Thanksgiving At Our House.

Nat and I hosted my family for Thanksgiving on Wednesday with an Italian menu. Wow, talk about being anti-tradition;o). We didn't want to "turkey" everyone out since my brothers/sister were all going to their in-laws on Thursday, plus we had received as a wedding gift a gift certificate to a local Italian catering place, so we chose to use it on Wednesday. Our apartment is small, but we fit 12 people in just fine and had lots of fun in the process:o).

If you look on the wall to the left, you'll see a bunch of pictures in a wall hanging. My brother laughed when he first came in, because every single picture in that hanging is of Nat's family (minus one of Nat and I). I jokingly told my brother it's because my family is all local and we see them often enough not to need their photos on the wall;). I actually have to just go find a frame that will look just right, but I haven't found one yet.

My husband loves to help and jumped right in to help with the meal... what a guy;).

Chatting and hanging out

These two willingly offered to do the dishes... yay! I think I caught my brother off guard though:).

Within 5 minutes of coming in, my niece managed to get candy juice all over her outfit... hence the onesie!

Ethan playing Apples to Apples - toddler version;o).

My sister-in-law Ann playing Apples to Apples the real way!

Apparently something was funny to Tom...:)

All in all, we had a marvelous time with my family. I'm so glad that we could work out schedules to visit with my family on Wednesday and Nat's extended family on Thursday... yummy times!

Off.

All week long I was holding my breath just waiting for that question to be asked: could you work Saturday? It came oh-so-close yesterday, but it was never asked!

My sweetie and I are enjoying a quiet Saturday together with no program, major plans, or (and this is the best part) work schedules! It's rare that we're both off on the same day since I work just about every Saturday and he works every Tuesday and Thursday (my days off) so we started this day off by sleeping in... which we actually accomplished! Now at 10:30, we're ready to start the day - IKEA here we come!

Confession.

Apparently confession is good for the soul, but I think that might have more to do with some church of old being steeped in tradition. Regardless of the origin of that statement, I shall do a little confessing on this blog of mine!

• Vacations are horrible, horrible, horrible in one area: weight. I'm so sorry to admit this, but both Nat and I gained weight on our little vacation to the mid-west. We're chalking it up to too much junk food and not enough veggies and exercise. We are very glad to be home now and I have stocked my fridge full of yummy fruits and vegetables. Now if I could just get rid of the chips, pretzels, and chocolate that found their way into our kitchen.
• Ironically enough, I did enjoy three little chocolate-covered black licorice bites that were simply delish! For our engagement anniversary, my husband bought two 1-pound bags of chocolate-covered pretzels (in a word: fabulous!) and a pound bag of those licorice bites that are too tasty. I'm going to have to have some family or friends over to finish them off!
• When the Kohls envelope comes in the mail, Nat and I play a little game of who has the bigger discount. He won yesterday by scoring 30% off (compared to my measly 15% off), but I think I actually won today by finding some boots on sale at Kohls! Teamed up with his discount coupon, I was very satisfied with my shopping. I also bought him a package of dress socks to celebrate our 4-month wedding anniversary because I'm romantic like that;o).
• I promised pictures of our apartment but was waiting on some curtains for our bathroom to be hemmed (yet another confession: I don't sew. GASP!) Amanda finished the curtains (thank you muchly, Amanda!), but I haven't taken pictures yet. I don't remember why now, but it sure was a good excuse this afternoon:o).

I better stop there because the little orange light is blinking so I think that means my battery is going to cease to exist soon. 'Night!

*The* Story.

When people asked me where we were going on vacation, I always managed to confuse people with the answer: Indiana, Wisconsin, and Texas. Most people followed the whole Indiana/Wisconsin concept, but Texas normally brought about a "whaaa?" moment. Naturally:o).

My in-laws live in Texas as well as some good friends of ours, so we decided to go now to do our holiday visiting, rather than during the actual holidays. Working at a bakery doesn't allow a lot of wiggle room for trips in the midst of the busiest time of the year!

We chose to make the 11 hour drive to Indiana to spend time with my brother and his family, drove the 3 hours to Wisconsin to spend the day with Nat's brother and his wife and also a college friend of mine, drove back to Indiana, and then flew to Texas. We were going to take our car to the airport, but then decided my brother or his wife could use it while we were gone so we left it at their house. My sweet sister-in-law dutifully drove the hour to Chicago Midway Airport to drop us off and wished us a happy time in Texas. At least I think she did. Since this took place at the crazy hour of 7 AM, I was barely functioning:o).

