The Good and The Hard

Today I want to tell you about some of the good and the hard of the last few days!

We had a big blessing here at WillowBridge yesterday! The United Way Day of Caring sent a crew out to do some work on our property, and oh my goodness, how BEAUTIFUL the place looks now!

They sent a crew last year too, and we had the best time working alongside them. We were so excited to find out they were sending the same group again this year, and we had just as much fun! They helped pull weeds in our ivy-covered landscaping, trimmed up all the bushes, turned the mulch, and trimmed and shaped up the trees. 

We don't always get to keep up with some of those big-picture projects on a daily basis, so this was an incredible blessing to us. (We also had new siding put on the building a few weeks ago, so it really does look like a whole new place now!) We are thankful for people who are willing to give time out of their day to bless others, and it meant so much to us to be the recipient of those blessings this week.

Yesterday was a big day, because in addition to getting that blessing, one of our tenants hit a big milestone!

When our tenants move in, they all attend a program that helps them with job preparedness, but it also helps them work through personal obstacles that can stand in the way of being able to find and hold a good job. When the students in their program have held a job for a full year, they are invited back to be recognized for their accomplishment. Their names go on a celebration wall, and they have a chance to celebrate in the presence of students just starting out in the program.

Yesterday was celebration day for one of our tenants! She has had her job for a full year and she was recognized for her accomplishment. Sarah and I accompanied her to the celebration and it was a joy for us to watch her bask in the kind words said about her by the people in the program. We were also so proud of her for standing up (voluntarily!) to share words of encouragement with the current students.

So those were good things that happened that blessed us this week. 

But it hasn't all been good and easy. 

Ryan found out this week that one of his friends and co-workers from the hospital where he used to work passed away from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident.

It's been almost 25 years to the day since I lost my friend Craig in much the same way, and I have not forgotten the intense pain of that phone call. It's so hard to find out you've lost a friend, isn't it?

The whole staff at the hospital was dear to Ryan. He misses them and the world they shared together every day. He's thankful for each of them. But if you think of that crew this week, will you pray for them? This is the first big loss they've experienced since not being together every day. Grieving from a distance makes it harder for all of them!

In the blessings and the difficulties, we remain grateful for the Lord and how He sustains. He always does! 

Room Design!!!

 Last year, when I gave you a tour of Shafferland 3.0, the home office was the last spot to get a big reveal. You can read all about it here and see the pictures of what it still looked like (plus some clutter) until a couple of days ago. 

Yesterday I told you how we worked hard on our days off to purge, clean, organize, and rearrange this smallest room of our home so we could enjoy it a bit better. Today I thought I'd show you some in-progress pictures and ask for your thoughts! 

First I need you to know that I took these pictures 100% on the fly to text to one of my friends who asked, so there is absolutely NOTHING about them that is staged correctly. 

As you can see here, the window is quite bright during the day! :) This bookshelf contains my fiction and writing books, as well as my writing...and then the bins down low hold all our desk supplies, since we don't have drawers. Ignore all the stuff in front of the file cabinet. It will be going away. 

The giant yellow space above the file cabinet used to hold a metal perpetual calendar, but it fell off the wall (with much finesse!) and I now have a chalkboard calendar in its place. (It's one of the things piled in front of the file cabinet.) I cannot decide if I want to hang the chalkboard calendar there above the file cabinet where the old one was, or if I want to hang a long, narrow idea board there instead. You'll see it in a later picture. 

It's hard to see in the photo above because of the glare of the light, but on the left side of the desk (which now sits against the window instead of out into the room) there is a little potted plant. It has to stay there to get its sunlight each day!

This is the opposite side of the room. Nonfiction books, a blank shelf, some of Ryan's stuff, and scrapbooks. And you can see my itty bitty lamp borrowed from the bathroom there in the corner. I really would like to take that back to the bathroom and bring in another small desk lamp, but I do need the new lamp to be pretty small. I don't want to rearrange all the wall art there, and I don't want to cover it up with a giant lamp!

Annnnnd this is the new corner. 

Prior to this week, there was a square wooden storage cube sitting under that brown message board, and it held all the fabric storage cubes that are now on top of the bookcases. You can also see the long, narrow idea board that may or may not go over there above the file cabinet to the right.

This is the new glider that we brought home from Ryan's parents', and he snagged the little side table, too, so we have a place to put books and/or coffee. 

And here's where you come in with opinions! 

* I'm trying to figure out what to do with the wall behind the chair. I like the dream sign and the brown ribbon board beneath it. But I'm not sure what to put around it. The calendar? More pictures? What should I do? One thing to note...Natasha asked yesterday if we would have had the option to paint this room, and the answer was yes. We could have, but we don't want to put the time into it right now. And while there is plennnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnty of this paint leftover (hello, five gallon bucket!) to repair wall damage, it is certifiably THE WORST paint in the world. It's really more of a glaze. We tried to touch up after Rob and his family moved out and you couldn't even tell where we had been. So I have to be careful that whatever I do right now covers anything that has been there before, in case we can't do an adequate repair job. (My guess is that whenever we move out, the next advocate couple will choose something new for in here.)

* I would really love to get a rug for this room, now that so much floor space has opened up. What do you think? We found a rug at Costco that I really liked, but we didn't get it because we hadn't measured yet. If we do get a rug, I'm not sure what color to get. NOT YELLOW!! :) They had one that had quite a bit of blue in it, which I did like. And we do tend to generally decorate with a lot of blue, so that could work in another space later. But should I go with something more neutral?

* What lamp should I put in the reading corner? I thought about a floor lamp, since the table is tiny and a table lamp would pretty much take up the whole thing. Plus,  floor lamp would create light for the whole room. Thoughts on this?

Any other things I'm missing??

One Hundred Thirty Eight

 Last week one of my friends posted to social media about her eighty pound weight loss. As you might imagine, the difference in her pictures was profound, but the difference in her countenance was the most priceless of all. The joy, confidence, and freedom radiating from her after eighty pounds fell away was incredible.

I have not lost eighty pounds (nor should I!) but I had a weight loss of a different kind yesterday, and it left me feeling profoundly changed.

