What I Learned in November

And just like that, we've come to the LAST MONTH of 2020. Crazy! Last night, Ryan and I watched our 1-second-per-day video for all of 2020, and it was insane to see how dramatically everything about the year changed: for us and for the world at large. Crazy!! But for today we'll just talk about November. I learned a few things this month! 

1. You can purchase nut crusts for pies. 

I was looking for a premade pie shell in the baking aisle this month...you know, the graham cracker kind? That was when I discovered you can also purchase nut crusts! I had no clue. Did you? 

2. Looking at old scrapbooks is a good use of time.

We didn't do it every single night this month, but many of the evenings, we pulled out one of our old travel scrapbooks to relive the fun we've had on adventures. We have missed getting to travel this year, and it was extra fun to relive our memories. I spend a lot of time working hard on those books and always like going back to look through them!

3. Always overexpect the number of spare Christmas lights you'll need.

They don't make 'em like they used to. Strands that I know were brand new last year were dead entirely this year. And I hadn't bought enough spares at the end of the season. I had one tree delayed by a day because I had to go buy more lights!

4. It's Christmas when the Hershey Kiss handbell commercial plays. 

I love the new twist they've put on it this year. I love it that it starts with the original and then includes the newer part. It makes me happy. And hungry. :) 

5. Ryan likes pistachios.

I had absolutely no idea. He bought a bag of them at the store one night and said he normally doesn't buy them because they're pretty expensive. I actually don't like them, so he doesn't have to share with me! (Fortunately, Braeya leaves them alone too, though she does enjoy looking at them.)

6. There are 100 calorie Snicker bars.

We saw these in line at the store one night. They're like a long, skinny fun-size Snickers. Have you seen these? (Also shout out to the days of yore when I ate a FULL SIZE SNICKERS and drank a cremosa every single morning for my breakfast. That might explain some pounds.)

7. Ryan painted 196 coats of paint on doors for Abby.

It was a lot of paint. He was glad he waited until the very end to do the math. He's also glad that project is DONE.

And also...I met my goals for November! Here's an update!

1. Make significant headway on painting the cabinets in Abby the RV.

DONE!!! How's that for significant headway! In less than a month, we worked together to prime and paint all the cabinet frames AND walls in the RV, and then Ryan did all the cabinets in his spare time. She looks so cute these days - even though she still has a ways to go before she's finished. Can't wait to show you an update soon! Meanwhile, here's a peek at the cabinets installed.

2. Write Christmas letter and design Christmas cards.

Done and done! The letter is all done and printed so we can stuff and mail the cards. The cards are designed, ordered, and here! Ryan created and printed all the labels, and I'll probably work on it all while we are on our anniversary getaway. 

3. Plan anniversary getaway.

Speaking of...we got it done! I planned it all out and put the finishing touches on it just a couple of days ago. We may have to roll with a few punches as we go, if places aren't open like their websites say they are, but for the most part, we're all set. And you guyssssssss!!! The Airbnb we found is so cute I just cannot even stand it!

4. Decorate for Christmas.

Done!! Oh how we are loving it every day! Lights everywhere, trees everywhere...joy everywhere!

5. Complete 21 Day Prayer Challenge

Done! I enjoyed reading the emails that came to my inbox each day and praying creatively! It was a good thing for my November. 

The Shafferland Shuffle

 

Good morning and a happy first Sunday of Advent to all of you!! This week is ANNIVERSARY WEEK for us! Can you believe it? Eight years - and I'm so excited to celebrate it. This past week officially began busy season here in Shafferland...Thanksgiving, Christmas, anniversary...it all piles up together here at the end of the year!

* Last Sunday we received our first actual snow (not just flurry snow) here in Grabill. It wasn't nearly as much as predicted, but it was pretty! Ryan and I were still on our four day break that day, and we thoroughly enjoyed our day of rest. We also decorated our Shafferland tree that night - with almost ninety ornaments that tell the story of our eight years! It looked so pretty and cozy when we were done!

