Happy Birthday Kellen!

It's hard to believe that five years ago I had no idea that Kellen even existed, let alone that today was his birthday. When I left for South Korea I had no idea just how much my life would change, that the next time I stepped onto USA soil it would be to come home for my wedding. Kellen has become such an integral part of everyday, I can't imagine my life without him, and hardly believe that so much of my life was spent without knowing this awesome man!

As a teen I created a list of attributes I desired in my future mate, a list that I continued to tweak and add to throughout my twenties... girls are cool like that. It's funny how important the things on that list seemed to me at that time, and how unimportant and silly some of those things are now that I am married to the right man for me.

In honor of my dear husband's final year in his twenties (gasp!) I shall divulge the ones I can recall and speak to how he has fulfilled or dismissed such ideas :)

In no particular order:

1. Blue eyes. This is silly... I love that blue eyes are made possible thanks to recessive genes (nerd!). Both my parents have blue eyes, Joanie's are kinda green, Ben's are super blue, and mine are grayish blue... I like that and had hoped to marry someone whose eye color would continue the trend. But Kellen has brown eyes, and brown eyes are dominant. I kinda geek out about the Punnett square in biology class. Kellen's mom has brown eyes, but his dad has blue eyes, so it is possible for our kids to have blue eyes, but if he passes the brown eye gene to our kids then there will be no hint of blue in those eyes, b/c brown trumps blue. For some reason that makes me sad, knowing my blue eyes could be forgotten. But I have to say I don't mind looking into his lovely brown eyes, so I can't be sad for any children of ours who may end up with dad's eyes :)

2. Love cats. Growing up we always had a cat (or 2, or 3...) so it only seemed natural that my own home would always have a cat. I had the typical dog-craze most kids go through: I spent half my childhood longing for a cocker spaniel. We finally got one and she acted like the cats... I liked that about her. Kellen SO doesn't love cats. He tolerates them, but would much rather aggravate them to the point of fleeing. He'd much prefer a dog. I'm not crazy about dogs, but I may have to tolerate one someday... hopefully it will think it's a cat.

3. Musical talent. Kellen doesn't play any musical instrument (nor do I), but he sings with exuberance... make a joyful noise, ya know the bit... he'll take a perfectly lovely song with great lyrics and make it his own, nearly unrecognizable from the original. When I try to offer him the correct lyrics he tells me not to "crush his creativity" or something like that. The way he sings, though nothing at all what I had in mind when I thought of "musical talent" is one of his most endearing qualities.

4. Love kids. We met thanks to this I guess. As a PE teacher he worked with kids and though I prefer the younger variety, he works well with older ones, which will make us a good team. He desires to have kids of our own, and already prays for them and us as parents. I know he will be an amazing father and that makes me happy :)

5. Love God. Kellen is so motivated, and much of that motivation comes from his desire to do God's will. He leads me gently as the head of our home and sets an example of daily devotion to God and sharing the Good News whenever possible with whoever will listen. He spurs me on in my walk and I am proud to follow his example.

6. Not in military, or other dangerous employment (ie, police officer, firefighter). Yeah, I know. Right before Kellen and I were to get married he threw the zinger that he'd always wanted to be in the military. He was looking into being an officer and shortly after we were wed he started preparing for tests for the Airforce to be an officer with them. As luck would have it, the day we went to find info at the armed forces info center the Airforce office was closed, and so we opted Marines, and thus our journey began. Originally he wanted to be an MP officer, so military AND police, awesome... God has had to deal with my heart A LOT in this, and with Kellen's as well. God has humbled Kellen through the OCS experience, feeling led to chaplaincy and now we're in seminary to that end. It's still not settled completely, but no matter where Kellen ends up ministering I trust that the God who holds the universe and notices even a sparrow will lovingly protect my husband.

