The Shafferland Shuffle

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY (to you)!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY (to me)!! I fully anticipate today to be crazy busy here in Shafferland, but it'll be great to fill you in later!

Meanwhile, here's a peek at our last week.

* Last Sunday was Ryan's sister's bridal shower, and I took pictures at that while Ryan stayed home and enjoyed a MUCH deserved nap! Bre's shower was so nice, and she got tons of nice gifts. I think she was a little overwhelmed by it all, actually! But it was a good day.

* I actually had Monday off from my carpool duties, but I ended up helping another of our friends get his kiddo home from school, so it ended up balancing out. At least it was a pretty-ish day and I could enjoy my time in line! I spent the whole afternoon making props for one of my talks next week, and then I did my first "dress rehearsal" for it. Ryan felt it necessary to take my picture. I told him it looks like I'm directing a choir. LOL!

* Ryan had a carry-in at work on Tuesday, and I made these uh-mazing Samoa brownies to take to it. I was hoping everyone would hate them and I could bring them all home, but it didn't work out that way. That night, Mom and Dad took us out to eat for our birthdays, and we got free dessert! Made up for the Samoa brownies that didn't come home. HA!

* I spent Wednesday creating my 10 page color-coded itinerary to get us through the upcoming schedule madness, and that made me so tired by the end of the day, I just wanted to sit down and put my feet up! So I did! I did watch my friend's kiddos that evening for a little bit. This one cracks me up. Wants to play with the ball that's the same size she is!

* By Thursday, we were pooped, and Ryan took a nap at the end of lunch to get enough energy to get through the afternoon. I've been there!! We went out to buy all the rest of our flowers for this year so we could get those planted. It wasn't a super warm and sunny evening, but at least the rain held off!

* Friday, to celebrate the end of National Hospital Week, a food truck came to Ryan's work, and he was SO excited, because it was BBQ, and he loves BBQ! Friday was the nicest day of the whole week, and we were able to mow the yard and plant all our flowers. Looks like summer, now!

* Yesterday, Ryan had to work, and while he was gone, I got the garage set up to host Mommapalooza 4.0 and worked to prepare all the food I could ahead of time! When Ryan got home from work, we got all dressed up and went to wedding #2 for the month! Had a lovely time! Ryan makes one handsome date, doesn't he???

Being Strong

Every year, Ryan and I head to the store to buy flowers for all the little flower pots around our yard. Last year, I posted a photo of these on Facebook with a caption that said, "I had to promise to water them and not kill them."

And let the record show...I did not kill them. {And I did water them.}

When fall rolled around, we dug out the summer flowers from the big pots by the garage, and replaced them with mums. But in these little battered terra cotta pots in the backyard, we did nothing. We left them sitting in the landscaping with the purple and white flowers...which eventually wilted away with fall frosts.

And the snows fell {you do remember Indiana in the winter, right?} and one day, I looked out the window and said to Ryan, "Hey look at those flower pots! The stems still have green on them!"

Sure enough, peeking out from the mound of snow settling over them, were sprigs of bright green.

This spring, when the snow melted and the weeds began to sprout up awkwardly, those little pots still clung to green stems.

And the day came when we made our shopping list for flowers again, and I counted the white planters by the garage...the planters for the porch, and the three little bedraggled looking terra cotta pots in the yard.

Except...

I have no idea what these little guys are...and if they're perennials, then they are in our yard quite by accident, because we shop in the annuals section. And if they're annuals, then they are impressively hearty. They survived not only my non-green thumb, but also the heavy frosts and heavier snows that tried to suffocate them in the fall and winter months.

We decided just to let them go. Perhaps they're not as full and rich as last year, but they are a darling lesson in stubbornness and strength pushing through in our backyard.

The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday, we overslept...woke up 20 minutes before it was time to leave for church. Have you ever woken up too quickly and been in a foul mood? Yeah...that was me. Ryan and I sat in the lobby at church, drinking coffee before Sunday School and he joked that the rock fountain outside was a tribute to the one Moses struck in the wilderness. He can always make me laugh - even when I'm super grumpy!! We took a much-needed nap that afternoon and then Ryan finished up putting the landscaping bricks back in place before the week of monsoon-rain hit. And we squeezed in a quick walk in the chilly evening!

* Monday was a fun day at work...Lynne and I threw an "open office" to celebrate our new digs! We served food and welcomed our co-workers in to hang out for a bit; it was fun! And then that night, Ryan and I had one of his friends over for dinner, which was a BLAST. I cracked up because he'd never been to our house before, so as a joke, Ryan gave him a wrong address and met him there at a...bit of a rundown house. Ha!

