2018...A Final Farewell

I had grand plans for crafting a superb post for today, but I feel like that is too much pressure to put on myself. So I'll simply craft a post, and if it ends up being superb, that'll be an added bonus. If not, it's no less sincere a farewell to this year we've just lived.

We had some really beautiful things happen this year, and one of them kicked off on New Year's Day last year. We rang in the new year with our new Sunday School class. We'd only been with them a few months and still struggled to know and remember names. We weren't even sure we should presume ourselves welcome at their annual party, but we went, and it ended up being the perfect way to find our place among them.

Sometimes you just have to hang out with your people in a different place to get to know them in a different way, and for us, that party was the place and the way. This past year with them has been beautiful. We've studied a lot of Scripture on Sundays, learned a lot of things, and we've also had the blessing of spending time with them off the Sunday School clock. Lunches and dinners out, a Euchre tournament, a graduation open house, my birthday party...it's been a good year with new friends. We are grateful.

And while we're talking about church, it's been a sweet year there, too. We have found ways to fit in and serve, from doing announcements to participating in the patriotic program to speaking at the leadership conference to serving communion. We love all the learning we get to experience under some very gifted teachers, but we also love finding ways to serve together. That is a special blessing.

Going into this year, I had a whole list of goals and plans for what I wanted to see in writing and speaking. It's good to have goals, and it's good to let go of them so God can do what He wants to do. Ryan and I were able to travel and serve groups we didn't even know about at this time last year. We even got the chance to speak together a few times, which was unexpected and sweet. We are grateful for every opened door, and we also thank God for every closed door. We may not know what He was protecting us from, but we trust Him for it.

We've had a few people ask us lately if we've completed our tour of all 92 counties in Indiana. Nope! This year may not have been our best year for that. Ryan worked a lot of weekends, and that cut into the time we would normally have to gallivant around the state. BUT we did cross off five counties, which was pretty great if you consider how many weekends were out of commission. We're still having fun with that (clearly ongoing) project. This year we even had friends accompany us on a couple of tours!

We celebrated good things this year. Birthdays of the big and small variety, monthiversaries, engagementversaries, an anniversary, and brand new babies. We count each one a blessing, and we are grateful for happy days like these. They're good for the soul.

This year not only brought us good things, but it took us great places. Little trips, big trips, and oh.....the stories we collected. These moments are sweet to both of us. Memories are the greatest collector's item, I think.

It wasn't always an easy year. We said some hard goodbyes to people we loved. We heard scary diagnoses for people we love. We prayed scary prayers for an unknown future. But in all of that, we grew and learned so much.

We became temporary caretakers. We became temporary hosts. We became temporary childcare. We learned to let go of schedules and roll with what each day brought.

This year, probably more than any other so far, we solidified as a team. We figured out how to do this life thing together, to the best of our ability, and sometimes with donuts in the closet.

We laughed and cried, and we hit a huge milestone: we read through the entire Bible in one year. That was exciting! (Not just the completing...but the journey.)

2018 has been good. Even in the hard and the hang-onto-your-hat, it's been good. It's been a year of growth, celebration, milestones, accomplishment, and trust. We are so thankful.

And we welcome 2019 with all its adventures. Let's do this!

The Final Shafferland Shuffle for 2018!

Another last for the year....the last Shuffle! And I think you'll find a heavy Christmas presence in this one. (See what I did there? Christmas presence?)

* We kicked off the Christmas celebration last Sunday, and I know you've already seen a fuller post about it, so I'll try not to belabor the point. Ryan and I hosted the family Christmas that's usually held out at his mom and Allen's beautiful cabin. We had 18 people in our little house, ate breakfast for dinner, opened gifts, and enjoyed our opportunity to help out by providing a place to meet!

* Monday was Christmas Eve, and Ryan worked the morning, while I stayed home regrouping from the day before and preparing for the celebrations ahead. Phoebe spent a few hours with us that day, and then Ryan and I headed out to our church's Christmas Eve service. We'd been asked to help light candles, and we were excited that we didn't cause any harm or injury to ourselves or others - ha! After that, we had Christmas with Ryan's dad's side of the family!

