Trip to TX/NM

Earlier this month, we spent 10 days with our family and friends in Texas and New Mexico. It was such a great trip!

Here are some of the highlights:

We got to see our niece, Lucy, for the second time and it was a grand reunion!

Kory rode a horse for the first time.

I held lots of babies!

We attended our 5 year class reunion at LCU and got to spend time with many of our good friends.

We ate at all of our favorite restaurants, including three trips to Rosa's. My pants are fitting a little but tighter these days, but it was so worth it!

(I had to delete my picture of my meal at Rosa's because it was making me crave it again every time I saw the picture. haha)

Several people have told me that I look darker since our trip. Maybe I got a tan after actually being in the sun? I am glad my pale Northwest skin can still absorb a little color.

It was a great trip, but, as always, it was SO nice to come home!

Mid-February Life Update

1.) Kory and I are participating in 40 Days of Water with Blood:Water Mission again this year. It snuck up ok us, so I don't really feel like we had time to prepare for it. Kory had just bought a 24 pack of Diet Dr. Pepper, so our fridge and cabinet have been tempting us at every turn. We really have to get it out of sight so that we can quit thinking about soda so much. Also, I usually call it soda instead of cokes...I must be an Oregonian!

2.) I am re-watching all of Prison Break on Netflix. I really love this show, probably because I always enjoy a good government conspiracy. Maybe someday I can be a part of one?? ;)

3.) Our youth group is doing the 30 Hour Famine this weekend and I'm really excited for it! It is always one of my very favorite events, though I'm really hoping the rain and cold temperatures go away by Friday. We'd certainly appreciate your prayers for good weather, especially since we sleep in cardboard boxes outside Friday night.

4.) I've been doing some research for my garden this year and am really looking forward to getting started. I know much more than I did last year, so hopefully the produce will reflect that knowledge.

5.) I did our taxes this weekend...and, as always, I really loved doing them. Anyone else really like doing taxes? Maybe I only like doing ours...or maybe I should be a tax preparer in the future?

6.) I was obviously starving and crazy when I ordered Girl Scout cookies, because I thought we needed 5 boxes?! I know we can freeze them but our freezer is just about full to capacity, so we're trying to eat some frozen food and make way for cookies. I do love thin mints, but I can't fathom why I bought so many of them. Also, when we were in TX, Kory's dad bought me a box so I've already eaten an entire box before I even get started on ours. I'm going to need some serious time on my elliptical very soon!

7.) I am still not sure I understand why we get a day off work for Presidents Day, but I am sure not complaining! I always appreciate a long weekend and short work week :)

27

I had a MOST wonderful birthday this year! Kory went all out and made me feel seriously special. We really love to make birthdays a big deal in our house, particularly because we live far away from family and don't get to celebrate with them in person. (My birthday was January 24, but we've been in TX/NM most of February so I'm just now posting about it. And we celebrated my birthday with both families also, so it was extra fun!)

Kory did Birthday Kwanzaa again for me this year and I was completely surprised by it! I forgot that it was a week out and he came to pick me up for lunch on Thursday, January 17 and this was what I saw on his car:

You'll have to excuse that crazy face in the background! :)

And these were my presents, which had been wrapped since Christmas, so I kind of forgot about them.

He took me to lunch at one of my favorite restaurants here, Los Dos Amigos, to get my favorite dish, Pollo a la Crema. I had never heard of it before I moved here, and it is now probably my favorite Mexican dish (in Oregon). 

Thursday night, I got to open my first BDK present.

They are so warm and fuzzy on the inside; I love them! That's the best part about getting gifts from the person who knows me better than anyone else in the world: I get gifts that I really like and that I would have picked out myself. 

Friday night, we had a BDK Launch Party and it was so fun! This was supposed to happen on Thursday night, but had to be rescheduled to Friday. Kory made another of my favorite meals (Alice Springs Chicken) and our besties, Abby and Jeremy, came over for dinner. I got to open my next BDK present, which was one of my favorite movies from the past year.

I also got to open my gift from Jeremy & Abby that night because Abby was in Guatemala on a mission trip and wasn't in the country on my actual birthday. She got me this awesome necklace, which was made by one of our friends from church, Cristina. I've really been wanting a necklace from CherryTree, so I was really excited to get this one!

Oh, I also got the best birthday card from Abby! She drew this herself--pretty impressive!

We all watched Moneyball together after dinner and I was reminded that, even though I love the movie, I always feel so sad for Billy when it's over.