* Monday we had a visitor! PHEEBS!! (And her people.) We all finally had a day off together, so they came to see us, and I was so happy to see my girl again. That was twice in one week after three months of not seeing her! That evening was our switchover back to being on duty, and Ryan was so sweet: one of our tenants was working on a craft project for a birthday gift and she got a bit overwhelmed by it. Ryan sat at the table with her and helped her finish the whole thing. (SWOON!)

* Tuesday we were back on duty, and on his breaks, Ryan painted the LAST of the doors for Miss Abby. Listen to this: it took him 196 coats of paint to cover all the doors. (4 coats of paint front and back for each door, plus the drawer fronts.) He was so glad to be done with that project! I did a far less important project that day: laying out a capsule wardrobe idea for December. :) 

* Wednesday morning we did inventory in an empty apartment so it will be all ready for a tenant! It's been a looming project for us for a while and we finally got to it! Ryan hung the LAST of the cabinet doors in Abby and she just looks cute as a little button. We still have some projects to finish, but that was a big one. That evening we watched our tenant's little boy for a while...he loved all the Christmas lights in here. 

* Thursday was Thanksgiving, and it was a work day for us. First time I've ever worked a major holiday, and it wasn't too bad. Ryan and I cooked our whole meal together and it was delicious! We had checked out a Christmas tree farm down the road and learned that this year you had to make an appointment to go, so we grabbed one for that afternoon and had the best time picking out our tree! Came home, decorated it, and called it done for the year on decor! And that evening we watched a cute little Christmas movie with one of our tenants - and we squeezed in one more apartment inventory late that night!

* We did a little hall-decking around WillowBridge on Friday. Ryan worked on outside decorations since the weather wasn't too bad, and I worked on sprucing up the entry. (Official decorating for the Community Room is next weekend.) I wanted to go check out a few little sales in the cute downtown shops Friday afternoon, so we did that - and Ryan discovered after we had done a whole store that he had his mask on UPSIDE DOWN. Oh good grief. We got a good laugh out of that. We had a little coffee shop date while we were out, too! It was a fun evening - and a consolation prize from the community tree lighting getting cancelled this year. 

* And then yesterday was a catch-up day around here. We did some chores around the building and then had some visitors! Ryan's dad and step-mom came to see us, and we enjoyed showing them where we live and work! After they left, we went to get the groceries for the WillowBridge Thanksgiving dinner, and then it was home for a relaxing evening at home - with a Hallmark movie! 

The Saturday Six

 

One.

It's possible this week's Six might contain a little extra Christmas, and we'll start with this tutorial on how to make dried orange slices for your home. If you're looking for a fairly easy project that gives a little homespun Christmas cheer, this could be the ticket! (Have any of you ever tried drying orange slices before? I haven't, but I think they're so pretty.)

Two.

I've missed being able to get out and hike this year as much as we have in some years before. (Some of that was from our busy schedule...hello, moving and a new job! Some of it was from parks being closed this year.) But this list of the best day hike in every state looks so fascinating! We haven't even done the one from Indiana. I was sure we would have hit their pick for that, but I was wrong.

Three.

Did any of you have pen pals back in the day? I sure did, especially in junior high and high school. (I'm actually still Facebook friends with one of the pen pals I met through a magazine, of all places!) Letter writing is such a lost art now, but isn't this a COOL way to send a letter?? I was kind of smitten...

Four.

My friend Jenna just launched a website for her SUPER CUTE sewing creations. For years now, she's been making the cutes stuff for kids - bowties, skirts, accessories, and more. (She even made hundreds of masks this year, though they aren't part of her current feature on her new site.) She's sold locally, but now she has a website and I can show you how talented she is!! So proud of her! :) 

Five.

Have Christmas movies started at your house? We caught Christmas Vacation earlier this week and hope to squeeze in many more of our favorites before Christmas arrives. I have watched The Santa Clause, and I think I've seen the second one too, but never the third one. But if you want to have a movie marathon of all three...check out this fun printable pack from Dating Divas! It has everything you need for a Santa Clause kind of day!

Six.

