Another New Year

I can't believe that tomorrow is January 1, 2008. This year has flown by! Many changes have happened in 2007 - some good and others not as great, but God's hand has been evident through it all. I'm so thankful for a loving Father who knows us better than we know ourselves. He has promised to walk with us in (and through) every circumstance and I praise Him each day for that fact. What a privilege it is to be His child!!!

On a more humorous note... tonight will probably be like every other night. For those of you who know Shane, he's not big on staying up late, or really staying up at all ;) I'll probably be upstairs watching the ball drop as he's fast asleep in our bed. And if I wake him up to wish him a "Happy New Year!" he'll roll over and say, "Don't touch me, it's sleeping time" OR, "What the heck? You woke me up for that??" Shaner definitely loves his sleep, and I'm afraid that I'm turning into him! Maybe I'll just kiss Tugger instead of my hubby this year :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!

Christmastime is here

As I write this post I'm watching the snow fall outside my brother's bedroom window. Can I just say this? I MISS snow - I never thought those words would come out of my mouth after getting clobbered with snow all the time in Buffalo. But it's hard to be in a place that rarely gets more than a dusting. We are in Rochester, NY to spend Christmas with my family - the Smiths! It's been such a great trip already, though far too short. Everyone is here... my parents, my sister & brother-in-law, my grandma & her friend, my 2 younger brothers, and (of course) many puppies running around! This is the first time that we've all been together in a while, and since Tyler's diagnosis. He is feeling strong, though most of his hair is now gone. We continue to ask God's healing in his body and know that He is faithful to answer those prayers. Tyler is the same kid, though, no matter what his health may be. He is spouting one-liners and quoting movies with the best of them :) It's wonderful to see that he has not lost his sense of humor through all of it. We've basically had one long party ever since we all gathered here at the Smith house. We even went to get pictures taken of "just the kids" as my mom likes to say. She wanted one of all of us since we're hardly ever in one place at the same time :) The photographer laughed at us pretty much the entire session. It's a comedy show when we're all in the same room - and I'm so thankful for the joy that God continues to bring to our family. Laughter is wonderful! Here's a couple shots from yesterday - one posed, and one of the boys "not-so-posed" :)

The goofball brothers strike again! If you can't tell... we love being together. There is quite a story behind this picture so if you'd like to hear it, just let me know!

My sister & I are singing a duet at the Christmas Eve service tonight - I can't wait!! It's been a while since we've done that. Tomorrow will be another great day, and another Christmas for us to reflect on what God gave to us so many years ago. Christ has given everything and I pray that I will always live my life in honor of His sacrifice. Thank you, Jesus, for coming to live among us! Merry Christmas :)

MORE BABY NEWS!!

My cousin, Kristen, just had her first baby today in Hungary!!! She and her husband, Kevin, moved there this past August to teach at the International Christian School of Budapest. Just months before they moved, Kristen found out she was pregnant - quite a piece of news to receive as you're preparing to leave the country!! But God has provided in such amazing ways for them. She has had a very smooth pregnancy and the people at their school (both American & Hungarian) have given of themselves to help both Kevin & Kristen during this time of transition. Seth Norman Yaiko (Norman, named for our late grandfather) came into the world at 6:17 pm Hungarian time, weighing in at approximately 3.2 kilos (7lbs., 1oz.). He is 51 cm. long (20 inches) and has dark hair!! He was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck, but is doing just fine. Stefanie, Kristen's younger sister said that she is feeling well. I wish I was able to talk with her myself... but that's a little hard to do when you're overseas! It's tough being so far away from the people you love! Stefanie is keeping me updated with all the exciting news. I will post a picture or 2 as soon as I get some :) It seems that babies are everywhere these days! I'm sure my family will say that it's time for us to start thinking about kids. Sorry, folks... not just yet. THANK YOU, GOD, FOR BRINGING KRISTEN & SETH SAFELY THROUGH THIS EXPERIENCE!! Welcome to the family, little buddy - and congratulations, Kevin & Kristen :)

Something to sing about!