 * Tuesday was a full-weather-spectrum day. Drove to work in thick fog, looked at gorgeous sun all day, and sat through a stormy evening. Ahhhh, Indiana. Work was very busy; month-end is always that way, so I was glad my M and M jar was full! When I got home, I lit a candle and hunkered down to work on some blog stuff - and Ryan painted the trim that was added in the house last month after the plumbing overhaul.

 * Wednesday was a hard day for me; one of those days when I just seemed to get beaten down before I could stand back up - all day long. So I was extra thankful for Ryan's encouraging texts and pictures he sent throughout the day. After work, I went to the gym for a run {raining again} - and it was such a nice, quiet room that day. Helped my focus! I may or may NOT have had a massive meltdown when I got home, so some hugs from Ryan and a couple of chocolate chip cookies...followed by a LONG nap helped make the night better!

* Thursday's BLT show was all about the 50th birthday of the Swiss Cake Roll, so Lynne and I both brought boxes of them to work! {Neither of us knew the other was getting one. Great minds!} When I got home from work, I discovered some sweet soul surprised us with a May Day basket and plant. I have no idea who it was, but I loved it! We spent the rest of Thursday night packing for our quick getaway to Holland, Michigan! Braeya = unamused.

*Friday, Ryan and I took the day off work and headed north. On the way up, we did another one of our county dates - this time to Marshall County in northern Indiana. We stopped in St. Joseph, Michigan, for lunch at a pizza place and while there...checked out some lighthouses on the FREEZING COLD beach. And then we drove on up to Holland, and LET ME JUST TELL YOU. You are not even going to believe our tale of the hotel. You just won't. It was a very eventful day - for our 17 month anniversary!

* Saturday we headed out for the Tulip Time Festival...which was the reason we went to Holland in the first place. It was the first day of the festival, and you know who didn't get the memo about it? THE TULIPS!!! Below you'll notice the field of tulips...lovely, huh? We had fun, though. We got to go up in the huge windmill {do keep in mind my insane fear of heights} and we went to a couple of beaches, where we enjoyed the water...with our hats and gloves.

The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday was Easter, and Ryan and I got up early to go to our church's first service. We exchanged Easter baskets before church...and got all dressed up for a beautiful spring day! After church, we made macaroni and cheese and headed for my parents' house to celebrate Easter with my side of the family! Lunch was so good - and my mom and sister gave Ryan his birthday presents. We came home, took a long nap, and called it a great Easter!

* If you've ever wondered how a producer...produces...this is it! This is what I left work with on Monday! FOUR BEVERAGES! It takes a very special blend of coffee, water, iced tea and Spark to get through a day of busyness! :) Came home from work and went for a run - my longest one this season, and I found myself encouraged by the Bible verses someone had written on the sidewalk. No idea why they were there, but I appreciated them! After dinner, Ryan worked on fixing the landscaping, which is still messed up from the plumbing. Busy, full day!

* Tuesday night, Ryan took a continuing education type of class, so I was on my own for the whole night. {Gulp.} I went for a run...my thoughts on that captured in the photo...on my own, and the wind was so fierce, I only made it a mile! I came home and curled up with coffee for one and some projects. When Ryan came home, he was pretty tired, so I wrapped up the night with some reading and journaling while he slept. So good to have him home though!

 * Wednesday morning, I gave Ryan the last of the cards he's been receiving over the past six weeks, leading up to his birthday! It's been so fun to see people's thoughts and memories of him! After work, we went for a run. Mile one was GREAT. Mile two was a wild mental block for me, which included the throwing off of my jacket in the grass along the path - and being reminded of the verse about throwing off everything that hinders. :) The rest of the night, I ran around like a mad woman, prepping all the food and gifts and such for Ryan's birthday!

* Thursday was Ryan's 35th birthday, and I sure had a blast celebrating him all day long! I'll tell you the longer version later, but here's a quick recap. Gave him his present before work {he LOVED it} and sent him off to work with a plate of buckeye brownies for his co-workers and cheesy tortellini for lunch after it cooked in the crock pot all night. After work, his mom came over and the three of us went to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner and Starbucks on the way home!

 * Friday I drove to work in some decently heavy rain, but by the time we got off work it was warm and SUNNY!!! Braeya was so excited to get to sit in the window and run the show. I was excited to go for a run and had another personal best! After that we got dinner, had fun at Lowe's {of course} and did all our grocery shopping! It was a full but great evening!