Back when I worked at IWU, they had a huge Christmas party every year for the staff. Santa came and handed out gifts to employees' kids, and they had all kinds of appetizers, snacks, and treats. AND they had this amazing coffee punch that I could not stop drinking. (I'm not kidding. I would make my own trips to the table for more and then start sending up friends to get more for me, because I had reached my own embarrassment stage.) If I had a bowl of it right now, I'd probably just stick in a straw and start guzzling. Thankfully I don't have a bowl of it - but I found a recipe that looks awfully similar. If you decide to make some and want to invite me over, don't bother getting out a glass. Just give me a straw. :) 

Dreams and Goals for December 2020

In typical Bekah fashion, I am crafting my December goals starting at 11 p.m. the night before this post goes up for you to read. I'm pretty sure that I start the January goal post mid-December every year and spend days and days getting the year off to a strong start. By December...well...it's all happening the night before. So here are my hastily compiled (but no less sincere) goals!

1. Address and mail Christmas cards.

Do you all remember address books? Do any of you still keep an honest-to-goodness paper address book? I had one for years and years, but I couldn't keep it in pretty order, what with people moving/getting married/getting unmarried/having babies...you know how it goes. And then I married Ryan and that alone added about 80 more entries to my book, because he has TONS of family members. So I moved to a easily edited Word document version, and it made life so happy. Until...it got to the point where we had some people in the address book that we weren't really Christmas card swappers with, but it felt mean to delete them from the list entirely. So now I have TWO Word documents. The unabridged address list and the Chirstmas card list. And somehow, someway, in the last year, both of them became an utter mess. Sometimes I updated one but not the other. Sometimes I failed to update either. And 2020 was the year a significant number of our friends moved (and we did too!) so everything was out of date everywhere. It took me a couple of hours one night to straighten out both of them, actually. So now that they are all pretty, the addresses have to move FROM the list TO the cards. Ryan is always good to help with this project, which I appreciate, but I gotta get it done. We've had the cards for a few weeks now, and the letter is complete. It's just assembly time.

2. Finish shopping and wrap all the gifts. 

Happily, I had more gifts purchased than I realized. And I did hit a good sale last night, so I got a few more. Now I have to figure out what we have, what we need, buy the rest, and wrap them all up! I usually do all the wrapping, even though in full disclosure, Ryan is a MUCH better gift wrapper than I am. His look like they should be stamped "wrapped by a professional." Mine are lucky to have the whole gift covered. I'm tellin' you. He's so talented. 

3. Work on (dare we dream to COMPLETE?) the backsplash and flooring - and more? - in Abby.

We have ordered some peel and stick backsplash for Abby's little kitchen, and we hope to get that all pieced together and applied this month. (If you're new here, Abby is our little RV. I realize not much about this point makes sense if you don't know that.) Ryan says he feels like it could be feasible to complete the flooring project in there, too. We have that purchased, but we have to install it. And maybe a couple of other small finishing projects in there? Maybe that's biting off more than we can chew, but it's good to dream.

4. Try out a mini capsule wardrobe.

This may not end up working out, but I'm going to give it a shot. I had a surge of creative spark last week and came up with an idea to try a mini capsule wardrobe for December - using a specific set of colors. (Purple, black, white, and gray.) I've gathered together the pieces I owned and am trying to see how many combinations I can come up with using what I already own. We'll see how it goes! 

5. Enjoy whatever version of the Christmas season comes to pass.

Ryan and I have moved to a Hallmark-esque town, and tonight was supposed to be the lighting of the Christmas tree. It's been cancelled - as have all other Christmas festivities. I understand and am not surprised, of course, but it does make me sad. We have a couple of things planned here at WillowBridge for our building (which is essentially our day-to-day family) but we also know any of that might have to be altered if anyone ends up in quarantine. We have no idea what family we will or will not get to see. In all of it, we know we do have a cozy home with TONS of trees. We have the ability to walk around and enjoy light displays on our own, even if there isn't any organized fanfare to go with it. We have sappy TV movies. We have more than enough to have a completely enjoyable season. And I want to enjoy it all to the fullest. 

