Let me paint you a picture of a relaxing and lovely weekend, spending time at the lake with my wife. This was the first time we were able to stay together for a few days out there. There weren't a lot of people around and the conversations and the fun we had was special.
But then we come to Saturday afternoon. I, (JC) decided to brave the lake and actually swim. I wasn't wearing my contacts because I don't have goggles yet. Thus I was wearing glasses. Swimming out to the dock wasn't too bad. The motions came back to me and even though I was tired, I felt good about it. Sitting on the dock, goofing off with some kids and my wife, I was having fun.
Then, I decided to go back into the water. Thinking I was able to slide off the dock gently, I sat down and pushed off. Yeah, gently was not the way I exited that floating piece of wood. I went under. I came up, shaking my head. I heard my wife yell something about glasses and then they sunk!
I felt a decidedly sad sense of loss. And even after Brianna made a valiant effort to find them with her snorkel gear, they were gone forever.
I have heard tales of giant pike in this lake. Makes me wonder if my glasses are now being used on one of the ancient scholarly fish...
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Monday, August 29, 2011
"Before You Plan Your Wedding, Plan Your Marriage" Review
Greg and Erin Smalley are relationship speakers who have written this book with the engaged couple in mind. The writing style is very conversational, telling stories about how their engagement and marriage worked, giving good examples of how not to solve problems as well as how to solve those problems.
We took a long time working through this book, just because we wanted to read it aloud to one another. In the middle of wedding planning was both a good time and a bad time to try to read this book. A good time because we were dealing with some of the examples they gave. A bad time because we were simply too busy, especially the last week, to finish it. That said, we did get most of the book done before the wedding and just now finished it up.
A few of the points that I pulled from the book:
- Make a safe place. Don't be harsh to one another and cause walls to go up. If you are in a safe place relationally, that allows you to hold your heart out and trust the other person.
- Know yourself and deal with your own problems. Don't expect your spouse to solve your issues. You have a responsibility to yourself and to your spouse to be healthy, both emotionally and spiritually.
- We all have buttons that get pushed. Get to know what your buttons are and why they hurt. Deal with it and don't get caught in a fear dance. Fear dancing is basically entering into a conflict and letting your buttons get pushed and then you push the other person's and the dance goes on.
- Find ways to be a team and make decisions in a win-win way. What does a win look like for you in this situation? Sorta a compromise but not in a one person losing type of a way.
Five Stars!
Saturday, August 20, 2011
All settled!!!
It feels so wonderful to finally be settled in our little place! My house is clean (mostly... the bathroom still needs some attention) and I am organized and all unpacked. Yahoo!!! This little basement suite definitely feels like home! It has been fairly busy the last couple days... busy but fun though. I've gone grocery shopping several times, organized and cleaned the bedroom, kitchen, living room, unpacked boxes and boxes of stuff, and done about 5 loads of laundry. I've also spent lots of time snuggling with my hubby on the couch and we did sleep in til 10:30 this morning... so I wasn't that terribly busy. :)
I've had the most fun making use of my new kitchen! I've always shared a kitchen with Mom and Becky, which is fun... (cooking with Mom is still one my favorite things to do) but there is something that just feels really good about organizing it exactly how I want and not having to bump into someone else every couple seconds. (If JC comes into the kitchen I do usually end up bumping into him, but for some reason I don't mind at all) :) I think JC is also really enjoying the fact that I like my kitchen, cause I keep making him treats... Carrot cake with cream cheese icing, chocolate chip cookies, homemade salsa, waffles with raspberry sauce, veggie and cheese omelets, roasted lime and basil potatoes, and there is currently a pot of Hungarian goulash simmering on the stove as we speak. This kitchen is definitely encouraging my creative side! :)
Oh, on a side note, in response to Lisa's request, here is my recipe for roasted basil and lime potatoes: (I never have used a recipe for this, it's always just whatever amount looks right to me, but these are just the amounts I ended up using yesterday... feel free to modify as you like :)
7 c. diced potatoes (I usually do pieces about 1/2" to 1"... somewhere in that range)
1/3 c. chopped fresh basil (can use more if you want)
Juice from 2 limes
4 garlic cloves, finely minced.
