The Little Things

Matt and I recently went to a marriage conference with our church. Almost all of our new couple friends were there. We attended Wednesday and Thursday evening sessions at the church; then, we went to D.C. on Friday morning, due to return late Saturday afternoon. 

We had a lot of fun. We enjoyed spending time with different couple-friends. We ate well. We stayed at a nice hotel Friday night. The music, skits, games and most of all the speaker was great. This was our first marriage conference and it was full of learning, laughter and fun times. 

On Friday night, we got ready just as we would for any other date night and ventured out for dinner on our own. We went to a restaurant named Scion. 

Picture taken by Hannah Flesher

Matt and I enjoyed Peppercorn Encrusted Filet Medallions, Steamed Broccoli and Roasted Potatoes. YUM! After ordering our meal, I mentioned seeing some Sweet Potato Tater Tots served with Honey Mustard on the menu. Even though I knew it was too much food, I told Matt I had a hard time resisting them. He quickly said, "Well then order them." Music. To. My. Ears. 

Yes. I confess. I like food. I have a particular interest in sweet potato fries and don't find them often. So, you can understand the lure of sweet potato tater tots. My curiosity was taking control. I just wanted to taste them. So. Worth. It. 

The way they were seasoned was amazing. Full of flavor. We devoured them. :)

Then we still ordered dessert! HA! 

Pumpkin Walnut Creme Brulee

It was good too. Lite and creamy.

Fun date night!

Matt's casual I-know-you're-taking-my-photo pose :)

Lost and Found

A while back, you may recall, I flooded our kitchen. During the clean up, I came across an unused gift card Matt received years ago from his grandparents (who have since passed away). 

As a single man, Matt never found a use for the Hallmark gift card. While running errands in one of the major shopping areas I frequent, I noticed a Hallmark store and decided to take a look. There were a few items of interest to me, but I'd have to make a return trip since I left the card at home.

I admit, not only am I quite sentimental, I'm big on family. With the gift card I bought this: 

Yes; it's a baby book. My reasoning for buying it: If Grandma and Grandpa Belstra were here whenever our little one comes along, they'd want to give a gift that will last. 

When I told Matt what I did, and even as I write, the tears began falling: Grateful that we have something for our baby that came from them and sad knowing what they'll be missing.

Even though I never met them, I wish they were still here. They loved my wonderful husband and I know they'd love our children too. 

Mind Blowing

My big sister is celebrating her 19th wedding anniversary today. 

As I think back on those early days, I remember how young I felt. In my mind, I was just a kid but my sister, who's only three years older, was getting married. 

One early memory that stands out was a day we were at my parents' house. I don't remember how it started, but I remember watching Kevin tickle Tracey as she rolled all across the den floor with laughter. (Today, she would tell you he tickled too hard and she wasn't laughing, just trying to escape the pain. haha!) Nonetheless, it was hilarious to watch.

These have been 19 fruitful years: Building a good marriage, living for the Lord, serving in the church, raising 5 great children and becoming a fabulous (if not worn out ;) home schooling mom.

Taken at their reception (I couldn't resist posting this one with Mom and Dad) 

Happy Anniversary, Sis!

I love you.

Leaving the Light On

Recently I began reading this new book Matt bought me for Christmas:

You may find this a little premature since Matt and I are not planning to begin a family for a little while, but I'm working ahead.

You see, when I was single and the desire to be married grew ever stronger, I realized that instead of reading books on dating, I should be reading books on marriage. That was the ultimate goal: To be married and happily so. For this to be the case, I thought it would be wise to do what I did during school. 

My "career life" was successful because God used my studies and preparation to adequately prepare me for what would come. If my personal goal was to be married and enjoy a wonderful marriage with my spouse, why hadn't I ever done my due diligence to study and prepare? 

As soon as the thought occurred to me, I began reading Christian books on the subject. Within a year I met Matt. I kept reading during our relationship and enjoyed a short engagement knowing God had prepared me for the next step. 

