Someone Has a Birthday Tomorrow!!!

Right in the middle of the Saturday Six, someone in this house has a birthday!! You might have heard of him before: his name is Ryan Shaffer? :) 

So today we are celebrating him here on the blog!

What a wild year of adventures we've had together. It's absolutely safe to say that at this very time last year, we had no clue that everything about our lives would change in the year to come. Today I want to share some of my favorite things about Ryan from this past year. 

* At this time last year, Ryan was working on a proning team at the hospital, right in the middle of all the unknowns. He worked fearlessly, ready and willing to do whatever was asked of him to help those fighting against the virus that had taken over the world. I was so proud of him for all he did and all that he was willing to do, even in the cases where he didn't have to. And I was proud of him for being a great example to the women on his team. He still has a friendship with each of them today, and they had a great time together. 

* It wasn't long after Ryan's birthday last year that I found out about the opportunity to work at WillowBridge and presented it to him. At first, he didn't feel like it was a fit at all. But I appreciated watching him take the idea to the Lord in prayer and submitting to the changes God made in his heart that led him to want to move forward with applying and seeing what came of this. I love it that Ryan  always seeks God's will above his own, and this is one of the biggest examples of that I've seen in the time we've been married. (This is a picture I took of him filling out his part of the application, on the same porch where he spent a long time in prayer leading up to this point.)

* When God opened the door for us to come to Grabill, Ryan didn't hesitate at all. He jumped right in with me to accomplish everything that needed to happen to make this move take place in very short order. (We had basically a month between accepting the job and coming to train.) He helped pack, he made lists, he did paperwork, he did touch-up repairs on the house, and he helped organize and run our garage sales. We both worked equally hard on this task, and I loved it that he was willing to carry so much of it!

* When it was time to say goodbye to our Kokomo home - the first one we have ever purchased together - he joined me in saying goodbye through pictures and process and understood my need to grieve that loss in my own way. And when we actually moved, he spearheaded the organization of loading the truck so well. 

* When we arrived in Grabill, he didn't hesitate. Jumped in with both feet to help me organize our apartment, create relationships with our tenants, and immerse himself in a whole new career. He quickly gained a reputation as a hard worker who takes initiative and anticipates needs before they arrive!

* I'm pretty sure neither of us expected to see our RV dreams realized in this past year, but they were. I've been researching and taking online webinars and more for about four years, but once this began to look like a reality, Ryan joined me, looking at all the specifics (many that I did not understand) and figuring out what we could afford and what we would need to do to upgrade. He plunged headfirst into a project he'd never done before, and my goodness. What an AMAZING job he did with Miss Abby, even delving into new skills he didn't know he had!

* We also saw other hobby type dreams come true in this last year: biking together, kayaking, and enjoying the chance to have every day off...together. How long have we dreamed about THAT? It was as wonderful as I'd always imagined to be able to spend this time with him!

* I'm pretty sure no one was more surprised than Ryan that he became the crowd favorite of the littles in our building. I have loved watching him with them. He's so good. 

* This year brought about a plot twist we didn't see coming - when Allen died unexpectedly in February. Ryan handled that loss with such courage and has since launched into working so very hard on all the estate paperwork. (It's a joint effort with his siblings.) Though I joke about being an estate widow, I really am so very proud of him for how hard he works to make sure everything stays organized, nothing falls through the cracks, and everything is handled completely. 

* And in the middle of it all, he still does a million things to be a fantastic husband. He makes my dreams come true. He helps in our apartment. He tells me he loves me. He makes every day an absolute joy. I am so, so grateful. 

Happy birthday, Ryan! Thanks for being the man you are. Thank you for leading us in the Lord, for being so much fun to work with AND live with every single day, for having the work ethic you, and for demonstrating the heart of Christ, even in difficult days. I love you! I hope you have an amazing day of celebration tomorrow! :) 

Skin Care These Days

 I've been intending to write about this for a while and just never think of it when it's actually time to blog! That's not helpful, is it!? 

So I'll tell you about it today, instead!

A few months ago, my friend Julie and I were talking about looking for new skin care products. I've talked about skin care on here before. I've used a variety of lines of the years, and most recently, for quite some time, I used Lemongrass Spa products. I really loved them, but they're a consultant-based company. In order to get a discount, which was the only way I could afford them, I had to sign up as a consultant. It did save me money on each product, but I sometimes struggled to spend the minimum each month, so I let that expire and moved on. 

