Indiana Bucket List

On Monday, I told you about our chance to catch a glimpse of the Indiana Bicentennial Torch as it passed through our county. As I researched a bit about the Torch, I stumbled upon the "official" Indiana bucket list, which I'd seen before, but I'd kind of forgotten about it. They put this together as part of the 2016 Bicentennial celebration, so just for funsies, I thought I'd see how many of the things on this list I/we have seen!

COMPLETED

1. The giant Nestle Quik sign near Anderson. I don't have a picture of this one {because I never expected to need one} but I've seen it many times on my way to Indianapolis from Marion. It's right beside the interstate!

2. The League stadium in Huntingburg, where they filmed A League of Their Own. Ryan has actually not seen this one yet, but I went there before we were married. And I actually love that movie, so when we do this county, I'm absolutely taking him here.

3. Eleven statues of America's favorite lasagna-loving fat cat in Jim Davis' hometown in Grant County. {We saw all of them on our Grant County tour!}

4. The lights on Monument Circle at Christmastime. {First anniversary adventures.}

5. Fall foliage on the hills of Brown County. {Day after engagement date. I also went here before we were married, along with my friend Julie, for a fun girls-only weekend...and with my friend Rachel on a week-long writing retreat!}

6. A Fort Wayne Tin Caps Game at Parkview Field. {I went to a Tin Caps game in my pre-Ryan days. Fun fact: it was actually a blind date!}

7. Climb to the top of the Soldiers and Sailors Monument in downtown Indy. {First anniversary adventure. I was terrified.}

8. Go to the Indiana State Fair. {We have not gone here together, but my Mom took me once when I was a kid, and Ryan went in his pre-Bekah days. You should ask him about the time he performed there, actually!}

9. Shop at Edinburgh Premium Outlets. {Also part of our day-after-engagement date.}

10. Ice cream or a shake at Ivanhoe's in Upland. {We've had both things multiple times, although we usually spring for a strawberry shortcake if it's in season!}

11. A cinnamon caramel roll from the Rise n Roll bakery just east of Middlebury - known as "Amish Crack." {We won't mention how many of these we have had.}

12. Tailgate before eating at Bonge's Tavern in Perkinsville. {Ryan tried to take me here when we were dating, but the wait was too long, so we went somewhere else instead. But he has been there before and said it is very good food. It's such a tiny place that most people tailgate to keep from starving while they wait to get in!}

13. Ride the Thunderbird and the famous wooden roller coasters at Holiday World and Splashin' Safari. {Not surprising, this was all Ryan. We have been there together since we got married, but we only did the water park side, and only Ryan participated. I photographed.}

14. Go to the Indianapolis 500 at least once. {This was just Ryan. And he said he never wants to go back.}

15. Go to the James Dean Festival. {Also just Ryan. Even though we lived in that county...I've never been.}

16. See a concert at Klipsch Music Center. {That was just Ryan, but it was back when it was called Deer Creek, not Klipsch. Does it still count?}


ALMOST

{The following items are not EXACTLY what the list says, but we've gotten close in some way.}

1. A themed water ski show by the Lake City Skiers in Warsaw. {We've seen the Ski-Bees show many times on Lake Webster. It's really close to Warsaw!}

2. Angel Mounds State Historic Site in Evansville. {How about Mounds State Park in Anderson? Close enough? We've been there twice! Fun fact: That's where Ryan asked me to be his girlfriend!}

3. Indiana's oldest zoo - Potawatomie Zoo. {Haven't been to that one, but we've been to the Indianapolis Zoo! First date!}

4. Zoom down the Toboggan Run at Pokagon State Park. {We visited that state park in the summer, so the Run wasn't running, but we saw it!}

5. Face your fears at Eagles Wings Zipline in Leopold. {We ziplined Dagaz Acres on our first birthday getaway. And it did force me to face my fears, thankyouverymuch.}

6. Ride a segway at White River State Park.  Another suggestion was to ride the gondola. {We rode a paddleboat. First date.}