One hundred thirty eight books left my shelves.

Remember a few days ago when I talked about how I knew I needed to comb through my brimming shelves and let go of some of the books? 

I did it.

The first shelf was so difficult. I'd pull a book out, stare at it, put it back, and pull it out again. It took me about a half hour to wrestle 14 books from that first shelf. 

But once I started, the rest came flying. I even did a second pass at that first shelf and eliminated a few more. One hundred thirty eight books in total left that shelf and headed to the spare room for rehoming. I pushed the books together to fill the gaps and ended up gaining a shelf and a quarter from the non-fiction side and a shelf from the fiction side. 

Ryan and I had yesterday off, so after the books were purged, we both got busy cleaning and organizing, sorting through piles we have not had time or energy to go through for the last full YEAR. We rearranged, purged, rehomed, and organized every square inch of the office.

I pushed our sofa-table-turned-desk sideways, so rather than sticking out into the middle of the room as it has for the last year, it now nestles up against the window. 

I unloaded the storage cubes from the wooden organizer. We borrowed that organizer from an empty apartment last year and now it can go back into WillowBridge circulation. I moved the storage cubes up to the tops of the bookshelves, and they fit perfectly there.

And when Ryan came home from a trip to his family, he brought me the little wooden glider that was basically the only thing I wanted to have for our home. 

Even before it arrived home, I was perched on the desk by the window, typing out words that apparently just needed a rearranged room in order to find their way out of my mind. I pulled that little lamp over the from the bathroom again so I could get the perfect amount of light. And then I sat and created for longer than I can remember creating in recent months.

Ryan arrived home, pulled the glider out of the back of the truck (and a little side table he thought paired nicely with it) and we immediately carried them into the newly-blank corner of the office.

Perfection.

Or very nearly, anyway. I mean, if a rug and a lamp or two found their way inside, it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, right? 

I sat right down and began gliding. It will be the perfect chair for Bible study. And reading. And praying. And brainstorming. And rocking Jeremiah whenever he visits. 

The little room feels brand new. My mind feels renewed. And it all started with a 138 book weight loss. 

This Little Light

We've been living in our apartment for just over a year now, and I tell people that it definitely gives apartments a good name.

I feel like when I see advertisements on social media for apartments for rent, they are always these dark, tiny caves with carpet from the 60s and those pressboard kitchen cabinets that have no hardware. We do not live in that apartment. Ours is big and beautiful and (in some ways) more modern than anything we have ever lived in in our combined lives. I've also noticed, when looking at apartment posts on Pinterest, that most apartment-dwellers have to combat the woes of an all-white apartment that they aren't allowed to paint.

Again...not so for us! Ours came already decked out in beautiful colors that make it so soft and homey. 

Mostly. ;) 

When Rob and his family lived here right before us, his children were given the option of choosing their own bedroom colors. By the way, I think it's great that they did. They all made a lot of sacrifices as a family to live in an apartment while Rob worked two jobs, so picking out their own bedroom colors was a great gift to give them.

The girls picked a color called Paris, and depending on the time of day and the way the sun hits the walls, it looks a little pink or a little purple. It worked splendidly with our Anne of Green Gables guest room decor, though I do feel a little bad for Jeremiah every time he spends the night and I move him into the Anne of Green Gables room.

The bedroom that became our office is yellow. It worked perfectly because that was the color of our office in our old house! But our old house was yellow and this is y.e.l.l.l.l.l.l.l.l.l.l.o.w.w.w.w.w.w.w.w. Sunglasses are sometimes needed in this room. 

To be honest, I haven't spent much time in our little office in the last year. Part of it is that the room is overcrowded (you remember the post about how I have too many books!) and chaotic. Part of it is that our desk is tiny and Ryan's been using it quite a bit for estate stuff. (And I'm so glad it's been a good place for him to work on that!) Part of it is the surface-of-the-sun yellow walls staring at me. And of course, part of it is lack of time.

Last night I told Ryan I wanted to try doing my quiet time in the office to see if it would help me focus a bit better. I often study while he's watching TV, and while I'm usually pretty good at tuning out the TV, if he's watching a crime drama, it's a little awkward to combine with the Word, right?

I took one step inside the office and there were those walls. It was too late in the day to use natural light from the window, and I knew turning on the overhead light would make me head straight for the sunglasses. It's also true that I absolutely hate overhead lights. 

So....I walked across the hall to the guest bath, unplugged the little lamp that sits on the sink, and carried it over to the desk and plugged it in.

It's just a little light, but it made the perfect AMOUNT of light in the office. Just enough to see to read my Bible. Just enough to show the color of the wall without blinding me. Just enough to let me see all those books I need to sort through. 

This little light isn't very big, but it was enough to give my heart a space to study. It was enough to give me a chance to read words my soul needed to soak up. It was enough to remind me why I really do love this room. It was enough to make me want to get back in here and start sorting through and making it a more usable space so I can spend more time in here, finding those words I told you yesterday are plumb lost. 

And the object lesson wasn't lost to me that just as a little light made a huge difference in my day, so perhaps the little light I am in my corner of the world could possibly make a bigger difference than it sometimes feels.

Sunday Sentiments

The other day, my friend Sarah (hi, Sarah!) posted on Instagram about cleaning her closets and finding a stash of dairies from her childhood. Her synopsis of the contents (wardrobe, crushes, you name it...) made me giggle because my own stash could easily match hers. To be fair, she's probably WAY classier than I ever was, but still...

Those journals of mine went through quite a few seasons. The teenage entries were all about high school trivialities, and the entries from my twenties were long pieces about the angst of life. But recently? Short snippets that don't even begin to do justice to this season of life.

It's not writer's block. I have words. But when it comes to putting them down on paper or screen, it seems like some mute button takes over my hands and keeps me from preserving the words that fill my mind.

I've had seasons like this before, and I know they pass, so I'm not overly concerned, but it is frustrating. The words pile up in my mind and then have nowhere to spill out. 