I wish I could make more concrete goals, but being too specifically lofty in the busiest month of a pandemic year seems unwise. I want to enjoy our anniversary, whatever it ends up looking like. I want to enjoy Christmas, whatever it ends up looking like. I want to finish the year well. 

Any of you making goals for December??

Thank You, Lord!

Happy Thanksgiving, my friends! What a strange day it will be for most of you, I'm sure, and I know some of you are really struggling with changes or flat out cancellations to your gatherings. Sending you a big virtual hug today and hoping you can find good things to appreciate about this day.

Ryan and I are cooking our own Thanksgiving meal, and we are so excited about it. A couple of nights ago, I sat down and wrote out a very detailed list of what needs to be cooked when - and all the recipes, too, so they're easy to get to when it's time to cook. Can't. Wait. 

But since it is Thanksgiving, I thought I would pause to give thanks for God's goodness this year. 

I started to list bullet points of things I'm thankful for, but I deleted them, because it isn't about pointing out all the things that went right this year. It's been far too difficult a year for far too many. Sometimes reading what went right for someone else when they didn't go right for you can do more harm than good. Besides, you hang out here enough to know what I'm thankful for in the bullet point category.

But I'm oh so very thankful for God's creative provision in such unexpected ways this year. I've been trying to be more aware of how He works in things we too often miss, because we're only looking at the big things.

Here are some examples that come to mind...

After having such a rough start with the dental office we tried after our move, I called my old dentist to see if I could get some insight on my dental weirdness that would help make the transition smoother for me. In the course of the conversation I learned that my beloved dental assistant at that former office is able to take me back. On my last visit with her, she told me she was moving into a new role and wouldn't be able to see me anymore even if I continued going there. They told me she is serving in that role, but only part time, and she's seeing patients again. I can go back. I wanted to cry with joy when I hung up from that call! I never expected to be able to go back, and it's a blessing for my dentally-anxious heart.

As I sat here in my spot on the couch, looking around at our cozy apartment and Christmas decorations, I felt a surge of gratitude for this home we get to enjoy. I'm still a real estate listing addict, so I've caught right up on what homes cost in this darling little town we live in. Everything (even the itty bitty houses) I've seen so far has been way out of our price range. What a blessing it is that we have this little apartment in all its comfort. Sure, we sometimes hear noises throughout the building, but it doesn't bother us. We are just thankful beyond words to have a place beyond anything we could afford.

We have not one, but TWO babies in this building, and they both bring such joy to my heart. I love seeing their little face light up when I say hi to them. I love watching them figure out new skills (jumping, waving, and "dada" are king around here these days). I love it that both their moms let them hang out with me now and then so I can get a cute baby fix. I had a rough afternoon the other day, and getting to rock one of them to sleep that night was the perfect medicine. 

After years of serving heartily in church, we've found ourselves in a season where we aren't able to commit to serving. Our schedule is too unpredictable to be available at routine times, so this isn't a time where we can lead a small group or join any committees. (Plus, you know...pandemic.) For now, we're simply learners in church. And I'm grateful for this season. I love serving, but I also love the chance to sit and learn. Its' a gift.

Nature is stunning in this little town. Ryan and I have taken more walks since we moved here than we ever have before (and we took lots of walks before!) - and the scenery is amazing. We get to see gorgeous flowers, beautiful sunsets, majestic horses, and all of them give my heart a chance to worship. I'm so thankful for it all.

On and on it goes. So much to be thankful for in such a strange year. 

I'm grateful today. I'm grateful for our little Thanksgiving for two and for the food God has allowed us to enjoy - and healthy versions of it at that. I'm grateful for this place and our marriage. I'm grateful God works in details like dentists and babies and sunsets.

And I'm grateful for all of you who leave such encouraging notes here. You're a gift, too!

Happy Thanksgiving!

A Few Good Decisions

Christmas is a month from today, and while our decorating game is strong, other parts of the game are floundering rather significantly right now. (I'm looking at you, shopping!) 

