That time I felt so sad.

We don't need to talk about the game last night.

.....

Well, we'll talk just a little bit about it.

I clapped and cheered for those Utah boys as loyally as I could,

completely by myself surrounded by yellow-clad people...

until we were losing by 30 points. Then I kind of just pouted.

Conversation behind me:

Guy 1: "Did you know the Jazz were this bad?"

Guy 2: "No, I didn't know they were this bad. I don't think they usually are?"

Guy 1: "I don't know, they look really bad."

Girl in front of them in the Jazz shirt: More pouting.

Are you surprised they put us, a temporarily dysfunctional couple, on the Kiss Cam?

Jazz shirt and all. It was easily the highlight of the sad, sad game.

Well, folks. Maybe next time. 

And by next time, I mean January 26 when the Pacers totally

lose their cool in the Energy Solutions Arena Delta Center.

Right? Right.

p.s. Who is this Draco and what's with his threatening of holiday plans?

I'm way too excited for our flight tonight,

and he is NOT permitted to be another holiday flight fiasco.

Don't come between me and Utah, Malfoy. 

Jazz in the City

This Jazz schedule looks at me every day.
And I keep forgetting to bring pictures for my desk at work,
so it's all I look back at.

December 19 has a big circle around it...
the boys are here to play the Pacers tonight!
Michael and I will be there, cheering them on!

Well, I will.

Michael informed me last night that he would be cheering for the Pacers.
Psh.
Then my sister informed him she was no longer willing
to pick him up from the airport tomorrow.

I still get a ride though. And I'm stoked!
One week of family time in Utah, with a new little nephew we need to meet!

Finally through Finals

Michael finished his last final yesterday!

And then he did a happy dance.

That's not true, actually, because he gets along with dancing

about as well as I get along with mice.

But I know that he probably did at least a little happy dance inside.

First semester down, seven to go :)

We went out for Ethiopian food to celebrate. Have you had it?

You eat with your hands, pulling apart Injera (a flatbread made with just ground teff seed and water).

The bread is spongy, and somewhere between a pita and crepe.

The owner of the restaurant was so nice to us. He is from Ethiopia,

and is his wife is from Eritrea. She makes everything that they serve.

Then we came home and played games with friends until midnight.

That's cool right?

Since we usually go to bed at 9:30 on Fridays. SO lame :)

You should listen to this album with me. 

I'm addicted, and SO excited for our Christmas trip to Utah this week!

And on Wednesday, the JAZZ are coming to town to take on the Pacers!

We bought tickets like eight years ago it feels like,

so I'm excited to finally go cheer them on.

For Connecticut

What a heartbreaking day.

My thoughts and prayers are with the families affected by this tragedy,

and I am so sick about what happened.

Christmas will be so painful for those families this year.

I'll pray that they'll be able to feel closer to the ones they lost,

and know that those loved ones are with Christ as we remember His birth and life here on earth.

And some day, they'll all be with Christ together again. As a family.

photo: LDS Smile

Thoughts: on those moments of inadequacy

I remember the spelling bee in 5th grade. It was so nerve-wracking.

The students all stood up round after round, giving me a nerdy adrenaline rush every time it was my turn. Suddenly only three of us were left, and I walked up to the microphone that was just as tall as me.

And then I misspelled "inadequate."

Quite the ironic blow, right? But I have to smile a little every time I remember that moment -- and I'm surprised by how often that is.

It comes up often in my mind because the topic does first. Inadequacy. Do you know how often girls talk about that, directly or not? It's heavy on our minds, and hearts too, because girls are like that. We all know it. We want to do our best, always, at everything. And when we just aren't understanding why that's not happening all the time, our feelings of inadequacy spill into our words.

"I didn't get enough done today."
"This doesn't taste very good. At all, actually."
"This entertainment center shouldn't have taken 34 man hours to finish."
"I feel inadequate."

That last one comes out on those terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad days, or when we give up trying to have our minds read by the other gender.

But you know what? I've realized that the times I feel inadequate are when I'm challenging myself. I feel inadequate when a project takes longer or costs more than I planned -- but that means it's a project I've never done before. I feel inadequate when dinner is ... meh... and the leftovers aren't even that, but that usually means I tried something new. I feel inadequate when I have to practice someone's piano accompaniment over and over and over. and over. But that means it's a song that's pushing me.

So I guess I let those moments of inadequacy hide what I'm becoming. They find a way to steal perspective, then I forget that I'm doing what I should be doing. I'm trying to better myself, to ditch comfort zones, to learn. Little failures are not a reflection of who we are. Big failures are not a reflection of who we are. They're just a time to be patient with yourself.