Saturday, I got to open my BDK gift before Kory left to go spend the weekend with middle school students at Snow Camp. I got a bit lazy with pictures at this point, so I'll just tell you that I got a scarf, earrings, a button-up plaid shirt, and a jean jacket in the next few days. All my birthday kwanzaa gifts made an outfit for me to wear on my birthday date with Kory. Such a thoughtful guy!

Thursday, I went to work...just like almost every other adult has to do on their birthday. Kind of a bummer, but I only had to work 4 days this week because of MLK day, so that was awesome! I also got these beautiful flowers from my in-laws delivered to me at work. I love them!

For supper, we tried a new restaurant in town, called The Blackbird. It is an upscale restaurant and bar in downtown Roseburg. I had a creamy sweet onion soup, steak, potatoes, veggies and cheesecake. I wish I could describe how delicious all of it was, but that sweet onion soup was the best thing I have eaten in a long, long time. It is the soup I tried (unsuccessfully) to recreate last month. I might to back to The Blackbird just for the soup someday soon.

After dinner, we came home to open cards and gifts from family. Technically, these shoes were a Christmas present, but I had to exchange them for a different size and they arrived on my birthday, so I count them as a birthday present. I am such a fan of Toms and I especially love these!

Overall, it was a great day and I'm excited to see what 27 holds for me :) 

January 13 in 2013 Update

I made some great progress on my 13 goals in the month of January. Of course, it's the first month of the year, so that is to be expected. However, progress is progress and I will celebrate the victories, no matter how small.

1.) Try 2 new recipes each month. 

Success! I tried two new recipes this month...one a big hit and one that was so-so. The first recipe I made was Cilantro Lime Chicken with Avocado Salsa.

It was just as delicious as it sounds! Kory ended up cutting his chicken into smaller bites to put it all in a tortilla and make a soft taco out of it, which was a great idea. I will definitely make this again!

At my birthday dinner, I had some Sweet Onion Soup that was AMAZING!! I didn't even know I'd like a sweet onion soup, but this stuff was seriously delicious. I tried to recreate it, and didn't really make that happen. It had a TON of onions, first of all. The recipe called for 8-9 and I only used 6 because that was filling my pot. There was also too much milk, I think, as Kory and I both felt a little queasy after we ate this soup the first night. Sadly, we have LOTS of leftover soup and I will be eating on it the next few days until I can't stand the sight of it anymore because it was pretty pricey to make and I don't want to throw it away...at least not yet.

2.) Memorize the book of James.

I've done ok at this one. I'm trying to get all of chapter 1 re-memorized at this point. It's still pretty hard for me to do in the ESV, since I'm so used to NIV.

3.) Pay off the Camry. 

We already pay extra on the car each month, but we made a plan for how much more we'll need to pay each month to completely pay it off this year. I wrote the check and sent it off. We're 1/12 of the way there!

4.) Give away produce from my garden. 

Nothing to report so far. Maybe next month I can research when and what to plant.

5.) Complete 12 crafty projects. 

I completed one pretty big crafty project this month...but I can't reveal it yet because it's a gift for one of my friends. After I give it to her, I'll share a picture of the project.

I am also in the beginning stages of making a Quiet Book for my niece, Lucy. I am really excited for this project because I've found a ton of great ideas online.

6.) Make our house feel more like a home. 

We made a couple baby steps in this area. First off, we replaced the wooden toilet seats in our two bathrooms. I think they look much better now.

BEFORE:



AFTER:

You can tell we also have some lovely wallpaper to take care of someday, but that will probably not happen for quite some time. 

We also purchased curtain rods for our four large windows in the living room. They are 6.5 - 8.5 feet wide so these are some pretty big curtain rods, which means they were pretty expensive. We'll aim to buy some curtains in the February or March budget now.

7.) Take a break from my iPhone. 

I've done decent on this one, but not great. I'm trying to put my phone on the iHome in the kitchen when I get home, so it's not right by my side. I've noticed I just check it out of habit a lot, so if it's not close-by, I don't check it out of boredom.

8.) Keep in touch with our Compassion-sponsored children. 

I wrote letters online to Baraka and Patience this month. I just found out that if you write them online you can include uploaded pictures and put it on really cute stationery. Plus it's free! I think I'll be doing this more frequently, at least once per month.

9.) Develop a deeper prayer relationship. 

I'm finishing up the book Too Busy Not to Pray, which I've really enjoyed so far. I've also tried to make use of "down times" like when I'm showering or driving to work to spend some time praying. Lots of room to grow on this one, but I'm working on it.

