Little Choly Shaffer

Yesterday was Ryan's sister's birthday, and we had to miss the whole thing because you know: birthing a gallbladder. So as a birthday gift, Ryan told Bre she could name the gallbladder. So she named him Choly, which is short for cholecystectomy, which is apparently the fancy pants name for gallbladder removal.

So anyway. THANK YOU SO MUCH for all your kind words and thoughts and prayers and texts {you get the idea} throughout the day yesterday! I have a full report for you today, but before I get to that, IT'S PODCAST TUESDAY!!! So here's a little bit o fun for you.

Listen to the podcast here.

Now. Back to Little Choly. 

When I had my surgery, it was early in the morning, and we were home by lunch. Ryan's wasn't scheduled to START until 2:45 p.m., and I was pretty sure by that time, we'd be lucky to see 2:45 Central time! Forget Eastern! 

He actually worked all morning, because he saw no reason to sit home and burn half a vacation day when he could work. So he got home, changed his clothes, and we headed to the hospital for the great removal of 2017. He was so cool about the whole thing. While he waited to be called back, he read the sports section.

When they called him back, I wasn't allowed to go at first, which is apparently a new HIPPA thing, and I am not a fan. So he went back and I vented to my sister about my thoughts on the matter, and after a while, they finally came to get me.

My parents came to sit with me during the surgery, and so did Ryan's dad and step-mom, so we all just hung out, awaiting the thing to start.

They finally came to get him, only about a half hour late, which I didn't think was so bad!! He looked awfully cute in his hairnet. {Highly effective, too, I bet.}

They wheeled him off, and much to my credit, I did not cry a single tear. Not when I said goodbye, not when I walked out to the waiting room...not at all. I credit Sunday's massive meltdown and the power of the many people praying for us yesterday with this miracle of unexplainable proportions.

I had taken my coloring book and journal and other activities for the waiting room, but I spent most of my time talking to our parents and answering texts from folks who wanted to know how things were going.

The nurses told us it would take about 45 minutes for the surgery, and 45 minutes ON THE DOT later, they came and called for me to go back and meet with the surgeon. While I sat in the consult room, I heard someone groaning in the hall, and I heard a doctor say, "You're waking up. It's okay." I knew it was Ryan, and I hated it that he was hurting! {I know. It's sort of a by-product of surgery.}

The surgeon met with me and told me everything went great, all looked healthy, minus the gallbladder of course, and he got it out with no problem! He even had an 8x10 of pictures from the procedure we could bring home to frame. LOL!

So when I went back into the waiting room with the family, I said, "IT'S A GALLBLADDER!!!"

We waited a bit and then they said we could go back to see him, two at a time. Now you should know, this was Ryan's first surgery, so we had no clue how he would respond to anesthesia. I was praying my heart out that any reaction would not involve throwing up, as that is the ONE THING I cannot handle.

So I asked him about every two seconds if he was feeling okay. Sometimes he was, sometimes he wasn't. But in between the answers, he was SO FUNNY. He could NOT open his eyes. Said he felt so heavy. Kept asking me to scratch his forehead because when he picked up his hand to scratch it, he couldn't find it. I laughed right out loud. He was so cute and funny. And yes. I took video. :)

I told him I wanted a selfie, and he said he would smile. This is the smile.

He's so cute, even all loopy and out of it!

He also kept asking, every five minutes or so, what the doctor said. I kept telling him it all went well, and he just wanted to know if we got to keep little Choly in a jar.

Uh no.

He really struggled to wake up - much more so than I did. And when we got him up and dressed, the nausea hit full force, and that began quite a rough few hours where he just couldn't get it under control.

But I had to bring him home and be the caretaker, even if that scared me to death and was probably the worst thing for him. {The nurse at the hospital probably wanted to call for a well-being check on us!! I don't think she had ANY confidence in me when we left. Me either, sister.}

When we got home, my parents brought over food, which I hid in the garage and ate, so he wouldn't smell it. And our friend Shawn came to visit, so he stayed with Ryan for a bit while I calmed down. THANK YOU, SHAWN!!!!!

As the evening went on, Ryan felt better. He ate some crackers, then wanted a cereal bar, then asked for some soup, and even had some coffee. {No food all day will catch up to you!!}

He'll be off work for the week, and we'll do our best to get him on the mend quickly!

THANK YOU for praying with and for us. Such a blessing.

And we'll leave you with our two-years-apart-almost-exactly photo opps.

Gallbladder Eviction Day

I'm writing this to you on Sunday evening. Ryan is asleep on Mo, and if I'm guessing my logos right, it appears the Packers and the Cowboys are duking it out on TV. Braeya is curled up beside me, which is rare. She always picks Ryan over me.

And right now, I'm thinking about tomorrow, which will be today when you read it. Today Ryan gets to have his gallbladder evicted. I'm not even sure I really caught everyone up to speed on that in a formal way last week. We went to see the surgeon on Wednesday, and as he listened to Ryan's heartbeat through his stethoscope, he sort of randomly threw out the information as a side note.

