Embarking on The Friendtastic Fifth Anniversary Adventure

Need some laughs today? A whole episode of vacation outtakes for you! Hope you enjoy! Some of our funniest stories from the road are right here in this half hour!

Listen here

Well, it's high time I get around to telling you about our trip! I think, in the interest of completing my recap of this trip prior to, oh, February, I am going to wait until January to bring back the Walk a Mile in My Shoes Wednesdays. People are probably too busy to help me with those at the holidays anyway!

SO! Our trip! We decided we wanted to do something a little extra special this year, since it was our fifth anniversary. Five years is a big deal to us, so we wanted to celebrate it well! We decided to take extra time off and go back to our beloved Siesta Key Beach, where we were married five years ago! However, in true Shafferland fashion, we did not just go to Florida and come back. Lots of stops and fun all along the way! Wanna see some of what we did?

Our pre-trip photo. The dates are now wrong, thanks to the snow and ice that kept us out for an extra day. LOL!! Also: it was 5:30 a.m. and pre-coffee.  So just excuse everything about our looks, thankyouverymuch. (This was Thursday, November 30th...five years to the day after we left for our wedding, actually!) Also note the chalkboards. This will be important later.

First stop? The brand spankin' new Starbucks that opened THAT VERY MORNING for the first time since the tornado knocked it over almost a year and a half ago. It opened at 5:30 and we got there just before 6. Sweet!! (It is a very nice Starbucks. Glad to see it back in its rightful home.)

Our goal this day was to make it to Hiram, Georgia by around dinner time. Hiram is a suburb of Atlanta, and we have a friend who lives there! The drive was...interesting. The weather alternated between rainy and foggy, depending on where we were. And the TRAFFIC! Kentucky and Tennessee, I don't know what was happening, but we were just grateful to make it through both of you alive! So many near-accidents for us and so many ACTUAL accidents that we went around on our way. Slow down!!!

Standstill:

 Still standing still:

 And then there was THIS! I have no idea what it was about, but we went through a stretch where police were blocking the interstate (you know...the one we were driving on) from any other cars who wanted to get on. And almost a dozen troopers sped past us. I have NO idea what was going on, but I was one nervous puppy. I didn't know if someone down the way was driving the wrong way or if there was a dangerous person being pursued. No clue. I tried searching online but couldn't find anything. And we never happened upon a resolution of any kind.

Some of the scenery:

And after our drive, I see why we saw versions of this sign throughout Kentucky and Tennessee:

Also: Waffle House was at EVERY exit. One time we found one on both sides of the same exit.

We finally made it to Hiram, where we stayed with our new friend Joan! I met her in May when I spoke at IWU's staff retreat. She was the other speaker. She told us if we were ever in the Atlanta area and needed a place to stay, just to let her know. It just so happens Atlanta is the halfway point between home and Siesta Key. I hoped she meant what she said, because we looked her right up!

Hiram is actually a lovely little place, and Joan's home is charming. We arrived at dinner time, and she took us out to this little Italian restaurant for dinner. Our food was delicious. (Didn't hate the ambience of the exposed brick walls and such, either.) So if you're ever around Hiram, I recommend the Olive Tree!

After dinner, we went back to Joan's house, where she asked to see one of my scrapbooks. (Yes, I travel with scrapbooks, and yes, it made my day to have her ask!) We talked with her until bedtime, and then we went into our little suite for an extremely restful sleep.

I think it may have been a good thing we were there on November 30th and not one week later. Georgia fell prey to about 10 inches of snow. :)

Friday morning, Joan asked us if we wanted to join her at IHOP before getting on the road. Though we were eager to get to Florida, we were also eager to spend more time with Joan and we had discovered the night before that our chalkboards did not appear to have made it to Georgia with us. After we took that pre-trip photo, Ryan put them on the counter, and when I asked him about them at Joan's house, his eyes grew very wide. He did not remember taking them off the counter and putting them in the car. What?!!?? Our beloved five year old chalkboards didn't come with us? Somebody bring me a brown paper bag!

So we had breakfast with Joan and then scurried right over to the Hobby Lobby to purchase all new chalkboards and supplies. Whew! Back in business!!

We spent most of Friday driving, and we noticed two things as we went south: WARMTH and SUN. We'll take both!

I addressed all our Christmas cards while we drove, we sang some car karaoke, and of course, there was a little of this:

Best sign in the world:

We didn't quite make it to our destination by sunset, but we were close enough to enjoy it from the road!!