10.) Play with Sky every day. 

Sky and I have played together almost every single day this month. We maybe missed 2 days? Our favorite game lately is to play fetch in street with his tennis ball. We live on a secluded road that gets very little traffic, so it works great for him to get some good exercise running from one block to the next.

11.) Clean, organize and purge one drawer, closet, or cabinet each month. 

I ended up tackling a few areas this month. I completely cleaned out my bedroom closet and got rid of about 3 grocery bags worth of clothing. I also went through all 5 of my dresser drawers and organized the spice cabinet in the kitchen.

12.) Spend time with and learn about people different than me. 

Kory and I have been volunteering this month at the Warming Center, which is a temporary homeless shelter that is set-up in a church building here in Roseburg when the temperature drops below 30 degrees. We've been there 3 nights so far, and really enjoyed it every time. This has been a great opportunity to serve and also to get to know some people in our town that we probably would never meet otherwise.

I've also been reading a book called Not Quite Adults, which is about how 20-somethings are taking longer to get "real" jobs, move out of their parents homes, get married, have kids, etc. I am very interested in this because it's about my generation and also because it affects my work (helping people find jobs) and my youth group involvement (what will the future be like for these high schoolers?), as well as my general curiosity about the world we live in. This has been really interesting to read about people my age whose lives have turned out so differently than mine.

13.) Plan quality, creative time for Kory and I to be together. 

We have instituted technology-free meal time, which has lead to some great conversation and also helped me with goal #7. We have also spent time this month looking at the stars on a (rare!) clear night, planning and working on home improvement projects, enjoying Netflix movie nights, and eating lunch together almost every day. I have an idea planned for February that I think will be a fun way to accomplish this goal and will also make a great Valentine's gift.

13 in 2013

Well, I have officially spent far too long thinking about this post and now we're a couple weeks into 2013 and I am just now solidifying my goals for the year. I have gone back and forth in my mind about what I want to do, and I've finally committed to them...I think ;)

I read a blog recently where the author did 12 goals in 2012 and 13 in 2013, so I think I'll follow Regina's lead and do 13 goals. However, some will be smaller than others, as I know that I have a lot going on already and don't want to set myself up for failure. Here are my 2013 goals, in no particular order:

1.) Try 2 new recipes each month. Since having all this dental work done, my desire to cook has declined significantly. I've spent so much time lately with a sore mouth that I either don't feel like eating or have very limited soft options, so I haven't cooked a real meal in...well, I don't remember the last one, so that tells you how long it has been. I really enjoy cooking most of the time and want to get back on track, so I'm hoping to try some new dishes and be more adventurous in this arena. I need to get going if I'm going to make this happen in January--time to get on Pinterest and start searching for new recipes.

2.) Memorize the book of James. I've actually already been working on this one for a while. Each year at CIY (the summer camp we go to), students get Kingdom cards and they receive some sort of challenge for the next year. You don't have to open an envelope, but if you open it, you have to do it. I have seen cards that include selling your most expensive possession and giving away the money, joining a new club at school, raising money to go on a foreign mission trip, starting a bible study at your high school and even memorizing the book of Ephesians. I decided I'd take on a Kingdom challenge at CIY this year along with the students and committed to memorizing my favorite book of the Bible, which is James. It's been tricky because I grew up with NIV (didn't we all??) and now our church uses ESV, so trying to memorize it with different wording than I already knew is a bit difficult. I've slacked off the past couple months and am still on Chapter 1, but I'm ready to kick it back in high gear again. I will complete this goal by August when we go to CIY (Christ in Youth) again.

3.) Pay off the Camry. We bought a house and a car in the same week last March. We wish we would have waited on the car, but we were stressed to the max about the house and bought the car in a bit of a rush. Silly us; lesson learned. Even so, we are blessed to have the money to pay for it and are going to really attack that debt and completely pay it off in 2013. Then, we'll probably start saving for our next vehicle, but putting money in savings always makes me feel way better than giving it away to some bank in California who charges us interest. Oh, and that will make us debt-free, except our house, which is always exciting!

4.) Give away produce from my garden. As I attempt to have a better, more productive garden this year, I want to be able to bless some other people with the fruits of my labor. Ideally, I'd like to give away at least some small portion of everything I grow. Based on last year's garden, that would mean I should have given away one of the 3 total snap peas I grew...let's hope for better results this year!

