Seven

I have 4 brothers and 2 sisters on my side of the family, 7 of us all together! 12 if you count the spouses of those who are married. The last time we were all in the same place at the same time was at my wedding I believe, nearly 4 1/2 years ago! This past weekend 6 out of 7 were all together in Utah with their spouses and all 10 of my nieces and nephews. My Dr. told me it was best not to travel this far along and we're on a tight budget so we decided not to make the trip for New Years. I just wanted to give a shout out to my siblings and tell them that I miss them and love them. My oldest brother Joel got married to his wife Marisa when I was 12, I've known her over half my life! She called me the other night and told me it wasn't the same having everyone together without me, it was so sweet of her! We are all very different people, we've seen each other grow up and go through different stages in life, but we still love each other and are there for each other. I'm very thankful for each of them and the example they are to me.

On the other side of things, we've had a wonderful Christmas Break and ALL of Jared's siblings were together! They are quite spread apart these days with two in Utah, Jared here, and one in New York. I love you guys and am so happy and blessed to be a part of the White family. It's been so nice living close to Jared's parents the past few months. Can't wait until we're all together again!

If you'd like to keep reading, here is an update on Jared and I (and pregnancy stuff) for the month of December that I sent to my Aunt tonight for the SAVAGE FAMILY NEWSLETTER (my mom's side of the family):

December was a busy month for us (I'm sure it was for everyone!). I'm now in my third trimester and have been seeing the Dr. every two weeks now, three total visits for December because I also received my Rhogam shot. I've gone all my life thinking my blood was A+ because thats what it says on the hospital certificate in my baby book, but then at my first prenatal appointment I was told I was A-, they double checked when I moved and switched Dr.'s in California as well, still A-. Jared is for sure A+. But now I have the shot so we're good until the baby is born. I've also still been working with the 5th and 6th graders part-time and it is keeping me busy. The kids are pretty sweet about my baby and me being pregnant. They make funny comments sometimes and are so worried I'll get hit by the ball or something when we're out for recess. But don't worry, I am careful. For the month of January I've agreed to teach a 1 hour dance class every Wednesday to a mix of kids from the same elementary school. I will be 8 months pregnant, but I think I can do it. It will be pretty simple, not a big technical class like I would teach to older kids.

Jared finished up his first quarter at UC Irvine, he wrote three big papers for his finals which kept him up late there at the end but he did really well on all of them and in his classes. We spent Christmas Break down here in California. I love hearing about the snow in Utah and I am missing it, but I'm trying to enjoy the warm weather out here while we're living here. In order to not miss the snow so much I remind myself that I never have to scrape my car (they don't even sell those things here), or commute in a blizzard. We went to the beach twice this weekend, our favorite little beach that is close by called "Corona del Mar". You still want to have a sweatshirt this time of year and many people do bonfires at night, the ocean is quite beautiful in the dark.

For Christmas we went to Jared's parents house in San Juan Capistrano, about 30 minutes away. All of his siblings were in town and they have befriended a young man who works at the horse stables near their home who came over for Christmas Eve. It was nice to spend some time with them. We played lots of rock band, ate great food, and just had fun hanging out. Over the break I've spent a lot of time "nesting" as well. I made a mattress for the cradle that my dad made for me when I was born and we put together a crib that we got for free from some people in the ward, I'm feeling more ready!

We wish you all a Happy New Year! We love you and you are in our thoughts and prayers. Give all the kids a hug from Uncle Jared and a kiss from Auntie Em!