And at long last...our beloved resort where we were married.

It was so good to be back!!

The gazebo where we had our first look on our wedding day:

We checked into our room, said hello to the beach, and then went in search of food. We went to Captain Curt's, which is the same place we had dinner on December 1 five years ago. We went there with our wedding party that night, and I was so sick from the 24 hours of travel in a car with basically no sleep. I didn't enjoy the food because of feeling so nasty. This time I could actually enjoy!

Unfortunately I also had to fit into a dress the next day, so I went the salad route. LOL! (This was also the place I blogged about last week where the hostess didn't like us so much because we asked to sit at a different table! Good food though. Don't let that one experience ruin my review of it.)

Oh Florida! It was so good to see you again! :)

Tomorrow I'll tell you about our anniversary!

Christmas Card Greetings from Shafferland!

Before I tell you about our anniversary trip, I wanted to "send" you our Christmas card and letter. Hope you enjoy! :)

First...the card.

And the letter!

2017 Report Card for Shafferland

Merry Christmas! We just finished gallivanting around the southeastern portion of the United States, celebrating our FIFTH wedding anniversary! The past five years have flown way beyond any respectable speed limit, but we are grateful for every part of these 60 months and the big living we have done throughout them all!

Five years is the age when most kids head to Kindergarten, and since we're mostly overgrown Kindergartners, we thought we'd share some highlights from our year in report card format.

Health: We started the year with a failing grade in this one. After two ER visits (One/Two), an ultrasound, and a HIDA scan, we found out Ryan's gallbladder had elected to stop participating. On January 16th, almost two years to the day after Bekah's gallbladder surgery, Ryan had surgery of his own and a weeklong gallcation to recover. We improved our health grade to an A after that, but Bekah's mom had a hip replacement and a double knee replacement this year, so we've certainly spent our fair share of time learning all things health-related!

Interpersonal Relationships: We continued our "Tuesdays at the Table" tradition, inviting friends over for dinner and fellowship, and we also did a fun project of our own: alphabetical dates! Throughout the year, we went on dates inspired by each letter of the alphabet, which let us try all sorts of new and fun things! (And we continued observing our monthiversaries, of course!)

Speech: Bekah received a number of speaking invitations this year for churches, women's groups, and more. She also taught an online workshop about public speaking! This summer, she attended a writing and speaking conference in Michigan, where she learned many good and helpful things! Bekah is also still doing a couple of interview-based podcasts each month (called The Conversation Café) and we are still doing our weekly Spill the Beans podcast together. (We just recorded our 100th episode!)

Child Development: We tried to potty-train Braeya. (Yeah, she's the cat. The ten year old cat.) We failed that pretty quickly. Back to litter boxes. And though she's not ours full time, we continued enjoying "partial custody" of Miss Phoebe, our friends' miniature goldendoodle. She even spent a whole month with us while her people were out of the country, and we loved having her! That's about all we can offer you in this subject...sorry!

Geography: We marked a few more counties off our county list tour this year: Boone, St. Joseph, Elkhart, Lake, Porter, and LaPorte. 71 to go to see them all! We also took a long weekend trip to Saugatuck, Michigan, where we stayed at a boat and breakfast (yes, you read that right) and saw the sights not only there, but in South Haven as well!

Industrial Arts:  We overhauled our kitchen. Again. Twice. Ryan refinished all the cabinets, upgrading them from oak to espresso (anyone shocked by that color choice?), and then a few weeks later, we upgraded all our appliances to stainless steel. The finished product deserves an A, but the process of appliance installation nearly earned us a failing mid-term grade. Ryan also put in a ew downspout/drain system in the yard, installed a classy new mailbox, and revamped our rotting front porch beams - a project that became much more time and financially intensive than we originally planned. Bekah pretty much just took pictures. And cried.

Bible: We led two Bible studies this year: we started the year meeting together with Ryan's co-workers and their spouses, completing a study on the book of Acts. This fall, we led a small group affiliated with our church. OH! And speaking of churches, we now have a permanent church home! After some frustrating months of pulling away from the church we thought was home and searching for a new one, we are grateful to have found our place. 

Music: We took in a few concerts this year! Ryan planned a surprise outing to a Gaither Vocal Band concert (one of the last ones with David Phelps before he left the group!), and we also went to hear Mark Lowry and our friend Brent Vernon! (Not together.)

