We took an all expense paid trip (well, except for Camille's plane tickets) out to Ohio to find a place to live. We left early on the 9th. We had a layover in Chicago, and made our way on to Ohio. Basically we spent the whole first day traveling, getting the rental car, getting checked into the hotel, and going grocery shopping. Luckily we got to stay at a Residence Inn, which has a full kitchen, so we didn't have to eat out every meal and feel sick by the end of the trip.
On Friday morning we started our quest to find a place to live. We looked at a few different duplexes and townhouses. (I was really hoping to finally be done with apartment life, even if we weren't buying yet.) Then we went to a company picnic for Mike's work. It was a nice coincidence that they were having one that day since Mike got to meet a lot of his future co-workers and stuff. After the barbecue at the park, we drove around looking at more possible places to live while Camille napped in the car.
On Saturday morning we were going to look at two houses for rent. Unfortunately, the night before one canceled the showing on us. The other never answered the phone. We ended up going to a sort of farmer's market downtown. It wasn't your normal farmer's market. It is actually in a building and is open year-round, three days a week. I'm really excited to shop there once we move. The vendors sold all sorts of goods, such as produce, fresh baked breads, pies, fudge, locally grown grains and spices, cheeses, and even real maple syrup (which was delicious!...they were handing out tiny cups of samples). There were also a bunch of little mini cafe type places that sold hot food. And they had live music. We did buy a mini pie that was yummy. It was called an Obama apple pie. I'm not sure why it was called that, but it was an apple pie with chocolate chips in it and a topping of carmel and pecans. Yum!
We also went and turned in a rental application that day, to the place we will be living. The rest of the day was pretty relaxed. We napped, did some laundry, and went for a walk at the mall.
On Sunday we attended the ward that we will be in once we move out to Ohio. We weren't sure it would be our ward since we hadn't made a final decision by then, but we know now that it is our ward. The ward was big, which I didn't really expect being in Ohio. We got there abut five minutes early, and the chapel was already packed and the gym half full by then. And this was with 9 am church where some people are driving 20 minutes to get there. I was impressed. People were really friendly. Lots of people came up and talked to us and gave us their phone numbers in case we needed anything. I'm glad it seems like we will be in a good ward because I am getting pretty nervous about this big move.
On Monday, we went to the National Air Force Museum. It was really neat to see all the planes. Camille especially loved it. I think she would have been in heaven if we had stayed all day. As we were leaving the museum, Mike realized he had a voicemail. Our application had been approved for the townhouse we wanted to rent! We went over right away and signed the lease. We will be renting an end unit townhouse that they just put new carpet and vinyl in. It has 3 bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, washer and dryer hook-ups, a pantry, and a walk-in closet. And the price was good too. We are really excited about it!
Tuesday was the end of trip. We basically just spent the day traveling home. We had a lot of fun checking out our future home town. We are excited for our adventure of living in Ohio. Hopefully we will make the big cross-country drive next week!
P.S. Sorry this is a really long post with no pictures. Can you believe we took a week long trip and actually forgot the camera?! I'll post pictures of our new place once we get moved and unpacked though.
