We're going to be going home to Indiana in just a couple of days now.

Dan finished his last final last Thursday ... I have a planning party thing for work tomorrow all day and then I just work Wednesday morning...

We're going to pick my dad up in Chicago, since he's flying in from D.C. Horatio is going to come with us, too - so, should be an interesting drive home! I am really looking forward to it. I think Dan is just ready for Christmas to be over.

Well, it's kind of hard to update the blog, because I have a gazillion things swimming in my head right now.. a lot of things to pray about ... a lot of things to just talk with Jesus about. You know? Ever feel like that? Well, one of us will update later :)!

Happy Turkey Day!!

We had Thanksgiving on Sunday at the church. So ... this is just a wonderful long weekend for us! Although, we did go to Perkins for lunch/dinner (lincher ..?) and had pumpkin pie, of course. Yum!

You know what - one of the guys sitting at our table last Sunday said that he never equates pumpkin pie with Thanksgiving, but with Christmas!! (What?? pumpkin ... fall ... thanksgiving ... make sense to anyone else?) And when we asked him which pie he does equate with Thanksgiving, he said APPLE pie. Now ... I think I would equate apple pie with Christmas if any holiday. Think about it ... Christmas ... warm smells ... hot cocoa ... cinnamon ... apple cinnamon pie ? Yeah.

SO - We are getting ready to go see a movie now :). Pride and Prejudice, I think. I saw Just Like Heaven yesterday - loved it. I think Reese Witherspoon is one of my favorite actresses. Dan went to see Harry Potter (he claims out of curiosity ... uh huh). Kind of weird, I know - but he went to his movie while I was at work, and I went to mine while he was at work. So ... it's kind of like we went together! Only not.

Well, we're going to go see our Thanksgiving movie! Have a happy holiday!! Do something good for someone else :) (Yes, it is a giving holiday ...)

Trip to Walgreens

We went to Walgreens to get some hotdog buns ... and we thought it would be a great idea to take the kitty! So, we put on Horatio's leash and harness, and brought him with us. He did a pretty good job :). I think that the car ride kind of freaked him out ... he started making a low, pathetic meow. Oh, it was awful.

Makes me wonder what he was thinking. Are we going to the vet? Are we taking him to a new family? Are we abandoning him? Hopefully, he felt secure and loved with us, even though we were going to a new place.

Dan went inside to get the hotdog buns, and I stayed out with the kitty. I think we'll save our next trip for when we go home to Indiana for Christmas. Yes, we're bringing Horatio with us on an 8 hour trip. (We're crazy).

We love our precious kitty cat. He's a crazy jungle pirate fighter. Can you see his clipped ear (left)? Just a little bit. We're not sure how he got it, but we like to think it was in a fight against pirates in the great Atlantic.

I have been blessed with the best husband in the world! I came home from a long day of work ... and he had cleaned the house for me! Now, if he didn't know my love language before - he sure does now :)

I love it, love it, love it -- cause it makes me want to more and more and more for him :). So is this how God intended it to be? I think so :).

I could talk all day about how much I love Dan, and how much he means to me. But ... I won't bore you with all that :). I just had to express how much I love my husband and how much I appreciate all that he does for me!

Thank you, God, for bringing this incredible man into my life!

I've been thinking about Mary Kay every once in awhile. I believe in what it does for women. I believe in how it enables women to soar among the stars and be able to provide for their family in a real way. But the entire time that I have been doing it, I've been trying to find some purpose in it, some cause. The only thing that I can really wrap my arms around is what it could be for my family. It would enable me to stay home with my kids, while contributing financially. I want to be able to use a portion of the money I make to send kids on mission trips. Stuff like that. But what am I really doing for women out there? Could I incorporate it into something bigger? I don't know. I thought about just offering friends and family to get everything half off through me - but then I wouldn't be making that profit at all. Does it matter? Maybe I could just be a door for another woman to enter into the world of MK?

I love what I'm doing right now, with State Farm. I am loving my work in the Bank products - helping people save money on things they have to have anyway, in order to be financially sound and secure. I love it. I love being knowledgable in such things, so that I can help those around me to better understand their finances and be better prepared for the future. I love it, because I'm helping people and it has a purpose. When I have kids, though, I'm not going to be able to do this full time - maybe part time? I don't know.

