Spring, er, Summer Cleaning

Well, if I've been kind of MIA lately it's because I've been on a cleaning rampage! It has basically taken over my life for the last two days. I've scrubbed all the floors, cleaned the kitchen appliances, dusted all the blinds and furniture, done many loads of laundry, organized the linen closet (that still has unwrapped wedding presents and a ton of junk in it), and even painted the front door red! I still have another days worth of work to do, but I'm finally starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel. My problem is, I'm big on starting a project, but then half way through, I lose interest. This is one I have to finish, though, as Nate's mom and dad are coming into town next week. I really want everything to look extra nice. Nate has been an awesome help, too. Yesterday when he got home from work, he did at least three more hours of work with me (with a quick break to have a pizza picnic outside:)). He's also really great at acknowledging all the stuff I do during the day, which is really encouraging.

I'm off to bed, as tomorrow is going to be another long day! I've included a few pictures of the house. You may never see it this clean again!

Messy Spirituality

So I just finished this book entitled Messy Spirituality. I've been meaning to read it for a while, but kept putting it off. Well, all I can say is that I wish I had read it years ago. Its central message is that God's unconditional and transforming love for us is the essence of true spirituality. He talks about how Jesus not only loves us, but He likes us too, shortcomings and all. He redeems our inconsistencies, doubts, addictions, and failures, by His unceasing grace, and transforms them into new creation. The book teaches us how to slow down and focus on the things that matter. Most importantly, it forcefully declares how we have been accepted by God through Jesus Christ. When truly believed, this becomes the most liberating piece of knowledge we could ever possess. It effectively demonstrates how our messes, are merely God's opportunities.

Wow, did I need to hear that years ago. I was always one of those people who thought, "I don't pray enough." "I don't go to church enough." " If God saw what I did today, He surely couldn't love me." I just needed to hear that there was one permanent, unconditional love in my life. And you know what; as far along in my faith as I've come in the last 6 years, I still need to be reminded.

I guess that's why my favorite passage in the bible is Ephesians 3:16-17 when Paul prays that "...you be rooted and grounded in Christ's love." The best part is the next verse that says the reason is so that you can experience and know God's love. End of story. Not so that we can pray more, not so we can be good little Christian girls and boys; purely to know God's love in our lives. If you ever wonder why the planet exists, or why God created people, you need look no further than Genesis where He says that He created us to bring glory to Himself by loving us. He wants nothing more than to love us. We are a "trophy of God's grace".

I can confidently say that His love is consistent and never falters. The problem is that we constantly test him. We say things like, "if you really love me, you will..." (insert prayer here). We try and reconfirm his love for us by answered prayers. We say things like "God, today I did really well at work; you must really love me" or "God, today I found $20 in my pocket, you must really love me". But the problem comes when we don't do so well at work, or we find ourselves broke. What happens then? What happens when you do not "feel" God? When you find yourself praying "God, do you love me? Cause I don't fee like it". You have to go back to the foundation. We are asked to live by faith, not by sight. All of those wanted reassurances are living by sight. But God says what pleases Him is our living by faith. And he gives us road signs along the way, but it's always going to come down to taking the step of faith.

God demonstrated His love for us in this way; when we were sinners, He died for us. What greater love could there be? And all for us when we did nothing to deserve it. At the cross He died for our sins, and at the cross, He gave us new life. May we spend every moment of everyday living in the permanence of God's love.

Raising Arizona

I just returned from a great girl's weekend in Arizona. My Uncle threw a surprise 60th birthday party for my Aunt and my mom, sister, and I went down to help celebrate. Being as the party wasn't until Saturday, we spent Friday night in Sedona. If you haven't been, I highly recommend it. It's a cool little town full of cowboy and indian history. There's a main road lined with little shops and cafes, and we found ourselves a room at the Best Western, and quite a nice one at that. We checked in, wandered around, and decided to eat at the Cowboy Club for dinner. I have to say, I was really impressed by both the food and the service. I was really tempted to try the Rattlesnake on the menu, but passed in lieu of calamari and duck. A couple of bottles of wine and three hours later, the three of us made our way back to the hotel.

The next morning we drove the hour and a half to my Aunt and Uncle's house in Phoenix. We helped set up tables and chairs, and started prepping the food for the party. My Uncle was so cute trying to get everything perfect, and he even built a bar for the occasion, at which I had the honor of bartending. My Aunt arrived back at the house at 3:30, and boy was she surprised. So surprised that she nearly pulled back out of the driveway. After some coaxing we got her to come into the party and a good time was definitely had by all.

The next day was spent spoiling my little cousins by taking them shopping and then we had a nice dinner out. The night ended on a high note when I kicked everyone's butt at Yahtzee! I cannot even begin to say enough wonderful things about my Aunt and Uncle. Without going into too much detail, they are probably the most generous people I know. If Nate and I can have hearts half as big as theirs, we'll be doing pretty good.

