The Shafferland Shuffle

Good morning from Grabill! Happy Sunday to all of you! I hope today is a beautiful day - inside, if not also outside your home - and that you enjoy some rest! Here's a look at our most recent week!

* We were on duty last Sunday, and we got to enjoy an unusual happening: our entire team went to church together! One of our tenants was baptized, so our support couple and all the other tenants went to church together to be part of the day. We've come to really enjoy the Sundays when all four of us are on duty and we can spend the afternoon together. Ryan caught me updating the message board we put in the entry to the building - and I caught him hanging some curtains in our apartment. Little by little, it's becoming home!

* Monday I reintroduced workouts to my schedule. (Trying to bring back in one habit a week, and this week it was working out.) So as soon as I got done with morning transportation runs, I knocked out the workout! That afternoon, we walked over to Grabill Country Sales, which is a very fun Amish store not far from us. In addition to stuff for sale, it also has an animal collection, and Ryan was super excited about the rhino! And Braeya LOVES her new perch to watch out the window all her waking hours. (She is still a heavy napper, though. Ryan rarely gets one anymore...this was a fun moment.)

* Speaking of rhino, we found Brutus in our unpacking, so Ryan ran him through the dishwasher before we found him a permanent home. What? Do you not open the dishwasher to find a rhino head in there?? We spent Tuesday preparing for a big work day at WillowBridge on Wednesday. Got out all the supplies, Ryan washed the deck, and I took all the before pictures of the building. And when we were done for the day, we took a walk and totally interrupted some cows' dinner. They seemed a bit less than amused.

* Wednesday was work day! A crew came to us through the United Way Day of Caring, and they were amazing. They had great attitudes, they were hard workers, and they were funny!!! They pulled weeds, trimmed bushes and trees, took down our trampoline, painted the deck, painted the shed, and put down mulch. It would have taken Ryan and Tim many many days to do all that, so it was such a blessing to have many hands make light work! And oh goodness! The place looks so beautiful now!

* Thursday was the first day of our weekend, and we had our first visitors! My parents were on the road for their 66th wedding anniversary, so they came to see where we live before they went home! We gave them a tour of our apartment and the building, and then we drove them around the area, showing them our town and the town next dor. We went back to Grabill Country Sales - for dinner this time! It was good to see them and good to finally be put together enough to welcome visitors!

* Friday was our second day of our weekend, and Ryan went back to Kokomo to see some of his former work people! They were having a lunch cookout! While he did that, I worked some more on unpacking and organizing our office. One more good day in there, and I think I'll be done!! When he got home from work, we had a quick date to look at RVs for fun! Seriously never gets old.

* We returned to work yesterday and had a great day at WillowBridge and some great conversations with our tenants! Ryan grilled our dinner and I baked a pie that my good friend Marie Calender put together for us. We went on another sunset walk and I couldn't resist my millionth Grabill sunset picture. They are all so pretty!

The Saturday Six

One.

I really loved reading this article! It's about an old farmhouse that was in such bad condition that it couldn't be salvaged, some people bought it and recreated it to try to make it as much like its original self as they could...while also making it updated to fit modern needs. The end result was beautiful!

Two.

I've enjoyed seeing how different people have gone about organizing their masks. We are perfecting our mask organization to make sure we have an adequate supply in all the places we need them. I don't know that it's 100% perfect yet, but it's getting there. I really enjoyed the ideas in this post, too! She has a good system going on!

Three.

Ryan's mom and step-dad LOVED shopping for antiques. They lived (and his step-dad does still live) in that beautiful log cabin, and they had so many gorgeous old pieces that looked like they were just made for that house. I'm not a big antique shopper, but we do have a handful of older pieces that belonged to my grandparents. I love them more for their story than their spot on the antique list. But I do have to say, the idea of having a proper old card catalog kind of piece (someday) is delightful to me. I love, love, love that thought. So when I saw several pieces in this post, I got all melty inside. How about you? Do you love antiques or not so much?

Four.

My sister sent me this article...about apartments in New York libraries. They're abandoned now, but they used to house the families that kept the coal furnaces running in the libraries. Can you imagine living in a LIBRARY??? (sigh of joy....) Judging from the outside, I don't think the Grabill library has an apartment in it. If so, it's well masked.

Five.

I know some of you are homeschooling for the first time, or you're trying to be prepared if your kids' classes move (even temporarily) to home for a quarantine, or some of you are doing e-learning through the school. I found this posthttps://primaryplayground.net/snack-ideas-for-the-alphabet/ with some great ideas for alphabetical snacks! If you're working with preschool or younger grades, this might be a perfect thing to work in to your days! Or...you know...if you're an adult who is trying to remember the alphabet and likes snacks...