Then I tried to support small shops through Etsy, but I had trouble with some products being discontinued because they weren't popular enough. 

Julie told me about this site, where you can do some research on things you might want to know about products you're using. You can see if the products are likely to cause cancer or reproductive issues, the likelihood for allergies, and even things like animal testing. 

So after doing some research, I found a line I wanted to try that was both affordable for me and on the better end of the spectrum for health issues. I decided to start with skin care and replace things as they ran out. For the last several months, I've been using their cleanser, moisturizer, and eye makeup remover, so I thought I'd pass along my thoughts!

For my cleanser, I'm using this Ultimate Moisture Cleanser, which smells so good. You know how some cleansers can smell kind of like household cleaners? This one most certainly does not, and I love that. It comes from the tube looking more like a cream than a gel, and a little bit is plenty. I feel like my face gets clean without getting dried out, and I had no issues with it breaking out, even as I transitioned into using this. (Sometimes my face breaks out when I switch up products.)

The skin on my face is usually pretty normal. When I was a teenager, I was a leading manufacturer of oil, but as I've gotten older, that's (thankfully) stopped. But I wouldn't classify my skin as dry at all. Even so, with this being a moisturizing cleanser, I don't feel like my face has gotten oily. It's a good fit for me. (This line does have other cleansers if this one doesn't zing you.)

After I wash my face, I put on the Overnight Renewal Nighttime Recovery Face Cream. Right now, anyway, I don't apply an additional cream in the morning, but I may end up adding that eventually, especially since they have one with SPF built in. Again, a little goes a long way with this, so a tube lasts quite a while. I had no issues with breakouts, and my face feels really soft when I wake up in the morning. (And a huge bonus...it doesn't feel greasy when I put the cream on at night.) 

I've also been using the Eye Makeup Remover, which comes out like a gel, rather than a liquid. Most of the other removers I've used have been much more like a liquid. It removes the makeup well without making my eyes burn. While I wouldn't classify my eyes as overly sensitive, they do sometimes burn if I get makeup remover in them. 

I try to be fairly low maintenance on my skin care, so this is all I'm using right now. But they do have other things, including toners, face scrubs, and eye treatment.

My plan is to try their makeup as I need to begin replacing things along the way, so I'll check back in with some of my thoughts on those as I go!

Fun with the Shaffers

WOW, you guys! Thank you so much for all the sweet comments yesterday. I'm so glad so many of you hang out here each day, even though you never know what you might find when you arrive! Before I move on to today's post, I do need to print a slight retraction to yesterday's 5000 posts...post. It has come to my attention that Ryan actually wrote a handful of those posts. Oral surgery, gallbladder surgery, some birthdays...he wrote the posts. So I should have said that the 5000 post mark was a collective endeavor. My apologies to Ryan for taking credit for some of his posts. And my thanks to my friend who asked if the 5000 mark included his writing.

With that retraction printed, I thought we might have some fun today!

I found a fun list of questions, and I thought Ryan and I should answer them for you! Hope you enjoy!

1. If you could spend one day in someone else's shoes, who would it be and why?

Ryan: He wants to make it clear this is something he would only want to do for one day, not for a full time job. He thinks it would be cool to spend one day in the shoes of the President - just to see all the daily ins and outs of the job that the average person never knows about. We hear versions of all the big stuff through the media, but to see the little things would fascinate him.

Bekah: Mine would be not so much a specific person by name, but a person according to occupation. I'm sure it would be way harder and stranger than I could ever imagine, but I would love to spend the day in the life of a cookie and coffee shop owner. We've long dreamed of owning a coffee shop, and if I could throw a cookie baking venture on the side, I think that would be so fun. I'd love to see what it's really like. (Which would probably cure me of ever wanting to actually do it, of course.)

2. If you were going to bury a time capsule, what would you put in it?

Ryan: He would put in a current cell phone (since those change so rapidly), a coffee mug (to let people know how important coffee is, regardless of the era), newspaper, and a notepad with pen that included a letter explaining the times in which we live, some good quotes, and advice for a life well lived. 