The Cowardly Lion

We just thought we'd share the joy that we gained from having our kitty cat shorn. Not only is he trimmer than we had original thought (his fur was poofy), but hopefully now he won't be a shedding machine. We hope that you get a laugh from this picture...cause we sure did!

N&B

Great Dinner

Hi all, I just wanted to share a dish I prepared for dinner tonight that both Nate and I thought turned out quite well. The measurements aren't exact, just a guideline. Also, you can definitely substitute ingredients depending on your own flavor preferences...enjoy!

Summertime Champagne Shrimp
Serves 2 (but easiely multiplied for a crowd)

Shrimp portion:
1 1/2 lb. large shrimp (13-15 count), raw, shelled, and deveined, with tails left
1 1/2 teas. lemon zest
1/4 c. minced shallots
1 c. champagne (good champagne)
1 1/2 teas. fresh thyme
2 T. olive oil
1/4 c. unsalted butter

In a saucepan, simmer the champange and minced shallots until reduced by half (about 25 minutes). You can do this ahead of time and let it cool in the saucepan.

Toss the shrimp in the oil, 1 teas. of lemon zest, 1 teas. of the thyme, salt and pepper. Refrigerate for 20 minutes, tossing a couple of times.

To cook the shrimp, oil a baking sheet and preheat the oven to 450. Lay out the shrimp and bake for about 6 minutes, or until opaque.

Reheat the sauce and whisk in the butter in three or four portions. Remove from heat and add in remaining thyme and lemon zest. Taste for seasoning.

Beans portion:
Boil 1 lb. of fresh string beans in salted water for 4-5 minutes. Saute in 1 tbsn. of unsalted butter and season with salt and pepper.

To plate, spread the beans on a serving platter and spoon some of the sauce over it. Place the shrimp on the beans and drizzle with remaining sauce. I served with garlic cous cous, but you can use any starch you prefer. And of course, enjoy the rest of the champange!

Back to the Land of the Living

Firstly, I just wanted to say "thank you" to all of you for the messages, emails, and texts wishing me luck this past week. I am happy to report that everything went great, and the recovery is going better than I thought. I was able to eat some pasta for dinner tonight and finally made it downstairs. Unfortunately, I've been confined to the pull-out chair in my mom's office for the last three nights. Much to both Nate and my dislike, I have to sleep by myself and sitting up for a week. My days have been filled with remembering to take my meds, catching up on season 4 of One Tree Hill, and spitting up blood (too much info?). Nate and my mom have been really great taking care of me, but I can't wait to get back to normal. Hopefully by next weekend.

In other news, I would like to official welcome Annabella Fern Shannon to the world. She was born on Wednesday morning, and from the pictures, looks absolutely perfect. She's also very lucky to have such a wonderful mommy and daddy in Dave and Kirsten.

Well, I can feel the medicine starting to kick in, so I better go.

xoxo,

BR

My Brave Little Toaster

Just a quick update: Brittany had surgery on Wednesday to fix a deviated septum and everything went swimmingly. She's been laid up for the last two days, but this morning we went in and she got the packing taken out of her nose ... anyone that has ever had any sort of surgery on their nose knows that it makes a world of difference ... and as a result Brittany can now breathe through her right nostril for the first time in decades. SUCCESS!!! She will continue to take it easy through the weekend, but starting next week look out world. Alright, well I just wanted anyone that might be wondering to know that she is well, and thankful for your thoughts and prayers. Until we meet again...

- Nate

1:43 AM

Having dreams is a funny thing. If I went back to my journals from ten, even five, years ago, I don't think I'm anywhere near where I hoped I would be. Life has this funny way of making a sharp left, just when you get comfortable using cruise control. Things don't go as expected, and it throws you, but sooner or later you make the necessary adjustments. The less you try and control things, the more you realize that life will happen anyway and you should just relax. Sure, there are times when you get lost in the darkness. But remember that it's only in the blackest of night that you see the stars that can guide you back home. You can't be afraid to make mistakes, because the greatest rewards come from doing the things that scare you the most.

In the end, I'm glad I didn't get everything I wished for...because now I have more than I ever could have imagined.

BR

Summer, summer, summertime

I love summer in Vegas! Sure, it's unbearably hot, allergies are in full swing, and the city is exploding with tourists; but the pros absolutely outweigh the cons. For example, you have beautiful nights at the drive-in, lazy days at the pool, and the smell of BBQs up and down the block. There is always something to do, and everyone's mood just seems to be lighter. And besides, for someone that loves movies, you can't beat summertime.

In other news, I went to my new school on Friday and was able to pick up keys and my teachers manuals. I'm hoping to start looking through things and pre-planning the curriculum while I'm recovering over the next couple of weeks. I'm so excited to get in and start decorating to make my classroom come alive. The bare white walls just aren't going to cut it. Luckily the old third grade teacher left a bunch of stuff behind, so I can go through that and see what is salvagable. At any rate, I feel like the summer is going to fly by.