BYU-Idaho

 The second week of September I drove with Aubrey and Merinda cross-country to BYU-Idaho so that Aubrey could have a car for her student teaching.

 After two twelve-hour days we may it to Mom's house where we stayed the night and finished packing up the girls things for college. Merinda and I also made some decorations for her room using Mom's garden shears because she didn't have any wire cutters (hey, whatever works!).

The next day we stayed with Brittney and Sean so that the girls could catch up with each other, and celebrate the September birthdays.

 The next morning we took off for Rexburg, Idaho, but got caught in a torrential downpour just as we left Sandy, UT, in the morning rush-hour traffic, with insane construction going on right before the point of the mountain! There were cars hydroplaning everywhere because of the construction and standing water on the freeway, but luckily for us, our little car did not hydroplane due to the fact it weighed a million pounds from all of the girl's stuff packed in it so tightly (including all the gifts, and extra pots and pans for both girls from Brittney and Sean). Once in Rexburg, we unloaded everything into Aubrey's apartment ($15.00 is a small price to pay for early check-in!), figured out Merinda's housing, tuition, and got her student ID, and then took off for Blackfoot to retrieve the rest of Aubrey's belongings (why was all her stuff in Blackfoot? the story is too long to explain!). And can I add that I was too late in getting a hotel in Rexburg so I stayed in Idaho Falls but ended up going back and forth to Idaho Falls several times over the course of my stay, which wasn't fun because the main freeway was closed due to construction (very poor city planning!). And can I also add that I hiked up and down I don't know how many stairs (Merinda's apartment was on the fourth floor and I didn't have the patience to wait for the elevator with everyone else also moving in), with very heavy suitcases, room decor, living/cleaning/kitchen supplies, and food! 

 Merinda switched her housing from Center Square to The Cove two days before move-in. Luckily, she wasn't homeless, and the great part about it was the fact that she ended up paying less money for a brand new posh apartment ...

Merinda's room ...

Desk with beautiful view of Porter Park!

 Merinda showing Breck and Iris around the place ...

 Merinda's bathroom attached to her room, which she only shares with her room room-mate.

Big screen TV and view of Porter Park through sliding glass doors.

  Granite counter tops, stainless steal appliances, and two very large fridges. There's also an extra room in the apartment just for storage!

 Water bottle stations at every drinking fountain on every floor.

 Fully equipped gym with lots of treadmills and elliptical machines. They also have a large yoga and zumba room with a wall of mirrors on the second floor (where Merinda's roommate teaches yoga).

 Gathering area, they also have a large study room on the third floor with a wall of windows looking downtown, and a football viewing room with extra large TV on the the fourth floor.

Merinda, Iris, and Breck standing on the upper deck (just steps away from Merinda's apartment) with Porter Park in the background.

 There are two main decks, the upper one has tables and chairs,

 and the lower, larger deck has two large hot-tubs, fire-pit, big screen TV, couches and lounge chairs, and several grills for barbecuing. 

 After getting Merinda settled in she spent the rest of the day and next morning doing Get Connected. Aubrey and I went and with the parents and got free food and watched the new Freshman play get-to-know-you games on the football field. Aubrey was actually a Get Connected Counselors (in orange t-shirts) one of her years at BYU-I.  

 Aubrey and I then finished walking around campus so that I could check out all the new buildings (like the I-Center above, which is an amazing building with a Conference Hall that's just like the Conference Center in Salt Lake City!). 

 That evening we all met at The Hickory for dinner and endless lemonade (with 50 flavors to choose from!) which apparently The Hickory is know for, which was good because I was so dehydrated from moving the girls in, I drank my weight in lemonade!   

 Breck and Iris were also exhausted and starving (they went for the whole rack of ribs ... yes, dinner was on me of course!) from shopping for furniture, groceries, and all the essentials for married housing!

After dinner I was ready to crash at Breck and Iris' apartment for the night when they informed me that the place needed major cleaning and organizing before we would even be able to find a place to sleep.

So at 9:00 pm we arrived at Breck and Iris' apartment and unpacked the groceries and boxes they had in storage. They then moved some furniture around, and set up the "new" kitchen card-table and chairs from DI. After that they re-organized their bedroom and bathroom by hanging shower curtains, putting together shelving units, making the bed with new linens, and turning their closet into a make-shift office and study area (since all of Iris' classes are on-line this semester), while I scrubbed down the kitchen and appliances, and put everything away in the kitchen. 

I was just about ready to crash on the brown couch for the night (with brand new pillows that Iris found at DI) when I discovered that I had stepped in dog poop, while walking to the kid's second floor apartment, which I happily cleaned off my shoe before Breck asked if I wanted to watch something via the projector, which I said "sure!"

After a quick change of the furniture (couch for viewing purposes and fridge to place projector), we watched a show on Netflix, and finally called it quits sometime after midnight! Bright and early the next morning I caught the 6:00 am shuttle to the Salt Lake Airport where Mom picked me up in a state (I haven't felt that exhausted in a very long time). After having my youngest graduate from high school, going through two weddings, and driving cross-country to drop the kids off at school, I think I'm ready for a serious break, which probably won't happen due to Fall being the busiest time of year for me at work! Ahhh life!