The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday, we got to see the REALLY cool collage at church that I talked about earlier this week - where they used tiny pictures of church attenders to make up this gorgeous picture that looks like a window in the church. It was such a bitterly cold day that after we got home, we just stayed in. We napped. I worked on writing recipes in the round robin family cookbook project our family has going. Ryan and I did some talking and dreaming and praying. It was a good day!

* Monday, Scott and Lynne did an Oreo taste test at work, so that meant LOTS OF LEFTOVERS for everyone else!! That's never a bad day! I was busy trying to get my blood work appointment scheduled (more pre-op fun that became typical Bekah in nature), so I really needed the Oreos. LOL! Ryan and I set up camp in our home office that night and got busy on all kinds of chores, fueled, of course, by coffee!

* Tuesday morning was my last blood work before the surgery, and it was quite an interesting experience. I was the only patient in the waiting room - and then I discovered it was a one-woman show. The same lady who did all my billing and paperwork also took my blood! Wasn't sure what to think of that! Tuesday evening, Ryan and I went to a viewing for a friend's mom, and on the way home, we stopped at Starbucks and possibly made friends with our barista. Like first-name-basis-let's-have-dinner friends. We took our coffee home and hunkered down to watch the new show Repeat After Me. Pretty funny!

* Wednesday I had a meeting after Mid-Morning...and I forgot to take a snack! Rookie mistake for the pre-lunch meetings! :) It was kind of a hard day - not my favorite one of the week - so it was probably good that it was church night. Ryan and I went to an Ash Wednesday service for the first time. It was very different from what I'm used to, but I was glad we went. And I was also glad that on the way home, Ryan was kind enough, as he always is, to put gas in my car. I love that man!

* Thursday was b.i.t.t.e.r.l.y. cold, and my car HEAVILY protested being out and in service. HEAVILY. I could not get warmed up when I got to work, so I ran around with my gloves on, before my friend Amy had pity on me and brought a heater back to us. I worked like crazy to get ahead...and Ryan kept me entertained with photos to brighten my day. We stayed home the whole night. It was too cold to go outside. TOO. COLD.

 * Friday morning, I got a fun surprise at work...Amy brought me a happy recovery present! It was so thoughtful! I worked like crazy all day to make sure every single detail was squared away for Lynne while I'm gone. So much to think about! And at the end of the day, I hauled about three loads of things out to my car so I can do some work at home while I'm recovering. I parked in the visitor space to give myself less territory to cover with all the armloads!! Ryan and I headed back to Starbucks that night; I wanted to cash in my free reward before my surgery in case my stomach hates coffee for a while. {And on that...PLEASE NO!!!}

* Yesterday we got hit with nasty weather again, but Ryan said that was not going to stop us from going on another county date! Huntington County, this time. :) We went out in the snow and visited the Forks of the Wabash, and then we went to lunch at Pizza Junction, visited some stores in downtown Huntington, and then of course, coffee! When we finished that, we drove on up to Fort Wayne and Ryan installed a microwave for Amy. He loves helping people!

The Saturday Six

One.
Ready to organize another corner of the world? Contact list week!! Whether you keep a paper address book or an online contact list...time to peek through it. Delete, update, consolidate...whatever you need to do! I tend to forget this chore until Christmas card season and then I'm scrambling to find where someone moved...a year ago. This is a great week to gather all that up and simplify the mess that might comprise your current system. Happy streamlining!


Two.

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Last week, I told you how Beth Moore celebrated 20 years of publishing Bible studies with Lifeway. Did you guys see this piece of artwork they gave her as a gift? It's made from the pages and covers of her books. I cannot imagine anything more amazing to receive as an author!

Three.

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It's been five years since I stumbled through the bleakness of the desert, struggling for breath and hope. I have asked God not to let me forget the desperation of that season, even in the new seasons in which I celebrate. Every day on Mid-Morning, I hear phone calls and read emails from people who are there NOW. Deserts are relentless and merciless. This post: so well stated. Worth the read.

Four.

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It's possible I may need one of these shirts. I'm not kidding. {If you watch Fixer Upper, you'll understand.}

Five.

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And because you can't possibly talk TOO MUCH about Fixer Upper, {at least I believe}...this tour of Chip and Joanna's real life house is pretty amazing. I would like the coffee bar please.

Six.

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If you crochet...you might like this website, recently launched by my friend, Rebecca. It's called Crochet Trendy, and it's a directory of free patterns for all kinds of crochet fun...from hats to scarves and more. I think it's a pretty amazing resource!!