Bekah: We actually did this when we lived in our Marion house! We pulled up the carpet in our hallway and before we put down new carpet, we hid a time capsule inside the stairs for someone to find however many years down the road. I have a blog post in the archives that details everything we put in it, but I remember putting in a printed copy of a blog post, pictures of the cars we drove at the time, a K-Cup, pictures of my grandparents who used to own the house, and a handful of other things. We wanted to preserve things that represented the house, the time in history, and the people who lived there! We also included a letter, I believe, that explained who we were and why we were burying the time capsule. I've often wondered if the guy who bought the house from us has pulled up the carpet yet and if so...if he found it!

3. When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Ryan: It's easier for him to say what he DIDN'T want to be! He grew up on a farm and did not want to be a livestock farmer. He definitely did not want to be a roofer (after serving on more roofing crews than he could count). He also didn't want any job where he had to work out in the fields all day, because he did a lifetime of it in his childhood. Outside of that, he was open to anything. (And also for the record, he now has a much different perspective on farming. As an adult, he has an appreciation for it that he couldn't quite find as a child stuck in chore time!)

Bekah: Teacher! That was my dream all the way up through high school. I elected not to follow through with that dream after watching how the school system changed for my parents during those years. (Dad was a teacher and mom was an instructional assistant in a classroom.) I feared I would grow to hate teaching if I didn't have the freedom to teach the way I felt I should, so I decided I would just find something else to do with my life. I've often wondered how different my life would look if I had chased that dream, and I still ADORE teaching in the avenues I'm given. 

4. Do you have any strange or unique phobias?

Ryan: He doesn't think so...and I agree. He's very normal. He feels like after working years on a farm and years in health care, there's nothing to be afraid of. But stay tuned, because....

Bekah: I have a lengthy list! Of course there are the obvious things like spiders and snakes and frogs (any creepy crawly thing, actually). But also...heights, amusement park rides, driving on interstates, gum chewing, being in the center of a row or pew...and more, but I have some dignity.

5. If you could bring back one toy from your childhood, what would it be, and why?

Ryan: His dirt bike. He loved that thing. Had a lot of great times riding it. He thinks he ended up giving it away to someone, but he doesn't remember who it was. 

Bekah: Wow. I had a lot of toys that I really loved. How to pick!! I keep coming back to my Barbies, though. I loved the elaborate stories I would concoct for them to live out. My favorite was during summer break when I would spend a lot of play time in the basement of our house, because it was the coolest room (in temperature, I mean). My parents had an old leather couch that had this long matching bench style ottoman. I would regularly transform it into a two story condo for my Barbies and spend HOURS down there living life with them. I also owned the Heart family. (Does anyone remember that?) They were like Barbies, but a different brand. I owned the mom and dad and the little boy and girl twins with outfits that matched the mom and dad. Oh the stories I wrote for the Heart family!

6. If you could relive one day of your life, what would it be and why?

Ryan: The biggest regret of our marriage was the day he did not say yes to the photographer at the waterfalls. So if he could relive one day, he would go back and say yes to the camera. I'm not sure I can handle redoing those falls, so I'm not sure I'm on board with this do-over - ha!

Bekah: Will it shock ANYONE to know I'm picking our wedding day! I so very dearly loved that entire day. I wasn't stressed at all, everything was perfect, and it was so wonderful that I'd happily relive it! Also. It's snowing in Indiana right now, so you wouldn't have to twist my arm too hard to get me to return to 82 degrees on a beach!

Happy Wednesday, my friends! :) 

5000

I had no idea until last night when I sat down to write today's post, but this is my 5000th post. 

Five. Thousand. Literal. Blog. Posts. 

I won't lie. I almost gave it up entirely this year. Ten solid years of writing every single day and the overwhelming changes that have come to social media over the last year alone almost got the best of me. People get bolder (and by that, I mean meaner) from their side of a screen and I just sat down and cried to Ryan one night, processing whether or not I should continue. Was it really worth it to keep going when people have no problem slinging opinions like mud? Was it worth opening our family up to scrutiny when all I really wanted to do was just share a little bit of life?

As you can tell, I've kept going. 

It's all changed so much since the very beginning when my posts were mostly recaps of American Idol. (And I'm grateful for that!)

Five thousand posts. Five thousand moments I've shared with you about topics that have shot all over the place, pinball style. 

Thanks for hanging in there with me. Thanks for becoming my friends and encouraging me on rough days. Thanks for laughing with me over awkward moments...you remember ziplining and the waterfalls, right? Thanks for praying for us when we grieved and lost and were stuck in the waiting. Thanks for celebrating for us when God did some extra delightful story-writing. 

