The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday, we had a combined service at church and Ryan and I got to help serve communion for the first time ever! We really enjoyed it - and then when we came home, we actually got to rest for the ENTIRE day. We had set aside this day specifically for rest, since we'd had such a busy week, and I'm glad we did. I know I needed it! I got a ton of scrapbooking done - no thanks to Braeya - and for dinner, we had pizza!! {Thanks, Pacers, for having a high scoring game and getting us a 1/2 price pizza!}

* Monday morning, we had some excitement at work when our Mid-Morning phone girl, Dana, went into labor - AT WORK! I answered phones during the show, which was fun, and I knocked out so much work at my desk that day! I love productive days. Ryan and I went grocery shopping, where I stocked up on oranges to try to help boost my vitamin intake in this messy illness season! And then...we started packing away our Christmas decor. Great sadness - although I will be glad to organize everything in the house and get it back to normal!

* Tuesday, I got a huge surprise at work when some anonymous person dropped off gifts for Lynne and me! Mine is a MASSIVE coffee mug with a chalkboard surface - and filled with coffee presents. Best day EVER!!! Thank you, friend! :) After work, I stopped by my friend, Faith's, house to have Christmas with her and her two daughters. That was fun! When I came home, Ryan and I worked so hard to pack away all the Christmas decor. Our house was left in utter disarray, but at least I can start reassembling it!

* Wednesday was New Year's Eve, and I worked part of the day from home, before launching into a massive chore-palooza for the afternoon! Lots of cooking and lots of cleaning! That night, we went to a New Year's Eve party at our friends' house, and had fun playing games, eating fabulous food, and catching up with friends we haven't seen for a long time. Pretty great way to bid farewell to 2014.

* I was ecstatic to find out Ryan got New Year's Day off work. I hadn't allowed myself to ever believe he would get the day off, but he did, and it was so wonderful to have him home on a day I was home. What a treat! We slept in, he made waffles for breakfast, and I got to rest for the entire day, reading, scrapbooking, drinking coffee, and getting prepared to begin a new year. Despite the fact that the Christmas Petri Dish settled in my chest and I sounded awful all day, I loved the first holiday of 2015!!

 * I spent most of Thursday night on the couch...because every time I tried to lay down to sleep, I started coughing. BOO!! So after 2 hours of sleep and the rest of the night spent staring at the living room lamp, the alarm went off...and it was back to work for the two Shaffers! Lynne and I had our fist live show of 2015...a BLT on Friday! And that night, Ryan and I celebrated our 25 monthiversary with a special pie and coffee date at Bob Evans!

* We started off the year with a free weekend - YAY!!!!!!!!! And it was so nice that we both had the day off work yesterday, because it was one nasty mcnasterson weather day! Rain, fog, ice...yuck! We slept in, Ryan made lazy omelets and toast for breakfast, and I knocked out the end of my 2014 scrapbook while he worked on some little projects around the house. And Braeya slept. Ever the helper, that one!! It was the most lovely, most restful day. We do not fail to appreciate days like this one!!!

The Saturday Six

One.

Source

One of my goals for this year is to work on organizing, simplifying, and restructuring our lives a bit. I thought it would help me be accountable and maybe help you do the same if I threw out a challenge every week {until I run out of ideas} of something little you can work on to organize your life and home! You can do all of them with me, some of them, or none of them! So here you go...first one!


PHONE PHOTO ORGANIZATION CHALLENGE: My phone is FULL of photos, and I fear if it were to crash, I'd lose a few that are precious to me. I'm also sure there are dozens in there that I'm done with and just need to delete. So this week's challenge is...take some time while you're watching TV, waiting at the doctor's office, or riding along in the car to go through your phone, delete unnecessary photos, and back up the ones you couldn't bear to lose. Start out the new year with a cleaned up phone and space to capture new memories!

Two.

Source

I absolutely adore this checklist from Holley Gerth - about making decisions for the future. I think it's an excellent guide, and I have already been thinking through it for some decisions we're making for our own future!!  

Three.

Source

YES. THIS!!!! This article from Andrea Lucado hits the mark, in my opinion. Sure, we love clean starts {and I'm in the crowd that so does...} but my goodness...let's not discount the messes that made us who we are - and will continue to do so even more than we can see today.

Four.