I think even the most patient person has some trouble with that one.

But be patient, because "He will turn your supposed inadequacies into recognized strengths."

Supposed inadequacies. That's all they really are.

Our Holiday Days, as of late

December. So wonderfully busy, right?

Here's a wise reminder from a Dove chocolate that I probably ate before 10am at work:

The holidays really do feel magical.

Especially when you remember what Christmas is all about,

and just enjoy the way that everyone is a little happier and more kind this time of year.

So, life as of late. 

Ready?

 We went to a Butler basketball game with some friends,

and it was so much fun. 

We stopped downtown afterwards at a new sweet shop.

We felt like kids in a candy store. Let's be real, we were kids in a candy store.

I'm still just not sure when you are actually a grown up.

(Saying adults instead of grown ups is probably a factor.)

 Speaking of downtown...don't you love cities at night?

This is in the middle of Monument Circle, right downtown.

Monument turned Christmas Tree, currently. Complete with Santa's Mailbox at the bottom.

If you want to mail me your list, I'll drop it in for you.

And speaking of the Circle, this is Michael before smugly snagging a parking spot right in the Circle.

Hard to do, people. At first I thought it was lucky...

but now, every time we go downtown, he wants to try his luck again before settling. :)

We walked across that cute bridge to go to Christmas at the Zoo.

Oh I love Zoos. So of course I love them with Christmas lights all around,

and late night dolphin shows to Christmas pop songs,

And wide awake polar bears and tigers. It.was.wonderful.

Plus, they had real reindeer! I immediately loved them because their eyes look just like cows.

Pure. Not stupid. Pure.

 I know pumpkins are so last fall,

but look how fully we took advantage of our former front-porch friend.

We figured since we never even made him a jack-o-lantern,

we had to give him some purpose in life.

So, we baked the seeds, processed the pumpkin, and composted the outside. !!

Impressed? 

Good, because next year I think I'm opting for the jack-o-lantern option.

And finally, a few shots of our rocking ward party last Friday.

I played some Christmas songs for the kids to sing before their big red visitor came to town.

It was way too much fun, which is always true when Ami Bunker is leading.

She has serious talent.

Then, Santa arrived! And I had fun being the bell-jingler by the photographer,

and getting a front row view of kids and their love-fear relationship with Mr. Claus.

Those are the happenings at our house lately!

Plus lots, lots, lots, lots of studying on Michael's end. 

Finals this week, then his first semester is done! I'm so proud of him. And our pumpkin.

The Most Wonderful Time

It's beginning to look a lot like a tiny Christmas.

And we love it.

Have you started the Christmas movie nights yet?

Little Women is first on my list. Then I need to track down While You Were Sleeping.

With Elf before, after, and in between, probably.

Tis' the season!

Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving is great.

Everyone focuses on how much they have to be grateful for,

and eats a lot of food. What's not to love?

This was my first Indiana Thanksgiving,

and we had so much fun in Evansville.

We rode Michael's horses a couple times, 

did you remember he's a cowboy?

His family has some land close to his house,

where they ride horses, have bonfires, grow HUGE sweet potatoes 

(think at least four times bigger than what you're probably thinking),

and lots of other good stuff. We have such a good time there.

They have some chickens in his backyard,

much to little Jocelyn and Madeline's delight.

They got right in there with those chickens. 

I don't know how the chickens felt about it,

but the girls had a blast.

We went to a circus on Saturday - look at those elephants!

They are adorable. And huge.

The monkeys were great. Most of the stunt acts gave me extreme stress,

and I just kept wondering who all those performers' mothers are.

They should never watch the circus. 

I already dread the thought of my boys playing football...

now I see there is so much more to fear.

The trapeze act was incredible. Can you imagine growing up in that kind of lifestyle?

There were a few families in the acts that performed together.

We went to pick out a Christmas tree for Michael's parents,

it was such a cute place. They even had a machine to shake off all the dead pine needles,

before they send your tree home with you.

They said they had to "make sure the tree can dance" before they let you buy it.

And they had hot chocolate. 

Everything is better with hot (or cold, or lukewarm, or any kind of) chocolate.

The break went by way too fast,

we always love being in Evansville.

Michael's parents are so nice to us, and to everyone.

Now, we're back in Indy and back in the routine.

We did some Wii bowling to see who had to do the dishes,

to soften the blow for at least one of us.

Two points, people. Two points. Sigh.

