Snow Days

Ralph and Kenya took advantage of all the snow this weekend to have some fun! Our "little" girl refused to come inside for 3 days in a row because she was so excited!

Husband is Home

Ralph spent Tuesday to Thursday in beautiful Toronto this week. I worked all three days he was gone. I tried to get Kenya to stay inside with me—preferably in our room. Now that I've been married a few years, I find that I no longer enjoy being home alone. I used to love it. I think it came from working nights for those years. I used to live to be home alone. Now I hate it. I hear every creak the house makes. I have to sleep with a light on (which is tough because I can sleep through anything but light). So, I came up with a solution. Kenya should sleep in our room with me. I don't really like dogs on the bed, but I was willing to be flexible. It is a king sized bed after all. Well, she wasn't having it. She would pace the room and pant like she had just run a marathon. She really is a winter dog. I eventually had to put her out and sleep with Jedi (who eventually left me too; I tossed and turned too much).

I made a mistake on Wednesday morning. I complained to a bunch of single girls. On a normal morning, we get up at 0430. Ralph heads downstairs and makes my breve and breakfast smoothie and if it's cold he starts the car and scrapes it if needed. I take a shower and get ready. Usually by 0505 we get to cuddle for 10 minutes or so. It's a somewhat relaxing routine. With him gone, I had to get up 15 minutes earlier and did not have any time to sit down before I left. It of course snowed that first morning, so I had to clean off the car before leaving. That's what I want to do at 5 am! Anyway, I was whining about this to the night shift when I got to work that morning. I was told, "Welcome to single life!" They also asked where they could find a husband like mine. ;-p After that I made sure I only told my tale of woe to married people—they were much more sympathetic.

I am thrilled to have my husband home again! He brought great news with him. A job offer. Kind of two job offers. He only gets to pick one though. He can't have both. That would just be greedy. Pray for us in this. It may mean a move to San Jose for us. Not sure if we're California people. If we stay, it would mean a lot of travel for Ralph which has a lot of ramifications for many areas of our lives. It may affect how/where I work as well (even if we stay). We are hurry-up-and-waiting for next week and the official offer/process to start. We'

The Road to the Oscars Part 3

Hello, all, from near Port Clinton, OH. Ralph planned a romantic get-a-way for us this Valentine's weekend. We are holed up in a beautiful bed and breakfast. We have a large king sized bed, a jacuzzi tub for 2 and a fireplace. I am quite excited to just RELAX! We have not done that in a while. Here are the last of the dresses. Next week you will get to vote on who should wear the dresses! I'll have a special edition next Saturday with our picks!








A Little Scary










Orange is the new pink

















Navy drape










Flapper dress

















La Perla










Gray sheer

Date Night

I hate to admit it, but it's true. We often get so busy we don't take time out for just the two of us. Some days this worries me as we don't have kids yet. This seems to be a problem those with kids always talk about but it seems to be just as hard if not harder for us to make time that time. We both work more than full time most weeks and strive to stay connected to friends and reach out to others often at the expense of time together. This week I was really convicted to make sure we had time together—no TV, laptops, distractions.

 

Thanks to Pioneer Woman, I made this delicious roast. I also made mashed potatoes, Bob Evans rolls (you can get them in the freezer section of your local grocer), and lemonade. We ate at the table *gasp* not in front of the TV or our laptops, facing each other over a tablecloth, candlelight and I even pulled out the chargers for under the plates. It's sad to me that this isn't our norm. We don't have kids, we've been eating at home more, and it didn't take that much effort. The whole effect was so relaxing and conducive to conversation. I think I spend so much time making sure others feel comfortable in our home that I forget to do it for us.

 

My husband is truly my favorite person to be with. I enjoy his company more than anyone else's. We just need to not take each other for granted and make that one-on-one time a priority. That is a new goal for me for this coming year—more time set aside for us without distractions.

Chaos Controlled

I feel like chaos has ruled our home since we got back from MN. Almost a month after the fact Christmas is finally packed up in our home. I still have a few little matters of organization to work out but our home has been returned to normal. My poor husband, who has not had a day off at all this week—worked 6 days straight, spent the whole day with me cleaning and organizing. Bless him! We both feel so much more rested in our home as a result.

 

Tonight was another wonderful HC. Jeff and Sarah's "goal" for the month of January was to have us as a collective read through the entire book of Acts. We made it to chapter 20 this week. It was a night of great discussion and insight. I think one of the main points we all took away was how committed the early Church was. They were beaten, stoned, thrown in prison but that was life and they were going to tell people about Jesus anyway. End of discussion. Are we that committed? Are we willing to suffer just to make sure people know who Jesus is? Would we be followers of Christ if that was the way it was for us? What is God asking us to do that may be "hard" that we are avoiding? Are we taking care of each other's needs and encouraging each other without hesitating? I pray that we can all spend time evaluating ourselves with the Lord this week and let Him work in us so that we can answer these questions in a way that honors Him.