4 tbsp. olive oil
Pour the olive oil over the diced potatoes and stir until they're coated. Add the basil, lime and garlic and stir well. I sometimes sprinkle a little bit of sea salt on top too. Bake for about 45 minutes at 400 degrees or until the potatoes are tender. I put the broiler on after that for about 15 minutes, stirring the potatoes every 5 mins, just to make them a bit crisp. You can roast the potatoes normally and then just add the lime and basil before you serve them, but I find the potatoes absorb more of the flavor if you roast them in the lime and basil.
Now that we're all settled, we have one more day and then it's back to normal life again. I am not looking forward to going back to work after 2.5 weeks of holidays, but I am somewhat wanting the routine that my workweek brings. We'll get to see how we both handle "normal" life as a married couple. It will definitely be different!
Well, my wonderful man is sitting on the couch looking very handsome and irresistible... I think it's time to go join him! :D
I've had the most fun making use of my new kitchen! I've always shared a kitchen with Mom and Becky, which is fun... (cooking with Mom is still one my favorite things to do) but there is something that just feels really good about organizing it exactly how I want and not having to bump into someone else every couple seconds. (If JC comes into the kitchen I do usually end up bumping into him, but for some reason I don't mind at all) :) I think JC is also really enjoying the fact that I like my kitchen, cause I keep making him treats... Carrot cake with cream cheese icing, chocolate chip cookies, homemade salsa, waffles with raspberry sauce, veggie and cheese omelets, roasted lime and basil potatoes, and there is currently a pot of Hungarian goulash simmering on the stove as we speak. This kitchen is definitely encouraging my creative side! :)
Oh, on a side note, in response to Lisa's request, here is my recipe for roasted basil and lime potatoes: (I never have used a recipe for this, it's always just whatever amount looks right to me, but these are just the amounts I ended up using yesterday... feel free to modify as you like :)
7 c. diced potatoes (I usually do pieces about 1/2" to 1"... somewhere in that range)
1/3 c. chopped fresh basil (can use more if you want)
Juice from 2 limes
4 garlic cloves, finely minced.
4 tbsp. olive oil
Pour the olive oil over the diced potatoes and stir until they're coated. Add the basil, lime and garlic and stir well. I sometimes sprinkle a little bit of sea salt on top too. Bake for about 45 minutes at 400 degrees or until the potatoes are tender. I put the broiler on after that for about 15 minutes, stirring the potatoes every 5 mins, just to make them a bit crisp. You can roast the potatoes normally and then just add the lime and basil before you serve them, but I find the potatoes absorb more of the flavor if you roast them in the lime and basil.
Now that we're all settled, we have one more day and then it's back to normal life again. I am not looking forward to going back to work after 2.5 weeks of holidays, but I am somewhat wanting the routine that my workweek brings. We'll get to see how we both handle "normal" life as a married couple. It will definitely be different!
Well, my wonderful man is sitting on the couch looking very handsome and irresistible... I think it's time to go join him! :D
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Shopping
I woke up the other day expecting a nice quiet morning, maybe a little shopping in town, and some snuggle time with my honey. Instead I was subjected to a ritual that baffles every man's mind. That is the all day Shopping Trip!! (Cue ominous drums here).
We had been blessed by a substantial amount of money from our wedding. We had a list of rather large items that were needed for our apartment.
The first stop was a furniture warehouse. This wasn't too bad. We made our decisions fairly fast and I had a nice place to relax while waiting for the details to be made. Hey, I can handle this!
The second stop consisted of checking out a couple stores to see if they had pantries or microwave carts... They didn't. My feet hurt. Oh boy.
Third stop was Home Depot! Now this is a place I can handle. The pantry and the cube shelf were found here. Okay, nice...
Fourth stop was Walmart and we spent a lot of time here looking for what we needed. Did you know that a BBQ box can balance on the top of a cart? We also found the rest of the big items here for decent prices. Tiring out, but satisfied. The back of the Caliber is filling up...
The last stop, the place that Brianna claims brings happiness to a woman's shopping soul: Bed, Bath and Beyond!! My very masculinity quakes as I enter this store... (Add some mournful wind instruments to the drums). We spent the rest of the afternoon here, getting most of what we wanted from what was left on the registry (neat thing is that we get 10% off for a year - so gift cards go a long way...). More nice knives, a duvet cover and set, pillows, and many other things that began to blur together.
Finally, the money is spent, the car is stuffed to the brim (thanks to my Dad for showing me over the years how to pack a vehicle), and we return to home!