Most couples wait until they are engaged to prepare for marriage, but for some, the lessons in reading will help develop the relationship while dating. For others, the engagement will be short enough that a head start helps. Most people are demotivated once they're married and tend not to read things to enhance their marriage. I strive to do differently.

As you may have seen, recently I read a book titled, 7 Things He'll Never Tell You. My goal is to alternate between reading books on marriage and ones about raising children.

The book I'm reading now, Leaving The Light On, was recommended by my sister. She has 5 children. I consider her advice top notch for many reasons, so I was eager to add this and a couple of other books to my Christmas list. 

Let me just say that so far, I have read about a chapter a night and I end up in tears every time. The stories they offer to illustrate their point tug at my heartstrings. I've already been challenged by what I've read and pray I'll apply the wisdom in the book to my relationship with Matt and our future children. So far I'm only on chapter 4, but I'm convinced this is a "must-read" for every parent, men and women alike. 

Challenging Finish

If you've been keeping up, you know I've written a couple of times about the T.V. setup in the living room. The last report was that I finally figured out where to put the DVD player and cable box. The final step to complete this pesky little project is hiding all the cords to improve the aesthetics. 

One day last week, when I knew Matt had a business meeting and wouldn't be home for dinner, I took advantage of the opportunity to delve into this project. With all that extra time (from not having to cook), I could spare a few minutes to hide the cords and would still have tons of time left to do other things on my long list.

To my surprise and chagrin, this little project took me all afternoon and even into the evening. I barely had enough time to finish and straighten up the room before Matt arrived home. 

Nevertheless, it is done now and I am pleased with the results:

In person you can tell it has a nice clean look. 

Matt didn't notice it immediately, but it didn't take him long (2 minutes, maybe). He said that it looks really good. What a relief! If only I'd thought of this solution earlier...my guess is that we'll finally have this place situated the way I want it right before we move again. 

I hear my Dad's voice in my ear saying, "Such is life!"...and so it is.

Surprise!

It's not easy to surprise your husband when he knows you so well. Matt makes a comment about something he wants and he knows I'll remember and do something about it. 

Here are a few things Matt specifically asked for at Christmastime: 

 A new bottle of cologne.

 XM Radio for his truck. 

A K-State Sweatshirt - I bought him this one.

Some brown Johnston and Murphy dress shoes and a Franklin Covey day planner.

There were a few finds that Matt didn't specifically ask for that he liked rather well: 

Banana Republic dress pants

A 2012 Dilbert Calendar

Adidas Warm-Up Pants 

A grey and white plaid shirt from Express, royal blue sweater from Express, nice brown slippers, dark blue velvet sport coat, camel sport coat and some candy from his stocking (including his favorite, Turtles).

I think there was only one real surprise for Matt among all his Christmas presents: 

A blue Under Armor fleece 

You see, Matt began writing a Christmas list for me so I'd have an idea of what he'd like for Christmas, but he never gave it to me. When I was cleaning up (after I'd finished my shopping for him!), I found his partially completed list. 

As I read it, I realized there were a few things on his list that I hadn't thought to buy him. So, I decided to make an online purchase quickly for the Under Armor fleece. 

Matt seemed genuinely surprised and quite pleased when he opened it.

After opening all of his gifts, he struck this pose, saying...

...he felt like a king.

Favorite Things

Hearing that Matt will be off work is one of my favorite things. I LOVE spending time with him and when Matt is off for a company-wide holiday, that usually means we are up for an adventure. When that day falls on a Monday, there's the added potential of spending the day with Jordan and Hannah.

For MLK day, we made plans with Jordan and Hannah for our first visit to D.C. We had been talking with them for a while about taking a day trip together. All seemed to be on track for the four of us to spend the day until a series of unexpected happenings drew Jordan and Hannah out of the mix. 

