October Memories

October was a fun month for me. Fall is my favorite season by far, and it was so great to share it with Ryan. We spent many mornings taking walks in the stroller so he could see the leaves change and feel the wind brush his cheeks. Ryan also experienced his first Halloween, and went as "Super Baby." Mom and Dad matched with shirts and capes reading, "Super Mom" and "Super Dad." I love being a mom, and Brenton is the best dad. Who knew I could be so in love with two boys? They make every day a joy. Here's a two-minute capture of the month.

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RWH and IKEA

Some of you may know that Brenton's favorite motto is, "Return with Honor." It has always been important to him that wherever he goes he can give an honorable report of his work. I was impressed with that when we first got married and he worked as a door-to-door salesman for the summer. While other co-workers may have fudged the rules or given false promises to make a sale, Brenton was always up front and honest about the product and represented the company well. He knew that in the long run it is always better to be honorable.

When we were choosing names for our baby, we both agreed we wanted to name our little boy Ryan, but were unsure of his middle name. We both felt it would be a nice to give him a family name. After a bit Brenton said, "It should be Wayne." Wayne is my father's name, and the wisest man I know. He is an excellent choice for Ryan to pattern his life after. Brenton then said, "And his initials will be RWH: Return with Honor!" It was perfect.

I'm writing about this now because yesterday Brenton, Ryan and I drove up to Salt Lake City to see my brother Joe returning home from his mission in the San Francisco/Oakland area. Although he was flying home to DC, his flight had a four-hour layover in Salt Lake and we were able to see him. Joseph is an amazing guy. He served his mission with great humility, immense strength, and tremendous faith. As I anxiously waited by security, I knew it was him instantly by the way he walked, smiled, and held his head up. He truly looked like a missionary returning with honor. It radiated out of every piece of him.

I am so proud of my brother for giving up two years of his life to serve the Lord. He is amazing, and inspires me to do better. I love being his sister and I'm so excited that he'll be out here in for school in January.

After a great visit with Joe, we dropped him back off at the airport to catch his flight home and then headed to IKEA. Let me just say, I am a HUGE fan of IKEA! It is a fantastic store for a family on a budget. We got all of Ryan's Christmas presents there for under $50. Awesome. We also got him a highchair for only $25! What a great deal! It was fun to walk around the store with Brenton and pick out things to make our home lovely that we knew we could afford. Mostly, I just loved getting to spend a day out with my husband. He works hard to allow me to stay at home with our baby, and I am so grateful. He is a wonderful man, and I'm a lucky girl.