Now, I have to admit that while it was a long day and I was dragging my feet, I did have fun. Getting to see the blessings from others take a more tangible form was extremely cool. I survived the intense shopping day and I still love my wife!
Just don't ask me to spend that much again.... *grins*
We had been blessed by a substantial amount of money from our wedding. We had a list of rather large items that were needed for our apartment.
The first stop was a furniture warehouse. This wasn't too bad. We made our decisions fairly fast and I had a nice place to relax while waiting for the details to be made. Hey, I can handle this!
The second stop consisted of checking out a couple stores to see if they had pantries or microwave carts... They didn't. My feet hurt. Oh boy.
Third stop was Home Depot! Now this is a place I can handle. The pantry and the cube shelf were found here. Okay, nice...
Fourth stop was Walmart and we spent a lot of time here looking for what we needed. Did you know that a BBQ box can balance on the top of a cart? We also found the rest of the big items here for decent prices. Tiring out, but satisfied. The back of the Caliber is filling up...
The last stop, the place that Brianna claims brings happiness to a woman's shopping soul: Bed, Bath and Beyond!! My very masculinity quakes as I enter this store... (Add some mournful wind instruments to the drums). We spent the rest of the afternoon here, getting most of what we wanted from what was left on the registry (neat thing is that we get 10% off for a year - so gift cards go a long way...). More nice knives, a duvet cover and set, pillows, and many other things that began to blur together.
Finally, the money is spent, the car is stuffed to the brim (thanks to my Dad for showing me over the years how to pack a vehicle), and we return to home!
Now, I have to admit that while it was a long day and I was dragging my feet, I did have fun. Getting to see the blessings from others take a more tangible form was extremely cool. I survived the intense shopping day and I still love my wife!
Just don't ask me to spend that much again.... *grins*
Monday, August 15, 2011
Honeymoon!
Well, the honeymoon is over, but it was an absolutely awesome week! We got to spend the wedding night at the Prairie Creek Inn, a gorgeous little 4.5 star B&B just outside of Rocky... a very much appreciated and secret wedding gift from my parents. It was wonderful! We left from there and traveled onto Canmore for a whole week in a beautiful condo with an awesome mountain view. We spent a lot of time relaxing and enjoying ourselves and seeing the sights Banff has to offer.
My favorite day was definitely Wednesday. We were both fully awake at 5 am (getting used to having someone else in your bed makes for weird sleeping patterns) and JC had the idea to quickly get ready and go and watch the sunrise from the top of Mt. Norquay in Banff. I definitely did NOT like the idea at first... my bed was waaaay too warm and comfy to want to leave it for the top of a mountain at that ungodly hour of the morning, but I figured I would agree to be spontaneous and just do it. We quickly left the condo, travel mugs of coffee in hand, and made the drive to the top of the mountain just in time. It was beautiful! I'm glad JC persuaded me to go!
One thing I have discovered is that JC likes to do things that stretch me and take me out of my comfort zone.... like Friday evening for instance. JC loves trying strange new food, especially anything ethnic. Needless to say, 99% of the time, I do not! He is fully willing to try just about anything, while I will order the same thing off of a menu 6 times before I branch out to try something new. So Friday evening he wants to go out for sushi. *insert intensely grossed out face here* I did not relish the idea of eating raw fish at all while he was excitedly anticipating it all day long. Ok, so I figured I'd allow myself to be stretched and try to be brave, so I put a smile on my face and went with him to this little sushi place in Canmore. (My stomach was already feeling gross by the time we got there... its amazing what your brain can do when you're imagining horrible things) We ordered a bunch of stuff to try, some Miso soup (which was actually very good), assorted tempura (fairly decent), seaweed salad (ewwwww... tasted like tangy strings of chewy slime) and of course, sushi. I bravely ate one California Roll and I had a bite of his BBQ Eel wrapped in seaweed thing. I actually survived! Did I like either of them? Nope! But I did manage to at least chew and swallow them. They weren't too awful and if I had to, I could probably eat them again, but not of my own free will. So, score one for JC being able to make me eat something weird and step out of my comfort zone. Hmm, 5 days of married life and he is already stretching me.... this could be interesting.