Matt and I went on with our plans and had a great afternoon and evening in D.C. Here are a few pics from our trip: 

There was way too much to do in too little time. We will be back.

Our First Christmas

To make our first Christmas together as special as possible, I planned a four course meal for Matt. Unfortunately, I was so busy cooking that I forgot to take pictures of the second and third courses, but I did take these shots. 

 The First Course: His favorite salad with garlic bread.

We had Bay Scallop Gratin for the second course and Veal Scallopini with Roasted Asparagus for the third. 

 The Fourth Course: A personal serving of banana pudding (one of our favorite desserts).

Whatever your taste may be the meal was a winner in our book. 

We even dressed up: 

  We stood in front of the tree for this pic. You may see a little glimmer of the lit tree between us.

For those of you who appreciate the details, I wore a little black dress, strappy heels and a sheer wrap. Matt wore a dark purple dress shirt I bought him before we were married and dark gray dress pants. 

The scene was set for a romantic dinner for two...those of you who've been married for a while will love to hear that even for these newlyweds, the sparkle wore off with dessert. :) Matt said something like, "Babe, this has been a wonderful evening but I want to get out of these clothes. Can we have dessert in the man-cave and relax in front of the t.v.?" HA! 

I admit, I was two seconds behind him with the suggestion so I didn't mind at all. We kicked back, watched a little football and savored our banana pudding in our comfy clothes. 

It was definitely a memorable evening.

Exciting Times

You may be tired of these little milestones, but I look at it like this: When you have a new baby, you count the baby's age month by month for the first year or two. During that time, the child's age is so significant because of the newness and rapid growth and development. Those days hold great significance for a new parent, the family and friends. They are exciting times.

I look at our marriage the same way. Whether discernible to others or not, our relationship is enjoyably new and is developing rapidly in these early days. These are exciting times. 

As of today, Matt and I have been married for 6 months. God did a good thing when he put us together and we see evidence of it each day. 

We are truly blessed.

Sweet Nothings

My whole life Tracey and I have seen Dad gaze at Mom for long periods of time. As we've gotten older, he's less subtle about it and will even sit near her, prop up his chin on his hand and gaze at her while she's relaxing and watching T.V. after dinner. It's almost become a game for him where he gazes at her until she tells him, "Ohhh, stop it." Then he smiles from ear to ear, claims he can't help it and chuckles as she continues to react. It's such a sweet thing to hear Dad say he's married to the most beautiful woman in the world. They've been happily married for over 41 years. 

When I have my act together, I get up in the morning and do some first household chores to make sure things are ready for Matt when he leaves for work. Then, I sit in the chair and prop my feet up on the ottoman in our room and watch Matt as he finishes getting ready. He usually interacts with me then, telling me whatever is on his mind that needs to be done, that he plans to do or he kids around with me.

Earlier this week, I sat down to watch him and he uncharacteristically gazed. He just stood there getting dressed looking at me without interruption, without a word or glance away. As he continued to look, seeing his serious expression, knowing something was on his mind and wondering what it was, I began to feel uncomfortable. I don't know why...maybe just because it was an unfamiliar experience.

Eventually Matt finished getting ready for the day and started downstairs. When we reached the front door, Matt made the sweetest, gentlest comment: "You look so good first thing in the morning." 

That's when I understood. He was simply enjoying the view. :)

I sure enjoy those sweet nothings, even if not whispered in my ear. 

Creative Solutions

When all else fails, make what you need. 

After buying a table to hold the flat screen T.V. and DVD player in the living room and seeing that wouldn't work, I tried to find long cables so the DVD player and cable box could sit on the bottom shelf of an end table. The flat screen TV is mounted on the wall, so where else can I put it without enough floor space?

When I looked at store after store and didn't find a particular cable longer than 6 feet, I gave up on that idea. Moving on, the only idea I had left was to mount a shelf on the wall. 