7. Walk in Abe Lincoln's childhood footsteps in Spencer County; see the landing where he took the flatboat trip that set him on the path to end slavery. {We hiked in Abe Lincoln State Park on our Spencer County date, but we were too hot and hungry to walk in his footsteps by the end of the day!}

8. See the Andy Griffith Show impersonators at the Mayberry in the Midwest Festival in Danville. {We haven't gone to the festival, but we have eaten at the Mayberry Cafe in Danville, and it was fun!}

9. Go skydiving in Michigan City. {Ryan went skydiving before we were married, but he went in Plymouth. And now he's done. Ha!}

10. Compete in the homemade raft race at the Three Rivers Festival in Fort Wayne. {We haven't been part of the race, but we were in the parade a few times. Does that count?}

11. Take your picture with every Santa statue in Santa Claus. {We posed with a couple. I didn't know there were so many that we needed to tour the whole place to find them all!}

12. Go to a Pacers or Fever professional basketball game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. {We've been to a couple of Colts games...does that count?}

13. Go hiking at Eagle Creek Park in Indianapolis. {We've hiked at many other parks, but haven't made it to that one yet.}

14. See a movie at the drive-in theater in Rockport. {We've been to the one in Wabash instead.}

15. Ride horses at Natural Valley Ranch in Brownsburg. {We had a horseback riding date, but it was in another city.}

16. Ride a sky-high bicycle at Science Central in Fort Wayne. {I went to Science Central with my friend Julie in my pre-Ryan days. Didn't ride the bicycle, but had fun!}

17. Challenge yourself on the Village of Winona Bike Trails. {We rode the Pumpkinvine Bike Trail not terribly far from Winona.}

18. Old fashioned cream pie at the Blue Gate Restaurant and Bakery in Shipshewana. {We didn't have pie, but we did eat here during my extended family vacation!}

19. Cookies from the Abbey Bakery at St. Meinrad Archabbey. {We didn't know we were supposed to get cookies there, but we did go there!!}

20. The world's best gummies at Albanese Candy Factory in Merrillville. {One of Ryan's patients sometimes brings these in to share, but we've not been TO the factory.}

21. Blueberry soft serve ice cream at the Blueberry Festival in Marshall County. {We have had blueberry donuts from there, but we've never had the ice cream, nor have we been to the festival.}



ON THE LIST

{And finally: the things that actually are on our short list, but we just haven't gotten to them. We have plans to complete them in the next few months, though!}

1. A calf being born at Fair Oaks Farms.

2. The Minnetrista Cultural Center in Muncie, with the columns from the original Ball family mansion at the entrance.

3. The giant dome at West Baden, once known as the 8th Wonder of the World.

4. A sunset over Lake Michigan.

5. Ski or snowboard at Paoli Peaks or Perfect North Slopes.

6. Conquer the 3 Dunes Challenge.

7. Burgers and Shakes at Cammack Station in Muncie.

8. A glass of tomato juice at French Lick Resort, where Chef Louis Perrin first created and served it in 1917. {That will be Ryan only. I hate tomato juice.}


Not too shabby, huh???

66 Ways God Loves You

Back when I worked at the station, one of the major perks of the job was the chance to attend conferences and meet people whose life work had {in part} shaped my life. Musicians and speakers I never dreamed I'd meet in person, and though I frequently made an utter idiot of myself in the process of meeting them, it was still a pinch-me-now experience.

One of those moments came fairly early on in my radio career, when Lynne and I represented the station at the Fresh Grounded Faith conference. We got to meet Kathy Troccoli {grew up listening to her} and the speaker for the event: Jennifer Rothschild. {I write about it here and here if you want to peek into Bekah-of-yore's life.} We not only worked the conference, but we were able to attend and sit under Jennifer's teaching, and I learned much from her in those two days.

We also spent time with her at a dinner before the first night began. If you really want to know about someone, you observe them during normal times, and that's when I learned that Jennifer is genuine and lovely and the same kind of person sitting at the dinner table as she is teaching from the platform.

