The Saturday Six

One.

Listen to Ann's interview here 

We're covering new territory on the Conversation Cafe this week! I had a chance to talk with Ann Gabhart, who has written many books, but the series of hers that I fell in love with was the Hidden Springs Mystery series. (I reviewed the most recent book in that series a couple of weeks ago on the Saturday 6.) Ann was fun to talk to and shared some insights into her writing craft and the world of fiction in general. Hope you enjoy!

Two.

My friend Sarah Forgrave is doing a new series on her blog to help you know how to eat fast food as responsibly as possible. I loved this first post with practical suggestions of what to eat at a number of popular fast food restaurants if you're wanting to try to be good!

Three.

Have you ever had someone apologize to you (for something big or small) and rather than saying you forgive them, you just dismiss the offense as no big deal? Sure, that might make us more comfortable in an awkward situation, but this powerful little post explains why pushing for grace and forgiveness is so important. Well-written words from Andrea Summers.

Four.

 And not to belabor the topic of forgiveness, but I also wrote on that subject for the Annesley site this week and thought I'd share my words as well.

Five.

Easter is a week from tomorrow, FYI. If you're needing a quick decoration (that's geared more toward Jesus than bunnies), I love this free printable! 

 Six.

Source

I was absolutely giddy when I saw book 3 in Irene Hannon's Hope Harbor series had been released. The first book, called Hope Harbor released a couple of years ago and was one of the first fiction books I read after I quit my full time job. It rekindled in me a love for fiction, and as you can tell, I haven't quit since! Last year, I happily revisited the charming Pacific Northwest town in book two, titled Sea Rose Lane, and when I saw that Sandpiper Cove was releasing this spring, I had to read it. Immediately.

If you read my fiction reviews very often, you know I have a soft spot in my soul for books set in small towns, and Hope Harbor is just such a town. Charming and little, where the people know each other and actually cheer each other on in the most beautiful way. I was happy to see some of my favorites from earlier books, like Charley with his taco truck and, Luis, the grateful citizen getting a new chance in a new country.

This time, I got to know police chief Lexie Graham, a single mom grieving a past that remains mysterious to most of the townspeople, and working hard to make Hope Harbor a safe and pleasant place to live.  I'd met her in an earlier book, but this time I learned her story. She's investigating a string of vandalism incidents around town and more than one seem to be targeting Adam Stone (or Stone, as most people call him), an ex-con trying to build a new life among the people of Hope Harbor.

As you might expect from an officer of the law, Lexie has keen intuition, and she expects to find herself overly wary of Stone and his prison-riddled past. But for some reason, the change she's making seems to be more genuine than facade. As she reaches out to help professionally, she finds herself intrigued by this man she knows better than to associate with.

And indeed, Stone wants a new life. He wants friends and a place to belong. But a lifetime of hurt and betrayal makes him a bit skittish of trusting a town full of people who know he has a shady past.

As the two begin to work together to find answers to the vandalism, they begin to wonder if they'll also find a way to fill these massive, secret voids deep inside both of them.

This third installment in the Hope Harbor series was a sweet, insightful, easy read that kept me up late so I could see how it ended! Thoroughly enjoyable!

* I received a copy of this book from Revell but was not required to provide a positive review. * 

Our Random Week

Ryan has been battling a cold this week and we have no idea where it came from. He was 100% fine on Sunday when we celebrated our monthiversary, and he woke up Monday morning sounding like a bass singer. (And it has just progressed from there.) What in the world!?!?!?!?! I've been doing my best to avoid it and have so far been successful!

It hasn't helped that the week has been quite chilly and rainy. The kind of week that makes you want to curl up on your couch in your jammies and read a book! (And if you change jammies to yoga pants, I did just that very thing!)

But anyway. Thought I would spend this Friday giving you a peek into the week. (A better peek than the shuffle gives.) Total randomness ahead. You've been warned!

