The Shafferland Shuffle

Not sure if any of you who read here are from Florida, but if you are, I'm praying hard for you today! I cannot comprehend the magnitude of this storm you're facing, but I am praying for you to sense God's nearness. It feels odd to share the random happenings from our week when some people's worlds are in such upheaval, but I also know it sometimes helps to see something normal in the middle of the heaviness. So please know that despite sharing our normal, I'm praying over your day!

* Last Sunday morning, Pheebs and I could NOT wake up. We did finally get out of bed in time for church. Well. Ryan and I went to church. Phoebe, not so much. She was really excited to see us come home and even more excited to play tug of war and fetch with Ryan! we went to Wendy's that night, where Ryan became Brian: it always cracks us up!!

* Monday was Labor Day, and labor was the name of Ryan's game! A lonnnnnnnnnnnnnng day at work for him. I took it a little easier, meeting up with my friend Amber for some coffee and Hobby Lobby fun, podcast editing, and TV watching. That night after our hard run, Phoebe cleaned Ryan's head for him. :)

* Tuesday was just a normal day around here...office work, long walks, naps, but that night we did enjoy a beautiful view on our walk. I love water and pretty skies. Even if the water is a retention pond! :)

* This picture of Phoebe cracks me up. When I left on Wednesday for my carpool run, I shut our bedroom door. (I do this to make SURE there are no Phoebe/Braeya interactions that are unsupervised.) Phoebe has gotten really good throughout this time of NOT jumping over the ottoman that serves as the barrier to the bedroom door. But she sure will get right up on it and sleep there! So funny! She got a fun treat when we went to get Ryan for lunch: one of his co-workers let her clean the mashed potato bowl from her lunch. Phoebe actually tried to eat the BOWL! And she missed Ryan so much that night (when he was out mowing) that she spent forever kissing him when he returned.

* Thursday night we hosted our first Thursdays at the Table (formerly known as Tuesdays at the Table) for this season. Chili, cornbread, and peanut butter pie. DELISH. And we enjoyed opening our home and having good conversation with some of Ryan's family members!

* Friday, I stopped by the Seiberling Mansion (historic site in town) to get some postcards to send to my friend Jenna, who is teaching a homeschool unit on the 50 states. I had promised to send something from Indiana to her kids. They're putting a new roof on the mansion right now, and I'm fairly certain ALL the scaffolding in the whole state is in our city for this project. Pheebs helped me write all afternoon, and during our errands that evening, we bought a new post for our new mailbox. I sense I may need to wear heels for mail retrieval now. Or stilts.

* Ryan worked yesterday morning and then spent yesterday afternoon starting installation on our new mailbox. Pheebs and I sat outside and observed. (And I took pictures of her.) :) Last night, we did the unusual and did separate activities! I had a meeting with some college students about my book (they're planning to study it together) so Ryan had dinner out with the guys from work! We both had fun, but it's really strange to be apart!

The Saturday Six

One.

Listen here!

If you like suspense fiction, I think you'll enjoy Patricia Bradley's books! Her newest, Justice Buried, released just a few days ago, and it's the second book in the Memphis Cold Case series, published by Revell. I enjoyed her books, but I also had a BLAST talking to her. She's got some surprising passions, dreams, and missions, and I think you'll enjoy hearing what she has to say! If you have a few minutes, take a listen!

Two.

For those of you who are in the central Indiana area, this is a fun list of date ideas for Indianapolis. I have done a decent number of these, some with Ryan and some with friends before he and I got married. I found a few more that looked intriguing! (We don't drink, so any that involve wineries and such are out for us, but there are still a lot of other great ideas.) I can vouch for the following numbers: 1, 3, 4, 6(ish), 11, 12, 15, 27, 37, 41, and 49!

Three.

Loved this post about living simply. (And not just because she likens it to Green Gables.) (But that helped.) 

Four.

My third grade teacher's mom turned 100 years old this week. (What...you don't keep up with your 3rd grade teacher?? LOL! Facebook!) 100 is a big deal no matter how you look at it, but an even bigger deal was what her mom did at 96. NINETY-SIX!!!! Check it out.

Five.