Of course, I'm presuming it's not actually possible to have my mind explode from an overabundance of trapped words. I'm also presuming that at some point, whatever is pressing mute will stop and everything will flow freely again. 

You know what I love, though?

I love it that even though words are jumbled in my mind right now and won't flow out into the journal in the way that I know they can, the Lord still knows each one of those words and the thoughts they represent.

Every confusion.

Every dream.

Every excitement.

Every hope.

Every frustration.

Every story.

Every everything.

Whether I ever document it or not, He knows it and cares that it sits in my mind. Of course it would be nice to process the thoughts through journaling. It's how I process best. But in the seasons when the words are stuck, they aren't stuck for Him. I'm really grateful for that. 

I know that not all of you who read here are writers, so maybe this doesn't even make sense to you. But if you feel stuck in your own thoughts, I just want you to know that those thoughts aren't lost to the Lord. And this season really won't last forever. The words will flow again!

The Saturday Six

 

One.

I really loved these shoe organizers Kari Anne posted about this week. (Like I loved them so much that I put them on my wish list.) What a great idea! 

Two.

The Daily Grace company has some really pretty new jewelry in their store! I love some of the necklaces they just released. Check them out! 

Three.

I know I've said before that I've found the perfect tiny house plan, but I was wrong. THIS is the best one. I do believe it's the biggest kitchen I've ever seen in a tiny house. And that TUB!! I would take that in our apartment!

Four.

These little wooden measuring cups are so cute!! I love them! I didn't hate the measuring spoons either. ;)

Five.

Did any of you catch the new show on HGTV called Cheap Old Houses? I have been following their Instagram account for a while and loved seeing their footage of some beautiful old homes laden with character. (We will probably never have the resources or time to rehab an old home to its former glory, but I have great appreciation for those who do!!

Six.

And finally...one more Etsy find. I think we would need a MUCH bigger frame just to cover the places we've already been. But what a fun idea! 

Hello There, 80s Memories!

 I went down a Pinterest rabbit hole last night. Memories from the 80s. Ahhh, it's been a while since I relived some of the nostalgia from days gone by. Want to hear some vintage Bekah stories today?

The article I read was called "Awesome Things From the 80s Kids Today Will Never Know." To be fair, I didn't know all of them either, and I was a child of the 80s. But here were a few of my favorites.

* The magic of hitting play and record. How many blank cassettes did I fill up with nothingness in my childhood? I had no clue I would end up with a brief career in radio, but I did enjoy pretending to make my own commercials back then. (I remember one time, when a friend had come over to play, I tried to rope her into making a commercial with me. She looked at me with absolute horror when I motioned that it was her turn to talk. Ha!) 

* Making sure you're home in time for your shows - otherwise you miss them. TRUTH!!! And my mom was so kind to arrange dinner around the hour when Little House aired. (It was in syndication, but it still had to be seen when it was on. How we longed to watch on demand and had no idea it would ever become a thing!) I didn't have too many regular shows back then, but I didn't miss Little House or A.L.F.

* Getting a note passed in school with your name on it. I wasn't a big note passer in class (ahem...rule follower!!!) but I did love doing the little special fold of the 80s and 90s. You know what I mean, right? My friends and I would write to each other during class and pass the notes during the passing period. And then a couple of my friends and I just started traveling notebooks. Those are embarrassing to read now! 

* Not knowing what was on unless you had your TV Guide. Well, we didn't have cable, so we got exactly five channels via the rabbit ears. ABC, NBC, CBS, and then the WB and another local channel. Since we didn't have cable, we certainly didn't need a TV Guide, but I did refer to the newspaper TV lineup on the regular. They always printed the primetime schedule. And then (in the 90s) when I would babysit for someone who DID subscribe to TV Guide?? Oh, yes. After the kids went to bed, I would read ALL the articles.

* Reading all the song lyrics after unfurling the inside of a cassette tape. YES!! Every one the Gaither Vocal Band ever made. And Sandi Patty. And Steve Green. And then of course, CDs came out. Do you remember the first CD you ever bought? Mine was Point of Grace, and I am pretty sure my parents thought I'd gone off the deep end. (I do still love me some vintage Point of Grace! I also wanted to be IN Point of Grace. I also cannot sing.)

* The anticipation of waiting for your film to be developed so you could see how your pictures turned out. The disappointment of finding someone had blinked...or your finger slid over the lens. The joy of free double prints. ALL THESE THINGS!!!!!! Anyone? Anyone??

* Digging to the bottom of the cereal box to get to the awesome prize. Of course I couldn't wait until it naturally surfaced, so I had to dig. Cinnamon Toast Crunch made a real mess. A REAL mess. Also...reading the lame jokes on the backs of cereal boxes...

* Looking up a phone number in the phone book. Rereading it 100 times before dialing to make sure your eyes didn't switch lines across the way. (Ryan and I were just talking about phone books the other day! We needed to pile a bunch up for Jeremiah to sit on while he was visiting. Ha!)

* The excitement of not knowing who was on the other end of the phone when it rang. Or screening by letting the machine pick up and then jumping in and pretending to have been far away when the message started. Or the invention of *69 to find out who dared to NOT leave a message. And then at long last: caller ID!!!

* Getting a letter in the mail from your pen pal. Finding pen pals in magazines. Yes, I actually did that. I had not seen Dateline yet. The world was a safer place back then - or so it felt.

So how about you? Any gems from your own childhood - whether or not it was in the 80s?

If We Could Road Trip (Some More)

 I had to giggle yesterday after I shared my road trip dreams. I received back to back messages from two different people. One told me she was worn out after reading all the travels and the other was ready to try them. Ha! So if you were tired yesterday, give yourself today off, because we're still traveling! I have no idea what we'll do tomorrow, but I'll try to make it a nice, low-key, sitting activity. :) 

So if you missed yesterday, I shared the first half of my dreams to crisscross all over the country, seeing things I've never seen before. 