Physical Education: We spent a month this summer taking 5:30 a.m. modified CrossFit classes. The cost of the gym membership + the early morning hour + an HOUR of intense working out didn't fit our schedule, so we ended up moving our workouts back to our own place, but we continued the CrossFit style! We also conquered the 3 Dune Challenge at the Indiana Dunes this fall. (Ryan ran part of the way. Bekah survived. Both were accomplishments!)

Community Service: Ryan continued his perpetual service of helping out all his friends who needed assistance with little projects at home. And Bekah picked up a volunteer job at a school, helping out in the office a couple of days each week.

Writing: Bekah spent the year doing a variety of writing projects, including contributing monthly to the Annesley website (ministry of the Wesleyan Church), blogging every day, writing two weeks' worth of devotional readings for Light from the Word (ministry of the Wesleyan Church) and picking up some new opportunities, too!

Science/Math: Don't ask. Much like our actual years in school. Our bills are paid and nothing blew up. So we must at least be passing.

Party Time: It should be a school subject, even though it's not! This year we celebrated many things, including a handful of weddings! Ryan's sister, Bre, got married this summer, and Ryan was a groomsman in her wedding to Andrew. (Bekah helped out with photos.) This year also marked Ryan's 20th year out of high school, and we had fun meeting up with his friends at a football game and then dinner!

So there you have it! Our report card for the last year! We are excited to head into our sixth year of marriage and this beautiful Christmas season! We hope you have a Christ-filled Christmas, and we appreciate you being our "classmates" in this life!

Overall Grade for 2017: A!

More fun Christmas cards to see here!

And linking up with Tamar here!

The Shafferland Shuffle

Drumroll please! :)

Well, the time has come for the big reveal of our anniversary trip! (And the reason for my crazy inability to have my own blogging brain this week.)

We went on a trip that we named the Friendtastic Fifth Anniversary Adventure, which took us through nine states over eleven days. I have sooooooooooooooooooooooo many stories for you. Settle in, my friends! Settle in!

But until I can catch you up properly, here's a peek at the last portion of the trip!

* When we woke up a week ago today, we were in Siesta Key. Yes, we went back to the lovely beach where we were married!! It was so wonderful! So last Sunday we took in beach walks, sunsets, and the chance to see two friends of ours who live in that area. It was such a wonderful day. And by wonderful, I also mean EIGHTY degrees. My soul.

* Monday was our last full day in Florida, so we went on all kinds of adventures. Hunted for shark teeth, went kayaking in a clear boat, walked through beautiful Christmas lights, and wondered why in the world we thought it was a good time to leave shorts weather! (A decision we would continue to question as the week progressed, that's for sure!)

* Tuesday morning, we said goodbye to our beloved beach and then got in the car for a FULL day of driving. A lot of prayer, a bit of coffee, and a good GPS got us to our next destination, where we were able to catch up with more friends - and they even opened their home for us to stay the night with them!

* On Wednesday we drove a few hundred more miles to see friends of ours who moved away about a year and a half ago. It was SO GOOD to see them! We had dinner together, looked at Christmas lights, and settled in at their house for a couple of days!

* Thursday we were still with our friends, and we had a fun day. Donuts at a revolutionizing donut shop, a fun museum that included a butterfly garden and some actual rest time. (This vacation did not lend itself to a ton of rest, so that day was so welcomed!)

* Friday was the busiest of all! We got up early and drove to Mt. Airy (aka Mayberry) to see the Andy Griffith sites. CLEARLY we will need to go back here when we have more time to devote to the place! But we sure had fun! Then we drove in a snow storm to Asheville to the Biltmore. Oh my word. Apparently North Carolina never gets snow and they had a complete shut-down-the-city storm while we were there. Thankfully the Biltmore remained open. It is lovely at Christmas!

* Yesterday...well, can I say it did not go as planned? We had stayed in the night in Asheville and got up with a plan to see a few things around town and then come home. Town was still shut down, though, so finding things proved EXTREMELY comical. We had a great trip home until we got ALMOST home and then the wet roads turned to ice. On the advice of friends and family, we pulled off the interstate and got a hotel for the night, even though we were seriously ALMOST home. Better to get home in one piece. Sunday morning is ALMOST Saturday night, right? But even though it was a plan B kind of day, it was also a beautiful sight in the mountains!