"Oh, by the way. Found a cancellation on my schedule. We can do the surgery Monday."

Monday? As in less than a week from now Monday?

Indeed, apparently. Ryan and I just sat, jaws dropped, staring at one another across the examination room. One of those moments when God hands you the exact answer you prayed for, but you're shocked out of your ever-loving mind because you never actually imagined you'd get that answer. Surgery in five days is unheard of! I mean, the doctor told me mine needed to come out immediately, and one month later it did. We were expecting a repeat of that.

But history did not repeat itself, and that is how today came to be surgery day. Ryan is perfectly calm about it. Excited, even. He misses his pizza and, well, most food. He's eager to have options beyond chicken and fish. He's excited to think about days that don't include ongoing discomfort. He misses normal, and so do I.

But I'm nervous, and if you know me, this should not surprise you at all. I know gallbladder surgery is ridiculously routine. This surgeon probably has hundreds - even thousands - of them under his belt. This is just another day at the office for him, and for the routineness of it, I am profoundly grateful. People certainly go in for much more serious and delicate procedures, and that is not lost to me.

But just the same, it's surgery, and it's Ryan's first surgery ever in life, actually. And he's my love, and I get teary-eyed thinking about handing him over to a guy I met five days ago and a team of helpers I've never met. {And I've secretly hoped the really nice nurse that prayed over me when I freaked out in the OR gets to be on that team. She was amazing.}

I spent part of today {yesterday, for you} scrapbooking our Christmas, and I just laughed and cried all the way through the pictures. The ridiculous set of awkward family photos we tried to take with Braeya, where she gouged Ryan and led to all manner of crazy faces.

The joy on his face when he opened Daryl the drone and the joy he's had in the many days since, learning to operate him, while I duck and dive out of the way from my perch on the couch.

The way he stood and prayed over his brother at the family Christmas, after his brother prayed for all the men of the family.

And not just Christmas, but every day. Every day is sweeter when lived by Ryan's side. He always makes me laugh. Always.

He prays over me, encourages me, supports my dreams, invests himself wholeheartedly in our families and friendships, and works hard every day to bring joy to everyone around him.

He has taken the last almost month of illness like a champ. He's changed his diet {and subsequently his lifestyle} without complaint. He's braved the pain, and because I've had it, I know how much it hurts. He's gone to every test and waited with much more patience and trust than I have. He's been a great example, even in this mess.

This man is my love, and today I'm praying for a safe and successful surgery. One that will relieve his pain and let him return to the life and food he loves.

On the day of my surgery, Ryan wrote the blog, and he ended it by telling me he loved me and he'd be there when I woke up. And he was. He sat with me and helped me get safely home and cared for me in recovery. He took care of my sickness in his health. And now I return the favor.

Ryan, I love you so much. I'm grateful for this miracle of a quick surgery, and today I am praying over you and the team who cares for you. You are my joy, and I"ll be here when you wake up.

Forever my love,

Your Awesome Sauce

The Shafferland Shuffle

Busy week here in Shafferland! And given that last week started with a belated Christmas celebration, I'm really not sure what day it is - or month, for that matter - most of the time!

* Last Sunday evening, we finally got to have Christmas with Ryan's mom and Allen and all the siblings. It had been postponed twice: once for weather and once for illness that took down about half the family. We always have breakfast for dinner at this gathering, and then we watch the kiddos open all their gifts. Ryan had chicken noodle soup, which made him so sad, when he saw all the delicious foods he couldn't have! And also - when it comes to smiling for pictures, he's such a Chandler Bing.

* Monday morning, Ryan went in for a HIDA scan of his gallbladder, which was a 2 hour test to see if it was functioning or not. we were never SO HAPPY to hear something was not working! His gallbladder is only functioning at 20%, which makes him a candidate for surgery. Praise. The. Lord! That night, after work, we went BACK to the hospital, but this time to visit his mom, who went in to be admitted right after our Christmas celebration. (Her poor breathing!) She was doing better by Monday, so we visited with her for a while, and then came home where I pulled out one of my Christmas presents from Ryan: coloring book and colored pencils!

* Tuesday was one of our NON medical appointment days, so I took the opportunity to catch up on chores at home. Ryan had some computer training that day and got out early, so we even got to spend some extra time at home, reading and resting. We had Bible study that night: our first one in the new year! Good to be back with everyone and good tiramisu too, I might add.

* Ryan and I met with a surgeon on Wednesday morning and were floored - FLOORED!!!! - when he casually mentioned in conversation that he'd had a cancellation come up in the past day and Ryan would be able to get in for surgery on MONDAY. {As in tomorrow!!} We were so happy, we could have cried! Ryan went back to work, and I got him a special Subway treat as a cheer-up gift from his friend Nate. That night, we had to do some work at my parents' house, so on the way, we stopped by the new, temporary Starbucks that will fill in for the one the tornado took down, until they can rebuild it. It was our first time to see it. Really nice!