After measuring the electronics, I went to a store where I thought I could find a suitable shelf, to no avail. Rather than persisting in looking at store after store, as I had before giving up on former ideas, I decided it was time to visit a home improvement store and buy materials to make my own shelf. 

In my mind, I walked through all the materials I'd need. While at the store, I collected everything, had the board and trim cut to the proper length, reviewed the mental list once more and took my materials home with certainty I could do this myself. 

The project began with these materials: 

This was the end result: 

Try to focus on the shelf rather than the fact that I had Leverage on as I worked :)

A practical solution for resolving this long-term issue.

Single No More

February 20th marks six months of marriage to Matt. Let me say right off, I love being married to him. 

For a long time before meeting him, I had my doubts about how much I'd enjoy being married. Even though I knew I wanted marriage and family, I thought I'd miss some of the "advantages of being single" that many in the church mentioned over the years.

It's true; we're still in the Honeymoon stage. There's still time to miss some of those "advantages," but it may be that not missing anything about being single is one more evidence of God's preparation, His timing and my maturing. If that is the case, I am grateful.

You may be surprised at the number of times I think about my marital status while I'm running errands, at the gym, in church or even watching T.V. It seems my thinking often moves in that direction when I see other people. I'm glad to wear Matt's ring and his name. 

It's nice to be around other people and no longer wonder when I will meet the man God has for me or wonder if I ever will meet him. I've met him and we are one. There is such peace and comfort in that truth in my day-to-day life.

When I see match.com or eharmony commercials, they no longer strike me with the same force they once did. There was a time those commercials were a painful reminder that it hadn't happened yet. Now I see them and my heart fills with gratitude that I'm no longer in that stage of life. 

If you are single, dear friend, remember as you read this that our Lord is faithful and good. If you have a desire to be married, boldly ask God for two things like I did: 1. that He will fulfill that desire of your heart by providing you a godly husband and 2. that He will do now whatever it takes to prepare you to be successful in marriage. If you are sincere in your prayers, you may have some work to do in preparation just as I had to do. If so, it will be worth it.

Grill Master

Matt is our resident Grill Master. I've always wanted a grill, but early on in our relationship I decided not to invest money in a nice grill in case I happened to marry into one. :) 

Since we've been married, Matt told me to let him know anytime I'd like him to grill something for me. He has grilled for us on several occasions and I've loved it. 

As our Northern temps have not resembled normal highs and lows in late January, I took advantage of the 60 degree weather and decided to surprise Matt by grilling him a hamburger for supper. It was a chance to try figuring the grill out myself, to give him an unexpected, enjoyable meal during wintertime and to relieve him of having a "job" sprung on him as he walked in the door from work.

The meal turned out well. We both enjoyed it, but Matt is still our resident Grill Master. Now that I have the know-how, I'm turning the grill tools back over to the one I love. I may know what to do in a pinch, but mastery of the machine remains with him.

Music to My Ears

As you saw in yesterday's post, Matt sent me flowers for Valentine's Day. When he came home, I had this gift ready for him: 

 

As we finished getting ready to go out for dinner, Matt mentioned having a gift for me too. I was surprised. He did great with the flowers. I felt spoiled to have another gift waiting for me.

Since it was pretty late already (a coworker who came in town to go over plant business kept him at work later than he'd hoped), dinner came first. Presents would be opened when we came home. 

We ate at one on my favorite restaurants: Chevy's. 

Matt and I love Mexican food and rarely eat it here. It was good.

For his gift, Matt received some of his favorite things: some CDs he put on his Christmas list (that he didn't give me, but I later discovered) and his favorite candy. Matt gave me a gift we can enjoy together (a great idea for a Valentine gift): 

I found this to be ironic since earlier in the day I'd seen a Facebook post by a friend mentioning her family's Wii and thought it'd be fun to have one. Now we do!!

As Matt said when he gave me the Wii, "It's one more thing we can do to spend time together." That's music to my ears. I can't wait!