7. Sense of humor. This could have been a deal breaker. Lucky for me though, Kellen is hilarious. Just look at his musical talent, Kellen is a funny funny guy and sees humor in everything, which is a blessing and makes life interesting. He can also laugh at himeself. Even though this post seems to be one rave after another about how perfect Kellen is... he is not, and he knows it and can laugh at himself when the time calls for it.

8. Not super physically fit, but not fat. This is selfish. The idea was that since I'm not a lean, mean exercising machine that someone who's also not in pristine physical shape wouldn't notice it so much, or at least wouldn't have room to complain... Kellen loves him some exercise and is in pretty great physical shape, not as fit as he'd like to be, but since he holds himself to a high standard of physical health (not body image, but health) I too am encouraged to eat right and get exercise... left to my own devices I would gradually get less and less healthy (read overweight and out of shape). Before I met Kellen I really had no concept of calories or nutrition, or how to workout different body parts correctly, so it turns out to be a good thing that I married this health-conscious man.

9. Gets along with my family. My parents came to visit me in South Korea before Kellen and I were dating. I very much wanted to be dating him, but he hadn't shown any interest at that point. Unbeknownst to me, Kellen had started developing "feelings" for me right around that time and when my parents and I were away over a weekend he really missed me (eeee!). We clicked and seemed like a natural couple, so much so that my dad asked my mom, "Why aren't they dating?" Yes, why indeed... During my parents' visit Kellen was apparently sizing up my family to make sure I didn't come from a long line of weirdos (ha, fooled him! j/k) Anyway, they passed the test and shortly after they left we started dating. It is partly because of my parents meeting him and having such an awesome response to him that I felt sure about marrying him so quickly. Needless to say my family loves him too, and the fact that his family is great is just cake! I really won the in-law lottery!

10. I can't think of anything else on my list, but I'm sure I had to have an even 10... I'm weird like that and Kellen gets me. He calls me on my crap and loves me anyway. He wants to make me happy and will suffer discomfort to make me happy. He serves me well- washing dishes, cleaning the house, covering 2 days of my work so I can go on a mission trip and a hundred other sacrifices, big and small... he inspires me to be a better person because I see Christ lived out in his life. He encourages me when I'm down, loves on others well and is just a great guy. I wonder sometimes how I got so lucky.

I look at my list and am thankful that God had His own list and knew better than I what was important and just who met the criteria... that sweet man of mine whom I love SO dearly! I didn't know just what I was missing. I am SO very thankful that he was born 29 years ago today!

Happy Birthday Kellen!!!

Living the Lake Life

When I first started this blog it was to keep folks up-to-date about Kellen's training at OCS. That was over 3 years ago. We have obviously had a lot of changes in our lives, and so my blog has altered a bit.

Sometimes the Lake Life is me traveling to exotic locations (Brazil, India... Canada). Other times it's Kellen going back into military training leaving me alone for weeks on end (sigh). Other times it's us moving, getting new jobs, starting grad school, finding a new church and making new friends. Sometimes it's me wondering what our future will look like-will Kellen graduate this December like planned? will he really go military chaplain? where will he get his 2 years experience (ie first job after graduating), when are we actually going to start a family so I can take care of my own kids?

Sometimes it's my computer telling me (every time I turn it on) "Your battery needs to be replaced." and me wanting to say to said computer, "NO- YOUR battery needs to be replaced, boom." Sometimes it's getting rid of our old sofa to make room for a nice used sectional from a friend and getting to rearrange the living room furniture! Sometimes it's siblings and dear friends having babies that I can't wait to hug and kiss. Sometimes it's me getting my first (and very likely LAST) tattoo- a wedding ring stand-in since I'm allergic to my beautiful rings (curse you nickel!). Sometimes it's time management FAIL: me going bonkers organizing closets and cabinets when I have homework that's due in a couple days, or me getting lost on the web, spending hours researching ideas for sewing, crafting & cooking (that I may never actually do) simply because I'm off work and have the time to look. Sometimes it's me joining Pinterest and knowing that this will make my "research" even more likely to occur daily...

