The Shafferland Shuffle

We are tired and a wee bit sun-kissed today, but refreshed after a quick getaway this weekend. And of course we gathered up a few stories along the way, so be on the lookout for those this week!

* I already told you about last Sunday, but in the spirit of recapping our week, it was our 78th monthiversary! We enjoyed the day together - and enjoyed it even more because it was BEAUTIFUL! Ryan grilled our dinner, and we ended the day with a graduation open house for one of our friend's sons.

* Monday evening, we went to work at Ryan's dad's house. Ryan did more sanding and then he went to war with the installation of a vanity faucet. Ryan won, but I heard the faucet put up a good fight. (I just stayed away. It didn't seem like the project I should get involved in.) But I did make some serious headway painting trim!

* Ryan's workplace won a people's choice award, so that news was a fun way to start a Tuesday! (A well-deserved award, I might add. They're all a lot of fun.  I felt a little bit left out with the war thing after Ryan's faucet fight on Monday, so I went to war with the hill in our backyard on Tuesday. (Mowing, I mean.) I think I won! That night, we went to an evangelism class at church - learned lots!

* Let's see...I think Wednesday marked the fourth fill of the pothole on our street? Or was it the fifth? A girl starts to lose track after a while. We'll see how long this one holds. We worked at Ryan's dad's again that night. I was back on trim duty, and Ryan did a little bit of everything. OH!!! And I had my first experience applying liquid nails. I didn't accidentally superglue myself to anything!

* Thursday was another bright, sunny day around here; it's been so nice to have a few of those in a row this week! We went to a meeting at church that night and after the meeting was over, pretty much everyone in attendance found their way to a custard stand that neither Ryan nor I had ever tried before! Tin roof sundaes (for us) and great conversations for the rest of the evening!

* Friday began the Shafferland quick getaway, and I have so much to tell you about it! We headed up to St. Joseph, Michigan, where we finally got to meet in-real-life my favorite Bible study author: Erica Wiggenhorn. And when her book signing ended, we made our way over to Silver Beach to watch the sunset. Stunning. And because we did decide to make a weekend of it, we stayed in an Airbnb to round out the night!

* Yesterday was very nearly perfect weather all the way around! We kicked off the morning hiking dunes, had lunch at Silver Beach Pizza, and hung out at the beach for the afternoon. I think I landed just over 22,000 steps by the end of the day (and I'm convinced my Fitbit didn't count some of them during the hiking of the tallest dune) and we were both pooped! But it was a great weekend. So very thankful for two days of warm and sunny to make it extra great!

The Saturday Six

One.

I love Shannon Long's Instagram posts! (She's also the brains behind the Scripture writing program I did one year.) This week she posted about her word wall that she and her husband made for their new house. If you like the idea of posting sayings on your wall, but you're not into traditional letter boards or chalkboards, this might be a great fit for you!

Two.

Annesley Writers published one of my pieces this week; this one is kind of an extension of a post I wrote right here on the old Shafferland blog this week! If you'd like to read it, it can be seen here!

Three.

Summertime is for porch livin', right? Don't you love a good, beautiful porch? I particularly loved this simple, but gorgeous porch tour - and it also reminded me that I have a perfectly good Kirkland's store right here in our very own town, and I never think to go there!

Four.

I think all the schools around us are officially out for the summer now, so I have enjoyed getting to see posts of my friends' plans for their summers. Some of them are very creative with their summer bucket lists, and I'm so glad they post them so I can delight in the listy-ness of it all. I happened upon this post, though, that is a great idea if you're trying to be both productive and fun with your kids this summer. It teaches them to set goals in a variety of areas and celebrate when they've reached those goals. As a goal-lovin' girl myself, I LOVE THIS! (We don't have kids, but I'm an overgrown kid, so I should just make one for myself.)

Five.

As I pilfered through Pinterest looking for fun ideas, I happened upon this northern Indiana getaway idea. I have never heard of this place before, but I'm utterly fascinated!! I may have to put this on our future-getaway ideas!!!

Six.

For you tiny house lovers, here's something to make you drool. And while I did drool over the tiny house itself...did you scroll all the way to the bottom to see the little itty bitty matching cabin? Can we say writing space??????

78 Months: Reality and Real Love

Last Sunday was our 78th monthiversary, and lest you worry based on the title of the post, we had a really wonderful day together. But as I tell you about our celebration, I want to be sure to pay attention to one of our real-life moments that matters!

We started the day with a coffee run (because Ryan was trying to complete a star dash...)