The Saturday Six

One. 

Twenty-three of the most charming towns to visit at Christmas means we have traveling to do! I have been to four of the places on this list, but only two at Christmastime. Like I said: looks like we have some traveling to do! Any of you been to any of these at Christmas?

Two.

If you're looking for some subscription-themed gifts to give this year, here's a list for you! You'll also see at the end of the blogger's list that if you hunt around a bit on her blog, you can find gift lists for other themes too!! Kind of fun! Not to make anyone panic, but we only have a couple of weeks until Christmas!!

Three.

This is a fun twelve-days-of-Christmas idea!! If you're looking for a good, yet simple tradition for your family (or yourself!) this year, give it a shot!

Four.

Going to a white elephant exchange? Good ideas here!! (If you get the cookie one, invite me to your party!! I don't care if it is silly. I like cookies!)

Five.

I saw something very similar to this recently, and I actually loved it! The one I saw had hooks on it, and it was perfect for housing a whole bunch of ornaments in a very small space. I filed the idea away for our future RV days. Wink, wink. ;)


Six.

Source

Well this book was so much fun to read here right before Christmas! This week I read Michelle Griep's new book, 12 Days at Bleakly Manor. The book is apparently the start of a new series called "Once Upon a Dickens Christmas," and it looked like a lovely Christmas story that wasn't all kinds of predictable. (I've read many Christmas novels that are kind of like a Hallmark movie on paper.)

This book is kind of like Downton Abbey meets Clue, and I mean that in the best of ways. It's set back in 1850 on the grounds of a huge estate, but the story line is a bit of a mystery. Clara Chapman is a young woman still reeling from the previous year's embarrassment of being left at the altar. When her marriage fell through, she was forced to move in with her aging and ailing aunt. As Christmas approaches, both women find themselves destitute, thanks to the apparent theft of their family fortune.

But then Clara receives a mysterious invitation to spend Christmas at Bleakly manor, and invitation promises that if she remains for the entire twelve days of Christmas, she'll receive 500 pounds as a reward. Though Clara hates leaving her aunt behind, her aunt urges her to go and complete the twelve days.

The entire trip is a mystery to Clara, and it takes an even further unexpected twist when she realizes her fiance, Benjamin Lane, is also staying at the Manor. So many questions - about their relationship, Ben's whereabouts for the past year, and the purpose of this strange gathering at the Manor.

The book is a quick read at just 182 pages, and it's fascinating to read about Christmas in this time period and location. I confess it whet my appetite to learn more about the actual twelve days of Christmas celebration! (I know shockingly little about it.)

If you're looking for a bit a of a different read this Christmas, give 12 Days at Bleakly Manor a shot! And it looks like next Christmas, a second book will follow!

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

Cooking for Christmas!

I promised to write more from your list of suggestions, so here I am with another one!

This time, we're talking recipes! Some of you asked for my favorite go-to recipes at Christmas, so I've gathered a list that may not be at ALL what you expected. But hopefully it helps!

Appetizers

It seems that Ryan's family usually asks me to bring a cheeseball, and this is my no-fail cheeseball recipe. While cheeseballs are not my all-time favorite thing to make, I do like it that you can make them into fun shapes. I've done snowmen and Christmas trees, and I've seen them made into pinecones using a layer of almonds on the outside!

I don't know that I have ever made this for Christmas, but I have often made it for New  Year's Eve parties. I think it would work well for either! It's a healthier version of taco dip, and it has no beans! This is huge for me, because I really do not like refried beans. It makes a 9x13 dish, so you will have plenty!

Breakfasts

Christmas breakfast was always a big deal when I was growing up. Mom usually made something she could assemble the day before and we would eat it after we opened presents!

Here is the egg and sausage loaf she always made. This was also one of the first dishes I made for work carry-ins when I learned to cook after getting out on my own! It is VERY easy to assemble and can be made the night before and baked in the morning. I AM SORRY for the lousy pictures in this post. It's a super old one, as you'll quickly be able to tell!

If eggs, bread, sausage and milk are not your gig, here's another breakfast casserole I've made many times that can also be assembled the day before and cooked the morning of. This one has hash browns and other fun additions! It is delicious! Here's a shout-out to my old stove with coil burners that made it into THAT lackluster/blurry picture!

