We have now been here for 2 months, and one month in this house. The weather has been a little warmer so we've been trying to use the grill outside more. With the gas strike, we're unable to use the nice gas grill, so we've been using charcoal. We have 3 grills on our patio: the gas one, a traditional round Weber (pronounced wee-ber), and the big one built into the patio with a chimney. We haven't used that one yet. There's also a petrol strike that started on Monday, meaning the trucks that bring fuel to the gas stations are on strike so a lot of places are running out. We've been carpooling as much as possible and hoping it's over soon.
I went to Super Spar again last week and was able to score Crisco sticks, so I am saving them to grease up my pans when I bake cakes. I also went to a baking store and they actually rent licensed character cake pans. What a great idea! Instead of paying $20 for a pan I'll probably only use once, I can rent it for $3.
Miranda started preschool last week and really likes it. She attends five days a week for 4 hours each day. I drop her off around 8:30am, but I can bring her there as early as 7:15am, and if I pay extra, I can leave her there through lunch and even nap time, but I get her at 12:30pm so we can eat at home. She gets to bring her own snack, and last week the topic in her classroom was "space." She will get the entire month of August off for 'winter term break.' Both kids have colds right now, and I think I'm catching it.
We attended a Catholic church on Saturday evening and I was surprised at how different it was. The structure of the mass was the same, but all of the prayers and responses were worded just a little different so I had troubles participating. The only prayer that was the same was The Lord's Prayer. The hymnal didn't have any notes, and I didn't recognize any of the songs, so singing was difficult as well. The parish was having a hoedown after mass and their reception hall was decked out in checkered tablecloths, haybales, and youths in coyboy hats, boots, flannel shirts and jeans. We were having friends over for dinner, otherwise I would have had to show them a thing or two on the dance floor. The timing of that was ironic because I had just noticed a couple of days before that country music does not exist here. I haven't heard a single song in two months. I'm not a big fan, but you do hear a song now and then on the radio back home on the non-country stations, so I was really craving it. Good thing we moved our music library onto our laptop before we moved.
Harry Potter is not as popular here as it is back home. The movie actually came out on Wednesday morning, but with two kids and work, we purchased our tickets for Sunday. There was a nice crowd, but plenty of open seats. Most of the previews were for American films, but there was one for a comedy that was clearly foreign. The audience was roaring with laughter at the smallest joke, like the waitress accidentally pouring tea in a man's lap. That movie would last probably a day in the states.
I joined a local gym yesterday. It's really big and new, has a lot of equipment and a pool, and provides a lot of different classes that are all included in the price like yoga, pilates, spinning, step, and aerobics. My membership is from 8-4 (which is the only time I have to go anyways) and unfortunately the Zumba classes are in the evenings. The daycare is really nice and has different areas for different ages. They actually have a kid's spinning class with little stationary bikes. It also includes a little gym with basketball hoops and a rock climbing wall, computers, a tv playing movies, and Wii Fit. I hope I can motivate myself to go!
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