A Blessing for Westin

A couple weeks ago we had a special day for our little family at our church. Children in our church are baptized at the age of eight, but it's tradition that they receive a blessing when they are a baby, typically from their father or another priesthood holder. Michael gave Westin a sweet and simple, heartfelt blessing and it was a really meaningful day for us.

We also felt lucky that Michael's parents were able to be there that day. We are far from all the rest of both our families, so we especially love when we get the chance be with Michael's parents. They spoke in our ward that day and gave great talks about families and temples.

Family means so much to us. I am so curious to know where Michael and I will move next year, and where our family members will all end up. It's hard to be far away from most of them right now, but we have fun reunions here and there, plus great friends that feel like family in the meantime. Nothing beats those things.

Westin's personality is shining through more each day, especially as he discovers his voice and "talks" to us pretty frequently. Nothing too new is going on in terms of milestones, this kid is pretty content just hanging out as is when I put him on his tummy. He did discover his hands recently though, and watches them with such rapt attention that I can almost always wash an entire load of dishes before he becomes bored of watching his fingers move. But somehow he always gets bored and cries right before my last dish. I think it's one of Murphy's laws.

Westin is growing fast and I really truly do love him more every day. It's pretty incredible to feel how that works. I love getting to know him more all the time while also getting to know myself as a mother. This is a new role and routine for me, and it feels sacred. I love being Westin's mom.

And I think I'm going to love being Westin's mom even more when he doesn't eat three times at night. :)

Best Day.

I planned on posting all about Thunder Over Louisville and our fun weekend in Kentucky... but we have to interrupt previously scheduled programming for an important announcement. Important as in, absolutely made my day and made me dance around and around. 

Today I won two tickets to the TAYLOR SWIFT concert this Friday! And two backstage passes! Thank you thank you to Keds for sending us to to the show and giving us the backstage tour.

There was a time in our lives when Michael loved Taylor Swift more than I did, it's true. But that was long before "We are Never Ever Getting Back Together" which almost took away his fan card. Me playing it on repeat while cleaning could be to blame for that. . .

But don't worry, we're both big fans still. I just admit it a little more freely than he does. We both just love how Taylor Swift knows how to be famous while maintaining who she is and what she stands for. Apparently that's harder than any of us realize, because so few stars manage that. I just think she's refreshing. And who doesn't love her lyrics? Don't try to tell me there isn't at least one Taylor Swift song out there that hasn't hit you, or hasn't made you sing loud in the car on that I-15 stretch driving home after finals and feeling like there is nothing you'd rather be doing than driving that road and heading home and...ok wait, that one's probably just me.

I'm excited.

A Reminiscing Day

My friend from my semester in Jerusalem is coming home from his mission tonight!

France will miss him. 

A lot of people from my Jeru group are going to meet him at the airport,

and ooooh how I wish we could be there.

Just thinking of that Jerusalem summer sends me through a whirl of emotions, always.

First I'm just so, so happy and grateful. Then usually some specific memory makes me laugh.

But then, my heart really does just long for that time. Just one more day of it.

Don't worry, I know how important it is to live in the present and love today.

I try to not even crave Fridays, thanks to sweet Sister Samuelson.

But I will always ache for Jerusalem,

and I will always miss that summer.

Here's to a little nostalgia.

(Michael is my favorite souvenir.)

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!

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.)

Happy News from Our House

Ready for some good news, highlights version?

a) Michael and I are now the same age. 

Which means... he is still older. Dang it.

But I still enjoyed the happiest of birthdays!

Full of...

Fresh raspberries, funny movies, controversial pictures,

and a dinner at a delicious Turkish restaurant. 

Bring on 24!

b) The mouse moved out.

Something way better moved in.

There is now a wonderful, beautiful keyboard living in our extra bedroom.

I visit often.

Which brings me to other good news...

I just became the piano player for our primary at church!

Sundays just got a whole lot more entertaining.

c) We discovered downtown Indy and all its wonders.

This involved three and a half hours of walking, walking, walking.

Worth it though...see how nice it is?

d) The very next day we discovered the Indianapolis Museum of Art.

It's so much fun. Come visit, and we'll take you.

Plus, they have a greenhouse with the craziest plants.

Even Michael (a.k.a. Father Earth) said he had never seen some of them before, ever.

Look at that pretty one we took home with us...

And see the thousands of tiny people holding us up with their hands?

Modern art is fascinating. 

People are so creative, whether you enjoy how they express it or not.

e) I made our first successful batch of homemade jam!

First of many, actually... 

because I now know that Michael requires a constant supply of this to be truly happy.

I think I'm with him on that.

and finally, the best news of all....

f) I have a JOB! Hallelujah people, many prayers went into that one.

Starting in a couple weeks, 

I'll be a Marketing & Communications Coordinator for a company downtown.

This is happy news! And we're grateful for all the people who have been sending

prayers our way through the job search.

Other happy news includes:

We are gaining serious frisbee skills.

My arm is small enough to grab our frisbee out from under neighbors' fences.