But mostly, my Lake Life is just our day to day stuff, which doesn't make entertaining blog material. It's laundry, cleaning house, paying bills, going to work and class, Kellen making time for homework, his hospital chaplain internship, counseling couples at the church, me (marital bliss is hard work!) and maybe occasionally visiting with friends, besides at weekly small group! It's also making wise food choices and cooking...

If you leave off the "G" in blog, it would be "blah..." and that's kinda what day-to-day Lake Life is like... except for the food. Kellen and I have been budgeting for a while now. But it seems that even though there are only two of us I can't seem to get the grocery bill to a reasonable sum... our budget is $400... oh my goodness, that's a lot of food and groceries. We're not eating lobster and filet mignon! I buy meat when it's on sale, try to stick to produce on sale, or frozen... I dunno.

In case you're not familiar with Kellen, he eats. He tries to be wise about the calories, so we're trying to stick to whole grains and beans and veggies over starchy potatoes and breads and avoid sweets, mostly. Of course, my goal is to try and make these healthy things palatable, which can be a challenge sometimes. I follow clean eating blogs which send out healthy recipes, but sometimes the food sounds like it will taste like cardboard, or the only way it's healthy is if you keep your portion size low (as in leave the table hungry). Growing up we didn't pay much attention to calories, just flavor, and it's easy to fall back into that habit. I did really well in our first couple years of marriage making good food, tasty and nutritionally sound... However, working full time, I've fallen out of that habit and it's a trial to get back on track. Don't even mention the gym...

Right now, Kellen is on a major rice and beans kick. He'd love to eat them every day, and really it's an economical request, but I don't know if I can stand to eat that EVERY day! Variety is the spice of life, but he'd be happy with garlicky, salty meat with rice, beans and a salad just about every day of the week. Me, not so much. I'd like Asian, Mexican, Italian, Brazilian and American throughout the week. So I'm trying to come up with bean/legume variety... got any ideas?

I'll try to periodically post my recipe successes. Here's the first one: a bean success :)

Zingy Brazilian Black Beans *measurements are approximate
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 (15oz) can petite diced tomatoes (with liquid)
parsley (1/4 bunch fresh chopped OR 1Tbsp dried)
1 bay leaf
red wine vinegar (~10 shakes, to taste)
hot sauce (~10 shakes, to taste)
½ tsp (+/- to taste) crushed red pepper
Adobo seasoning, to taste
salt/pepper, to taste (Adobo contains salt, so go easy with the salt)
2 (15 oz) can black beans (with liquid)
1 cup water (enough to swirl around the cans and get all the goodies out)
½ - 1 tsp sweetener (I used granulated splenda, can use sugar)

1. In a large saucepan heat oil over med-high heat until it glides smoothly on the bottom of pan to coat.
2. Add onions and saute until fragrant. Add garlic and continue cooking until onions are translucent.
3. Add tomatoes, parsley, bay leaf, vinegar, hot sauce and seasoning. Cook until it begins to thicken a bit, add black beans, water and sweetener.
4. Bring to a simmer and cook uncovered about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired; simmer uncovered another 10-20 minutes, stirring occasionally and tasting and adjusting seasoning as desired, until liquid is reduced to desired consistency. The longer it cooks the more developed the flavor will be (I usually simmer about 30-40 minutes total).

*This is excellent served with rice and grilled beef or chicken, alongside a salad.

Back to it.

I've been home for a couple days now. It's been nice not to have work to rush off to, just getting the house in order, unpacking, laundry, etc. I've been catching up on my to-do list, which has proven an effective tool of procrastination for what should be at the top of that list: homework. Thursday is my last day of class this semester (WOOHOO!!), but I have quite a few pages left to do in my workbook and the final exam is Thursday as well... but somehow organizing the mess under the bathroom sink seemed a better use of my time. Sigh.