* Thursday, Ryan thought he'd do something new and different: go see a doctor! LOL!! He had actually scheduled an appointment with our new family doctor before any of this mess started and had to keep rescheduling. FINALLY got to keep it! I stayed home after my carpool duties. It was a cold, rainy, nasty day. Good for being home!! And of course, as you already read, we received our Braeya training kit in the mail that day. LOL!!!

* Friday we heard there was this MASSIVE stomach bug circulating the county, so I increased our oils exposure to try to keep Ryan healthy for surgery! We went out for a date to Cracker Barrel. LOL!! Ryan thought he could handle fish there, and he did! Just fine! When we came home we tried the next phase of the potty training activity. Oh my. This could be awfully interesting.

* Ryan worked yesterday, and I kept busy at home! We were supposed to get a big ice storm, but it never came. We did get some freezing rain, and the roads were a little crazy for a while, but nothing crippling. No lost power or internet or anything. It was a good little low-key day at home! Looking forward to next week at this time, being on the mend and a gallbladder-less family!

The Saturday Six

One.

Listen to the Interview.

This week I talked with Kelly O'Dell Stanley (a fellow Hoosier!!), who just released a new book called Designed to Pray. It's a study/workbook/prayer guide to help you creatively find new ways to approach prayer. Prayer seems to be a theme that keeps popping up for me, and I'm learning a whole lot about it right now, so I'm happy to be able to pass that on to you! This book is different from the one on prayer I featured last month, and both have great ideas. But if you have a few art-loving genes in your soul, you'll especially want to take a listen to Kelly's interview. BONUS! Learn more about this book at the end of this post, and I even have a copy to give away! :)

Two.

 Some of you might have heard this story and some of you probably didn't - and I only bring it up because I'm so impressed with the way it's been handled. Several weeks ago, a high school student posted a photo of himself and a friend with a couple of Colts cheerleaders, who had come to the high school for an event, and he made a racial slur about one of them. Not the best press for the high school, but I have to say, every single article I've read about the cheerleader and how she handled it has really impressed me. Read this, and pay particular attention to what she says about how all of us who are adults have a responsibility to teach kids good values and forgiveness by participating ourselves. Convicting stuff - at least for me.

Three.

So apparently, two years ago, right about this time, we were knee {waist?} deep in snow and Polar Vortexy goodness. I. Do. Not. Miss. That. I remember that winter and allllllllllllllll the tears I shed getting back and forth to work every day. Oh, those two hour drives! BLECH! Anyway. In my Facebook timehop this week, I found an article someone sent me back then of these lighthouses covered in snow and ice. Still fascinates me to no end. Check it out!

Four.

Speaking of snow, I loved this post by a blogger named Elizabeth Lang Thompson. She lives in the south and writes about how southerners do snow days instead of foraging ahead in the peril of snow. I feel I would make a good southerner. Bring me some sweet tea and let me have my snow day, thankyouverymuch.

Five.

I cannot imagine putting the amount of time and work into a project that is described in this post by Thistlewood Farm's KariAnne, but oh. my. goodness. Coolest keepsake ever. All of it. The book, the family tree, the memorabilia. It's amazing. Read up and enjoy.

Six.

Source

As I promised at the beginning of the post, I will tell you more about Kelly O'Dell Stanley's book, Designed to Pray, and then stick around, because I have a giveaway of this book to share with one of you!

Kelly O'Dell Stanley is a graphic designer and writer, and her two loves collided in this book. She had previously written a book on prayer called Praying Upside Down, and after completing that book, she began to have ideas for an interactive workbook type project on prayer that she hoped would help people become closer to the Lord through creative approaches to prayer.

This book isn't really a "read from cover to cover" kind of book, although I read it that way so I could tell you about it! It's a book you'll want to approach in a slow, daily kind of pace until you've worked your way through every single page. It's designed as an 8 week study on prayer, with new activities to try every single day.

She talks about everything from trying actual new postures of prayer to learning new ways to remember (consistently) to pray for requests that come your way to suiting up in the full armor of God as you pray, and over 50 additional ideas in between.

There might be some exercises that don't zing you, and that's okay. Her goal isn't for every single activity to resonate with every single reader. Her goal is to help you uncover new ideas you might not have considered and to unlock some prayerful creativity in you.

And if you're nervous about trying a book like this because you don't really have creative genes within you, NEVER FEAR! She already thought of that and designed each exercise to be a door-opener for the creative and well-equipped for the creatively challenged. You'll find enough tools on each page to be able to do some version of the exercise, even if you can't draw or think outside the box very well.

(OH! And if you are into the coloring craze, you'll find more than one opportunity to use that outlet in this book!)