...and then we went to church, where we helped serve communion.

I had lunch in the slow cooker, so we were able to eat as soon as we got home, and then move into the all important...NAPS!

We had a beautiful day, so Ryan was able to grill our dinner, and he did a fantastic job. Steaks and broccoli!

Please let the record show we did not eat ALL that for dinner!

We had our first graduation open house that evening; it was for one of the guys whose senior pictures I took. He'd gotten a life advice book as a gift (from someone else) and Ryan had the best time looking at it while we ate our cake. I don't know that I've seen Ryan that excited about a book in a long time!

(We didn't get our picture with the graduate, because I've scarred the poor guy enough taking senior pictures for him. I wasn't going to ask for another one!)

So all in all, it was a really fun day.

But in all the fun, we also had a good heart-to-heart talk. Nothing is wrong. But we've been going 100 miles an hour for so long, that my heart was about to explode from the overload of thoughts, dreams, ideas, fears...you name it.

So from about 9 p.m. until 1 a.m. we had a good, old-fashioned, heart-to-heart talk. We tried to strike that balance of being understanding and simultaneously open and honest. One of the things I really appreciate about Ryan is his ability to listen to my heart and speak truth to me, even if the truth is hard for him to say and hard for me to hear. I always feel safe telling him how I feel, and I always appreciate it when he doesn't just say what we both know I want to hear, but he says what needs to be said. I woke up the next morning feeling so much better about all that had been weighing on my heart, because I'd been able to process it out loud with him and he'd been able to help me make sense of it.

We celebrate monthiversaries because we are so incredibly grateful for every month we get to spend together. We always try to do something to make the day special, and this time the little splurges came in the form of lattes, steaks, and open house cake - and of course, the naps. But it's not just about doing fun stuff and making excuses for treats. It is about celebrating who we are as a couple. And I hope who we are always involves growing as individuals and as a team. I think being able to have long, deep, honest conversations shows we're doing just that.

And that is what I celebrate the most! May our days (monthiversaries and regular) always be filled with proof of growth and love.

Little Memorials

People handle grief in all kinds of ways, don't they?

I've followed some bloggers and Instagrammers who continue to regularly and heavily observe and commemorate the lives of people they lost many years before. They do full birthday celebrations and incorporate the person into family pictures. I've followed others who may never really speak of someone again after their passing. It's not that I think they forgot about them, but they just choose to focus forward instead of behind. And of course, there are the host of people who fall somewhere in between.

Unless it goes to unhealthy or theologically incorrect realms, I don't think there's necessarily a right or wrong way to handle your grief or to remember those who have passed away. I think you should do what is right and best for you and allows you to process your thoughts and feelings in the healthiest possible way.

After Ryan's mom died in March, we began to figure out how we wanted to honor her memory through tangible ways in and around our home. Our family and friends gifted us with some beautiful items that we've been able to put on display - from photos to stones for the yard to wind chimes to plants and more.

But we received one more little token on Mother's Day, and I thought it was so creative and thoughtful. I meant to tell you about it much earlier than this, but it slipped my mind, and I just remembered about it this week! I'm passing the idea on to you in case you want to borrow it for any of the friends and family members in your life.

When we hosted Mommapalooza, Ryan's step-dad joined us, and when he arrived, he had a gift bag with our name on it. It came from one of the ladies in his church. I guess I should pause to explain that we are the only ones in Ryan's family that attend a different church. All of them have gone to the same church together for years and years, so they all know the same people and do life together with them every week. This friend of theirs made everyone the same gift, and I thought it was incredibly thoughtful of her to think of us and include us, even though we aren't part of their church circle!

After Nita's funeral, this friend had collected roses from spare bouquets, and she also gathered up the extra bulletins (you know...the little folders the funeral home gives out that has the obituary and photo printed on it) and programs from the funeral service.

She dried the roses and combined the petals with curled strips of the bulletins and programs and put them inside ornaments and gifted one to each family. She wrote a sweet little note to accompany it, explaining what was inside and how she hoped it would help us through the first Mother's Day without Nita here with us.

My Christmas-loving heart was absolutely overcome with joy, because I had actually been hunting my way through Etsy, looking for the perfect Nita-like ornament to purchase so we'd have something to put on our family story tree this year. I hadn't found the best choice yet. And this ornament was SO incredibly Nita. Handmade? She'd love it. Filled with dried roses? Her favorite. Touches of reminders of her life? She would cry. A little bling to finish the outside? Totally her.