I'm an aunt for the second time! Well - not technically an aunt, but I've been told that I hold that title even though we're not blood relatives :) One of my best friends, Rachel, gave birth yesterday to her first baby - a girl!!! :) I had just spoken with Rachel on the phone the night before and she was definitely NOT expecting her to come just yet. The doctors told Rachel that she had not progressed too much and she would probably go past her due date. It's been a tough pregnancy, so this was not good news. BUT - God had something different in mind!! Yesterday afternoon, Harmony Joy Shipman came into the world, weighing in at 7lbs., 2oz. If you know Mike & Rachel at all, the name "Harmony" is very fitting. Lots of history behind that name... much more than just, "oh - they're both musical!" I can't wait to hear the songs that her mommy & daddy write for her. Rachel had quite a time during delivery and ended up having an emergency C-section due to Harmony's decreasing heart rate. But both mom & baby are doing well now, and I can't wait to see them!! God has blessed our circle of friends with a beautiful child to dote on and we can't thank Him enough for His hand of protection over both Rachel & Harmony during the entire pregnancy. CONGRATULATIONS, MIKE & RACHEL! Harmony... welcome to the "family." We love you! For more updates & pictures, click here.

Thank You...

Well, today marked the second day of my new job with the YMCA of Central Kentucky. My official title is "Executive Assistant to the CEO" - not too shabby, eh?! I'm loving it already. The people I work with are so encouraging and helpful. I have the most incredible boss... driven, yet full of compassion. You don't get a much better combination than that. She runs the office efficiently and gracefully, and did I mention she's JACKED?? This woman is in far better shape than me and is more than twice my age. I hope that some of her exercise habits rub off!

I've had the privilege of training with the girl for who I am taking over. She is now a mother of three and is in a position where she can stay home with her kids. She's been in this position for about 6 years now and has done an amazing job! I've been told that I have "big shoes to fill." Whenever I hear that comment I think to myself, "Well... I've got pretty big feet!" Not trying to be prideful, but I think I'll do a great job for them, and hopefully I'll exceed all their expectations. I really enjoy the administrative side of work. I can leave the office at the end of the day with a tangible amount of work completed. I am a list-maker, an organizer, and somewhat of a perfectionist... so clerical work tends to be right up my alley!

All I can say is, "THANK YOU, LORD, FOR SUCH A GREAT OPPORTUNITY!" He is so gracious to have given me this chance with the YMCA. I knew my time with HH was coming to a close and I just keep looking back on all the things that happened to bring about this job. He definitely led me to this position... whether I knew it or not! I had prayed for something new - something that would bring me joy and fulfillment. And after one very frustrating day, I decided to begin the search for something different. The first place that popped up after my "Google" search was Career Builder. Can I just say that I LOVE that website?? This position with the YMCA was posted there and I kept coming back to read the job description. I thought, "Well, I just barely meet the experience requirement... but it's worth a shot." I didn't really think I'd get the job, but was hoping to at least be considered. Needless to say, I was wrong! I'm so thankful that He's allowed this doorway to open. I'm surrounded by a great team of people who have been doing this work for quite some time. The guidance being offered is such a welcomed difference. Not many people can say that they love their job... but I'm pretty sure I'll get to be one of those blessed few!!

Sunday Service

Yesterday afternoon Shane & I attended an Anglican church for the first time - Saint Patrick's. I must admit that I was a bit nervous to attend this service, only because I wasn't sure what to expect. We walked into the building to find some of the warmest greetings we've ever received. The senior pastor, Peter, is probably one of the most genuine guys I've met in a long time. He truly loves the Church as a whole and longs to see the community of believers come together. I noticed that they had "scripts" for the service which would come in handy! Much of the prayers and Scriptures were shared readings, done so in unison by the entire congregation. I've never heard such JOY from a body of believers when participating in responsive readings. It brought tears to my eyes to hear the voices of children, reading along with enthusiasm and true praise to God! When Pete said, "Lift up your hearts!" The entire congregation responded with resounding praise, "WE LIFT THEM UP TO THE LORD!"

