A Little Time with My Sweetie

Well, I had planned to round out our Christmas recap today, but alas, our first scheduled celebration still hasn't happened! Christmas with Ryan's family was scheduled for the Sunday before the 25th, but ice caused us to delay it, and then on the rescheduled date of this past Monday, most of Ryan's family was sick. {PLEASE LET THE RECORD SHOW IT WAS FINALLY NOT THE TWO OF US DOWN FOR THE COUNT!!!} So we're still waiting on that one.

Meanwhile, I would also like the record to show that this is the first Christmas in our entire marriage that we've had more than half a minute together, because for once, Ryan had a little time off work! Normally he only gets Christmas day, and of course that is spent hopping from one celebration to the next, but THIS year, his department shut down at noon on Friday, so he got that afternoon off, he worked the shortest Christmas Eve in history, so we had part of that day together. And then, because Christmas fell on Sunday, his department was closed on Monday, so we had that day together too.

Shut. The. Front. Door.

So I thought I'd let you peek into the fun of our weekend!

Friday, while Ryan was finishing up work, I got together with one of my friends from college - along with her two daughters - for our annual Christmas celebration. The four of us went out for lunch, and then they came back here to see our house for the first time. By the time we got home, Ryan was home too, and we all had the nicest afternoon together, hanging out, drinking coffee/hot chocolate, looking at scrapbooks and having much fun. Here are just a couple of pictures from that day:

 The girls loved our counter and thought it looked like a coffee shop. So we were pretending to be baristas and they were ordering. It was fun!

Speaking of coffee, that was the theme of our gift, too! They gave us chalkboard mugs {SWOON!} and the 12 coffees of Christmas.

{Both kids belong to her, even though I currently match the hair color of one. Ha!}

After they left, Ryan and I went on a date: last minute Christmas shopping, dinner at McAlisters, and a quick drive through the lights at the We Care park. It was nasty rainy out, but we had a great time!

Saturday was Christmas Eve, and we had dinner/Christmas with Ryan's Dad's side of the family. His grandma does ALL the cooking, and she is amazing. She's a fabulous cook!

{When the Colts play during a Christmas celebration, you may find Ryan hiding on his phone. HA!}

And then Monday, we had a whole day together! We went out shopping for some after-Christmas sales, which is one of my favorite things to do, and it was more fun to have him with me!

He loves to eat at the Chinese buffet, but we rarely do, for obvious it's-not-clean-eating reasons, but that day, we went. Someone had a little fun with the food!

Food should not have eyes.  End of story.

Then we came home and Ryan began his practice sessions with Daryl the Drone. Only two objects were broken during the first night of flight. And they're fixable.

It's funnier to watch:

Since we ended up with a free evening, we went to visit Ryan's grandpa - the one who had surgery this summer, not the one I wrote about yesterday - and then we stayed for dinner with Grandpa and Ryan's Aunt Sandy and Uncle Bob!

And then...home to watch a movie. We watched Sully, because that whole story fascinated me back when it happened in real time.

It was a great weekend of extra time together, for which I was really grateful. And now - back to watching Daryl the Drone practice sessions.  

Joining up with Tamar today!

When Christmas Gets Messy

Christmas is supposed to be pretty, isn't it? Twinkly lights and shiny paper. Glittery nail polish {no? just me?} and cheery gatherings. We demand this perfection out of a handful of days that we wouldn't dream of demanding from the rest of the year because let's face it: who can keep up with that?

And for the last couple of days, I've shared with you the pretty part of our Christmas. {Braeya-family-photo excluded.}

But it wasn't all pretty and sparkly. And the part that wasn't deserves to be told just as much. Maybe more.

I've told you many times that Ryan has a lot of family. Part of that is because his mom's side of the family has about a billion aunts, uncles, and cousins. But part of it is because he also has a step-family. And it's our Christmas with them that I want to tell you about today.

We always gather with them on Christmas night at Grandma and Grandpa's house. It's a tiny house {not like an ACTUAL tiny house, but a small house} and Christmas happens on the sun room just off the kitchen. We eat and talk, take turns leading devotions, sing Christmas carols {including Space Age Santa Claus, which I have STILL not learned in its entirety} and then Grandma passes out presents to everyone.

This family is made up of a group that has come together by a mix of blood and marriage, but you can't tell the difference. "Step" family is a term that I use merely for clarification. It's not how they dole out love. Ryan is loved just as much as any of their grandchildren by blood. And I know I'm just as welcomed as he is, though I came in by marriage.

This year, all the things that always happen at Christmas still happened, but we had something new in the mix this year.

Grandpa's health is not good.

