Old Story

After our very first full day in Birmingham, we went to the movies to see Batman and tickets were only $6 per adult!  It wasn’t a matinee so I said to Newel, “Wow, everything is cheaper in the South too!”  The cashier smiled and said it was just because it was a Tuesday, and they drop ticket prices every Tuesday.   Then I looked up at the actual adult ticket prices and they were $8 - just a little cheaper than what I’m used to.  Oh well.

Downtown

Last Friday I went downtown to meet Newel and a couple of his coworkers for lunch. It was the first time I went there.  I've driven past it several times on the way to and from the temple, but never actually got off an exit and drove through it until Friday. It was pretty cool, my visit was quick because I didn't really know where I was going, and parking was a little crazy so all my pictures are from my car.  And, yes, I know driving and taking pictures is not smart driving, but I was stopped everytime.  Here's a little bit of downtown Birmingham!


Leaving the restaurant - this area was my favorite part of the what I saw in the city.

 

Looking north? Maybe west? I still get mixed up with directions since there are no mountains/oceans.

 

Research and medicine is pretty big in Birmingham.  Most people we meet are here for work or school in something to do with the medical field.

I really like this church building.  I forget what it was called now, but I don't think it's a historic landmark.  Just really cool looking.

 

 

So.... ....is anyone tempted to come visit us in Birmingham yet? :)

 

Taste of Home

I'm a foodie and I come from a long line of foodies, or maybe it just started with my dad, but he is a major foodie and it's been passed on (in a significant degree) to me.  You're probably asking, "Why is she writing about being a foodie?"  Don't worry, I'm getting there.  I think that because I love food and the experience of eating it, I attach certain memories to food.  I remember who I'm with or what I'm wearing when I eat food that tastes really good to me.  When I plan a trip home or really anywhere, I think about the food I get to eat, or I do google searches for the best places to eat wherever I'm going.  I know, I need help.

The other night, I made my mom's chili.  I LOVE my mom's chili.  Newel really likes it too, and he's not a foodie or a chili fan.  It love it because it's tastes so good, and because of the memories it brings to mind.  My mom has made this chili along with her delicious corn bread since before I can remember.

 

This chili reminds me of her and it reminds me of my brother because chili & cornbread is his favorite meal.  It reminds me of evenings at home with my family, eating dinner, and talking about what we did that day.  It reminds me specifically of one late summer night, sitting down at the table and talking with my mom about my long day at work eating her chili and cornbread that she made earlier, and I ate it so slowly because it was so good and I didn't want it to go away.

When we're eating her chili, I think of home and my mom and everything I miss (in a good way).  I had a really good childhood, filled with lots of joy, laughter, love, and food. :)

Another Car "Adventure" Part 2

Once our car was in the lot, we called AAA to have them send out their battery service.  They were able to do some testing and figure out it was a problem with the alternator.  By that time of night, we decided to use AAA's towing service to take us back to Newel's sister's and deal with it the next day.  While the tow truck driver was hooking up our car, another man approached us offering to pay for the towing service.  We explained that it was covered by AAA but thanked him.  We were amazed someone would be so kind to pay for something like that.

Our tow truck driver was pretty funny.  He's from Jamaica and has been living in the U.S. for almost 20 years.  He kept telling us how crazy Atlanta was, and he shared some funny stories about people he's towed in the past.  When we told him we were from Salt Lake, he said, "Oh ya man, the Mormon religion is very big there."  I said, "Yes, that and skiing."  He said, "Oooooh no.  I'm from jamaica.  I'm not gonna slide down no ice!"  We started laughing.  Cool Runnings anyone?  I asked if he'd seen that movie and he said he had.  The Jamaicans definitely don't like the cold. :)

After 4+ hours, we crashed at Newel's sister's.  We went to church with them the next morning, and then had lunch.  Newel's brother-in-law offered us his car to drive back, so we could fix the Jetta next weekend.  We then drove back to Alabama! 

 

Like I said before, even though I initially thought this car "adventure" was a pain, it ended up being another opportunity to more fully realize the blessings surrounding us every moment of every day, and that there are so many good people in this world, willing to help those in need. 

Another Car "Adventure" Part 1

Really?  REALLY?!  Yes, really, we had another car "adventure".  More like "headache", but everything's okay now.  It was the kind of experience where, at first, I thought, "This is the pits.", but then, by the end, I was thanking Heavenly Father for our safety, kind strangers, supportive family, and the laughs that we experienced through it all.  So here's what happened:

We went to Atlanta for the day to spend time with Newel's sister's family to celebrate his nephew's birthday.  Newel did some laser tagging with the boys and his brother-in-law.  Newel and his brother--in-law were the chaperones, but the little boys wiped the floor with them playing laser tag.  We think it's an intuitive thing for kids.  After laser tag, we went back to their house and had dinner, opened presents, and ate cake and ice cream.  It was fun.  After the party, we said goodbye and got back in the Jetta to head back to Birmingham.