Sticks and Sticky Buns

Here are a few of our favorite things we've made at our house lately.

First up: the infamous popsicle table.

We finally made it to the end, people.

That right there is over 700 popsicle sticks, 

coming together to make something they probably never thought they'd be.

And that's a totally fair assumption on their part.

Thanks to Michael and his dad for cutting out the tops and bottoms!
And yes, those are plural, because the plan was to make two tables.
First I just need a little bit more of a popsicle stick sabbatical, please.

Last Sunday I made something far less time consuming, and much more tasty...

Mmm. I want another round after looking at this picture!

I found a Clone of a Cinnabon recipe,

and Sunday just needed some cinnamon rolls.

I actually also found a "healthy version" of the Clone of a Cinnabon recipe.

..........Maybe next time.

And last on my little list is the thing I am most proud of making every day.

And that's making it to work on time.
Bless carpooling and the inevitable punctuality responsibility it puts on me.

Here's a little picture of our downtown commute, pre-time change. 

It felt like we drove to the city in the middle of the night, every morning.

Getting out of bed feels like the hardest part of my day,

so I try to get it over with before I do anything else.

Michael is wonderful.

In my funemployed days, I'd make him a lunch in the mornings and send him on his way.

But now that we both leave at the same time,

I kind of go with the rule that whoever finishes doing their hair first has to make lunch.

Typically (every single day), that's him. He's the best.

We love driving to work and school together,

with another grad student in our ward.

p.s. We just got home from Lincoln. Have you seen it?
It put me in a biography-reading mood.
But first, this and this for Book Club.

Proud to be an American

Another late night of watching election results,

to add to my flashbulb memories of doing just that.

Last time around, I saw Obama inaugurated from across the pond, in London.

It gave me a patriotic homesickness that I had never experienced;

homesick for my country and grateful for it, too.

Results aren't quite in yet, but it's looking pretty clear by now.

I'm not going to talk about who I voted for or why.

But I will say that tomorrow I will pray for the safety of my president,

whoever he is.

Tomorrow I will pray that everyone, leaders and citizens,

will recommit to doing all they personally can to make America better.

Tomorrow I will remember how grateful I am for my right to vote.

I will remember how lucky it felt to watch two leaders discuss their visions for America,

both of them being free to do just that. Both of them safe after disagreeing.

There are so many places where that doesn't happen.

Facebook is filled with disappointed sentiments and plans to move right now.

But me, I'm staying. I believe in America and I know I'm lucky to be here.

I pray for my leaders, whether they had my vote or not.

We can get lost in differences, but right now more than ever is a time when we 

need to focus on what we all have in common, and what we all need.

So, here's to my hopes for the next four years and beyond:

Less hate. More individual responsibility. And lots more gratitude all around.

God bless the USA. I know He's had a lot of practice.

Half of Fifty

Even though we were super happy when Lewis arrived on November 2,

Michael was a little sad about it.

If Lewis waited one more day, he would be born on his uncle's birthday!

And Michael was convinced that if this happened,

they had to name the baby after him.

Close, Michael, very close. Maybe next child.

Of course we had blueberry coffee cake in the morning!

Michael loves this stuff more than anything.

First it was doughy. Then it was burned.

He still loved it more than anything :)

(And don't mind those paint samples taped to the wall...

that is just me practicing my new DIY definition and thinking this paint project through.

Actually, do mind them. And help me choose.)

We had big plans for the birthday, which included the Indianapolis Zoo and all its glory.

Unfortunately, some clouds had big plans for the day, too,

and they dumped on us all day.

But that's ok, we'll take a rain check! Literally.

That night, we went with some friends to the Pacers vs. Kings game.

We were hoping for a Jimmer sighting...which we did get, 

but only because they put him on the jumbotron next to a picture of Paul Ryan

during the "politician look-a-like" bit.

Other than that, no playing time for our P-town hero.

We're still rooting for him.

Then, we went to the Naylors house to bust out the birthday cake!

After he blew out all the candles he said,

"Oh....I forgot to make a wish."

This made me sad for him,

but that's coming from a girl who wishes on every first star,

every 11:11, every railroad track crossing (feet up, fingers crossed),

and every yellow (sometimes red) light.

There's always next year, Michael.

And that was his happy 25!

I'm so glad this guy was born.

So, so, so very glad.

p.s. do you love our free shirts? XLs all around, everyone in the whole place!

More to Love

Being an aunt is the best.

Jaren was born just after I graduated high school,

and we were all obsessed with him.

