New Jersey!

Me in front of a pretty church.

The view from the back of Astrid & Roger's house, yup those are Turkies! :-)

We took at trip to Riverton, NJ with Michael's parents! We figured we ought to seize the opportunity since we don't know where Michael and I will be next year, nor do we know whether he will have the time off. We enjoyed lots of family dinners, collaborative solitaire, shopping, and even a special dinner in downtown Philly!

I really loved getting to see everyone, and I even found the purse that was sold out everywhere around here and online! All and all, a successful trip!

Christmas Day 2010

Michael and I woke up TOGETHER on Christmas morning! (If you think that sounds silly, remember that last Christmas Michael was on an internship in Louisiana.)

We had a beautiful morning opening gifts, having a big breakfast, and spending time with loved ones.

Michael surprised me with a Kindle wi-fi! I looooove it!

At 2PM we went to Aunt Becky's house for the Hammond family dinner. Don't take my word for it, as I eat next to nothing, but I hear it was delicious!

Me holding up a gift

Michael holding up a gift

Marlena, Me, and Marissa

Dad. Elizabeth, and Luke

Christmas Eve 2010

Sorry this has taken so long!

Michael's family has several Christmas Eve traditions.

Traditon 1- A seafood Christmas eve dinner. Including fish, crab imperial, and Shrimp. (I had Richo's pizza.)

Tradition 2- Christmas Eve church service at St. Francis of the Fields Church in Louisville. This service however was unique and will resonate in my mind for a long time I'm sure. Let me set it up for you:

If you recall it began to snow on Christmas Eve late in the evening. We arrived at 10:30PM with a light dusting of snow on the ground. The service ends at 12:00AM on Christmas morning. Naturally they ring the church bells on Christmas morning. So...try to envision what the scene looked like as we walked out of the church!

Michael and I walked hand in hand down the steps of a beautiful old church set in a field in the outskirts of town. Snow was cascading down from the sky like confetti at a birthday party. As we walked the church bells sounded, as if to tell the world "It's Christmas morning!" "Unto you a child is born!!!"

See, doesn't that sound magical?! It was a beautiful night, to celebrate a beautiful child!

An explanation

Michael, Templeton, and I are currently living in Charlestown with my parents. Michael's job didn't really work for us anymore. It got to a point where he was being asked to move every few weeks. In October and November he was moved from Crown Point to Iowa, Iowa to Minnesota, and the idea of him being sent to Haiti was even thrown around.

There were also a few instances where Michael was asked to (understatement of the year) stretch the truth. We didn't feel like we needed to be associated with this particular company.

We also came to realize that if Michael continued to work for this company odds were that we wouldn't be spending much time in the same state. Michael was also told he would have 1 day off for Christmas.

Bottom line: Michael left his job for our family. Typically we don't believe in leaving one job before having another, but we feel that this was the right decision. Please pray for Michael to find a job quickly, the right job, and if it is God's will for that job to be around here!

It's a ....

GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot wait to meet Nick and Christy's daughter!

Sarah Palin

Anyone who really knows me knows that I am a die hard Republican. I've been interested in politics for what seems like forever. I think that voting is one of the most important things a person can do.

Anyway....

Michael and I have been in Iowa for his job for almost two weeks now. As soon as I joined him out here he was put on night shift, which has been super stressful because we are staying in one very small hotel room. They also had plans to work right up through Thanksgiving. Unfortunately we were unable to go home for the holiday or Luke's birthday :-(

My silver lining in all of this was a poster I had seen at Borders. Sarah Palin was signing copies of her new book yesterday. They had a HUGE turnout, and I knew that if I wanted to go I needed to be competitive. So, yesterday I went to Borders at 6AM and sat outside in line for 3 hours. Happily I was one of the first 100 people there which meant I got a gold wristband guaranteeing me a spot in the first line for that evening.

I went home and slept for awhile. Then got ready and headed back around 4PM. I was probably 25th in line to meet her. She was absolutely awesome! When she walked in she greeted everyone. Then her daughters Willow and Piper handed out bookmarks. When I met her I simply told her that it was a pleasure. She replied that the pleasure was hers entirely.

I went home on a "Sarah Palin high". I couldn't take photos, which is understandable. But Michael did take this one of me holding my signed book. This is a look of pure excitement!

This was such a blessing for me to get a chance to meet her! I don't really believe it was a coincidence that things happened the way they did. It is wonderful to serve a God that knows what little things will make me smile!

Three years old!

Luke is turning 3 on Sunday!! Even though I am not his mom, I would like to write a post especially for him!

Dear Luke,

Happy 3rd Birthday! I can't believe how big you are getting!

You have the best personality, everybody says so! It's like you never meet a stranger.

This year you have really begun to love dinosaurs. You have changed what you call me recently.

You used to call me "Aunt Rarah" now you call me "Aunt Weira".

Woody and Buzz from Toy story are your favorites.

You asked nana to read you a story once, and she picked up a book and made up a story. Little did she know that you would LOOOOVE that story and would ask her to read it again. She also didn't anticipate that you would remember exactly how the story went and that it would upset you if she deviated from the story.

You are changing every day, getting taller, eating more, and learning! You are now carrying on long drawn out conversations. I love talking with you!

You are very fond of Templeton. She, however, isn't your biggest fan. You can say her name perfectly. Recently I noticed you had a scratch on your nose. I asked what happened and you replied "Probably Templeton". (I later heard that Megan Birke had made this suggestion earlier in the day at church :-) )

You mean the world to me! I may have another nephew, but there is only one Luke Edward Hammond!

Love you,

Aunt Weira