Things I love about living in Cincinnati

Maybe love is too strong a word. But these are the good things about Cincinnati, and why I think it's the perfect place for us. At least right now:

1. The Cincinnati Children's Museum. Located at the Museum Center. Three museums all in one spot. If you get a pass you can use it to get into any of them. If you get burnt out on one you can try a new one and they usually have an extra exhibit depending on the season. For example for Christmas they had a train exhibit. Wyatt loved to watch the little model trains and Bianca loved to go on the train ride. Now their exhibit is about Dinosaurs. Great thing to do when it's not such a good weather day.
2. The Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens. On those nice warm days it's a great time to visit the zoo. Our favorite exhibit is the manatees. It's awesome to watch them. This zoo also has a carousel and a train.
3. The Gap/Old Navy outlet. This is actually in KY but not too far away from us, about 20 minutes. They put out bins of jammies, for a dollar each! For kids. And they have great prices on all sorts of clothes for kids and adults.
   
4. Winton Woods. And all the great parks of the area. You pay 5 dollars and get into all. They take a lot of care in their parks here. Lots of space to run, beautiful surroundings. Playgrounds and our new favorite, the wet playground at Winton Woods. With little water spouts coming out of the ground and a spraying rainbow. They also have the best soft serve there. Love it.
5. P&G. Proctor and Gamble. For those of us who are stay at home Moms, it can be stressful knowing you aren't in a position to contribute monetarily to the family. But proctor and gamble has trials that you can take home, fill out a survey or go in, test a product, get interviewed and receive a gift card for Kroger or some other local grocery stores. What a blessing that is to get some extra "income" in that way.
   
6. Housing. The housing here may not be the most modern, but even students can afford to buy a house out here. I always think it's a good investment to own a home if you can.
7. Diversity. Let's just say Bianca was thrown a little off guard when she saw that our neighbor was African American. She had not seen many people of this race in Utah. Now she can experience the different cultures and backgrounds that people have to offer. Also our church population is diverse. All ages, many people with different cultural backgrounds. Lots of younger families, some or most associated with Cincinnati Children's Hospital where Eric works. We've made some great friends out here who have acquainted us with the area and let us into their homes and we feel like we've always known them. The people here are genuinely friendly.
   
8. Cincinnati Children's Hospital. Eric loves working here. They have endless resources for him and he is able to get the respect he did not receive at previous companies. They recognize his contributions to the research are immense and he feels appreciated and IS appreciated there. This makes our home life much easier, when we have a happy Daddy who isn't stressed out all the time with work circumstances.
   
9. The Public Libraries. There are wonderful people in the communities who volunteer in the libraries and I believe this makes a big difference. They read and tell stories to children, they keep the libraries humming and keep things in order. Which makes the library a nice welcoming place to come to. They have toys and puzzles at the one near us and story time and activities. When Eric's parents were out they had live Celtic music and crafts and cupcakes for the kids. It just brings the community together and allows my children and myself to read books and check out movies free of charge.
   

Overall I'd say the Lord blessed us tremendously by pointing us in the direction to move here. I just wanted to document it all and remember the opportunities and luxuries he has provided for us and for all those who live in this area.