Although, now he's the one who gets to be stretched when he opens his closet every morning and sees 60% of it occupied by my clothes and shoes.... not to mention the girly stuff he sees every time he opens a drawer in the bathroom. Bwahahaha! :D
My favorite day was definitely Wednesday. We were both fully awake at 5 am (getting used to having someone else in your bed makes for weird sleeping patterns) and JC had the idea to quickly get ready and go and watch the sunrise from the top of Mt. Norquay in Banff. I definitely did NOT like the idea at first... my bed was waaaay too warm and comfy to want to leave it for the top of a mountain at that ungodly hour of the morning, but I figured I would agree to be spontaneous and just do it. We quickly left the condo, travel mugs of coffee in hand, and made the drive to the top of the mountain just in time. It was beautiful! I'm glad JC persuaded me to go!
One thing I have discovered is that JC likes to do things that stretch me and take me out of my comfort zone.... like Friday evening for instance. JC loves trying strange new food, especially anything ethnic. Needless to say, 99% of the time, I do not! He is fully willing to try just about anything, while I will order the same thing off of a menu 6 times before I branch out to try something new. So Friday evening he wants to go out for sushi. *insert intensely grossed out face here* I did not relish the idea of eating raw fish at all while he was excitedly anticipating it all day long. Ok, so I figured I'd allow myself to be stretched and try to be brave, so I put a smile on my face and went with him to this little sushi place in Canmore. (My stomach was already feeling gross by the time we got there... its amazing what your brain can do when you're imagining horrible things) We ordered a bunch of stuff to try, some Miso soup (which was actually very good), assorted tempura (fairly decent), seaweed salad (ewwwww... tasted like tangy strings of chewy slime) and of course, sushi. I bravely ate one California Roll and I had a bite of his BBQ Eel wrapped in seaweed thing. I actually survived! Did I like either of them? Nope! But I did manage to at least chew and swallow them. They weren't too awful and if I had to, I could probably eat them again, but not of my own free will. So, score one for JC being able to make me eat something weird and step out of my comfort zone. Hmm, 5 days of married life and he is already stretching me.... this could be interesting.
Although, now he's the one who gets to be stretched when he opens his closet every morning and sees 60% of it occupied by my clothes and shoes.... not to mention the girly stuff he sees every time he opens a drawer in the bathroom. Bwahahaha! :D
Friday, August 12, 2011
The Beginning
The day had come! JC stood at the altar watching for his bride to come in. He bounces a little as the anticipation builds! This moment had been waited for and thought about for many days, weeks, months... No backing out now, even if he wanted to. This was it! The thoughts that had been going through his mind came back to him... Could he do this? Could he step up and be the leader, the man of this marriage? Could he take that responsibility? And, since those thoughts had been laid to rest in Christ, he knew he could. Even when mistakes are made, he knows that he can rest in Christ and the identity as a son of God.
There she is! Bright and shining! The ivory dress is absolutely beautiful, but pales in comparison to her eyes and her smile!
The ceremony goes on, and JC pledges his love to Brianna. They both state their faith, that Jesus is the foundation of their marriage. The ring is given as a circle of love and not a shackle. The vows bind them together under God. John (JC's Dad) blesses them and gives them a quarterstaff as both a symbol of JC's place as a protector and that God is the one to give him, give them strength.
Unity is pledged by the pouring of the sand. They are now one and to pull them apart won't work. JC and Brianna then take their first Communion together, reminding them of Jesus' sacrifice and the redemption found in Him. He is their Rock and their Foundation.
It's time now and they are presented as Mr. and Mrs. JC Reagan!!!
This is the beginning of a new and exciting journey!
There she is! Bright and shining! The ivory dress is absolutely beautiful, but pales in comparison to her eyes and her smile!
The ceremony goes on, and JC pledges his love to Brianna. They both state their faith, that Jesus is the foundation of their marriage. The ring is given as a circle of love and not a shackle. The vows bind them together under God. John (JC's Dad) blesses them and gives them a quarterstaff as both a symbol of JC's place as a protector and that God is the one to give him, give them strength.
Unity is pledged by the pouring of the sand. They are now one and to pull them apart won't work. JC and Brianna then take their first Communion together, reminding them of Jesus' sacrifice and the redemption found in Him. He is their Rock and their Foundation.
It's time now and they are presented as Mr. and Mrs. JC Reagan!!!
This is the beginning of a new and exciting journey!
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