Source

Since the cold air has settled over our region again {oh how I loved our warm December!!!} I feel compelled to tell you about one of the Christmas gifts my mother-in-law gave me. It's an electric blanket - but not like for the bed. It's a throw. A warm, fleecy, soft throw that is electric. It is revolutionizing our couch time. And it's possible Braeya has adopted it for herself as well. This is going to be my best friend on the cold winter nights, I have a feeling!  

Five.

Source

For those of you looking for healthy recipes for the new year, I strongly suggest pretty much ANYTHING by Katie Farrel at the Dashing Dish. Some of her recipes are membership-only, but a monthly membership is only $5.00 and worth it in my opinion. But this recipe is open to anyone and I've been eating it for the last week. SO GOOD. Breakfast tacos! I make 3 ahead of time, wrap them in foil, and then grab and go each morning. I warm them up, add some salsa, and eat. Pretty filling and very fast.  

Six.

Source

Is anyone else as beyond-excited as I am that FIXER UPPER'S NEW SEASON STARTS THIS WEEK???????? {Enough question marks to convey my excitement???????????????} 

When You Say "I Do."

If you've been here a while, you know that Ryan and I created our own definition of speed dating. We dated for two months, got engaged, and two months later...we were married. Though we packed a whole lotta everything into those four months, we did manage to find time to dream about the future in between the dating, the planning, and the wedding assembly.

Our dreams were probably typical and wouldn't shock anyone. We dreamed about what life would be like when we could wake up and go to sleep together. We dreamed about holidays shuffling from family gathering to family gathering. We dreamed about vacations and buying gifts for each other. We dreamed about just doing life together...from cooking to doing laundry to arranging furniture.

It all looked really pretty in our heads. Neat and tidy...just the way we like our lives.

Things haven't quite turned out the way we dreamed them. Commuting gets in the way. The house we just sold got in the way for a couple of years. Major home repairs that came with a hefty price tag became invisible vacations. {It's hard to convince yourself that a week at the ocean looks a lot like Pex plumbing...though both do involve water, I suppose.} Periodontal disease and ensuing treatment got in the way.

And in moments like those, I was so grateful that when we stood in the sand on our wedding day, in front of the tiny cloud of witnesses who had traveled to Florida...and the handful of swimsuit-clad strangers who huddled in as closely as they could...that we asked people to pray for us. Not just on that day with its warm breeze and stunning sunset. But in every day to come when we popped into people's minds. On the days when they might not have a clue what was happening in Shafferland, but that didn't mean something wasn't happening. We asked that cloud of witnesses to be our pillar of cloud...leading us by example and leading our names to the Throne regularly.

So many times in the last two years, we've felt those prayers, as we've learned this dance that is marriage. The rhythm of figuring out how to mesh two lives and unexpected obstacles. How to reconfigure dreams to match the reality staring at us.

This past summer, another couple got married. We weren't at their wedding, but I cuddled up with my laptop and a giant cup of coffee to look at every single picture posted to Facebook after the big day. The bride and groom were radiant. The wedding...and the marriage...had been long bathed in prayer. The witnesses gathered around glowed as much as the bride and groom and you just knew this was one of God's couples. Ordained. A mighty life and witness to be created by this union. The bride's mom had been my mentor after my breakup with Isaac and God had used her in powerful ways in my own life. I knew her love for her daughter. I knew her love for her now-son-in-law. I knew her belief that they were unquestionably right for each other and dedicated to love and service.

And no doubt, they dreamed some dreams that looked a lot like mine with Ryan a couple of years ago.

So the post I never expected to read was that this past Christmas...their first as a married couple...they spent separated by thousands of miles, while Jason fought for life and health in a treatment facility out of state. I never expected to see that their monthiversaries have been more apart than together, as they've been separated all but two of their married months. That the bride wakes up to photos of her husband but not to his present smile. That her weekends aren't filled with newlywed dates and adventures, but with her family, who has risen up to support her in this mapless journey.

My heart sank and rolled sick in my chest as I thought about the bumps in the Shafferland road. They've been hard for us, and I will not disown that, but my goodness. We've faced them side by side and hand in hand.

I do believe Lauren has lived a love I haven't even known - loving from thousands of miles away. Being a bride minus her groom. Praying over a husband instead of with him. I have tears in my eyes even writing this because I know this wasn't her dream. And yet she is still there, still loving, and eager to, in less than a week now, welcome her husband home for the next phase of treatment, done back here in the presence of family and friends.