The congregation also spent time in prayer over one of the members who is reaffirming his faith. He will officially reaffirm next Sunday and (from what we gathered), this has been a huge process for him. As he kneeled on the ground, we all held our hands out to him in agreement with what Pastor Pete was praying over him. I couldn't help but be overcome by the grace that this man must have been feeling in that very moment. It brought me back to the time when I felt God's calling on my life to full-time ministry. I'm thankful for that moment and the power it still holds in my life.

At another point in the service we took time to recognize the saints that have gone before us, who are now with the Lord. I boldy called out my Grandfather, Norm Dunham, and my Grandmother, Abbie Smith. These 2 people have been huge influences in my life and my walk with the Lord. Their faithfulness as Christ-followers has always encouraged me to live a life that is set apart, though I fail many times.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time at St. Patrick's and will be attending again next week. I appreciate the prodding of our friends, Chuck & Cherith, to attend this church. The liturgy and traditions present in each service remind me that when we gather to worship our God, it is a sacred time. It's easy to forget that in many of the modern churches today. I was reading in the book of Jude and came upon a wonderful benediction. I'd like to leave you with this prayer: "To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! AMEN."

Congratulations!

My brother-in-law, Dorian, just got engaged last night!!!! He asked his girlfriend, Kristen, to marry him at Rosy Mound Natural Area last night and she (of course) said, "YES!" Shane & I were privileged to see the ring when we met up with all of them in Toledo a couple weekends ago. Unfortunately, we weren't able to make the trip out to Michigan to celebrate with them, but we're rejoicing just the same! We knew it was coming this weekend, so we waited by the phone last night. We got the call right after it happened and Kristen was just out of her mind with joy :) I asked her if she was surprised and she answered (in these exact words), "OH MY GOSH... I don't even know what to do with myself. I feel like one of those dogs chasing its tail - just running in circles!" I love that girl :) She just makes me laugh everytime I talk with her. Kristen has brought Dorian more happiness than we ever knew was in him! They are a great match and I'm thankful that God has put them in each other's paths. D & Kristen were friends LONG before they dated, and it's been so awesome to watch that relationship grow into a love relationship. We couldn't be more excited for you, brother & sister!!! Congratulations - and, Kristen... welcome to the family! :)

Trick or Treat...

Our neighbors have the CUTEST toddler in the entire world. Her name is Madison and I don't think I've ever encountered a more precious child. She dressed up like a black kitten and we were able to catch her before she went inside for bed. I had a huge bowl of candy left and proceeded to fill her bag with ALL of it (note: I only bought the candy to hand out to her... I didn't really care about the rest of the kids!) But she was a welcomed ending to an otherwise obnoxious evening. Read on...

Seriously, if you're over 10 years old you should NOT be trick-or-treating. We had a fair number come to our house tonight, though the majority of them were at least 14. COME ON, PARENTS!! When your kids are that old, they can buy their own candy with allowance money - or for that matter... JOB money since that's the minimum working age in the state of Kentucky. Don't let them beg for candy at people's doorsteps, especially when they haven't actually dressed up. FYI - a painted face does NOT equal a costume. My other favorite part about the age-inappropriate trick-or-treaters is the fact that they walk up to your door and don't even say, "Trick or treat!" They just stand there waiting for you to drop candy into their buckets. I should've refused them candy for not saying it... but the smarter side of me said, "Give it to them or they might be back later with eggs & toilet paper." Next year I'm thinking of posting a warning sign: "If you're not 10 years old or younger, DON'T BOTHER KNOCKING!" Our dogs certainly made an impression on most of the older ones. They love to bark when the doorbell rings, and while they're completely harmless, their sheer volume implies otherwise. Maybe that'll teach 'em :)

Well...