Since the IKEA just north of Indianapolis is about ONE MONTH away from opening, I thought this article would be helpful for any of you who have never been and are pondering a trip to see what all the fuss is about. I agree with nearly everything inside and would heartily add my own bullet point of EAT THERE! They have surprisingly good and affordable food, and you can't beat the coffee.  

Six.

Every year, I try to read a Christmas book. I love it that authors write Christmas books for grownups. Kids get them, after all, so why shouldn't adults? Sometimes, Christmas books (like Christmas movies) can lean a bit to the cheesy side, but I don't even care, because it's Christmas, and it all just makes me happy.

This week I read a new release for this Christmas, written by Melody Carlson, called The Christmas Blessing. I've read a couple of Melody's summer romances before, and they were light-hearted, quick reads, so I expected more of the same from this book and was looking forward to it!

The book is set back in the mid 1940's, which I loved, because there was such nostalgia in the pages. I love pushing my brain to create scenes beyond those I can easily envision by just looking around me every day.

The Christmas Blessing tells the story of Amelia Richards, who received word that her baby's father, James, was shot down in the South Pacific. She knew when she fell in love with a soldier in the middle of a war, that she had to be prepared for bad news, but as she calculated the timing of her letters, she realized James probably never even got the news that little Jimmy was on the way. Struggling financially and exhausted from single-parenting a colicky baby, Amelia sets out for James' hometown to meet his parents.

It would be a difficult meeting under any circumstance, but showing up on their doorstep the day before Thanksgiving to introduce herself and a baby they didn't even know existed raised the anxiety meter more than a couple of notches.

She knows the baby needs and deserves more than she can give, but she doesn't know where to find the solution. Amelia needs an impossible miracle, and she hopes Christmas can bring one.

I read this book in one afternoon and thoroughly enjoyed it. While it was a completely easy read, I did find it to have a little more depth than the summer romances I'd previously enjoyed. I appreciated the peek into another time period and the reminder of opening our hearts to try to understand what others are facing.

A couple of full-disclosure items (in case these matter to you in book selection): though the Gospel message is not blatant in the pages of the book, there are faith elements present. Personally, I wish that part of the story had been explored and impressed a bit more, since it is the entire point of the Christmas season. But I appreciated that it wasn't entirely ignored. Since James and Amelia were not married when they conceived their son, and the book was set in the 40's, the stigma of the pregnancy is addressed throughout the book. While it was addressed from a social standpoint, their choices were never addressed from a spiritual standpoint, and I wished that had been fully explored as well.

But those things aside, I enjoyed the story very much and found it to be a great beginning to Christmas reading, 2017!

TATT Has Returned!

First of all, a happy, happy birthday to my mom! I won't say her age, but you may remember that last year, we surprised her with a party for her 80th birthday. If you can't do the math, I can't help you. (This is true for math in general, by the way.) Happy birthday, Mom! Sorry we didn't throw party, part B this year!

(Yes, we had 80 actual fires on that cake.)

If you've been hanging around the blog for a while, you might remember that last year, we started a new tradition called Tuesdays at the Table. Our intention was to stop using the words we need to get together sometime and actually get together. We started it in the fall and continued until about Memorial Day, but we gave ourselves a break for the summer. People are so busy during the summer anyway, we figured it would be hard to make plans.

Our hope for Tuesdays at the Table was that it would give us a chance to open our home, practice hospitality, bring friends together, and share a meal with them. No ulterior motives. We're not selling anything. We don't have hidden agendas. We just genuinely want to share the blessing of time and food with friends.

We really grew to love those Tuesday nights. It was fun to plan menus, spruce up the house, and welcome people in for a few hours. Nothing was ever fancy. I didn't pull out gourmet cookbooks and offer multi-course meals in plated perfection. Simple dinners, often served buffet style, and coffee on the couch when the meal ended.

We ended up hosting eleven families throughout that time (if I counted right) and we've picked it back up again for the fall. We had to move it to a different night, since we're teaching a Bible study on Tuesdays now, but thankfully there's another T-day in the week, so Thursdays at the Table commenced last night.

(Our guests weren't big picture people, so we don't have one of them to share, but I can share about the joy and the food!)

