Big Scary move to Utah... (Sandy, Draper: appointed, rent, home)

[kaytidid]

Yes, I believe there is more to do in the Sandy area, if for no other reason is that you are closer to other places than you would be in Park City. Park City is a very nice place, but is very affluent. I am sure that there are stay at home mom's up that way, but just as many that are career moms too. If you wanted kids for your kids to play with in the summer, I think I would stick to the Sandy area.

IMHO means in my humble opinion. The name of the church in Park City is Saint Mary of the Assumption.

This is their information:
SAINT MARY OF THE ASSUMPTION PARISH
ADDRESS:
1505 West White Pine Canyon Road
Summit County
Park City, UT 84060-
PHONE: (435)649-9676
FAX: (435)658-0067
EMAIL: bbussen@stmarysparkcity.com
www.stmarysparkcity.com

Um...right now it is pretty cold. Calling for a high of 29 today with snow. I have lived in Jersey and Upstate New York. I would say the weather is a bit closer to the Jersey temps. We don't get as much snow as Upstate NY does (usually, each year is different, of course). However, we don't get the ice storms like Jersey does and it isn't humid in the summer. Just HOT....HOT HOT. We don't have plug ins for the cars like ME and AK do.

Many people have pools in their backyards here. I think most of them are the above ground kind, but a fair share have inground too. My subdivision has a clubhouse, golfing and a seasonal outdoor pool for residents use.

[coolcats]

Originally Posted by Jen38

Is there more to do with kids in Sandy/Salt Lake area than in the Park City area?

I'd love to hear from any stay at home moms in the Park City area. Our experience in moving around has been the more expensive the area the more you have dual incomes, less stay at home moms. I want to be careful of that otherwise it's a very lonely summer with most other kids in camps or daycare and mine trying to find people to play with.

Does anyone have pools? We've never been without a pool in our backyard. That's what we do all summer! It's great when my husband comes home from work or on the weekends for all of us to be in the pool.

Which brings me to my next question...Exactly how cold is it out there? Is there a state on the East Coast that you would compare it to? Please don't say Maine! We have lived in MN before, I don't think I want to go back to that weather. We had to plug in our cars at night!

Also, what does IMHO stand for? Is it the Catholic Church name?

Thanks again for your replies!

A few people have pools. They aren't really common, but I'm sure you could get one if you wanted. Football's big. Don't know much about wrestling. I've never been to Maine, but I have been in the Midwest. The weather is much milder. It really doesn't get much below zero here. It snows a moderate amount (a lot more in Park City), but it doesn't really inhibit things. After snowstorms, it generally becomes sunny. The biggest benefit is the dry air, that doesn't chill you like humid eastern air. With the dry air, even 35 degrees can feel pretty comfortable if the sun is out. Mornings can be cold, but again, not usually bitterly so.

[Jen38]

Kaytidid,
Can I ask which subdivision you are in? Or can you can give me a couple of names of some that have what we are looking for? Neighborhood feel, lots of kids outside, stay at home moms...
I guess we have to buy a sled and some skis! I grew up skiing, I've been trying to get my family to try it but just keep running out of time during ski season. I guess we'll have lots of opportunity there!

Also, Did you choose Catholic or public school? Do most do public there? We have an excellent public school system here. My younger son is in Montessori (until Kindergarten) then in first grade he will move to the public school. My older son is in 2nd grade. Do you know of a good Montessori school that offers kindergarten in the area?

Thanks!

[humboldtrat]

Park City and area are at about the 6900 foot elevation in the Wasatch Mtns. while Sandy and most of the Salt Lake area are at about 4400 - 4500 feet above sea level. Therefore, the area around Sandy gets less snow in the winter than they get up in the mountains. Also, driving around in the mountains in the winter could also be a little bit more of a problem than driving down on the "flatlands".

[john2timex]

IMHO is short for "In my humble opinion"
The church is St. Marys and I looked it up the Pastor is Fr. Bob Bussen
The Parish web site is http://www.stmarysparkcity.com/

As far as pools go in Utah, not very many people own their own. Cost of installation and upkeep versus the number of months out of the year that they can be used. Most owners drain them during the winter so the freezing doesn't damage anything. It is to costly to keep them heated usually. That being said there are numerous public facilities and there are a couple of lakes close by to Park City. If you are into boating there are at least three lakes really close to Park City (Jordanelle, Rock Port, and Echo) Jordanelle is a fairly new resivore (sorry I know that is spelled wrong) with excellent launch facilities.

[Jen38]

I really got to learn the lingo! There's all kinds of dd, dh etc.. I have no idea what they are referring to. Is there some kind of cheat sheet!

[kaytidid]

Originally Posted by Jen38

Kaytidid,
Can I ask which subdivision you are in? Or can you can give me a couple of names of some that have what we are looking for? Neighborhood feel, lots of kids outside, stay at home moms...
I guess we have to buy a sled and some skis! I grew up skiing, I've been trying to get my family to try it but just keep running out of time during ski season. I guess we'll have lots of opportunity there!

