Thanksgiving Weekend 2025

 

                Ryan and I are home from our whirlwind anniversary getaway. When I say “whirlwind,” I refer both to the brevity of the time away and the actual WIND. It. Was. So. Cold.

                I’ll tell you about our trip tomorrow, but for today I need to back up and share more about our Thanksgiving weekend!

                Yesterday I told you that on Thanksgiving morning, we went out for coffee at the Shaka Shack – part of the Adams County Coffee Trail. After coffee, we went over to Swiss Village to have lunch with my parents!

                I really love getting to have holiday meals at Swiss Village. It saves us tons of time and money on food prep – and we don’t have to worry about leftovers! (Extra helpful when you don’t even like the holiday’s food theme, right?)

                I was actually quite happy to learn that Swiss Village served both ham and turkey, so I was able to get ham, green beans, and a roll – and my day was complete!

                After lunch, Ryan and I organized Mom and Dad’s storage locker and decorated their apartment for Christmas.

                Both Ryan and I had the day after Thanksgiving off work, which was a treat for us. Ryan made breakfast for us – something we haven’t had time for in a long time – and then we set out to have the most wonderful day…

                …until Ryan was sidelined to the couch for the entire day with a kidney stone! He had struggled with the pain from it earlier in the week, and it never completely went away, but it did subside a little. It came back with a vengeance on Friday. He did his lemon water potion, and it did help, but he was pretty miserable.

                I really wanted to go see the Christmas tree lighting that evening, and I told him he could stay home and I would go alone, but he wanted to go with me. He’s so brave!

                It was colllllllllllllllllllld outside, but we walked around the Berne Christkindlmarkt and then huddled together until the tree lighting ceremony. Some really courageous singers sang and played the guitar – though I have no idea how they felt their fingers! Someone else read Luke 2, and then we sang Christmas carols while they lit the tree!

                Ryan wasn’t the only one not feeling well over the weekend. We were pretty sure Lexi had an ear infection, so we took her to the vet early Saturday morning. She was such a brave girl and got through the tests and the treatment in the office. Sweet girl.

                We came home from the vet and Ryan had another meeting right after that. While he was gone, the predicted winter storm actually showed up – on time and with the promised severity. Lexi and I were both so glad to see him return home safely!!

                And speaking of glad, Ryan and I were both glad that he birthed the kidney stone that day. He named him Leonard.

                We wrapped up our Thanksgiving weekend by exchanging our anniversary gifts just a little bit early. I’d gotten Ryan a heated vest and since I knew he’d need to shovel snow and that our anniversary trip was likely to be cold, I figured I should go ahead and give it to him. (He loved it, and he used it a TON over the weekend!)

                I was super excited to get new jammies and…are you ready? A bobble head of us!! It’s SO COOL!!!! He had it custom made, and I just absolutely love it.

                And now you’re caught up on Thanksgiving at the Shaffers!

Coffee Dates on the Adams County Coffee Trail

 

                Remember our Adams County Coffee Trail adventure? We have one shop left to visit. (We planned to do it over Thanksgiving weekend, but they weren’t open the days we had the availability to go.)

                But we have been to two more since I last updated you, so I thought I’d tell you about them!

                The first was The Filling Station in Berne. We’ve been here before a few times, and I learned this fall that I love their breakfast bowls!

                We went on a Saturday morning. (I went to a baby shower that day, which is the only reason I’m this dressed up on a Saturday!) We got Americanos and breakfast bowls and enjoyed some good conversation while we ate. The breakfast bowl was the perfect choice, since I didn’t eat again until later. It kept me full!

                Then on Thanksgiving Day, we went to our absolute favorite coffee shop: the Shaka Shack in Monroe. This is the coffee shop we went to back in 2014, when we started our 92 county tour of Indiana. (A project we WILL one day finish!) I go to this shop at least once a week for meetings – sometimes more – and it’s no surprise that this was our favorite coffee of any shop on the tour.

                We had some time to sit and enjoy coffee and conversation before beginning our Thanksgiving festivities, and it was the perfect way to start our day.

                One more to go…and we will have completed our adventure!

Thirteen Years Later

 

Happy anniversary, Ryan!

                Our marriage is officially a teenager! This milestone settles in the most deep and beautiful way in my heart. After all those years of praying and longing for a husband, I still shake my head in disbelief that Shafferland has now become a teenager in marriage years. What an absolute welcomed gift!

                Today is so much colder than our wedding day. We didn’t get to travel to warmth this year, since I was nearly out of vacation days. Indiana decided to gift us with winter weather to celebrate becoming marriage-teenagers, so we’re bundled up and remembering the days of 82 degrees at the beginning of December.

                On this auspicious occasion, I wanted to share thirteen of my favorite things about our wedding day that were indeed a foreshadowing of life with Ryan throughout these thirteen years.

Starting our days together. We pushed aside the tradition of NOT seeing one another before our wedding and got up early to meet up and spend some time together, just the two of us, before all the busyness of the day began. We met in the courtyard, walked to the edge of the water, and sat to talk, drink coffee, pray, and prepare for the day to come. While our “normal” days don’t include some of the same luxuries, I really do love starting each day with Ryan. Sometimes we work out. Sometimes we sit on the couch, reading our Bibles. Sometimes we talk while we eat our breakfast. But each day begins together, and it really is a joy.

