Happy birthday Eden!!

Today happens to be my gorgeous sister-in-law Eden's 21st birthday, and since I can't be there to buy her first round (of the non-alcoholic drink of her choice), a birthday blog celebrating her awesomeness will have to do.

See what I mean? Gorgeous. This is Eden being adorably contemplative during a quiet moment on her wedding day.
* I wish I could take credit for this picture, but alas, it was Sam who captured it.

When Quinn and Eden began dating, he used one word in particular to describe her to me, and I can't think of a better description: enchanting. To know Eden is to love Eden - there's no other choice.

Especially when she willingly plays 'Just Dance' and rocks super sweet moves like this one the first time she meets you :).

Seriously, though, Eden is one of those charming individuals who is well-liked by all she comes into contact with - her genuine goodness makes her a friend to all. I knew this about her, but it was at her bridal shower in May that I was able to observe this firsthand:

SO many people came to celebrate with Eden and shower her with love and generosity. The sisters in her ward are an incredibly supportive - something I witnessed again at the 'cupcake decorating' party the day before the wedding :).

Eden comes from a family of really strong women, and I've really enjoyed getting to know her mom and sisters better (Aubrey and I actually grew up in school together, so it was fun to get reacquainted!). This is us getting ice cream after a successful wedding dress shopping venture back in April :).

Eden isn't just a pretty, friendly face - she also is incredibly talented in a variety of areas.
Remember her awesome skills at the shooting range?

She's also incredibly artistic . . . and ambitious :). After excelling in a flower arranging class at BYU-I she opted to do all of the flowers for the wedding, and I happily got to see her in action as she created her amazing bouquet. We also watched 'Tangled' (one of Quinn and Eden's favorite movies) as she worked and I was struck by how much Rapunzel reminds me of Eden - joyous, beautiful voice, caring. They both are handed circumstances in life that could leave them angry or bitter, but instead choose to allow love and light to help them heal and continue on.
(Oooh, turns out that early morning Jana is deep!)

We witnessed more of her artistic talent one night as she played with Will; unfortunately I don't have photographic evidence of the super cool flowers she drew with chalk but suffice it to say my driveway has never been so pretty!

Eden also has a natural connection with kids - Will is pretty sure the earth revolves around her and she is sooo patient with him. Clyde is also very smitten; they both approved from the start of Unky Quinn's good fortune.

Bailey is also a fan of Aunt Eden. Eden has lots of nieces and nephews already (she's been an aunt for more than half her life!) so it's no surprise that she took so naturally to the three wee ones in our family.

Which makes it that much more exciting that these two crazy kids . . .

are going to have a 'wee one' of their own! Quinn and Eden are expecting a baby at the end of April, and I'm so, so excited for them. I can't imagine a child being more loved and joyously welcomed.

As I've referenced, geographic distance (and possibly Quinn's embarrassment of me) dictated that Eden and I didn't meet in person until a few weeks into their relationship, so we opted to e-mail back and forth in the meantime. I'm so glad we did; I loved getting to know Eden a little bit and I was struck by her maturity, her spirituality, and her fun-loving nature.

And of course my favorite thing about her is how perfectly she complements my goofy little brother :).

So happy birthday my dear Eden!! I feel like this post barely touched on your awesomeness (she also rock climbs! And sings! And is fun and crazy and up for anything!). I can't wait to see you next month so we can compare baby bumps (yours will be darling, mine will be out of control). I love love love you!