Six.

How have I not heard of this trail before? Hey Ryan! Wanna try it?

Our First Visitors!

Yesterday we enjoyed a first here in our new home...our first visitors!

Technically our first visitors arrived the day we moved in - and they helped us tote in all our belongings. But we hadn't invited any visitors over since we unpacked all those belongings and tucked them in their respective homes.

Until yesterday!

My parents came to visit! They had gone away overnight for their 66th anniversary and stopped by to see us on their way back home. I was so glad to see them pull in the parking lot, since I was the one who had written out directions for them from their hotel. Sure was glad to see I hadn't mixed up any of the "turn right" and "turn left" advice.

We gave them a tour of the apartment; even though we had FaceTimed with them and sent pictures and videos, it's not the same as seeing it all in real life.

Then we showed them around the building a bit, and they got to meet our friends and co-workers. (It was a day off for us, so they were on duty.) And we gave them their anniversary present!

(Dad had to vacate his place on the couch playing with Braeya for the above photo - ha!)

After we showed them the building and grounds, we took them on a driving tour of Grabill and Leo.

Then we took them out for dinner at this little Amish store that also serves food. (It was like my dad's happiest world all in one building.) They enjoyed it, I think!!

And then we sent them on their way so they could get home before dark. :)

And then we took a nap because apparently Amish food puts us in a food coma!!

It was good to have them here, and good to celebrate their anniversary with them!

Sixty-Six Years

So here is a strange thing I try not to think about too hard: this year marks twenty years since I graduated from college.

Not high school.

College.

How is this even possible??

Because I grew up in the Midwest and attended a Christian college, many of my friends landed on the path I fully intended to take: marriage immediately following graduation. I've seen a lot of friends post this year about their twentieth wedding anniversary, and that seems as strange to me as knowing I've been out of college for twenty years!

They write beautiful tributes on these anniversaries and speak of how they had no idea what was coming when they got married. They speak of the joys and challenges of those twenty years and how they've come to the other side stronger for the experiences.

Today my parents mark sixty-six years of marriage.

Sixty-six years.

Six and a half decades of joys and challenges.

Job changes.

Moves.

Building a house.

Babies.

Surprise babies.

Health challenges.

Grandparenting.

Saying goodbye to parents.

Retirement.

And so much more that I'm sure I don't even know.

I celebrate my friends who mark twenty years of marriage this year - and I celebrate my parents who mark a rare milestone.

And when I'm exactly 100 years old and Ryan is 99, we'll look through our scrapbooks and remember (or discover...if our minds aren't keeping up) the 66 years we'll celebrate!

Shafferland 3.0: The Master Bedroom

The day that Ryan and I moved into our new apartment, I immediately unpacked and set up our guest room. We were going to have to stay in there a few days, and I needed some room to feel settled when every other room felt buried in boxes. I unpacked pretty things and put them on shelves. I unpacked lamps and plugged them in to make for softer lighting. 

And for the time we stayed in there, it was a delightful little space. But once it was time to put the master bedroom together, I was eager to call a room completely finished - full decor and all - and that is how the master bedroom came to be our first totally completed room. I thought you might want to take a peek at it!

I know I mentioned this once or twice before, but I'll mention it again - just in case you missed it. The day we interviewed for the job, we were able to see the apartment, but since we had no idea if we would actually be chosen for the job, we didn't really scrutinize the place as we walked through. We didn't take any pictures or measurements. It wasn't the time for that, and we knew it. 

But when we accepted the job, we had to rely on the memory of a quick walk-through to plan what we could bring based on what we thought might fit. We remembered that the master bedroom had been pretty small in comparison to the room we had in Kokomo. So we decided that in order to try to maximize our space, we would downsize our bed from a king to a queen. We chose a bed that had some storage in (drawers, cabinets, and shelves) and chose bedding that we hoped would work based on what we remembered about the wall color. 

And I think it worked pretty well!

I fell so in love with the quilt we got for our guest room that I asked Ryan if he minded if we got one for our room. I'm so glad he was okay with it because I love the look. The side tables and lamps were the same ones we had in Kokomo, and they fit right in. Actually, all the pillows are the same ones we had on our old bed! 

Here's the other side of the room! The little table under the TV was in the entry at our old house, but it worked well here, so that's where we put it! The TV had been in our guest room at the old house, but it fit in this space, so here it is!! 

