Happy 23rd!

Today is my best friends birthday. Today she turns 23! Watch out world, let me tell you.

I’ve known her for about 7 years now, and she has always been such a faithful and encouraging friend in my life.

She is that person who knows who I am jealous of, she is the person who knows when I am having a bad day, or a good day. She is that person who knows when I am inflicting on myself a bad day and calls me out of it. She is that person who makes me laugh so hard that I almost pee myself. She is that person who has known me long before Theo, has kept up with my throughout my relationship with Theo, stood with me as my maid of honor at my wedding and now continues to support me as I go through the ups and downs of marriage.

We actually didn’t get along at first. I thought she was way too cool and was deeply jealous. Turns out she thought the same thing about me. When we discovered that, we were able to move on and form a fast friendship throughout high school and even into college. I am always amazed that we are STILL friends- not because it is hard to be friends with Tam, but because life has put great distances and different circumstances in our path. We both know we have to work to stay in touch, and that is what we have done. I am so thankful for her texts, emails, phone calls and visits.

This girl is currently working in her butt off in a rather challenging and thankless job. She is sacrificing her time, money and resources to help students who are underprivileged. And that describes her perfectly. She is always sacrificing something to help someone in need.

She has a heart that is drawn to those in need. Kind of how I think Jesus’ heart itself would be. She fights fiercely for justice. She is honest- to a fault- about her own faults, needs, wants- and those of others around her, and I can’t even count the times that this quality has helped her or someone she knows out of a less than desirable situation. She loves with passion and abandon. She is creative and artistic.

Tam, you a such a blessing. Anybody who knows you would agree with that. Your prayers, your honesty, your support- they all mean so much to those around you. I look forward to seeing what God has in store for you this year, and in the years to come.

Love you!

Happy Birthday!

And just for your  enjoyment, here is a bunch of pictures of this girl and how we have built our relationship throughout the years!

Make sure that you send her a sweet message, card or text today to wish her the best birthday!!!

Date Night!

Our last two date nights have been spur-of-the-moment dates…which can often turn into the best date nights.

A couple weeks ago I realized late into the afternoon on Sunday that I was supposed to have picked the date night that week….and I just wasn’t feeling it. So I didn’t mention it, hoping that Theo wouldn’t notice. Honestly, it doesn’t matter that much if we don’t do a date night by Sunday, but I purposely neglected to not plan for it, simply because I didn’t feel like it. So that made me feel bad.

So I decided we would go to the movies!

Theo and I hardly ever go to the movie theaters. Honestly, it’s really expensive, and I can’t sit through a whole movie anyways. Plus, I always convince Theo to buy me popcorn, and then we only eat half of the $7 bag of popcorn (and we ask ourselves all throughout the movie why we didn’t just pop our own bag of popcorn at home and sneak it in….). Plus, there are rarely any movies that we both want to see. Several times we have gone to the theater for a date night, looked over all the movies, realized that they all go to midnight, and left to just watch a $1 movie at home. Pathetic, yes? But that’s just our style!

However, this night was all different. You see, Catching Fire had come out and it was a movie that we actually BOTH wanted to see! So we bundled up and drove to the nearby theater, bought our $7 popcorn and watched Catching Fire for our date night. It was a blast. It was a good movie, better than the first one. One that I would probably actually watch again (and that is saying a lot for me!)

This past week, our date night was actually planned by my brother and sister-in-law. They gave us our Christmas gift early, and it was a fantastic gift: a date night! In this gift was a gift card to The Cheesecake Factory, two movies, microwave popcorn, sparkling grape juice, and some chocolates for dessert. Isn’t that the most wonderful present??

Due to the fact that unexpectedly got Tuesday off work, Theo and I decided to use this awesome date night.

First, The Cheesecake Factory.

Then, the movie ‘Date Night’. This movie is HILARIOUS. I was a little bit nervous that it would be a typical chick flick with a cute plot line but enough raunchiness to almost ruin the movie, but it was not like that at all. There was only one or two inappropriate scenes, and even those weren’t that bad. We munched on Popcorn and chocolates while watching the movie, and the sparkling grape juice was a hit, too!