Ryan's sister just got engaged, so wedding planning is happening in full force around the family. I went to a planning meeting this week, with my nerdy binder and colored pens, and I decided I'm too organized for anyone to handle. LOL! Don't misunderstand: no one was unkind or rude about my ridiculous level of organization. But they did stare a lot. I guess probably most people don't bring a whole fistful of marker pens wherever they go. So I loaded up on coffee and did a lot of listening. I think perhaps Ryan and I are unique in our organizational OCD.

Ryan makes me laugh. A LOT. And this face right here is one of my favorites. We were driving home one night (and don't worry...he was safely at a stoplight when I took this picture), joking around about something, and he broke out in his best fake-tears. So great.

We had Tuesdays at the Table this week: our first time in about a month, because of the cabinet overhaul. Ryan's mom and our Aunt Ruthie Woo Hoo came for dinner, and we did a lot of laughing. They are so funny!

Been running this bad boy pretty much nonstop, thanks to germfest/spring 2017. It smells good in here!

I've talked before about my friend Brent Vernon, who is a singer/songwriter/ventriloquist/author/illustrator/pretty much all the things. One very talented guy! He's from Florida and doesn't often get to Indiana, but when he does, I go! I usually have to drive an hour or more from home to hear him, but this week he was IN KOKOMO!!! So you can know we packed up, Ryan's cold and everything, and went to hear him!

(Funny story: the church was a super tiny country church and when Brent arrived in town he actually went to the wrong church. He had unloaded everything before he realized he was in the wrong building. He wondered why the people were giving him such funny looks!)

Some people get really excited about the ventriloquist part. Ryan loved it! (I love it too. Sam -the dummy - is hilarious!)

We hadn't gotten a whole group photo yet, so it was our night. I decided later maybe we should have put Ryan in the middle. That's a whole lotta shirt print going on between Brent and me! LOL!

I wrote about it a couple of days ago, but I finally got my OWN COPY of my brother-in-law's book. It's so good. Seriously. Proud of him!!!

So that's been the randomness of our week!

Full recap will still come your way Sunday, but I hope you enjoyed an extra look!

Peanut Butter/Chocolate Chip/Oatmeal Cookies

I'm always looking for new cookie recipes, because cookies are pretty much my love language. Sadly, too much of a good thing also makes me not fit into my clothes, so while I do love a good regular cookie, I'm always hunting for recipes that are a bit on the healthier side. (And no, not so I can eat twice as many. Most of the time.)

I know it's still better to eat a healthy dose of green beans than to have a cookie, but sometimes a girl just needs a smidgen of dessert, and my guess is you know what I mean! So when I happened upon these cookies on Pinterest, I pinned the recipe for later and "later" finally arrived a few weeks ago. I had the munchies on a Sunday afternoon, so I made the cookies and Ryan could not get over how good they tasted. Cookies that are a little healthy and a lot tasty? I call that a win! So with a few Shaffery modifications, here are our new favorite cookies!

Peanut Butter/Chocolate Chip/Oatmeal Cookies

* 1 cup crunchy peanut butter
* 2 Tablespoons of honey
* 4 Tablespoons brown sugar
* 1/2 cup plus 2 Tablespoons old-fashioned oats
* 1/8 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 1 large egg
* 1/4 cup peanut butter chips
* 1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

In a medium bowl, stir together peanut butter, honey, and brown sugar. Add oats, salt, baking soda, and vanilla extract. Stir thoroughly. Lightly beat the egg in a separate bowl and then add to mixture. Stir in peanut butter chips and chocolate chips. The dough will be thick and sticky, almost like no-bake cookies before they set up. Use a small cookie scoop to transfer the dough to a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 7-9 minutes. Cool completely before removing from tray.

A Few Tips

* The first time I made these, I used a natural peanut butter that is much softer. I've also used regular peanut butter. The outcome seemed to be the same in ease of stirring and consistency, regardless of which peanut butter I used. (The original recipe I followed did say not to warm the peanut butter or the honey, however, so I'll pass that tip along to you.

* If you would rather use creamy peanut butter, you can. I just like the extra texture of crunchy peanut butter.