We did have a happy time in Texas (for those of you who were wondering) and we were finishing out our trip with a missionary friend of ours in Fort Worth when we got a phone call. My brother very nonchalantly asked me when our flight returned to Chicago and then asked me if I wanted to talk to my sister-in-law. When she got on the phone, her voice was raspy and muddled. She proceeded to tell me she just had a surgery because there was an accident, but I must admit the first thing I said was, "No way! You're joking with me... quit it!" She tends to be a prankster:o).

She actually wasn't though (surprise!) and when my brother got back on the phone, I asked him what in the world happened. He replied, "it's complicated... there was a car accident in the driveway. I'll tell you tomorrow." Uh-oh. I got off the phone and told Nat I just had this feeling our car was involved with her accident.

When *the* story finally came out, it was quite *the* story. Now my brother has to be the most laid-back man in the world, because he didn't seem fazed at all. I know that's not really true deep down inside, but there wasn't a frazzled reaction on the outside at all! But back to *the* story. My sister-in-law had used our car Wednesday morning, but left a light on so that drained the battery. That afternoon she was going to take her son out to eat but had to first jump our car with her car (which my niece had to use to get to work). Since the battery in her car is in the back, she told her son to back her car up to our car to jump it. Meanwhile she spotted something in the backseat of our car and went to quick grab it. As she leaned half-way into the car (with the door open), my nephew backed up her car and hit our car door. The car door closed in on her leg, but of course he had no idea. All he was thinking was, "Oh man, I'm in big trouble" so he just sat there. That whole time the car door was on her leg and she was praying for him to pull forward. After 15 seconds he finally did, much to her relief!

Her leg instantly swelled up into what looked like a drumstick around her calf to her ankle. If it had been any higher, it would've severed it off (details I'm sure you're glad I'm sharing!) or even cut off the main artery that would've killed her. As it was, she went through surgery on her leg, hoping to relieve a big chunk of pressure. There was still the possibility of amputation if infection set in, but we are so grateful that was not the case!

The doctor is giving her a 3-month recovery period, which is a long time to not walk. But that's a better option compared to not being able to walk ever again!

Obviously our main concern was making sure she was going to be alright. Once we were fairly certain she was, we looked into fixing our door. While not the biggest deal at the moment, it would've made the 11 hour trip home windy, to say the least! The bottom part was bent at a weird angle (thank you leg), so Nat got on the phone to see if he could find a replacement door. He knew the salvage place here in PA didn't have any parts for our car, but the Lord directed him to the right salvage place out in Indiana who had a matching door! Saturday morning Nat and my nephew spent a couple of hours putting the door on and we left soon after to return to Pennsylvania, minus the wind blowing through:o). Isn't God good???

Soon after my brother told us about the accident, Nat and I had a couple of minutes to ourselves. He instantly said it was no use playing the "what if....?" game ("what if we had taken our car to the airport?"). Instead we started to pray. Pray for those involved and for issues that God was dealing with. Would I choose to have this situation play out again? If God would get the glory, then yes! We serve such a mighty God Who knows all things and I'm excited to see what He is going to do through this situation!!!

HOME!

Well, hello there!

In case you haven't noticed, *ahem* I've been gone for a little bit... or actually a while. My husband and I were traipsing around the USA, or so my brother thinks! In reality, we were gone for 12 days and visited 4 states. I seriously DOUBT that would be considered a cross-country tour, but I suppose it is to someone who never travels:o).

This trip included lots of family time.... and adventures..... and some "huh?" moments, but all in all we made it safely home! I leave for work in a little bit, but I have quite the story to share - tomorrow!

One Year!

One year ago tomorrow (which is technically in 37 minutes), my sweetheart asked me to marry him! You all left such sweet comments, and we were overwhelmed with how many friends from all over the world rejoiced with us. (By the way, if you're curious how Nat and I met and got engaged, I have a book for you to read: "The Cliff-Hanger Series!")

As I look over the past year, I see tons of growth in our relationship. But if there is one thing I can pass on to other girls from my year of experience, I would say the best thing ever for our relationship has been ending each and every night in prayer together. That became a challenge at various times when we were on trips, but we always made it work somehow!