I wanted to tell you about them today for a few reasons:

* If the names Jason and Lauren come to your mind...will you pray for them? Pray for strength and healing and perseverance and provision?

* If you go to a wedding...will you commit to praying for that couple any time the Lord brings them to mind?

* In fact, if you go to a wedding...will you commit to praying for that couple regularly for at least the first year?

* If you are married...will you commit to praying over your own marriage regularly, that you will be able to withstand whatever comes your way and that your love will grow even when life is not a dream?

* If you are not married...will you commit to praying over your future marriage, so you can have a hedge of protection in place when storms roll as they have for Jason and Lauren?

Don't give up dreaming. I believe God delights in watching us dream and in making a way for some of those dreams to come true! But life is not always dreamy. In this new year, I ache for a renewed commitment to pray over couples and marriages...for their perseverance and for God's glory to be seen magnificently in the good dreams and the bad. {And by the way, if you don't see Jesus in Lauren's testimony, you need to clean your glasses!!}

***** Jason and Lauren's story can be read in more detail here - which is also a site dedicated to raising funds for Jason's continued treatment beginning in about a week. *****

The Simplified, Intentional Life

I used to be a big resolution and goal maker. One year I had something like 30 goals for the year. Nothing like setting yourself up to fail from the start! I haven't made specific goals in the past 3-4 years, though, because it seemed like every time I did, God smiled and said, "How about we go THIS direction instead?"

And His direction was always so much better.

Even though I've learned to be less focused on what I want to do for the year so God has room to do what He wants to do for the year, I know myself well enough to know that I need some things to shoot for in 2015. It's just who I am and what I love.

I first titled this post "The Simple Life" - because in truth, I long for simplicity after the chaos we seemed to have lived in the last couple of years. But I also know that life itself is just not simple for most people - and certainly not for us. So I've reframed my vision for 2015 to The Simplified, Intentional Life.

I can't make my life simple. But I do hope to find things to simplify it as much as I can. To not take on too much. To not overcommit. To not utterly exhaust myself, especially with the things that do not matter. And in many ways, I feel like I rode the wave of 2014 without intentionally investing in it. I want to do better in 2015.


With all that said, here are some of my hopes for the year...and we'll see how God leads in the bigger, more pivotal things:

* Love Ryan on purpose. This past year, I did a great job of intentionally observing our monthiversary on the second day of every month, amid widespread smirking and eyerolling over my inability to stop celebrating the little things. But the truth is, I don't ever want to stop celebrating the little things. I prayed for a husband for way too many years to stop celebrating the answer God gave me in Ryan. So I don't plan to give up the monthiversaries. Neither do I plan to stop leaving notes in his lunch box every single day, telling him how much I love him. But I feel like last year, those were my only two intentional ways of loving. This year, I want to be more purposeful about planning dates and little gifts for him. I love doing those things, and for me, they're important. I have missed them in the house-selling chaos of 2014. Looking forward to doing better.

* Exercise and quiet time. The two things I have struggled with intensely since becoming a commuter. Something has to give when you lose two hours out of every day that you used to have...and for me, these seem to be the things that stood on the shaky ground of a commuting life. And they're two of the most important things physically and spiritually speaking. So I've asked Ryan to hold me accountable to MAKING TIME for both of these on a regular basis this year. It will mean sacrificing time for other things, and I know that, but it is wildly important and I'm ready to make both a priority.

* Purging. If/when our house sells and we make a move to somewhere in this great, wide world, I shudder to wonder how many boxes we will need to pack. One significant goal I have for both of us this year is to go through the closets and drawers...the attic and garage...slowly...and pull out the things we do not need. The things we never use. Make this future move simpler on ourselves. Live without such excess.

* Appointments at home. I know I am not the only one to feel guilty when asked to do something...if I know that time would be better spent at home, resting, investing in my life with Ryan, etc. I have been working, and want to continue to work, on retraining my mind to understand that an appointment at home is a valid appointment, and I don't have to feel like "just because something isn't on the calendar" doesn't mean I am obligated to say I'm free to (fill in the blank).