Leg 1: Route 66 from Illinois to California
Leg 2: The Pacific Coast Highway from southern California to northern Washington
Leg 3: The Northern Route from Washington to Maine (briefly crossing into Canada)
Leg 4: The Appalachian Trail (by car) from Maine to Georgia
Leg 5: The Southern Route from Georgia back over to California, hovering just above Mexico
Leg 6: The Loneliest Road from California to Maryland through the middle of the US

And as excited as I would be to do all those pieces, this next one is even more exciting to me:

Leg #7: The Atlantic Coast (New York City, New York to Key West, Florida)

So to get started with this trip, we'd have to travel about four hours north from the end of leg six, but that would be okay, because Tamar, we would be coming to your neck of the woods, and you could show us all the best of the best! We've never been to New York City, and even though we aren't truly city folk at heart, we really, really, really want to visit NYC. 

I love the idea of driving down the coast and seeing lighthouses and beaches all the way. On the road? , Atlantic City, Ocean City, Virginia Beach (which we've seen...but let's go back!), Myrtle Beach, Charleston, Hilton Head, and all the Florida cities on the opposite side of the state from where we've visited. We've been to Key West, on a cruise, but I'd love to go back this way!! 

Leg #8: The Great River Road (New Orleans, Louisiana to Duluth, Minnesota)

This one would probably be the longest move to get from one ending point to another starting point. We would have to get from Key West over to New Orleans. Of course, I think that would be a great excuse to travel back up the Gulf side of Florida, revisiting where we got married, taking Ryan to Indian Rocks Beach and seeing all the places in the panhandle I've never seen. 

Ryan went on a mission trip to New Orleans right before we got married, but I've never been, and I'd love to see it. From there, this trip follows straight up the Mississippi River, all the way to Duluth. This one doesn't follow interstates, so it's a whole different kind of road trip! From New Orleans to Baton Rouge, the trail follows much smaller, lesser known towns in Mississippi itself. Then there's Memphis...and back to small towns again. There's St. Louis...Hannibal...and up into the smaller towns again. Dubuque, Prairie du Chien, and wandering up to Duluth! 

(There is a Mississippi riverboat cruise that I would consult to learn about the best stops!)

Leg #9: The Road to Nowhere (Bismarck, North Dakota to Brownsville, Texas)

What goes up must come down, right? So we would have to travel from Montana over to North Dakota to begin a trek back down to the southern border!

I've never been to North Dakota, so this would be a fun place to start, and it would give us a chance to visit historic sites! From there, we would move down to South Dakota, past the Sitting Bull Memorial and Wall Drug. (I think most of my friends visited there this summer.) From there, we'd head down through North Platte, Nebraska and learn more about the Oregon Trail and Pony Express. We'd head through Kansas (with a detour to see the fam!) and then make our way toward Waco (helloooooo, Magnolia!) and San Antonio to see the Alamo. We would check out South Padre Island, and end in Brownsville - almost to Mexico again!

Leg #10: Border to Border (Tucson, Arizona to Butte, Montana)

Yep. Gotta go back up one more time! But this time we're trying different states! 

Though this one starts with places that have been on other legs of the trip (Phoenix, Sedona, etc.) this leads up into Utah and crosses into some great national parks, like Zion and Bryce Canyon! It goes on up into Utah, including Salt Lake City. The route goes up into Idaho, but it's so close to Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone that it seems wrong to exclude them! Then we'd hop over to get back on track to end in Butte! 

Leg #11, The Grand Finale! The Oregon Trail (Portland, Oregon to Boston, Massachusetts 

I grew up reading pioneer romance novels, so I think this route sounds like a great full circle moment - imagining some of the places the characters saw as they headed west into the great unknown of the wild west. (Even though we would be traveling east.)

This route includes a stop at Mt. Rushmore, which I would love to see! We would drive across the Sand Hills of Nebraska, check out Iowa, stop in Galena, Illinois and then Chicago before coming back into our own familiar territory of Indiana and Ohio. We'd move into upstate New York to see the Erie Canal and the Finger Lakes. Then we would go across the Hudson and into western Massachusetts, ending in Boston. (I already feel like I know a bit of Boston from Tamar's stories!)

It sounds so very delightful. So now all we have to do is figure out how to fund it, right????

If We Could Road Trip...

We just finished a three-day stretch of time off, and it was delightful in every single way. Though we were initially sad we had to cancel our Abby-outing, we agreed that three days at home was just what our souls needed. 

Yesterday morning, as I hunted through my computer for a document, I stumbled upon a dream vacation I'd laid out years ago, and I spent some time reading through it. Oh how grand it looks. It would take forever. It would put a lotttttttta miles on a vehicle. But when I think about all the places we could see along the way, it makes my travel-loving heart get all fluttery. I laid it out based on a Pinterest find, so the initial idea is not mine at all. I just rearranged it to make it flow. Can I tell you about it? 

Leg #1 - Route 66. (Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, California.)

If you've been reading here any length of time at all, you know that I would dearly love to travel Route 66, so it seems appropriate to begin the amazing trip with this one. (It's also the only route that began mid-country, near where we live.) 

We would begin in Chicago (where we've actually already visited a stop on the route - all the way back on our second anniversary trip) and then head toward St. Louis, Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Amarillo, Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Flagstaff, and Sedona, before ending in Los Angeles and Santa Monica at the other end of the route. 

We have been through Illinois and Missouri (and have ev

en seen a couple of other stops on the route on various trips) multiple times, but basically once we would get beyond St. Louis, everything on this route would be brand new to us. How fun would this be??

Leg #2 - Pacific Coast Highway (San Diego, California to Olympic National Park, Washington)

I think this would be Ryan's favorite leg of the trip. Neither of us have ever seen the Pacific Ocean, and there are so many things about this particular highway that both of us would absolutely adore, but I think this is the part that made him drool the most. 

After completing the Route 66 leg, this second part begins just a couple of hours south (traffic notwithstanding), so for a couple of Midwesterners who haven't seen this part of the country at all, it would be totally worth the detour. 

This leg begins in San Diego, comes back up through Los Angeles, and then to San Luis Obispo, San Simeon, Monterey, San Francisco, Mendocino, Redwood National Park, Dune Country (in Oregon), Astoria and Fort Clatsop (also in Oregon), and ending in Olympic National Park in Washington.