I was grateful to come home to this project after a chaotic morning of errands. Phoebe didn't understand all the fuss, but it was so nice to straighten the house, set the table, and create a meal with only her little feet pattering about the kitchen. Quiet home and quiet heart. 

I brought out the "guest book" to be signed...

...and kept watch over the food.

It was the perfect night for good, old-fashioned chili.

I threw in a few options in case a plain bowl of chili really was too boring for company:

I made the Dashing Dish cornbread, which I have found to be a very lovely recipe. (And I feel much better about my homemaking skills when I'm not serving boxed cornbread.)

Even though I don't ever want our guests to feel compelled to pitch in with the meal, this crew wanted to bring dessert and came bearing the most delicious peanut butter pie!

We sat around the table, with Phoebe curled up at my feet (hospitality is not her first gift, apparently) and talked over our meal. We wrapped up with pie and coffee and the evening came to an end.

We're excited for more chances to open our home. Let Thursdays at the Table begin!

Praying Over the Big Stuff

It all feels like big stuff right now, doesn't it? Fires on one coast and floods on the other, and in between, a whole host of heartaches that affect each of us in personal ways. It's so much to absorb.

A couple of nights ago, I couldn't sleep, so I went into the living room to pray out loud while Ryan slept. I prayed over the things that were weighing on my heart, and then I started praying about this big old hurricane swirling at sea.

I wasn't sure how to pray about that storm. Should I pray that it swirled right on around and went back out to sea? Should I pray that it just lost interest and fizzled in oblivion? Should I pray for protection and wisdom for those on shore because it seemed unlikely that any kind of escape would happen?

That night, I prayed for the storm to (in the words of my friend Brent) "march right back out to sea, young lady." And I prayed if it wouldn't do that, it would just break up and lose its incredible vitality. I know that either option isn't impossible, even if both seem unlikely, and that night, I felt led to pray big over a big storm.

I've prayed over big storms before. I'm not talking about hurricanes and tornadoes (though I have prayed over those types of storms, too.) I'm talking about storms of the soul that threaten to leave as much emotional wreckage as these natural disaster storms leave in physical evidence. I've prayed for those soul storms to break up, turn around, disappear - anything that will bring relief from the suffocating destruction I felt in the moment.

Sometimes it has happened as I asked. Miraculous, God-saturated answers have arrived, and I've celebrated those answers. Other times the answers came more in the form of something God wanted for my life more than something I wanted for my life. He knew what I needed, and He could see how the outcome of the storm in front of me could impact the happenings down the line, far beyond what I had the ability to understand.

In those moments, it's really hard to be vocal in praise. I was talking about this with my sisters just this week. I'd stumbled upon an Instagram post (I have no idea what happened or anything else about the family, but I know they just lost a preschool aged daughter) that blew me away. The mother said, in part, "Through it all...we can still say that God is good. The God who never had to give us this gift in the first place is good." (credit: @madisonviningblog)

Wow.

That's courageous. It's true, of course, and from my seat far, far from the eye of that heart-storm, I can agree with its truth. But for this dear grieving mother to utter those words while the winds are still blowing and the rain is still falling is powerful and convicting.

Some of you are in the path of these fires and floods. The literal ones. Others of you are in the middle of heart fires and floods. You're praying and maybe it's hard to pray big and bold. Be big and bold anyway. Of course my human heart hopes God answers in the way you desire, but if He doesn't, I hope He can help you see how His no is at work for you in ways you can't know right now.

None of it is easy. But in all of it, I know He is good. And in my own moments of confusion and hurt (over whatever might be before me), I hope I never lose sight of that truth.

Thoughts on Online Rants

I was talking to a friend of mine yesterday, and she told me how her small business had recently been the target of a rather vicious (and untrue) Facebook rant. The ranter had been given some information, which turned out to not even be true, and rather than seeking her out to settle the matter privately or (gasp) verifying the information for accuracy, the person just took to Facebook with  scathing words. My friend was sad, and I could tell her mind's wheels were turning through the various paths of damage control.

Online rants make me sad. I know writing a blog post about "why you shouldn't do it" is unlikely to change anyone's mind, so I'm not doing that. I'm just writing about why I have chosen the path I have regarding online rants.

