.themitchels.

Meal of the Week #7

2011-10-12T14:44:00.000-07:00

Russian Chicken

In case you haven't realized... we love chicken. :) The first time I had Russian Chicken was in 2008 when Royce and I spent our summer working at the Inn at the Lake Bed & Breakfast in Lake City, Colorado (that was when & why I started blogging). We had a group of men come for a weekend retreat so, along with breakfast, their group also got dinner. Royce and I both loved it, but for some reason I haven't made it since! This recipe is really easy to prep, but takes some time to bake... also, it's kind of sweet so it needs to be paired with something that can tone it down. I think we served it with white rice and veggies at the Inn; I did wild rice and broccoli at home.

Ingredients:

1 lb. of chicken breasts or tenders

1 can of whole cranberry sauce

1 pkg of onion soup mix

1 bottle of Russian dressing

Place the chicken in a 9x13 baking dish. Mix all of the other ingredients together in a bowl and pour over the chicken. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour.

"Firsts"

2011-10-05T12:02:00.001-07:00

We introduced Pax to a sippy cup last week. He's not crazy about the water yet... he took a few "sips" but really just prefers to chew on it.

He loved swinging!!

Other updates:

-Pax officially takes 2 naps a day... it took us a while to adjust the timing, but we finally have it.

- He LOVES to eat baby food and eats 3 little "meals" a day.

- I've realized that he gets a little cranky if we don't spend some time outside every day. This actually makes me super happy now that the weather is cooling off!

Meal of the Week #6

2011-10-05T11:45:00.000-07:00

Monday night I tried Lemony Chicken with Vegetables and Parmesan from the mom-a-licious website (click here for the recipe). This was probably my favorite "new dish" thus far. I'm a big fan of lemon flavored anything but this won Royce's heart, which makes it all the better in my book!

I forgot to get parmesan at the store, so I used a mozzarella blend instead and it was great!

A few tips:

It calls for 1 juiced lemon, I used 1 and a half.
I used sweet potatoes and broccoli as my veggies... if you use sweet potatoes, cut them REALLY SMALL or boil them a little in advance. I thought mine were small enough and I ended up having to take them out of the baking dish and microwave them for a few minutes. Everything else cooked fine in the given cook time (15-20 minutes).

It serves 2-4 people and I think it'd be kid-friendly if you use veggies your kids enjoy!

Meal of the Week #5

2011-10-05T11:28:00.000-07:00

Taco Stuffed Bell Peppers

YUM! My friend, Melissa, made these for us a while ago and we LOVED them (Mel, you really should have your own cooking blog)! I found the recipe online and I'm not sure if it's the same one she used, but I think it's pretty close. Whatever the case, with red peppers on sale 3 weeks in a row, this recipe was hard to pass up! You can find the recipe I used here.

Airplane

2011-09-23T11:45:00.001-07:00

The cool weather makes it impossible for us to stay inside, so last night we had a little quality time as a family in the backyard.

Pax thought sitting in the grass was pretty great...

... until we brought out the camera.

And Samson didn't make things any easier...

However, the fussing was eased with an "airplane" ride.

This is one of his new favorites and a sure way to get some smiles and giggles...

... and you can count on that little mouth staying open the entire time. :)

We'll do whatever we can to see that sweet smile.

Going Green

2011-09-20T18:09:00.000-07:00

To say I'm enjoying life as a stay-at-home mom might be an understatement.

Spending every day with this little guy brings a certain joy to my heart that I've never known.

Since I've been on a kick of trying new things, I decided to share our newest adventure...

Yep, the Mitchels are going green with cloth diapers.

After being SUPER blessed by nearly 6 months of Pampers given to us at a diaper shower, we decided to make the switch. It took me a while to decide if I wanted to do it, but the money saving factor won me over. I had so many hesitations and questions- particularly on dealing with the mess and washing them... but after 4 full days and several washings, I can honestly say it's much easier than I thought it would be.

{and seeing Pax in cute, colorful diapers is an added bonus}

Meal of the Week #4

2011-09-20T17:48:00.000-07:00

This week's recipe is another from an old KRAFT Foods magazine. We really loved it! It's called Creamy Chicken & Pasta Bake and can be found here.

Note: I recommend NOT using Fat Free Cream Cheese- it needs the real deal {or 1/3 less fat}.

Halloween Costume Idea

2011-09-13T15:06:00.001-07:00

I know we're a few months away, but I'm pretty excited about my character idea for Pax...

His {lack of} hair makes it perfect.

Can't wait!

2 New Recipes

2011-09-13T06:44:00.000-07:00

Last week I actually tried TWO new recipes!