But that's what I want in MK or whatever I do. I want a purpose. I want flexibility - because my God does come first, and my family does come second - and then I can focus on a career.

Went to church today. This is apart of marriage that I have really been enjoying so far. Until July, my experience with God, my relationship with Him, all of the events I had attended, my search and seeking of Him -- it's always been an individual journey for me. I've been doing it alone to some extent. But now, here we are together seeking God's presence, and fellowshipping with others. I can't imagine my life any other way - worshipping God through all things. Not just simply at church, the way I thought it worked a long, long time ago. Did you ever believe that? Did you ever believe that worship only happened when you went to church on Sunday morning and sang hymnals with the minister up front? Sure, I did, too, once. And then, several years ago now, the Lord revealed to me that worship happens every day, through all things.

As much as I really hate to clean (when I can afford it, I'm hiring a maid ... hehehe. You think I'm kidding), it's tolerable - actually enjoyable - so long as I have worship music on. I can clean my house, if it's for the Lord I'm cleaning it for. Does that sound weird? For my husband - clean? Sure, if he helps me :) Actually -- that is a really very very good way for him to show me how much he loves me. By helping me clean. That speaks VOLUMES to me. I love having a clean and presentable home -- but sometimes

[break! our neighbors just stopped by :)! A little boy named Jordan from next door wanted to pet the kitty :)]

I just feel like I have better things to do. I know it; it sounds awful. On the other side of that, though -- there's just nothing like a clean house :) Everything to be cleaned and put away in the right spot.

OKAY - well, I'm going to sign off for now, and finish the dishes :) Does it seem like I blog as a distraction from cleaning?? Sometimes after I re-read some of these ... I think to myself, self - you need to just clean before you allow yourself to blog. Well, we'll see if I do next time.

I've decided that in order to bring you up to speed with what's been going on around here - and because I take pictures way too often - I need to tell a story a night for awhile :) So ...

It's Story Time!

This is Taddie. (Thomas James, aka T.J.) He is my precious nephew boy.

See how handsome he is?

And how adorable he is?

And how sweet he is?

Well, while we were in Brown County, I let him take some pictures with my digital camera. He loved to see the images in the viewer screen thingy. So ... here is the world through the eyes of Taddy, in the exact order in which he took them:

He really did take all of these pictures, himself. They make me smile :)

I love Christmas :) I love family :) I love memories.

I'm sitting here in our big chair, all sunk in and typing like an addict :) And what do I have playing on the sterio? The Chipmunk's Christmas! I used to listen to this when I was a little girl. I found it when we were home this past weekend. So I took it!

I praise God for life. I am starting to appreciate it more and more. That's what I want to harness and be able to pass down to my kids. A passion to live. Not to just live, but to live. And that can really mean so many different things to so many different people. To me, it means taking advantage of the time you have with those around you. Making the most of your relationships. Making your family more important than yourself. But that's just me.

(Please pray for us -- We might be having a welcome surprise! It's been about ... 45 days? since my "Aunt Flo" came to visit me. We'll see!)

Another Hectic Weekend

I'm starting to get used to crazy hectic weekends. Aren't they supposed to be relaxing? We went home for the weekend - which is always nice, regardless of how fast and crazy they seem :) Always refreshing to see home and to see family. I love family :) I love home!

You know what was weird? The first thing I said to Dan was, "doesn't everything seem so big and wide open??" When we got to Dan's parents' home - the next thing I asked was, "doesn't this room seem huge? What a gi-normous house!" After living in a small apartment in a huge city -- yeah. But you know what? With each passing day, 1075 33rd St, Apt 4, Des Moines, Iowa just seems more and more like our little part of the earth. :)

My maternal grandparents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, and we were able to be there to share in the celebration with them! It was wonderful :) They showed a viewing of my grandparents' wedding video and everything. Neato. Who knew Uncle Dave would have filmed their wedding way back in 1955?? I love my grandparents so much - they are so special to me, and I can't imagine how different my life would be like without them.