The Redwoods are HIGH on our bucket list, so we'd love seeing those, especially. And how fun that we have friends at different points along this route! (Hi there, Lois and Katie!) We also have friends up in Bellingham, Washington, and their posts on social media have me DROOLING over where they live. I'd have to throw in Haystack Rock in Cannon Beach, Oregon, too.  Can we just go right now?

Leg #3 - The Great Northern Route (Seattle, Washington to Acadia National Park in Maine)

Definitely wouldn't want to do this part in the winter, right? Picking up from Olympic National Park (the end of the second leg), it would be another couple of hours to reset for leg #3, but at least this time, the drive would be headed east anyway, so there's no backtracking! 

This leg begins in Seattle and moves on to Sandpoint, Idaho, before continuing on to Glacier National Park in Montana. Then it moves to Fort Peck, Montana and on into North Dakota to see Devil's Lake. Next up? Duluth, Minnesota and the lakeshore of Lake Superior in Wisconsin. Then we would check out another big bucket list stop for us: Mackinac Island and Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. This route does have a brief crossing into Canada to visit Ottawa and Montreal before returning to the states to see Burlington, Vermont...Jefferson, New Hampshire...and Bangor Maine. Then it ends in Acadia National Park, which I think is such a beautiful place (from the pictures I've seen).

One of the things I love most about this leg is that I've not heard of a ton of these stops, so it would allow us to see places we might otherwise never see. And neither of us have ever traveled across the northern part of the country at all. ALL of this would be brand new to us. 

Leg #4 - The Appalachian Trail...By Car (Maine to Georgia)

Ryan would love to hike the Appalachian Trail, but camping with the bears just doesn't appeal to me too much. We've known people who have hiked portions of the trail, and some of their stories have scared me out of ever trying it on foot! But how fun would it be to travel the same general stretch - by car! That I could get on board with! 

The start of leg #4 is actually about 4 hours north of the end of leg #3. It begins at Mt. Katahdin, in Maine, which marks the northern end of the Appalachian Trail. Next stop? Mt. Washington in New Hampshire. It's part of a mountain range that marks the tallest mountains in New England. Then we would wind down into Vermont's Green Mountains and the Berkshires. 

This particular route goes around New York City (we'll catch that on another trip) and goes down into Delaware and Pennsylvania, right through the heart of Amish country. (Which, you know, is basically like where we live now!) From there we would go through Shenandoah National Park in Virginia and follow the Blue Ridge Parkway across North Carolina. From there we would head into Georgia to end the trail. 

I have probably seen more of this part of the trip than Ryan has. Lynnette and I visited the Biltmore back in the summer of 2012 and ended up driving part of the Blue Ridge Parkway. I know Ryan would love it, and even though I know his preference would be to hike the whole thing, I think he would still enjoy this leg of travel. (And yes, Lynnette, of course we would come see you on this one!) 

Leg #5 - The Southern Pacific Route (Savannah, Georgia, to San Diego, California)

Yes, I know, this is the third time in five legs that San Diego has shown up as a stop! And yes, we aren't even city people. But there is much more to this part than just that big city. We would have about four hours of travel to get from the Atlanta area over to Savannah, Georgia, to start this part. Savannah is another bucket list stop for me. (Ever since my bonus niece, Savannah, was born, I've been itching to go here. So...you know...two decades.)

This leg follows old US-80 through the south. It's about a 3000 mile drive back to San Diego. Some of the stops along this trip would include places like Montgomery, Birmingham, and Tuscaloosa, Alabama before crossing over into Mississippi and a stop in Jackson. Then on to Shreveport, Louisiana and then a trek across the great state of Texas. (Dallas, Fort Worth, Abilene.) The route also drives right along the border to Mexico for a little bit and then winds up into New Mexico. (It runs close enough to White Sands National Park that we would HAVE to go there, because it's on our bucket list, too.) Then we would go back to Arizona, through Tucson, and wind across the southern part of California again. 

Now THIS would be a good colder weather route! :) 

I'll end today's part with Leg # 6, which would take us just over halfway through the trip.

Leg #6 - The Loneliest Road (San Francisco, California to Annapolis, Maryland)

This trek starts in San Francisco and goes through Sacramento before heading up into Lake Tahoe and into Nevada. This is the part of the route that gave it the name, "The Loneliest Road," because travel writers have called it such. If you like miles of mountains and sky, this is the route for you! It continues into the Great Basin Desert in Utah and then over into the red rock country of Colorado. 

It crosses the Continental Divide and then follows along the Santa Fe Trail, coming back to the Midwest we know so well: St. Louis, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and West Virginia. This route would also take us through Washington D.C. Both of us have been there before, but it's been since second grade (for me) and since senior year (for Ryan) so we would love to go back and see it from an adult perspective. Helps that we have a friend in D.C. who could show us around! 

This route ends on the eastern shore of Maryland, which I would love to explore in more detail than I got to see the one time I was in the general area for a wedding. (Hi, Christina!) 

So tomorrow I'll tell you about the rest. But who wants to come with us for the first part???

In Which We Rest

I knew it. I just knew it. WillowBridge got new siding a couple of weeks ago, and we'd been told the gutters would be added this week. They weren't sure what day, but it would be sometime this week. I knew what day! 

Yesterday! Our day off. Our day to sleep in.

And indeed, first thing in the morning, I was jolted awake by guttering being attached to the building. I knew it!!

We had fallen asleep on the couch, and Ryan was so deeply asleep, he didn't even know we spent the whole night on the couch until he woke up in the morning. I managed to sleep in between the installations and finally got up about 9 a.m. 

Coffee.

TV.

Breakfast.

Scrapbooking.

Naps.

Leftovers.

An evening walk.

Dreaming with Ryan.

Not doing my hair.

Wearing comfy clothes.

Bible study.

Journaling.

These are the things of a day of rest. 

Ryan and I are working on being more intentional about our rest. We're working on carving out time in each work day to step away and rest our minds and bodies. But it was an extra blessing to have a full day with no appointments. No obligations. No need to get ready and go out.

Instead, we just enjoyed all of our favorite things for hours on end.