* I have made these with both quick and old-fashioned oats and noticed no difference in taste or consistency, but I prefer old-fashioned oats just because they're bigger. (Weird recent quirk of mine.)

* I always use pure vanilla. Another odd Bekah-quirk.

* If you prefer, you could mix in things other than peanut butter chips/chocolate chips. You could use other kinds of nuts or dried fruit. I'll take the chips though, thank you very much.

* This is a pretty messy dough, so I would highly recommend getting a scoop. You could spoon it onto the baking sheet, but you'll just have extra mess to contend with.

* This doesn't make a HUGE batch, so that's nice. It won't be around forever. (Also it tastes so good that it won't be around forever.)

* I put parchment paper on my baking sheet for easier cleanup.

* These are really unbelievable warm from the oven with a glass of cold milk. YUM!!!!

* They harden up a little bit the longer they sit, but they don't get really crispy like some cookies do. 

Light at the End of the Funnel

You guys!!! I normally talk about books on the Saturday 6, but today is a special day, so we're talking books mid-week!

Before I tell you about the book, I have to tell you about the author, because he is my brother-in-law and very dear to my heart. He and my sister married when I was a second grader, so he's pretty much been part of our family as far back as my memories go.

I simply cannot say enough about how much I respect him and have learned from him over these 30+ years we've been family. He has listened to more than his share of sad Bekah woes (back in the single days), offered helpful advice - even when it was hard advice, and encouraged me on my own walk with the Lord.

When Ryan and I started dating, Jeff happened to be in town for a weekend and Ryan made an appointment with him to talk about our relationship and seek his opinion and advice on our future together. I knew they knew each other, and I couldn't imagine Jeff not liking Ryan or thinking this relationship was a bad idea, but when Ryan called after they were done, I eliminated all small talk and said, "What did he say? Is he okay with us?" (And then Ryan pulled a prank and told me Jeff said NO! I about cried!)

Jeff performed our wedding ceremony and has been a huge encouragement to us as a couple in all the days that have followed since.

But aside from this important role he has played in our lives, Jeff is probably at the top of the list of most sincere Christ-followers I know. He's a minister in the Mennonite Church, but denominational boundaries aside, his highest goal is to seek the Lord with all his heart and live a life that pleases God. And while he does teach that through his work at the church, he also lives it out every day, even when people aren't watching.

And that closeness with the Lord was what carried him through the devastating EF5 tornado that claimed his home, church, and town ten years ago next month. If you've been a longtime reader of this blog, you remember that back in 2007, I shared dozens of posts about this horrific tornado that swept through southwestern Kansas late on a Friday night. But I could only share as a terrified family member, 850 miles away, wondering what was happening and how to help.

Jeff can share as a person who was there in the midst of the storm and in its aftermath. And he has done just that in the publishing of his first book, Light at the End of the Funnel. (Don't you just adore that title?)

Jeff and I are kindred spirits when it comes to processing our life through the written word. I have always loved his writing style, and over the years, we've had many good conversations about writing, journaling, and our mutual love of the written word. (Our spouses are grateful we understand each other that way and they are spared such conversations. Ha!)

I've always known Jeff did some journaling about this experience, but as all wise writers know, you shouldn't try to write publicly about something you're still too close to emotionally. You need some distance and perspective to write well, and for this last decade, he's still been too close. It wasn't time. But late last year, he came to me with the news that he thought it might be time. He bravely shared his initial manuscript with me, and I eagerly read it.

I shared my thoughts and he sent a second draft, which I also eagerly read. And the next time I saw the manuscript, it was neatly bound inside a cover with his name! (Can you tell I'm a wee bit proud of him?)

This book is not a how-to of tornado survival. It is, in part, a chronicle of that night in May 2007 and the weeks of cleanup and rebuilding that followed. The story itself is interesting to read, but he goes past just story. The book is centered around his study of Psalm 91 and how the verses in that psalm prepared him (though he didn't realize it at the time) for what was to come, carried him through the literal storm, and shaped his spirit in the difficult weeks that followed.