I've been working through jet-lag. I'm mostly over it, but it seems that my wires got crossed and now I'm on Kellen's schedule... ready to be in bed 9:30-10pm and up at at 'em by 6:30am... so not cool since I'm off work! But it is nice to go to bed and wake up with my husband still beside me. Kellen likes it because I'm up to make breakfast... which is strange since I'd typically just eat cereal, not french toast or eggs. I was able to go to chapel with Kellen, the first time in a long time since I've worked about every Tuesday/Thursday for several months. It was a good message and it was nice to be out and about, enjoying the spring weather, walking on campus holding hands with my favorite guy. I missed him!

The final days in India were kinda a whirlwind. My computer stopped connecting to the wi-fi, so I had to use someone else's computer which she was already sharing with another lady, so I didn't want to hog it to write on the blog. Let me see if I can recap the highlights:

Day 4, Wednesday: Typical day with the kids, ate dinner out on SEBTS's dime with all the students and kiddos. It was yum-o and we sat near folks who are working in parts of Asia very resistant to the Good News. It was great to meet them and know how to pray for them. We left and walked by several shops selling merchandise for Holi (festival of colors)- water guns, colored powders, water balloon kits.

Day 5, Thursday: Holi. Today I donned clothes that I didn't care about getting ruined because there was a chance that I'd come into contact with colored powder/water. While taking care of the kids I looked off our balcony to the streets below and saw 3 men with a bucket of colored water and sacks of colored powder throw water on motorcyclists driving by. I watched as a student from our group walked past them and had powder thrown on her head and smeared on her face as she put up a hand in protest. Yikes. We have to cross the street for lunch, so I got a little worried, but all for naught. We got across safely (there was hardly any traffic on Holi) and watched on as people in our group (who had gone looking for Holi "fights") continued the war with each other and natives in front of the hotel. They were COVERED in colored powder, quite a sight. We had a little bit of powder that we gently applied to the kids and our foreheads and noses. After the kids had been picked up I went out with a small group to Holi each other. Lots of fun (see pictures) and we ended up very colorful. We had originally planned on staying in for dinner to avoid the craziness of Holi, but it was quiet in our neighborhood, so we walked quite a ways to go to a mall and ate there. The food was ok, but the night air was cool and refreshing, so it was nice to stretch our legs.

Day 6, Friday: Our final day. We had the kids only for the morning. We were able to give away all the snack and craft supplies leftover from our time with the kids. The moms looked eyes wide at the bounty before them and took away things that will bless their kids for months to come (thanks small group!!). After lunch a group of us headed to the Lotus Temple. It is a temple for the Bahai faith which is a monotheistic religion emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind. It was a beautiful temple and beautiful grounds, teeming with people, but empty.

We originally started walking there, but it soon became evident that it was further than we wanted to walk and so 9 of us piled in an SUV taxi with the driver and made it safely there. When we left a group went back to the transit house and 5 of us (the child care group) headed to M-block Market for more shopping. We had a pit stop at the Delhi Haat (a smaller market that subsidized the tuk tuk driver's fare if we stopped there). We each got to try on a saree and were able to find some souvenirs for reasonable prices. The M-block Market was a bit upscale, but I was still able to find a nice saree for about $15 for myself and some post cards. Knowing we'd be up all night for our flight we enjoyed some caffeine in the form of an iced latte- yum :) We headed back to the transit house and had a simple dinner of rice and packed up. We left our place at midnight. Made it through check in and immigration fine and then waited for 3:30am to roll around so we could fly out. We went to McDonald's while we waited. I had a McSpicy chicken sandwich... FYI spicy in India is really spicy, probably should have ordered a milkshake to cool that off!

The rest of the trip home was uneventful for the most part and I made it safely to RDU by 5pm Saturday. My parents picked me up since Kellen was on call chaplain at the hospital. We had a brief meal together and they left me to recoup from my long trip about 8:30pm (which with the daylight savings time change, was actually 9:30pm...) After being out of bed since 8:30pm Thursday (east coast time) I was very ready to go to bed... 48 hours without sleeping in a bed is TOO long!