Not much can be said about this year's World Series. I guess the Rockies just couldn't compete with this Red Sox roster. But did it have to be a SWEEP???!! Oh well... another year of baseball now over. I do have to hand it to Boston's pitching line-up, you don't get much better than that. I feel the need to make a comment to all my friends who love to talk about the Yankees stacking their team... THEY'RE NOT THE ONLY ONES! I listened to the commentators talk this entire 4th game about how Boston has obtained their team, and what players they may sign for next season. I think I might puke if A-Rod goes to the Red Sox. That's all I have to say about that. I'm going to bed!

Rockies vs. Red Sox

Let me just say that the title of this blog was put in that order for a very GOOD reason! I cannot STAND the freakin Boston Red Sox. I'm thankful that I can still cheer for a team that I actually like in this series! The Colorado Rockies have waited a long time to get to this point, and they've worked hard to be here. I was sad when my Yankees lost, but they just weren't coming out to play. They didn't deserve to go to the World Series this year... though I'm sure my husband would argue that same point about EVERY year. Contrary to his agreement with my father, Shane is not a Yankee fan. It's really too bad, because he could finally begin to cheer for a winning team, rather than wishing for a ray of hope to come from Buffalo! ;) I was living in Colorado during their inaugural baseball season (as well as a few more seasons) and have always held a spot in my heart for the Rockies. It was cool to see them play at Mile High Stadium before Coors' Field was built. I attended many games with my church youth group and my family, so this is certainly a team I can stand behind. I hope they kick the crap out of Boston... stupid scrubs! Somone needs to tell the Red Sox that multi-million dollar paychecks should require them tucking in their uniforms properly and getting freakin haircuts. GO ROCKIES!!!

Toledo 10K

This past weekend we made a trip up to Toledo to meet Shane's parents, Dorian (brother), and Kristen (his brother's girlfriend). We all decided to meet in Toledo because there was a 10K race being held in the city of Sylvania - just miles outside Toledo. I can't begin to tell you how excited I was for this weekend! It's been a big adjustment for us to be living far away from our families, as we've been a little more than an hour away from each of them since leaving home for college and then, eventually, to get married. While being in Buffalo brought many challenges, we also loved being right in the middle in terms of travel to both hometowns. We were blessed to have had that time, especially after also being located in the middle during our 4 years of college. Our families mean the world to us and we're so thankful to be as close as we are.

The anticipation of seeing Shane's family had been building for a few weeks. Dorian & Kristen live out in Michigan and they don't always have the chance to get away, so for them to be able to meet us as well just made things that much better! On a sidenote: I just LOVE Kristen! She is perfect for Dorian and I don't think we could've imagined anyone making him happier than she does. I truly hope she will become a part of this family permanently (though I already think of her in those terms!). Kristen & I have become very close over the past few months and not only do I see her as a friend, but as a sister. She fits in so well with the DeHavens and I look forward to the time that we can all celebrate that. Dorian & Shane have always been pretty close, so it's neat to see "the brothers" reunite :) If you were walking behind D & Shane... chances are you wouldn't be able to tell the difference - unless you were me or their mother!! And on top of getting to see D & Kristen, we were also meeting up with Mom & Dad DeHaven :) I absolutely love being their daugher-in-law. I've never felt more accepted for who I am or loved so unconditionally, except (of course!) in my own family. God has truly blessed both Shane & I with wonderful godly families and we're thankful to be a part of them!

So we made the trip on Saturday morning, arriving in Toledo around 2pm. As we pulled up to the hotel, we could see Mom & Dad D waiting outside for us - "The DeHaven Welcome Wagon" as I now call it :) Everytime we're all together it's just such a great time of sharing, laughing, and talking about the future. Again... I can't say it enough - I LOVE MY FAMILY! So after some long hugs we took our stuff up to the room and decided to come back down to wait for D & Kristen. They came rolling into the hotel about an hour later, completing our weekend crew :) We went out to the mall first so we could help Mom D pick out a dress for the Hunter's Hope Candlelight Ball and then went out for a steak dinner. Nothing like some extra protein before a race! We got back to the hotel after dinner and D & Kristen decided they wanted to go swimming. So we all sat around the pool as they swam... and I must say that I felt a bit like a hovering mother :) After a few minutes of them romping around in the pool I said, "Okay, kids - a few more minutes and then it's bedtime!" We all had a good laugh about that one.

