gritty details

"The reality is that often the radical abandonment Christ calls us to is not some glamorous sacrifice, but simple obedience in the gritty details of everyday life." 

  

I don’t know where this quote came from other than it was in an email from a friend several years ago. If they came up with it themselves, bravo, because it’s been my “life quote” for some time now.

As I struggled with what to do on this blog a few months ago, I tried going back to the beginning to see why I started it in the first place. I was traveling to Germany with my friends, and it was a way to document and keep our families informed about our journey. I was also one year out of high school, had recently confirmed in my heart that I was not going to go to college, and I guess I thought that that trip was setting some sort of travel themed precedent for the rest of my single life or something.

I kept writing and sharing because it’s something I truly enjoy, and I thought before I knew it, the next destination would be ready for me to document. But there wasn’t a next destination for quite some time, the gritty details of everyday life really aren’t that exciting, and though I’m learning things every day, the “adventurer” inside me isn’t satisfied.

I would never describe myself as an true adventurer though. I’m not a daredevil nor am I very confident. However, I have a curiosity for other places in the world, and a desire to see as much as I possibly can in this lifetime. Once again, though, “as much as I possibly can” isn’t very much at this point in my life.

One of these days, I will be able to take more missions trips. One of these days I will finally go to Ireland. I will stand on the Cliffs of Moher, I will spend the night in a castle. These are things I really and truly believe I will do one day. Maybe I’ll be 50 and have finally been married and have grown children, or maybe it’ll be a spontaneous hurry-and-pack trip or maybe I’ll finally talk some people into going with me… or maybe it won’t happen, and maybe I need to be more content in the gritty details of everyday life. But I think it’s good to have goals and ambitions and dream a little bigger on those days when the everyday is closing in.

I cannot tell you about the glamorous sacrifices God has called me to, because He hasn’t. I rarely have to sacrifice anything – and if I do, it’s really not even a sacrifice, but a simple “no” to something frivolous.  

But neither can I brag about the gritty details of my everyday life. We humans can find the tiniest things to be proud about, and I’m not here to flaunt anything. I have nothing to flaunt, because all that I have and all that I am is a gift that I didn’t earn.

I am here to encourage and uplift when I can. I want this blog to be a happy place, and I will make it that to the best of my ability. My life right now is new recipes, DIY projects, babysitting, church ministry, and quiet days filled with doing my job and reading my books. It’s a simple, happy life that I’m content with. I will forever be reaching for the next thing, trying to skip ahead to the next chapter, and asking God to give me that mountain, but for now, I will enjoy my gritty details.

So whether you're on a big adventure to a place God has called you to, whether you're traveling the globe because it's your chance, or whether you live each day knowing the next one will be similar, know that simple obedience is the calling. The rest will follow, and one is no better than the other.   Embrace the unique, nitty gritty little things that make the day yours.

I realize this post sounds very, very similar to others I've posted recently. Bear with me, I'm figuring it out! ;)

an ice world | picture post

Last night the temps dropped and we expected to wake up to a few inches of snow. School was already out for Presidents Day and I was told to just sleep in and not to expect to use the roads to get to work. We woke up to this...

No snow, just lots and lots of ice, and it just kept coming down!

our concrete pad

Finally some time after noon the snow started falling and didn't stop!

And because I was told if there weren't any pictures to prove it no one would actually believe I went out in the cold...

 I did!

I hope everyone is staying safe and warm, and if there's any snow in your area, I hope you're enjoying it as much as we are! Our tiny little town has basically shut down, and it's a quiet, icy world.

updates and changes

I definitely did not think that my first post of 2015 would be in February! I really wanted to write an upbeat, positive post welcoming in the new year but every time I sat down to write I just ended up staring at a blank screen.

For awhile now I've been wanting to re-think the way I've been blogging, so a week into the new year I stopped reading the blogs I follow - which meant staying off of Google+ as well. I knew I wanted to keep doing it, but I wanted to have a fresh new perspective on it and in order to do that, I didn't want to compare myself to anyone else.

So, after several people asking when I was going to post again, I decided to type this up fairly quickly to let you know my "new" plan!

I went back to my very first post, just to see how I'd opened up this blog. Here's that post, written almost three years ago...

Just Me

I am a nineteen-year-old girl loving her life and loving her God.