So today, for my 5000th post, I wanted to share with you an extra delightful chapter God wrote just in the last week. It's pretty sweet. 

One night last week, I received a random text from my friend Jenna (hi, Jenna!). She sent me a picture of a book cover and these words: "I thought of you this week...I read this book and the main character runs a home for girls who have aged out of foster care." I said, "NO WAY!"

In truth, we've not heard of a lot of places who do quite what we do. So we sure didn't know there was a novel with a setting in a place like this! (If you want to read it, it's called Save the Date by Jenny B. Jones.) 

Jenna wrote back to say "The girls home is called Saving Grace in the book. And then at the end, the author's notes say this: 'Becky Shaffer, creator and mama of the real Saving Grace, for reaching out to young women without parents, without homes, without hope. You're changing lives, hearts, and family trees, and I stand in awe of all you've come through and all you give back.'"

WHAT? It's a real home with a Becky Shaffer working there??

Of course I went straight to Instagram to check out everything about Saving Grace and Becky Shaffer. And that's where I learned Becky is a nickname for...Rebekah. 

THE SAME WAY I SPELL MINE!

Stop it. Just stop it. 

So I did the only natural thing I could do. I sent Becky Shaffer a message. Had to tell her I'm Bekah Shaffer and I work a similar job and...oh yeah...I'm a Rebekah too. 

I sat back to wait, because I realized how wackadoodle that could sound coming from a complete stranger. But a short time later she answered with the most gracious message and even offered to talk with me over the phone sometime to talk about our two similar-yet-not-matching ministries.

See, for all the crazy, weird, hurtful stuff that can come about because of social media, blogs, and all the internet stuff, it can also be an amazing place for making connections with people we would never otherwise meet.

So thanks, my friends. Thanks for being part of my 5000 story snippets. Thanks for being here for this one today. Thanks for being a piece of my story. 

Here's to 5000 more! 

Only in Shafferland

Thank you all so much for the kind words from yesterday. Thanks for lifting us up in prayer as we wait to see what God has next for our work family! Lots to think about and consider for the future, for sure, but He knows it all, and I'm so grateful!

Meanwhile, how about a crazy Shafferland story. Are you up for it? 

I can't remember if I told you all about the night back in early winter when Ryan and I pushed a car that had stalled. So in case I never told you (or you missed it or have forgotten) I'll give you the quick version. It was cold out but not HORRIBLY cold. It wasn't to that part of winter yet. Ryan and I were off duty and had gone grocery shopping. We were trying to pull into the parking lot for the grocery store when we got stuck behind a stalled SUV. There was a woman inside with a small child, and she had called for help, but was obviously distressed at being stranded on a busy four lane road during rush hour (and it was almost dark out). I understood that. I've been stranded before.

Ever the good Samaritan, Ryan volunteered us to help her, so we went around her, parked in the parking lot, ran back down, and started pushing. It was all fun and games until we got her around the corner and the road into the parking lot went uphill. Much more so than it ever looked when we drove it. I was in boots with heels and have no upper body strength, so I was pushing with all my might. We were both laid straight out horizontal to her bumper and seriously only through God's power did get that car into the parking lot. 

After it was over, I truly thought we might die. Pushing an SUV in the cold night air literally took our breath away like never before. (Ryan assured me we would be okay. And that Lamaze class I took 20 years ago when my friend Trudy had a baby sure came in handy!)

So just keep that story in the back of your mind.

This past weekend's story actually starts in that exact location - just outside the grocery store. Ryan and I were on duty alone and had gone out to run some errands. We decided to do our grocery shopping while we were in the area, and JUST as we got ready to pull in the lot, we realized we were in the work van and our Aldi bags and quarter were in OUR car, back at WillowBridge. 

I'm not exaggerating when I tell you that every single time we go to Aldi (without fail) there's an untethered cart in the corral. They're always snuggled in their line, but there's always one that isn't plugged in. Almost every time we go, we encounter a person who is returning a cart and is willing to donate it to us in the parking lot. We always offer our quarter, but they almost never take it. 

Saturday? No one was returning carts. And every cart was locked up tight. Every. Single. One.

I had a dollar bill in my purse, so Ryan took it next door to the Dollar Tree to see if they would make change. It's a no. 

Oh. And did I mention that we haven't been properly grocery shopping for three weeks? And that we were also doing some grocery shopping for WillowBridge? 