Just When I Think It Can't Get Funnier...

...it does.

The gallbladder eviction, I mean. This entire process, which began a month ago yesterday, has been one giant headache. And stomachache.

I wish you could have just been in the room with me this week for some of the fun. Are you ready for this?

I had to have some new blood work done, because they needed to check my liver numbers. {To see how many livers I have??} The surgeon told me they would run these blood tests right before the surgery and if the numbers were elevated, it meant I had a stone in my bile duct, and that would require a whole separate scope-y procedure, and I most wholeheartedly assure you I do NOT want that.

So Tuesday morning, I went to a lab before work to have my blood work. I'd never been to this facility before, and I actually drove past it because it wasn't marked out at the road. When I finally found it and went inside, I determined this building had to have been built in the 60's or 70's and last decorated circa the same year. When I went in, the lady at the front desk was working with someone and asked me to take a seat in the waiting room until my turn came.

I sat, a bit fearfully, in the ghostly waiting room, listening through the window air conditioner permanently embedded in the wall, to the traffic zooming by outside. A few minutes later, the lady hollered my name, and I tip toed back to the desk, where she took all my information, scanned all my cards, and did all the paperwork.

Then she said she would open the door for me to come to the back...which she did. As I waited for the nice nurse to come get me, Miss Front Desk popped on a pair of gloves and said, "Which arm do you prefer?"

I'm not gonna lie to you...I was a little freaked out. There I was, alone in the Brady Bunch Medical Park, with one employee who does it all!

To be fair, she did an amazing job...found a vein right away and didn't leave a bruise! But it just cracked me up.

And then. THEN!!!!!

Yesterday, in the 10 minutes that I put my phone down in between the morning show and Mid-Morning, the surgery center called. The nurse left a message that said "Trying to find Rebekah. I'll try later."

Ummmm.....WHAT!!?!?

A million ideas flooded through my mind. They found something in the blood work. They need to change the surgery date AGAIN. My surgeon got sick. They have an opening for today and I need to do a whole lot of work to be gone early.

I frantically called the lady back and got her voicemail. I explained that I work in radio and had to be back on air at 10:00, but if she could call me before then, that would be great.

She called at 9:57.

Cue the panic.

I wanted to answer. I needed to answer. But I knew it was likely to be longer than a 2 minute talk. What to do??? I answered, and she asked if I had time to talk. I told her I had 2 minutes before I had to be on air.

She immediately launched into the questions. "How tall are you? How much do you weigh? Have you ever had a stroke? Are you pregnant?"

I sat there and said a million "no...no...no's..." and thought to myself Didn't I fill out four sheets of paper with all this information on it LAST WEEK?????? YES! YES I DID!!

As she wrapped up her talk with me, I realized the music from the morning show was actually ending EARLY, and the station ID began to play.

With a phone in my right ear and my headphones in my left ear, I frantically said, "I'm so so sorry but my show is starting and I have to go!" She hung up and with shaking hands, I started the Mid-Morning theme...and the ID was still playing!

Lynne and Jim {from the morning show} looked at me as though I had lost my mind {which clearly I had}. I stopped the theme and restarted it a moment later, when it was really time. I turned on both our mics, only to realize with great horror that mine was about four feet from my head. You can't move them without a lot of squeaking, so as Lynne said "Good morning, and welcome to Mid-Morning, I'm Lynne Ford" I leapt from my chair and stretched across the desk to say "AND I'M BEKAH SHAFFER!!!!"

I never did stop shaking for the rest of the hour, and I would definitely like to retract my "no" answer about anxiety and high blood pressure.

I did call back after the show to apologize for my abrupt exit. She never called me back...I hope she didn't mark my file as "a little bit wackadoodle."

Small World, Big Impact: Mr. McBride

Can I introduce you to another person from my formative years who made a big impact on my tiny world?

He taught Chemistry. Chemistry was not my friend. The only thing I remember from Chemistry class was that one day I leaned against the lab table and some {still unknown to me} chemical that had apparently dripped on the table ate three holes in the front of my skirt. Right through the fabric. All the way. Unfortunately, since I still don't know what it was, if I ever encounter it again, I'll be bidding a fond farewell to another piece of clothing.

Mr. McBride loved Chemistry, and his greatest desire was for all his students to understand the deep mystery of the science. I have no doubt at all that I was the stupidest student to ever cross his path. He must have explained the concepts to me dozens of times, and still, I never even came close to comprehending them.