* Yesterday Ryan and I had a much-needed leisurely morning at home, and then I got all dressed up to go to Fort Wayne, along with my mother-in-law, to play photographer at WBCL's Daddy/Daughter Date Night. It was such a great night....it's so lovely to watch dads bring their daughters for a night together. Jaime Jamgochian was the featured artist this year. While I was taking pictures - along with my lovely assistant, Dawn, Ryan was making our yard beautiful...first mowing of the year!

The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday...we technically arrived home from vacation! Got home about 1:30 in the morning and collapsed in bed - exhausted. And we had the privilege of staying disgusting and exhausted all day Sunday, thanks to our broken, leaking water heater. Ryan had to rip it out, dry the wet floors and install a whole new heater. Finally got to take a shower that night! Never felt so good to get rid of airport grime!

* Monday was a vacation day for us...Labor Day...and that's exactly what Ryan did ALL DAY LONG. He labored under the house fixing leaky pipes he found when he went to put fans under the house to dry the floor from the water heater. I cried. No more broken things!!! Here's the out-with-the-old pipe picture. So nasty! And I'm so thankful he's knowledgeable about this kind of stuff!

* Tuesday we both went back to work, and I was greeted with all the mail that came in while I was gone! Can't say that I felt unloved! I spent most of the day wading through everything on my desk and trying to catch up! Even though we were sad to say goodbye to vacation...we were happy to see some sense of routine return to our lives!

* And then there was Wednesday. The day that kind of smacked us both in the face. This return to reality has not been a smooth one! That night we scrapped all original plans and ate tenderloins from Penguin Point and did chores around the house. And I finished my September mantel - the apple themed mantel. Loved the way it turned out!

* I'm sure I don't need to tell you that Thursday was...the start of football season!!!!!!!!! WOO HOOOOO!!!! {For those of you who might be new...Ryan loves football, and I love the excuse to scrapbook while he watches a game!} So we settled in for the big Ravens/Broncos game Thursday evening...and I scrapped and watched the game WHILE RYAN SLEPT!!!! Shaking head....

 * Friday night was date night at the Shaffers...with our first ever trip to Five Guys! We are in love - with each other and with Five Guys! After that, we went to our first movie {excluding the drive-in experience we had this summer} and then we TRIED to get Starbucks but annoyingly, all of them around here close at 10 p.m. That's about when we START wanting coffee!!

* Yesterday was amazing. After a crazy week at work...fixing the house...etc., we slept in until 10:00, rested all morning, and I worked on our scrapbook while Ryan worked on the backyard landscaping. He's SO CLOSE to being done. So close. I love the pavers he put down on the patio area...

The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday, I took Ryan to visit the church I attended before I started going to the church where we met. I wanted him to see the place that did so much in forming who I am today! It was so great to introduce him to my friends and sit in that room again. We thoroughly enjoyed the rest of our day at home together - especially since we hadn't gotten home from our double date the night before until after 1 in the morning!

* Monday evening, we stayed at home...and you'll never guess what we did! Ryan worked on the next landscaping project while I stuck to blogs, Facebook and Pinterest. I know. We are wildly unpredictable. After all the busy days and nights we tend to have, we really cherish nights like this - when we can stay home doing what we love!

* Tuesday night I had a long, long, long overdue date with the salon. I hadn't had my hair dyed since before my birthday, and apparently at 35, that's about 2 months too long. She covered up about 2 inches of pure white while I settled in with this amazing book by Anne Graham Lotz - set to release in a couple of weeks. I read the whole thing in the 2 hours I sat in that chair.  Love her writing.

* Don't you hate those days when you wake up to a possum in your garage??? Yeah, I hate it too. But that was our Wednesday. :) This little guy got in somehow and started making all manner of messes, so Ryan set a live trap and released him into the woodsy nature...I'm promised far, far, far away from our home. The rest of our Wednesday was actually fairly eventful but I do not have the strength to tell you about it yet. One day. I promise.

 * Thursday evening, Ryan worked SO HARD on the landscaping in the back. You know what I love most? I mention a vision I have, and he makes it come true - only about 50 million times better than I knew how to envision it!! I appreciate his hard work so much. Our house has never EVER looked better.

* Friday morning I went to work feeling AWFULLY cute...until I realized I'd forgotten to do my bangs! I got completely ready except for that! Good grief.  After a day like that, the best medicine is...stay home, curled up on the couch, watching old episodes of King of Queens and Seinfeld. Why in the world you find our bloggety blog blog so fascinating is beyond me! :)

* Yesterday was so nap filled. You don't even understand how wonderful that was!! Really enjoyed the chance to rest and start a new book! I'm not sure why this sudden surge of reading - but it's kind of fun! This time I'm trying out Sophie Hudson's book A Little Salty to Cut the Sweet.