 Next year...next year!...I'm going to figure out a shopping game that works well for me in married life. I used to be absolutely proactive about shopping early and wrapping early, but once we got married at the start of December, I've never gotten back on a good shopping plan. Next year will be my year.

We probably all have things we plan to do better next year, but today I think we should celebrate good decisions we made this year! (We all have them. I promise.)

Here are some of my/our favorite decisions from 2020.

* Typing my journals. I've been keeping a journal since Christmas of 1993, which means I have been journaling for almost TWENTY-SEVEN YEARS, people! What in the world!?!? Anyway. I started journaling in a cute little cat journal that Mom gave me for Christmas that year, and for lo these many years, I handwrote every single entry. This year I started typing those entries, and it has been such a gift for me. I write more, because my hand doesn't get tired and the output of words can keep up with my brain! So glad I switched over.

* Getting back on the meal planning train. It's been almost exactly a year since I returned to the working world full time, leaving behind the work-at-home-wife life. When I started at the church, I struggled to keep up with meal planning like I'd done so meticulously for years. Not being home throughout the day to cook threw me for a loop and I couldn't recover. Then quarantine came, and it became hard to plan because you never knew what ingredients would be absent from the shelves any given week. Then we moved. I began to think I'd never figure out meal planning again. But in the last six weeks I made it a priority, and we are both loving it. We love having a plan, we love having healthy foods in the house again, and we love the measure of consistency it gives us.

* Trying a sugar detox. It's been seven weeks now since I made the choice to try a five day sugar detox. I wasn't sure I could do it at all. I definitely wasn't sure I could survive it with any sanity. But I did (both) and it was one of the best choices I made all year. I feel so much better in ways I didn't even realize I felt bad! It also jump-started our return to meal planning and cleaner eating, and both of us are glad I did it!

* Investing in Daily Grace Bible Studies. I first learned about The Daily Grace Company when one of my friends tagged me on Instagram about a writing job they had open. Fun fact: I actually applied for three jobs with them this year (two writing jobs and an editing position) and God closed all those doors. I was really sad about each closed door - and still am if I let myself think about it too long - but I trust that He had his reasons and of course I dearly love where Ryan and I ended up, so it's okay! Anyway, it was through that job tag that I learned about the company and started purchasing their Bible studies. I've done five of them this year and have learned so much I never knew before. I'm excited to get more of them and continue learning.

* Buying an RV. We've been dreaming about this for four years, and this was our year. We had no idea it would be, of course, but isn't that kind of the theme of 2020 for everything for everyone? We looked at hundreds of RVs online (not even close to kidding) and prayed so so hard before we made our purchase. We had to buy an older one that wasn't super pretty in order to stay in our budget, but we sure have loved making her our own. I can't believe how wildly different she looks already and she's not even done. We are thrilled to have her and excited about our future with her.

* Being brave enough to try a whole new life. We've prayed our whole marriage for a chance to work together, and every attempt has been gently closed by God. Some of those closed doors were heartbreaking, but we just kept praying and waiting for His timing. We never imagined working in social work. We never imagined moving north - only south. We never imagined living in an apartment in a tiny town. And we surely never imagined moving in the middle of a global pandemic. (But then again, we didn't imagine a pandemic!) We were met with many raised eyebrows when we shared our news, and much about this line of work was scary to consider. But we were confident in God's leading and did our part to follow. Some days are hard and most are long, but we are so glad we said yes.

So. So. Glad. 

And speaking of our work...I have a little request for you! Gateway Woods entered a contest called Pitch for Pins - to win a disc golf course on campus. Guess what?! Our (and by "our" I mean Gateway Woods...Ryan and I were not involved in the entry!) video entry made it into the top five! Voting is open just for about four more days, and if you would have a second to vote, it would be so amazing! (You don't have to enter your email or buy anything or do anything other than literally click a button.) Go here and scroll down to see the entry video...and then at the very bottom there is a list for voting. Our entry is "Emily Fischer and Gateway Woods."