1. It's not the reputation I want to have.

When I post to Facebook or any other form of social media (including this blog), I want to be known as the girl who posts encouraging words, funny stories, or a peek into real life. I have chronic-rant-loving friends, and to be truthful, when I see a long post from them, I brace myself before even peeking at the first sentence. I know it's likely to be a rant because of the name attached. That's not what I want people to think of first when they see my name.

2. If I must tell a story, I try to leave out identifying details.

Back when I had my gallbladder removed, I had a dizzying whirl of are-you-stinking-kidding-me-right-now? adventures with the health care industry. DAYS of blog fodder from the simplest of appointments. And I told most of them right here on this blog. But as I did, I did my best to leave out any and all information that could point to a specific business establishment or any specific employee. Again, my goal was to tell a story (and most were so ridiculous they were hysterical), not to drag businesses through the mud.

3. I'm probably not going to reverse a decision, so is there a way I can address the problem in any productive manner?

Earlier this week, I stumbled upon a change in policy of a website I use. What used to be free now comes with a price tag. To be fair, the price isn't outrageous, and I might even go so far as to call it reasonable. What was outrageous to me was the fact that they changed the policy with absolutely no warning. I went on Twitter to see what people were saying, and my eyebrows flew straight to the ceiling reading some of the colorful rants thrown at the company from disgruntled customers. (And they were plentiful, let me tell you.)

It's clear the company is not going to say, "Oh, you know what? We made a mistake. We should go back to being free. Thanks for pointing that out to us!" Tweeting about how horrible they are and how I can never recommend them again is pointless. But the manner in which they went about their policy change was bothersome enough to me that I felt I needed to voice something. So I emailed them privately, thanked them for their great product, explained how long I had been using it, and even said I understood the need for the change. But I added that a heads up would have been helpful, because as a single-income household, adding to our monthly budget is something we really need to plan for.

I received a standard, pre-packaged answer, but I feel good about my decision to handle the matter privately with them and address something they could perhaps consider in the future (offering a heads-up) rather than bashing a business decision I know I have no hope of changing.

4. These people are real people with real feelings.

This has become more and more apparent to me as I read Instagram posts by the Duggar girls. As I have mentioned before, it doesn't seem to matter what they post about, they're immediately slaughtered by about half the commenters. Last week one of them posted a picture of her husband grilling steaks at home, and the commenters were angry that they dared to spend money on a steak while raising money for missions. Sigh. I know I don't want my every move picked apart, so why pick apart everyone else? On the other side of the social media account, they are real people with real feelings, which makes them just like me.

5. I can vent to Ryan for a whole lot less drama than I can vent to the world.

Just because I don't rant online doesn't mean I don't get mad about things I read or that I don't have a rant in me that needs to come out. But when that moment comes, I try to just unload to Ryan in the privacy of our living room. All the pent-up pressure escapes from my head, he understands my frustration, and I don't have to risk offending a whole host of people (some of whom I may not even know) in the process.

6. When in doubt, delete.

A few times, I've posted things to Facebook and then wondered if I really should have said what I did. I've learned if I question it, I should probably delete it. I've also been known to delete things if (after a couple of comments) people seem to be misinterpreting my delivery and/or my humor. It's not that I can't take opposition, although it's true I'm not super wild about debates. It's just that I don't want to risk offending over silly matters, and if it appears I'm doing just that, I want to remove it. 


So that's what I try to do. Life can be cumbersome at times. I hope the words I say push people more toward hope than frustration.


(As a disclaimer, a rant is different than sharing an opinion or belief when you feel it needs to be voiced. Those can be shared in productive ways, and if you feel convicted to do so, you should. Rants tend to be much more disorganized and lack effective purpose.)

The Date Inspired by the Letter Q

Iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit's podcast Tuesday!! Here's a little fun/trivia/get-to-know-randomness-about-the-Shaffers for you! Enjoy!

Listen here!

Over the weekend, we crossed another alphabetically inspired date off our list! This time? The letter Q!

This was a tough one for us. We aren't quilters, and Q-Tips only provide so much entertainment, so we had to reach for this one.