This was such a great Christmas gift idea. It would be perfect for any couple- dating, engaged, married for 1 year, married for 40 years. It could also be a cute gift for housemates, to have a girls night in or something along those lines. You could switch up the gift, adding different themes, adding hot chocolate or nail polish or anything that you can think of! It doesn’t have to be expensive, although it can add up!

Thanks so much, Dan and Kelly for the awesome date night…and the awesome idea!

To All Those Who Dread the Holidays….

I woke up today fulling intending to do a light-hearted, nothing-too-serious post. But then I got some news that while it does not affect me directly, it leaves me reeling and grieving for some very dear friends.

And so I just wanted to write a quick post, reminding those of us who are getting caught up in the hustle and bustle to just STOP. Stop for a minute. Take time to think about those who are going through difficult times, and like a scab picked off too soon, the holiday season can often bring about a new sense of grieving.

And to those who feel as if time has stood still this holiday season, my prayers are with you.

– It may be a person who has lost a loved one this past year, and this is the first Christmas that they are spending without them

– It may be the young missionary kid in his/her first year of college in his “home country” who does not get to see his/her family at Christmas— for the first time.

– It might be the young newlywed who is just so overwhelmed with all the changes to her lifestyle, and is spending the holidays with her “new” family, which is not exactly where she wants to be…but she is too afraid to say anything about her feelings because she is supposed to be young, in love and still in that “honeymoon” phase.

– It may be the elderly couple you see whose children live too far away to visit for Christmas

– It may be the young couple who lost a baby earlier in the year. This couple dreamed of watching their little one gaze at the tree lights for the first time and giggle and coo with all the attention that they would get from family, and yet all that disappeared within just several hours.

– Hey, it might even be a family who lost a pet, and this is the first Christmas without that dear family friend and companion

– It might be a young missionary couple who have abandoned so much for the sake of call, yet are facing their first Christmas all alone in a foreign country where Christmas celebrations hardly even exist.

– It might be the family who lost their jobs earlier this year, and Christmas is much, much different than they ever expected or imagined

– It might be a single Dad and his kids, who lost Mom several years ago, but Christmas can just never be the same. 

The list really could go on and on.

For most of us, Christmas is the most wonderful time of year, but for many, it is actually the worst time of the year. The day/week that many people dread, and breathe a sigh of relief when it has passed.

So lets enter this time of the year with great joy and anticipation, remembering what we are actually celebrating. Let’s be sensitive to those around us who may be facing a Christmas different from the ones that they are used to. Let’s pray that the true meaning of Christmas will shine through our actions and our celebrations. Let’s pray that those who are dreading the holidays this year will feel the HOPE, JOY and PEACE that Christ brought through his humble birth.

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This man

So, I married this man. Theo. He’s pretty amazing.

I could go on and on about all the things that he does for me, but instead I will tell two stories that he has brought home from work that prove that he is in fact pretty amazing.

Theo works for a company that is VERY laid-back. So laid-back, in fact, that it is very unprofessional. It’s frustrating to us sometimes (like when they make him drive a top-heavy ambulance four hours in a snowstorm), but Theo is thankful for the job, and does it with excellence even if the company does not deserve excellent workers. His company transports patients, usually ones who are stable. These patients are often going from hospital to hospital, hospital to home/nursing home, or home/nursing home to hospital.

The first story happened a couple weeks ago. Theo and his partner were transporting a patient who was paralyzed. The man apparently lived alone and only had a caretaker that would stop in to help him. As Theo and his partner carried the man into his apartment, a huge gust of wind blew a TON of leaves into the entryway. While holding the patient and the door, Theo used his foot to sweep most of the leaves back outside.

The man looked up at Theo with tears in his eyes and said, “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much. No one else would have done that.”

Theo was a little bit taken aback, because he hadn’t even though twice about it…he just did it. But to the patient, that meant the world.

And that is the type of thing that Theo does on a regular basis. The little things that don’t seem to make a difference, but mean the world to somebody.

 

The second story he told me about last night, and doesn’t know that I am writing about it.