Even if you've never been through a tornado, there is so much to learn within these nearly 100 pages. Because of course, a tornado is but one kind of storm in life. We are each presented with storms and asked to trust the Lord to use them to shape us. I believe Jeff did that well. And his offerings are a gentle teaching. Not condemning. Not preachy. Just a humble conversation from his heart to yours that can guide you on your own journey.

In the back, he does have a few resources that could be helpful to you on a literal level, if you live in an area prone to tornadoes. Ideas of what to pack in a storm bag and ideas of how to help others in a very practical way when you hear of areas ravaged by tornadoes. And in that respect, he also leads by example throughout the book of things that are and are not helpful to say and do when interacting with folks affected by natural disasters of any kind.

This book is relatively short and an easy read, so if you're not a thick-novel-lover, this is a perfect size for you. His writing style is conversational and easy to read; he's a good story-teller. I hope you'll check it out. It's available here on Amazon.

Jeff, I'm proud of you for being brave enough to share your story and heart, and I am grateful for the bigger-picture life example you shared through the experience you faced. Congratulations on your first book (please write more!) and a job well done! 

Our 52nd Monthiversary

If you saw yesterday's post, you know we had a rather...um...interesting date over the weekend. Lots of mishaps, wrong turns and maddening moments that made for great podcast fodder! We're not perfect - by a long shot - but the imperfections make for great stories later. Enjoy!

Take a listen right here!

Sunday was our 52nd monthiversary, and we were still reeling from the maddening little weekend. We were, however, excited to have the whole day together!

(Pretend like we both do not look like we need some SERIOUS sleep. Where were my lips? I must have eaten right before the picture.)

We went out for lunch, to McAlister's. I am so in love with their iced tea!

(Is it meant to be if we both pick the same meal without realizing it???)

It was SO gorgeous that we also took an afternoon walk in the sunshine and sat out on the patio for a while, enjoying our new furniture!

Many good talks, much prayer, and a movie to end the day: yay for days of rest and celebration!

Over halfway to 100 months. Thanks, Ryan, for loving me well, despite my many flaws. I love you!!!

Alphabetical Dates: Inspired by the Letter F

I know! We are so out of order on our alphabetical dates! We did E before D and G before F. Like I said before, it's good we're not trying to teach the alphabet through this project!

I think perhaps the best words to describe the date weekend inspired by the letter F include: fluid, fluctuating, frustrating, and fickle.

Pretty much the whole date went nothing as I planned it, and while it was still overall good and definitely memorable, it was also flabbergasting.

The original plan for this date was a fondue night at home. But when I realized how much all the cheese and dipping items were going to cost, I decided we would make our date fit into some of the plans we already had for the weekend. Cheaper!! (Or should I say frugal?)


So our date started Friday night with our Friday night fellowship fete to mark the end of our Bible study we've been doing with Ryan's co-workers! We had a pitch-in dinner with burgers and brats and all sorts of snacks. Ryan built a deviled egg burger he was pretty proud of.

I didn't get many pictures that night (fail!!!) and one of the other girls said she'd send me hers, but I don't have them yet. Even so, it was a really fun evening. I love a good party.

We continued the date on Saturday, and that was the day that ended up making us crazy! I shared this picture on my Facebook page and said something about dates not going as planned, because I don't want everyone to think that everything is always perfect here in Shafferland. We have a good life and a great marriage and we really do have a lot of fun together, but don't have some sort of Midas touch that makes everything void of imperfections. I want to be honest about that, because I don't ever want to give off false impressions that we have everything automatically easy!

We've got some GREAT stories about this day that I'll save for the podcast tomorrow because they are even better told than written, I think.

We started the day with an appointment for our car (recreating our first date, apparently), and after that, we were kind of hungry, but not very, so we found this little donut shop and got a donut. We had to eat in our car because there were way too many people for the table space in that little shop!

We went shopping for fun finds at some of our favorite stores while we were out of town. Found some good deals for our new patio space!