I scheduled this date for our 57th monthiversary for three reasons. One, I thought we should do something fun on our monthiversary. Two, it allowed us to stay home, since we couldn't really go anywhere with Phoebe to care for. Three, it was very low-key, which I thought Ryan especially needed after working so hard all day. It was actually a pretty perfect choice.

For our quiet night at home, we had quesadillas and homemade guacamole. Delicious!

I also found what I thought was going to be a harmless quiz/questionnaire online that we did together. If you listen to the podcast, you'll discover we're still learning A LOT about each other!

Simple, but fun at-home date!

57 Months

Happy Labor Day to you! Ryan is celebrating this Labor Day by actually laboring at work. Bless him, and bless ALL of you who work jobs that take you to work on holidays of all kinds - the major and minor ones alike.

Saturday was our 57th monthiversary, and Ryan worked a very long day. Even longer than a normal work day. Phoebe and I went to work to wait on him, and as we were leaving, I told one of his co-workers that it was our monthiversary. I could tell it was a new term for her, so I explained the whole thing, and she said she thought it was adorable.

I'll take it! :)

It seems like here in central Indiana, September 1 brought fall. I know it won't last, and warmer temps are due back (today, actually) but those first couple of days were pretty crisp! So we started our monthiversary with a walk. (Miss Pheebs has to have a potty walk every morning.)

It reminded me of the start of our wedding day, 57 months earlier. (Except that day was a lot warmer, and I was a brunette.

So Ryan went to work, and Pheebs and I had a scrapbooking day at home. Ryan came home for lunch, but he couldn't stay long, and when he left, Phoebe was so sad, she laid down by the door and pouted. Couldn't blame her, so I joined her.

When he got off work, we had an alphabetical date, which I'll tell you about tomorrow, but we did take our monthly photo to celebrate our love story. First time ever anyone else has ever made it in the frame with us. I think this is pretty stinkin' good, considered we used at tripod. All eyes forward and open!

We topped off the evening with a walk; the weather had warmed up to perfection!

 Not quite as warm as this walk, though:

Fifty-seven months, and still crazy about each other! Sorry we had to be apart so much for the day, but I loved our evening together!

Linking up with Tamar!

The Shafferland Shuffle

Welcome to September! It has definitely felt like fall around here the last couple of days. It's been fun, but I wouldn't hate just a few more warm days! :) Here's a peek into our week!

* Last Sunday was gorgeous, so the three of us (we still have Phoebe) hung out in the yard for a while. Sunday night, we went to our nephew's birthday party, which was quite an event! Our sister-in-law does a great job with themed parties. It's pretty amazing!

* Monday morning started off rainy, but it sure got pretty later in the day! Phoebe got a special treat when we went to get Ryan after work. His co-workers' kids were there and they wanted to play fetch with her. Friends just her size who want to play games? OKAY! The game playing continued when we got home. Ryan gave her a workout! She slept well that night! (And when Phoebe sleeps, we sleep. WIN/WIN!)

* Tuesday began with some fog, which was quite lovely to see (because I didn't have to drive in it). It burned off and the day was beautiful again! We didn't have big plans; we just worked around the house on cooking and painting projects. (Not combined.)

* Ryan had a quick break in his schedule on Wednesday and came home to surprise me with a Coke! (I had been dying for one for a while.) Phoebe was excited to see him so she could squeeze in a tug-of-war game. Another low-key day for Shafferland. This week was just lovely that way!

* Thursday, when I left to volunteer at the school, Phoebe just curled up with her squeaker toy and gave me the most forlorn look. When I came home, she pretty much stuck by my side for the rest of the day. She sure makes a girl feel loved! That night, my big project was portioning out all the marinara sauce I made earlier in the week. I know. I have the most fun.

* Friday was a busy office-work day for me, so Phoebe was MORE than ready for games with Ryan by the end of the day! He and I had to run some errands, and while we were out, we found some MASSIVE mums we thought would be perfect at our house, so we got them! I also double bagged all my groceries so we could replenish our poop bag supply. LOL! Running low! This girl is regular.