We knew that before we walked in the door Sunday night. We've watched him slowly go downhill the last many months. In fact, I've never truly known him as the man that Ryan remembers from his childhood. The fun-loving, active grandpa who loved to farm had already been subdued by illness before I ever arrived. But I love hearing Ryan's stories of the grandpa he knew and loved, and every now and then I'd catch a glimpse of that man.

{The one I remember most was two years ago at Christmas when I took a photo booth and NO ONE expected him to take a stab at it, but he did!}

That Grandpa wasn't the one we saw when we walked in the door this year. Knowing he was sick and declining in no way prepared any of us for his actual condition, and it was heartbreaking to see.

We ate and talked and watched the kids play together. We sang Christmas carols and then Ryan's brother read Luke 2 to start the devotion time for the year. And when he was done, he said he didn't want to talk about Christmas this year.

And what he proceeded to say was the most beautiful, heartbreaking, wonderful, terrible acknowledgment of the truth before us. The entire house was silent except for Grandpa struggling to breathe and Rod's voice speaking aloud the truth no one wanted to say. And we were all relieved he said it. And then he went on to do something that reminded me of what I imagine it was like in Bible times when patriarchs reached the end and responsibility for the family was passed to the next generation.

Rod praised Grandpa and Grandma for their choices and perseverance and decisions - all of which have led all of us to be the people we are. He honored them out loud for the good and extended grace for the hard. And then he prayed over every single adult male in the entire family by name - whether those people were there or not - and over their specific lives, work, relationships, and needs.

When he was done praying, Ryan stood up and prayed over his brother {and yes, of course by that time I was a mascara-losing MESS}, and then we all gathered around Grandpa and laid hands on him and prayed for mercy and comfort and healing of some kind.

You guys? I will say it straight up. I am not a sickness kind of person. I'm not good with it. It makes me panic and feel sick and we will not even discuss what it does to my blood pressure. I have no future in health care. I was scared out of my mind to be there in the midst of such heartbreaking illness.

But those moments of acknowledgement and honoring and challenge and praying and hands-on-loving in the middle of heartbreak were moments I will never ever forget. I could feel them searing into my mind and heart.

There was a Christmas tree in the corner with twinkling lights and shiny presents underneath. Christmas was there in the way we ask it to be. But the raw love in that room...the love that awkwardly and messily pushed through the heartbreak of illness...that was a piece of Christmas that was more authentic than any carol or party.

A gift. A hard, awkward, messy gift that will be mine forever.

The Christmas Shuffle!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! We know many of you are extra busy today with Christmas festivities and church, too, so you might not even be here to read this ON Christmas day, but whenever you arrive at this post, we wish you a very merry Christmas!!

We've had a full week, and our best gift is that we are FINALLY FEELING BETTER!!!!!

* Because a second round of ice was expected to fall overnight Saturday into Sunday, many churches canceled their Sunday morning services, including ours. AND, Ryan's mom postponed their family Christmas, which was supposed to be that day as well. So Ryan and I had a whole day at home! Ryan made breakfast, we watched church on TV, and we took a whole day of rest, enjoying movies, football, scrapbooking, naps, and the Christmas lights!

* Even though it was so bitterly cold that all the schools around here operated on a delay, last Monday morning was so pretty. Sunrise on snow is beautiful! AND I found a cardinal in the tree, so that made me happy, too! Ryan and I had a few errands to run after work, and we stopped by to visit a friend who is home-bound now. He was happy to see us and asked his caregiver to make us espresso, which I promptly ruined by adding creamer. LOL! But it was good to see him and try to bring some Christmas cheer!

* Tuesday was the last day of school before Christmas break, so I did my last carpool run before coming home to work on my 2017 planner. {Happiness in a day!} I also had a little more wrapping to do - including Ryan's stocking stuffers, so I got that done. Our only free night this week was Tuesday, so we finished binge-watching a DVR'd show, and Ryan was exceedingly sad to realize he was going to have to wait quite a while for the next episode!

* Wednesday was my parents' neighborhood Christmas party and we went as photographers for the photo booth, which was much fun! Dinner was delicious, the company was fun, and we had a great time!

* Thursday, I met up with one of my friends for coffee and some shopping in the afternoon, which was a fun treat! That night, Ryan and I joined his family to celebrate his mom's birthday, and we ended up having a good time together - even if we traumatized our poor waitress!

* Friday felt like Saturday ALL DAY. Not sure why! I met with my friend Faith and her daughters for our annual Christmas celebration, and we had a great time. That night, Ryan and I had date night, which included a trip through the We Care Park to see the lights. We drove it since it was rainy, but it was still a lot of fun!