I had a pretty raging headache by this point, so I asked if we could go through Starbucks for some iced fresh brew to try to temper the thing, and while we sat in the line, a lady from the car behind us came up to our car, told us she'd paid for our order, and handed us a little card to explain her random act of kindness. WHAT?!?!?!?!?! A freebie? This has never happened to us! We've heard of such things, but they've never happened to us!

The card tells about little baby Josie, who lived just 18 days, and her family started this initiative called Josie's Impact, to spread the word about her life and encourage people to do random acts of kindness in her honor and memory. (And yes, we will be paying this forward!) If you want to see some of the things people have done, just search #josiesimpact.

We tried to shop at the Goodwill, but it was the first Saturday of the month and everything was 50% off, so the place was a madhouse. I found an amazing reference book I wanted, but I couldn't justify standing in line for over an hour for one book. We came back at the end of the day, and it was gone. Great sadness. (And par for the day.)

We went to Red Robin for lunch, and Ryan scored his free food, because it's his birthday month, so he earned a free meal! YAY!!!

Then we went to see a flick: Beauty and the Beast! I'd been itching to see it, but I wanted to wait until the crowds died down, and it paid off! Our theater was pretty empty!

I thought it was incredible in music and cinematography! They did add a few songs that were not in the original movie, and they changed a handful of lyrics to existing songs, but they left in enough of the amazing stuff that it was okay. I thought I would cry multiple times, but I only cried once! (And that was when she walked into the library. Not even kidding. All those books just made me straight up cry!)

Also - I would like to have these seats. They rocked! Literally!

We had a couple more stores to hit, and LOOK WHAT WE SAW ON THE WAY?????

Oh, be still my heart!

So see? Despite the many frustrations of the day, it was still a good 2-day date, and we piled up a good number of blessings!!!

Now! Back on track! Letter H is next!

The Shafferland Shuffle

We're celebrating 52 months of marriage today! So while we enjoy that, hope you enjoy a peek at last week!

* Last Sunday was a super rainy day in central Indiana. Good day to be home! And rain is one of Ryan's favorite things, so we curled up on Mo, watched some movies, and let the rain fall! Before the end of the day though, he sneaked out to the garage to put the last of the poly on the cabinet doors. And with one final stroke of the brush, that project was DONE!

* Monday evening, Ryan put the cabinets back up so we could declare the kitchen FINISHED! We were both so happy to have everything back in order! I got to hang out with my favorite baby for a little bit, and the buds on our flowering tree got a little bit bigger. Lots of good things happening in one day!

* Ryan was so busy Tuesday, he couldn't take much time for lunch, so I surprised him with Subway at work! We hid in his cloffice and ate together. Romantic! :) That night he helped me write my blog post about the kitchen cabinet makeover, which is how we ended up having a can of poly and a dessert plate sitting together on the table. Only in a blogger's life, right? Tuesday night was also the Fixer Upper finale: anyone else watch?

* Wednesday was a day of many treats! We were gifted some of the most amazing lemon cake I've ever had, and I met up with my best friend's mom for yogurt in the afternoon. I promise I got a super tiny yogurt! I got behind on my work, so I had to finish up in the evening, but it was nice to be able to see Ryan while I worked!

* On Thursday, my mom "graduated" from physical therapy! She's doing really well - just over a month post-surgery, now! On his way home from work, Ryan found this spectacular rainbow, and he knows how much I love them, so he came home to get me and took me back - and it was still there! I was so surprised! It was one of the most stunning complete rainbows I've ever see! And isn't this picture of Braeya too cute? I decided she must surely be praying over me. (HA!)

* Friday was "change-the-calendar-to-a-new-month" day, which is always one of my favorite days! That night, we had a big party with our Bible study crew, which was not only a lot of fun, but it also had some pretty spectacular food! They even surprised us with a gift for leading the study, which was so sweet! :)

* Yesterday was another alphabetical date! We went back to the letter F, since we'd skipped it earlier. More about this later, but a couple of highlights were getting a free drink at Starbucks, thanks to a pay-it-forward lady behind us, and watching Beauty and the Beast! AND we got our first glimpse of the new IKEA down by Indy! It's really happening!