You'll want to hear Kelly's interview above to learn more about her heart behind this book, but one thing she mentioned as she talked to me is that God is THE CREATOR, so to approach Him with reverent creativity is to approach one of the core pieces of who He is!

Though this book is geared for women (and is actually one of the resources on the new Belong tour), I think it would work well for teens, too, so if you're mentoring a young woman or have a daughter you're trying to find some common ground with on the topic of teaching prayer, this might be the ticket!

GIVEAWAY: I have one copy of this book to give away to one of YOU! To enter, just leave a comment telling me your biggest obstacle in your prayer life. (And if you comment anonymously, make sure you leave your contact info so I can reach you if I draw your name!) I'll leave this contest open until next Friday night, January 20th, at midnight, and then I'll post the winner's name on next week's Saturday 6!

** I received two copies of Designed to Pray at no cost to me from Tyndale Momentum and the Blythe Daniel Agency. All opinions on the book in this written review and in the podcast are my own. *

Because A Gallbladder Isn't Enough of a Project

I just realized I'm writing about this on Friday the 13th. It's a good thing I'm not superstitious, because otherwise I am pretty sure I'd be freaked out about jinxing this.

So for lo these last 12 days of 2017, you've been reading about our doctor visits and medical tests, and it probably would lead you to think that the mere juggling of such adventures would be project enough for us right now. But we're the Shaffers, so you'd be wrong about that.

Ryan actually had a project lined up for these mid-winter months, but it requires a bit of manual labor, so it's been delayed in light of the gallbladder debacle. But the delay of one project merely makes room for another project, and if you listened to this week's podcast, you already heard what the filler project is.

Because we talked about it on the podcast, Ryan didn't think it was really blog-worthy material, but I disagree for two reasons. One, I use this blog as a reference point when I go back to write the story of our life, and it would be a true travesty to not include this piece of Shafferland history in full detail. Two, pictures are worth a thousand words, right? And pictures don't blend well with podcasts. So this is indeed blog-worthy.

So if you missed the big announcement, here it is: Ryan has decided to potty-train Braeya.

Braeya? How do you feel about this new adventure?

 About like I figured.

To clarify, Braeya is potty-trained in the manner that cats are generally expected to be potty-trained. She turns eleven in May, and she came to live with me when she was just six weeks old. She learned about the litter box the first day she joined our family, and the only time I ever recall her not using it was that brief stint after we moved to Kokomo without consulting her for her opinion, and she paid us back by christening every square inch of the closet in the office.

Though I'd be hard-pressed to say she apologized (or felt remorse in any way) for that choice, she did change her ways, and we changed the flooring.

We moved her litter box into the guest bathroom, bought an aesthetically pleasing box that conceals it, and that pretty much catches you up to last week.

And that is when Ryan reached his saturation point (see what I did there??) with the litter box. In the division of household chores, he took on the maintenance of the litter box, which I'd like to point out was his choice, not my insistence, and he's tired of sweeping up superfluous litter from the bathroom floor, replacing the air freshener, and cleaning out the box itself.

So he began to research (because of course!!) his options on actually toilet training cats. He read reviews, watched YouTube videos, and came to me with his pitch.

I appreciate that he always brings a pitch to me before making a purchase, because it makes me feel like we really are a team, but I know when we've reached pitch-level that literally hours of research have already been invested, and let's face it: he's employed and I'm not. So if he wants to make a purchase, I'm not going to stand in the way.

He informed me that you can purchase an actual kit to use in toilet training cats. And to save time on explaining the level of research that had gone into this decision, he led with, "It was on Shark Tank." Done. Good enough for me.

So he ordered the kit and promptly sat down to have a talk with Braeya. Preparation, he called it. He talked with her at length about why we were doing this and his expectations on her application to learning new tricks. How YouTube showed it was possible for cats - even old cats - to learn new things.

(Her thoughts.)

He further informed her that we had already completed phase one of this adventure, because phase one involved moving the litter box to the bathroom and ours was already there.

PHASE TWO!!!

And so it was that I woke up the next morning and the litter box had migrated from inside its aesthetically pleasing box to the top of the toilet. And because he has compassion on the aging joints of a 10 year old cat, he'd brought in a folding chair to help her get inside.

It was at this point that I asked my role in this project, because while I appreciated his enthusiasm, the truth is that he goes to work, and I'm the stay at home mom monitoring the potty-training on a daily basis. He assured me I could handle it.

So we've been in phase two for a week. It's best described as "it gets worse before it gets better." Not because she's missing the box. On the contrary, she leaps gracefully from the floor to the chair to the box, and I have a picture to prove it, but it seems mean to post it to the world wide web. But when she leaps gracefully out, she does so spraying litter like confetti all around the bathroom.

I asked Ryan if we were pausing before advancing to phase three because of his upcoming surgery, but he looked at me like that was just crazy talk. Pause? When phases one and two have gone so well?

And when phase three has arrived in the mail?

That is how we have come to be the first couple in America (I'm sure) to potty-train a ten year old cat while convalescing on gallternity leave.