Jennifer loves Jesus and she loves people. And she very much wants the two of them to meet, which is why she has devoted her life's work to teaching through speaking and writing.

AND she has a brand new book out, called 66 Ways God Loves You.

Here's the thing about this book:

You know that I love a good inspirational, Christian-life book. I love a book that digs deep into the Word and teaches me things about the culture of life in Bible-times or what root words of original languages mean so that I can better apply the verses I know to living my life. Dig in. Spend some time. I love it.

But those books aren't for everyone.

Some people are new to the faith. Digging deep confuses them. They're still trying to curl their minds around the basics. Some people aren't even to the faith yet. They're skeptical that a Book written that long ago could even matter. Some people are just so tired or so busy. Sickness or new babies limit their time of comprehensible study.

So what do you recommend to these people?

It was a conundrum I found myself in not long ago. One of my friends wrote me and said she needed a little daily reading sort of book, but in her current life station, two to three pages would be all she could commit to reading at a time. Did I have any suggestions for her?

Oh how I wish I would have known about this book before I wrote back!

66 Ways God Loves You is a small, completely non-threatening, completely pretty-to-look-at, completely true book about the different ways God loves us, as demonstrated in every single book of the Bible.

Even Leviticus.

Jennifer has gone through every single one of the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, pulled a prevailing theme from within it, and written a two page devotional-like reading, explaining that facet of God's love.

As you know, I am not one for brevity, and to write something meaningful in two short pages is quite a feat. And it's a feat Jennifer has accomplished in this book. She includes Scripture references in each reading, quotable, zinger-like sentences - crafted to stay with you after you've closed the book, and truth to soothe your soul, regardless of the source of your soul's tiredness.

A sampling of her wisdom:

"God may not replace what you have lost, but He will redeem what you have lost." - p. 96

"God doesn't want yesterday's trials to be your source of despair. He doesn't intend for yesterday's triumph to be your source of strength either." - p. 84

 "God teaches you the way of love by loving you well." - p. 147

And for each chapter, she has a title page, summarizing what God does in that book of the Bible:

In Judges, God Shows Mercy in Spite of My Failures

In Ezekiel, God Brings Life to My Dead Bones

In 2 Corinthians, God Comforts Me

It's a perfect little gift book: a little square with full color graphics throughout. And if you have someone in your life who is floundering or seeking or just in a stage where in-depth study isn't the greatest need, it makes the most perfect gift. {In fact, I'm sending one to my friend who needed devotional book suggestions.}

For those who know the Bible, it offers a great and succinct reminder of truth. For those who are skeptical, it offers an inviting sample of truth to whet their appetite for more.

Jennifer's conversational and loving heart are evident on these pages, and I'm so glad I could learn from her once again - not in a conference this time, but in the pages of a book.

And in other exciting news, I have an extra copy to give away, so if you would like one for yourself or to give away to a friend, leave a comment {be sure to include your name if you comment anonymously} and I'll draw a winner on SUNDAY, OCTOBER 16, and announce it on Monday morning's blog post!



** Thanks to Thomas Nelson Publishers and the Blythe Daniel Agency for providing 2 copies of the book for me to read, review, and give away! All opinions are my own! **

Taco Dip (No Beans!)

We had been invited to a New Year's Eve party hosted by some of Ryan's friends. I always feel additional pressure to make an impression on his friends. It's 100% self-inflicted. They are a welcoming bunch and wouldn't know the difference, I'm sure, between my extra effort and my regular effort. But it matters to me. I want them to approve, to believe he chose well, and to be known as the wife who can cook. {Which of these things doesn't belong, right? Terribly self-serving.}

So when those goals collide with the onset of a new year and its accompanying healthy eating goals, a girl must scour Pinterest for a dish that is both tasty and won't leave the devour-ers with a belly full of regret the next day.

That's how I found the taco dip. It caught my eye mostly because it did not include beans. I hate beans. The only beans I actually like are cocoa and coffee. I eat other kinds, but not out of any form of desire. Completely out of obligation. But there are still come beans I absolutely cannot do. Among them: kidney and refried.