He rarely spit up, but he did almost every time I held him.

I didn't care, he was still my favorite nephew.

Then a couple years later, little miss Lydia came!

I was living with Ali in Boston at the time,

and Lydia was born the day our church burned down.

Big day all around.

Loved her. She quickly became my favorite niece.

Then, I met Michael Daetwyler.

He told me fun stories about all his cute nieces and nephews while we were in Jerusalem.

Little did I know... 

(but maybe not so little?) 

that they would become my nieces and nephews, too!

Marriage has a lot of bonuses,

and sharing everything with someone is just fun.

Sharing family tops the list.

This week, we have a new addition to the list we love!

 Meet little Lewis Miner!

He debuted early early on November 2nd.

He beat the family record (previously held by Alison Miner) of fastest entry into mortality.

Jenny felt her first contraction at 12:20 AM, and was holding Lewis at 1:39 AM.

The nurses joked that Logan would have to catch their next kid!

Except they weren't joking at all...

I love this family. So so much.

We can't wait to meet him at Christmas time!

DIY Trouble

We played a game last Sunday with some friends called "Loaded Questions."

Ever heard of it?

Someone reads a question, everyone writes down an answer,

then that someone has to guess who said what.

There was a lot of laughing involved.

One question was, 

"What always takes more time than you thought it would,

and still never turns out as good as you thought it would?"

We agreed to ignore the many inappropriate answer choices.

Then, it took me all but two seconds to write down:

"Pinterest projects."

When they read through all the answers, I immediately knew Michael's:

"My spouse's Pinterest projects."

Poor guy. And I think he even wrote his answer faster than I wrote mine.

I can't blame him. Our latest project beat.us.down.

We learned a lot of lessons, all of them the hard way.

The upside: When SO many things go wrong,

the situation becomes funny now instead of later.

Up above is our entertainment center we inherited from some 4th year dental students,

who moved out right when we moved in (so nice of them!).

I decided it was meant to be red. Simple, achievable goal, yes?

False.

You guys. 

Pinterest and blogs...they deceived us. 

They make things sound so simple. We make things so complicated. 

So, pride swallowed, here are all our lessons learned:

(and all you painters and professional Pinteresters out there are not allowed to judge.)

• Don't listen to Ace Hardware Man who tells you spray paint is the best way to go for a large piece of furniture.
• Don't buy spray paint that only appears to be maroon, but is, in reality, stop sign red.
• Don't spray paint in the dark, no matter how excited you are.
• Don't spray paint when it's windy, no matter how excited you are.
• Don't spray paint the inside of a large piece of furniture if you're not prepared to get high.
• When you prop the detached doors up to protect the inside from getting painted, don't pick up the entertainment center to move it. Doors will fall, potentially breaking the glass (we are lucky).
• Don't make the previously listed mistake four (4) times, because that's a big blow to your confidence levels. (We are seriously lucky.)
• Don't pull the little white thing out of the nozzle. It's not a stopper. It's what keeps your spray paint from working like a small hose. 
• Don't let your small-hose spray paint drip. It looks bad even after multiple, multiple layers.
• Don't feel bad when you have to sand away all the drips from your hose-like sprayer.
• Don't be afraid to buy all new colors of spray paint after you admit that stop sign red will never grow on you in your living room.
• Do spray thin layers. Let it dry. Spray again. That's not just a suggestion, even if you think the bottle makes it sound like one.

There were so many other lessons learned...

I hope some of those help any of you out there. 

Or I hope I at least come back and read this post once I've forgotten all the pain that was this project and I'm innocently gearing up for another painting attempt.

But when all is said and (mistakes are) done, our final project isn't too shabby!

Just don't look at it too closely when you come over.

My new DIY definition is 

Don't Initiate Yet.

We got way too excited...

next time: more research, more time prepping,

and more...common sense. :)

But yes, it was definitely meant to be red. I love it!

If you're ever getting depressed from the blogs and pinteresters who remodel every room in their house on a Monday,

in seven simple steps,

just because they finished cooking gourmet meals for the whole week and they're bored...

You can come read about our happy failures.

We're cool with it.

And just like that...

Happy six months!

Are you surprised it has already been that long?

Us, too. Busy six months.

We like marriage a lot.

Here's to six more!

(and then forever.)

Mormon Moment

Did you love General Conference? This weekend was full of great teachings.

My favorite takeaway principle: 

happiness is outside of your circumstances, you are in charge of your own.

There really is so much to be happy about.

(from Dieter F. Uchtdorf's talk.)