Poor Horatio kitty had to stay home. For some reason, Dan didn't want to bring the cat with us for an 8 hour drive :) I have no idea why not. I think it would have been hillarious for the cat to go potty in the kitty litter box in the back seat while the car is in motion. What if he slipped? Hahahahaha.

My parents are putting the house on the market next week. Cool. When I was little, I hated to leave our houses - even though we had only lived in some of them for like, 2 years. But now, although we've been here for about 10 years, I'm just kind of like, "cool - let's do it". Maybe it's just because I'm ready for that next chapter of my life. I'm ready to move out completely, have a family of my own, have a home of our own. But I'm sure I'll always feel at home and warm whereever my mom and dad are :)

Dan's family were all doing well. We stayed with his dad and Kami. Saw Carl several times. Saw his mom and Bill and Victoria at lunch on Sunday. These weekends just go by too fast. Not enough time to really spend with everyone. Sad.

We're getting a car! Yea! We went today to do the paper work. We're getting a 2006 Pontiac G6. I'm excited. We've been thinking and planning for this for the past couple of weeks, ever since the Trans Am was smashed into. I'm just glad that we can afford something brand new - so that we don't have to worry about unpredictable mechanical malfunctions.

I had a fabulous day in the office. Fabulous. I cannot express how much I am loving my job. Praise God! At one point in the day, I was cracking up so hard - It was one of those laughs where you laugh so hard that you start to cry. It was great.

I have no idea where my handsome husband is. It's getting late .. but I'm sure he's just at the library studying. He's such a hard working. I'm very proud of him and what he's willing to do in order to get the best education and be able to provide for his family :)

I talked with my mom today. Love her so. I think she thinks I'm pregnant. But I can't be. I've taken five tests that have all come out negative. But I think I'll find out this next week ... I'm getting some blood work and urine samples done for free since I've applied for life insurance. I'm excited -- we are going home tomorrow after work! Yea!!! The band is marching at State Finals .. but it's also my grandparent's 50th wedding anniversary... I think we all know which one is more important :) We're also buying a new car! We're closing on a 2006 Pontiac G6 on Saturday. And I am really looking forward to the 8 hour trip there. And then 8 hours back. No really. I am.

Gosh, you know what I was just thinking - it's been so long since I've done anything with html .... I'm not even going to try. I'm going to just go the easy way and make this post like a normal person :)

Best Job in the World, study study study, and sloppy joes

I love my job. I LOVE my job. I didn't have to go in today until 10 in the morning. Yea. Now that I've got some experience under my belt, I feel like I actually have an ability to help people, myself. What a great feeling. I went home for an hour for lunch. I cannot express how much I appreciate this hour in the middle of my day. It gives me an opportunity to get some things home briefly at home, while giving me a short break from work. Wonderful balance. Tonight, I stayed until 7pm for our call night (which is why I didn't have to go in until 10). I made almost 30 phone calls, and got a hold of some people, and will hopefully be able to save a lot of them some money. I know, from my own experience, that understanding where I am when it comes to my risks and my finances provides me with a ton of security. I know that life is unpredictable. I know that my God is going to protect me and prepare me for what's ahead. I praise him for giving me State Farm to be able to learn about and enable myself to be prepared for the worst. Not only will this save our family from potential devastation, but it will enable us to remain healthy and put us in a better postion to manage and create wealth, thus enabling us to bless others and to invest in the kingdom of God! Whew! I love my work

My handsome husband (hh) called me at work, inquiring on when I would be home. When I said that I wouldn't be home until 7 - he says to me, "Good, I'm going to make us dinner". He made me dinner and had it all ready and served when I got home! We had sloppy joes, baked beans, and potato chips :) Yum. I can't tell you how blessed I was. He is so good to me :).

But poor Dan ... he's been studying every day all day long. He goes to class, then comes home and studies until all hours of the night. If only I could study for him and then just ... download what I learned into his brain. That could work, right? :) He told me the other day that it looks like he's going to have a major test every week until the end of the semester. Holy cow. How many more days until the end of the semester??

Pre-Wedding Preparations
Here's a picture of me about a week before the wedding.