The FIRST was from my mom. She found an amazing sauce for Lettuce Wraps at HEB. They're not PF Changs, but we loved them!

The sauce is LEE KUM KEE by Panda Brand {located with the Asian foods}.

These are the ingredients:

chopped green onion

chopped carrots

chopped water chestnuts

roasted peanuts

1 head of lettuce

Lettuce Wrap sauce

ground chicken

{raw ground chicken grosses me out so it didn't make the cut for the picture}

The cooking instructions can be found on the back of the package.

*This would also be great over a bed of white rice.*

-----------------------------------------------------------

The SECOND recipe I tried is courtesy of my friend, Melissa. It's called Smothered Green Chile Pepper Chicken and can be found here. This is probably one of my new favorite chicken recipes. We had this with wild rice and salad, but I think it'd be awesome with spanish rice.

{photo taken from the site}

Crafty

2011-09-07T13:33:00.001-07:00

My cousin's birthday was last Friday and she, along with her fam, came into town to spend Labor Day weekend with us. My gifts to her are usually something along the lines of jewelry or gift cards, but this year I decided to throw her for a loop by making something that she could use as decor for her classroom.

I got this idea from one of the Jones Design Company tutorials. It's pretty reasonable, cost-wise, and will be even less expensive if I do it again because I now have the supplies. There are different variations that I'm interested in trying... particularly her shabby chic white bouquet in the frame.

I bought the little $8 plant {already in the cute pot} at Home Depot, and asked my cousin if she wanted "bright colors" or "Starbucksy (muted) colors." She chose bright to match her classroom decor. I found the assortment of bright buttons at Michaels, as well as the 20 gauge floral wire.

It turned out super cute, if I do say so myself...

(FYI- these would be really fast and easy teacher presents if you find yourself stumped at Christmas or Valentine's Day).

She loved it! :)

New Recipe of the Week

2011-09-02T12:56:00.000-07:00

This week a snagged my recipe from an old KRAFT Foods magazine (thanks to Sara White for telling me about those 4 years ago). It looked pretty tasty, and my favorite part was that it was fast and easy! I forgot to take my own pictures, so I borrowed the official photo from their website. :) All KRAFT recipes include at least one of their own products, but I think the next time we do this, I may opt for a different BBQ sauce.

BBQ Cheddar Chicken Roll-Ups

Ingredients:

1 each large green and red pepper, cut into strips

1 large onion, thinly sliced

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips

1/3 cup KRAFT Original Barbecue Sauce

4 whole wheat tortillas (8 inch), warmed

1 cup Shredded Cheese
How to:

COOK and stir vegetables in large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat 3 min. Add chicken; cook and stir 3 to 4 min. or until no longer pink.

STIR in barbecue sauce; cook on medium heat 3 min. or until chicken is done, stirring occasionally.

SPOON down centers of tortillas; top with cheese. Roll up. Cut diagonally in half to serve.

Meltdown.

2011-08-30T11:43:00.001-07:00

I had a short list of errands to run: bank, possibly Hobby Lobby, and HEB.

Pax fell asleep on the way to the bank so I decided to dash into Hobby Lobby, hoping he would continue to nap (mistake #1).

He didn't. Our little guy is such a light sleeper and woke up as soon as someone made an announcement on the loud speaker. However, he was still happy and really content so I continued to mosey my way through the store (mistake #2).

I finally looked at my watch and realized I had a little over an hour until his next feeding. Perfect. I could run over to HEB, breeze through, and get home in time for him to eat.

We got to HEB and I realized I needed to exchange some diapers for another size. I debated on saving that for another day, but I'd already done that twice and decided I should just do it and be done with it (mistake #3).

The exchange took about 10 minutes, but we were finally on our way to the produce section to begin shopping. Of course, being a weekday morning, every elderly person wanted to either talk to Pax or to each other... I had no idea HEB was such a social gathering. Needless to say, it took forever just to make our way to the deli. Made it to the deli, got our lunch meat, and headed to the refrigerated meats...

At this point, Pax was becoming more and more chatty, and his volume was gradually getting louder. I didn't think anything of it because he often does this when he gets excited.

We jet through the meats and headed to the breads... and the meltdown begins. Loud yelling and the hungry, get-me-out-of-the-cart cry.

This is the baby noise that I hate hearing when I'm in public, so naturally I get really embarrassed when it's my own child... especially when I look around to find everyone around staring at me!

I frantically made my way to the check out, and waited in line behind another mom with children (hoping hers would distract from mine). Thankfully Pax settled down and all of the cashiers/baggers were distracted by her oldest son hitting a balloon all over the place.