5.) Complete 12 crafty projects. I'm trying to leave this one a little bit more vague so I can have the freedom to sew or crochet or make holiday decorations or whatever I feel like. I'm totally ok combining this with another goal...my blog, my rules! haha

6.) Make our house feel more like a home. This one is pretty subjective, but I'm the one who has to follow through, so as long as I understand it, that is all that matters. With this one, I am thinking along the lines of buying/making curtains for the living rooms windows so our neighbors can't see straight in our house, getting a couple rugs for the bedrooms, putting some decorations up on the walls, replacing old yellow light fixtures, etc. I did quite a bit of holiday decorating, but now that Christmas stuff is put away, it feels pretty empty and bare in here.

7.) Take a break from my iPhone. I need to just say it: I am addicted to my phone. There is no denying it or excuses. It has gone too far. I have it by my side pretty much every second of the day; it is the last thing I look at when I lay down in bed and the very first thing I look at in the morning. I don't plan to get rid of my iPhone, but I am going to take some important, difficult steps to spend less time staring at that little screen. Plus, it's going to be much easier to accomplish these other goals if I'm spending less time checking social media on my phone.

8.) Keep in touch with our Compassion-sponsored children. We sponsor a little girl named Patience and a little boy named Baraka through Compassion International. Our monthly donation is deducted from our bank account directly, so the money always gets to the kids, but I think I only wrote 2 or 3 letters all of last year. I really want to be better about writing letters and sending small gifts to these two. I want to have more of a relationship with them instead of just sending money their way and hoping for the best.

9.) Develop a deeper prayer relationship. My prayer life has really been suffering for quite some time now. It's sporadic and inconsistent and sometimes non-existent. I always say I'll pray for someone; I occasionally actually do pray for them. I think about what I want DAILY; I ask God what HE wants sometimes. I've recently been convicted about this significant problem in my spiritual life and am making it a priority to improve immediately.

10.) Play with Sky every day. We have a seriously energetic dog with two prone-to-be-lazy owners, and that is just not fair to Sky. I don't think I could ever tire him out, but he does deserve to have more of our attention. Again, less time with the phone will really help here! Every day (when I'm in town, of course) I want to do something with him...go for a walk, play in the yard, throw a ball, run around the house in circles (this one is one of his favorites!), SOMETHING. We got a dog to play with and love and I want to do just that in this next year.

11.) Clean, organize and purge one drawer, closet, or cabinet each month. I am really not a hoarder/pack rat and I don't enjoy keeping a lot of junk just in case I might need it someday. I LOVE the feeling of sending unused items out of my home, so this one will be really satisfying for me. I don't think I'll have a ton of things to get rid of since I already try to do this on a fairly regular basis, but I know I will find things I didn't even know we owned (since some drawers have remained closed since we moved in almost a year ago).

12.) Spend time with and learn about people different than me. It is easy to be with people who are like me, but I don't want "easy" to be how my life is described. I want to step out of my comfort zone this year and make a real effort to be around people who don't fit in the same demographic as I do.

13.) Plan quality, creative time for Kory and I to be together. Kory and I spend lots of time together, but we don't always really engage with each other or spend meaningful time with each other. Right now, for example, I'm blogging on the laptop while he plays games on the iPad. We are sitting in the same room but haven't talked to each other for the past hour or so. I want to make a real effort to plan some technology-free time for us to be together and have fun!

As I read back through these, I realize that it might sound negative or like I'm really unhappy right now and have to make all these changes in my life to be satisfied. That is most definitely not the case. I just know that I have to make these commitments now if I am to become the person I want to be. I won't hold myself to the expectation of being perfect, but I will require that I make a valiant effort with each of these.

My plan is to do monthly updates on my progress with these goals. I know better than to promise a goal update every single month, but I'll do my best. Being a better blogger didn't make the list...maybe next year :)

2012 in Review

This past year was a wonderful one for our family! We were blessed in so many ways and made some amazing memories. Here's a look back at some of the highlights for the Mereness household last year.

In 2012, we...

Bought Our 1st House
After what seemed like a long search, we finally closed on our first home the end of March. It's very spacious, has a wonderful backyard, and has more storage space than we can use. We have had so much fun hosting out-of-town visitors, Ladies Nights, Monday Night Football watching parties, and lots of friends over for dinner and hanging out.

Got a puppy named Skywalker 
Skywalker, who we call Sky, is a Border Collie/mini-Australian Shepherd with more energy than any dog I've ever seen! He was about 5 months old when we got him and just turned a year old in November. We don't exercise him near as much as he would like, but he definitely helps keep us active.