The mouse is GONE. (Worth mentioning again.)

Rainstorms are awesome here. And frequent.

And...the mouse is gone.

You've probably heard...

...but it's exciting enough to say it again.

I'm going to marry him!

Then we'll have the same initials. That will be fun.

Saturday I played with penguins.

See that necklace-lanyard-badge of a ticket? 

That baby gave me direct access to feed my love for penguins.

(Not to feed the penguins. That's not allowed.)

This family came with Michael and me to spend some quality time with the birds.

Jaren and Lydia were told multiple times that if you are loud or you move a lot, 

you have to leave.

They sat wide-eyed and dead still the entire time.

But... they still said they loved it :)

And how could you not! Look at this little guy.

The eleven penguins at the Sandy Aquarium have their own names and personalities.

And their own mate. Except for Ghost Rider. None of the other penguins really like him?

He was kind of a bully. But I thought he was cool.

Lydia got a little freaked out when he came over to nibble on shoe laces.

You can't touch the penguins, but they can touch you.

Jenny had a dream that I put fish oil in my shoes before the aquarium,

and the penguins attacked my feet.

Wasn't a bad idea, really.

This man knew everything about those little guys.

Best job ever, right?

Except for the smell, the 40-degree water, the "bruises the exact shape as their fins" (true story),

the bites from serrated beaks, and cleaning up poop.

Almost the best job ever.

Here's a little sample of the experience:

Such a blast. Throw in lunch at IKEA and putting up a Christmas tree that night,

and life is seriously, seriously good.

Dream Come True

This will be me on Saturday.

I really did buy a Groupon to meet penguins. 

And I am so, so (ridiculously) excited about it.

Joy, Wrapped in Orange

I have a serious and meaningful relationship with Reese's. April to October is a hard part of the year, and I think we all know why. There are no holidays during this time that are worthy of a Reese's shape. If I was the Fourth of July, I'd be complaining. But now, thanks to the early timing of capitalism on Halloween, pumpkins are appearing on the shelves...

This is just the beginning. Once Halloween hits, that means it's pretty much Christmas time, yeah? So then the trees! These little things are the reason I love looking in my stocking every year. They're also why I try all kinds of trading techniques to get any that might be in the stockings of family members who don't appreciate them.

And then...the 2nd place winner of the holiday shape contest (did you know it was a contest?). Valentine's Day gets a lot crap, all that "marketing love" business. I've never known if I'm one to complain about that because I get blinded by the Reese's hearts. If this fake holiday means I get to stock up on these, then go ahead and cheapen love :)

And finally, the Reese's Egg. It's been close to my heart for a few years now. Out of all the Reese's, they hit the proportions just right with these little guys. I usually put together a pretty nice supply to get through the April-October drought...but don't ask how long that stash actually lasts.
Why am I posting about this? Maybe it's because I still turn to blogging over homework. Maybe I don't feel like holiday Reese's are getting the appreciation they deserve. Maybe it's because I ate a certain number of Reese's cups tonight that will not be revealed, so they're fresh on my mind.
Whatever the reason, go get a pumpkin. It'll make your day better.

The Supply

My strategy to not let job hunting make me frustrated:

My little piece (pieces) of London.

It's running out slowly but surely, but Ali and I are doing our best to savor our European chocolate supply!

Life at the London Centre

Here it is, 27 Palace Court -- the BYU London Centre. There are 40 girls living here, so I perfectly understand the girl, whoever she is, that wrote on the bottom of my bed: "Find a fortress of solitude...and use it often." With so many girls packed into one place it's definitely hard to be alone, but it's also hard to get bored. We have class on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Wednesdays are our day trips, and weekends we just play. Actually...we kind of just play everyday. It's a sort of cleansing experience here for all of us -- no jobs, no boys, no phones, no keys (thank goodness for doors with codes, losing my keys is one of the things I definitely haven't missed yet). It's definitely a unique living situation, but we're all loving it. We eat breakfast everyday at 7:30, then meet together each night at 4:45 for Evensong. This is where our professors give us announcements, someone gives a mini-devotional, we pray, and sing our Evensong that Dr. Durham (our Fine Arts professor) wrote for us. I'm loving it here, even with the random mice-sightings (ew) and the overstock of Nutella. Our classroom is right below our dorms, so it's nice to just wake up and go to class. I guess it's the closest I'll ever get to experiencing homeschool. The only downside was the day when London got some crazy snow, so everything shut down, including the schools -- but our professors didn't really agree with us when we felt like we should have a snow day, too. Our 3 professors live in the flat next door to us, which is connected to ours. Downstairs we have a servery, a dining room, a drawing room and a library. I'll let you guess which one is empty the most. There are books in the drawing room with pictures of all the London groups that have come to the centre since it opened, and girls have had fun showing each other friends, siblings and even parents that have studied here at the London Centre at one time or another. There are some days when it feels like we've lived here forever, or days when I wonder what it felt like to live in a room by myself instead of with 13 other girls...but mostly, there are just days when I still can't believe I'm here.