A Dog for the Daysa Family!

We would like to introduce you to the newest member of our family: Jonah Daysa!  (See photos using the link on the left). We adopted Jonah from the New Hampshire SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals); it's the local version of the Humane Society.  Their web site says they rescue about 4,000 animals each year: from dogs and cats, to horses and pigs and goats, etc.

When we visited, we found a very clean and seemingly well-staffed, friendly facility...and very full!  As we walked around the dog area, there were several dogs that had been there for over two months, or were "under-socialized" (fearful and cowering in their cage), as well as hyper dogs who were eager to lick our fingers and wiggled for attention.  One of the very last dogs we saw as we walked around was Jonah.  He was in a very small cage, stacked above another cage, and seemed like he had just gotten up from a nap.  He seemed a little timid, but he was the perfect size (our landlord will only allow us to have dogs under 20 pounds).  After talking with the staff and reading over Jonah's profile and another dog's profile, we decided to take Jonah out for a walk and see how the three of us got along...

The rest is history!  This little guy bounded into our lives.  In a surprisingly short time (under two hours), we walked out of the SPCA with a new family member.  It's been so much fun getting to know his personality: we've found he has incredible stores of energy - quite the opposite of the sleepy little guy we saw at the humane society!  His favorite thing to do is play, and his favorite toys seem to be tennis balls or squeaky cloth toys.  He can play fetch for hours, and this is pretty much the only successful way we have found to keep him from chewing our Christmas tree, or the pretty packages under it (he loves to chew paper).  Although the SPCA said he was 2 1/2 years old, we'll see what our new veterinarian has to say when we visit this next week; Jonah certainly acts like a very young dog with all of his chewing.

As we draw nearer Christmas this week, Jen and I are thrilled to have Jonah in our lives.  We look forward to introducing him to friends and family, whenever that may be.  Until then, we all wish you a very Merry Christmas!

Nativities, Pageants, and Joy

Dressed as baseball players, super heros, and ballerinas, 40 or so giggling, wiggling children gathered at my feet my first Sunday, Halloween, at the Congregational Church in Exeter, UCC. Little did I know then how prophetic these costumed children would be of my first two months in Exeter. The next week as I read through the church newsletter, I discovered that this church puts on a live nativity at the beginning of December and a pageant/worship service on Christmas Eve. When I asked who was in charge of such things, I received the simple answer: "well, you, of course." Of course, I thought. The shy girl, who avoided pageants, plays and dramas like the plague as a child, will now organize and direct them.

As I made cold calls to families I had not met, asking for angels, shepherds, and kings, I could not help thinking, this must be what they meant in the job description when they wrote: "and other tasks as assigned." Yet when all crises had been averted: a lost baby Jesus found, a biting donkey given more space, and cold children filled with hot chocolate, I looked at the proud, happy face of our teenage Mary and listened to the squeals of town children dragging their parents to pet the nativity sheep and goats, and thought this was a success. When the donkey was loaded in the truck, the hay bales and stable removed, and baby Jesus stored carefully where we would not lose him again, I walked through the big, red doors of the church we now call home, accepted a generous bowl of chili from a woman in the kitchen, and sat to listen to Julie and the bell choir play their last Christmas set. I smiled as I took in the festive spirit and said a little prayer of thanks for our quirky, new church community.

Afterward, Julie I walked around this little, Norman Rockwell town of Exeter, NH, taking in the freshly lit Christmas decorations, watching children wrapped in lines around the bandstand to see Santa, and waving to the families piling into town hall to see the brightly decorated trees. Julie's mittened hand grabbed hold of my arm, we looked at each other, and big smiles crossed both of our face. That night we returned to our apartment where our own little tree, filling half our living room, stood lit and emanating Christmas cheer. We made some tea, turned our TV to the crackling, glowing yule log channel provided by Comcast this time of year, and sat snuggled on our new couch, recounting the evening's events.

With the next big project on the horizon, the Christmas pageant, I can feel my stress levels rising, as I am sure my patient wife can as well. I keep trying to remind myself, however, that come Christmas Eve when the costumes and props are all put away, I will feel much the same as I did that early December night following the live nativity: filled with a deep, peaceful awareness of the joy, the hope, the light, and the love Christ brings into this season. I will sit snuggled up with the love of my life next to our Christmas tree in our new, little place, so grateful for the ways God has blessed me beyond my wildest imagination, and prayerful for those who do not feel so blessed this Christmas season, but who are held in God's love nonetheless.

"...in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness does not overcome it." - John 1:4-5 (The last line of this year's pageant)

Once Upon a December

Happy December 2010!  The year has flown by, and as Jen and I prepare to order and mail our Christmas cards, we decided it was time to update our blog.  We've been in New Hampshire for a little over a month now, and I think it is safe to say that we are pretty settled in and beginning to learn our way around the area!  The only thing left, now, is to find me a job... ;-)  As we enter the world of blogging, we thought it would be appropriate to begin with our beginnings:

In early October, Jen was offered a job working as the new Director of Youth Ministries at the Congregational Church in Exeter, New Hampshire.  The town is well known for it's prep school, the historic Philips-Exeter Academy.  The church is also historic, having been founded in the same year that the town of Exeter was established: 1638, by Rev. John Wheelwright (the brother-in-law of Anne Hutchinson).

On October 19, 2010, Jen and I set off on our second cross-country road trip of the summer (the first was after we graduated from Princeton in May 2010).  We drove from Seattle, WA to Newmarket, NH in five days, plus two days of visiting with my family in Michigan.  On October 25, 2010, we moved into our first apartment!

Our apartment is beginning to feel pretty "homey" - it is as furnished as it is going to be for awhile, complete with dining set, bedroom set, and sofa/tv in the living area!  We are so excited to have our first place - it may be tiny, but we can't wait to welcome friends and family, have dinner parties, and enjoy life as newlyweds!  We've posted some photos in the links to the left where you can see our apartment.  

We live in Newmarket, which is a small town of about 7 or 8 thousand residents, about 7.5 miles north of Exeter, where Jen works (so, about a 15-minute commute).  There is a small downtown that is an easy ten minute walk from our apartment, and has a couple of coffee shops, a post office, and some cute stores and eateries.  We haven't spent much time exploring Newmarket, but we look forward to getting to know our new hometown!

We had an absolutely lovely Thanksgiving - our first time hosting! - with Jen's Grandpa, Pete, and Jen's sister, Catherine.  G-pa Pete flew from Sacramento, CA to spend a week with us, and Catherine flew from Washington, D.C. from her internship location to spend 4 days.  We visited Boston, Portsmouth,Exeter (of course!), and Maine for some incredible lobster.  With the help of Catherine and G-pa Pete, we picked out and brought home our first Christmas tree - a 7.5-foot-tall, amazingly aromatic tree!

As we get ready for the holiday season, I am so thankful for the many blessings that this year has brought - for our marriage, our first place, a new job for Jen, and a new church community.  What a special and exciting time this has been!  We are both looking forward to the future, and we're excited to share the journey with you through this blog.