The next morning we all got up to watch the boys run in the 10K (Racing for Recovery). It was a beautiful day to run... the sun was out, but it wasn't hot just yet. The boys were looking strong and we were standing by with cameras in hand :) Shane finished first among our 3 guys and I've never been more proud. I love watching him accomplishing his goals! He ran at a great pace and kept saying that he didn't feel too tired, which is good since he's training for a full marathon this coming January :) Dad D and Dorian followed a few minutes later and we all celebrated their hard work. Shane & Dorian actually received medals for their placement! :) NICE WORK, BOYS!

After the race was done we had to say goodbye to Mom & Dad D as they had to get back to Jamestown for some church events. It's always the hardest time for us, as we know it'll be a while before we see each other again. D, Kristen, Shane, & I went out to lunch together at Don Pablos and just had a great time of fellowship. We then decided to get some Tim Horton's (since we knew we couldn't get any back in Lexington!) and went our separate ways. While it was hard to watch everyone drive away, we knew it would only be a few weeks before we saw them all again for Thanksgiving. Thank you, Lord, for the amazing privilege to be a part of this family!

Praise & Thanks

Well... we have seen LOTS of answers to prayer over these past couple days. Tyler's PET scan came back showing NO ACTIVE CANCER!!!! GOD IS SO GOOD! We are more than ecstatic about this news and are so grateful that the Lord has healed him! He will continue to have chemo, as the doctors want to be sure that everything has been "zapped" (as my mom likes to say). He took his SATs this morning and is now on his way to the hospital for another weekend stay. This round of chemo requires that he go in for 2 to 3-day treatments every other weekend. He never looks forward to these stays as boredom sets in rather quickly. He's also one of the oldest kids on the floor so there's really no one for him to talk to once my family has to leave. But, he only has 1 more hospital stay after this weekend which he's VERY excited about :) I got a phone call from Tyler during his last hospital stay and it was quite amusing. He was saying things that were slightly out of character, though he was extremely lucid and understandable. A few days later, I received a note from him asking if I had called him, or if he had called me that night. I told him all that had happened and he had almost NO recollection of the entire phone call - mind you... this conversation lasted for almost 2 hours! The doctors had him on some sort of medicine that made him a bit loopy, though you would never have known by talking with him! :) We had a good laugh over that, though.

The other praise involves our new niece, Hannah. A few days ago we received a phone call from Shane's mom telling us that Hannah was admitted into the hospital for seizures. She had 2 in one day and (needless to say) Corey & Danielle were scared and uncertain of what was wrong. After multiple tests and check-ups, the doctors determined that Hannah's "episodes" were not seizures at all, but a reaction her body had to acid reflux. She had been diagnosed with that about a week and a half ago and since she's still so young, her body didn't know how to respond to that kind of pain. The episodes resembled seizures, but there was no proof of that in the brain scans the doctors performed. So we're VERY thankful that Hannah is back at home and doing extremely well. She's now up to 6lbs., 3oz. - much bigger than when she was born. We'll be visiting the whole family in Raliegh at the end of this month and cannot WAIT to finally meet her, hold her, spoil her... all the perks of being Aunt & Uncle! Shane & I are also excited to have some time with Corey, Danielle, AND Mom & Dad DeHaven! It'll be one big family reunion :)

Please continue to pray for both Tyler & Hannah. We want to thank everyone who has been steadily praying & providing words of encouragement for these situations. We love you!! I'll leave you with a link to a newspaper article that was written about Tyler a few weeks ago. Pretty cool :)

http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070914/SPORTS0102/709140344/1007/SPORTS

New Floor...

