Things to get used to

There are always some things that I have to get used to when I move to a new place. Each home is set up different so I need to figure out new homes for our stuff (even the three different cookie cutter flats we lived in in Syracuse had little differences which made setting them up interesting.) While we were waiting for our Chinese food on Sunday we had the kids draw a layout of the first floor to try to figure out where things should go. We don't have it completely figured out but we're getting there.

Each town or city has had different amenities and different layouts so I've had to learn to navigate them and learn where the fun stuff is.There are a few things about where we're living that I'll have to get used to. Here is my list so far:

1. Carpet
We have had hardwoods in every home we've lived in for the last 5 years. We owned a reject vacuum cleaner that we curbed on our way out of Syracuse because it didn't do the greatest job on hard wood floors, and I'm sure that it wouldn't have done well on carpet. So... a vacuum will need to be early on our shopping list soon. Carpet grosses me out because I don't know what has been on it before I moved in. The kids are super excited about it though, especially the carpet on the stairs.
2. Electric stove
For most of our marriage we've lived in places with gas stoves. We had an electric stove growing up but it does change how I cook a bit.
3. Library limits
At Petit, our local library in Syracuse, there was a 50 book limit. Since I homeschool and I was there all the time they often let me go over that limit. Today I went to get a library card from the library here because we got mail addressed to me and I found out that for the first little while that I have a library card I'll only be able to check out 2 books at a time. On hearing that my book loving heart sunk. 2 books?? :( After a while, when I've been proven trustworthy, I'll be able to check out up to maybe 10 books and the kids might be able to get cards to check out 1-2 books each. It's ok. The library's just over 1/2 mile from our house so we can go often. I'm glad that we kept a lot of our personal kids books though. I checked out 2 today (that we just might go and exchange tomorrow). I'll get my trustworthy library patron badge soon hopefully ;)
4. Closed at 5
We went out late  yesterday afternoon and tried to stop at a couple of places. They were closed though, unfortunately, because it was after 5. I guess that's life in a small town :)
5. More expensive food
There's a Tops and a Stewarts less than 1/2 mile from our house but food is definitely more expensive here. (I'm used to Aldi and Wegmans in Syracuse.) Milk there was $1.99/ gallon. Here milk is $3.29 at Tops and $2.79 at Stewarts. I'm thinking I'm going to have to increase our food budget while living here. There is an Aldi about 15 miles away. I was super spoiled living only 1 mile from Aldi in Syracuse. Tops had some great sales on some staples yesterday though, so I'm grateful.
6. Basketball in the backyard
The family that lives in the other half of our duplex has 2 boys and a girl - 16, 14, & 11. They have a basketball hoop out back that they said we could use and left their basketballs out for us to play with as well. That sure has been fun.
7. Busy street
We live on S State St which is the main drag through Lowville (we walk through 3 stop lights on our way to the library, so it's not that tiny of a town.) The first couple of days that we lived here the girls were constantly watching the cars go by and counting semis. "Mom, I counted 73 semis today!" Who cares about unpacking when you can count semis?? :) We've also seen a couple of horse and buggies as well :)
8. Bright sunlight
Living on the first floor surrounded by houses for the past almost 3 years I've almost forgotten what sunshine was. Not really, but waking up the first morning I was wondering where Nathan and Amanda's house was that had kept our bedroom so nice and dark. I think that our plants are going to like it though (and I do too!)
9. An attic & a basement
These are things that could present a problem to us. We have moved into a place that is smaller than what we had been living in but we still have basement and attic space. One of my goals for this summer is to go through everything that has been placed in either if those places and purge, purge, purge. If our stuff is going into storage when we leave Lowville I want as little of it as possible.
10. Bikes just laying around
Bikes just laying around in Syracuse would have been stolen. We see them everywhere here. That is going to take some getting used to :)