Serving each other. The morning of our wedding, we washed each other’s feet, and it was one of the sweetest times. We don’t do daily foot washing, but we do strive to serve each other well throughout each day. I appreciate Ryan’s attention to the little things that make all my days easier: gas in the car, a warmed car in the winter, daily dish-washing, a fresh cup of coffee each morning, texts and Marco Polos throughout the day, grocery shopping with me, making phone calls so I don’t have to, and so much more. He serves and loves well. He is also so good about thanking me for my ways of serving: packing lunches with notes, planning and cooking meals, doing the laundry, tending to details, and planning our trips!

Admiration and appreciation. It’s no secret that we both worked a lot harder on our appearance on our wedding day than we do on any regular day, but I love it that we both still pause to appreciate each other on the regular days. Ryan is so good about telling me I’m pretty, or he likes my hair, and I try not to pass up any opportunity to tell him he’s hot and handsome! 😊 Bless his heart, he’s lived through a lot of versions of Bekah: weight, hair color, hair cut, makeup experiments…and he is always so kind!

Tackling life, hand in hand. We did a lot of our wedding pictures ahead of the ceremony, since it took place so late in the day, and that was one of my favorite things. I loved all the extra time with Ryan on that day, and I loved getting to walk around with him, hand in hand, as we did our pictures. We still love holding hands: in the car, in church, on the couch, out and about…it’s my favorite. Well. And kissing. Also my favorite.

 Taking on the tears. It wouldn’t be a throwback to our wedding if I didn’t share the ugly-cry picture, right??? For me, I felt like I did pretty well with the tears on our wedding day. They happened a few times, but there were far more smiles than tears. Even so, Ryan was so sweet that day to see the deep love behind the tears, not rush them, and squeeze my hand a little tighter. And he’s done it a million times over in the last thirteen years. He hears my fears, welcomes my grief, and doesn’t try to fix it.

Establishing and carrying on traditions. We didn’t really plan it, but our wedding day established some traditions – especially in the land of photography. Our beloved chalkboards have been with us for thirteen years now. Some of the pictures we took that day have been recreated every year on our anniversary, and today will be no different. I love it that we have been able to create traditions and carry them forward, year after year. It’s a gift to have them established and to expect them each year!

Promises made and kept. We made a lot of promises in the sand that day thirteen years ago, and we’ve kept them. In a world where promises are so easily broken, I am extra grateful for a husband who keeps his promises and makes it so easy for me to keep mine!

Endless kisses. I’m not sure how we ended up with a dog who hates kissing, but we did. We have to sneak them in now when she isn’t looking, but I still love kissing Ryan and need to figure out how to get Lexi on board with it.

Watching sunsets. We had no idea, thirteen years ago, that we would live on a lake and have beautiful sunsets at our disposal, but we do, and I’m so thankful. We loved watching the sun slide down out of view that night, and we still love it, still photograph it, still stand in awe of it all the time.

Coffee! Our wedding day began and ended with coffee. If you didn’t know, we toasted with coffee at our reception! We still love it – probably even more! – and still drink it together every day. Still have those mugs, too!

Prayer and Bible study. I am so thankful to have a praying husband. I am thankful we can pray together. I am thankful he prays for me even when he isn’t with me. I am thankful that he calls on me to pray for him even when I’m not with him. To have a spouse who is a prayer warrior is a complete gift.

Ending our days together. When we were engaged, Lynne Ford told me it would be a great gift when we were married and didn’t have to go back to our respective homes each night. SO TRUE. I love it that we get to be together until our eyes close in sleep!

Walking together, even when we don’t know where we are going. Even when you’re walking blindly, it’s a whole lot more comforting to walk alongside someone you love. Ryan is my constant, and I sure love him for it.

                Ryan, I love you with my whole heart. I loved our wedding day and I’ve loved the thirteen years we’ve shared. Thank you for being the same man (only better and even more handsome) than you were on our wedding day. Thank you for keeping your promises, loving me well, and embracing all my crazy ideas. Thank you for smiling for a million pictures and making our life together more beautiful than I could have dreamed or imagined. You are my joy, and I sure love you!

                Happy anniversary!

Dreams and Goals for December

 

                Welcome to the first day of the last month of this year. One year ago today, we were in the tundra of Pennsylvania, enjoying a freezing but fun getaway to Hershey and Bethlehem! So much has happened in the year that has passed since, and we are ready to tackle the last month of this year!

                I have a handful of dreams and goals for this celebration-filled month, and here is my list!

Address and mail Christmas cards. I have been ahead of the game on many things for this season, but not on cards. I had them designed a while ago, but the prices were SO HIGH this year, and I waited and waited to order, hoping for better sales. I finally purchased them on Black Friday, so now I have to scurry to address and mail them.

Buy and wrap gifts. It’s rare that I buy gifts ahead of December, because I’m always so busy decorating. Now that Ryan’s family has changed their Christmas traditions, we don’t buy for many on his side. My side is small. So I don’t have too many to buy for, but I do need to shop and wrap!

Enjoy some Christmas fun! I want to drive through some lights, do a home tour (excited for that!) and enjoy whatever Christmas-related fun we can find throughout the month.

Plan for end-of-year speaking. I have one – maybe two – days of speaking left, so I need to prep what I’m saying. I’m really looking forward to it!

Undo all I did. What goes up must come down, right? So at the end of the month, I need to tear down all the Christmas décor and reset the house for January. I’ll need to do the same at the church – and I want to pack away everything in a way that sets us up for success next year!

Prepare for 2026. I have already done a LOT of planning – personally and professionally – so I feel this one is already underway. But new years are significant to me (and always have been) so I need to prepare well for what is to come!

                Those are my dreams and goals for closing out this year. How about you, friend? Anything you want to cross off the December list?