So a taco dip with no bean layer? You have my attention. A taco dip with no bean layer AND minimal guilt? Sign me up.

I took it to the party, it was loved, and in fact, Ryan so loved it that he's requested it multiple times since then. {This was one of the savory dishes we served at my Mom's 80th birthday party, by the way.}

Since it is now officially a Shafferland dish, with no going back, I present it to you as a recipe for the box!

Taco Dip

* 8 ounce brick of low-fat cream cheese
* 1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
* 1 16-ounce jar of mild or medium salsa
* 2 Tablespoons of taco seasoning
* 2 cups of shredded lettuce
* 1 medium tomato, diced
* 1 small can of sliced back olives
* 1 1/2 cups low-fat shredded cheeese
* Low-fat tortilla chips or vegetables to dip

Allow cream cheese to come to room temperature, then combine it with the yogurt, salsa and taco seasoning and beat with a mixer until well combined. Pour in the bottom of a 9x13 dish. Sprinkle shredded lettuce over the mixture, top with diced tomatoes, cheese and black olives. Refrigerate until serving. Serve with low-fat tortilla chips or raw vegetables for dipping.

 A Few Tips:

* You can use regular 1/3 less fat cream cheese or the Greek Yogurt cream cheese. Either one works well.

* You can change the heat of the dish by the heat of the salsa. If you're serving it to a group, go mild, just in case. You don't want to make smoke come out of anyone's ears!

* I use my own homemade taco seasoning - recipe found here. If you don't make your own seasoning, you can just use a packet of your favorite seasoning.

* I let the cream cheese/salsa/yogurt/seasoning mixture go for a decent amount of time in the stand mixer to make sure all the chunks of cream cheese are broken up.

* I buy my lettuce already shredded to save time. Therefore, I get iceberg lettuce. If you want a little extra nutritional value to this dish, you could sub in spinach and chop it yourself. {It would be prettier, too, because it has more color!}

* I normally use a mix of low fat mozzarella cheese and regular cheddar. You could use whatever cheese blend you want - a Mexican blend or whatever you like for taste and aesthetics.

* This dish will keep for a day or so in the refrigerator, but after that, the yogurt gets really watery and runny.

* You can also use this as a topping over nachos in place of a processed cheese or something similar. It works well as a "dressing" since the yogurt layer isn't super thick.

Enjoy!!

Wedding Dates

Spill the Beans this week features a slightly {cough, cough} mannish-sounding Bekah. Stupid cold. But enjoy it anyway. We chat about the sickness and health part of the wedding "vowels" {as we jokingly call them} and about the wedding we attended this weekend, which you can see more of below!

Click here to listen.

So as we mentioned in the podcast, Ryan's cousin, Noelle, got married this past weekend. Noelle has four brothers and sisters, and she's the second of the crew to get married. Noelle and I were somewhat of kindred hearts in the way we waited and prayed for a husband, and I was so excited to watch her marry the man God brought along for her. {I don't know him terribly well yet, but I find him to be an incredible, God-honoring man.}

This is what happens when you ask Ryan for a wedding selfie.

{That was actually about the sixth take, but he won't let me post any of the rest. They were too goofy even for him!}

Finally he "smiled right."

The wedding was simple and wonderful. The church had just one big, multi-purpose space, so they used it for both the wedding and the reception. We sat at tables for both!

{I was waiting to blog about it until I saw some pictures surfacing on Facebook. I know there are all kinds of rules about not posting wedding pictures until the bride does, but enough were floating around that I don't think I'll be in trouble.}

I didn't get any close-ups of the bride and groom, so I borrowed this one from Ryan's mom's stash. Total credit to her!

Meanwhile, we hung out with another one of Ryan's cousins, April, who is my twin. Not in looks, obviously, but we are frighteningly one in mind.

Because they had an hour in between the ceremony and the reception, they set up a popcorn bar to keep the guests fed and happy. It was a fun idea and delicious popcorn, I might add!