* Yesterday? 57 months of wedded bliss AND an alphabetical date. Oh! And Ryan had to work all day. (Longer than a regular work day, actually. Phoebe was so sad.) We had fun, though, when he got home. I'll tell you all about it next week!

It appears that it was good we had Phoebe this week or you would have had nothing to look at!

The Saturday Six

One.

Two words: RELATIONSHIP GOALS!!! Ryan...if we could only live long enough, this could be us!

Two.

Last week I shared with you  a podcast interview all about friendship. This week I'm bringing to you a post written by a delightful young lady I'm privileged to call my friend! We worked together in Financial Aid and now she lives and works in Washington D.C. at Mark Batterson's church. I am so proud of her and love the words of her post!!

Three.

Earlier this week I was talking with a friend of mine who had just gotten her ears pierced. It's not often I meet a fellow adult just venturing into the world of ear piercing. My own ear piercing story is one for the "truth is stranger than fiction" category, but I blogged about it a few years ago, so I thought I'd let you see it again today! Great story!

Four.

Write 31 Days is coming! If you've not heard of it before, it's a challenge to blog every day in the month of October, and to turn those posts into a series of some sort. I've never done it, partly because I blog every day anyway, and partly because I don't want to give up my regular monthly features to write on a specific topic. But if you've been toying with the idea, you can read about it here. And even if you don't want to write anything, this is a great series to read! Find a topic you love and learn throughout the month!

Five.

I know, I know. It's September, not October. But if you're looking ahead to Halloween costumes, here are some cute ideas for whole families. Ryan has already been Charlie Brown and Mr. Clean, and I'm running out of bald guys for him to be! If you have any ideas, holler! (He does have a huge wig and I think he would make a FABULOUS Richard Simmons, but he refuses the shorts. Sigh.) 

Six.

Phoebe-sitting and writing and editing for friends has really cut into my book-reading the last couple of weeks! So once again, I have no book review for you, but we did watch a faith based film last week that I wanted to mention. It's not new, but for some reason, I'd never watched it before. (Or heard of it, actually!)

Faith Like Potatoes released back in 2006 and is based on a true story. (It was also originally a book.) It tells the story of Angus Buchan, a young husband and father living in South Africa with his growing family. Angus has a Scottish heritage and a hot temper, which makes for some rather turbulent relationships with his friends and neighbors. Fortunately for him, his wife has a lovely disposition and helps keep him from burning all bridges entirely.

His wife's faith is strong, but his is, well, nonexistent. One day she manages to get him to church, and the Lord takes hold of his heart, convicting him about his lifestyle.

Angus becomes as devoted to his newfound faith as he had previously been to his temper, and soon, the neighbors who had been a bit leery of him begin to notice the change. They ask questions and begin to discover some faith of their own.

It's a very convicting story of how God can change hearts, as well as the faith required to live in difficult conditions. While it is a faith-based movie and therefore pretty clean, there are a few drinking scenes, and there is one extremely graphic accident scene that I would not feel comfortable letting a small child see. (Or a 39 year old chicken.) 

Those things aside, I appreciated the message of the movie and the fact that it wasn't a cheesy presentation. I also enjoyed the photos at the end that showed the actual people portrayed throughout the movie!

Creative Gift Giving (A Brainstorm)

Okay. Before you throw something at me, YES, I know today is just the first day of September and most of you aren't ready to talk about Christmas yet. (Hope you haven't been to Hobby Lobby lately. They've been talking Christmas for a few months now!)

But you know me: I like to plan ahead. I need to plan ahead. And today I need to process out loud/get your ideas. Help a girl!

If you've been reading here for a while, you know that I have a pretty small family. Immediate and extended family are all pretty much the same, and there aren't many of us no matter how you categorize it. So we've always done Christmas gift exchanges in a very traditional sense. Everyone buys for everyone because there aren't a lot of everyones.

And then I got married.

I'm pretty sure Ryan is immediately related to a quarter of the world's population. And then you add the "immediate extended" and it goes up to half the world's population. There are a lot of people to consider come Christmas!

He still has living grandparents, while I do not. He has twice as many parents as I do. He has more siblings and way more nieces and nephews. And then there are all the aunts, uncles, and cousins! Granted, we don't exchange gifts with all of them, but we have still been doing the gift exchange thing with most!