So, Shane & I have decided to enter into some fairly major home improvements. The first thing to change is the upstairs flooring - from carpet to laminate hardwood. The second thing is the addition of 2 windows in the family room. Note: this second project is considerably bigger and would require outside help. The floor seemed like an easy enough job, especially with my handy-man of a husband ;) The goal is to give the upstairs a facelift without dumping a TON of money into it... thus the laminate. Our sad carpet has become hideous due to the lack of care given by the previous owners (lots of comments I'd like to add here, but will refrain for the sake of time). What's sad is that it would look so nice had it been kept clean, though I guess that's wishful thinking at this point. We also have 2 dogs & I'd rather not have my carpet - or the rest of the upstairs - smelling like them. Sorry puppies... I love you, but I don't want your scent everywhere!

To start the project, we figured we'd start where we always start... good old Lowe's!! We've been to Lowe's about a billion times since moving here, though I think within the last week the Lowe's employees have begun to wonder about us. Our most recent visits have looked like this: we come in, go directly to the flooring department, linger for at least 40 minutes, yet never come away with ANY purchases. Tonight we were fully prepared to make our decision and BUY the flooring - but the guy Shane wanted to deal with was helping another customer. Rather than just standing around, we checked to make sure our top 2 choices were still available. And guess what?? 1 of our 2 options was not even on the shelves anymore!! So, Shane looked at me and said, "Welp... I guess that decision's been made!" We then proceeded to wait for about 40 minutes (yet again) and "our guy" was still tied up. I gave Shane the look... the one all husbands have come to despise... and he knew it was time to go. We walked out the door for the THIRD time in a row with empty hands. I guess I'll have to endure this carpet for at least another week :(

Hannah Elizabeth DeHaven

I'm finally an aunt!! Shane's sister-in-law, Danielle, gave birth to Hannah on September 9th at 7:20am. She weighed 4lbs., 8oz. and was 18 inches long - just a little thing :) She came about 3 1/2 weeks early since Danielle was experiencing preeclampsia. The doctors wanted to be sure that both Mom & Baby would be okay, so they decided to induce on Saturday afternoon. After a LONG night and a scare with the epidural, Hannah came into the world!! Corey & Danielle are now the proud parents of a beautiful baby girl. She's the first grandchild on the DeHaven side of the family so it's an exciting addition for all of us. Danielle & Hannah are both doing well and were able to go home today. Praise God for keeping them both safe through everything!

Updates

Shane started classes this past Tuesday!! He's officially a graduate student and couldn't be more excited. We went to new student orientation last week on Thursday & Friday and it was great to be a part of the activities. I just have to say that I think Asbury is a minority when it comes to spouse ministries as a major part of the school - and I am more than thankful for it! I'm able to audit classes for free (though I highly doubt I'll be attending any Greek classes!) and get involved with tons of ministries. Thursday night we went to a dinner for all the new Wesleyan seminary students and met up with a Houghton couple!! It's always fun to chat with people from your alma mater and find out what's been going on in their lives. We have found over this past week how many people are in our shoes... needing healing from the places we've come from. Someone made that statement during a couples' orientation and all I could think was, "AMEN!!" I don't think I even realized how angry and hurt I was until after we got here... and that even took a couple months of processing things. God has brought many people into my life here that have been so supportive and understanding of what I'm working through. I believe He's given me these friends quite specifically and I'm becoming more grateful each day for those He's allowed me to come in contact with. The first chapter of James has given me a ton of encouragement, as I have learned that it's necessary to go through the tough times so that God can make me more complete in Him. I ask that He will continue to shape me into the person that He wants me to become... not the person that I'd like to be.