All that to say, I still need half of my weekly groceries, and I doubt this will be the last time I have to leave the store before I'm finished shopping... but at least I had what I needed for lunch today. :)

The Newest Member of Our Family

2011-08-30T06:48:00.000-07:00

For several weeks, we've been anticipating the arrival of our first niece on the Mitchel side, Anika (pronounced on-ick-a). We finally got a call Friday morning saying that they were heading to the hospital for my sister-in-law to be induced! Royce and I had intentionally kept our weekend plans flexible in order to head up to Dallas if she arrived. We finished the work day and decided not to leave until after Pax ate dinner, had a bath, etc... hoping he would sleep on the way up there and be out for the night (he ended up sleeping in the car, but was WIDE AWAKE when we got the hospital).

We didn't think we'd make it to the hospital in time for her arrival, but that little girl was determined to stay put until we got there. ;) She arrived around 9:30 that evening and was sent to NICU for fluid on her lungs and rapid breathing (same reason Pax was sent to NICU after his birth- weird). She's still in NICU due to antibiotics, but will get to join her mommy and daddy at home by the upcoming weekend.

Hanging out with Aunt Lauren in the waiting room... those little eyes were SO heavy but he couldn't go back to sleep with all of the action going on around him!

Sweet girl... look at all of that hair!

Holidays will be extra fun with these two littles roaming about. I think they'll be great buddies.

So Big

2011-08-23T06:51:00.000-07:00

I know everyone says your kids grow up quickly, but I guess I didn't really understand that until I started seeing the changes right before my eyes.

Pax started eating cereal last week...

and wants to be sitting up ALL the time (we think he'll be doing it on his own soon)!

Slow down, little man... we want to soak up every second!

Broiled Salmon with Peppercorn-Lime Rub

2011-08-23T06:21:00.000-07:00

Along with the other disciplines I'm working on this year, I'm also trying to escape my cooking rut by trying new recipes! Instead of being overly ambitious by saying I want to try something new every night, I've decided to start small... one new recipe a week.

I pulled out my old Cooking Light magazines and chose to make their Broiled Salmon with Peppercorn-Lime Rub... It was delish, if I do say so myself. I paired it with cous-cous and corn (Royce's pick), but next time I think I'll do grilled asparagus or just a garden salad.

Prepped and ready to go!

Finished and ready to eat.

Discipline

2011-08-22T18:30:00.000-07:00

I felt a little twinge in my heart when I started seeing the school supplies fill the shelves of stores. I love the start of a school year... reuniting with friends you haven't seen all summer; new clothes; a nice, glowing tan; new pens, paper, and crayons; and fall is just around the corner (maybe).

But this year is different... I woke up last Monday feeling a little melancholy because all of my teacher friends, husband included, started their week of inservice and it was my first "real" week as a stay-at-home mom. To snap out of the haze clouding my mind with sad thoughts, I jumped into the Word while Pax was taking his morning nap. During my devotion, the Lord really convicted me of how I'm going to spend my time this year. I'm one who operates well with a plan, but if I don't have one I can become super idle (and sometimes sink into self pity). I'm pretty sure this is not a good habit for day-to-day living. I felt challenged by Hebrews 12:11:

"All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness."

Discipline has never been easy for me, so I set a few personal goals that I'm going to work on this year...

1) Time with the Lord (daily)

2) Exercise (5x a week- Run a 5K this fall, 10K in the spring)

3) Meal planning/budgeting (write it out and stick to it!)

I made a few sticky notes as reminders, and shared my goals with a few friends and family members for accountability. After my first week, I'm already feeling more fulfilled with how I spend my time. It's helped me appreciate, rather than take for granted, the gift of being able to stay home and spend time with Pax and makes me excited for the "peaceful fruit of righteousness."

Paxton's bedding

2010-12-07T16:05:00.000-08:00

We finally decided on bedding for Paxton's nursery... I feel like it took me forever! I really wanted to pick our fabric and have my mom make it, but I couldn't decide on a color scheme so I decided my best option for baby #1 was to just find something pre-made. I wasn't head over heals for this one until I saw that I could get an incredible Black Friday deal online, and even then I was still debating. But when it arrived and I was able to feel the fabric, I fell in love. It's super cozy and the accent colors leave a lot of room for creativity. We'll do something similar with a high chair rail, possibly bead board, and same paint color on the bottom.

It's almost Christmas...

2010-11-29T18:38:00.000-08:00

And my blogging skills have clearly NOT improved.

Here are a few pictures to sum up the last several months...

I finally conquered the weeds at the end of September/early October and Royce helped me put down a new layer mulch to try to keep them under control until Spring. So far so good!