Before we got to the freeway, the battery died.  We were able get the car to a gas station so we could pop the hood and check things out.  A man approached us to see what he could do to help, and gave us some tips to remove the corrosion off the battery, which he thought was probably the problem.  We thanked him before he went on his way.

After removing the corrosion, we realized we needed to jump start the car, and another man offered to help us do that with his truck.  We got it going, thanked the man, and then thought we were on our way.  Guess again.  We got on the freeway and after 5 miles, the battery started to die.  We were able to pull off at the next exit and make it to a McDonalds parking lot, which I helped push the car into.  Newel was stearing the car, so I pushed it by myself.  Yes, BY MYSELF!  I was pretty proud to be able to push the car. :)

#1

I like that when I have to fill in my address for something online (like my job applications), the state of Alabama comes first.  You know that U.S. Names song in alphabetical order that helps you remember all the states’ names?  Alabama is first.  We’re number 1. J

The Snake

Newel likes to tease.  Sometimes I think it's funny, and other times I don't, and he knows it.  When we we're driving out of Oak Mountain State Park, there was a rattlesnake in the middle of the road.  Newel decided to get out of the car to take a picture of it.  I said, "Fine, but I'll stay here in the car.  Be careful."  Newel then gets out and takes this picture of the snake.

 

I'm thinking, okay, you took the picture, time to get back in the car so I wave to him to come back.  But no.  Newel starts stomping around it, and I'm pretty sure the snake's not going to be happy about it.  I'm waving frantically and telling him to get back in the car.  But Newel just smiles and keeps stomping, and I'm thinking I might need to take Newel to a hospital.  Finally, the snake moved a little and Newel took this picture.

"What were you doing?!"  I say as he gets back in the car.  Newel told me hw wanted to try to get the snake to move so he could get a good picture of it because in the other one, the snake was just laying there. Who cares!  Luckily, no one got hurt, especially me because I stayed in the car with the doors locked.  (I really don't like snakes.)

The "Beach"

One of the first places we've gone since moving to B'ham is Oak Mountain State Park.  It's a cool place, not far from where we live and it has a beach!  I've always loved the feeling of being completely submerged in water, and it's something I haven't been able to experience much since my growing-up years in San Diego.  I know we're in the middle of Alabama, and I didn't have high expectations for what the park called a beach, but I when I first saw the beach, I felt like laughing.

 

No waves, very overcast (a lot like Law Street in June), and no ocean breeze because (duh) there's no ocean.  I still liked it though.  I appreciate what I experienced growing up, but I also appreciate what I'm experiencing here.  There are lots of fun things to do to enjoy the outdoors at Oak Mountain.  There are a lot of trails for hiking, biking and horseback riding, pretty scenic drives, canoeing and kayaking on the lake, and a lot of other things we didn't get to check out because we were only there for a day.  So, in summary, it was fun.  Below is a photo I took looking out towards downtown from Oak Mountain (you can't see it because of all the trees!)

 

 

We All Go to Church

I noticed driving to church that there were a lot of churches we passed by until we finally got to our church.  Last Sunday, I counted and found that we pass 8 church building before we get to ours.  And it's not like Utah, where you may pass a few Mormon church buildings before you get to the one you're supposed to go to, but all the churches were different denominations, except I think we passed by a couple Presbyterian churches.  It's cool.  I like living somewhere where a lot of people believe in God and want to worship Him by going to church.  If you want to know more about the church where I worship, go here.  I love it.

Uncle Noodle

 

We went to Atlanta Sunday evening and spent Labor Day with Newel's sister, Rachel, and her family.  We had a lot of fun with them, playing games, going swimming, and eating really delicious food.  Their youngest, Liberty, really liked her Uncle Newel.  After reading her one book, she would go find another book and bring it to Newel wanting him to read/look through it with her.  It was really sweet.  We're grateful to have family nearby here in the South!

Happy Bird-day to Me!

My birthday was last week, but I wanted to post something about it because it was my first birthday in the South, and we actually took a couple pictures of it!  The best parts of my birthday was my family calling and saying something they liked about me (a Heap Family tradition), and then Newel surprising me with coming home from work early and giving me a bouquet of roses.  The roses were beautiful, but what made me the most happy was that we was home, and we could be together for the rest of my birthday.  Just a little side-note about me: nothing brings me more joy and happiness in life than spending time with Newel and family.  So you can see why it made me so happy to have Newel come home early and spend even more time with him.

Anyway, enough with the sappy stuff.  Newel and I love Indian food and so we went to an Indian restaurant for dinner which was delicious (but no Bombay), and then we went to Target to get a vase for the flowers he got me (I have no idea what happened to the vases I had before moving).  Then we went home and watched The Even Stevens Movie (one my Disney Channel Original favorites), which was a present from my brother and his wife (Thank you again Andrew and Stacy!).  It was a low-key birthday, but exactly what I wanted.  I got to talk to my family, eat delicious food and spend most of the day with my sweetheart.  The only picture that turned out was the one in front of Target so here you go. :)