Wedding Season and Marriage Advice May 14, 2013

Anyone who has been through it before will tell you that there is a season in life when the majority of your friends get married. And while I can’t definitively say that this is it for Freddy and me, I’m thinking this it! So far this year, Freddy and I have been honored to receive 8+ wedding invitations. We aren’t able to attend every single one, unfortunately, but the commitments being made among our friends are awesome! Freddy and I are huge advocates of marriage and will be the first ones to tell anyone that marriage can be an incredible blessing when you put the work into it!

The number of upcoming nuptials has really gotten me thinking about marriage; the wedding process; choosing a life partner; and the power of centering that marriage on a strong, shared faith. There are so many opinions regarding marriage out there and what make up the keys to success but I’m going to ignore all that research and tell you about my experience – albeit young experience.

Our preparation for the big day started with a 6 week marriage prep course at our church. We met with other couples preparing for the plunge and talked about all of the hot topics: money, family, expectations, roles, sex, children, etc. We covered it all in a faith-filled environment and I highly encourage anyone considering marriage to do the same! Of course some of the assignments seemed tedious or better geared for some other couple at times, but in the end, those courses are what you make them. Freddy and I decided up front that we would take the course seriously instead of view it as a check box on the wedding list and it led us into some deep discussions as well as a ton of lighthearted laughter.

We shared our wedding day with the friends and family that could attend and vowed to God, each other, and our guests that we would have a God-centered marriage until one of us is called home. Begin our year+ of chaos. Despite our discussions about expectations early on, those expectations still managed to overshadow reality and create conflict. We butted heads over a lot over topics that ranged from clothes on the floor, to organization vs. cleaning, and how to love each other in a way that filled the recipient. We stormed out and came back, yelled and got quiet but we continued to go to church on Sundays to keep us in line. This is important because although God is with you in the week, it can be difficult to see that connected triangle between God, you, and your spouse when you’re fighting with him. When Sunday morning rolls around and you share the same ride home from the church, however, you cannot help but be humbled and connected. (That’s the amazing thing about a God-filled marriage – God is more powerful than our pettiness or hurt or sin and He will work to grow your relationship with your spouse).

Along with the difficulties of year one, Freddy and I also had more laughs than you could count, more learning and growing, and a new look into love. Falling in love is awesome but it can be clumsy and haphazard and full of fleeting emotion. Developing love takes more time and effort but it has become one of my favorite activities. Another way to look at it is this: Falling in love is all about the rapid movement; admittedly, developing love can feel like you’re in the same spot until suddenly you wake up and look at your spouse and think, “Lord, you have blessed me through my partner in a way that I could never imagine. I love him more deeply than I have ever loved him yet and I love the person that I am becoming while sharing this life with him.”

And it always goes back to God. It has to. I don’t know how people can commit to a relationship that requires you to be as selfless and giving as marriage should without the example that Jesus set before us. It doesn’t make sense! I had someone tell me recently that he thinks (Christian) religion is for the weak but I tell you that it’s for the strong! It challenges us to seek a counter culture – one that puts aside our selfishness for a partnership – with God and with our spouse (if we are called to marriage).

But please don’t think that you have time to develop that counter cultural relationship later on after you’ve lived the life you want to live. The God foundation of your relationship is so important; you need to dig in and seek to understand starting now because there will come a time when you are so shaken by something that you need that solid foundation in God, those hours of deep conversation with your partner, of learning and growing, of taking pride in your commitment, of love and of faith to get you through. We aren’t promised an earthly forever. We aren’t promised the health of our parents or our partners. But I can promise you that if you build your foundation of God, you will find blessing. And I can promise you that if you build your foundation on God, you will begin to live the life that is full of cherished memories instead of hidden regrets. I can promise you that because it’s been promised to me and I am living the proof right now.

Freddy and I are honored to celebrate the marriages of our friends in this coming year and we are praying for each and every couple as they commit to this rewarding life in marriage!

Celine Dion March 31, 2013

I know it’s not appropriate to share about our sex life, but today I read something to Freddy from Women’s Health magazine that he thought was worth a try. I don’t think the results were quite what he had in mind…

Celine Dion “My heart will go on” via iPhone:

I love him. March 21, 2013

Some days, you feel annoyed and stressed about things or tired and ready to take out your frustration on your spouse.
Some days, you have the clarity to see that those things are separate from your beautiful life with your blessing of a husband.
I am so in love.

Garage Entry February 24, 2013

 

 

I didn’t think to take a picture of the garage entry in the beginning, but it would have been a plain brick wall with carpet. Boring. The entry space was covered in wallpaper (as you can see on the right (please excuse my short shorts)) and is now wallpaper-free with easy-to-clean tile for those wet winter boots! Freddy cut and laid the tile himself and he did an amazing job with the angles I envisioned.

The wedding board has since been repainted with a magnetic paint and a new coat of chalkboard paint; it will soon be our weekly hub for schedules, notes, and to-do lists! We got the perfectly sized bench on sale at Home Depot and moved over some throw pillows from another room. The bins were on sale at Sears (check out Sears for this type of stuff – they always have great sales on home goods!); they’re the perfect height to easily place and grab hats and gloves during the winter. The rug was a recent Target find.

 (Winston is just showing off!) 