The Saturday Six (No Foolin'!)

One.

 Working on the kitchen cabinets (and of course, by that I mean RYAN working on the kitchen cabinets) has me all in the mood to rethink my decorations in most of the house. Not that I want to go buy a bunch of stuff, but just that I want to shop the house and remix and rethink. Love the style of the Collingsworth girls, so this post has me ready to get moving!

Two.

I'm getting ready to interview a fiction writer for the Conversation Cafe (my first time to talk fiction with someone on that podcast!) and I thought this written conversation with novelist Deborah Raney was very interesting! I always find it fascinating to learn more about the reading and writing habits of authors! (P.S. - enjoy, Lori!)

Three.

 Did you know I was a piano lesson failure? I took them for 11 years but didn't apply myself and can barely play anything. Womp, womp. But even though I'm terrible, I have a huge appreciation for piano talent and found this short video fascinating. A professional pianist wore eye tracking glasses while he played, and you can see what he's looking at while he plays. He even narrates it to explain what he's doing. Really cool!

Four.

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh big hair. I've had it. Have you had it? My biggest goal in the mid 90's was to have the perfect "wings" on my hair. Sadly, my hair is so thick, as soon as I'd spray the wings out to the side (held in place by a giant plastic pick), the hair would collapse and I'd just have a sticky, covered-up mess. But this post has some truly impressive big hair. TRULY.

Five.

Capsule or no capsule, if you're in the mood for some cute clothes, Simply Bliss Boutique has some ADORABLE new stuff rolling through the boutique. Of course you should check out every category, but here are the new arrivals! 

 
Six.

Source

I was back in the land of fiction this week, where books are concerned, reading a new-to-me author by the name of Ginny L. Yttrup. I'd heard of her before, from my radio days, but I hadn't read anything she'd written until now.


A few days ago, I read a post written by a book-reviewer who said she struggles with Christian fiction, because it doesn't get messy enough for her. She wants real-life scenarios, nothing sugar-coated, and she feels Christian fiction is too polished. Writers are afraid to get into sticky topics, she said. I wrestled with that for a while, because I don't feel the same way about Christian fiction. I read it to enjoy a happy place when days are hard, and I don't want to have to worry about finding bad language and sinful behavior filling the pages.

But as a happy compromise for readers like that reviewer and me, Home, by Ginny L. Yttrup, offers an honest look at hard situations without being filled with anything offensive or contradictory to Scripture.

The book is written through the continuously alternated viewpoints of three characters. (At first I feared this might distract me, but it didn't at all.) Melanie is a mildly successful novelist, her husband Craig is a well-respected architect, and their twenty-plus year marriage has hit a rocky place. A depressed economy means it doesn't matter how great of a home-builder Craig is, because no one can afford to buy. A distracted and restless heart means Melanie is in danger of not meeting her next book deadline. And both these things mean not enough money sits in the bank account for Melanie and Craig to continue their current lifestyle. And as everyone knows, money troubles are tough on any marriage. Avoiding each other and burying under work seems the preferred M.O. for both of them.

Meanwhile, their neighbor and good friend Jill is facing a few battles of her own. Not within her marriage or their finances, but within her mind. Nightmares and  obsessive-compulsive behavior have increased so dramatically that her husband and even their sweet little children are noticing that something isn't right. Admitting a problem exists isn't what Jill wants to do, but she realizes she may not have a choice.

Mental illness, marriage woes, and wandering eyes are among the hard topics Ginny addresses in these pages, and she does so in a beautiful balance that doesn't condemn, but also doesn't gloss over the severity of the situations and the need for repentance, accountability, truth, and professional help. The book wasn't sugary, it wasn't filled with shiny packages tied with neat bows, and yet it did offer the escape to another place that I always long for when I read. (BONUS: there was a cottage with a water view involved. I love cottages and water!)

I grew to love these characters and appreciated the insights into their minds, their fears, their struggles, and their faith. I would definitely read more from Ginny!

* I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review.