One Clever Cookie

Last night was the Thanksgiving service and dessert fellowship at church. As I baked a batch of pumpkin spice cookies, the standard covered dish question ran through my head:

“What can I put these cookies on? I’d love to use a paper plate so I can just throw it away when it’s empty but a paper plate is soooooo boring. I’m a lot of things but boring is not one of them. There has to be a better way!”

Enter Pinterest, the web-based bulletin board that gives you ideas on everything from crafts to clothes and from home decorating to home cooking… AND it includes links to originating websites so you can get the step by step on how to do it. You simply “pin” the great ideas on your board and come back to them when you need them or when you have time. Pinterest is budget-friendly and includes about a zillion ideas that are low-cost replicas of high-end treasures. I’ve already tried a few Pinterest projects and have no doubt that there are more in my future. (Sorry, Robert, it looks like craft night just became a regular household event!)

So, I’m standing in our kitchen, running out of time and staring almost hopelessly at my cookie sheet of tasty morsels. I flip through the card catalog of ideas that I store in the far reaches of my noggin… and it hits me! An image I pinned a few weeks ago…

And so with a paper plate, a hole punch, and some ribbon… I went from this:

To THIS:

And that, my friends, is one Clever Cookie!

(And thanks Pinterest for showing crafters that low budget and high style are completely compatible!)  

Thank you, Veterans.

They didn’t apply for it, they volunteered for it. It’s not a job, it’s a calling. They signed on the dotted line and now stand on the thin line that separates the ability to live in freedom from the oppression of living in fear.

They run toward danger and serve as human shields for strangers. They take on impossible missions and find a way to complete the task. When they can’t find a way, they make a way. They won’t let you down. They won’t leave you behind.

They do jobs most people would never consider in places most people have never heard of. They seek out danger and put themselves in harm's way so that we can enjoy the liberties we so often take for granted. They don't ask for a 'thank you'; they usually don't know how to react when they get one because credit and accolades are the last things on their minds.

They live out of backpacks and rucksacks. They sleep but they do not rest. They are never comfortable, almost always cold or hot or wet. They don’t get days off; they are always focused and on guard. Yet they do not complain.

They come home bruised and broken but they find a way to move forward and to soldier on. They see things we can’t imagine and see them again in their dreams. They don’t have the words to explain it; we probably couldn’t understand anyway.

They appreciate the value of a two minute phone call, treasure a piece of mail from home, and savor a care package of stale brownies. They take nothing for granted and make use of every resource. They can fix anything with nothing and are the masters of the Plan B, or C, or D.

They miss birthdays and anniversaries, holidays and special events. They don’t get to go to ballgames or dance recitals. They often don’t get to carve the Thanksgiving turkey or trim the Christmas tree. But when they get to enjoy those things, they don’t take one moment for granted.

They are dedicated and sacrificing and dependable and honorable and a thousand more good things. They are Veterans.

And I’m proud today, and every day, to be the wife, granddaughter, sister-in-law, daughter-in-law, and friend of so many wonderful members of military service. 'Thank you' isn’t enough to tell you how grateful I am for each of you for your service and your sacrifice. Happy Veteran’s Day.

Blame it on the Jet Lag

I was cleaning off my computer desktop tonight and ran across a blog I wrote in August but apparently failed to post... I'm blaming it on the honeymoon jet lag. :)

“In six months, you’ll meet someone, fall in love, get married, and be kicking back on a beach in Key West with a tropical drink….”

If someone had said that to me, I would have laughed at them. I certainly wouldn’t have believed them…but they would have been right. It just proves the point that life is sometimes stranger (in a good way) than fiction and you just never know when your dream come true might be around the next corner.

Robert and I got married last Sunday, in a beautiful lakeside service under a picture perfect blue sky. Well, mostly picture perfect. We’d been worried about August heat and had a heat-stroke prevention plan that included handheld fans and water bottles for the guests. The possibility of downpours didn’t occur to me until about Tuesday when the weather personalities started using the R word (and friends, they weren’t saying Robert!).  I bought a few umbrellas just in case and although rain clouds flitted around the sky most of the day, the ceremony was spared a soggy fate (unless you count the people who shed a few happy tears during the event). On the way home from the ceremony, the bottom fell out and we got several emails and text messages of rainbows and even a double rainbow, signs we were happy to claim as our own personal messages from heaven.