I follow a blog about that principle here, 

and it always uplifts me.

The weekend also had some big changes.

Boys can go on missions at 18, and girls at 19....!!!

This blew my mind.

I totally would have gone on a mission at age 19. 

Who's with me on that one?

But no regrets.

My life has played out better than I could have ever planned,

so I'm not even bitter at all.

I'm happy outside of these circumstances.

Bonus point?

Here's an interesting infographic to close out your conference weekend,

from the LDS newsroom.

Power to the Greeks

Guys.

Remember when I went on and on about my ever-deepening love for Greek Yogurt,

and all its substitutional wonders?

Check out this conversion chart from Chobani's blog.

I'm telling you.

This stuff is probably the most noble of olympic sponsors ever.

I'm not even mad about the endless stream of

commercials they played during the games.

Thanks for sending me the link, Larissa!

Yum.....

Into the Weekend

Lesson learned:

Salsa is not as much fun to make as raspberry jam,

if your food processor is acting smarter than you.

But, when your husband comes home to play the hero,

and teaches you that the outlet is to blame...

and you make amends with your food processor,

apologizing for all your wrongly made accusations....

You get some yummy stuff.

So yummy that when the wonderful 

maintenance man comes to fix the evil outlet,

he walks away with a jar for saving the day.

Thanks Pam, for the delicious recipe!

We're headed to a food truck party tonight! Rain and all.

 Then, we are excited to listen to our church leaders this weekend:

Come join us!

P.S. If any of you out there are sad that England gets new episodes of Downton Abbey now,

and Americans have to wait [very very im]patiently until January...

Just go here.

Kind of a sketchy site, but definitely worth it.

Writing Club Wednesdays | Not a Kid Anymore

Prompt: The moment you knew you were no longer a child.

I thought I wasn't a kid anymore when I could finally ride my bike.
But then, I asked my mom for a dollar so I could ride my bike to the Shave Ice Shack. Still a kid.

I thought I wasn't a kid anymore when I finally finished every single Nancy Drew book.
But then, I had to ask my mom to drive me to the library for something new. Still a kid.

I thought I wasn't a kid anymore when I got my driver's license.
But then, I got a speeding ticket the same day and came home and cried. Still a kid.

I thought I wasn't a kid anymore after my first kiss.
But then, I came home and cried about that too. Still a kid.

I thought I wasn't a kid anymore when I moved out of the house.
But then, I called my parents every day from campus. Every day with laundry questions, cooking questions, dating questions, questions about questions...never more of a kid.

I thought I wasn't a kid anymore when I moved out of the country.
But then, I got lost. A lot. And never felt smaller, but never felt more eager. Still a kid.

I thought I wasn't a kid anymore when I graduated college.
But then, I went into the world and never felt smaller, again. Still, a kid.

I thought I wasn't a kid anymore when I got married.
But then, we looked at each other. Two kids. In love. But, two kids.

I thought I'd stop being a kid. I thought it a lot of times, and expected it to happen after many made up deadlines.

But then, I get to where I think that moment is and I still just feel like...me.

Does everyone still feel like a kid?

The fact that I still own my baby blanket doesn't help. But it does help me sleep.

Life Before Monday

Life has been good. We're going to give major credit to Fall for that one.

Best time of year by far, right? Right. 

(It's my blog, so you summer-lovers don't have a say right now.)

Since my job offer, my days haven't changed all that much.

But they DID go from feeling totally aimless to total...

vacation time.

Hence the mornings spent in grandma slippers, seen above.

And the time spent learning random skills, seen above.

You can't call that little chain there a skill yet, but just you wait. I've got big plans for crocheting.

Ok, just these and this. So not big...but, definitely medium. 

I even bought 1,000 (count 'em) popsicle sticks today so I can make this, too. 

Crazy? Maybe. But I'm taking advantage of my last week of funemployment.

And guys, it's October. Have you stocked up on your Count Chocula yet?

Don't ask me why this is just an annual cereal. Maybe they're just not sure how to re-brand,

so they've painted themselves into a Halloween corner.

Anyway, it tastes like chocolate Lucky Charms, 

but SO much more magically delicious than the original.

It's the only reason I tolerate Halloween. That, and Reeses Pumpkins.

Don't hate.

p.s. We just got home from a fun-filled weekend in Evansville!

We rode horses, had a bonfire, laughed a lot with family, watched these great talks,

and just wished weekends didn't fly right by.

Now, we're home with Michael's dad's beautiful fresh tomatoes,

and we're ready to make yummy salsa! Come try some :)