One of my best friends, Katie Starkey, came all the way from Hermiston, Oregon to be with me a few days before my wedding day! She came Wednesday, to help get me prepared. God love her! I really don't think I could have gotten through so much without her. She was there for me every second. She even gave up time to be with some of our other friends, who we hadn't seen in forever, just to help get me through the big day.








My sister, brother-in-law, and nephew came as well, and really helped to get the decorations done, in particular. I was planning on doing the reception favors and everything all alone. But, to my surprise, I walked in one day, and they were all in there working on them! My cousin, Shannon is sitting there next to my sister. She was a great help all week as well :) It was such a great surprise. You have no idea how much stress that took off my shoulders.










Hehehe... Here's my little nephew, Taddie with my dog, Millie

They got along real well! A lot more than I thought they would...:)







Here's my nephew, my dad, and my dog. Such a cute picture.

Another good friend of mine was there for me, too, throughout the whole wedding experience: Ann Rebecca Chaput! She is one of my oldest and dearest friends. I love Ann so much. She is going to make a beautiful bride exactly one year from my wedding -- July 15, 2006! Congratulations, Ann!! The wednesday before the wedding, Ann took me out to get my nails done. It was so much fun! You know what? It was Ann that went with me to try on wedding dresses, helped me pick it out, took me to Great America for my sad bachelorette day :) (hehe it wasn't really sad -- it was a lot of fun! We just call it my sad bachelorette day, because it was just the two of us!) She is an incredible friend. God has blessed me dearly. Praise His name forever!

Here's my mom, buying the cake :)

You haven't been with us the past few weeks ...

So maybe we should catch you up!

1. We got married! July 16, 2005

2. We went to DiSnEy WoRlD for our honeymoon ~ July 17 - July 23.

3. We packed all of our belongings into the cars and a trailer

4. We got to the apartment

STORY TIME: Once we got to the apartment, there was no electricity at all. As much of a problem as it could have been, it was no big deal. Our neighbors from across the hall went upstairs and messed with the main electrical box thingy and got the electricity flowing. Whew.
I was also expecting it to take hours and days to get everything all settled. Yeah, it took about an entire day. That was it. One day! Praise the Lord :)

5. Dan's parents and sister, Tori, came along to help get everything in order. We are so so blessed to have them in our lives. Not just because they helped us buy everything we would need to get started, and continue to help us along the way, but because of their love and constant support. See, here's them >>
helping us get some pictures hung. They spent the whole time with us, until everything was all set up and in order.

So that was our recap for getting married and settling into our new home. Hmm... I think the rest we'll update as a regular post individually instead of as a list :)

Until Then!

Meet the Hartsteins

What a great idea! Our friends, Beth and Cory Fetcher, made a "family blog" -- and we couldn't resist. What better way to document our first year of marriage than with a blog? Maybe a year from now, we'll look back and see just how exciting this year was > new adventures, new dreams, fulfilling those dreams, disappointments, mountains, valleys; who knows what's in store.

Daniel

Beleive it or not, this handsome fellow is finishing up his fifth year at Drake University for pharmacy (no, he didn't squeeze four years of school into five, it is a six year program). He enjoys pretending to be pirate hunters, putting money on the ponies, and long, luxuriuos bubble baths. If only Andi hadn't snagged him when she did, he could have been yours for only $16.99 (just kidding. he's priceless :)).

Andrea

This little shelia has moved out to Des Moines, Iowa, following her new husband on a quest for knowledge. She has been described as outgoing, friendly and squirrely; which is probably why she is currently working with insurance and banking with State Farm. Her passions include reading, writing and arithmetic. Wait. Bowling, movies, and friends. That's a little more like it :).

And finally, the apple of our eye - Horatio Hornblower Hartstein Cat

(These weren't really taken on 1/12/04 ... we rescued him in August, 2005)

Horatio Hornblower Sir! Sailor of the high seas, fighter against the scalliwags, and protector of the dames. A curious little bugger who enjoys looking out the window, chewing on hair, and chasing flittering things in the middle of the night while everyone else is trying to sleep. One word: crazy.

And that's us! We hope that you come back and join us from time to time, to see what we're up to and what mischief we've found ourselves in. Please sign our guestbook and give us a chance to get to know you, too!

Until then,