I can't imagine life without Nat. Truly we have become one and that's the way God intended it to be. He's my very best friend, a good husband and leader, and is always sensitive to the Lord and His Will. Nat can make me laugh at anything and sends my heart fluttering every single time he reaches for my hand.

♥Happy Anniversary, Sweetie!♥

Making Fall Memories.

While I don't remember this, my brother assured me that I definitely did go to pumpkin patches when I was younger. I'm taking his word over my memory, and chalking it up to "big brother experiences."

Nat and I went to a pumpkin "patch" nearby - more like 10 acres of pumpkins - but that's besides the point. We went with my brother, sister, and their families and had a blast! It was fun going on a hayride to the pumpkin fields and watching my niece's eyes light up with wonder:). Good times!

~Ann (sis-in-law), Phil (brother), Nat and me~

~Out in the fields trying to find the perfect pumpkin, according to my nephew Ethan~

~We even found our own pumpkin to take home:)~

What A Weekend!

I may be very biased, but I believe I am a part of the best church in the world! This past weekend was one to be tucked away into the memory box, to be pulled out time and time again in the future.

Friday night I got in on the tail end of the prep work for the appreciation banquet for my pastor, but I'm so glad I did! What a blessing to look around and see ladies I dearly love helping to pull this banquet together. Banquets are a lot of work because that means transforming our auditorium into a banquet hall. I think the results were absolutely beautiful:

While no one person can take the credit for this banquet, it helped to have a very organized lady in charge of the decorations:).

Loved the centerpieces!

Seeing all these pies brought back memories from my wedding three months ago... thankfully all the church ladies pitched in and brought a pie:).

Sunday was just an all-around terrific day. I started a new motivational program in my Sunday School class, the choir sang a song that I just couldn't get out of my head all week ("Hallelujah, 'Tis Done!"), Pastor Roland preached a thought-provoking message on the last statement Jesus made on the cross - "It Is Finished" - and of course there was the "Light the World" sending service at night.

Pastor Roland started with Adam and Eve and how sin plunged the whole world into darkness. Of course our entire auditorium went dark at that point. Pastor then started walking through the patriarchs, the judges, prophets, etc. and lit a match for each one. But the match only burned for a little while before it went out. When Pastor Roland came to Jesus, he light a center candle and from there lit candles for the church at Jerusalem, the church at Antioch, and so on. It's so neat to be able to trace my church's history back to Welsh Christians who came and settled in the Philadelphia region.

Anyway, from there Pastor Roland went through all the missionaries my church supports, including the families sent from my church. Each teen from the youth group had a candle that represented a certain missionary and walked to different parts of the auditorium with their candle burning. I always get the shivers when I look around the room and see so many teens holding candles. But then comes the reminder that there is still much darkness that needs light shed upon it.

The final candle of the evening was lit by Pastor-now-missionary Doug Hammett and his wife. We as a church are so excited for them as the follow the Lord's leading!

Good-byes must always be said though, and my church family did that very thing! I must say one of the many good things about sitting so close to the front is I got to get up there and say my good-byes right away:).

They head out Tuesday for the mission field of Botswana!!!

Up...

.... and I'm not quite sure why! Hmm, must've been that cheese dip we had for a snack after church tonight.

Since I'm not in the land of sleep being oh-so-productive, and since I just heard the cuckoo clock from my neighbor's house downstairs strike one, I figure some late-night musings and ramblings are well in order! I'm actually procrastinating on a project that needs to get done, but that's what tomorrow is for, right? Umm, right.

In random news, Sunday evening our blissful sleep was interrupted with a 12:51 AM phone call. I must say I was almost patting myself on the back for being strangely alert through my sleepiness when I saw the name on the caller id: *very pregnant friend*. One quick return phone call to her and hubby and I were out the door to pick up her two-year-old son and bring him home with us. One very quick hour later, she welcomed her daughter into the world. Yeah, that's the kind of delivery I want to have: quick and well, not-so-painless, but at least quick!

Since the baby was three weeks early, that meant things were nowhere near as ready as my friend hoped to be in making the transition smooth for her son to come to our house. So we dutifully grabbed a pack-n-play, which turned out to be quite worthless that first night:). Little two-year-old boy was a bit disoriented and strangely enough (ha!) did not take too well to being in a newish place. We were bordering on sleep deprivation and chose to take the sanity route by bringing him to bed with us. Who knew that a two-year-old boy could actually take up the entire queen size bed, leaving us to cling to the edges? I finally got smart in the wee morning hours and moved said little guy to the one side of the bed where he had exactly 6 inches to sprawl:o).