And our new curtains! None of the windows had curtains when we moved in, but when we put those up, it made all the difference in it feeling like home. 

Here are a few of the details up close.

Even though we've been married almost eight years, I still love using our wedding pictures in our decorating. And I love that little sign. And that's Ryan's wedding boutonniere in the corner. 

The other side of that table...a picture from our photo shoot last fall, the beautiful tray my friend Amber made me for my 40th birthday, and a lantern from our wedding. 

Our canvas picture from our first cruise right after we got married. Pretty sure the colors were meant for this room!

And underneath it is the wooden barrel we had on our sun porch in Kokomo. It makes the perfect pedestal for this vase of flowers! The white branches on top are Bethlehem lights my sister gave me for my birthday, and at night, they have the softest glow. It's beautiful! That canvas on the floor was a wedding gift, and I love it!

This sign was in Ryan's office at the hospital, but I gave it a new home in our bedroom!

And this was a wedding gift inspired by our beach wedding. It fits perfectly in here!

And a few wedding and engagement photos on the shelf!

 And that's my wedding lantern there! :)

It is the coziest little haven. We absolutely love it! Memories and reminders of the story of our life so far. It's the perfect little spot, and we couldn't love it more. 

A Walk in the Park

We had such grand plans for this year. We were going to be so intentional about marking more counties off our tour list and enjoying adventures together. And we were doing pretty well...until mid-March when everything shut down. And right about the time things began to cautiously open up around here, we were knee deep in a move and double job-change.

You know what? It's okay! We aren't upset about it. Our time together in quarantine may have been in a much smaller radius than we planned, but it brought a beauty of its own that we appreciated. And the same is true of our move. It's been busy, but it's been good.

Even so, we have missed our adventures here and there, so we were really excited this past week, when one of our "weekend" days gave us a chance to have some hiking fun!

We learned about Metea Park...a county park in Leo, which is one town over from where we live, so I hopped online to learn a bit more about it. Unfortunately the one thing I did not learn from the site was that you had to pay an admission fee, so we had to turn around and come back home for cash before heading back to begin our adventure. After researching the Allen County park system as a whole, I found the whole fee list - but it wasn't on the individual park's page. All that to say - if you go, take $2.00 per person.

The park also has two entrances, but we did not figure out where to find the second one until after we left, so we have a few more things to check out on our next visit.

This park has trails, and while they aren't rugged climbing trails, they are very nice to hike. Some are out in an open meadow, and some are in the woods. We went on a hot day and found plenty of shade to wander around!

Here are some of the views we found:

There is also a small lake with a beach, and it was nice to see some families out there enjoying some swimming!

They had picnic tables there, too, though we didn't eat in the park that day.

We really enjoyed our time and would probably consider purchasing the annual pass so we can enjoy multiple hikes out there! It's a pretty nice park to have so close to home!

God Wastes Nothing

This probably won't be new information to most of you, but I am a firm believer in the power of a reminder! Whether this is new to you or merely a reminder, I hope it starts your Monday with some encouragement!

After my desert days (a decade ago now), one of my biggest prayers was that God would not let me forget the pain. It was more than fine with me if the pain lessened, of course, but I didn't want to forget it entirely. And as I made my way into a relationship with Ryan a couple of years later, I asked God to make sure I didn't forget what it had been like to be single. I didn't want to get so caught up in the answer to my prayer that I failed to relate to others still awaiting their answers.

But the truth is...

God wastes nothing.

We don't see most of His work while it's in progress. We plod along and live our days, and then a ways down the road, we look back and realize He was busy stacking up skills and lessons we would need for a future day. A day so in the future, we can't even fathom it.

This past week, I caught not one, but two glimpses into just how much He wasts nothing.

The first moment came Monday evening. One of our tenants had asked if I'd walk with her to Dollar General so she could get something she needed. I agreed, and we decided to meet at 7 p.m. to make our shopping pilgrimage. The skies began to cloud over, so I checked the weather. It looked like some pretty strong storms were due to roll in around 8, and I wasn't sure we could walk there, shop, and be home before 8. Since I wasn't eager to get caught outside in a strong thunderstorm, I told our tenant we could just drive instead of walk to make sure we were back well before bad weather hit.

But as we ambled down the sidewalk toward the van, the tornado sirens rolled to life. The skies didn't look any different than they had a few minutes ago, but I checked the weather again. A bright orange screen said TORNADO WARNING, so we did an about-face and headed back into the building.