For the record, since the middle of March, the Gateway Woods campus has been closed to visitors, which means all the family, friends, and host of community people who can normally come on campus to interact...can't. To have something like this for residents to do literally in their own backyard would be amazing! 

So those are some good decisions I/we made this year. How about you? What can you celebrate today? 

The (Almost) Complete Christmas Tour

We need a little Christmas...and it's here! Right here in Shafferland! 

This year we had to reinvent all our trees, because we're in a new space, and nothing is laid out quite the same. That was okay with me, because it kind of made everything feel new again! It took us three days to get it all assembled, but it's up now, and we love the way it turned out. It is so delightfully cozy and warm. 

Want a little tour?

Let's start in the guest room. This year that room got a makeover (into the Anne of Green Gables room) so I did have to get a few new things for it. In years past, our tree in that room has always been decked out in red, black, and silver, because that was the color scheme of the decor. Now the room is blue/green/purple/turquoise, so I purchased a few new ornaments and ribbons and added them to the same little white tree we've used in the guest room before. I still don't have a tree skirt, so ignore its naked little bottom, but the rest of the tree is cute! We perched it up on the dresser so it can be seen through the window.

I tried to tie in a few fun, sparkly, color coordinated ties around the room, even though I don't think we are expecting any company throughout the holidays this year.

I forgot until I unpacked the tubs that I'd gotten a little stable for my nativity. It made me quite happy!

Down the hall in the office, I put the same little flocked tree we got for the office last year! I added all the gold ornaments and ribbon, and it fits perfectly in the tiny space. It will make my writing times quite delightful!

I added some ornaments in a basket and a couple of our framed Christmas cards to the office, too, just to round out the decor. We don't have very much space left in that room to decorate beyond this, but this works! 

You could sort of see it in the office tree picture, but across the hall in the guest bath is my little ceramic tree that Mom painted back in the 80s when she did ceramics. These are back in style now, you know. :) 

There isn't much space in that bathroom, so the little ceramic tree is it for that room!

When we lived in Kokomo, I put the tall skinny pencil tree in the kitchen window (which was the full length window visible from the road) and decked it out with all my s'more and gingerbread ornaments and red balls, too. Our kitchen in our apartment isn't really great for a tree, so we shoved some furniture around to make room for a tree in the dining area. I actually used the tree we used to have in our bedroom (a little shorter and wider) and put all the s'more ornaments on it. They fit nicely!

I love where it sits - in full view of my spot on the couch! And then on the buffet beside it, we added a few little pieces:

And then...our kitchen!! We had gotten these wreaths for our sun porch last year, but they're PERFECT fits for the kitchen here!

A few snowballs in the cloche jar and cake plate...and some mistletoe over the sink! I can see this from my couch perch too, and I just love it.

I put these little figurines by the coffee pot: these were my former roommate, Angela's. Can you believe this December marks nine years since she passed away? I think of her with such joy and gratitude every time I see these little decorations. (Ignore the timer. I forgot to crop it out!)

The tall skinny tree that used to be in the kitchen window is now the main living room tree - and keeper of all the ornaments that tell the story of our adventures together. Usually we put those on the live tree, but some of the ornaments are pretty heavy, and the live tree branches don't always hold them well, so we decided to switch things up again. This tree is filled with almost 90 ornaments now, and oh how many memories they represent!

We have our stockings and some Christmas day pictures all around the tree - and the fireplace channel runs strong around here! (Whenever Hallmark movies are off, this is on!)

This bottom ornament is one of the new ones we got this year to represent Abby's entrance into the family!

This year we'll get a live tree and put all our Names of Jesus ornaments on it, and it will go in our coffee nook, but we won't get it until later this week, so that's the reason this is only an ALMOST complete tour. 

Our bedroom doesn't have room for a tree, but we were able to put all our little tree farm trees in there! They were our decorations on our sun porch last year, but between a corner and the headboard, they all worked perfectly in our bedroom! I adored how it turned out.

We even put a little bit of decor on our "porch."

And with that, our Christmas is complete...almost.

It all fits in different ways, but it all fits perfectly, and we love our little Christmas corner!