Stay tuned. You won't want to miss it. And let's hope she doesn't. 

Ryan's Chili {With Homemade Seasoning}

Remember when we used to eat food besides chicken? I think we're starting to forget that time in life. Chicken noodle soup, chicken nuggets, chicken salad, chicken sandwiches, grilled chicken - you get the idea. We may begin clucking and developing an interesting walk soon.

But back in the day - like December - we used to eat things like chili. And lasagna. And tacos. And eggs. And turkey burgers. {You get the idea.} And chili, interestingly enough, is one of Ryan's signature dishes. When I told him I wanted to put the recipe on the blog, he asked why. Said everyone knew how to make chili.

Ummmm, everyone except your wife! True story. White chicken chili? Oh yes. Plain chili? No clue. Maybe I'm the only one on the planet, but in case I'm not, I thought I'd share the recipe. And in case I am, well, now I have the recipe right here so I can make it myself instead of saying, "Hey I'd love to have chili. Can you cook tonight?"

And maybe, just maybe, in the not too distant future, we can eat this again right here in our very own house!!

I love this recipe because it has a bit of kick, but not too much {unless, of course, you have a faulty gallbladder and then for the love of Pete, do NOT eat this}. It's quick and easy to put together, tastes even better the longer it simmers, and is perfect for a chilly {ha! See what I did there?} winter night.

And if we're being entirely fair, I also love this recipe because Ryan makes it, and let's be honest: no matter how much you love to cook, sometimes a meal just tastes better when someone else makes it.

Ryan's Chili with Homemade Seasoning

* 1 pound ground turkey
* Chili Seasoning {recipe below} or 1 packet of purchased seasoning
* 1 46-ounce bottle of tomato juice
* 1 28-ounce can of diced tomatoes with onions and chilis
* 1 15-ounce can of chili beans with or without starter sauce

Brown the turkey and add the chili seasoning. Combine all ingredients in large stock pot and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for at least a half hour or up to several hours. Serve warm with shredded cheese and crackers or cornbread on the side. 

A Few Tips:
 
* We use ground turkey in place of ground beef, but you could certainly use ground beef if you prefer. We add the seasoning to the meat after it is browned

* Here is the recipe for the chili seasoning, which cuts down on preservatives and other such things, but if you prefer to purchase a packet of seasoning, you certainly can: 3 Tablespoons chili powder, 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 1/2 teaspoons of seasoned salt. If you want a little extra heat, add some cayenne pepper.

* If you get a can of plain diced tomatoes, you can always chop up an onion to add to the soup. Or if you just really like onion, you can use both!

* We use the chili beans with the starter sauce because it has some extra seasoning and Ryan likes that. But you could use plain beans, and if you hate beans, you could leave that part out altogether, although your chili won't be quite as thick.

* Besides cheese, you could use sour cream {or Greek yogurt}, green onions, or tortilla chips as a garnish. You can serve this with crackers, cornbread, garlic bread, or even over baked potatoes if you want!

* This does reheat nicely for leftovers!

Because ONE Matters

We started up our Bible study again last night. The first meeting of 2017 found all of us gathered around a kitchen island, drinking coffee, trying tiramisu, and sampling a {very delicious} cheeseball. And then we gathered in the living room to break open An Unexplainable Life and look again at the book of Acts and the life of the early church.

I don't know what it was like weather-wise in your world yesterday, but it was just cold, windy, rainy, nastiness here. It was tempting to crawl under a blanket and just stay home, but when you lead the Bible study, you can't exactly do that, so I went, and I'm sure glad I did. Isn't it just how it usually goes when God brings the biggest blessings out of the nights when you are most tempted to skip?

We studied Acts 8, which includes the account of Philip taking a bit of a detour and finding the Ethiopian Eunuch who was struggling to understand the words he studied as he read his scrolls.

Out of all the accounts that are shared in Scripture - which are not plentiful, if you stop and think about how many actually occurred - this one made it into the pages. This one moment in time when one man took a significant geographical detour and ended up running into one other man who needed to have an explanation of the Gospel. He had the words in front of him but he didn't understand them.

You know why I love this so much? (And this is what we talked about at Bible study last night.) We're conditioned to believe our efforts matter most when they touch a HUGE group. How can we change the world? How can we impact the greatest number of people at one time? And somehow that teaches us (intentionally or unintentionally) that if we're not doing the biggest and the best, we're not mattering at all.

And yet right here in the middle of the Bible itself is this story of ONE PERSON ministering to ONE PERSON and from that, God did huge things.

It's hard to be content with little, isn't it? But little matters just as much as big. And sometimes it matters more than big.

This blog isn't a big blog. I've been here ten years, and I don't have ten thousand readers a day. And I know some people popped on the blogging scene last month and already have a far more "successful" outcome than I do. But it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter because I trust God to bring the people to this little page every day that need to see it. And if my job right now isn't to have a big blog, I need to be content with the small page He's allowed me, and be faithful to do my job here every day, knowing that each one who reads here matters.