I was a good student. An honor student, actually. And while science wasn't my favorite subject, I had managed my way through earth science and biology...and then...my brain just shut down in ways I had never experienced before. Chemistry could not and would not break through.

I dreaded his class, because I viewed it as the bitter end of my honors status. I tried so hard. I really did. I studied. I went in after school for special tutoring. I found the smartest guy in our entire school and asked him to be my lab partner. He even came to my house to help me study after school. And still: nothing.

It was a frustrating and disheartening experience for someone who had always been able to learn...to be enrolled in a class necessary for graduation and face the truth that passing was unlikely at best.

Truth? The fact that I made it through is a mathematical impossibility. {I wasn't any good at math either, but I was decent enough to know that.} If you looked at the {mostly failing} scores of my tests and assignments, you would see what I mean. I should never have passed.

Mr. McBride, though, was a kind man. He saw my effort. He saw my desire to stay afloat. Forget succeeding...I just wanted to survive. He looked at me kindly and ever so patiently explained the formulas to me again. And when my chin quivered and my eyes filled with tears, and I asked him how I would ever pass his class, he just kindly asked me to keep trying.

The only F that ever appeared on my report card came in Chemistry class. Failed the daylights out of the final. There it sat, for my parents to read. And I should have failed the entire class. But in that class, I learned the meaning of grace. I didn't ace the class. I didn't even make the honor roll in that season because of that class. But I cherished that C in Chemistry far more than any A+ in English, because that C was a gift from a teacher who clearly graded me on effort.

Thank you, Mr. McBride, for doing everything you could to help me pass your class. And when you saw that I was one of "those" students and there was truly no hope...thank you for grace. Thank you for caring about a student who was a total failure in the subject of your passion and life's work. Thank you for making it possible for me to graduate from high school...or otherwise, I would still be your 36 year old student in tutoring. We both know it. I will never forget your kindness and your patience, but most of all...your mercy.

I know Mr. McBride has since retired, and I don't know where he is...but I have never forgotten him, and because of his mercy alone, I have one positive memory of Chemistry.

Taking the Challenge

I'm sharing this today not to point to what I did, but to encourage you to try something new, even if it feels scary!

Remember a couple of weeks ago when I introduced you to my friend, Faith, who had taken time to bring me a gift on Valentine's Day several years ago? She was in a relationship then, and I was not, but she still took time out of her own busy life to make sure I had a gift on Valentine's Day.

Sharing that with you made it stir in my heart.

And then my mom sent that challenge list that I shared on the Saturday Six...about reaching out to others on Valentine's Day.

So Friday night, when Ryan and I were grocery shopping, I noticed all the rose bouquets near the checkout lanes, and I thought about Ryan's day of work on Saturday. I'd planned to stay home and write, but I knew right then that God had other plans for me. I put a dozen roses in our cart and told Ryan I was going to make some deliveries Saturday morning.

I got up and ready and then blew out to the car {MAN was it blustery} to head out for the day. I hadn't really checked ahead with most people, but I thought I'd give it a shot. I drove to the homes of some of my single friends. Some have never been married. Others are divorced or widowed. But all of them are loved, and I thought they deserved to know so on this day.

I got the biggest blessing out of knocking on their doors and watching their eyes light up when they saw the roses. I told them all I loved them and was thankful for them and just wanted them to know they were loved on this day.

One of my friends wanted a picture with me...a few wanted to know if I could stay and talk for a while...and the smiles from all of them were so worth the trip, which turned a bit harrowing for a while. Yeah. THIS wasn't in the forecast!

Despite the slick roads and whiteouts I ended up pushing through, it was SO worth it. {Also worth it - chasing my hat down a driveway after it blew off my head!}

Next year, hopefully Ryan and I can have the day off together to do something similar. Seriously the biggest blessing of my day, and I'm so glad I obeyed the urging in my heart.

Our Valentine's Date

I think it's kind of interesting that for being such a tradition driven person as I am...we don't really have traditions for Valentine's Day - other than to celebrate the thing. We've done it a little bit differently each year, but we always have fun!

This year, Ryan had to work on Valentine's Day, so I offered to do the planning for our day. I'm really not a big fan of going out on Valentine's Day, because the crowds are CRAZY. I find it hard to enjoy myself when it's crowded and chaotic.

So....this year, I planned a fondue date! I thought it would be a lot of fun for us. Ryan and I grocery shopped together Friday night and I told him I was going to be buying some weird things and not to ask questions. LOL!!