At the end of October we celebrated our good friend, Sam's, 30th birthday. This picture with Mel is one of my three pictures from the evening. My camera skills are just as good as my blogging skills. ;)

On November 13th, Royce and I ventured to Fredericksburg for the wedding of my dear friend, Taylor. Taylor and I met in high school at summer camp and our friendship continued throughout college at UMHB. It was a wonderful to celebrate with her on her special day.

TISD gave us the ENTIRE week of Thanksgiving off, so I was able to take a quick trip to Boulder to visit my brother, sister-in-law, and niece. This was my first time to visit them without Royce, but Killeen ISD didn't have off until Wednesday. :(

We spent Thanksgiving day in Houston with my side of the family and then visited Royce's parents in Austin for a night on our way back home. I've decided that too much car time while you're pregnant can result in some awful low-back pains!! Hopefully we'll be a little more stationary over Christmas break. :)

Weeds

2010-09-19T18:44:00.000-07:00

Royce and I have a semi-unspoken deal that he mows the lawn and I take care of the flower beds.

Well, this is what the first trimester of pregnancy has done to our front bed...

It drives me absolutely crazy every time I look at it, mostly because I have zero energy to do anything about it. Perhaps as the weather cools off, I'll feel up to spending an evening outside. Until then, it is what it is.

Baby Update...

2010-09-16T17:53:00.000-07:00

We had our second baby appointment this afternoon and got to hear that sweet heartbeat again. :) I have to say, the first appointment was a little more exciting because we got to SEE the baby, but it made me all the more excited for our October visit when we find out the gender!!

1 month and counting... WOOHOO!

Fall brings changes...

2010-09-06T17:15:00.001-07:00

It was a whirlwind of a summer in the Mitchel house, but I have to say it was definitely our favorite we've spent together so far. We were blessed to have the opportunity to take THREE separate trips this summer.

The first was to Riviera Maya, Mexico with our friends, Jonthan and Bridget Jones. We found a great deal on an all-inclusive resort and we were able to stay for 6 nights!! It was incredible and a great way to kick off the summer.

Our next trip involved a road trip with my parents to our favorite small town in Colorado- Lake City! After spending the summer of 2008 in Lake City, we're convinced that there is no other place that celebrates the 4th of July the way LC does. It's small-town excitement at it's best, and we love being apart of the festivities. We also loved soaking up time with my brother, sister-in-law, and sweet little niece. When we returned to Texas, we celebrated 3 years of marriage with a low-key evening at home. It was actually really nice because we were exhausted from our travels!

Our last trip was a new destination for us... every year Royce's parents plan a family trip with all of the kids, and over the years they have become more and more adventurous. This year we traveled to Costa Rica! The beauty of the rainforest is everything everyone says it is, and more! I couldn't get over how lush and green everything was, although I shouldn't have been surprised because it was their "rainy season." We enjoyed zip-lining through the rainforest, touring a sulfur volcano, and an ATV tour of 8 different beaches. It was truly unforgettable and we felt blessed to see more of God's mighty creation.

When we returned from Costa Rica we knew school preparation would begin within the next week. During that last week, we were surprised with the news that I was pregnant! This was certainly not something I anticipated to juggle, along with my first year of teaching, but we know God's timing is best and we are very, very excited for this sweet little blessing.

School is now in full swing and as I near the end of my first trimester, I'm beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Not as much sickness these days, but I think the kiddos help keep my mind busy. :) I'm loving the land of 2nd grade and I can't wait to get to know my students more. In addition to being the girls' head soccer coach at Heights, Royce took on the boys' assistant Cross Country coach position this year. He's really loved it so far, but the early morning practices get harder and harder each morning. :)

It'll be another year of changes for us, but we're always grateful that His love and provision remains constant. Parenthood, here we come!

Feeling Reminiscent...

2010-01-11T15:12:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite things to think about about is meeting Royce and remembering how God developed our relationship over the years... in February we will have known each other for 5 years, which seems like yesterday and forever ago all at the same time. I can remember everything so clearly, but when I think about everything we've experienced and been through together it amazes me! I hope these memories remain embedded in my mind forever because they are so sweet.

Since my blog title is "Feeling Reminiscent," I decided to post a few pictures taken while we were dating... The picture at the top of my blog was our very first photo together. It was taken about a week after we met and it's my absolute favorite because I had no idea that this boy I was sitting next to at a bowling alley would eventually become my best friend that I'd get to spend the rest of my life with!

(These were our Halloween costumes one year... Soccer Coach and Soccer Mom. The funny part is that this will probably be reality in 5-10 years.)