They served a delicious picnic-inspired dinner: hot dogs and brats, mac n cheese, grapes, and they also had bundt cakes - all of them handmade by the bride's sister. She made twenty-one bundt cakes. All by herself!

The kids were getting a little stir-crazy after dinner, so Ryan and I took them out to the playground.

So that was our fun evening at the wedding! We stopped for coffee on the way home, and called it a great night! {Even if I did sound horrible from this stupid cold!!!}

Bicentennial Torch Relay

I have no idea if schools all follow {or still follow} the grade level study schedules I did when I was a kid, but way back then, we studied Indiana history in 7th grade.

I really don't remember many of the specifics of the class {or of anything history-related, much to the chagrin of my history-teaching father}, but I clearly remember the written/oral reports. I don't remember how often we had to do them, but periodically, we'd have to study a specific part of Indiana's history and write a report about what we learned. Then we had to read our reports out loud to the class.

As in stand up in front of classmates and talk.

The reports were much like you would expect from a group of seventh-graders: excruciating. Kids got up, slapped their stapled reports on the podium, leaned their heads so far toward the papers that you could barely hear their words, and mumbled assembled facts that sounded just like the last dozen reports.

I determined to be different. Not to show up my classmates, but just to survive history research. I turned all my reports into short stories, reminiscent of Little House on the Prairie. I created families and named all the members and threw them into whatever situation I'd researched and then for twelve or so pages {not kidding}, I'd tell their stories. They had log cabins and horses and oil lamps and the whole nine yards.

This may be why I had very few friends at that stage in life. It may also be why half my class was asleep after my reports. 2:30 p.m. and a twelve page mini-series? I can't blame them for napping.

But that's what made history interesting to me: stories. It's why I like the 92 county tour project Ryan and I are apparently devoting the rest of our natural lives to completing. There are stories hidden everywhere. Stories of how counties got their names, stories of how coffee shops came to be planted in refurbished buildings, and stories of the quirky little places unique to each county.

I can't spout off dates to you, and there's a whole lotta history I couldn't begin to teach, but I can tell you the stories.

So that's why I was excited last week to be just the tiniest part of a piece of that history. Indiana is celebrating its bicentennial this year {a fact I also had not remembered from studying all those many years ago}, and part of the year's celebration is a torch relay that is still in the middle of traveling through all 92 counties in Indiana, a trail that covers 3200 miles.

In each county, different people carry the torch in a relay-fashion. It began in Corydon, which {little known fact for you out-of-state readers} was the original state capital, and it will end in the present capital, Indianapolis. The relay started just over a month ago and will end this week! Last week, it came through Howard County, and the path of the torch was scheduled to go right by Ryan's work! It seemed only reasonable to go watch, because this is the only bicentennial the state will ever have, and I won't likely be alive for the next 100 year celebration!

I went over to his work just a little early, because I didn't want to miss it, but of course, it was running late, so I hung out in the parking lot for quite a while! {Loitering in a hospital parking lot is not terribly exciting, in case you were ever thinking of doing it.}

 Not until I arrived, did I discover the hospital was actually a "torch passing" location! The motorcade stopped right there to allow it to change hands!

{The motorcade had a lead car that stopped by ahead of time to make sure all was well.}

It came by right at the end of Ryan's work day, and his last patient canceled, so he was able to leave early and come watch with me!

The motorcade is coming!

Howard County has a huge automotive legacy, so it only made sense for the torch to arrive at the stopping point in this car:

From there, it was given to an elementary student who had been nominated by his principal. It was pretty exciting to get to see a kid get to participate!

After pausing for some pictures, the torchbearer and entourage continued on down the road to the next relay point, and we went on home.

They had a huge celebration downtown, and maybe if I had felt better, we would have gone to check it out, but the cold I have acquired was beginning to really knock me over, so I mostly just wanted my blanky and a couch. :)

I can only presume that in another couple hundred years, some nerdy junior high girl will write a twelve page essay for history class about a torch relay and how a cute therapist and his bloggery wife went to watch it.

{Tell her not to read it out loud in the middle of the afternoon. Unless, of course, she serves caffeine.}