* Tuesday was Christmas Day! Ryan and I had our own little Christmas celebration here at home with Braeya Jo, and then we packed up and headed to my parents' house for Christmas with my side of the family. That evening, we had Christmas with Ryan's step-family, and before we came home, we drove through a light display in our little hometown of Greentown. A full day!

* Ryan had Wednesday off work, which was such a blessing to both of us. We did some after-Christmas shopping, made a gingerbread train together, and rigged up our new fancy pants coffee maker. Our first lattes were delicious, even if we had no idea what we were doing! And in other news, Ryan's mom got to go home from the hospital that day!

* Ryan went back to work Thursday, and I met up with a friend for coffee. We had been trying to have this coffee date for about two months, but you remember my crazy end-of-2018, right? Ryan tried a new coffee experiment at lunchtime and accidentally made latte art. :) It probably can't happen again if we try. After lunch (and into the evening) I took down all the Christmas decorations and made big piles around the house in preparation for putting them away!

* And Friday I did just that. Put everything back in the tubs. Gracie stood all alone in the corner, and with Christmas officially done, I pulled out the day planner and began putting it together for 2019. That is one of my FAVORITE things to do! Ryan and I went on a quick date that night - drove to a nearby town to drive through their park's light display!

* Yesterday was our very last Christmas for 2018. We got together with Ryan's extended family, and this year there were a bunch of cousins that never get to come! We had a great time...ate food...played with kiddos...played with dogs...played games. Great way to bookend our week of Christmas!

The Saturday Six

This is the last Saturday Six of 2018, so I hope you find an idea or two to help you into the new year!

One.

Need a workout plan to push you into the new year? If you need to work on guns, buns, and abs, this calendar from a previous year might be just what you need!

Two.

Bet you could make something similar to this with things you have around the house! (Well, except the fake snow part, probably.) Cute little winter DIY décor.

Three.

In the last quarter of 2018, my reading plan really fizzled. I just didn't have time to do everything, and sitting to read was the first thing to go. I hope to get back on the book-a-week bandwagon in 2019, but if a new book every week is still too daunting for you, here's an idea for a book a month. This plan encourages you to try different kinds of books so you don't get in a rut!

Four.

A couple of years ago, for my devo/Bible reading plan, I did Scripture writing. I loved it. There was something very profound about copying the Word with my own hand that allowed it to settle in my mind in fresh ways. I used plans created by Shannon at Sweet Blessings, and she's still creating new plans. Here's her plan for January 2019, and I love her theme. She focuses on verses in Psalms that contain the phrase "I will." She said most people go to Psalms for comfort, but there are also great reminders of our own responsibilities found within it. See Psalms from a new perspective with this writing plan!

Five.

I'm not really a diehard "word of the year" person, but I did get sucked into this Dayspring quiz (just for fun). If you like a yearly theme, this seven question quiz can help direct you to one that may be the perfect focus for you in 2019!

Six.

I took the last couple of days to begin getting the house back in order. (Always a chore after Christmas!) If keeping the house clean is a challenge for you, check out Clean Mama's daily calendar. She has a great way of making a huge (and potentially unpleasant) task very manageable. She has lots of other resources on her site too!

So there you go! A new year inspired Saturday Six!!

What I Learned in December

It's not the last day of December, and I do know that, but I wanted to go ahead and do this post today. Who knows!? I might have something super exciting this weekend to report on Monday, or I might want to do a nice, tidy, end-of-year post. So today I'll tell you what I learned in December. (This is also an admission that I am unlikely to learn anything new in the next three days. Ha!)

Anyway! Here are the things I've learned this month. Did you learn anything fun this month?