I got everything all prepped while Ryan was at work, and then when we were ready to eat, I sent him far away from the main part of the house so I could finish up the work and surprise him.

Candles in a heart shape around glasses of sparkling grape juice...one of our favorite things. 

I made two kinds of fondue...a cheese version and a broth version. For the cheese fondue I cubed some French bread, and I also had some cocktail shrimp. For the broth fondue I had tiny potatoes, mushrooms, and beef tips. Dinner is pretty quick to fix when you don't have to actually fix any of it ahead of time!!

And for dessert, coffee of course, and I also used my DeBrand gift card to get us some truffles.

We don't actually own fondue pots, so I borrowed a chocolate melting pot from my mom and a fondue set from my friend Amy at work. Between the two, we were set!

When I went to get Ryan from our room, he was SO EXCITED to find out we were doing fondue. He loved it! YAY!!!

He got busy right away, putting in the potatoes, since they take forever to cook. 

I am not gonna lie - it was a fun dinner to eat. So much to sample!

And don't forget dessert!

After dinner, we exchanged cards and gifts. Ryan got a phone upgrade a while back, and his arm band he uses to hold his phone during workouts wont' work anymore, so I got him a new one.

And he got some serious points for my gift. He designed a new case for my phone - with our picture on it!

A great night - and a great night to be INSIDE, since it was so nasty out. Happy Vallentine's Day from Shafferland!

World's Largest Starbucks Date

Remember how Ryan and I missed our planned Valentine's Day date last weekend? We had purchased tickets to a comedy show and then he was too sick to go, so I went with my friend Amber. :)

I think we officially made up for it this weekend!

When I got home from work on Friday night, Ryan had flowers waiting for me! This is one of my favorite things ever in life. I adore flowers. Adore. {Does anyone else find it hilarious that the one thing I love almost the most is the one thing that did NOT make an appearance in our wedding?}

Anyway. Gorgeous red roses from my handsome husband:

And then...someone else interfered.

We started off our evening with some takeout Chinese and a movie...and then we remembered we already saw that movie. LOL!!!

I had read online that Friday, from 2 p.m. to close...there was a chance to participate in the World's Largest Starbucks Date. They had three special deals on coffee and a food treat - each for $5.00. That alone made it worth the trip. They also said there would be photo props and other fun, but we went for the coffee deal.

Oh. My. Word.

What a ridiculously fun night!!! According to the barista, some of the things at our Starbucks were the standard across the board, and some things were the creativity of the store manager. To both, I say BRAVO. This was a fabulous night with treats above and beyond. Check it out!

The entire store was decorated with hearts and flower petals. Flower petals scattered across the counters and tables, vases with flowers on the tables, and hearts hung around the room. It was such fun!

They had a table set up out in the middle, with free samples of white chocolate raspberry mochas, little samples of chocolate scones and salted caramel brownies, photo booth props, and even a bowl full of hearts with questions on them. A barista was right there to hostess for the evening and let us draw hearts from the bowl and answer questions for tickets in a drawing. We both got entered and while we were there...she drew a ticket and I bet you can't guess who won!

HINT!

His prize? Coffee mugs. {Could there be a more perfect gift????}

We had some fun with the photo booth props.

Is it bad when your own nose looks like the fake nose on those glasses/mustache thingies?

And we loved our coffee. Ryan got the French Press Coffee and brownie deal:

And I did the white chocolate mocha and chocolate chip cookie {they had run out of sugar cookies}:

We sat and talked and enjoyed...it was the most lovely evening. A lot of college students came in and out while we were there, and some other couples and families were there playing games, drinking coffee, and taking pictures. It was just such a fun night!

We went for a coffee deal and ended up having such a great night. Great, fun thing Starbucks did, and I'm so impressed that our store participated to the max. That was SWEET!

Thanks, Starbucks!!!

The Shafferland Shuffle

* Last Sunday was our day to be greeters at church, but I didn't figure anyone wanted the gift of Ryan's illness, so I went to greet alone and then came home to tend my sick boy. I ran a couple quick errands to get us some food for the week, and then we hunkered down to rest. Ryan was MISERABLE with a headache on top of all his other symptoms, and I felt horrible for him! But it was so stinkin' cute at the end of the day when Braeya curled up with him and held his hand with her paw.