Two things are pushing today's brainstorm.

One is that for all the people we exchange gifts with, clutter is becoming an issue. On my side of the family, everyone is established. We all have homes and for the most part, we have all we need. And truthfully, I think all of us are trying to scale back on stuff just a bit, so there's no real need to accumulate more things. On Ryan's side of the family, all of the above is true for the adults, and the kids are becoming overrun with stuff. Their parents are asking others to gift less because there's too much to appreciate or enjoy. And believe me, I get it. If we did have kids, we would probably have a severely limited gift policy for that very reason. Clutter, clutter everywhere.

Secondly, money's tight all around, right? It's not just that we're a single income home, but it's that there are many to buy for (and growing) and we have to ration our funds responsibly.

We have been trying to figure out what to give Ryan's nieces and nephews that would be something fun and different and not a thing to clutter the house. We have considered gifting an experience, but even that can be pricey. (Some places have a $30-$50 admission price and that's more than we have budgeted per child. Seems rude to only admit one kid! Ha!)

I know there are also other options: drawing names, donating the money to charity, doing a group activity in place of a gift - and those are all good ideas, but in some cases, they won't work for the people we have.

You know I love a good creative challenge. Any of you ever get any particularly fun gifts that were memorable and thoughtful without breaking the bank? (I'm talking for adults and kids here.) We're open to suggestions if you have any to throw our way!

Help a girl out! I ONLY HAVE SIXTEEN FRIDAYS LEFT BEFORE THIS CHRISTMAS!!!!

What I Learned in August

Happy end of August to you!! Hope this has been a good month as most of you have probably transitioned back to school and/or fall routines! Lots of fun stuff looms on the September horizon here in Shafferland, but for now, a little smattering of what I learned in August!

 

1. This drink helps curb my pop cravings.

I love pop. (Soda, whatever you call it in your part of our great wide world.) I have always loved it, and even though I try reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally hard not to drink very much of it, the truth is, I could probably drink it all day every day and be perfectly happy. Since we started doing our hardcore Crossfit-ish workouts, we've been drinking this every day, and while it's not pop and can never truly take the place of pop, it is helping curb my cravings for it. I at least try to drink this first and then if I absolutely feel that I will claw my own eyes out without a pop, I'll go for it.

2. A change in workout routine has revolutionized our lives.

You might remember that around the beginning of July, we joined a gym to take a Crossfit-style class. We enjoyed taking it (enjoyed might be a stretch for me) but couldn't justify the monthly payments for more than a month. So at the beginning of August, we went back to working out at home. We delayed our workout time by about 45 minutes in the morning, and the duration from an hour to a half hour. This has made alllllllllll the difference for me. I no longer need a two hour nap in the morning, and I'm not too sore to move all day, every day. I am so grateful!

3. I am going to be a great aunt!

Not like a spectacular aunt. A literal great aunt. (Which in my mind sounds too much like a great grandma, and I'm struggling with that!) My niece announced this month that she and her husband are expecting a baby in February! I am so thrilled for them! Yay for babies!!!!

4. (This is Ryan's.) Chicken, spinach, strawberries and ranch dressing really do work together.

He was so skeptical when I handed him the wrap filled with the aforementioned items (plus onions). It surprised me, because normally he'll eat just about anything! But I asked him to trust me, which he did, and his verdict at the end of the night was that the combo was genius, even though the thought of was rather disgusting. I absolutely agree.

5. You can cook corn on the cob inside the husk in the microwave.

Shut. The. Front. Door. My friend Judy, who reads here almost every day, I think, emailed me and shared this little tip. She did so right when we happened to get a donation of corn on the cob from one of Ryan's patients, so I tried it. Whaddya know!!?!?!? It works!

6. It helps to take the collar OFF the dog if you want to sleep well.

When Phoebe started staying with us, she slept with us (of course). The first night, her tags on her collar jangled every time she moved, and I woke up every single time. While this is not unusual for her sleepovers, I realized I couldn't handle no sleep for an extended period of time, so I used my inner brilliance and took the collar off at night. Why do I struggle to think of the simplest solutions???