We did the only thing we could do. We walked inside, scrounged up an empty box (each) and started hauling our groceries by hand, the good old fashioned way. 

Ryan found so much more humor in the moment than I did. Today I can laugh. Saturday I wasn't there.

We left the store and headed back home. We were just a handful of blocks from WillowBridge when we came upon a small pickup truck stranded on the road. We pulled up beside it and found a young and mostly terrified teenage boy in the driver's seat, staring helplessly at the dash. He told Ryan the truck just died. Everything just locked up and died. 

Ryan told him we would pull over and he would help the guy push it off the road. It turned out he was a pizza delivery guy and he was just trying to get a pizza to its owner. Ryan pulled into the ice cream shop and told me to stay put while he pushed. (He must have remembered last time.) I honestly would have helped, but I thought the driver was going to steer and push while Ryan also pushed. I was wrong. Ryan was pushing alone and as they started up into the parking lot, Ryan lost his footing on loose gravel and I saw him go down behind the truck. I screamed. I could just envision that truck backing over him and crushing him. Before I could get out of the car to run across, some gentleman materialized out of nowhere and pushed so Ryan was safe. (He said it was no big deal, he wasn't hurt, and it wasn't as bad as it looked.) 

Another pizza delivery person showed up and rescued the stranded pizza and driver...we got home safely with no more debacles...and we have now tucked a couple of bags and a quarter into the WillowBridge van. Just in case...

Sunday Sentiments

I haven't said anything about on the blog yet because it wasn't my story to tell and it hadn't been told yet. But now it has been, so I can share my heart. 

A few weeks ago, now, we learned that our co-workers, Tim and Justine, would be leaving WillowBridge. 

When we came here, nine months ago, we barely knew them. Okay, we didn't know them. We met them at our interview and then a month later, we showed up for work. Though we went to hours of classroom training and met with Rob for other training, Tim and Justine were really the ones who taught us so much of the day-to-day workings of WillowBridge. 

We have had a lot of fun with them over the last few months. Here are some peeks at our fun together - including our fun with their sweet girl, who has become my little shadow:

(That last one was an attempted recreation of a photo our tenants took. Theirs was adorable. Ours was rough.)

We know that God is leading them into a new chapter and season, and we are excited for them. But we will miss getting to share our days with them and laughing over the (approximately) two billion inside jokes we've developed over all these many months of working together. 

And this leads to one of the prayer requests I presented to you this past week. While no one can ever replace them (obviously), we do need new coworkers! We are hopeful for a good future with new coworkers and friends to spend our days with and to share our work. We are praying fervently for God to find and bring the right couple to work alongside us in this ministry. But as we wait, we are praying for strength as we shoulder the bulk of the days on our own. 

It's a crazy dance...this push and pull of sadness and wondering alongside hope for the future. 

We are grateful for Tim, Justine, and Isla and the months we've done life together. We are grateful for their kindness and patience as we learned the ropes. 

And we want to finish well as we wrap up our time together in the next two weeks!

The Saturday Six

 

One.

Ryan and I enjoyed riding some of Fort Wayne's bike trails last fall, and I'm looking forward to riding more of them this spring and summer! I looked up Indiana's bike trails and was surprised to see I've actually been on parts of two of the three longest! We rode a section of the Monon a couple of summers ago as part of a county tour, and though we didn't bike it, we've been on part of the Cardinal Greenway when we lived in Marion! (We were right by the Nickel Plate trail when we lived in Kokomo, but we never got around to exploring it before we left.)

Two.

Even though we have Abby the RV now and will use her for our lodging all we can while it's warm enough to do so, I still enjoy looking at Airbnbs. After all, our anniversary is in the winter, so we'll still have a chance to use them when it's not warm outside! Look how cool THIS one is!!!

Three.

Anyone working ahead on Easter for NEXT year? I happened upon this idea and thought it was so good, but I'll never remember to share it come next year. I'll share it now and you can stash it away. It's an Easter scavenger hunt that points to the true meaning of Easter! 

Four.

You know, whenever we purchase a home again in the future, I'm fine with it being pretty small. Less to clean, less to operate...I'm all about it. But this kitchen could take up bout 50% of the home and I wouldn't complain. (Swoon.)

Five.

You might remember that one of my/our travel bucket list items is to drive Route 66 from beginning to end. I found this time lapse video of the route all the way from Illinois to California. Pretty cool to watch the landscape change! And though I have not watched it and cannot vouch for the content, if you have two hours to spare, you can watch this video about traveling Route 66!