* Monday was the day I found out the surgery on Tuesday was really a consultation. That took some adjustment, mentally speaking. I was thankful for the boost of a gift of seaglass jewelry at work that day, from my friend PeggySue...and when I came home, Ryan and I watched The Notebook and I had a really good cry. Then I fought with Braeya over my yogurt. She only wants to hang out with me when I have food.

* Tuesday was surgery consultation day, rather than surgery day as we had planned. Both of us had the day off work, so we went to our appointment and then out for a lunch date and home to rest. I'm telling you. This whole mental see-saw of prepping and unprepping and reprepping has exhausted me. Ryan was obviously feeling better by evening, as he was ready to deep clean the house. :) This included running the self-cleaning oven, which made our house a sauna and caused our eyes to burn. Fun times at the Shaffers!

* Wednesday, Ryan got one of THE coolest gifts from one of his patients. She hand stitched a quilt for us! I have intense amounts of appreciation for people who have that much patience and skill! After work, Ryan and I hunkered down for leftovers, rounded off with some ice cream {and salted caramel pretzels on top} and TV. Braeya...well...she conked out. 

* Thursday morning, I found a Reese's heart on top of my travel mug. What a good husband to give me chocolate first thing in the morning!! We were supposed to get snowing and blowing all day, but I actually drove home in gorgeous sun {though my car heavily protested the cold temps}. And for dessert that night? Coffee cake from my mom. GOOD STUFF. She was experimenting with a recipe and we deemed it a keeper.  

* Friday afternoon, Ryan surprised me with roses! I absolutely ADORE flowers, so this pretty much made my week. Braeya's too. :) We got takeout Chinese for dinner and started a movie - only to realize we'd already seen it before. LOL!!! Whoopsie!! Then we went to Starbucks to participate in the World's Largest Date, which I will tell you more about next week, but the short version is - OH MY WORD THAT WAS SO MUCH FUN!!!!!!!!! 

 * Ryan worked yesterday, so while he was gone, I did an impromptu show-some-love project and drove all over the county delivering roses to some of my single friends. Of course there was an unforecasted white-out that blew up while I was out. THAT was fun!! More on this adventure later. When Ryan got home, we had our own little party at home. Fondue and DeBrand chocolate. It was a beautiful end to the day!!

The Saturday Six

One.
I didn't enter the world of DVR until I got married, but we do love to DVR all our favorite shows! But...uh...it's possible we are terrible about deleting. ANYONE with us on that??? If you are, how about joining us in a clean-out-the-DVR fest this week? Just make sure you don't delete last week's episode of your fave show if you haven't seen it. I'm not responsible for irresponsible deleting!

{ALSO! A special shout-out to Ryan for enduring the cleaning of the oven in response to last week's challenge. He's never had a self-cleaning oven before and wasn't prepared for the heat, the smell, and the burning eyes. Thanks, Baby!!!!}

Two.

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This story is hard to read, but it's a beautiful reminder of hope in humanity. If you're from Indiana, you might know about Josh Speidel, who is a high school basketball player injured in a car accident on Super Bowl Sunday. He's got family in Greentown, where Ryan and I are from, so we have been keeping up with the story. This article, about how his future college coach has responded, is just amazing. 

Three.

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It's no secret that I love Beth Moore...and this post of hers this week, commemorating 20 years of publishing Bible studies with Lifeway, was beautiful to read. I know my faith has been changed and challenged because of her words, so I'm pretty grateful they have invested in her like they have.

Four.

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This crazy journey we're on right now with the Great Gallbladder Eviction of 2015 has been surprising and plot-twisty to us, but it's no surprise to God. This post by Andrea Lucado was a comforting reminder of what I already knew...but had lost sight of just a bit.

Five.

Photo by my super-talented mother-in-law, Nita Echelbarger

I don't know whether or not you have a Valentine of your own this year, but my Mom sent me this idea that encourages you to speak life and love into those around you. Whether or not you have a significant other, you have time for at least one of these. CHALLENGE!!! Offer a hand of love - write a real life letter of appreciation to someone. Offer the voice of love - call three people {yes, on the phone with your voice} telling them what they mean to you. Offer a deed of love - a small gift to someone you wouldn't usually take a gift to. Offer a heart of love - pray for friends and family who need the Lord.

Six.

I don't know if you even like pretzels or not {I only like the soft bready ones you can dip in cheese or sugar. HA!!!} But even if you HATE pretzels, you must try these by Snyders. I could have eaten the whole bag. Seriously. Sweet. Salty. Sugary. GOODNESS. Don't walk. RUN to the store and buy a bag or six.