I love you, Royce, and I am so thankful for you! It's a blessing and honor to call you my husband and best friend (for .life.).

Settling In

2009-09-08T18:43:00.000-07:00

Well, we did it! After two years in our newly-wed mobile home (often called "The Love Boat" as it has a history of housing newly-weds) we made the move from Salado to Belton. It's been a fabulous three weeks of unpacking, nesting, a million trips to Target, Lowes, and Home Depot, hours of painting, and taking care of a house that we can officially call "ours." We absolutely love being here and can't thank the Lord enough for blessing us with this gift.

Apart from being blessed with a wonderful new home, Royce and I have also been blessed with two new jobs that we absolutely love! Royce landed a teaching job at Harker Heights High School and is also the new varsity girls soccer coach! His desire to teach stemmed from the desire to coach soccer, so I'm thrilled that he finally has the opportunity! Even though he always imagined himself coaching a boys team, I think coaching girls will equip him for whatever comes next!! :) I, on the other hand, was unable to find a teaching job this year... but two weeks before our move an Instructional Assistant position at Kennedy-Powell Elementary became available. I know without a doubt that God's hand was orchestrating the whole process. The timing was perfect and the school is only 10 minutes away from our new house! Not only does it give me the same schedule and holidays as Royce, but I also get to love on kiddos all day and develop added classroom experience. We're so grateful for our new jobs and can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for us this year.

Here are a few of the rooms that we won't be painting for a while... (I'll post the painted rooms later.)

study

formal dining

formal living

kitchen

Summer Update

2009-07-20T19:22:00.000-07:00

Well, I lied. Summer is more than half-way over and I haven't been any better at updating this silly thing! I'm really terrible at this! It was so much easier being in Lake City last summer and actually having a reason for updating it. But, it's on my to-do list of things I want to improve so I'm sticking with it.

Here's a look at what we've been up to this summer...

My brother and sister-in-law came to Texas in May for us to meet our first niece, Baby Stella! She was so incredibly precious!! I wish desperately that they didn't live so far away, but I cherish every bit of time we get to spend with them.

During the first week of June we took a trip to Cancun with Royce's family. It was a great way to kick off our first official week of summer. We enjoyed soaking up the sun, relaxing, and reading.

After Cancun, wedding festivities began for one of my oldest and dearest friends (we met in 6th grade!). Courtney and Ryan got married in downtown Austin on June 20th. Both wedding and reception were beautiful! Courtney has always loved to sing, so during the ceremony she surprised her groom with a song!! She did such an amazing job... [if I could sing] I would've cried my way through the whole thing!

Our friends, Ryan and Justine, won an auction bid for a weekend getaway to a cool house in the Lakeway area of Austin. They opened it up for us to join them, and it just so happened to fall on my birthday weekend. :) After us girls layed by the pool all day, and the boys played a long round of golf, we all cleaned up and went to eat at the Hula Hut. The restaurant sits on Lake Austin so it's one of my favorite places to visit during the summer.

Royce and I had the honor of helping our friend Bruce plan his engagement to my best friend from college! He was planning on proposing in August but decided he couldn't wait any longer! "Operation Proposal" took place at sunset on August 15th at Katie's favorite spot on Lake Belton. We're so excited for them and were blessed to be apart of it!

The biggest part of our summer is that we're moving into our first house! We've been casually looking at houses over the last few months but neither of us felt at peace about the timing. One afternoon we were driving through some neighborhoods in Belton and came across this house... we decided to call on it the next day and the rest went from there! We've spent much time praying over it, wanting to be certain that our excitement isn't getting in the way of God's timing, and we both have complete peace that this is where God wants us. The Lord has blessed us so much and we're excited to use this gift to honor Him! Sooo... if all continues to go well, we'll close on August 14th! WOOHOO!!

The next time I post will probably be after we're moved and settled!

Workin' On It...

2009-05-29T14:02:00.001-07:00

Ok Ladies,

I'm trying to get some pictures together to create a new post. Hopefully this summer will make it a little easier for me to keep up with my blog!

Until then, stay tuned...

I'M THE WORST BLOGGER EVER!!

2008-12-06T14:45:00.000-08:00

After several comments from friends, I've finally decided to update my blog. I don't even know how to give an update on the last 4 months of our lives, bu I'll try to give a brief run-down---

It was quite an adjustment coming home from our simple summer life in Colorado and adjusting to the real world again. Royce tried hard all summer to convince me that moving to Colorado was a great idea, but I was not easily swayed (Colorado winters are not for me). So we returned to our little mobile home and prepared for another year in Salado. Royce decided to stay at Salado High School (teaching Physics and Chemistry) for at least one more year and I began the dreaded job hunt.