Those are my main things. If I can stand on this day, next year and look back at less stuff and more time with others...if I can know that I have poured myself into loving the Lord, Ryan, and myself...I will count the year a success.

Tucked in there, I hope to have time to write, to scrapbook, to visit more counties, to make memories, and the list goes on, but my target focus is on simplifying and being intentional in the things I listed above. And of course, looking forward to spending time here with you every day, letting you peek into Shafferland.

So tell me...how about you? Goals for this year? Resolutions? Fill me in!!

Goodbye and Hello

Feeling nostalgic today, as I typically do entering the last day of a year.  

What a year this has been!

Our life has been full. Sometimes blissfully full and sometimes frustratingly full. But always full.

Just some thoughts over the past year, as we close out 2014.

Polar Vortex:

 I hated the Polar Vortex. {Is that clear enough for you?} I hated the subzero temps, dripping faucets, frozen pipes, icy roads, bitter winds, and ridiculous heating bills. I hated white knuckle drives, two hour {one way} commutes, and coming home in tears day after day because of the harrowing drives. But in all of that week-after-week madness, I'm ridiculously grateful for the safety God granted me and Ryan too - as we drove {and sometimes slid} down treacherous roads to get to work. I'm ridiculously grateful for a warm home and the money to pay the high heating bills - and the fact that all of our faucets never froze at the same time. And I'm grateful for a husband who likes to play in the snow - and who did just that so we could make memories together.

County Tours:

This past year, we ushered in our new project of visiting every county in Indiana. There are 92 counties. We've been to 7. This could take a while. But oh my goodness - what fun we had! We've been to covered bridges, coffee shops, courthouses, statue trails, state parks, quilt trails, and abbeys as we covered the miles of those seven counties. We've tromped through snow and pedaled through lakes - and a little bit of everything in between. Looking forward to more of this project in 2015 and so very grateful for a husband who embraces these kinds of projects with me!

All Kinds of 60th Celebrations!

 60 years ago...many things happened that impacted the people Ryan and I have become today. And in 2014, we got to celebrate four of them. Ryan's mom and dad were born 60 years ago, and last February, we celebrated Ryan's dad's 60th. In December, we celebrated his mom's birthday! 60 years ago in March, Ryan's Grandma and Grandpa Echelbarger were married {they're Allen's parents} - and 60 years ago in August, my parents were married. So in the space of one year, we were able to honor two marriages and two lives - and we are thankful for all of them. What an incredible heritage!

The Journey of the House.

 Oh this house. This wonderful, infuriating house. When 2014 began, we fully believed we had buyers who would be signing paperwork on a secured loan in no time. Instead, they moved out, leaving behind a massive amount of work and months of additional bills for us. Ryan and I spent many days working on the house, Ryan stopped by multiple times a week on his way home from work to maintain it throughout the year, and we waited...and prayed...and waited...and prayed...for the sale to come. It was the single most exhausting event of our year. A massive faith-shaker, budget-drainer, and headache-inducer. A piece of life we are certainly thankful to leave behind. A big blue weight lifted from our shoulders. Still celebrating this answer to prayer!

Our Blended Families.

 One of my greatest joys in this married life Ryan and I have is the way our families have blended together. Mother's Day...Father's Day...Christmas Day...we had the unusual blessing of spending time with both our families under one roof {or sky, as weather permitted}. I know some families don't blend well, so the fact that ours enjoy spending time with each other is a blessing we don't take for granted. And it was a treat to be the hosts on Mother's Day...to welcome them to our home!

Freelan Family Vacation!

 This year was a first for the Freelans...a family vacation with everyone. I'm not sure this has ever happened in my lifetime. We took a long weekend and went to Shipshewana, Indiana {Amish country} and had a truly wonderful time hanging out together, eating, riding bikes, shopping, swimming, you name it. We are scattered so far that we have no idea when/if a vacation like this will happen again...I'm grateful for the memories made.

The Great Vehicle Swap of 2014.

 We began the year with twice as many vehicles as drivers in the house. Then the old blue Neon died a tragic timing-belt death one summer evening as Ryan made his way home from work...and we knew Old Trusty {Ryan's name for him...I called him the Asphyxiator} was on his last leg. So we bid a fond farewell to Old Blue and the Asphyxiator, and said hello to a new work truck for Ryan. And by new, I mean very used...but next to the Asphyxiator, anything looks brand new! Old Bandy has been reliable and free of toxicity. He's a blessing! {The truck AND Ryan!}

The Great Dental Event of 2014.