The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday we welcomed part of the family over for a cookout - our first entertaining since we did the renovations in our house. I've always loved entertaining but had never found a man who shared that love until I met Ryan. YAY!! Looking forward to more of these fun days. But in the meantime, we so enjoyed having our company there...and watching them enjoy the day.

* Monday was, as you might remember, the day my car broke down on the way to work. It was a combination of unbelievable frustration, fear, and thankfulness - as I realized how much worse it could have been. Another great thing about Monday night...we finished up the landscaping in the front of the house. Outdoor work is not my forte, but I appreciated Ryan letting me be part of it!

* You know what's great about being an adult? If you're tired on a Tuesday night, you can come home and go to bed at 6:00 if you want to. And then if you don't wake up until 7:30 - that's okay too. And we may or may not have done just that on Tuesday - followed by kicking back for a night of America's Got Talent! We love that show.  

* I was SO EXCITED on Wednesday...to get my car back! I was a bit nervous to drive it - worried it might break again, but I was in good shape! And in more exciting news, Ryan and I returned the dump truck that night - and about a mile from its home, it ran out of gas. So we had to go retrieve a gas can {a one gallon gas can, no less} to feed the dump truck enough to get it home. I cracked UP!

* Thursday after work, I had the opportunity to go visit my friend Jeri's new baby girl...little Miss Ellie! I'd seen her live and in person once, but I'd never gotten to really hold her, so it was much fun to drop off a gift and hold a sweet baby!!

* Friday, Lynne and I had a big old planning palooza for the upcoming months of Mid-Morning. I love the chance to be creative for a while! I also love it when my brain cooperates and actually spits out creative ideas! When I got home...headed to the mother ship...the Hobby Lobby...where I fell kind of in love with this frame. I managed to not buy it. Yet.

* And yesterday was crazy busy. Ryan worked in the morning, so I got up really early and scrapbooked for the morning. In the afternoon, I went to the baby shower of one of my college friends who is expecting her first baby soon. And then last night, Ryan and I went to dinner with some friends of ours - and I can't wait to tell you more about that night! We went to the Melting Pot. Yum...yum...yum!!!

The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday, we went to my parents' house for lunch...and it was YUMMY!! Mom makes a good pot roast! We were so exhausted from our week that we came home and slept until about 6:30 p.m. WHOOPSIE!!!! But it was great to be able to rest...and get up and not run into mass construction! We enjoyed our evening, which included a great walk through the IWU campus. Stunning sunset that night.

* Monday night was, in my opinion, the perfect night of marriage. We got home from work on time...ate our dinner together...actually sat on the couch for a while to finish watching the show we started during dinner...worked out...had devos...did some minor projects around the house...and rested before bed. I'm told this is kind of what normal people do. I think it's kind of amazing! Here's one of our new house decorations. LOVE what it says. Thanks, Jenny! {Birthday gift we just now put in its home.}

* Tuesday evening we hung up our newly altered curtains in our bathroom. Want a sneak peek of what they look like? {Full room reveals coming your way this week!!} We originally planned to go to Colts Training camp on Tuesday but we had way too much to do at home, so we pulled the responsible adult card and stayed in to work. :(

* Wednesday evening we headed to Lowe's to pick up more bricks for Ryan's landscaping project. The last time Ryan went, he went alone and his truck {you remember the Asphyxiator....} got stuck in the pothole at the end of our driveway because it was so weighed down. This time I went with him, he got half the amount of bricks...and...well...this was my face all the way home.

* Thursday, in a shocking turn of events, we went to Lowe's to get the other half of the bricks. The guy at Lowe's remembered my Pinterest habit. This may be a sign that we are at Lowe's too often. :) While they loaded up bricks, I stopped to smell the roses. And. They. Were. Gorgeous. Went back home for more work!! The end is in sight!  Maybe!

* Friday night Ryan and I went to "borrow a truck" to get a load of dirt for our landscaping. I'm not sure what pops in YOUR head when you go to borrow a truck, but apparently my mind doesn't dream big enough. Yep. We're the coolest house on the street.

* And yesterday we worked for many, many hours to try to finish the landscaping and to prepare for our first big entertaining in the post-renovated downstairs! Ryan and my dad worked together in the yard on the landscaping {something that thrilled my heart} and I scrapbooked and worked on a lot of cooking. We were EXHAUSTED at the end of the day, but it was a great and productive day!