The idea of teaching didn't interest me at all so I looked for jobs along the lines of being a secretary/receptionist. By the middle of September God provided a job for me at Montgomery Chiropractic. The doctor is actually the dad of one of my good friends from high school so it was nice being aquainted with my employers before I began my first day on the job. I had a hard time with my job for the first couple of months... I didn't know that being the receptionist meant more than just scheduling appointments and answering the phone, it meant that I was the quarter back of the whole office! I'm a slight perfectionist so not knowing how to do things was a big struggle for me. I hated having to ask so many questions and I felt like I was having more bad days than good. But again, the Lord was faithful in taking care of me. He showed me how to see the things I could be thankful for in my work place... for example, I work with 3 other CA's (chiropractic assistants) and anyone who's worked with other woman in tight/busy quarters knows that it can be easy to rub on each other. This however, is not one of my problems! The 4 of us have become a little family and they are all so encouraging! There are still rough days and things I don't like about my job, but they are all managable. The other thing I'm thankful for is that this job has made me realize that I DO still have the desire to teach; all I needed was a little break! I'm currently in the process of completing my certification and hope to start teaching next fall.

This fall season seemed to come and go quickly this year. We spent Thanksgiving in Tennessee this year... My dad's side of the family meets there every other year for Thanksgiving. We have cousins in Tennessee and Virginia, and the rest of us are in Texas, so Tennessee is the best half way point for all of us to meet up. We've been doing this since I was in 5th or 6th grade and I absolutely love it. This year was probably our last year to do it because it gets harder as we all get older and start to get married (there were 25 of us this year... that's a lot of schedules to work around!). Time to start our own holiday traditions!

We're really looking forward to the Christmas break this year. I was really surprised to find out that I get a whole week off!!! After we spend Christmas with the families Royce and I are going to take a little getaway trip to San Antonio for a few days. We're actually celebrating our 1 year anniversary.... at a year and a half. Better late than never! :) Royce has only been to San Antonio for soccer tournaments so I'm excited for him to experience the riverwalk area. I'll try to post a few pictures of our trip when we get back.

With my brothers and sister in law at Thanksgiving.

No pictures this week :(

2008-07-23T12:44:00.001-07:00

Well, the reason I've delayed updating our blog this week is because for some reason we can't get the internet on Royce's computer to work... therefore I don't have a way of uploading our pictures. :( So I'll go ahead and give an update before I forget the events of the last week.

As I mentioned in our previous post, we helped out with VBS last week. It was a BLAST! Thank you so much for praying for us; we definitely felt a boost of much needed energy. It was so fun to play with the kids, sing silly songs, but most of all I think it was just a great change of pace for us. Last week was also an "elder hostel" week at the Inn. Elder hostel is an educational experience for people 50+ and they take place all over the United States. The guests choose their location based on the activity they wish to learn... and at the Inn they learn to fly fish! Not only do we make breakfasts for the guests, but we also provide sack lunches and dinners during elder hostel weeks. So needless to say we were on the go quite a bit more than usual. We'd have VBS from 9-12, eat lunch (usually with Seth and Crystal since we all did VBS together), rest for a little while during the afternoon, start preparing dinner around 5, and finish dinner clean up anywhere between 8:30-9p.m! It was a fun week for sure, but we were definitely fried by Saturday. I forgot how easy it is to lose your energy when you're playing with 9 kids under the age of 10!

We had an interesting spin to our weekend... David and Rosie were apart of a wedding which left Royce, Michelle, and me in charge of everything on Friday and Saturday! Thankfully we had 2 volunteers to help with the clean up, but we were all a bit nervous about serving breakfast without David and Rosie there to make sure everything was going accordingly. But God is good and everything went off without a hitch!

Royce and I had the opportunity to go white water rafting with David and a few of the guests yesterday afternoon! I think that was one of our favorite things we've done all summer. The guides recommended that we wear wetsuits and at first we were all really hot and wishing we had stuck with our own swimwear... until we started to feel that 40 degree water splashing on us! It was so beautiful; I wish I could've taken pictures on our raft.

We're starting to use the phrase "when we get home" more often these days. I guess that means part of us is really anticipating being able to head home and settle back into our own place. Although, I'm starting to feel a little anxious about job hunting when I get home. Please pray that God would give me peace in knowing that He has the perfect job in mind.

We love you guys and are looking forward to seeing you very soon!

Time flies...