I learned this year that I had advanced periodontal disease, and the beginning of my "rehab" for it was to undergo a 5 hour, sedated procedure for extensive cleaning, fillings, and repair. I was really nervous about it, but God was so gracious to guide me to an office that was kind, understanding, and wonderful to work with. Ryan took the day off work to drive me to and from my appointment and took care of me in its aftermath. While the procedure could never be described as fun, it can be described as successful and I've been told if things continue as they are now, I should be fully recuperated in two years!

Hosting and Co-Hosting

 Lynne took an extended vacation this year, giving me the opportunity to solo-host Mid-Morning five times in a row. Three interviews and two BLT shows - one of which I got to share with Ryan as my co-host. Though I was appropriately nervous about hosting on my own, I had a blast doing it, and that show with Ryan is one of my favorite memories of our entire marriage. We had a great time together and our listeners loved having him right there to talk alongside me. Being able to work together for the day AND share the airwaves was pretty much the best day ever.

House Repairs

 There are fun home repairs...and then there are necessary home repairs. This year leaned heavily toward the necessary. After the freeze and thaw dance of the Polar Vortex, we had all our old pipes replaced throughout the house and clear out to the street...a long and messy project that you can't see, but we know was a good and necessary investment. And then this fall...the new roof! Ryan still says "Look at that good-lookin' roof!" every time we drive toward our home. While this is not how we would have preferred to spend our money this year, I'm thankful we were able to make these repairs!

The "Cations." Vay and Stay.

  We had a great year of travels...mostly near and not so much far. A long weekend at Lake Webster with Ryan's family, the aforementioned trip to Shipshewana with my family, our long weekend getaway to Chicago to celebrate our second anniversary, a glorious week AT HOME to rest and watch the Olympics, a long weekend to Holland, Michigan to celebrate our birthdays, a long weekend at Holiday World just for fun, and Ryan's birthday gift from me: a trip to West Virginia with the guys for whitewater rafting.

Two Beautiful Years.

 And capping off the year - the chance to celebrate 2 years of marriage with my handsome husband. He is giving, loving, and flat out fun to be around. His surprises to me for our anniversary dinner were nothing short of spectacular, and our weekend together in Chicago was a much needed rest after our very full year.

No idea what 2015 holds for us. We continue to pray for God's leading over our lives, answers to questions, and many more wonderful memories and moments of joy.

Praying, as always, that those who come behind us will find us faithful.

Photo Booth Fun

If you listen to Mid-Morning - and more specifically, to BLT - you already know this part of the story. But if not, this will be new! :) Every week, Lynne and I share some of our favorite Pinterest finds, and we pin them all on our We Like it Wednesdays board. Last week we did our BLT show two days before Christmas, so I tried to find some things to pin that could be implemented last minute. One thing I stumbled upon was this blog post - where the blogger created some ULTRA CUTE Christmas photo booth props. She said she just hung up wrapping paper to make a backdrop, cut out the props after printing them on card stock, and attached them to rods. DONE!!

I thought this would be the most fun addition to our family Christmas, so I asked Mom if it would be okay. She said yes...so on Christmas Eve, I ran to the store for card stock, printed out the props, and taped them to some wooden skewers I had. I took our leftover roll of wrapping paper, and headed for Mama's house. Check this out!!

 We took the photo booth to the sickie....

Ryan's mom loved it so much, she asked us to bring the booth to the next Christmas gathering - the one that night at Allen's parents' house. So we did! We set up the booth in their gathering room and had more fun!

 Even his grandparents got in on the fun! Pretty sure this made EVERYONE'S day! We clapped for them after their picture!

 Grandpa with all his boys!

We also took the booth to the Christmas we celebrated just this past Saturday with Ryan's mom's side of the family...and they had a great time with it too!

 Sisters!!!!

 All the siblings...

 Another generation of sisters...

 ...and with their beautiful mama!

 Best incognito....on the left.

 And the youngest participant in the photo booth!

What FUN memories came out of a few minutes of printing, cutting, and taping...and some leftover wrapping paper! This is my favorite Christmas memory this year. Watching everyone just put aside everything for a little minute and have some fun!!