You know what one of my favorite parts was? The dreaming. I find so much rest in it. I know that most of those dreams will never come to fruition, but I can still enjoy the thoughts of possibilities. The creative side of me loves to imagine.

We have today off too, but we'll have a few actual responsibilities to tend to before going back on duty. But oh, how I loved our yesterday. How I loved our dreaming and resting!

What is your perfect day of rest?

Monday Randoms

 I haven't been truly home in three days. We aren't gone...but we also haven't been home. Sitting to write coherent thoughts has been a little on the tough side. As we kick off this new week, I offer you some random thoughts!!

* Ryan has been watching the football hall of fame induction ceremonies, and I had to research the reason for the color of the gold jackets. (Apparently it's very important that they're called gold and not yellow.) If you can believe what you read on the internet, the reason is that the athletes who wear them are the gold standard of their profession. 

* Saturday was our first time to attend the annual fundraiser auction for Gateway Woods. We have heard many things about it, but we had not attended one before. I'll have to tell you more about it later, but today I shall report that the day brought in over $800,000. That was a record, I believe, and one we are very grateful for. We are glad so many people believe in the mission of Gateway Woods (which we're part of) and share consistently and generously so we can continue to work in this ministry!

* Yesterday we went to visit Ryan's aunt and uncle. He is the pastor of a church about an hour south of us, so we went to hear him preach and then had lunch with them. Their dog, Lucy, is the cutest, and she can do so many tricks! It was fun to watch (I think they're working right now on teaching her how to pray. ADORABLE!!!)

* We had planned to spend some time with Abby in our days off this week, but we ended up canceling that plan. We weren't sure Ryan would be up to being on his feet all weekend. It turns out we probably could have done it, but there is something just SO DELIGHTFUL about the idea of resting and scrapbooking at home. I'm so excited for our plan B!

* I'm grateful for good friends. They're good pray-ers, good listeners, and good supporters when days and weeks are long. I hope you have some of those in your life, too! And I hope I am the same for my friends when they need me!

* I'm going to miss the Olympics. It's been such fun to watch the events and learn about ones I didn't realize were part of the games - or sports at all. (Hello there, handball!)

* We learned that Gateway has patches and stickers for its different departments and houses. We purchased a WillowBridge sticker to put on Abby's travel wall. We figure since she lives here, she needs an official sticker!

* My concluding thought comes to you as I watch Peyton Manning give his acceptance speech into the Hall of Fame. He's doing a great job, but I have to say...these busts creep me out. Anyone else???

I have grand plans of getting a lot of sleep tonight and bringing you some more meaningful thoughts tomorrow! 

Sunday Sentiments

 Well, after all of my book talk in posts earlier this week, I decided to pull one from my to-be-read pile and start reading the thing. I have missed having/making time to read, and it's been delightful to add a chapter to the end of each of my days. 

The book I pulled from the shelf isn't new, but I've not read it before. It's actually a single volume collection of five novellas written by Francine Rivers. The full collection is called A Lineage of Grace, and each novella explores the life of one of the women named in Jesus' lineage. Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba, and Mary are the five I'll be reading about. 

When I wrote my Advent book, I used some of the same techniques Francine used in writing her books. (Please do not misunderstand and think I'm comparing myself to the writer Francine is. Not true! She is gifted far beyond anything I could ever hope to achieve!) There is a bit of breath-catching to be done when trying to imagine how a person mentioned in the Bible might have felt or what they might have done. 

When I wrote my book, I chose that approach because I needed to remember (and hoped others would do the same) that the people in the Bible were just that: real people. They all grappled with the same emotions we do, even though the details surrounding their culture may have looked different from what we face. I always think there's a danger of imagining people from the Bible as super-special in some way, simply because they're mentioned in the Bible.

As I've been reading Francine's book, I'm reminded of that very principle. These women whose lives I'm exploring may or may not have experienced exactly what I'm reading about, but it's probably not too far fetched. And as the Bible says, there is nothing new under the sun. The challenges of those days are still the challenges of our days. We just have a lot more technology and a different way of life thrown in the mix.

We need to remember it, you know. 

We need to remember, when we open the pages of the actual Bible, that we are reading about actual people who have way more in common with us than it may first appear.

We're given these accounts to read (in part) so we can know we are not alone. 

I'm grateful for that in these days that feel overwhelming, uncertain, and at times - flat out frightening. I'm grateful for the lives I can explore in Scripture and the things I can imagine as I read. I'm grateful for writers like Francine who remind me of the true humanity of the men and women in the Bible and give me a new perspective as I study their lives. 

Think about that this week, as you do your own studying. See the people as the people they were. Imagine their emotions, hopes, fears, joys, and struggles. You might find more in common than you first thought!

The Saturday Six

 

One.

Looking for some recipes for fruit and veggies in season right now? Check out this post! There are a few on this list that intrigue me! (Lookin' at you, garlic green beans!)

Two.

I have missed reading Big Mama's regular life stories over the last few years. She writes more about fashion and podcasts now, but I miss the old fashioned posts about her daughter. BUT...she just wrote this beautiful piece about her daughter turning 18 years old. I love her words and her heart! 

Three.

It was fun to see Matter Park (in Marion) land on this site. That park is, hands down, the thing we miss most about living there. We have so many great memories from that park, from dates to our engagement pictures to Christmas lights and more! It has come such a long way in the last few years, and they continue to make it more and more beautiful! 

Four.

For anyone interested in a recap of the Farmer's Almanac's predictions for this winter, here it is. I recommend skipping to the last sentence and following directions. 

Five.

I almost always make snacks when we have a meeting or event here at WillowBridge, and lately I've found cookie bars to be my best friend. I love making cookies, but I don't always have time for all the scooping. Enter...cookie bars! This week I made snickerdoodle cookie bars, which I've shared the recipe for on this very blog, but it's been a while! I thought I'd throw it out there for you again in case you need something new to try! 

Six.

I've shared before on here the idea of getting a map made for photos in the shape of each state. But I just found this site which allows you to actually customize your photos as stickers, so your pictures fit as perfectly as possible. This is pretty cool! 