* Ryan had to work yesterday morning, and while he was gone, I had a massive cookie baking extravaganza for all the Christmas celebrations. It was FUN! And last night was our first Christmas of 2016, with Ryan's dad's side of the family. His grandma always makes an amazing dinner {ham, noodles, the whole nine yards} and we got to exchange gifts with that side. Great night!

So...merry Christmas from us!! Can't wait to catch up with you this week and tell you all about Christmas! :)

The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday was such a lazy Sunday. After church, we enjoyed a leisurely day of naps, football, and snacks. It was so good that I don't even have any more to report on it! :)

* Monday was as busy as Sunday was lazy. {Of course. Isn't that how it always works!} Many house chores, much writing work, two yards to mow {for Ryan} and a quick trip out for a little pampering for yours truly! On the way home, I was treated to a gorgeous sunset, and that made suffering through a workout a little easier. :)

* Tuesday was kinda cold and rainy, so it seemed like a good day to make a pot of soup! I worked at home all day, and we had our Bible study that night. Our group was full of great discussion, and I enjoyed learning from them! And check out these amazing leaves one of the ladies preserved. So cool!

* Wednesday, Ryan's grandpa had another surgery on his brain, but we didn't get to go this time. We prayed for him from home, and I was so thankful it all went well! Ryan had an extra busy week at work, so he was swamped there, and I was rushing to meet a writing deadline, so we were pretty exhausted by the end of the day. We had plans for the evening, but they fell through, so we we conked out on the couch watching TV. Braeya took over the remote. LOL!!!

* Thursday night, we had the privilege of helping one of our friends move. She helped us when we moved, and it was a gift to us to be able to pay her back! It was a cold night, so we started out with coffee/hot chocolate, and then got busy moving! {Side note: I had injured my hamstring in that workout Monday, so it was fun to watch me hobble with boxes.}

* Friday was another busy day for Ryan at work, and he couldn't make it home for lunch, so I wen to visit him while he ate. It was SO BEAUTIFUL outside that we went for a walk after work, and then we went grocery shopping. GUESS WHAT WE FOUND WHILE WE WERE OUT???? They broke ground for our new Sonic!!! {Insert every happy emoji in the whole galaxy right here.}

* Yesterday we had our annual pictures taken, and while we were at it, we did a county date! Delaware County! The day was way prettier than I ever imagined it wold be, so it was a fun day to be outside, eat lunch outside, have coffee outside...you get the picture.

The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday was our 46th monthiversary, and we were excited it fell on a weekend, so we could spend time together! We went to church, made a pizza together, took naps, watched football, and even made an evening run to the Hydration Station so we could have frosted caramel apple drinks. {Those are, incidentally, incredible.}

* Monday was a CRAZY foggy morning in town. I'm not sure I've ever seen that much fog INSIDE a town, actually. I had to do my carpool job, so I drove carefully, and wouldn't you know - by the time I got to the OTHER side of town, it was clear! Crazy! Worked on writing all day and then it was time for family workouts {don't let this one fool you; she did NOT work out} and the application of much Thieves oil, as I could tell I was fighting something, and I wasn't happy about it. 

* Tuesday was our 4th engagementversary. but it was also Tuesdays at the Table night, so we didn't have much time for celebrating on our own. We had Ryan's grandma and her husband over for dinner, and it was their first time to see our home since we moved! Fall breakfast for dinner, with an egg casserole and pumpkin pancakes: delicious!

* Wednesday was another writing day for me, broken up by the arrival of the Bicentennial Torch Relay. I'll fill you in on all that tomorrow, but it was fun to be part of a smidgen of history in the making that day!

* Thursday, there was a big carry-in at Ryan's work, so I made a taco dip and took that over {and then stayed to munch on a few snacks}. My parents have a little project they need to have done at their house, so that night, we went supply shopping with them and they treated us to dinner! Win-win!

* Friday was a sick day for me. This cold I've come down with is so weird. It skipped right over the stuffy head and snotty part {fine with me...I hate that part anyway} and went right to congestion and coughing. While I don't feel bad, I also can't sleep because of the coughing, so by Friday morning, I was worn out. Ryan told me to stay in bed, and I did!! Worked on scrapbooking projects and took it easy all day. He even ordered pizza so I didn't have to cook dinner!

* Yesterday we had a wedding in the family! Ryan's cousin Noelle got married, so after he got off work, we drove to Indianapolis for the wedding! Got to hang out with his family and even play on the playground with the kids, which is always a bonus! :) Great way to end the week!