Dedicated to writing, addicted to reading, and waiting on the future.

Thank you for reading as I tell the many things that Jesus does for me...

That post gets my lack of inspiration and even excitement about writing and blogging back on track! I'm not nineteen anymore, but I am a twenty-two year old young lady that does still love her life and her God very much.

changes

I'm going to be re-dedicated to writing. I will pick back up my addiction to reading because it's one of the biggest inspirations for me to write, and I will share what comes from this sometimes-jumbled but very-much-wanting-to-share mind of mine. Those types of blogs will be more frequent than they have been lately but I won't be able to schedule them because they're so dependent upon time.

I'm only going to loosely commit to 2 posts per month for now. One will be a monthly recap, and the the other, who knows? For those of you who read this blog because you love the updates and pictures - well, stick around, because I will continue telling the many things that Jesus does for me!

update

Jacob and Christine are expecting baby #5 in July!

Hopefully as the days go on I will have actual updates (plural) to share, but I think that single update is exciting enough for now. I do hope everyone had a lovely January. I'm excited to see what February holds!

moments like these

Is anyone else as blown away as I am that this is our last day of 2014? I feel like I should have done something significant or monumental today to bid this incredible year farewell, but alas, it's been just like any other day, almost. Kind of. Is any day exactly like another?

It's moments like these that we all look ahead and make goals and resolutions while at the same time reflecting on the past year. And somehow, year after year, we forget the bad and highlight the happy things that happened and say "It's been a good year!"

But really, it has been, because it's a wonderful life! As a Christian, I have no reason to be depressed or anxious. It doesn't mean that I never feel those emotions, but that those emotions don't gain control over me because there's Someone bigger that already has control.

So as we look ahead and behind, I want to reflect on some of my favorite moments from 2014. Moments like these make life the incredible thing that it is.

no captions, just pictures capturing a moment in 2014 that I loved

Happy 2015, everyone!

Merry Christmas!

Jacob & Christine, Jace, Jackson, Tanner, Lena |  Kelley, Amie | Ron & Rhonda | Stephen & Tara

 

 I hope each of you has a wonderful day surrounded by your loved ones.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

pondering

"But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart."

The weather that night was so insignificant in light of everything else that she promptly forgot whether it was cold, hot, or just right. The things that stood out in her mind were details – the smell of fresh hay mixing with the musty, dirty scent of the animals.  The incredible clearness of the night sky. Her husband wrapping his tired and blistered feet after their long journey. The look in his eyes: a mix of fear and the responsibility ahead, disappointment in his inability to provide more than a stable, and awe at what had just taken place. And love. Lots of love.

Even more, the details of her new son. The silky dark hair, the incredibly fine eyelashes and nearly invisible eyebrows. The tiniest of finger and toe nails. The unbelievable softness of his face that she couldn’t stop touching. The warm puffs of new breath on her hand as she memorized his features.

She couldn’t remember any pain or discomfort from her journey or experience – she knew it had happened, because it was forever ingrained in Joseph’s memory due to his fear and doubt. Perhaps it was her joy and relief at the safe delivery of her son, perhaps it was the mighty hand of God, relieving her of memories best put away. What she did remember was how soft the hay felt under her exhausted body, how attentive her young new husband was, bringing blankets and cool water.  How she couldn’t stop staring at the tiniest of miracles. Her miracle.

She remembered his hand wrapped around her finger, how peacefully he slept, and how for a minute, he wasn’t the Messiah, he was simply her baby son. She was filled with more joy than she’d ever known, and it was as if a multitude of angels joined the song of her heart, “glory to God in the highest.”

The Lord was there. She remembered knowing, in the midst of everything, that He was there. Of course He would be there for the birth of His only Son. In every breath she took, in every cry in the night, He was there looking out for them and He too was aware of every detail of His child.

It was the night that changed everything.

They were sitting there studying and touching this tiny miracle when the shepherds showed up.  How many there were was never clear to her, but they bowed, and they worshipped Him, her son. They knew what she and Joseph knew – the Messiah had come in the form of the most innocent of humans. A baby. Her baby. The One who would save the world was nestled warm and asleep in her arms.