Our plan for night #2 was to wear him out before bed, which my husband did quite well. We thought we had the system beat... until we put him in the pack-n-play and began our prayer time. Let's just say prayer time was sprinkled with lots of "Mommmmmmmmmmy!! Dadddddddy!!!!" With the hope of him crying himself to sleep fading away, I went to the pack-n-play and made sure little guy knew Mommy and Daddy would be seen.... tomorrow. The sniffles and tears subsided and 9.5 hours were passed in peaceful slumber, much to our relief and in answer to prayer!

Although definitely not planned for this week, I'm glad that baby girl is born and little guy has been babysat. I'd rather have everything be completely busy in one week (case in point: this week!) and leave next week wide, wide open:).

Later today Nat and I are going to Philadelphia and Sight and Sound, making for a very full Thursday. In a twist I still don't understand, we're following the school bus from our Christian school to a museum in Philadelphia. Apparently there is no parking available for buses at this museum (what a concept), so Nat is going to drive the bus from the museum to some parking lot half-way across town. Strange. Since we planned weeks ago to go to Sight and Sound, the school principal suggested the idea of bringing our own car so we can take off for Lancaster County once Nat has returned the bus to the museum - where the principal will take back over in driving the bus back to school.

We actually spent the day in Philadelphia two months ago and did the touristy thing, so I'm not exactly sure what we're going to do for the four hours we have to kill while waiting for the students to go through the museum. I'm sure it'll involve food and chocolate though:o).

I get to work Friday and Saturday and in the midst of all of that, I'm helping with preparing for a banquet for Rachel and her family. They head out next week for Botswana, so my church is doing an appreciation banquet on Saturday night, which means prep work on Friday night:o). Sunday will be a busy (and emotional!) day as we hold a sending service called, "Light the World." This type of church service is only held when we send a missionary family to the mission field, but they have been some of the most impacting church services I have ever been in.

Missions has always been the heartbeat of my church, and right now we have missionaries coming and going. One missionary family to Chile has been home for a month and they leave tomorrow to go back to Chile. Of course Rachel's family goes to Botswana next week, just as another missionary family -- the Wilhites -- return from 8 months of furlough travel around the USA. Then they will return to South Africa sometime in November. Another missionary family to Chile is planning to return to the States on furlough sometime within the next 3-4 months. I feel so blessed to be a part of a church that is active in missions and sending families from our own church. Of course we greatly miss these families, but technology has greatly improved over the last ten years that it is so easy to stay in contact with our families... almost too easy sometimes. All these communication tools and methods at my fingertips and I still sometimes fail in keeping in touch with missionaries.

So I said all that to say it's going to be a busy weekend! For now though I think I better go try to get some sleep or I'm not going to be very productive through this busy weekend:o).

Rain, Not Snow.

It's raining. I'm not complaining, just mentioning a fact. A friend at work and I were talking today about the ratio of rain to snow in inches and realized if all this rain was snow, we could potentially have 30 inches of snow. That thought made me happy, until my manager commented that we would both still have to go to work since we're within walking distance. Oh yeah:).

But it is raining, not snowing. For some reason, that makes me think of lists, but I'm not sure why. So here's a list:

• I am happy to be at home with my husband, although he is in the other room diligently working on his Bible Institute course.
• I'm grateful for a cozy, little apartment to call home.
• We had some friends over after church on Wednesday and we enjoyed the fellowship so much (hopefully not enough to keep Amanda and her family up though!).
• I'm terribly excited about going to the Bloomsburg Fair! My family and I have gone for the past 20+ years (give or take a few years!) and I knew it was something I wanted to introduce to Nat:o). We were planning on going today until we saw the weather report that used words like "heavy rains" and "accumulating" and "2-3 inches" all within the same sentence. That was enough to make us change our plans until Saturday when it's supposed to be sunny and 67 degrees. Bring on the funnel cake and sausage sandwich!
• Bath and Body Works has come out with some incredible candle scents that have made me happy! This one is my absolute favorite! (And my husband loves it too:o).

In short, it has been a delicious fall evening that's just about to get better... we're going to have ice cream:o).