The Heart of the Home February 23, 2013

For many families, the kitchen is the heart of the home. It’s the place that you spend the most time together and the place where a home’s love is tangible and taste-able  In our home, we make no exception. In fact, as self-proclaimed “foodies,” our love of this space is probably somewhat heightened from the norm. I mean, come on…culinary greatness happens in this space, people! (Not by my hand of course but you’d be blessed to share a meal that Freddy has cooked!)

Combine our love of food with the fact that we gutted our kitchen in mid-December and have only just had the counter tops installed and what you get is an utmost appreciation for this space. And it is a beautiful space!

When we bought the house, we had our plan laid out to refurbished the existing cabinets. A fresh coat of paint and some new handles would give it brand new appeal! That’s what we thought anyway. The counter tops looked okay and we figured it would be too much to tackle up front with all the rest of the must-complete projects on our list.

What we didn’t see in our two quick stops inside before committing to buy the house, is that the kitchen cabinets were cracked, damaged, full of don’t-touch-that tacky paper and other stains and messes. Ultimately, it looked as though we had just discovered the next big project on our hands.

Here are some “before” pictures. The first two are edited to make the space glow. It is charming, isn’t it? The last picture is not edited. It gives you a better idea of what we were really working with (although, as my mom will attest, it doesn’t do the kitchen justice). Let’s just say it wasn’t the most inviting place to house your dishes! I should have taken pictures of the insides but alas, I didn’t think about it until now.

We considered making the kitchen space work despite the intense amount of work it would take to bring the cabinets up to par but when it came time to cut up our new flooring around these existing cabinets that needed to go, we decided to bite the bullet; new cabinets were ordered.

As I mentioned earlier, we ended December sans kitchen but were fortunate enough to have a sink and some counter top space downstairs to get us through. We placed the order for cabinets just before Christmas and by the first week of January the cabinets were installed.

It happened quickly and right on schedule and we falsely believed we’d have our kitchen back in no time! Appliances were delivered as we waited on our counter tops and the days started ticking by…

Without giving you a dramatic story, the counter tops came in late but were FINALLY scheduled for Wednesday, February 13th, totaling nearly two months without a functioning kitchen. Freddy and I had a busy week that week but Freddy worked out his schedule to come home for the install.

On Tuesday, February 12th, Freddy and I had plans to celebrate Valentine’s day. He made a dinner reservation close to home and told me he had a good surprise. I came home Tuesday evening to the best Valentine’s Day surprise anyone could possibly receive: Freddy had gotten the install moved up one day and my counter tops were in place!

Beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. He had to pull me away from them so we could make our dinner date on time! Having the kitchen in place has rejuvenated Freddy on the house-front and he has been tackling project after project ever since. It’s incredible. I am certainly blessed to have such a handy man who has been able to save us a ton of money by doing it himself.

Women, find yourselves a handy man!

So there’s a look at the heart of our home. It’s still in need of a back splash, some paint, and a refurbished light fixture, but it’s otherwise perfect! We’ve also started on the dining room:

The wagon wheel is NOT a permanent fixture

2012 in review January 12, 2013

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest in 2012. This blog got about 4,800 views in 2012. If every person who reached the top of Mt. Everest viewed this blog, it would have taken 8 years to get that many views.

Click here to see the complete report.

 

Thank you, readers, for your continued support!

Catching up with the Shiers December 17, 2012

Freddy and I have been busy decking the halls and ripping up the kitchen this holiday season. You can take a wild guess on which one of us is leading the charge in either area. I’ll give you a hint: My Pandora station currently reads “Hanson (holiday)” – hahaha, don’t pretend like “Snowed In” wasn’t one of the best boy band Christmas albums you’ve never openly admitted to owning.

Anyway, the kitchen is almost completely gutted! The cabinets were the first to go, followed by the counter space, then the range, and just this weekend we cut the water. So far, so good. I’m making all the jokes but it’s really not that bad. The hardest thing is not having the range. What meal do you whip up when you’re exhausted after a long day at work and can barely get yourself into the kitchen? Grilled cheese. What if you have a lot of veggies on hand? Stir-fry. And if you’re really pressed for ideas? Pasta noodles and jar sauce. You can’t make any of those things without a range. Want some tea? Not today you don’t. You know what you can make? Peanut butter and jelly. Raw veggies. Cheese and crackers. Water. It could be worse but it’s certainly not gourmet.

Freddy is the b-e-s-t. I got him a chiropractic massage for Christmas because his back has to be aching from carrying the team! Seriously. He’s done everything to make this house a home. Except for deck the halls. That’s my job!

Some more news: Freddy and I sponsor a teen through Compassion International. Kevin is 15 and lives in the Philippines. He’s from a big family like Freddy and his birthday is a day (and several years) after mine. We’ve only exchanged one set of letters so far but we’re eager to get to know him and his family. He has been waiting quite some time for a sponsor and we’re committed! Actually, we’ve got several new relationships to grow! Freddy’s brother and sister-in-law are bringing home their babies this month! After much anticipation, prayer and waiting, some unexpected roadblocks, and the undeniable movement of the Holy Spirit in the process and people – they have been given the green light!  Twins. A boy and a girl. Kaleb and Nyah. And they are sweet! I have to gush. I am their aunt after all!

And that’s about all. We sat down and had our 2013 calendar planning this weekend – lots of weddings and fun in the works! We’ll see Freddy’s side for Christmas. And we’re otherwise just living and loving! OH – no it’s not all… We get our cabinets at the end of the year!

If that doesn’t make the season jolly, I don’t know what does!