Started a garden
I had my very first garden this Spring/Summer and I had so much fun with it! I'm looking forward to planting a little earlier this year and knowing a bit more about what I'm doing. My favorite garden produce included strawberries, zucchini, and green beans.

Went to Canada for our 1st Anniversary Trip
We celebrated one year of being married by traveling to Canada for the first time. It was one of the only times (besides our honeymoon) we have had a week off work to just enjoy each other; typically we're either traveling to see family or going on a youth group trip, so we really enjoyed a relaxing week with lots of sleeping in, eating, and naps every day.

Lost a total of 40+ pounds and kept it off!
All the jokes about gaining weight after marriage are no joke. Kory and I each lost about 20 pounds in 2012, which was weight we had put on over the past 2 years post-college. We used MyFitnessPal, which is a website and app that helps you track your food intake/calories and exercise to help you meet your weight-loss goals. It worked really well for us and we would highly recommend it to anyone interested in losing weight.

Climbed the highest mountain in Southern Oregon
In August, Kory and I climbed Mt. McLoughlin and it was really difficult!! It was still a great experience, though, and it's fun to know we accomplished such a great feat.

Spent a LOT of time with our Redeemer's high school youth group
We are so thankful to have such a great youth group! We truly do love hanging out with these teens. Some of our favorite activities this year included 30 Hour Famine, floating/rafting on the river, CIY summer camp, Fall Retreat, and leading small groups.

Super Bowl Party in February

The Amazing Spiderman in July

Floating the River in July

CIY Move in August

We welcomed quite a few visitors :)
My mom spent a quick weekend with me in our new house in April. (We didn't take a picture together...but she did buy and plant these beautiful flowers for me.)

Kory's parents came to see us in May.

Our college friends, Marty and Melissa brought their kiddos and spent some time with us in September.

My mom and dad spent 10 days in the Northwest in October. (We somehow didn't get a single picture with them again...but we did see this beautiful scenery while they were here.)

In November, my friend Lynsey and her two daughters came to see our house and visit Roseburg for the first time.

And, as I just blogged about, my parents- and grandparents-in-law were here just a few weeks ago in December.

As for my 2012 goals, here's how I did:

1.) Read 12 books

I didn't quite reach this goal, as I was still trying to finish in the final days of 2012. Initially, I thought I would have no problem completing this goal, but picking up several new hobbies (gardening, crocheting, sewing, dog-owning) took up a lot of my previously allotted reading time. Here is my reading list from the past year (at least the ones I remember):

1. Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne 

2. Message in a Bottle by Nicholas Sparks 
3. The Last Juror by John Grisham

4. Real Marriage by Mark & Grace Driscoll

5. 10 Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe by Larry Osborne

6. Crazy Love by Francis Chan

7. Duck Commander Family by Willie and Korie Robertson

8. Red Letter Christians by Tony Campolo

9. Start Something That Matters by Blake Mycoskie

10. A Year of Biblical Womanhood by Rachel Held Evans

I am still reading these final two books, so they don't really count. I'm about 1/4 through the first one and 1/2 way through number 12.

11. Not Quite Adults by Richard Settersten and Barbara E. Ray

12. Too Busy Not to Pray by Bill Hybels

2.) Learn how to crochet (again)
I definitely met this goal by completing several crochet projects this year. I made a headband for my friend, Abby, some coffee cozies for my mother-in-law, Jackie, and some slippers for my one of our youth group girls, Jordan.

I'm also working on a blanket made in Roseburg High School colors (Artesia Bulldogs colors also!) for me to have at soccer/football games next Fall. It looks like it will take about a year to finish at this rate. It's a black, orange, and white chevron blanket...and last week I realized I had mis-read the pattern and done it all wrong and had to start ALL over! Man, that was really frustrating. You can see I had gotten fairly far with it.

I've started over and am about 13 rows into my new blanket, which is done correctly this time!

3.) Use my new sewing machine

I didn't do as much sewing this year as I had hoped, but I still met my goal of using my machine. I even helped my friend, Abby, learn how to thread the needle and load the bobbin on her machine too, so that was pretty exciting.

The three sewing projects I completed were: 1) I made these burp cloths for Jacinda's baby, Judah, 2) I hemmed a pair of my dress pants, and 3) I made this nursing cover for my college room-mate, Deonna. I've got a couple more friends expecting now, so I am excited to do a little more sewing for them.

God blessed us big time in 2012 and we are excited as we look forward to the adventures ahead in 2013! :)