends lives there) then we will have to hook up, go to the zoo etc. I hope the move wasn't too bad, and that you all adjust well! (btw, this is jen calfa!)