 

I was reading Genesis 16 tonight and struck by what God asked Hagar to do. He asked her to go back to her bad situation where she was being mistreated and submit to the person who was mistreating her. Basically, He told her He would help her and be with her but she needed to face her problem head on and change her attitude. I am really bad about this. I really like the whole run-away-from-bad-things routine. I don't submit to mean people well. Now, I don't think that this is what God calls us to every time and in every circumstance but I do need to work on my attitude more and "run" less. I thank God for being so patient with me and willing to help me be more like Him. We serve a good God.

The Visitor

We have had a visitor at our house this week. His name is Dooce. He is an adorable Australian Shepherd/Lab mix. I am now convinced I want a second dog! Kenya has been so good the last three days. I have not even had to walk her. I thought I was going to have to figure out how to walk two dogs at once when Kenya is often more than I can handle alone! They played so hard together that they wore each other out every day. I loved it! Now I just have to convince Ralph!

Yummy food

Ralph and I have decided we need to eat at home more this year. We are trying to both save money and eat healthier. So last Wednesday, I planned a menu and shopped. The menu was supposed to have been for Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. We made our dinners on Wednesday and Thursday. Wednesday I made some spaghetti sauce with a ton of veggies and simmered it all with the rind of parmesan cheese. We had garlic salad and garlic bread with it. (Can you tell we like garlic just a little bit?) Thursday we made Knife and Fork Burgers with Provolone Dipping Sauce and Roasted Tomato Salad. They were really good!

 

Then we took a little break. Ralph got a call/text from a good friend asking us to go to dinner with him and his girlfriend on Friday night. We had wanted to get together with them for a while, our house was a disaster and we were too tired to host so we went out. Then Saturday after work we raced down to Kettering from Fairborn to make it to church and were much too tired to cook after that so we went out.

 

Sunday we used one of the recipes/menu items for HC. We made Sopa de Pedra (Rock Soup). It was so good. To look at it, it looks like just another tomatoey soup recipe, but the hot sauce gives it this great kick! We used ham for the meat. It was really good! I had it for lunch today and it was even better the second day. Tonight we made Jon's Grilled Tuna Salad. I loved it! We served it on toasted English Muffin Bread. I really like it! It was salty and tasted fresh and light at the same time. Ralph only thought it was "ok". It just wasn't what he was expecting when he thought "tuna salad." This is especially sad due to the fact he made it. Come to think of it because I have been working so much, he not we made most of these recipes. If you are looking for something new, I would recommend all three and Ralph would recommend the first two. Are we walking advertisements for Rachael Ray or what?

Sabbath

Praise the Lord for Sabbath! It's not too often that Ralph and I get a Sabbath on the same day and on a Sunday to boot! We both dove straight back in to work on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. It's been an adjustment to get used to getting up at 4:30 a.m. again. But this morning, we slept in! I mean slept in. It was after 10:30 I think for both of us. When we got up, Ralph ran to the store to get Challah bread and bacon (we found out on which day our favorite grocer/bakery bakes their Challah bread). I fed Kenya and brought her inside with me. I got caught on blogs, e-mail and facebook. I got to use my new skillet to make brunch (a gift from my wonderful parents). We made a terrific brunch of French toast and bacon. Yum-O! We stayed in our pajamas until 2 or 3. It was great!

We went to the 7 p.m. service at our church last night. It was so great to be back! We were gone for several weekends and worked so many weekends before we left that it felt like we hadn't been there in forever! It was so sweet to be back in our home church for worship and to be fed and challenged.

Our friends Jeff and Sarah asked to teach HC this month and agreed to host tonight! This is why were able to take a Sabbath today. It was such a blessing! We are still living out of suit cases and the (once) live Christmas tree is still up and the whole place is in utter chaos. This was our one day off and we have/had no energy for the herculean effort that is needed to have this place company ready in one day. Honestly, by them hosting and teaching tonight, they truly were the Body of Christ to us. It allowed us to really enjoy HC. I was able to open up and share and be loved on and prayed for in Quads (our break out time of sharing and prayer). It was just so appropriate as Jeff and Sarah are taking us through Acts. We are looking at what the Church should look like and be and I felt like I was able to watch Her in action tonight. I love our house church and love that God has provided this family for us here. Pray for us this year. We really would love to see our neighborhood come to know Jesus. We want to have the boldness of Peter and John with our neighbors and see them come to know Christ. I pray that you all have an opportunity to have a restful Sabbath day one day this week.

The Real World

I'm back to the real world. The alarm-goes-off-at-0430-in-the-MORNING-work-12.5-hours-in-a-row world, with a stomach ache, I might add. I honestly think nurses are tougher than construction workers. We don't get to stay home over a belly ache or the flu. We just self-diagnose and self-medicate and keep on keeping on. Now, do as I say and not as I do. If you're sick, stay home, drink fluids and go to the doctor if it persists for more than a few days. ;-p

I'm just going to take a few seconds to brag on my husband. He gets up with me at 0430 in the MORNING, makes me a latte, makes me a breakfast smoothie and then drives me to work (the drive me to work part is because we only have one car and don't want a car loan at this time). He then picks me up after work--today he called to say he was at a different door. Do you know why? Because it was raining and this door was covered so I wouldn't get wet! Now he is currently cooking me this dinner. On my days off I cook, but the days I work (and he does too, I might add), he cooks. I have the best husband ever!