Six.

And finally, today, this gray NIV spiral-bound illustrating Bible is on sale at Dayspring through April 26th. I'm not one for drawing in Bibles (because my drawing is unintelligible, not because I'm opposed to it) but think of how many NOTES you could take in this space!!! The sale is one of the best I've seen on this particular Bible, so I'm just sharing with you!

Friday Stuff n Things

I am a billion percent scattered today. It has been a week around here. Lots of unexpected twists and turns at work and in our lives, so I thought I'd take this day to catch up and clean up on the blog!

* First up...one of you asked me if we ever plan to take our bikes with us on trips, and the answer to that is a resounding YES! We don't yet have the gear to attach them to Abby, but that is on the short list of things to purchase, and we do hope to take the bikes on some of our trips! 

* Speaking of bikes, I'm so ready for our first ride of the season, even though I have no idea when that will be. I am ready to put my basket on the front, too! It's still sitting here in our living room, waiting to be added to the front of Miss Daisy. She's gonna be so stylin'!

* Someone also reminded me that I forgot to circle back to the coffee story from our first Abby trip! THANK YOU! Yes, I forgot all about it. Here's the story.

We did a lot of research on coffee pots/makers/etc. over the last few months. We determined that it probably wasn't practical for us to have a regular house style coffee maker in the RV, because we have very little counter space. We don't want to clutter it up with a bunch of appliances. (Or even one appliance, if we don't have to.) 

The same was true for a traditional Keurig. They're so big, and we hated to have it sitting out - or using up storage space that could be designated for something else. 

We decided to go with an electric water kettle and a stainless steel French press. We liked the idea of the water kettle because it would allow us to have it for other uses as needed - like hot chocolate or cooking with hot/boiling water. The French Press is on the bigger side, so it would give us plenty of coffee, but the stainless steel would not be fragile like glass, and that would be good for travel. Both of them tucked away nicely in a little storage cube. 

All of it worked exactly as we envisioned...until...

...it came time to dump the grounds. We shook most of them into our trash can, but we didn't want a bunch of coffee grounds running around in our gray water tank, so rinsing out in the sink wasn't an option. We made it work for the weekend with some creative (and gross) manual cleaning, but we learned this is definitely going to require some adjustments. 

We've been pondering what to do, and we haven't landed on an answer  yet. Keurig does make a slimmer machine that a friend of mine has and likes, so that's a possibility. (And we could get the little pod that allows you to use your own grounds if we don't want to guess at K-Cup numbers for a trip.) This wouldn't take up a TON of room if we put it on the counter, nor would it take up a ton of space in storage if we chose to do that. 

And though not quite as slim, there are options like this one that aren't huge, but they do have stainless steel carafes. So that's another idea. 

We'll keep thinking about it and try to figure it out soon!

****

And now, a complete switch of topics. Let's move on to prayer, shall we?

* I'll tell you more about it another day (Really, I will! If I don't forget!) but we have some changes coming up here at WillowBridge, and Ryan and I would gratefully accept any prayers you might have for us as we navigate those changes. It's a whole story, which is why I will save it for another time, but if you have room on your prayer list, we'll take a spot!

* And while I'm asking for prayer...I have a dear friend who has battled health challenges for about twenty years now. (I didn't ask permission to use her name, so I'll keep it anonymous.) She has always faced each battle with loads of grace and has both challenged and convicted me with her complete trust in God, even when she is so very ill. Within the last week she had to go on dialysis and a kidney transplant list. She messaged me yesterday and said dialysis is absolutely awful. I don't know that I have ever heard her say anything is awful, even with all the awful things she's faced. My heart breaks for her. I know she hopes for a new kidney, but I also know that could take a while, so dialysis could be here for much longer than she hopes. If you think of her, even without knowing her name, would you join me in praying for her? (God knows exactly who she is, so He won't lose your prayers!) She's such a prayer warrior for others, and I would love to gain some extra warriors for her. 

Thanks, friends!! Much love to all of you this scattered Friday!

10 Questions

 

I saw this on Natasha's blog this week and thought it looked so fun! Since I've had a crazy 24 hours and my head is spinning (hello, job) I thought I'd have some fun with this today!