Quick Updates

 Yesterday marked one week since we won best costume in the Gateway Variety Show...and Ryan won worst ankle. 

This has definitely NOT been his favorite week. He hates sitting. :) 

But I am super proud of him, because he has done everything he can to make sure he heals in the least invasive way possible.

Ice baths.

Elevation.

Compression.

Stretching.

Massage.

Careful walking.

And now look!

He's not up to his regular speed, but he is moving without crutches again! I fear he overdid it a little yesterday. A couple of things in our building stopped working, so he had to do some climbing around on ladders to do repairs. I wouldn't be surprised if he is sore today. And this weekend is Gateway's Auction, so I can't imagine he'll elevate like he needs to. But it's okay. We'll rest up after that.

I was thinking last night that it was exactly one week earlier when he got hurt. I'm so glad it's this week over last week! I'm so glad the swelling is finally going down. I'm glad he doesn't have to do ice baths every two hours anymore. I'm glad he can walk unencumbered. I'm glad we've gotten to take a couple of careful, slow walks.

Thanks for checking in on him this week! He has appreciated the kind texts and emails. He's not healed yet, but he is feeling better and able to do more than stare at the ceiling from the couch!

Book Wish List

Yes. Yesterday I wrote a post about downsizing my books, and today I'm talking about books I want to read. No. It doesn't make any sense. 

I really enjoyed reading your thoughts on the books yesterday! Between comments and emails, I definitely felt challenged to think about what I want my books to represent about me and what matters most to me. Thanks for helping me think through that!

I do have a few books that intrigue me (and these are going to be ALL OVER THE BOARD in topic, so just be warned) on my wish list, so I thought it might be fun to talk about some of those today.

These, by the way, are in no particular order at all.

1. Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking by Michael Ruhlman. I read about this book on social media somewhere, and now I don't even remember if it was a blog or Instagram or what. (For all I know, it might have been on the Saturday Six - ha!) But whoever was writing talked about how we can all create our own unique recipes if we learn the basic ratios that go into every type of cooking. I thought that would be an interesting topic to learn more about. Though I feel I'm a good cook and baker, there is much about the craft/science of being in the kitchen that I really don't understand. 

2. The Bible Recap: A One Year Guide to Reading and Understanding the Whole Bible by Tara-Leigh Cobble. I am pretty sure Leslie first told me about this book. I believe she sent me a screen shot of a page she was studying that coincided with something I wrote about here on the blog. I asked her what it came from and she told me about this book. It caught my attention, because it seemed like something that might help us teach our tenants more about the Bible - in a way they can understand. (Many have minimal background in church/the Bible.) So I put it on my list!

3. Roaming America: Exploring All the National Parks by Renee Hahnel. It's not a cheap book, but it looks amazing. I read about it in a blog post and stuck it on my wish list for someday. If we ever get to realize our dream of traveling regularly, I'd love to explore as many of the national parks as we can, and this seems like a comprehensive guide!

4. Life on the Death Beat by Alana Barnick, Jim Sheeler, and Stephen Miller...Obit: Inspiring Stories of Ordinary People Who Led Extraordinary Lives by Jim Sheeler...Final Salute: A Story of Unfinished Lives by Jim Sheeler. Weird choices, right? As you know, Allen asked me to write Nita's obituary when she died, and then Ryan and his siblings asked me to write Allen's when he died. I talked to my fellow-writer-friend Amy after I wrote the second one, because she has written some beautiful and unique obituaries. I've read them and found them to be so well done! She recommended all three books to me as great resources for writing an above-average obituary.

5. Devotedly: The Personal Love Letters and Story of Jim and Elisabeth Elliot by Valerie Elliot Shepard. I have been deeply and personally impacted by the writing of both Jim and Elisabeth Elliot, so reading this book compiled by their daughter would be a treasure for me. (Jim and Elisabeth, if you're not familiar, were missionaries. When they were still very young, Jim and a group of fellow missionaries were murdered by the very people they were trying to reach. Elisabeth stayed on the field and continued ministering to the people who murdered her husband. I own the book of Jim's journals, which are powerful and convicting. I've read more than one of Elisabeth's books. Passion and Purity is one of my favorites.

6. Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus by Ann Spangler and Lois Tverberg and Walking in the Dust of Rabbi Jesus by Lois Tverberg and Ray Vander Laan. I have read Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus and have come to respect Lois Tverberg and her research into the culture of Biblical times. I have these other two on my list because I'd love to learn even more! I've watched a few video teachings by Ray Vander Laan and find him to be a brilliant scholar and relatable teacher. If you ever get a chance to watch anything he's done, I highly recommend.

So those are some of my book wishes!! What has happened to the girl who used to only read fiction????

Book Babies

One of the biggest lessons they drilled into us in our writing classes was this: to be a great writer, you must be a great reader.

I'm guessing my current lack of time to read means I may also not be a great writer right now. (Sorry about that...since you're here to read my writing!)

But I do love my books. I always have. Some have moved with me from my parents' house to college to my Marion house to our Kokomo house to our Grabill house. I often call them my book babies and have long said that I wouldn't even begin to imagine how I would go about parting with any of them.

But the truth is, my bookshelves are bursting. My dad built those shelves for me years ago. I asked him to build something that would completely fill one wall in my Marion house. He did what I asked, and at that time, I had plenty of room to grow my book collection. But over the years, that collection has grown, and now the shelves are so full.

I've tried to downsize. I really have. I sold several in a yard sale before we moved to Kokomo. I sold several more before we moved to Grabill. 

But as Ryan and I evaluate our collection of stuff, I am wondering if it's time to look over that collection again and reevaluate the books that truly matter. What do I really want to keep? In this season of life when I don't have tons of time to read anyway, what should I be willing to part with to make our home less cluttered and more manageable?

I had looked on Pinterest (because where else would I look??) and found this helpful article with some guidance on downsizing. Here are some of my thoughts on the suggestions. 

The author gave five questions to ask when considering whether or not to keep a book.