She was aware of the look in Joseph’s eyes, one of love, but also recognition that he had no tie to this child other than the man who would raise him, and the weight of that responsibility shone through the look in his determined eyes. He would do his best, and he would do well. Of that she had no doubt.

Her son. So innocent, so peaceful, so beautiful. Did his Father guard his heart so he could sleep tonight? The weight of the world would fall heavy upon him soon enough. She remembered praying “Lord, for tonight, let him be a baby. Let him be my baby boy. This peace will all be gone so soon.”

A simple carpenter and his young wife, raising the King of the world, God’s only begotten son. The responsibility was heavy, the privilege so great. She remembers how young she was, and how much she loved her son – so much so, that she would never be able to put it in words to anyone.

And now, as she waits to join Him and her husband in heaven, she ponders these details she's kept in her heart all these years for the thousandth time. Not the weather, but the star. Not the pain, but the love. She watched his death, she saw them torture her baby boy. She also saw him alive and well again. Her baby? No, her Lord. Her Savior and Redeemer. She simply bore Him and raised Him, His life and accomplishments were of Him and His Father, not her. As John handed her the mug of cool water, she drank and went back to when Joseph brought her water all those years ago.

“Joseph, look at him. Jesus. He’s here.”

DIY Christmas | brunch + 2 recipes

Welcome to DIY Christmas, Sincerely, Kelley style! (where "this is how I did it" would be more accurate!)

It's been busy, busy around here! So busy in fact, that this brunch almost didn't happen. But when my nurse friend is off work and my Kentucky friend is in town on the same day some getting together must happen, whether it's in the middle of Missions Conference or not! :)

We planned a brunch at my house for 9:00am, perfect time to sleep in a little extra, but still get home with plenty of time to spare. Here's what we had!

Pumpkin cream cheese muffins, eggs, sausage balls, and apple pie apples. And of course, plenty of hot tea and coffee!

Writing this post is making me hungry!

Now, for the recipes...

 

 

My cousin made these for Thanksgiving, and our entire family absolutely loved them! I've made them twice since then, and I'm going out today to buy the stuff to make them again! They're super easy, and once you slice them up, they won't last long!

You will need...
Granny Smith Apples
Caramel Apple Wrap (cheat and use these instead of dipping, it's so much easier!)
Vanilla or White Chocolate Almond Bark
Cinnamon Sugar

• Wrap your apples with the caramel and put them in the oven on 200 for 5 minutes.
• Let them cool while you melt the almond bark
• Once they've cooled off, dip them in the almond bark and immediately sprinkle cinnamon sugar on them.
• Let them harden, then slice and serve! SO YUMMY!

 

I got this one straight from Pinterest, and I'm just going to copy and paste the recipe, because I just exactly follow it when I make these!

Ingredients

For the filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners’ sugar

For the muffins:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups pumpkin puree
1¼ cups vegetable oil

For the topping:
½ cup sugar
5 tbsp. flour
1½ tsp. ground cinnamon
4 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Directions

• To prepare the filling, combine the cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl and mix well until blended and smooth. Transfer the mixture to a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a log about 1½-inches in diameter. Smooth the plastic wrap tightly around the log, and reinforce with a piece of foil. Transfer to the freezer and chill until at least slightly firm, at least 2 hours.
• To make the muffins, preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line muffin pans with paper liners. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, salt and baking soda; whisk to blend. In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the eggs, sugar, pumpkin puree and oil. Mix on medium-low speed until blended. With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.
• To make the topping, combine the sugar, flour and cinnamon in a small bowl; whisk to blend. Add in the butter pieces and cut into the dry ingredients with a pastry blender or two forks until the mixture is coarse and crumbly. Transfer to the refrigerator until ready to use.
• To assemble the muffins, fill each muffin well with a small amount of batter, just enough to cover the bottom of the liner (1-2 tablespoons). Slice the log of cream cheese filling into 24 equal pieces. Place a slice of the cream cheese mixture into each muffin well. Divide the remaining batter among the muffin cups, placing on top of the cream cheese to cover completely. Sprinkle a small amount of the topping mixture over each of the muffin wells.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before serving. (It may be hard to resist immediate consumption, but the cream cheese filling gets very hot!)

 I hope you try these recipes out, and let me know if you do! They have become favorites at my house!

I hope everyone is having a very merry holiday season!