ABOUT US
We are a blended family of 6 and lovingly go by the moniker of "The Westanderveltson's".
Why Westanderveltson?
Between the 6 of us, there are 4 different last names. Back at the beginning to help identify as a unit Mike combined names. His surname, Westervelt, and Shannon's maiden name, Anderson.
The Westanderveltson name has stuck ever since.
Meet Mr. & Mrs. BlendedHerd
a.k.a
The Herd Father & The Herd Mother
Shannon Westervelt
Canada
Mike Westervelt
Why OurBlendedHerd?
We wanted to create a space for families of all shapes, sizes, and stories to come and feel part of a community. To share the ups and downs of living in a blended family.
Calling all Kings
The Kingdom is a community of men who want to be the absolute best partners, fathers, and leaders in all they do.
The Girls
Tori, Camryn, Morgan and Evynne
Tori is the oldest born in 2007, then Camryn in 2008, Morgan in 2008, and Evynne in 2010. Mike's daughters are 10.5 months apart, and Shannon's oldest is in the middle of his. So for 6 weeks each year, 3 girls are the same age.
After 6 years of living as a blended unit, there have been monumental highs and challenging lows. Dating your spouse while raising four unique young women is no easy task. Daily routines, rituals and responsibilities all need to happen. We want to share what we've learned to help other blended families.
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Blended families come in all forms. Not everything that works for us will work for you. It's our hope you're able to take a few helpful tidbits and apply them to your life.
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We look forward to growing our strong, blended family and being a part of yours.
We are eager to being a part of your weekly life, through blogs, updates and contests!!!
Thanks for coming along for the ride!
OUR
November 27th, 2015 we matched on Tinder. That's right, Tinder.
After some aggressive persuasion from Shannon, we met up that same evening.
At first glance in the back of our minds we each thought to ourselves "No way, not a chance." But as the saying goes, "Never judge a book by its cover". We were both pleasantly surprised by the person we were about to discover.
The conversation that ensued was "atypical" as described by Mike. Shannon held the floor, describing in great detail her variety of interests. Mandalas. Nutrition. Astrology, topics all foreign to Mike. Mike stammered over topics like football and raising two little girls part-time as a single dad.
STORY
Two people couldn't have differed more. As we continued to talk the person across the table became more attractive. In Shannon, Mike found a strong, confident, and accomplished woman. In Mike, Shannon found a man that was patient, kind, and seeking loyalty.
Shannon leaned across the table and told Mike "You're exactly what I'm looking for." An hour after sitting down, she kissed him.
A year to that very evening, November 27th, 2016, we married, with our four daughters as flower girls.
Many kisses and almost 6 years later, here we are. Stories to share, more to create.
GET IN TOUCH
We'd love to hear from you
@ourblendedherd
Photo credits given to our wonderful photographer @krysta.martell