It was a perfect little gift, and I have it safely tucked away with the other ornaments we've been collecting throughout 2019 to add to our tree this Christmas.

I pass the idea on to you - and if it's something you want to try sometime, I think you'd find it a welcomed keepsake! I know we have, and we will for all the Christmases to come!

Inspiration Pieces

When Ryan and I got married, we made a rule that the things in our home had to bear some sort of significance to our life story. (When you're cramming two completely full households into one home, you have to make some kind of rule.)

We're in our seventh year of marriage now, and we continue to refine and hone the things that surround us every day. Our house remains the same size, so we have to go through now and then and decide which things tell our story the most accurately and thin out the things that no longer best represent our days.

Because we try not to be overly materialistic, we also try not to bring too many things into the house. We try to keep it simple. But now and then, I find something that inspires me, and I just have to get it.

Back in February, I went with my mom and her friend for one final lunch and shopping trip at Gaither Family Resources before it closed for good. (Moment of silence for that!) I was in the middle of working on material for a retreat, and the theme was Fill My Cup, Lord. As I shopped around the store, I happened upon this little vessel that felt like it would be the perfect inspiration piece to my writing days.

Each day, as I prayed, wrote, edited, revised, and prepared, I'd pull the little vessel off the shelf and place it beside my laptop to remind me that if I ever hoped to have anything of value to offer the ladies at the retreat, I needed to rely on God to fill my cup first.

A couple of months later, I pulled it back off the shelf when I worked on the material for the event at our church: Pouring In, Pouring Out. I begged God to send people to pour encouragement into my soul and to send people who needed what I had to pour out into their hearts.

He did both.

I love that little vessel. It sits tucked on my shelf every single day, directly in my view when I walk into my office. It sits surrounded by other things that tell pieces of my whole-life story: a little silver cup that I'm pretty sure was one of my baby gifts, my college mug signed by all my literary classmates, my wedding picture, the crown I got from Belle on my 40th birthday, a canvas photo from my baptism, and a handful of other things.

That little piece of pottery reminds me I can only do any of the work I'm ever called to do if God first fills my cup. It reminds me that every day is a mix of people pouring into my life and people waiting for me to pour into theirs.

It reminds me why I write, why we podcast, and what I should keep at the front of my mind when considering anything else I might be asked to do.

I love having a home filled with things that tell our story. I love being able to point to any given item and tell why it matters to our life. And I love that little vessel parked on the office shelf.

Love for the Little and the Local

We've gathered the best-of-Bekah's-awkward-moments in one area for your listening enjoyment this week! It's okay to laugh. We did. (Or at least Ryan did!)

Listen here...

I'm finding that the older I get, the less of a fan of big name stuff I have become. I'm not sure that age really has anything to do with it, but it's just an observation I've made about myself in the past few years.

I'm not against big stores, chains, or franchises. I don't run in "crunchy" circles, at least comparatively speaking. I don't need everything in my life to be repurposed, upcycled, or one-of-a-kind. In fact, if I'm ruffled by anything at all, it's more likely to be this insatiable need to follow trends. I really don't get into that at all.

So I find myself backing away from things that have become so trendy, they feel a bit on the unmanageable side. Instead, I look for smaller alternatives that have some character and personality to them - things the bigger options used to have, but seem to be losing in their quest to be huge.

It's one of the reasons I enjoy hunting around on Etsy. I like seeing all the little shops with their individual offerings. I like reading the stories of the shop owners and how their hobbies became side hustles (or in some cases, full-time businesses) that help support their families and causes. I like finding things that are unique - and even customizable - for our home.

Ryan found our little door greetings on Etsy:

The Easter shirt I got for our cruise came from Etsy:

And I have a whole passel of treasures marked to purchase someday...

When I started using essential oils, I started with Young Living, and I still purchase from there - especially for their Thieves cleaning and dental products, but I found it hard to keep up with the price of the oils themselves on a one-income household. I was getting to the point where I wasn't using them very often because I was afraid I'd run out and not be able to afford a new bottle. Oils don't do anyone any good if they're not being used, right?

But then one of my Instagram friends started talking about an essential oils company called Selah. They're based out of Texas, and they're missions-minded. They donate a percentage of their sales to a variety of works done in Africa, and I love that. I love that their blog posts point to God's design for health and wellness. I don't feel like their oils are based in some of the new-agey-feeling ideas I sense from other companies I've researched. And I love it that it's not membership based. It doesn't require minimum purchases or huge orders to get free things. You can sign up and start earning points toward free stuff - at your own pace. And you can refer friends (which is what the link above does for me, by the way) and if they happen to order, you get a few extra points for your own future shopping fun. So it's true...if I can find what I need through Selah, I order there first, and if not, I go back to the Young Living roots.