Maybe your world is filled with small too: small churches, small classes, small book sales, small interest in whatever matters most to you. And maybe you've been conditioned to believe that small = failure. But it doesn't. One matters when God's running the show. And perhaps He has put you on a whole detour right now for the sake of ONE.

Be faithful to your one (or two or three).

After all - if you were the one, wouldn't you want to matter too?

Some Random January Fun

Ryan has decided upon a new project for the winter weeks ahead. And believe me: none of you will see this one coming.  Enjoy!

 Listen to Spill the Beans

Thanks (again...still...) to all of you who are lifting Ryan up in prayer right now as we continue to seek answers and solutions to the great health mystery of 2017! Yesterday morning, he had a HIDA scan and the results showed his gallbladder is only functioning at 20%. YAAAAAAAAAAY!!! WE have never been so happy to get bad news in all our lives! He has an appointment later this week with a surgeon to see his surgical options, and we are grateful to be able to take a step in SOME direction!

Meanwhile, we are one glorious week into a brand spankin' new year, and despite the fact that I've learned way more medical terms and doctor names than I ever intended in the span of a week, I've actually also done a variety of other fun things that I thought I'd share!

I made a little acrostic with the word January, because, well, I'm a nerd.

Jeans over yoga pants. || I made a goal that I would spend fewer days in yoga pants in 2017. It is so true that working from home leads a girl to slack off on appearance over time. My goal was to put on actual jeans more often and save the yoga pants for extra cold or sick days. SO far, I'm doing better! You know. A week in. :)

A new product from Lemongrass Spa. || I had a foot spa set that I'd not tried because I didn't have a little tub to soak my feet in anymore. And I kept forgetting to put one on the shopping list. But I finally remembered, got the tub, and last Friday, whilst I finished the final pages of The Secret Garden, I gave myself a little pedicure. Heavenly.

New habits in Scripture writing. || Perhaps you've seen this on the magic of Pinterest too, but there's a website called Sweet Blessings that has a daily Scripture writing plan for every month of the year. I'd never participated before, but I wanted to give it a shot this year. I haven't missed a day yet and I'm really enjoying the discipline of writing out a short set of verses every single day.

Undoing bad workout habits from the days of sickness. || The weeks of respiratory yuck took a toll on my workout habits. It's hard to be aerobic and such when you can't breathe without dying. So I committed to getting back into regular workouts in the new year, and even with the unexpected schedule of ER visits last week, I did get back into it!

Adding new recipes to the rotation. || I felt like at the end of last year, I was using the same five recipes over and over, and I knew I was bored with our eating choices, so I well imagined Ryan was bored too. {If only we'd known the chicken and veggie restrictions to come!} So I've been scouring cookbooks and Pinterest for healthy new recipes and have made a handful of successes AND failures already this year. My goal is to try one new recipe a week, but the gallbladder interruption has increased that more than I planned!

Reading books from my shelf. || Last year, I read an average of a book a week {plus a few bonuses} but almost all of them were new releases from publishers. Of course I want to keep up with that, but I also want to continue making my way through books I already own but haven't read. This week I chose a copy of a book I already owned, rather than something brand new!

Year four anniversary book DONE! || My goal is always to stay as current with my scrapbooks as I can, but the end of any calendar year always presents a challenge, because our anniversary AND Christmas come all in a row. I want to work hard to catch up before I forget the important details. Last Saturday, while Ryan worked, I knocked out our anniversary book! Now I just have to finish up 2016 {which is caught up to December 21 right now} and start 2017. And I didn't intend for the first week to be so scrapbook worthy!

So that's been my January fun. How 'bout you? Anything new, fun, or different in this first week of a new year?

In Which We Find a New (Possibly Temporary) Normal

You know how dearly I love a new year, and for this one, I worked hard to develop a plan that would help me be more purposeful in running after goals and better habits. It was all nerdy and color coded. Ridiculously wonderful is probably the best term for it.

And then, you know. Emergency Room visits and doctor appointments and all manner of things that had not been pre-scheduled in any color on the pretty pages of my planner. (I told Ryan yesterday we should probably just throw in the towel, buy a pill sorter, and go on with our lives.)

Suddenly all the meals that I had so carefully planned out and shopped for had to be modified, because right now, Ryan can't have...well, it's probably just fastest to say most foods. We eat a lot of Mexican spices and tomato-sauce laden foods, and pretty much all of that is out right now. No sloppy joes. No turkey burgers. No lasagna. No chicken taco soup. No nachos and cheese during football.

And my wifely skills were taking a pretty sharp beating with every single can of chicken noodle soup I popped open and dumped in a saucepan to heat up.

While I've been banging on the door of Heaven begging God for healing/answers/anything that pushes us in the right direction, I've also been struggling with satisfaction with our now.