Also, Did you choose Catholic or public school? Do most do public there? We have an excellent public school system here. My younger son is in Montessori (until Kindergarten) then in first grade he will move to the public school. My older son is in 2nd grade. Do you know of a good Montessori school that offers kindergarten in the area?

Thanks!

I live in Tooele County, so not really near where you would like to be, but if you change your mind about this way, let me know!! I have lived in Salt Lake County and Tooele County and love it this way.

I believe there is a Montessori school around Sandy someplace. Yep...here is the link for all of them listed for Utah
http://privateschool.about.com/cs/mo...essoriwi_3.htm

I have my girls in public school. Both of them are gifted to some degree and so far, their school has been really accomodating. Their classes are a bit large and that is difficult though. There is a Catholic school here in Tooele. At this time, it only goes until 3rd grade, however the parish is trying to increase it a grade a year. It used to be only a preschool/kindy, so it is moving along. In Salt Lake County, there are several Catholic schools though and have heard great things about them. I really am not sure if more people choose public vs. private. There is an EXCELLENT, but very pricey private school right in Sandy called The Waterford School. That goes from kindergarten all the way up through high school. I don't know that I would call the school system "excellent" here, but Utah has some of the smartest kids with the one of the highest graduation rates in the country, so the schools must be doing something right. It certainly isn't the worst there is.

If you lived in Sandy, you would be in close proximity to some of the great slopes here and could brush up on that skiing in no time!

Can I ask where you are moving from?

PS...DH is for dear husband, DW is dear wife, DD and DS is dear daughter and dear son respectively. FWIW is for what it's worth, IMHO-in my humble opinion, KWIM is know what I mean. I can't think of anymore, but if you have any more, just ask.

[Jen38]

We are from PA - we have the Pocono Mountains close by for decent skiing but never seem to get there. I grew up on them as a kid. I've actually never been skiing out west. I'm sure it's so much nicer!

So far everything I have read about living in Utah sounds very nice. Although picking up and starting all over again gives me the butterflies in my belly! It seems like people really enjoy living there. Other than the LDS vs. non- LDS discussions on this forum, most responses about living in the state are great. Are there any other down sides to living there? I'm surprised that people aren't complaining more about so much snow. They mention it's a lot but it doesn't seem to bother anyone (maybe those haven't logged in!) Here, we are hoping we don't get snow at all this season.

In MN, we didn't see the grass from November - April. Is this how Utah is? Can't that get a little depressing? Then you say it's very dry and have to conserve water. I would think that wouldn't be very pretty either? Am I missing something here? All I ever hear is that Utah is beautiful. What's the catch?

[kaytidid]

Snow is just a way of life here. I personally don't care for the snow and cold and would love summer all year. That isn't the way Utah works though, and just my cross to bear.

Utah is very beautiful. It is VERY different from back east. PA, NJ, ect is very green with lots of trees. It is green here in the summer...sorta kinda....but not like there green. We don't have trees everywhere you turn. Utah is very beautiful in its own right. The Poconos are hills compared to the Wasatch Mountains. These are "purple mountain majesty" mountains. In Southern Utah you have desert and red rock. Absolutely breathtaking.

The snow that we are having right now is really our first significant snowfall for the year. Most of the time, it will snow, stay for a while, then you will get a couple of warm days where some of it will melt away. I would say around March, the days start getting warmer and it starts to disappear slowly, but surely. The worst part of winter is the nasty inversion that covers the valley. After that hanging around for a couple of weeks, you start to welcome a snow storm to clear the gunk out of the air.

Of course, there are downsides to living everywhere. What I might hate might not bother you in the least. I hate that I can't go cut my Christmas tree without traipsing into a forest. Jersey had Christmas tree farms everywhere. That might not bother you...KWIM? Many people seem to get upset over LDS vs. Non LDS issues. I could care....People are people and we all bleed red.

I can send you some email pics of my front and back yard views if you PM me with your email address if you would like.

I suppose loving Utah is kind of like loving your kids. Utah is a state like any other, but it is the subtle differences between them that make them each so special.

[malindall]

Hey Jen38!

I am moving to Park City in January. We close on our house on the 8th. I am Catholic and a mostly stay at home Mom. While visiting earlier this month I attended mass at St. Mary's and can't wait to join. My children are a little older than yours (9 and 12). My son loves football also. I thought about catholic school because there are some great ones in SLC, but after visiting the schools in Park City, I decided to go with the public schools. There is a good Montessori school in Park City. I sent my children to Montessori when I lived in Florida. I hope you find the area that you are looking for. I know it is hard. My husband has been in SLC for a few months while I was stuck in Austin, TX until our house sold. Thankfully we will finally be together next month. I can't wait to move to Utah. It is so beautiful. I am a native Texan so the snow and the cold will be new to me. I just figure life is about change. I hope this helps!! Good luck!

Malinda