The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday morning, we drove my sister, Lori, to the airport, so she could fly back home after Mom's party. I was so glad she had been able to come for the party, but I wasn't ready for her to go home so soon!! We stopped for a breakfast date on the way home and then...we got to keep Miss Phoebe!!! She came over for the afternoon and evening, and we had a grand time, going for walks, visiting Grandpa, and taking naps. We love Phoebe!!

* Monday signaled the return to normalcy for us. Ryan captured this gorgeous sunrise on the way to work, and I got busy cleaning up after all the party. Decorations and supplies had to be put away...and there were also many veggies to eat, since Mom brought that ginormous veggie tray to her own party! LOL! Salads all week long! I guess there were too many salads, because Ryan sent me a picture of the "big bowl of snacks" at work. I mean, seriously! Have you ever seen a bowl this big???

* Tuesday was a big day...because Ryan's grandpa got out of the rehab hospital! :) We were happy to see how much he had improved!! And other than that, the day was just filled with regular things, like sitting in the carpool line with my coffee and going for power walks with Ryan. {This is a new thing for us, and I'm obsessed with beating our previous time. On this day, we beat it by FOUR MINUTES!!}

* Got a special treat on Wednesday: Ryan ended up with the afternoon off work, unexpectedly!!! We took a long nap, went for a coffee run, and caught up on all our DVR shows that we were STILL behind on from the Olympics. Ryan and Braeya got into a little bit of a remote war. I'm not sure who won.

* Thursday was a pretty low key day. Oh how I have longed for low key days! Hung out at home with Braeya, who was extra needy of drinks from the sink that day {eyeroll}, laid in the hammock to read my novel, and watched Ryan eat M and Ms from a bowl. Because that's how we do things around here.

* Friday was our 45th monthiversary, and it was nearly a perfect day!! We got a pretty exciting surprise in the mail, which I will tell you about soon, and we enjoyed a fun date out on the town that evening. Went to Burger King, which is NOT on the clean eating list, but we were celebrating and that happens to be one of my favorites. And we went to our remaining Starbucks, too. :) Thankful for 45 months together with Ryan!

* Yesterday was SUCH a fun day. Ryan planned a surprise date for me, and until we were on our way, I had no idea what it was! We went to Indianapolis and did a scavenger hunt of the downtown area. I can't wait to tell you all about it. Great date idea!! It was a treat to have him all to myself for a whole day after all of the busyness of the last month!

The Shafferland Shuffle

The week in which I FINALLY get to tell you about all the sneaking around we've been doing over here! {Full recap to come. I promise.}

* Last Sunday, after church, I made scrambled eggs and French toast {the clean eating versions} for us. They were delicious! I love breakfast for lunch. And dinner. And breakfast. Ha! And then I started working on our big surprise for the week...a party for my mom. I have been planning and prepping this thing for MONTHS...and I haven't been able to tell you about it! Sunday I started baking cookies, and I also separated an entire bag of M and Ms by color for a game we were playing. That was fun for my OCD! We wrapped up our night by going to visit Grandpa in the hospital. Ran out of chairs so Ryan took the wheelchair.

* Monday I trekked to the hospital to watch Grandpa's first therapy session with his regular therapist. He rocked the walking! Amazing to see the improvement from one week earlier when he was prepping for surgery! Back to cookie baking I went...making a batch of lemon cookies that day. We went for  walk that evening and enjoyed a stunning sunset!

* Tuesday, I spent the entire day working on a book project that I'm excited to tell you more about soon, and surprisingly, I made more cookies! Snickerdoodle!!!! And because we live in a house with an abundance of cookies, we had to start a new {and hard core!} workout program. Hammer and Chisel is no joke.

* You already read about our Wednesday...the day of the tornadoes. I was baking chocolate chip cookies when the storms showed up, and I took shelter at the hospital for the first round. Came home and hid in our bathroom for round two, while Ryan watched the thing go right by. That boy. What am I gonna do with him???

* We had been warned there would be more storms on Thursday, but it was a bright, sunshiny day! {Although I did find Braeya curled up on the still-packed-for-storms suitcase, just in case, I guess.} I made prizes for party games {cookies in a jar}, made oatmeal cookies, baked a cake, and took a break from party prep to hang out with Ryan while he mowed his aunt and uncle's yard. Isn't he the cutest lawn boy ever?

* Friday was my 20th high school reunion, which I'll tell you more about next week! We went just to the first part, which was a tailgate party before the football game at our school. Had a great time seeing old friends. Even though I see a lot of them on Facebook often, it was still fun to see them in person!

* Yesterday was the big day!!! Mom's surprise party!! You guys!!!!!!!!! It went so perfectly. I can't wait to tell you all about it. She was shocked {actually I don't think the English language has a word to capture her reaction} and she loved the whole day. Such fun and so worth all the months of planning!!