All 26 alphabetical dates that I pre-planned last year and we were supposed to start this week have to be put on hold because they all contain foods Ryan can't have right now.

All my menu planning had to be redone. In fact, it straight up felt like all my cooking skills had to be re-learned, because suddenly, he can't have anything we ever eat.

All our days had to be scheduled at the last minute, because I never knew if we might have to pause for a new doctor's appointment or another ER visit. (And I'm the kind of girl who will pull an all-nighter to finish crossing stuff off my list because I can't abide by undone to-do lists.)

So this past week was a great opportunity for God to reshape my spirit a bit. A chance for me to relearn what really matters, and none of it includes my plans. A chance for me to find joy in serving Ryan through learning to cook new dishes and learning to put aside the things I've been so excited about to make room for new, more urgent focuses, like finding healing for the long haul and a semblance of normal for our now.

Yesterday I happened upon this post by Josh Buck, who I've known almost my whole life, but who I know most from interviewing him and his wife a couple of times back when I worked at WBCL. Josh was paralyzed in an accident ten years ago, and he has struggled with multiple health problems in the time that has passed. The post tells of his latest hospitalization and the extreme, horrific pain he's encountering. I read every line, about all the medications, all the decisions that have to be made, all the ways one thing affects another, and suddenly, learning to cook chicken in 34 new ways really didn't matter anymore.

And because I've read enough of what Josh's wife has written, I know her normal has been changed about a million times, and yet somehow she approaches it with grace and see it as an opportunity to serve and find a new angle to keeping the vows she made years ago.

So our days don't always go like we plan them (in color) in our pretty planners. And sometimes we have to find a new normal. Or a temporary normal. And it may feel awkward at first, but it really is a privilege in its own way. The key (which I will not claim to have mastered yet) is to look at it that way.

I'm grateful for Ryan. I'm grateful for our life. And if I need to learn to live on chicken for the foreseeable future and if we have to postpone our fun alphabetical dates for a while, we'll do it. Because what matters most is his health and finally seeing a smile on his handsome face.

The Shafferland Shuffle

After the week we've had, I kind of feel like New Year's Day was about 1000 years ago, but alas, it was just last Sunday! Here's a peek at our way-more-eventful-week-than-we-planned happenings!

* Last Sunday, as I said, was New Year's Day, and we'd planned to spend the day with Ryan's extended family for our annual Christmas gathering, but alas, we spent it in the Emergency Room instead, trying to get to the bottom of Ryan's sudden onset of pain within the last week. After four hours and a huge battery of tests, we were sent home with instructions to await the birth of Myrtle the kidney stone.

* Monday was our 49th monthiversary, and since Ryan's department was closed to observe New Year's Day, we actually got to spend the day together. YAY!!! We took it easy at home and tried to celebrate, but Ryan was still in a decent amount of pain, so it wasn't perhaps in the top five of most fun and eventful monthiversaries of all time. I hated that for him, but I was still happy to be with him.

* Tuesday, Ryan went back to work, and so did I, after a month or so away from my writing and speaking pursuits. We also hosted our first Tuesdays at the Table for 2017 that night, inviting our friends John and Sandee over for dinner. Apparently I cooked the worst of all the things for Ryan's poor stomach, because John and Sandee had barely left before we were in the car headed back to the Emergency Room for another 3 hours of tests. This time, we were sent home with an ulcer diagnosis.

* Wednesday, I returned to the carpool world, because school returned to full-time session. (I had a feeling the kiddo I drive to school would not be quite ready to go back, and I was right!) I spent the day working hard, and when I went to visit Ryan at the end of the work day, I even got to see Miss Phoebe! That's always a good day. Ended the day by making a big batch of granola, which made the house smell just like a bakery.

* Thursday, I devoted (hey!! that's my word of the year!) my entire day to finishing the work on my website to get it up and running. I got the entire site done, which made me SO HAPPY, and also SO BEHIND on my steps. I had to do some major laps around the house to get them all in, but I did it! And it was the perfect day to do all this, because it was also our first snow of 2017! (There's no picture of this because I guess he didn't want to remember it, but this was also the day of Ryan's gallbladder ultrasound, which showed the healthiest liver in Howard county...and no gallstones.)

* Friday was cold here in the Midwest, although we were not preparing for any blizzards like I know some of you were! I ran my errands early so I could be HOME where it was warm, finishing my book and trying out my new foot soak kit (HEAVENLY). Ryan and I did our grocery shopping right after work so we could come home and rest all evening. Ryan's had a long, hard week, and he definitely deserved his rest! Since we can't eat most places currently, we got Subway and brought it home. Delicious - and bonus! Didn't make Ryan sick!

* Yesterday was cold again, but I told Ryan whenever the sun comes out and the wind dies down, it somehow doesn't feel quite as cold. I worked hard to try making some new recipes to try to make Ryan's diet a little more exciting, and he was able to eat everything I made. YAY! He was even feeling well enough last night to run to Starbucks for a latte. He takes the whole coffee thing very easy right now, so this was a treat!