Theo has a partner at work, and since they spend 24 hours together at work, many of those in an ambulance, they have had a lot of interesting conversations. This man’s philosophy on life is very different from ours. Make money to buy the newest and best gadgets, eat fast food since it’s convenient, don’t save money. Now, I’m not bashing this mindset, because it is very prevalent in the US, and most people simply don’t know any different. But Theo’s philosophy is very different, and he has been conversational about it at work. Most of the guys that work 24 hour shifts will not pack a lunch, but eat fast food for all four meals that they are there. Theo will pack his breakfast, lunch and dinner and take it to work. Theo says that all the guys at work ask how in world he always has the best food, and how he gets his wife to cook for him.

Last night Theo told me that his partner at work has brought his own packed lunches & dinners to work for the past two weeks, and has lost 10 pds. Just from dropping the fast food. He has not gone out drinking in 3 weeks, because he has realized that it is expensive and not worth the time + hangover time the next day. He and his girlfriend have decided to start saving their money instead of just spending it all on the latest gadgets.

And he told Theo that was all because Theo had inspired him.

Proud wife right here. Really proud wife.

Routine

I’m a routine person. I have my routine down pat. On Mondays and Fridays I sweep the floors, on Tuesdays I clean the bathrooms, on Wednesdays I vacuum the carpets, on Thursdays and Saturdays I do laundry. I always wake up at 7, and do household chores (bake bread, wash the dishes, clean, make the bed, do devotions, feed the chickens, etc.) until noon, then get ready to head to work at 1. I work all afternoon and then head home to make dinner and (usually) spend the evening with Theo.
I usually always have music playing. I usually always am moving, moving, moving.

And then something happens that totally throws off the routine. In this case, it is the death of our precious dog, Hansi. Yesterday when I woke up, I made myself do at least five things. If I didn’t do that, I knew I wouldn’t ever get out of bed or make it to work. I completed my five things, but spent most of the rest of the day staring off into space and just generally grieving.

Today I woke up a quiet house. Theo is at work. I am supposed to babysit this morning, but school was cancelled for the parents, so no baby today. The snow is falling outside. We put the tree up last night and the lights are twinkling. I have a blanket and the cat curled up with me. My devotions are finished, a whole page of journaling is helping me to release the grief that I have been feeling. There is no music, no Netflix, no cars driving by. All I can hear is the ticking of the clock and an occasional deep purr from Moose.

Peace.

Sometimes I need something to come ripping through my routine. To throw me off balance. To make me reel until all I can do is sit in a quiet house and stare off into space. Because there and then is when I can feel the Spirit move, the comfort that comes only from Christ, the peace that passes understanding. That is when I turn from my list-checking and my constant drive to move, move, move. I sit down and I curl up and I just have time to think and let the raw emotions lead me closer to the Savior.

Thank you all SO MUCH for the texts, the comments, the posts, the emails, the phone calls, the prayers. I never knew that so many people cared so much about how I feel about a dog. I am so humbled and blessed and treasure so much the care and prayers that you are sending to Theo and I.

¹¹ And he said, “Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. ¹² And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper.^{[a] 13} And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

Hansi

I don’t really know what to write in this post, so it’s going to be more like a mind dump.

Yesterday afternoon, we had to put Hansi down.

He was diagnosed with parvo virus on Tuesday morning, and was treated all day Tuesday with IV and antibiotic fluid. On Wednesday, we took him back in, expecting to pursue a cheaper outpatient treatment option. However, the vet recommended, in all honesty, that he would probably not make it if we took him home. He had been vomiting so much that he had begun aspirating and was developing pneumonia. He also had a fever of 106. Poor thing was so miserable I couldn’t even stay in room at the vet’s office. We agreed to keep him there for one more day and then try to go from there. Around 3:00, they called Theo and told him that Hansi had taken a turn for the worst and was unconscious due to low oxygen levels. At this point, it was up to us, but they recommended that we put him down since it was highly unlikely for him to pull out of it. For those of you who know me, you know what a bad decision maker I am….especially a decision like that. Thankfully, Theo knows me well, and made the decision himself to put Hansi down. Normally I like to be consulted on big life decisions, but this time I was so glad that Theo didn’t even call me (I was at work), and ask what we should do.

