Celebrating A Legacy

With Mamaw & Papaw at our wedding

The passing of a loved one is probably the hardest thing that we, as humans, are forced to deal with in our lifetimes. Today is a day that I'm reminded of a special, one of a kind woman who would have been celebrating her 86th birthday. Jon's grandmother, Sarah, (or "Mamaw", as she was affectionately known) passed away just a few short months ago... I can't help but think of her today and what a wonderful a woman she was. I remember meeting her and feeling her warmth almost immediately. She had an air about her that was so friendly and yet so feisty at the same time.

Mamaw was outspoken and I felt a kindred spirit to her that way. She always said it like it was and Jon and I felt the affects of that after we'd been dating for several years. Whenever we'd see her, she'd ask if we were going to get married anytime soon... ;-) When we finally tied the knot, we somehow ended up seeing all of Jon's family the very next day--including Mamaw. I remember Mamaw putting her arm around Jon and acting a little sheepish as she smiled and said, "Well... Did ya get lucky??" She was never afraid to be bold. She was never afraid to be humorous. I don't know a single person who didn't feel unconditionally loved by her... I feel so blessed that I was able to know her, love her, and be loved by her over the past five years and I feel blessed immeasurably by the legacy of love she left behind. I think all of her children and grandchildren (and all of their spouses) would agree that she is someone we all look up to, admire, and want to be like.

I think one of the things that makes the passing of a grandparent hard is the seeming loss of connection to a piece of the past. Mamaw had so many stories and telling them brought her so much joy--and it brought her family joy too. Something I learned about Mamaw after she passed was that she was meticulous at documenting things. She documented phone calls and kept records of all the cute and wonderful things her grandchildren had said. She was a painter and every painting was numbered, dated, and signed. She wrote poetry, took tons of photos, and kept a draft on her computer of the story of her life with Papaw...

I don't think I saw the value in doing little things like that until now. How blessed we are to still feel connected in some way to her through all the beautiful documentations she made. We can still feel her emotion and her laughter and we can still see her beauty through the things she left behind. I just marvel at her and the kind of person she was. She was generous, patient, loving, caring, compassionate, bold, brave, daring, and she just simply radiated beauty. Most importantly, she was a shining example of the Proverbs 31 woman. She loved the Lord and she cheerfully and faithfully served him and everyone she met...

So today I celebrate the legacy of a wonderful woman, whom my husband and I miss so dearly. Happy Birthday, Mamaw. We love you.

The last family picture we all took together.. How I cherish this now.

"Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: 'Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.' Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Honor her for all that her hands have done, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate."
--Proverbs 31: 28-31 

--Kayla

The Love Journal

Our "Love Journal"

I believe one of the biggest reasons for failed marriages or even just unhappy marriages is a failure to communicate. When you are in a relationship, no matter what kind of relationship it is, it's incredibly difficult to articulate your feelings (even for those that are full of emotion--sometimes they have it even harder!). While I think it's important to discuss things you are unhappy about, I think the bigger area couples need to focus on is discussing things you ARE happy about.

When I see couples around me or even people who are just friends, I see a great willingness in people to discuss their dissatisfaction with each other. It's so commonplace these days to point out other people's failings or shortcomings and it's easy to express displeasure if you feel your needs aren't getting met in a relationship. At the end of the day, we're no different than children in that regard. If you feel like your needs aren't getting met or like you've been wronged somehow, you either find ways of acting out or make it VERY clear to that person that you are unhappy with them (often times disrespectfully).

What I see less of is people communicating their love and respect for other people and it's this aspect of a relationship that I think can make all the difference. If all you hear constantly is how you fail to measure up, you're likely to continue to disappoint either out of depression or spite. However, if you and your spouse make it a priority to communicate the things you admire and appreciate about one another I think you'd be surprised how effective it can be at opening up communication and helping you both feel more satisfied in your relationship. That's why Jon and I ask each other the weekly questions and it's for this reason we also started what we call "The Love Journal."