2008-07-13T13:51:00.000-07:00

I can’t believe we’ve completed our 5th week in Lake City!!! The weeks go by so quickly. The thought of going home is beginning to feel bittersweet… we’re ready to settle back into our house, reconnect with old friends, and get back in the swing of things, but at the same time we don’t want to leave this beautiful place and our friends here. We’re trying to savor every moment.

This past week was eventful to say the least… Royce and I celebrated our 1 year wedding anniversary on Monday! We are so thankful for a great first year of marriage and looking forward to many more!! We had a hard time deciding what we wanted to do to celebrate. There aren’t a whole lot of options in this area so Seth and Crystal suggested going to Crested Butte to eat and see a movie. We hadn’t been there before but everyone had told us it was a cute little town so we decided to venture that way. It’s about an hour and a half away from Lake City. It was a pretty simple evening but we had a great time!

The other exciting part of our week was Tuesday when we found out we are going to be an Aunt and Uncle!!! We are sooooo excited for Seth and Crystal! Please join us in praying for a healthy pregnancy.

As far as our time at the Inn this week, we stayed very busy! We had a great time hanging out with the guests. Rosie’s brother and sister in law were here, as well as her nephew and his two girls. Her nephew brought 3 ATVs with him so he invited us to go riding with him one afternoon. It was a blast! We went up a trail called Carson. It was similar to the Alpine Loop but less bumpy and a lot shorter!! It was perfect for 4wheelers. Rosie’s brother and sister in law were here a total of 2 week and left this morning… we were sad to see them leave, we really enjoyed getting to know them.

Next week is VBS at the Presbyterian Church in town. Crystal is the director so she asked Royce and me to be group leaders! Rosie always encourages the Inn staff to participate in VBS so she was thrilled that we helping.
Please pray for us during these last three weeks! We are starting to feel a little drained. Some days are still pretty easy but there were a few days this week that were somewhat frustrating for us. Pray also for David and Rosie… they have so much on their plate so pray that they get the encouragement they need to be effective in their ministry.

We love you all and are so grateful for your support!

Chelsea (Rosie's neice), Michelle, me, and Royce at at stop during our ATV ride.

Us near old house remains in Carson.

Royce at the very top of Carson.

Jule' and I hangin out at a youth event in town.

Sparkly.

Video clip from our ATV ride... it was a little bumpy. :)

Two Weeks- One Update

2008-07-05T15:20:00.000-07:00

Last week I decided not to blog since my parents were in town... and now I'm wishing I had! So much has happened in the last two weeks!

A brief run down of the last two weeks:

-I won the grand prize on a "black-out" game of Bingo... $100 cash and a fresh pie from the bakery in town!

-We experienced our first Saturday of cleaning ALL ten rooms in one day. This day also happened to be my birthday and my parents rolled into town just in time for dinner!

- My parents brought our puppy, Samson, to Colorado for the week. We were so excited to see him. :)
- My brother, Brandon, and his girlfriend, Heather, joined the rest of us in Lake City to spend the week of 4th of July as a family.

- Our family rented Jeeps and did the "Alpine Loop"-- it's an all day trip with breath-taking scenery.

- Royce and I got to be apart of Lake City's annual 4th of July parade! We decorated David and Rosie's truck and rode in the back, throwing candy to kids as we cruised Gunnison Avenue.
- After the parade we sold turkey legs in the park as a fund raiser for Lake City's E.M.T...During this time the entire town was hanging out in the park, playing games like the three legged race, potato sack relay, egg relay, etc... it's an American small town at it's best!
- We went back to Seth and Crystal's to eat ribs, potato salad, and our traditional fruit pizza (decorated to look like an American flag.
- We closed the evening by watching fire works in the park.

My parents, Brandon, and Heather left early this morning to make the trek back to Texas. It was such a special week with them, I'm so glad they were able to come. Thank you to everyone who called, emailed, or mailed birthday wishes, it was such a special day for me (despite the cleaning!). We love you all!

Hangin out with the little man on my birthday. :)

With Heather at Wednesday night Bingo (this was not the week that I won)!

A family pic at a waterfall on the Loop.

Another family pic taken at the American Basin.

Seth and Royce standing on snow remains.

We ate lunch inside this old house in Animas Forks.

Bran and Royce in the jeep.

At the top of Engineer Pass.

The Inn Staff... ready for the parade!

Update 3

2008-06-24T14:53:00.001-07:00

This week has DEFINITELY gone by faster than the last! I can't believe how quickly the days go by. Our third staff member (Michelle) arrived last Monday, so that was a huge help as we prepared for the big group that arrived Sunday evening. Last Wednesday night the Lake City youth came out to David and Rosie's to have s'mores around a camp fire and listen to their testimonies. We were all impressed with how intentively they listened.