We planned a wedding in ten weeks, which by most standards is warp speed. We couldn’t have done it without the love and support of our very patient families and friends. I know I’ll leave someone out but when a thank-you note doesn’t seem like enough, blogging to the entire internet (or the 17 or so followers who read this blog) seems a little more fitting J

To Robert- Thank you for loving me, for putting up with the Bridezilla moments, and for always knowing two things: how to make me laugh, and when I need a hug… even if it’s in the middle of a crowded aisle in a store full of strangers. Marrying you was, is, and always will be the best thing I’ve ever done. And, I’d do it again today, tomorrow, and any day after that…

To Mom & Dad- There will never never never be words big enough to say how much I love you both and how much I appreciate all the sacrifices you made and continue to make to support my dreams. You guys are my loudest cheerleaders, biggest encouragers, and best friends. I am the luckiest daughter in the world. Thank you for listening, laughing, and for loving me (and Robert too!)

To Beth & Steve- I couldn’t ask for more wonderful in-laws than you guys! You accepted me into your lives and into your hearts and that means more than you’ll ever know. I promise to love Robert as much as you do J Thank you for raising such a phenomenal son and for sharing him with me.

Jaime & Tim- For as long as I can remember, you guys have been extra parents (when I was pretty sure I already had parents!) but as it turns out, you can never have too many people loving you and I’m so very grateful for your encouragement, support, and willingness to stop what you’re doing anytime I said “I need….” Even when it was warranted, you never said “I told you so”. Thank you for sharing in our special day and for welcoming Robert into our family.

Karen & Israel- What do you say to the people who made Happily Ever After possible? “Thank you” just doesn’t seem like enough. For introducing us, for sharing in our lives, and for playing such important roles in our wedding, we are truly grateful.

Mary Kelly- You simply rock. From nail polish and shoes to ink and fonts, you are indeed my Girl Friday in the decisions big and small. I would be lost (and completely out of fashion and out of my mind) without you!

Tish- I hereby bestow upon you my water wings J I know you’ll use them wisely and well. I will always be grateful for you telling me what I already knew when you helped me to believe that swimming doesn’t always mean drowning. I love you to pieces.

Cassie & Herb- Thank you for photographing our engagement and wedding! You guys are phenomenal!

Adella & Debbie- Thanks for helping behind the scenes on the wedding day! You were there to celebrate with us but you pitched in and lent helping hands and we so very much appreciate you both! 

I’m sure I’ve forgotten someone or lots of someones and for that, deepest apologies… For our friends and family at the wedding- we love you and we thank you for sharing in our special day. For those who couldn’t attend or who couldn’t be invited due to space constraints, we love you too and we hope you understand that a small ceremony just seemed to fit with where we are in our lives.

And…  I’ll post some funny pre-wedding stories and some photos soon… as soon as I pick out which ones I love best…. For now, blog buddies, I hope your days are filled with some love, some laughter, and best of all, someone to share your Happily Ever After with…

Leaving the Light On

Almost three months into the Happily Ever After of married life, I find myself spending a lot of time these days pouring over engagement pictures and wedding photos and honeymoon snapshots, missing Robert, reliving the memories and daydreaming about what the future might hold.

While we said from the beginning that the marriage was more important than the wedding, we did try to make our wedding day unique but not weird, and special but not silly. The best compliment we’ve gotten (and we’ve heard it more than once) was that “the wedding was so ‘you guys’.” It was fun and relaxed and simple… simply perfect. If we had to do it over again, I wouldn’t change a thing.

And three months later, the uniqueness that has come with doing everything a little outside the box continues.

Some brides donate their wedding floral arrangements to hospitals or retirement homes, never to see them again. Some brides press their flowers in a heavy book and then wonder what to do with the flattened florals over time. And some brides know the well kept secret (or their moms do, at least) of Victorian Seasons in Apex. This weekend, my bridal bouquet was returned to me (thanks, Mom!) in a fantastically amazing way. The fun folks at Victorian Seasons embedded my bouquet flowers into a candle, one lit by a small light bulb so that the ‘candle’ never actually melts. What a special way to remember a special day!

Since Robert deployed, I’ve been counting the days until he comes home. I might just be in a sentimental mood today but it’s very comforting to know that our wedding flowers are helping to ‘leave the light on’ for him. I miss you, love; come home soon. I'll be right here waiting.