Though I hate storms - tornadoes most of all - I felt remarkably calm in that moment. I was keenly aware that we were the leaders of the building, and the safety of all on our property ultimately fell to us. But you see, back in 2007, my sister and her family lost everything in a tornado, and in the months following, I learned so much about how to respond to storm warnings, get through a storm, and walk through the aftermath if the worst really does happen.

So I directed tenants on what to bring with them to the shelter. I gathered the things we needed. I stayed in contact with Ryan and our tenants away from the building. And when it was all over and we emerged unscathed (and thankful!), I began preparing some storm training to help teach others the same things I learned 13 years ago.

The second moment came a couple of days later, when another tenant, who was preparing to begin college, started talking about paperwork still in process for the upcoming adventure. I was sitting on the other side of the room, minding my own business when the conversation began, but I heard a couple of Financial-aid-ese words, and suddenly my head snapped up, and my full attention centered on the conversation across the room.

Before I realized what was happening, script-like sentences from my decade-old job surfaced, and I started talking in-depth about things I didn't even still know I knew in living color. For a moment, it felt like I was behind that desk in 240-F again, talking to incoming freshmen about the responsibilities of preparing financially for college.

If I really stopped and thought about it - I know I would come up with even more examples from this short time, where God has been so faithful to make moments from the past count for the present. He wastes nothing. He doesn't waste the big or the small.

He doesn't waste anything in your life, either. Everything you walk through is for some purpose. And now and then, you might just catch a glimpse of how He chooses to use it!

The Shafferland Shuffle

Well guess what this week has NOT been? Boring! What an adventure-filled week! Here's a look at some of what we did...

* We visited another church last Sunday morning and really enjoyed the service. We had a chance to meet a couple of the pastors, and they were quite welcoming. When we got home, Ryan made one of his famous breakfasts, and it was delicious! I'm glad he hasn't lost his breakfast-making touch. We took a little down-time that afternoon to rest, since we were in the middle of a solo work stretch, and then spent some time that evening with our tenants! One of them wanted to go on a walk with us - and we got to enjoy a beautiful sunset while we walked!

* Monday was full of meetings - one right after the other. We hadn't had that many meetings in a row since our training, I don't think. We finally decided to call it quits for the day, and right about then...the tornado sirens went off! We had to gather all our residents and a few visitors we had in the building - and take them to the shelter. I was so proud of how well they did! And also - it is the first time since 1996 that I've had a tornado shelter, and I am thrilled to have one. (I wasn't expecting to need to use it so soon after arrival, though.) Braeya, like many animals, isn't wild about storms, but she did really well. I was proud of her, too! All in all, the day lasted mannnnnnnnnnny hours, but I was thankful for safety for our people and our property in the storm!

* Tuesday was a MUCH nicer day outside! We had turkey burgers for lunch, and Ryan even sliced our first big tomato from our beloved plants. We successfully raised a tomato! That afternoon, WillowBridge received an amazing donation of school supplies, and Ryan caught me taking pictures of them. (I love school supplies - what can I say?! They're photo-worthy!) We ended the day running some errands - and that involved a quick dinner out. Out, of course, still means picking it up in the drive thru and bringing it home.

* Ryan spent part of Wednesday putting together our bookshelves so I could begin unloading the office boxes. I was so happy to have those shelves back! I worked on putting together a gift basket for one of our tenants who was leaving for college, and this included getting to sharpen a bunch of pencils! We tried to run a few more errands that day and learned that up here, Starbucks closes EARLY! We stopped at one location about 1:32 and a barista told us the car in front of us was the last car they were serving that day. She told us about a different location that she thought was open until 3. We squeaked in before they closed!

* Thursday was our last work day before our weekend, and we spent the afternoon celebrating one of our tenants' recent life accomplishments! The said celebration included Ryan jumping on the trampoline, and serving ice cream with the most delicious chocolate sauce I've ever eaten. We also had the chance to interact with some of our fellow Gateway Woods co-workers, and we really enjoyed that! Met some new friends!

* I spent all day Friday working on unloading our office boxes - and I got the bookshelves loaded. Felt so good to have all my book-friends back in their proper homes!! We're so ready to be able to consider ourselves completely unpacked and fully settled. We went on a sunset walk that night and OH my goodness - the sunset! It was so very, very beautiful! What a perfect end to the day.

* We had the day off together yesterday, and we took a little bit of time to hike in a park. It was a hot day, but it was a beautiful park - not that far from home! We had a great time exploring - and it was fun to have a date day after so many weeks of prepping, moving, and unpacking. :) And while it wasn't the most vibrant one I've ever seen, we got to see a rainbow in the evening, which was the perfect way to end the week!

So that was our busy and wildly unpredictable week!