Ryan's mom's Christmas always features breakfast for dinner, which is really fun. Ryan's step-dad makes a HUGE batch of pancakes, and they're always delicious. (They also serve eggs, cheesy potatoes, cinnamon rolls, and other great breakfast food. It's perfect in their little log cabin. Swoon.) This isn't his recipe, but these are good pancakes and make for a great Christmas meal! Can I continue to apologize for the photos?

Speaking of cinnamon rolls, this is SUCH an easy recipe to make using frozen bread dough. No yeast to mess with! I've made these for some of our own Christmases since we've been married. Delicious! I also particularly love this recipe because you make it the night before and bake it in the morning. I'm all for minimal morning work.


If you're watching the diet this year, I have two excellent suggestions from Katie at Dashing Dish. I have made both and love them. This is a crock pot breakfast omelet that is SO good. It's also not a member recipe, so you can see it even if you don't belong to her site. (Which, again, is totally worth the fee.) Another freebie recipe I love is her single serve monkey bread. Easy and delicious!

Soups

I really haven't cooked much in the main dish category for Christmas, because we usually eat somewhere that the hostess does the main cooking. But I do love the idea of soup for a Christmas meal because it's cozy and comforting. So here are a few of my favorites. 

I love cheeseburger soup and this is a healthier version of the original one I used to make. All the flavors of cheeseburger...in a soup!

Ryan makes a delicious chili, so here's his recipe. It's so good! (And look! I even made it for a Christmas-season meal last year so the tree is in the picture!)

And here's a white chicken chili recipe if you need something a little fancier. It's a broth-based chili and is quite good!

Desserts

In a crazy twist that you might not even believe, I'm still perfecting my must-have Christmas desserts. My mom makes this amazing Christmas candy that cannot be topped, so I'm still floundering about looking for my perfect dessert contribution. But here are a couple I do love!

If you're not into dipping buckeyes, but you love the taste, here are some NOT AT ALL HEALTHY but TOTALLY DELICIOUS buckeye brownies. I dearly adore this recipe.

And if you don't even LIKE to make dessert, but you need to make an impression, try this candy shop pizza. It's so easy, it's delicious, and you can get red and green M and Ms to make it all festive looking!

So there you go! Happy Christmas cooking! :)

Linking up here!

Some Christmas Get-to-Know-You Fun!

You guyyyyyyyyyyys!! You saved my post for today! You all had great ideas, so now I have posts for days to come, which is AMAZING. Thank you!!

I thought I'd do this one first. Thanks, Jenni, for the link! :) I would put pictures with it, but alas, my computer has limped its way to slow death and my new one doesn't have the whole collection of pictures loaded on it yet, so just imagine, okay?

Without further ado, I present to you my Christmas-get-to-know-you-fun!

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper. I purchase it after Christmas for (preferably) 80% or 90% off and then build a whole Christmas theme around it. (Bonus fun fact: when I made my own hand-stamped Christmas cards, I also coordinated them with the paper theme for the year.)

2. Real tree or artificial? One real and the rest are artificial. I'd never had a real tree until Ryan and I got married, and we decided to get a real one each year as one of our traditions.

3. When do you put up the tree? Normally the weekend after Thanksgiving, but this year I did it the weekend before.

4. When do you take down the tree? I usually try to leave it up as long as possible, but I do like to have it down by new year's.

5. Do you like eggnog? I do not, but Ryan does!

6. Favorite gift received as a child? I got a niece for my 11th Christmas. It's hard to beat that!

7. Do you have a Nativity scene? I do! It's super cute; it's like a children's Christmas pageant. Someday I'd love to have Willow Tree version, too!

8. Hardest person to buy for? I think probably all of our parents...not because they're picky, but because they have most everything they need, and we don't always want to get them the same gift cards.

9. Easiest person to buy for? Anyone who gives me a list! :)

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I (honestly!) can't think of a fail.

11. Mail or email Christmas cards? MAIL!! And apparently even the post office is amazed when people buy stamps in bulk at Christmas. Ryan said they could not figure out why he needed so many at once. I said, "It's December! Hello!"

12. Favorite Christmas movie? Anything on Hallmark!

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Normally Ryan and I do a Saturday shopping date and knock it out all in one day. This year, because of our busy Christmas season, I ended up doing it all online. I have never done that before!

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? I don't think so!

15. Favorite things to eat at Christmas? Iced sugar cookies and my Mom's homemade chocolate candies.

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? We have clear on all but one of our trees. I like having both!