Where I found The Love Journal this morning ;-)

The Love Journal is basically a journal of love notes that we pass back and forth. It's full of all the things we love, admire, respect, and cherish about each other. When we were dating, we wrote love notes constantly and it was such a beautiful way of articulating the joy and passion of the love we shared between the two of us. I felt it was especially important to continue that into our marriage to keep that spark and passion alive and well.

The Love Journal has been a source of excitement and fun in our marriage. Whenever we write in it, we hide it someplace for the other person to find. I've left it under Jon's pillow or on top of the thermostat when he leaves or even in the fridge next to his favorite thing (LaCroix!). It's completely renewed that spark of pursuing one another all over again and it's so nice to hear how loved and how cherished we are by each other and how glad we are that God brought us together.

Take time today to focus on the positives in your life instead of the negatives. Changing your perspective is sometimes all it takes to find joy and happiness in your life and in your marriage. :-)

--Kayla

Adventures in Eating

How our garden looked at the beginning of the season

Jon and I created our first garden this year. At the moment, it's pretty wild and out of control. Being away for several weekends for weddings and other various events has made for a pretty chaotic scene in our backyard. The zucchini plants are enormous and the tomato plants have basically taken over everything and are spilling out the tops of our raised beds... Despite the craziness, having a garden is something Jon and I both love. However, if you have ever had a zucchini plant (or a tomato plant), you know what I mean when I say that those things grow like weeds. Moral of the story is that we have a ton of zucchini... and that means we get creative when trying to use it.

Last night I decided to make something different and new for dinner with our abundance of zucchini. I recently ordered a vegetable noodle-maker (basically you just attach a hearty vegetable to it, spin it, and it makes noodles--crazy! You should get one.), so I decided to spin some of our zucchini into noodles for pasta. I looked around in our cabinets (which are pretty barren) and found that we had some organic sun-dried tomatoes, so I decided to try my hand at making a sauce out of them with some of our fresh herbs from our window garden... 

Let's just say it was super freakin' delicious and I'm passing on the recipe to you so you can find out for yourself!


ZUCCHINI PASTA W/ CHICKEN & HOMEMADE SUN-DRIED TOMATO BASIL SAUCE
(Recipe makes 2 servings)

INGREDIENTS:

Zucchini Pasta w/ Sun-dried Tomato Basil Sauce

Pasta:
-1 large zucchini

Sauce:
-1 jar of sun-dried tomatoes
-1 1/2 cups milk (or almond milk if you are going dairy free)
-Few pinches of fresh basil, oregano, and thyme
-1 tablespoon fresh garlic
-1 tsp salt
-1 tsp pepper
-1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Chicken:
-1 tbsp olive oil
-5 chicken tenderloins
-Dash of salt and pepper
-Few pinches of flour

DIRECTIONS:
Place the zucchini in a Tri-Blade Turning Vegetable Slicer (using as directed for noodles) and spin until you get to the end of the zucchini. Place the "noodles" into a small pot and set aside (or freeze them to use for later!). 

Cut the 5 chicken tenderloins into cubes and place them into a small bowl. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and flour and stir until lightly coated. Set aside. 

In a food processor, combine the sun-dried tomatoes, milk, garlic, and fresh herbs and pulse until well blended. Transfer to a sauce pan and heat on medium-high heat for about 10 minutes. Add in salt, pepper and cayenne, making sure to stir frequently or the oil from the tomatoes will start to separate. 

While the sauce is cooking, heat up a frying pan with some olive oil on medium heat. When the pan is hot, add in the chicken. Cook the chicken until it has just turned white and add it to the sauce (doing it this way prevents the chicken from drying out and keeps it tender). 

Take your pot of zucchini noodles and heat them up on medium heat for about 5 minutes (you just want them to be warm). 

When your zucchini is done, transfer to a bowl and top with sauce! Garnish with fresh basil and thyme and voila! Easy meal that is super tasty! 