Have a great night all!

You’ve Been Warned

I just thought that I should warn you, blogworld, January is my month to be homesick. I reserve this right each and every year. Now in this space I will try to focus on the fun times I just had with my family and spare you all the tears and whining (that's what my husband is for). However good my intentions, though, it may leak through here and there and I just thought you should know.

It's tough to live 1000 miles away from your family. You miss things like your oldest niece changing from a baby to a "helpful" big sis and a diva. You miss your elfish nephew changing into a devilish 2 year old who knows how to use his dimples to avoid a scolding. I will miss my nephew finally figuring out that he really doesn't need anyone to help him walk. I will miss being there when my new niece/nephew arrives. I will not be able to go shopping with my mom or throw dinner parties with my SIL. I will miss my other nephew finally deciding to become mobile and crawling (or maybe he'll surprise us all and go straight to walking). I am amazed each year at what an amazing man my brother is, what a sweetheart my SIL is, what great brothers my BIL are, and what good moms my sisters are. Not that I don't think these things any other time of the year, it's different seeing it in person. By being this far away, one just misses out on all the intimate details you know by living life together. Each year I realize how much gets left out of the e-mails, blogs, facebook and phone calls. Most times of the year, I am focused on what God has me doing here in OH and am just grateful for how many varied ways we have for staying in touch. It helps as each sibling has such a different personality. There is a method for each sibling.

It is fitting to me that it has rained the whole way back. I hate it when it's sunny out on the drive back—the sun just mocks my tears. It's nice that the weather is sympathetic today (and that I'm not the one driving). Anyway, if I seem a little petulant or somber this month, I thought you should know the reason. February is my month for new beginnings and optimism and January is my month to pout—just have to be different like that. You have been warned.

Job (the book, not an occupation)

Suffering. What does that word mean to you? Are you suffering right now? Have you suffered over the course of your life? I am reading through Job in my Bible study right now. The thoughts that are flying through my head right now! They must be expressed. I am hoping to make sense of them through this post. Please be patient if the thoughts are a little jumbled.

One of the most recent times of suffering my family has endured was the loss of a nephew. He was 4 months old and Ralph and I were on our honeymoon when it happened. That was suffering. My sis and BIL will forever be marked by this. In fact, in a positive way, I believe, it has changed/helped direct the path of their life.

Another suffering my family has gone through, was to walk with my dad's sister and family as her son slowly died of a "birth defect" from the age of 4 til about 9 (I think he was almost 10). That was a long hard road—as a teenager and college student I learned how to PRAY in ways I never would have. We then rejoiced with the family as they rescued two sibling groups from the foster system and brought them into our family. What amazing and beautiful people all of these "new" cousins are! Then we walked with them as my aunt's then husband walked away from the whole family and the Lord. This family has suffered. The loss of a son and brother was tough. The other kids have their individual burdens from the broken family units they came from. They were then brought into a "whole" family and introduced to the Lord and then it all fell apart. My aunt lost her husband of 19 years and was left with 7 kids. All the kids lost a father (he is not active in their lives currently). I would say in many ways they continue to suffer as they also strive to heal and live.

My husband's sister died suddenly in a car accident 4 months before I met him. She left behind a daughter who got caught in a terrible custody battle (that went on for several years) and lost a large part of her childhood in the process. She is a beautiful girl who is now settled and happy with Ralph's bro and SIL, but she has endured much and will be marked by her experiences forever. The family has suffered much through all of this and in some ways always will.

These are just a few of the ways that I and those I love have suffered. Every time I read Job it changes for me. I see and hear new things. I understand Job's wife SO much better than when I was younger. I can just imagine if we lost everything and then you added a serious illness that Ralph was suffering with. I might be tempted to say "Let's just end it—curse God so that He can strike us down and end all of this!" I pray that I have learned from her and from my sister and aunt and Ralph's parents and mine through all of these (plus those I didn't mention) situations and that I would be more like David. I do, however, understand where her statement comes from. I understand Job and his friends in ways I never did before. I feel more able to evaluate Job's statements than I did BEFORE. BEFORE I felt as if, "Who am I? He was a very godly man who went through unspeakable things. He gets to say whatever he wants in my opinion!" NOW, I see the whining. I see him glorify God and then say "but I'm going to whine anyway." I see his friends (as least in the beginning) as less judgmental than I remembered but more pushy and blunt than I think they should have been. Grief and suffering addles one's brain and makes a person very sensitive. I think they should have used more tact and silence. Don't talk so much to someone who is hurting so much!

I am only through chapter 10. I will read 11-14 today. If I have more to add, I'll let you know. ;-)