And on another note - my brother, Tyler, had some GREAT news today!! I got a phone call this afternoon from my mom telling me that his most recent CAT scan came back showing hardly any cancer left in his body! God is certainly answering our prayers of healing... and much more quickly that I anticipated! Not to say that I didn't believe He could do it, but it's been amazing to watch the church as a whole come around my family during this time and really petition on Tyler's behalf. And to see that God is choosing to heal him is such a gift, I can't even begin to tell you. This time has brought such strength and faith to our family, greater than anything we might've had before. While God has always proven Himself faithful to us, we just didn't know if it was in His will to take this from Tyler. And we knew that no matter the outcome, He would give us the peace to walk through it. "Praise be to the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds." ~Psalm 72:18

Townhouse Pictures

Rather than posting all 31 pictures, you can click on the link below to see some shots of our townhouse here in Kentucky. There is much decorating that still needs to be done... so keep that in mind as you view! :) I've attempted to put them in a "walk through" order to give you a feel for the layout.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9456&l=c8b1f&id=795752515

Dairy Queen Debacle

So our friend, Rob, came to visit us last weekend with 2 of his daughters, Bri & Madi. We hung out at the house, took them around town, went to a movie, and ate a LOT. Somehow we always tend to do that with Rob :) Saturday evening we decided to run to Dairy Queen for a bedtime snack. The girls were so excited and to be honest, I wasn't too disappointed either! So we hop in the car to make the 6 minute drive and once we're on the road we encounter one of my least favorite things about living in Kentucky - the horrible drivers. Let me just point out that in the state of Kentucky, only 1 safety inspection is required... EVER!! So we have this idiot in front of us driving a car that I can only imagine is held together merely by rust. He is not going the speed limit, nor is he paying attention since he's talking on his cell phone. Unfortunately, Kentucky does not have any laws against cell phone use while operating a vehicle. Needless to say, we experience this garbage quite often, and being from NY I have very little patience for it.

We FINALLY arrive at Dairy Queen, just minutes before they close. And I approach the counter to order and am met by a cashier who appeared to be falling asleep. She asked me if the order was for "here" or "to go" though the words have never sounded more foreign to me. I could barely understand her, so I figured I should probably proceed slowly. I gave her the first order in my slowest speech possible, waited a couple seconds, then did the same with the other 3 things we were buying. When I finished she looked at me and said, "ok... so I have a PB cup blizzard made with chocolate ice cream, and... what was the rest??" I looked at Rob and he gave me this look like, "you gotta be kidding me!" I repeated the other things even SLOWER than before... though my lack of Kentucky accent might have thrown her off as well. It's hard to say.

After repeating it again, she still only added 1 item. So we gave her the order a THIRD time - and at this point I really figured we wouldn't be getting our ice cream at all since it had taken her almost 10 minutes JUST TO TAKE THE ORDER. We finally paid her for the order after she read it back to us... also painful... and stood at the end of the counter waiting for everything. My blizzard came out first, though it was being made by someone else. So I can only assume that our cashier was not allowed to operate any machinery, since the mere mention of it probably hurts her brain. Blizzard - done. Madi ordered a small dish of vanilla ice cream dipped in cherry. But rather than the dip, the girl put actual maraschino cherries on top. I was VERY clear when I said, "we'd like that dipped." So Rob was going to just eat it and give Madi his milkshake, but I wasn't about to have that. I looked at the girl and immediately she knew she had done it wrong. She said, "oh wait... was that supposed to be dipped??" I just smiled and nodded because any comments at that point might've cost us the rest of the order! So she threw out the original one, fixed the new one, and then started making another person's order. Another girl was making Rob's milkshake - everything was fine. We were still waiting on a Dilly Bar for Bri when we watched this same cashier throw out 3 more items... simply because she wasn't paying attention when making them. HOW HARD IS IT TO WORK AT DAIRY QUEEN?!?!?! After trying to get another person's attention to get the Dilly Bar, at last we had everything we ordered. An excruciating 23 minutes in DQ for something that should've taken 5. We left with our heads hung low... yes, folks, I live in Kentucky. :)

Cornish Game Hen

So I got a little ambitious this week with dinners... Shane & I were at the grocery store getting food for the week when I spotted a twin pack of cornish game hen. And to answer your question, no - I have never cooked one before. I figured it couldn't be all that difficult. Shane looked at me with a questioning glance and said, "You sure about this??" To which I obviously answered, "We can figure it out!" I admit, I cheated a bit by looking on the internet for a definition of "truss" since I had never heard of it before. Apparently to "truss" any type of poultry means to tie it up. Well, I didn't really think it was that important since I wasn't stuffing the birds. Turns out I was right in this instance! It wasn't that necessary in this case since we had only seasoned the birds rather than stuffing them.