1. My Financial Aid job seems like 100 lifetimes ago.

I stopped by my old IWU stomping grounds earlier this month as I passed through town. I visited my office suite where I worked for a total of fifteen years, and it doesn't even feel remotely familiar anymore. There are only two people in that office that worked there when I did, my office is empty, and nothing about the place feels familiar in any way. Though I have many fond memories of the people I worked with across that span of time, the job itself feels so far away now.

2. Ryan learned what a carriage house is...and that he owned one for fifteen years!

On our anniversary trip, we stayed in an Airbnb that was a carriage house. He thought Carriage was the last name of the house owners. (That cracked me up!) Once I explained what a carriage house is, he said, "Oh! Like I owned at my old house?" Yes! He owned one for fifteen whole years and didn't even know it!

3. Ashley Williams is Kimberly Williams-Paisley's sister.

Source

I was watching Home and Family on Hallmark one day (I still miss the old hosts!) and they had one of their Christmas movie actresses on to promote a movie. In the middle of conversation, she said she was Kimberly Williams-Paisley's sister. (You remember her...Father of the Bride? Brad Paisley's wife?) How did I not know this!?!?!? (Fun fact: I texted that info to Ryan, and he said, "They don't look alike." I told him I was just about to say to him, "I totally see it now that I know.") THEN I learned that Ashley also played Jim Gaffigan's TV wife when he had a sitcom for a brief period of time. We watched that every week and I never put together that she was the Hallmark actress.

4. I'm glad I started my Christmas gifts in July.

I made my gifts this year, and I started all my research and brainstorming this summer during a random day of boredom. Back then, of course, I had NO idea all the chaos that would ensue in the last quarter of our year, so I had no idea how happy I would be that bored-in-the-summer Bekah got a head start on those presents!!

5. The first Monday of the year is when the most divorces are filed.

NO. We are not participating. But I was reading through a list of holidays/observances and Divorce Monday was sitting right there. I guess the site moderators figured that one might raise a few questions because they listed that explanation on the side. Post-holiday, post-tax-credit happenings, I guess.

6. I prefer the air fryer tots to the fast food tots now.

Source

Fun random fact about my life: even though I'm in charge of my own schedule and can do whatever I want, I pretty much never go shopping. Like you know how some people just take an afternoon and head out for shopping and lattes? I don't. But I needed to get Ryan's stocking stuffers, so I took an afternoon this month and went out on the town. I stopped at some stores to window shop, some to try on clothes, some to shop for him, and at the end of my day, I stopped at Sonic for a giant tea and a small order of tater tots. I love their tots. Or I did. It turns out that I've gotten super used to the ones Ryan makes in the air fryer. (Not frequently, but we do it now and then.) They're so much crispier...and there's not a stitch of oil!

A Post-Christmas Date

Suffice it to say, our life in October, November, and December has been a bit on the chaotic side. Not all of it has been bad or hard, but all of it has been busy. Ever since we came home from our anniversary trip, we've been running nonstop and playing a lot of divide and conquer. Ryan has spent hours upon hours with his mom, trying to make sure she's well-cared-for during her multiple hospital stays.

So yesterday was our day. I so looked forward to it! We slept in, went out for some Christmas-deal shopping, and had lunch together. We took a break to head to the hospital to help pack up Ryan's mom and listen to the going-home instructions, and then we went home!

Earlier in December, we got a gingerbread train kit, and we hadn't had a moment to put it together, so this was our night! I think there's a good chance we do NOT have a future in decorating, but we did have a lot of fun putting it together. And yes, we used hot glue. LOL!

It may not have looked {anything} like the box, but we thought it was pretty cute. And fun!

THEN we broke out our new Christmas gift. I haven't even gotten to tell you about it yet, because I haven't told you about our Christmas day. But our "big gift" for each other this year was a fancy pants latte/cappuccino/espresso machine. We're going to figure out how to become our own baristas!

Ummmmm, yesterday was not that day. We had some over-foaming and some spills, but we did manage to make a tasty-even-if-not-pretty dark chocolate covered cherry latte and white chocolate raspberry latte.

And so that was our date! All too soon, the day was over. But it was a great one while it lasted!