Once again, thank you for praying! We were always kept safe, mostly healthy (some in our group had stomach issues) and felt like we were a help- the parents of the kids we watched were so sweet- they profusely thanked us at every opportunity for our service- the kids were great and it was a blessing to see the hearts of the older kids- so gracious and helpful- I can hardly wait to see how the Father will use them!

I came home to a couple more checks to go towards the trip fund. Thank you, thank you! This trip was an awesome experience and I can't thank you enough for being a part of it with your prayers and/or financial gifts.

India

India: Day 3

Day 3 is in the bag. It's late now, but today was a better day. I slept in until 7:45 (thank you earplugs!). So I had better energy for the kids. The kids were better as well, fewer tears and a bit more fun (yay bubbles!!). The kids had a better idea of a routine and were more familiar with our faces and presence. Some are still not thrilled at all, and it takes a while to settle them down- but singing and looking out windows and bubbles cure all :)

Went out for more shopping and dining. Lots of fun. The group I'm doing childcare with is great. They are really fun and interesting people. I'm really glad I got the opportunity to be here and to get to know them better. They help keep the day lighthearted and the evenings entertaining. This evening we were making a dash to get onto the metro and while one girl in our group was walking thru the doors they slid closed. Uh-oh. She looked thru the window dumbfounded and mouthed "which stop?" We mouthed and signed back "I.N.A." praying she understood as the train whizzed away. She rode alone in a train car filled with Indian men (they have cars reserved specifically for women, but she rushed into the man-car in her hurry). We met her at the next stop, no worse for the wear and smiling- making memories :)

I love that I exchanged $80 American and I still have about $15 after buying food all week, transportation and souvenirs for basically everyone on my list- and some of the stuff is nice, some is the typical key chain fare, but I tried to get bang for the buck :) Just a couple more meals (which run about $3) and a couple more small items for gifts and that's that. I'm SO excited to get home and give folks their gifts :)

Here's a link to the pics, mostly the same, but a few new ones from childcare and shopping tonite.

India

India: Day 2

This may be short-- my morning started early, simply because I woke up at 5am and couldn't fall back to sleep. About 6:15 I finally gave in and got up. This afforded me some time to enjoy some Bible study, drink coffee, eat a bite to eat and skype with Kellen- we're both surviving without one another :)

The day felt really long. There was quite a bit of crying from a few of the young ones, and that's always draining b/c you do all you can to distract them and make them happy, and right when they get acclimate to you it's lunch time, and they go back to mom, and then the cycle starts anew after lunch/nap.

Lunch was delicious- Indian cuisine and I really get along- SO yummy! A good bit of variety, a bit of spicy, just yum.

I uploaded some pics of our housing for the week. We're in a suite with 6 rooms, one kitchen and a great room. Seven of the kids we're watching are in our suite- that's over half the kids, only lacking the 2 and unders (except for the 3 mo old, who mostly stays with her mom).

I teach a lesson on Jonah tomorrow, so pray it goes well. We have some active boys, but hopefully they'll settle down and pay attention :)

Thanks for your prayers!

Check the link from Day 1- I added new pics today!

India: Day 1

The day started with us landing in New Delhi Sunday, Mar 4, around 1:30am (that's about 3pm Sat, Mar 3 East Coast time, a 10.5 hour time difference). Kinda hard to wrap my head around that extra half hour, really screws with my limited math skills!

We got through immigration and customs without any hitch, got our bags and the 6 of us piled ourselves and our copious amounts of luggage into 2 taxis. It was probably a good 20 min drive to where we're staying. We finally got into the building around 3:30am. After shooting a quick note that I had arrived safely I grabbed a quick shower, then went to bed ay 4am and slept until about 11am.