The Saturday Six

One.

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If it's cold and snowy where you live, today would be a great day to curl up and listen to a podcast! I've got the first Conversation Cafe of 2017 with author Erica Wiggenhorn. I've told you about her new Bible study, An Unexplainable Life several times, because I just completed it at the end of last year. (It's also the study Ryan and I are leading together with our small group.) I really enjoyed this study and it was a treat to get to hear from Erica herself about her passion for Christ and what she learned from studying the first half of Acts. If you're looking for a good study to start 2017, pick this one! And take a listen to Erica's heart!


Two.

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I found this post by Wendy Lawton at the Books and Such Literary blog, and though it's geared toward writers, I think the words are helpful for anyone working from home/getting back into homeschooling right about now. Wendy gives permission to ease back in, which was my exact plan as I returned to work this past week. I appreciated her validation that easing in wasn't slacking off, and perhaps we'd all have a better start to the new year if we allowed ourselves this very thing, rather than rushing headlong into a busy schedule and finding frustration at the inability to keep up!

Three.

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I haven't blogged much recently about my adventures in styling my capsule wardrobe, because I haven't completed any new sections of it! But when I started this adventure, one of the most helpful blogs I found was Audrey over at Putting Me Together. She is down-to-earth, real, shops at normal stores, has a normal body type, and I found her tips and ideas very helpful! This week she shared this post that I LOVED! Tons of ideas on how to figure out what you need in your wardrobe, if that confuses you. Really helpful post!

Four.

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One of the hard things about waiting for answers in the whole medical world is...well...waiting. I don't do it well, especially when I have to watch my Love hurting so much! I had mentioned in passing to one of my friends this week that I was frustrated as to whyyyyyyyyyyy {yes, read in a whine} God wasn't answering, and she reminded me that wait was an answer. {Sigh. I know.} Later, she shared this post with me, which was really convicting and comforting at the same time. Don't know if you're in a waiting game right now or not, but if so...read up! 

Five.

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Last year, I had the opportunity to join up with a team of writers to share posts in the Annesley Writers Forum. This week, they published one of my articles, which happens to be about our "Tuesdays at the Table" project. I'm excited to share that with you today, both to share about this project I love so much and also to share the site with you. Lots of great articles each week by a variety of women! 

Six. 

As you know, this past year I got in the habit of reading a book every week and reviewing it here on Saturdays. As far as I know, I plan to keep that habit this year, because I have loved returning to books after so many years of not having time to read.

But today I feel funny calling this last part a book review, since the book I read this week is considered an American classic and isn't going anywhere whether or not I loved it. But though I won't call it an actual review, I'll tell you that for the first time ever in my life, I read Frances Hodgson Burnett's The Secret Garden.

I had mentioned on a podcast not long ago that I'd never read the book, and my mom happened to have a copy that someone gave her for Christmas in 1947. (That's 69 years ago if anyone is doing the math.) So not only did I read an old book this week, I actually read an old book. I think it was as much fun to hold an old copy in my hands as it was to read the story.

Have you read The Secret Garden? If you haven't, the quick synopsis of the book is that it's the story of Mary Lennox, a little orphan girl who comes to live at Misselthwaite Manor with her uncle - although perhaps it's more accurate to say she comes to live with his staff. He's rarely there. She arrives in the winter, and the Manor is a giant, gray, tomb-like place to be, so Mary sets out exploring to keep herself occupied on the long days. As winter creeps into spring and she spends time outside in the gardens, she discovers a secret garden, one commanded closed by her uncle following the death of his wife.

The book was written in the early 1900's, so some of the words are unfamiliar to us now in daily use, and other words are used very differently in our language today. (I told Ryan I'd never read a book in which a female character talked about how excited she was to get fat.) There are also some sections written in a heavy Yorkshire dialect, so you have to slow down in those parts and read carefully to fully understand.

Mary and some other characters in the book believe the secret garden has magical powers, so if magic talk bothers you, you'll want to be prepared for that. But even with that, you could see a sense of innocence and fun throughout every page of this book that seems to be missing from much of what we might read in present-day books.

I particularly loved the way this book simply told a story. I'm pretty sure Frances wasn't worried with character development and multiple plot lines and all the things authors have to mess with today to be successful. It's just a fun story, and I was able to simply enjoy it.

When I was in college, one of my professors dearly loved to visit used bookstores and hunt for old copies of books. Treasures. I never understood it, but after reading this one, I am starting to see her joy in that. (Oh dear. I feel a trip to a bookstore in my future.) I say this because as I read through some reviews of this book on Amazon, I realized many of the copies for sale today are abridged versions and rewritten versions. There was something lovely about holding an untouched version in my hands to read, and I think I might like that again with another classic.

So that was my week with The Secret Garden. Ryan has asked if a movie version of the story is available. ;)