And now I've begun similar searches with skin care, makeup, and hair products. I have brands I use for all those that work well (and are not loaded with all the weird chemicals) but I'm always on the hunt for companies that are even smaller and more about establishing relationships than requiring minimum purchases each month and building followings. (I spent a couple of hours on Etsy the other night researching homemade lines of all those items, actually.)

My love for all things little and local might also explain why I love indie artists and authors. They're people who have a worthy message to share (usually, anyway) and I want to support that over the latest best-sellers who won't even miss my money when I don't make a purchase.

It's why I tell myself I'm going to go to the Farmer's Market every Saturday, though I confess when Saturday morning rolls around, I fail to exchange my jammies for real clothes and follow through with my local veggie purchases.

There's a beauty that comes with this kind of simplicity, I think. I see it in the lives of some of my friends who love the small-scale and don't worry about being the first in line for the latest and greatest of the trendiest. I like that little, local beauty. Let's have more of that here in Shafferland.

How about you? Are you a fan of the little and the local?

What's Up (Monday)

So the actual post is supposed to be What's Up Wednesday, but I'm fashionably late to the party, so it's a What's Up Monday kind of day around here! Thought I'd kick off a new week and month with a little extra fun!

1. What we're eating this week:

Ryan grilled steak last night for our monthiversary, so we're having leftover that today. In other news, we're finishing up some slow cooker chicken lime carnitas that have a ton of delicious flavor, and then I plan to make some slow cooker Cuban sandwiches, and clean eating crunch wraps - and I need to figure out what I'm making for dessert. Throughout this year, we've been following Katie's meal plans on Dashing Dish, which saves me all kinds of planning time and introduces me to new dishes!

2. What I'm reminiscing about:

Our cruise! I'm in the middle of making our album; I'm about 60 pages in and am laughing over all the funny stories and loving all the photos we took! Right now I'm in the middle of documenting our first port of call, which was Aruba. We did a sightseeing tour there, so we have many pictures to choose from!

3. What I'm loving: 

Our new couch! I was exhausted yesterday and crashed hard after lunch. When I woke up about two and a half hours later, I stretched out on it and thought ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh this is such a blanket!!! It's so comfortable and so pretty, and I just love it. It took forever to find our perfect fit, but when we did, it was perfect indeed!

4. What we've been up to:

Well, you can read yesterday's post for the full recap on that, but the biggest project we've had recently has been working over at Ryan's dad's, helping him fix up his house. I think I have painted more in the last three months than I did when we moved into our own new house!

5. What I'm dreading:

Hmmm. I could probably answer this a few different ways, but I'm going to go with hitting the gym later today. I am still really sore from last week. I'm being careful not to get an injury, but I also have to press on through the "good sore" as Ryan calls it. What is that, anyway?? Switching up the workouts is always a mix of good for you and OUCH!!!!

6. What I'm working on:

I'm writing a Bible study that we hope to use with our small group this fall. I started it a long time ago and put it aside and have now come back to it. Looking forward to finishing it and learning much along the way!

7. What I'm excited about:

If all goes as planned, I get to meet one of my favorite Bible study authors in person this summer, and I'm really looking forward to that. She has been a tremendous encouragement to and influence on me, and I'm looking forward to getting to see her aside from social media screens!

8. What I'm watching/reading:

I'm in a book slump right now because of everything else going on, but we have enjoyed the return of America's Got Talent! That's about all we have time to watch, but I had a total meltdown over week one, so YAY for that!

9. What I'm listening to:

I'm stuck on piano music right now, so I have been listening to a lot of it on YouTube while I do other things. Erin Payne, Kim Collingsworth, Anthony Burger - that's pretty much my playlist!

10. What I'm wearing:

SUMMER CLOTHES!! Finally! After wearing long-sleeved-tees and yoga pants forevvvvvvvvvver, it is finally shorts and tank top season!! YES!! (Apparently the majority of the photos of myself right now are taken whilst I have on my painting clothes, so this is the best I can do for a tank top photo.)

11. What I'm doing this weekend:

Extra time with the most handsome guy I know!!! Yes. The one who puts tater tots on his strawberry shortcake.