1. What was your first job? How old were you when you started working?

My first job was babysitting, and I loved it. I was somewhere around 12 when I started working. My niece was a few months old and my sister bravely entrusted her to me for an hour or so while she went somewhere. My brother-in-law, who was a pastor, was in his office next door to where they lived, so if I'd had any sort of emergency, he was right there and could be home in seconds. I was SO NERVOUS for that first job, but we got along beautifully and it led to many years of babysitting. I did that all the way through junior high, high school, and even some into college. I still love kids so much and don't hate it at all that the WillowBridge kiddos have adopted me without hesitation. 

2. Tell us about the best job you've ever had. And the worst.

Tricky! I really loved radio so much, but I also really love getting to work alongside Ryan now. So I would say I love aspects of both of them dearly. Radio was a really fun job. I loved all the people I got to meet, the guests I interacted with, the concerts and events I attended, and the people I worked with. But in my current job, I also dearly love working with Ryan, the best EVER commute, and the wide variety of things I get to do every single day. The worst job I ever had? Hmmmmm. Maybe the loan company I worked at early on? It just was so outside my comfort zone. I was just outside of high school, and it was major culture shock.

3. Are you a saver or a spender? How about your significant other?

Am I allowed to say both? :)  Probably in the eyes of most people, we are definitely savers. We are not into impulse shopping and we certainly don't live beyond our means. We do everything we can to be fiscally responsible. But we also don't save every single penny to the point where we never do or buy anything fun. I appreciate the balance that we strike in saving and spending. I really appreciate that Ryan is responsible with money, because I choose to be that way also, and it makes marriage so much nicer to have us on the same page with that. But I appreciate that we are able to have some fun and get the things we need.

4. Do you play the stock market? Do you play the lottery? Ever gambled? Ever won big?

We are much too conservative for any of this. Plus, you know I have terrible luck when it comes to games, so do you really think gambling and lottery-playing would go well for me?

5. What is your favorite way to splurge? What do you dislike spending money on the most?

Favorite way to splurge...probably would be things for our home. I love making it pretty. (And of course, now things to make Abby pretty.) I'm not big into buying clothes or jewelry or makeup or anything like that. OH! And experiences. I really love spending on things like trips or experiences on trips. Memories more than stuff. Things I dislike spending money on? Repairs. Underwear. All manner of things you can't see. LOL!

6. How do you save money? Do you save change? Christmas club or vacation accounts? Time-share? 

Hmmmm. We probably save money (in comparison to most people) by not eating out much. And when we do eat out, most of the time it's fast food. We don't go to many high dollar restaurants. And we try really hard to be frugal on regular fees. (Like we try to have the cheapest cell phone plan possible, and we don't do high-tier TV services. And we use phones, computers, and cars until they die. And then we duct tape them and use them some more.) We do not save change. I have never saved change. Back in the day when I carried cash more than I do now, I used every penny. I never had leftover. While it may not be a specific Christmas club, I am so thankful my mom taught me back when I was five to start saving part of every allowance for buying Christmas gifts. We always save up for Christmas and trips so we don't have to go into debt for them. We've never done a time-share. 

7. Who pays the bills? Who does the taxes? Do you file early or last minute?

I was so delighted to hand over all the money to Ryan when we got married. I did it and did it well when I was single, but I hated it. Like I said earlier, we are on the same page with financial responsibility, so I never have to worry about him paying things late or doing anything unethical or unwise with our money. He enjoys it and I hate it, so this arrangement works well for us. He takes care of our taxes and we are all about being as early as possible for everything.

8. Name brands or generic groceries? Favorite stores to shop? Have you used grocery pick-up? Delivery? Coupons?

We try to buy generic on everything we can - other than things that we don't like the generic brand. WE do get name brand toilet paper, laundry detergent, coffee, etc. But we don't get hung up on name brands for most things. We usually shop for groceries at Aldi and get everything there that we possibly can. Whatever we can't get there, we get at either Meijer or Wal-Mart. And we have a handful of things we get at Sam's. We don't use grocery pickup or delivery. And we don't clip coupons, but we do have some apps to get coupons that way when we can.

9. Do you shop thrift stores and yard sales? Ever use Poshmark or eBay?

I love thrift stores and yard sale, though I haven't had much time for either in the last few months. I have no shame in buying other people's leftovers!! I've never used Poshmark or eBay. 

10. Is there anything you collect or save that you think might be valuable one day?

Not a thing. I'm not really into stuff so I don't have collections. And back when I did collect, I collected business cards. They're not worth anything. 