17. Favorite Christmas song? O Holy Night - David Phelps, of course.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? It's kind of lovely that the majority of our family lives close and we can stay home!

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Only if I sing the song?

20. Angel or star on the tree top? Neither! A red glittery S!

21. Open presents on Christmas Eve or morning? Morning! (Well, with each other. We have family Christmases many days in a row.)

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? All the strong opinions about everything. It seems like if someone enjoys a tradition/song/fill-in-the-blank that you hate, there has to be an argument.

23. What is the silliest family tradition you do (or miss doing)?  My Grandma started a tradition of taking pictures of each family as they walked in the door on Christmas. She rarely had the camera turned on correctly and we would all have to pause and wait for her to figure it out. We still do this now with my mom taking the picture (and pausing while she figures out her phone). Also....trying to sneak a picture of someone bent over under the tree. Ten points for capturing the most unflattering pose!

24. Ugliest Christmas decoration ever invented? I can't think of one! I think I love all Christmas decorations?

25. Which looks best: theme trees or homey trees? I love a good theme tree, but I also love a homey tree!

26. Gingerbread or sugar cookies? Sugar with LOTS of icing.

27. Do you like fruitcake? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!
 


So there you go!! Hope you had fun reading! More posts to come based on your suggestions. THANK YOU!!!!

Walk a Mile in My Shoes Wednesday: Public Speaking

Confession: I was so caught up in hitting the five year marriage mark that I did not have a guest lined up for this Wednesday's Walk a Mile post. Shame, shame, shame. So even though it may be in terribly poor taste to interview myself, that's exactly what I'm about to do! :)

If you'd told me in high school that I would one day speak in public and get paid for it, I would have fainted on the spot. Speech class was nearly my undoing, and I could not wait for the semester to end so I could be done with public speaking forever. Never say never when God's involved. :)

I started receiving speaking invitations seven years ago when I wrote my Advent devotional. Some churches and other small groups invited me to speak to them during the Christmas season, and I am a bit embarrassed at the not-so-great job I did back then.

When I worked at the station, I began to receive more speaking invitations. I learned that when groups need a speaker, they often turn to radio stations for speakers. Lynne would share with me the engagements she couldn't fill and I was usually able to do them! When I left the station, I was pretty sure God intended for me to continue speaking, and I've relied on Him to open the right doors!

So here are some things you may not know about my public speaking life.

1. I customize every single talk (to some extent). 

If you visit my website, you will see that I have a list of topics I can speak on, and usually groups that invite me choose something from that list. Whenever that happens, the great news is, the bulk of the work is already done. The talks are written and I am very familiar with the material. But I still go through every word of that talk and tweak it to fit the exact audience I'm addressing. Whenever I take on a speaking engagement, I ask questions about the audience (number of people likely to attend, average age, anything I might need to know that could potentially impact my delivery) and then I make adjustments to fit that crowd. 

Sometimes, when a group invites me to speak, they have a topic in mind, and I get to start from scratch writing a talk. That's always fun for me too, because I like creating new material. When I write brand new stuff, I still go through the same process of trying to customize it for that particular group.

2. I go through actual rehearsals for my talks.

When I was in college, I took a speech class that didn't give me my best grade of my college career, but it sure prepared me well for the work I do now. One of the best pieces of advice that professor gave was that you need to be as prepared as you can be, but you need to hold your words loosely so you can go with the flow as needed. I try hard to follow that advice.

I write out every single word of my talks and print them in large print. I put them in binders and in the weeks leading up to the event, I practice the talk over and over and over, out loud, usually with an audience named Braeya. I also rehearse all talks at least once in front of Ryan. I work on learning the talks well enough that I don't have to read them, but not so rigidly that I can't ad-lib as needed when I actually present them. My goal is to have between five and ten rehearsals per talk. That means I do a lot of talking when rehearsing weekend retreats, since those usually have 3-4 talks per event.

3. Preparation is key...and I'm not talking about the talk itself.

When I started speaking publicly, I usually figured out what I wanted to talk about, wrote it out, glanced over it a few times, and then talked. I'm much more intentional about everything now. I try to do as thorough a job as I can, and it starts with the very first contact from the place that invites me.