My body did not want to get up this morning, especially since there was no coffee to be had. I grabbed a granola bar that I packed for a quick breakfast and our group headed out around 12:30 for a local shopping area, Dilli Haat. Lots of scarves, kameez and other Indian clothing as well as trinkets, baskets, purses, endless isles of souvenirs... and I didn't buy anything :) Kellen will like that... but it's just the first day :) I do plan on getting some souvenirs, but I'll do some looking first.

We took the metro to get to the market (cost about $0.25), but on the way back we took an "auto rickshaw" (about $1.60 for 3 of us). See the pictures in my picasa web album, but it's kinda a hybrid between a taxi and a motor bike. There's also a couple videos of riding in the rickshaw- what an adventure it is being on the road!! Many cars, rickshaws, bikes, motorbikes and even people all on one paved area with little order to when or how to change lanes- I think we even met a car going the wrong way on a one way street. Lots of horn honking in this country- sometimes for no evident reason... even at 3am. Our room faces the street, but as tired as I was I slept just fine, we'll see how it goes tonight.

We will grab a bite to eat somewhere close tonight. I like Indian cuisine- not too keen on the super spicy food, but a little spicy I can deal with. We ate lunch outdoors, in the shade, but eating the spicy food made me hot- we had chicken tandoori and saag paneer (a kind of cheese that's in a spicy spinach sauce) and oh, glorious naan- yummy, buttery flat bread. Apparently nothing is healthy, which is too bad, because it's all so delicious.

Our lodging is nice. Of course I didn't think to take a pic before all our stuff was strewn about the room. I'm rooming with 2 other ladies who are also providing childcare. It's a nice size room with plenty of room for luggage and moving around, a nice bathroom, A/C (it's hot here during the day!!), comfortable beds with nice linens and towels. It's quite nice. There's a kitchen where we can have breakfast each day- trust that I'll be making coffee tomorrow AM! We'll eat lunch during the week at the hotel across the street where a few of the folks from our group are staying.

We'll starting watching kids Monday, 9am-5pm... keep the prayers coming!

Enjoy the pics:

India

almost ready!

I have my passport, with the Indian visa. I-pod is charging, and camera is in my purse!

My suitcases are mostly packed. One is filled with craft supplies, games and treats for the kids (all supplied by coworkers and dear friends from our small group), the other is my clothes, etc... Both checked bags are free- miracle of miracles! I'm SO glad, b/c I do not know how else all those things for the kids would get there and me still have clothes and other essentials :)

Last night, while eating a deliciously chewy brownie, my temporary crown popped off my tooth. I guess I'm thankful that it happened while I'm here and can have it easily repaired as opposed to in India, but it was still nerve-racking, and trying to schedule an appointment before I need to be at the airport (4pm Fri- TOMORROW!!!!) looked bleak, but once again our big God came through and I have an appointment, and very likely my permanent crown should be in and that will be the end of dealing with it. Hallelujah!

Did I mention ALL my funds (and then some) have come in. Thank you for praying and if you were able to give, thank you! It has been a real faith building experience for me: my first mission trip, obstacles overcome, funds generously provided... I am praying that I will love those kids well and be a blessing to them and their parents. My hope is that I'll keep a good attitude despite being tired, sharing living quarters, eating foreign, potentially unappetizing, foods and being away from Kellen, who's a bit of a rock to me in those kinds of situations. I'm a little nervous- it is pretty far out of my comfort zone; even though I'm quite comfortable caring for kids, this set of circumstances is so outside of the norm. It will take some adjusting, but our time is limited. It would be great for the kids to warm up to us quickly so we can all enjoy the time we spend together.

Of course, I am excited to travel to Europe (our layover is in London) and India! Both are firsts for me, and even though this isn't at all a touristy trip (much of my time will be spent with Americans, indoors) I am excited to be able to go at all and experience even a tiny taste of it!

We have wifi where we're staying, so hopefully I'll be able to update and post pics by midweek. Keep praying and watch for more news!