So there you have it! We're not very exciting, are we?

Pros and Cons and Questions

One more day of Abby talk and I promise to take a break from overwhelming you with it all. 

First up...a couple of you asked some questions, so let me answer those!

Will I ever drive Abby? Not if I can help it! (HA!) I did take a turn in the driver's seat last fall before our purchase, because Ryan wanted to know that I could drive her if needed. As you know, I really don't enjoy driving at all - even cars - so the general plan is that Ryan will drive the majority of the time, but if there should come a time when he's sleepy or not feeling well and shouldn't be driving...yes, I can and will drive her. 

Will we ever tow our car? Probably not. Abby does have a hitch and can tow a vehicle, but we would have to get all the other pieces and parts to tow. Our car is not super small, so it would probably utterly kill our gas mileage to tow it. Ryan actually said if we ever did tow a vehicle, we would probably tow our truck, because it's lighter weight. But for the most part, wherever we go, we'll probably just drive the RV and rely on walking (or driving the RV) where we need to go. With the type of travel we envision doing in the near future, that would be sufficient. 

Next up...the things we loved about camping in general and about Abby specifically.

* One of my biggest dreams over these last 4-5 years of RV research has been to have a bathroom with us on the road. You remember the 3 hour traffic jam before our wedding, right? :) Having a bathroom at our disposal at all times is THE BEST. 

* We also loved arriving at our destination and not hauling luggage inside and unpacking...only to turn around and pack it all up and haul it back out. I realize that there will be a measure of that eventually when we set up a proper outdoor campsite, but with toiletries and clothes and all that, this was a dream. 

* I mentioned this a couple of days ago, but we really liked the amount of space we had to move around (as opposed to a camper van, which would be even smaller inside) during days full of rain. It was nice to stretch our legs and be able to walk around each other, even if it was still on the tighter side.

* Also nice, given the rain, was the quick setup. We didn't have to mess with pulling out slides on the side or hooking up water/sewage or even messing with leveling blocks. We just pulled in, plugged in, and called it a day.

* Even though there's the potential downside of not having a vehicle to drive separately, I LOVE having the cab attached to the house. I love just being able to crawl over the console and immediately be home. Especially in the rain. (Maybe having our first trip mostly rained out really helped us appreciate her best qualities!) 

* We enjoyed the privacy of camping in our own space, while still getting to see other people out and about at their campsites. We could enjoy the presence of life around us without having people right on the other side of our walls. 

* We loved taking our own food and making our own meals inside. By plugging in the RV, we were able to use an electric griddle and save propane! I also ADORE that we have a pretty big refrigerator and separate freezer. Some RVs the size we have only have a mini-fridge or one where the freezer is just this itty bitty compartment within the refrigerator. I think it's pretty amazing that we have one as large as we do. 

* Everything is comfortable. I have heard some real nightmare stories about RV furniture being INCREDIBLY uncomfortable. I was shocked that our bed is so comfy. It's smaller than we're used to, and that takes some adjustment, but it's SO comfy. And the sofa and chair in the back are equally comfortable. Even the chairs in the cab (though not cute!) are really easy to ride in. 

While it was (much like Mary Poppins) practically perfect in every way, there were a couple of things that weren't amazing or that we might choose differently in a future RV.

* The wet bath. When you choose a small rig like we did, you have to pick and choose your luxuries. For us, having a bed that doesn't have to fold out each night and up each morning - OR rest over the cab - meant we didn't have as much space for a bathroom. Our wet bath works perfectly fine as a restroom, but as a shower, it will require some adjustments. We'll learn as we go, but years down the road, if we upgrade our RV, I think we would both choose a full bathroom with a shower separate from the toilet and sink. It's not a disappointment or complaint...merely an observation. 

* We chose a shorter RV on purpose, because it is easier to navigate, and after watching some people try to park larger ones in the campground, I surely was grateful for her small size. But I also think if we were ever going to go full time or travel more extensively, we would probably want something JUST a little bit larger. Part of that has to do with outside storage space. She has TONS of cabinets inside, but very little outside, which means we have to be pretty choosy about what/how much we bring for outside living. If we did ever get a bigger one, we would also probably try to find one with a permanent table, so we didn't have to take it down and set it back up all the time. (BUT!!! I really do love it that a table is even an option in the one we have.)