I have forms I fill out with copious notes about the event, and I refer to them often as I prepare. I work hard to come up with visual aids for every talk, and that usually results in creating props of some sort. I also have a whole packing list I make before I go, detailing everything I need to carry with me, so I don't forget anything. (Notes, books, decorations for a book table, door prizes, visual aids...I want to make sure I have it all!) And last, but not least, I also spend time praying over every event. I pray for the organizers, the attendees, the facilities, and the message - and the closer we get to the day I speak, the harder I pray!

4. Follow up is important, too!

After I speak, I stay as long as needed to meet people, talk with them, sign books, whatever they need! And when I go home, I always send a handwritten thank you note to my contact at the event, expressing my appreciation for being invited. I try to follow up quickly with anyone who attended and reaches out to me.

I also try to get my website updated immediately to reflect where I've been. (I hate it when I visit sites that have already-passed dates in the upcoming events section.) I also make sure I cash the check quickly so it doesn't get buried and potentially mess up anyone's bookkeeping.

I love the opportunity to speak, and I work hard to give it my very best from beginning to end! 

To see the rest of the Walk a Mile in My Shoes posts, look here!

Podcasts and Peculiarities

Is peculiarities even a word? It didn't give me a red squiggly line, so I guess it is!

First things first...we have a very special episode of Spill the Beans this week! Our ode to five years of marriage, right here. ENJOY!

Listen here!

So here's the scoop, my dear people. My blogging brain is a bit fried right now. I want to tell you all about our anniversary fun, but I've not had a chance to properly edit my pictures, and you know I can't share improperly edited pictures. It will never do.

So for today, I'm going to share some of the crazy peculiarities of our adventures. Tomorrow we'll walk a figurative mile, and then if any of you have a moving topic for me to write about on Thursday, will you be a dear friend and share it in the comments? By the end of Thursday, I should be good to go on those pictures. If you can just help me do the heavy lifting for that one day, I'd be ever so grateful.

Okay. So here are a couple of funnies for you from our recent adventures. Stories to make you shake your head.

Number One.

We went out to eat one evening, and the hostess took us to a table that was literally bumping up against the bar. We didn't want to keep being hit (even accidentally) by the people behind us, so Ryan asked if we could move to another table. The room was well over half empty, so we didn't think it would be a big deal, but it was as though we had asked the hostess to climb Everest without training for it first. I have never seen such heavy sighing, eye-rolling, shoulder-slumping, and foot-trudging alllllllllll the way over to the new table a whopping ten feet away.

I was petrified she would spit in our food. We didn't even have our food yet when she pulled the same stunt on another party. They asked to move one table over. A literal side-step. And there it went again. Sighing, eye-rolling, shoulder-slumping, foot-trudging. She must not be desperate for Fitbit steps. :)

Number Two.

On our anniversary, we stopped in a little coffee shop we'd never been to before. It was so cute on the inside. Just darling. There was only one employee, and he had the personality of a cup. I stepped up to order and said with much joy (because hello, it was both our anniversary and a coffee shop) "I'd like a caramel macchiato, and could I have skim milk, please?"

He stared at me and said, "Do you even know what's in a caramel macchiato?"

I didn't even know what to do with that. I nodded, and he said, "It's espresso, just a little bit of milk, and foam." In my mind I was thinking, Yes...and I'd like that little bit of milk to be skim please.

I am going to go out on a limb here and guess my milk was full-fat. And possibly contaminated in ways I don't want to consider.


So there you go! A couple of peculiarities from our adventures!


Now you tell me...what should I tell you about on Thursday?

Wedding Memory Fun(nies)

I had so much fun looking through our wedding pictures to write last Friday's post about our wedding day that I wanted to show you more pictures today! These, though, are more of the funny ones. Random silly moments throughout the day. Hope you enjoy!

I have no idea what this is about, but I'm not letting go of my tea, and my niece is clearly on watch detail for something.  And also - is that crime scene tape in the background? LOL! (I think it was construction.)

When my sisters try to selfie:

Yes. I went through the McDonald's drive-thru on my wedding day. In my veil. I needed a McChicken and a Sweet Tea.

I was scared to do my own makeup. Can you tell?

How do I even get into this thing?

Just lounging around. Talking. Imagine it.

Ahhhh the ugly cry picture. Ryan's favorite.

Now that I'm done pilfering through, I see that apparently I was the only ridiculous one. How is this? How was Ryan a complete grown-up on our wedding day? I'm sure I have no idea.

Well, hopefully you enjoyed a little laugh or two at my expense. Happy Monday!