12. What I'm looking forward to next month:

The fair!! Other than that, I have no idea what's happening next month. I gotta do this month first!

13. What else is new:

Not a thing. And that's okay. Sometimes less is more. :)

How about for you??

The Shafferland Shuffle

Happy 78th monthiversary, Ryan! :) I'm excited our monthiversary falls on a weekend this time and we get to enjoy spending some time together! YAY!!!!

* We were pretty tired last Sunday after our crazy busy Saturday. It had stormed during the night (Saturday into Sunday) so we woke up to big messes of debris everywhere outside. No actual damage. Just messes to clean up. On our way home from church, we went through the car wash, which is always fun - and then we hit the couch to rest for the day. I did some scrapbooking and we went for a walk, but all in all, it was rest day!

* Monday was Memorial Day, and you already read the full story about that, but the quick recap is that Ryan worked, and when he got home, we went on a little ice cream/walk in the park date. We had our friend Amber join us for a cookout (well, cook-in, because of weather) and then we sat around like the marvelous hosts we are - watching tornado warnings on TV.

* Tuesday night, we had CRAZY storms. Our power went out for quite a while, a big old river showed up in our backyard, and roads all over Kokomo started flooding. It was nuts. I hate storms - and I was behind on things at home - so I stayed home to be terrified and productive, and Ryan went over to work at his dad's house. It appears he encountered a little bit of drywall dust...

* Wednesday night I got to try out the new Total Gym at the gym. (You know the Chuck Norris/Christy Brinkley informercial, right?) Turns out...I love it! I mean I can't move, but I love it! I made clean eating cheeseburger hot pockets that night - and they were SO good. I was impressed! And once all our chores were done, we just collapsed in bed and watched TV until we fell asleep.

* Thursday morning (along with all the other mornings this week) I was knee-deep in writing, and Braeya was knee deep in sleeping through it. We had more crazy skies that afternoon, though thankfully no storms hit us directly. And we went back to Ryan's dad's to do more work. Painting for me!! (And after that Total Gym workout, painting itself was a workout!)

* Friday night we delivered Mo to his new home. (We hadn't been able to take him because of all the rain. Our truck doesn't have a cover, so we had to wait for a dry day. FOUND ONE!!!!) We made a date night of it - had dinner, got some coffee, conversations in the car, and then on the way home, we stopped by my parents' to give dad a class on his new phone. I was impressed with how well he did!

* Ryan worked yesterday, and I worked out. (Almost the same thing, right?) When I got home from working out, I discovered that some of our rose bushes have beautiful blooms! YAY!!!!  I love pretty flowers! We ended up heading back to Ryan's dad's to do some more work there. I painted and Ryan did sanding and mirror installation. And then we came home to watch DVR'd Dateline episodes. We're the coolest!

The Saturday Six

One.

Our local paper ran a really nice article about Austin Hewitt this week. I have posted about him on here before...he's a senior at our old high school and has battled cancer twice during his high school career. This last time, doctors amputated his leg, and he is doing really really well in his recovery. He even had the lead in the musical this spring! I thought this was a well-written piece about his journey!

Two.

It's always fun to get to brag on someone for an accomplishment, so I wanted to pause here to do just that. (And who knows!?! Maybe this info could be helpful to you or someone you know!) Back in my IWU days, I had a good friend/work buddy whose mom was also a professor at the school. Through my friend, I got to know her mom, and she was (and still is!) the kindest, gentlest lady. A few days ago, my friend posted a link to her mom's website, where her teacher training and curriculum are now available. Roxie has spent decades researching the best ways to teach students to read so they can succeed - even those who struggle! I have a passion for reading, as you know, so I'm excited for Roxie that she has is able to share what she's tried and tested for so long!

Three.

A dessert bar restaurant? I'm on board with that. This one is in New York City (a place we've never been, but want to try once in our lives), but I love the concept. All dessert, all the time. Yes.

Four.

If you love organization, I'm pretty sure you'll swoon over this post. I don't own (anymore) nearly the level of craft supplies this blogger has, but I do own STUFF, and I think this is just lovely in every. single. way.

Five.

Graduation season is here, you know. Need some fresh gift ideas? You can find some fun ones here! (I needed a new round of inspiration for this year's batch of grads!) Also...side note...when I hunted on Pinterest for graduation ideas, some really not-helpful posts came up. Apparently most regular bloggers don't do posts on this topic!!

Six.

If you've always wanted your own private island (and have, you know, a few million to spare) - I have the perfect place for you!