I’ve never had to deal with the death of a dear, young pet. Growing up, we had a cat, Midnight. She was near and dear to me, but she died at the ripe old age of 15. She hardly suffered, just laid down one day and gave up the ghost 12 hours later. But this time? This puppy was ours- I fought to even LIKE Hansi at the beginning, but I was slowly growing more and more attached. He was only 5 months old, and we had only had him for 4 months. It is so sad to me that he didn’t get to live a longer life. We had only gotten him up to about a mile in running. I was going to look for a 5K that I could do with him in the Spring.

Theo and I are trying to figure out how to properly grieve. It was a dog, and not a human life, so we must be careful to not take it too far. However, this dog was ours. and we spent every day of the last 3 months training him, playing with him, laughing with him and learning to love him. He was certainly a part of our family.

I do miss that sweet puppy already. When he would chase Moose up and down the house. How he had become so well behaved when it was feeding time. How he loved to go on morning walks/runs with me. How he would sneakily climb up on the bed and scoot closer and closer to me for a cuddle. How he would subtly lick me, just stick out his tongue and LICK and I HATED that. How good he was with kids, loving on them and being gentle with them. Oh, he was a great dog.

Again, forgive me for the mind dump, I just need to get it out. It is helping me already let go and allow myself time to be sad.

Before Hansi came along, I had no appreciation for dogs. I was a little bit scared of them and I hated more things about them than I liked. But since getting Hansi, I have come to like and appreciate dogs so much more. I don’t know I would qualify myself as a “dog person” yet, but I was most certainly a “Hansi person”. We sure will miss you, Hansi.

Thanksgiving

Yesterday, we got back from the most wonderful Thanksgiving break in Florida.

Theo worked on Wednesday night until 11 pm, then he has a 1 and 1/2 hour drive home, so we weren’t able to leave for Florida until 1 am on Thanksgiving day. The GPS told us it would take 15 hours, and we did it in 16. It is really hard to stay awake driving all night, but driving through the night on a national holiday is certainly the fastest way to get from point a to point b! There was no traffic, no construction, nothing that slowed us down. Well, except for the fact that almost every restaurant is closed on Thanksgiving day. Good for them, but for us traveling, it was hard to find some breakfast and lunch!

Here we are about 12 hours into our trip..

As soon as we arrived in Florida, we sat down to a wonderful African meal. It wasn’t a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, but it was all of our favorite foods, so why not?? (I was so exhausted and hungry and glad to be there that I forgot to take any pictures…)

After dinner, we got to go and visit with the Smiths. The Smiths were my dorm parents at Sahel, and they have poured so much into my life (even if I didn’t realize it at the time =) ). I haven’t seen them since my junior year of high school, and it was SO. GOOD. catching up with them.

We crashed early that night, and woke up to this glorious brunch at the Grandparents house: 

Bacon, eggs, potatoes and sticky buns for breakfast dessert! 

After a breakfast like that, whats a person to do besides just lay around and chat? And listen to beautiful piano music, of course!

And torture your brother-in-law with a cat stick thing…

We took a group picture before Uncle Dean and his family had to head to the airport and back to CA. It was so great to see them as well!

After laying around for far too long, we finally decided that we needed to make the best of the Florida weather and spend as much time as possible outside. The retirement home that my Grandparents live at has a heated pool, so the boys decided to use it. Kelly and I just sat out and watched, relaxed, and soaked up some warm sun rays.

Theo has been to Sebring many times before with his family, and he knew of a great State Park with some awesome hiking trails and some Florida wildlife. So he took us to Highland Hammock Park. It was beautiful! We picked a short trail that went through an alligator swamp, but we never got to see an alligator! Boo! We then went looking for a geocache, but no luck there, either. Even though we didn’t find an alligator or a geocache, it was still fun to be outside in the warmer weather with family!

We enjoyed a fun evening of eating dinner, and watching old home videos. Getting to see my mama pregnant and my Dad with a mustache and my brother being all chubby and cute was fantastic! We had a lot of laughs that night!

In the morning, we ate a relaxed breakfast and lazed around before it was time to for everyone to leave. Daniel and Kelly were brave and took a greyhound bus all the way back to D.C. Since they had a 20 hr drive, they had to leave early Saturday afternoon. After they left, Theo and I watched some T.V. and then took off for Theo’s brothers house.