The biggest event of last week was probably the TNT dance party party at Camp Redcloud (TNT is the high school "work crew" of Redcloud). It's open to anyone who wants to go and since Seth and Crystal were taking some of the youth, we decided to join in on the fun. Everyone dresses silly and we all dance it up until the music stops.

The big group staying with us this week are a lot of old Camp Peniel folks (including some of David and Rosie's kids) and their young families. I've really enjoyed having the little kids around. :) Royce, Michelle and I are babysitting them while the parents go out to dinner Wednesday night.

We find ourselves continuously amazed by God's beauty and creativity in the nature that surrounds us. Even though it's been cloudy and looked like rain all week, the scenery never seems to get old. We're trying to savor every moment of being here, especially the cooler weather.

The only pictures I managed to take this week were of the dance party... enjoy!

Jule' and I sporting beautimous wigs.
Seth (a.k.a. Beehaw) was the D.J. for the evening.

My husband has gone retro.

WOOHOO!

I was a blondish-gray Seniorita and Crystal was a onsey-wearing Prom Queen!

Update 2

2008-06-17T19:45:00.000-07:00

Wow, our first full week at the Inn went by so quickly! We’ve made multiple new friends (both visitors and locals), washed a lot of dishes, changed a lot of bed sheets, learned new dance moves in our dance class, and seen many sweet guests come and go. It’s been such a fun week. Royce and I went on our first mountain bike ride the other day. We rode around the entire lake that the Inn sits on… its 6 miles. And may I just say that a 6 mile bike ride in the mountains is NOTHING like a 6 mile bike ride in Texas!!! I haven’t been that worn out in a long time. Of course my stud of a husband did fine, but I definitely walked my bike up a few of the steep hills. :)

One of our favorite parts of this past week was a devotion David did with our guests one morning after breakfast. He talked about how everyone experiences storms in life that keep us from focusing on our daily walk with Him. We thought it was neat that he chose the word “storm” because it was an actual storm that turned our little world upside down right before we left for Colorado. We both felt that God knew what He was doing when He laid it on our hearts to work at the Inn over a year ago. David continued his devotion by sharing part of Matthew 6:30 where Jesus says, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” We decided to make this verse our theme for the summer because while we are here to work this summer, we are also feeling so refreshed by being here. It was a perfect time in our lives for us to come to a quiet place and rest. How great is our God and our perfect is His timing!!

Some pictures of our recent adventures…

Yahtzee is our game for the summer... I don't think a day has gone by that we haven't played. Can't wait for you to play with us in a few weeks, Dad!

My new bike/early birthday present from Royce! It definitely made those steep hills a lot easier than they could've been!

After dance lessons Monday night.

With David and Rosie at the dance hall.

A day trip to Montrose with Crink! It's 2 hours away and also holds the location for the nearest Starbucks! (Thank you for the gift card Gram and Pop!)

We've arrived...

2008-06-10T14:36:00.000-07:00

Lake City is amazing!!!!! We left Salado at 7:45 Friday night and arrived in Lake City at 11am Saturday morning. We actually pulled in right as Seth and Crystal were running a 10K so we passed them on the road! We decided to wait for them at the finish line, and then afterward we all went to lunch before Royce and I headed out to the Inn. David and Rosie (the owners of the Inn) let us take a nice long nap to catch up on our complete lack of sleep from driving through the night (we both got about 3 hours each). Then that evening they took us to eat and invited Seth and Crystal along. We were glad we were able to spend some good time with them because they left early Sunday morning for a mission trip and won't be back until this Saturday night.

We had our first 3 couples arrive at the Inn Sunday evening. It's been a great trial run for us because we'll be completely full in two weeks (10 rooms/30ish people)! Most of our days will look something like this... breakfast, devotions with the guests, clean up, clean any of the dirty rooms, water plants, sweep the porch, mop the floors if needed, etc.... and we should typically have most afternoons and evenings off. The town offers a lot of activities during the summer... on Monday nights they do $5 dancing lessons! Last night they taught us East Coast Swing! It was so much fun and Royce caught on really quickly. ;) They also have Bingo every Wednesday night in town and David is the caller! We're looking forward to that experience as well.

A few pics from the last few days...

Family photo with Sammy before we left Salado.

Don't be jealous, but this is our view from the front porch at the Inn.

Hanging out at the park in town yesterday afternoon. It was a high of 60 degrees. Perfect.

Come visit us if you can!

And so it begins...

2008-06-05T15:01:00.001-07:00

So this is my attempt at making our first blog. It's pretty boring right now, but I'll spiff it up eventually.