--Kayla

Taking Time to Connect

Something my husband and I have started doing for the past few weeks is enjoying a nice big breakfast on Saturday morning, followed up with some great questions that help us to reconnect and actively discuss simple ways of improving our marriage. We got the inspiration for the questions from this blog, so be sure to check it out! They have some great ideas! I know they seem silly and we thought they were silly at first too, but it's been such a wonderful blessing to do this every week and I noticed changes almost immediately. Jon and I are pretty easy going for the most part, but they are definitely little changes that have made a positive impact in how both of us feel about our marriage day to day.

I've noticed especially that the simple act of asking each other how we can pray for one another throughout the week has really helped build intimacy and helped both of us feel loved and encouraged. I think just knowing that your partner knows what's on your heart and actively wants to pray for that particular issue helps you form a deeper connection with one another. All married couples should at least ask each other that question once a week. It's been a game changer for us! Inviting God  into our marriage instead of thinking that we can be each others' end-all be-all has humbled us and created a wonderful closeness that is simply indescribable.

Find ways to connect with your spouse throughtout the week and don't be afraid to ask him/her what they need from you in order to feel loved. I promise, it makes all the difference!

--Kayla

Charting Our Course

My husband, Jon, and I have been married just over a year now and marriage has been a beautiful blessing full of struggles and triumphs. As a passionate photographer, writer, and foodie, I decided that it was time I started blogging about my life as a way of documenting the journey our marriage is taking us on. First things first, though. You should probably get to know me and my crazy husband.

Jon and I met in 2008 at a church retreat and I basically stalked him for several weeks after that because I thought he was so cute (I also thought he was way too old for me, so I'm just a creeper all around). I finally got up the nerve to call him when I noticed he had his number on Facebook. I called him and told him he was a weirdo (great start) and then proceeded to have one of the best conversations of my life as well as find out that he WASN'T too old for me and a relationship was totally foreseeable. From that point on we were inseparable. I think we managed to talk on the phone every single day for nine months straight until I finally made the move from Michigan to Indiana to be with him. In between all that was a lot of craziness. Several church retreats and parties and a list of dares that had to be completed between the two of us before we could see each other again (Let's just say they involved doing a lot of insane things in public--i.e. eating with your face and dressing up in costume. I think a unicorn was even involved at some point... but that's another story). Needless to say, we are quite the pair.


Jon and I dated for four years before he popped the question (everyone was in on the "isn't it about time you guys get hitched?" joke--even his grandma--for all four of those years). But something you should know about both of us is that while we have the same sense of humor and general zest and zeal for life, we are essentially polar opposites in every other way. Jon is the youngest child of four and I'm the oldest of four. Jon is wild and reckless and I'm steady and cautious. Jon is a people-pleaser and I could really care less about pleasing everyone. Jon has never-ending patience and I have zero patience at all. Jon likes to be prepared for all circumstances and I usually just approach life in whatever moment I happen to be in. You can see how a marriage between two people so incredibly different can lead to chaos and disorder right off the bat, but somehow we just manage to balance each other out for the most part. He tells me when I'm being irrational and I tell him when he's being a crazy person who's going to get himself killed. It's win/win I think. We both end up better people because of each other (Aw. Isn't that sweet?).

So now that you have a better idea of who's going to be writing this crazy blog, we can get down to the nitty gritty of WHY I'm writing this blog.

I'm just a woman on a mission to learn about myself and discover what's possible with the power of the written word. I'm on a mission to become a better wife and a better person overall and I think this blog is going to be a way of looking back on my life and seeing not just the memories we are making as a new family, but also seeing progress in my journey of self-exploration.

Expect posts about fun my husband and I have as well as my recent food creations and projects, and random thoughts on life and faith and everything in between. The course we are on may be a bit muddled by chaos, but it's going to be a worthwhile adventure and I invite whoever happens to be reading this to share in it with me.

--Kayla