We drove down to Florida to spend Thanksgiving with my Grandparents, but when we started making plans we realized that Titus and Joanna only live 1.5 hrs away. It was a little distance, but after driving 16 hours, that didn’t seem like it was out of our way at all!

We really enjoyed our time with family! We got to eat some food, play some games and just hang out. We also got to go to the beach and see some dolphins! That was pretty cool!

After cramming all that wonderfulness into a few days, we began the long drive back North. It should have taken us about 16 hours, but we got to a point in the night where neither of us could keep our eyes open, so we pulled over and slept for a while. We also hit traffic as everybody and their brother was driving back home after the Thanksgiving holidays. So, it took us around 21 hours. THAT was a long drive!

We arrived home to a very happy cat and a very sick dog. We aren’t sure what is wrong with him or how to make him better. Ahh, real life, back so soon? I threw in a couple loads of laundry, unpacked, did some grocery shopping, napped and tried to clean up all the messiness of my home yesterday. Today is back to work for me, more laundry, trying to make the sick dog feel better, and cleaning, cleaning cleaning!

How was your Thanksgiving?

A Few of My Favorite Things (Part 2: Stocking Stuffers!)

I’m linking up again for Part 2 of My Favorite Things! To see part one, go here. To visit the hosts click here or here! You should link up!

Insert funny story here: When my brother and I were younger, our parents kind of went along with the whole Santa thing. They never told us about Santa or had us write letters to him, but we kind of picked it up from our friends and they never outright told us it wasn’t true. Until one Christmas, when we found out. I don’t remember the context, but my parents were saying something about how Santa came down the chimney. My brother, being two years older than me, laughed and said, “We don’t have a chimney!”. Well, that was the end of that. Then, it was either the same Christmas or one a few years down the road when I was tossing and turning from the excitement that was to come for Christmas morning. I snuck out of my bedroom and into the hallway, where I peeked on my parents stuffing the stockings. If I ever doubted in Santa, it was confirmed. Hahahahaha.

Anyways, back to My Favorite Things: Stocking Stuffers!

I love me some stockings on Christmas morning!

1. Gift Cards- pretty self-explanatory. I’d take anything. Restaurants, Target, Jewelry stores, Starbucks

2. Socks and/or undies (last year, Theo stuffed my stockings with unmentionables. How sweet! I wouldn’t mind the same thing this year!) Or some comfy socks!

But, please- no toe socks!

3. M&Ms

Yes, yes please!

4. Car phone charger

I’m loving the color on this one!

5. Scarves, mittens, hats

I’ve recently been eyeing scarves, and learning how to wear them better. I am especially interested in infinity scarves- so easy to wear, and so cute looking! I’d also love to find some cute mittens in my stocking. I unpacked all our winter stuff, and I found about 8 single mittens. That’s all fine and dandy if I want to mix and match, but I really don’t. Haha.

And for him:

1. Ammo- Yes, ammo. This stuff runs pretty expensive, so it’s nice to give as a gift. And, yes, we are a gun-owning family. No judging here, right?

2. Flashlight- pretty self-explanatory. Except no random flashlight will do the trick. It has to be high-powered, shine very brightly and possibly have some fancy settings.

3.Gift Cards- especially to places like Sporting Goods stores, Outdoorsy stores (Gander Mt., Cabela’s) or a book store.

4. Boxers/Socks. Again, self-explanatory. =)

5. Anything survivalist (paracord, emergency kit, special batteries, accessories for tents/sleeping bags/shoes, flint, lighters, special matches, long-burning candles). All of these little tools for camping/hiking/backpacking/survivalist mode are perfect to fit inside a stocking!

 

And there you have it! A few of our favorite things for our stockings! What about you?

 

 All images in this post are taken directly from Google Images. I didn’t go to each company that represents the products. If you google each of the items, you will find the image that can take you directly to the company =)

 

5 on Friday

Here I go again….linking up for another post!

Basically, I just write five things. Things on my mind, things that are happening right now, and since it happens to be Friday…it’s five on Friday!