7. I'm still a mystery to some people from my high school.

Ryan's class reunion was a blast, but it was also a reminder that most of my high school classmates don't recognize me anymore or they just don't remember me at all. It makes me laugh. 

8. Sunflower farms are as fascinating as they are beautiful.

When we toured the sunflower farm and processing center earlier this month, I realized that the whole process of making sunflower oil, from the bee pollination to the crop rotation to the oil presses is just flat-out interesting!

9. It doesn't matter how old you get, words can still hurt.

I read yesterday on Instagram that Joy (Duggar) Forsyth and her husband are expecting. The comments were scathing in about 100 different directions. I feel bad for her - and for ALL those girls - because I know that it doesn't matter what they post, they'll be ripped to shreds for it. Pregnant? Mean words. Baby in car seat? Mean words. Hairstyle? Mean words. Bible verse? Mean words. It's crazy. I'm grateful to live in a small world where people don't analyze and criticize my every move. That has to be exhausting. But even though I don't contend with it to their degree, I have been on the receiving end of hurtful words and actions this month, and no matter how much I want to be the big girl 39 year old that I am, they still hurt. Praying that I learn to think six or seven times before speaking or posting!  

Linking up with Tamar and her stunning photography! 

Also linking up with Emily Freeman, who hosts the "What I Learned" series... 

Tales from Carpool

I think I told you a little while back that my carpool load doubled this year. Last year I drove a 9 year old boy to school, and this year he's (obviously) advanced to double digits, and his little sister has joined him. She's four and in preschool.

And I'm not sure two more opposite human beings exist on this planet.

He's quiet. We went through entire car rides last year without uttering a single word. He isn't really fond of mornings, and I've never been accused of being overly giddy during them either. So it worked out just fine. If he had something to say, he'd say it, but that was rare.

His sister, on the other hand, has a zest for life (and mornings) that just won't quit. Everything is big and wonderful, and there are a thousand stories to be told. (And where stories fail, she retells old ones. Or makes up stories.)

In the past month, I have been ridiculously amused at the interaction between the two of them as I sip my coffee and drive to school.

Yesterday, for example, I pulled up to their house, and Sister was jumping up and down in the front yard, waving wildly. "GOOD MORNING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" she said as she climbed in the back seat and settled into her booster. (The booster, by the way, that she sometimes kisses when she gets in, because she misses it so much when she's not with it.) She was all buckled in, but I hadn't seen the first glimpse of Brother yet.

Finally he dragged out to the car, opened his door, collapsed into his seat, and announced loudly, "I don't want to go to school. It's so boring." (I honestly thought I'd hear that a few weeks ago, so I was impressed we made it this long!) Before I could try to counter him with an annoyingly wise tidbit of encouragement, Sister exclaimed, "WHAT? SCHOOL IS AWESOME!!!!!!!!"

I giggled right out loud into my coffee. Yes, indeed. The two extremes had spoken. Brother assured her that it was only awesome because she was in preschool. Once she got to higher grades, she would understand that it's no fun anymore.

(Remembering my many recesses spent inside trying to pass the multiplication timed tests, I bit my tongue from agreeing with him. We'll let her make her own opinions.)

Brother disappeared into a book, and Sister chattered happily all the way to school, telling me random facts about life, including the recent realization that her mother is an adult and a repeated story about her favorite ride at Holiday World: the Toilet Bowl. That brought Brother out of his book. "Stop talking about toilets," he said.

"I'm not talking about toilets. I'm talking about the TOILET BOWL."

Noted.

We got to school and Sister flung her door open to hop out in the drop-off line. The school's police officer, who has helped her out of the car before, was standing back a few feet. Sister paused mid-exit and hollered "HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII POLICE!"

Everything is grand with her. You know, I have a feeling school really won't be boring for her, because nothing is boring.

Dramatic, but not boring. 

(Let's not forget two days ago, when her brother corrected her on something in the car, and she wailed "But I thought you loved me!!!!! Whyyyyyyyyyyy don't you love me?")

Oh boy.

It is not going to be a boring school year for this driver. Not by a long shot.