The first question was...is this a duplicate? I don't own duplicates, so that should speed up the process! (I should clarify that there are a couple of Bible study books on our shelves that Ryan and I each owned a copy of, because they're workbooks and we each wanted to write in our own. But as far as regular books go...I don't own duplicates. 

The next question was: is the material relevant or out of date? I find that to be an interesting question. I have a few books that contain material some would consider highly out of date, but I consider it very worthwhile. I'm an old soul that way. The good news is, if it feels relevant to me, I get to keep it. I don't have to put it in front of a committee. But then again, I also try not to buy books that are terribly trendy in content. I like my books and clothes to stand on their own without screaming of a particular year or decade.

Then...have I read it before and will I read it again? I'm sure I have books I haven't read and at this point...I may never. I need to consider letting go of them. And yet there are some that even if I'm not planning to read again, I probably should keep because they matter for other reasons. 

This may be the hardest one for me: why do I want to keep this book? Well, because it's my book baby! Because I've lived in it and scribbled in it and can't imagine parting with it? Hmmm. Might need to come up with some better answers than that, right? There are actually some further guides in that section that I can consider. But I think this is the category that will hold me up the most.

And finally...could I get this at the library? Probably...for most of them! So then it becomes a matter of whether or not it's a book I need for writing in and living in...or just reading.

They're hard questions for readers, right?

Where do you fall on this? Are you a mama of book babies?? Do you find them hard to part with? Or is it easy for you to keep your collection small??

Anyone else out there need to downsize?

104 Months!

I would sure hope, after all the months you've been reading our love story and life adventures, that you know I love and appreciate Ryan with all my being.

But this past week, as we've been muddling through this unexpected injury of his, I have come to appreciate him in brand news ways. I probably don't have to tell any of you that Ryan is an extraordinarily hard worker, and I've realized just how hard he does work as I've tried to step in to do what he can't right now.

Here in our home, we divide most of the household chores. It's the only way we can get them done, given how busy our jobs are. I've been trying to keep up with his half, though I'm sure I am still missing a few. And then there are the things he does around WillowBridge. I've told him I'm out for anything that involves climbing, but I've been trying to pitch in and do his chores here in the building while keeping up with my own. 

I appreciate so very much how hard he works and all the things he does that we don't even know until suddenly we need to pitch in and do them. 

Yesterday was our 104th monthiversary, and I spent the day extra grateful for everything about who Ryan is.

We had meetings all morning long, and he sat on the couch, leg propped up on pillows, breaking in between meetings for more ice baths. (I think he was grateful for a chance to have a change of scenery and a chance to do some work!)

Sarah took our picture yesterday afternoon. He asked if the crutches had to be in the picture, but I told him it's an accurate representation of this monthiversary!

He went with me to pick up my parents from the airport. (They got to go meet their newest great grandbaby this week, and we were making sure they got home safely!)

And on the way home, we stopped for an ice cream date!

A little work, a little fun, a little bit of Olympic viewing to end the day. We were sad we didn't get to take a sunset walk, but we were grateful to have the day together. 

Ryan, thank you so much for ALL your hard work that you put in to every single day. You work so hard for our family and our job, and I don't think anyone will ever know just how much you do behind all the scenes. I appreciate you, I love you, and I'm so happy to celebrate 104 months by your side!

The Surprise Date!

Well, you guys, the surprise date happened!!  Injury and all!

Here's the back story. Early, early, early in 2020, Ryan told me he had found what he wanted to do for my birthday, and he was so excited about it. It was the earliest he had ever figured out what he wanted to do for me. He booked the surprise and then...the pandemic.

My birthday came and the surprise was not happening. But he told me he hoped it would work out for later in the year. I think there were two or three reschedule dates - the most recent of which was this past January. And every time, it was pushed back. 

Finally he said it looked like it was going to work...for July 31. 

And then on July 29th, he got hurt. He was absolutely beside himself about this all falling through. I told him it was okay. I mean, I was sad about a canceled date, but I didn't know what it was going to be, so I told him it would be okay. He said he was GETTING THERE, no matter what.

So Saturday morning we got up and ready and I made 112 trips to the car to lug out a cooler with a 22 pound bag of ice in it (plus an ice pack, measuring cup, hammer, and two bottles of water.) Two pillows, two beach towels, two cups of coffee, a medicine bag, two crutches, one ice bucket, one brace, and two Shaffers also made their way out the door.

We got in the car and he punched in the address (which only told me that I was going to Indianapolis, but I still didn't know the destination). He spent the first twenty minutes of our trip with his bad foot in an ice bath, and then he worked on wrapping it back up in its brace. We were about a half hour out, probably, when he asked if I would pull off at the next exit so he could get in the back seat. He said he needed to change positions. 

So I pulled off and he pointed to the sketchiest gas station. "Just pull in there," he said. "And I might go in to get something." 

Say what??? 

"You're going in THIS station????" I pulled the car closer to the door and he asked what I was doing. I told him I was trying to get him close to the door so he didn't have to walk so far for whatever he thought he needed.

Right then he pointed past me and out the driver's window. There stood my friends Jon and Julie! WHAT?!?!?!!?!?!?!?!

I hopped out of the car and found out they were joining us on our date. The whole pull-off-at-this-exit-so-I-can-change-positions line was so fake! 

We ended up transferring to Jon and Julie's van - both to give Ryan more leg room and to give me a break from doing my least favorite thing (driving) on my own birthday trip!

From there we continued our trek, but I still didn't know where we were going!

We landed here!

I was SO EXCITED!!!!!!!

My friend Kari saw this very show the weekend before and had said it was really good, so I was super excited to get to see it. 

We ate lunch together and enjoyed a spectacular show! The cast had amazing chemistry. (Last time I saw this in person, Julie was Maria! This time she sat beside me seeing how many lines she remembered. Turns out...many!) 

It was so much fun. SO much fun.

And as soon as we got back in the van, Ryan resumed his ice baths!

Thanks, Jon and Julie, for driving and for making our date so special! Thanks, Ryan, for planning such a fun date for me, for persevering through over a year of delays, and for sacrificing at great personal cost to make this day happen. I love you so much!