1. Chickens. We got some chickens on Tuesday. Theo’s brother knows a lady who rotates her chicken crop every year, so these chickens happened to be free. They are all laying hens, and we are super excited for eggs. That is, if the chickens survive. So far we have two down, only four left. There is some kind of animal that gets in their coop and murders them- a bloody, gory murder. Disgusting, and so, so sad. I just want eggs for heavens sake! Theo has set himself up with his bow and arrow and is ready to catch whatever the murderous creature is…. (don’t hate).

2. Exercise- since I got a stress fracture, I haven’t been able to run. Usually this is my channel for energy and keeps me exercising. So instead of running, I have started following one of those simple workouts you can find on Pinterest. This is the one that I use:

Its really simple and not too hardcore, although by the third rep I feel like I’m dying. I have also been taking Hansi on regular walks, so that also helps.

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3. Zucchini Pancakes and Oreo Cupcakes

For date night, Theo picked oreo cupackes. These things are absolutely delicious. Especially the cream cheese icing. It makes it less hardcore sweet, and more mildly sweet.

 

Yesterday, when I was at work, I was flipping through a cooking magazine and I saw a recipe for Zucchini pancakes. I jotted down the recipe and then made it for dinner when I got home. These things were so good, they are going on our regular menu. They were so simple and easy to make, and (like I already said!) tasted delicious!

(Recipe)

Mix together 1/2 c. flour, 1/2 c. Parmesan cheese, 1/2 t dried oregano, salt and pepper to taste. Add 1and1/2 c. shredded zucchini, 1 egg (beaten), 2 T chopped onion, 2 T mayo. Melt 2 T butter in a pan and fry up the mixture! Serve with sour cream (this sounded a little weird to me, but it really did hit the spot!)

4. Christmas Cookie Exchange fiasco

I follow the blog Everyday Cheer, and they offered up a free printable set for a Christmas cookie exchange! This was so exciting to me, and I decided that I want to plan one for later in December. So I downloaded the down load and headed to Office Depot to get it printed on Cardstock. My order was *slightly* complicated, since I wanted each page to be printed a different amount of times. But I wrote it all down on a sticky note: Page 1- 20 copies; Page 2- 6 copies; Page 3- 2 copies, etc. The lady said it was no problem and proceeded to print it for me. I waited and waited and waited while the printer printed. Finally, the lady brought over this HUGE stack of papers. My heart sunk- this was gonna cost a lot more than I expected. “Ummm…I don’t think I printed that many.” I told her. “No, it’s right. Let me show you.” And as she began counting we realized that she had printed the whole 11 page document 20 times, 6 times, 2 times, etc. It was really overwhelming to me because I felt SO. BAD. about it, but it really wasn’t my fault. We got all the pages that I asked for, but I’m pretty sure about 700 pages of nice cardstock went to waste with that one.

As I was leaving, I told the lady, “Well, if you want to have a Christmas cookie exchange, you have all the paper products for it!”

She didn’t think that was very funny.

5. QuizUp. It’s an app for the smartphone, and it’s so much fun! It’s just random trivia. There are many, many categories and you can pick what you want to be quizzed on. Then you play against a real player. As you win more and more, you move up in rank. My favorites so far are geography and The Bible, mainly because I can actually get some of those answers right! You should try it- its a whole lot of fun, and it makes me feel like I am working my brain cells instead of just switching colors like in Candy Crush- ha!

And what about you on this Friday? Head on over here or here or here or here to link up with 5 on Friday!

Date Night (2)

I told you guys we were trying to make date night more of a habit and less of a monthly dinner out.

This week it was Theo’s turn to pick, and he picked ‘bake something together’.

This one was so fun because we did not have to leave the house, we didn’t have to pay anything at all (except our grocery bill, which we already pay!), and we got to enjoy some delicious dessert! Perfect.

A couple years ago I made oreo cupcakes that Theo absolutely loved. So he went onto my Pinterest and scoured my page until he found the recipe! What a man! He had all the ingredients, and got some music playing, and all we had to do was bake together. This was so much fun, and it only took about an hour and a half. Plus, with two people in the kitchen, the cupcakes got baked, the dishes got washed, the icing got made and the mess was cleaned up! Perfect. Here are a few pictures from our baking date.

Mmm-mmmm! What a great date!