While I was preparing the hen for roasting all I could think was, "Holy crap - this is gonna be so bad and then Shane will be right... AGAIN!" But I continued to season and followed the directions given on the package. And on a sidenote, always know how hot your oven actually is! Ours is apparently off by a long shot. How could one be calibrated so poorly??! I ended up having to cook the freakin birds almost 30 minutes longer than what I was supposed to. I'm a little nervous to eat them, so I'll give my hubby the privilege of the first taste! :) I'll let you know how it goes...

Crazy July

I spent almost the entire month of July in New York for work. The first weekend was Danielle's baby shower. She's giving birth to the first grandchild on the DeHaven side... so it's been pretty exciting! The following week was spent in Ellicottville for the Hunter's Hope Annual Family & Medical Symposium at Holiday Valley. What an unbelievable time! I had a chance to meet some of the strongest people I'll ever know- children (and families) living with leukodystrophies. I am continually amazed at how God has used these kids to work in the lives of the parents and siblings... and me! I feel privileged to know them, and even more blessed to have the opportunity to serve them through the Foundation. I can't help but wonder who will be back next year, and those who may not. Meeting the families of children who have passed away has shown me how short this life really can be, and how important it is to do something that MATTERS. The Lord has spoken to me about His plan and how I need to trust Him to take me wherever He would have me go... not where I would feel most comfortable.

After the Symposium we came back to Orchard Park to prepare for the 5th annual Rochester Candlelight Ball. This fundraiser has grown each year and the people who support the Foundation are extremely generous. I was also given the opportunity to sing again and it was such a blast. I'm always thankful for any chance to sing, but getting to share a song about the love of God in a place that's usually devoid of that topic is SO cool! The night was crazy and we were exhausted afterward, but it was worth it... we exceeded our fundraising goal :) I look forward to returning to Buffalo for the anniversary gala in November. In the meantime, I continue to seek out grant opportunities. Know anyone who'd like to donate $10,000+ to a good cause??

After more than 3 1/2 weeks of being away, I was definitely glad to be back home. It's been strange to be away... but in my hometown. Lots of emotions surfaced during that trip so, needless to say, I was wiped. The flight back began at 6:40am and delays in the air and on the ground left me in Cincinnati waiting for Shane to drive from Lexington (about an hour and a half away) to pick me up. Gotta love Delta airlines.

New Blog!

I've finally decided to join the world of blogging! A number of my friends have these and I figured... why not?! So here are the latest highlights from the DeHaven household:

-We moved to Nicholasville, KY in May
-We bought a townhouse
-I continue to work for the Hunter's Hope Foundation (sidenote: working from home is EXCELLENT!)
-Shane starts grad school in a couple weeks, but in the meantime he's working at Toyota of Nicholasville
-The dogs already act as if they own the place :)

We continue to search for a church that fits both our tastes, though having so many large churches around makes things a bit difficult. I'm just not too convinced of them yet :) God has brought some great people into our lives since the move. Our neighbors are awesome and we've already had lots of opportunities to get to know them. We recently had Shane's family down for a long weekend. It was such a blast! Mom & Dad D. came from Jamestown and Dorian & Kristen came from Michigan. We truly miss both of our families... it's been the first time in 4 years that we've been more than a short drive away. I think it's a bit tougher for Shane since he's never had to really move far away - though I must admit, even after 5 moves growing up, it doesn't get any easier.

I'm thankful for this time of change. It is stretching me in ways that I couldn't imagine and has brought many new adventures. It'll be interesting to see what comes of it all...