Rhymes with Hannah

porch.

Fri, 24 May 2013 07:00:29 -0400

Our back porch.

Two days later…

Have I mentioned this is the best time of year?

tea.

Thu, 23 May 2013 07:00:29 -0400

One of my all time favorites drinks is fresh ice tea from our kitchen. If you see me in the morning, I typically have a tervis tumbler filled with this goodness. Here is how we make it!

Here is our Mr. Coffee ice tea maker that use to belong to our grandpa. Fill it with water, throw 5 tea bags in, and press go.

We have used plain Lipton tea bags, peach flavor, Tazo’s passion tea, and even green tea. Our favorite is the plain and simple Lipton.

After a few minutes, it’s all done!

I then walk out and grab some fresh mint.

A fresh summer glass of ice tea. Come on over and grab one!

ugly.

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:00:00 -0400

Recently, I had something good happen to me and was sharing it with a few friends from work. One of them said “You are such a good person. You deserve good things to happen to you”. While I was flattered that this individual considers me a “good person”, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it. The truth is, I’m not a good person.

Sometimes I’m selfish.
Jealous
Gossiping
Self centered
Frustrated
Prideful
Envious
Deceitful

Sometimes I don’t answer my phone on purpose. Sometimes I sneak a second piece of cake when no one is looking. Sometimes when the grocery store doesn’t charge me for an item, I don’t speak up. Sometimes when I know someone is lying, I do nothing about it. Sometime I tell Caleb I sent an e-mail last week, when I really sent it this morning.Guys, I’m ugly.

I’m so thankful that my relationship with God, my salvation, and my “rank” with Jesus isn’t based on how good I am. It is 100% based on how good my God is. He doesn’t care how sinful and ugly I am. He doesn’t care what you’ve done. He just wants to know - do you believe I cover all those sins, Hannah? Do you love me? Will you live your life for me?

Ephesians 2: 8-9 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.

So it isn’t by works? It doesn’t matter if I’m ugly? But what if I’m beautiful! What if I have done everything right? In Phillipians, Paul is talking about all of these “credentials” that religious leaders were throwing around. You know those real perfect people? They were essentially saying they were a good person, they followed the laws, they were religious the went to church… they “deserved something good to happen to them”. Paul responds with this.

Phillipians 3:7-9 The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I’m tearing up and throwing out with the trash—along with everything else I used to take credit for. And why? Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung.

All the good stuff you do? Dog dung. All the crappy sins you have? Forgiven. Friends, it isn’t about you. It’s about the grace of Jesus. For that, I am thankful.

flowers.

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:00:27 -0400

One thing I am definitely spoiled with. Caleb likes to buy me flowers for no real reason… and I love it. I don’t want to blow up my instagram with pictures every time he buys them, or tweet things like “Best husband ever. Bought me flowers!” because you would really be annoyed with me. However, I can’t help it with this bouquet. This beautifully crafted bunch has three giant peonies in it, and it’s breathtaking.

Can these last forever?

active.

Sun, 19 May 2013 22:59:31 -0400

Spending a few days on vacation last week, Caleb and I were able to spend some time thinking and reflecting on our marriage. We do these check ins often, seeing where we are at, what we are enjoying, and what we could work on. I will always appreciate that my husband is reflecting and future oriented, always looking to become better than he is today. This positive trait reflects on our marriage.

Through the conversation, Caleb mentioned that he loves when we are active together, and he feels as though we have slowed down in that department. This wasn’t a new information, I know Caleb loves to be active. I can remember laughing about this our first year of marriage. We would both come home from long and stressful days of work. My first instinct- lay on the couch. Caleb’s first instinct- let’s go on a walk! It took me a while to learn how important that walk was to him. While my natural state is to be lazy, Caleb’s natural state is running around.

After this conversation, I have started to look for opportunities to be active together. As we walked outside on this beautifully sunny Sunday, I suggested a bike ride.

I loved the ride. The sunshine felt great, my legs burned a little up the hill, and the fresh air tasted great. But more than all of that, I loved serving my husband. A great part of my job as a wife is filling his needs, even when it involves putting on tennis shoes and getting off the couch.

blimp.

Fri, 17 May 2013 19:00:44 -0400

Recently we went shopping at Rubber City Clothing. A fun little place in Akron that sells some rubber city pride. Caleb just bought me this cute top with little green blimps on it.

We love our blimps here in Akron.

learned.

Wed, 15 May 2013 22:16:50 -0400

A few things I learned this week.

My brother and I are a lot like our parents

It’s pretty relaxing to have a pool all to yourself.

Even if you are over 21, sand castles are still a blast. Also, when I went to type that sentence, I just learned how to spell castle.

I still don’t like the taste of salt water.

I have the best family in the world.

ordained.

Mon, 13 May 2013 14:35:14 -0400

Psalm 139:16 Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.

My husband is a planner he likes to know what time and where we are going, plan our scheduled ahead of time, project into the future where he would like our finances to be, and will usually know what time we are leaving a party from the second we walk in. Since we became husband and wife, I have started taking on some of these traits. My free spirit is still alive and well, but planning does feel good.

Last week we read through this verse in Psalm 139- Here is the passage from “the Message” version.

“Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you,
The days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day.”

As much as Caleb and I try and plan, we cannot know our future. We can plan, but randomly we could loose our job. We could plan, but tomorrow our house could burn down. We can plan, but be asked to transfer to France. Really, all we plan and dream could change tomorrow. But as I read this verse in Psalms, I see there is one person who will never be surprised- God. All of my days are planned, all my hours ordained. My life is spread out before him, knowing the turns, bumps, curves, and mountains we will walk through. This brings two overwhelming thoughts to my mind-

1. What a purpose this adds to my life! If all of my days are laid out, there must be a purpose to each one. Why waste time being selfish or focusing on me when God has a plan for how I can impact others?

2. Why would I ever carry stress? Stress about my past, stress with current issues, or anxiety about my future are silly when I really embrace God’s intentional plan. All my days are laid out, do I trust him with that?

I was bold and bought bright colored pants. I have been standing...

Thu, 09 May 2013 23:12:03 -0400

I was bold and bought bright colored pants. I have been standing from the side lines for a long time… but this week I jumped in.

I wore them tonight with a few of our friends over, and Scott thought they were pajama pants. The price of fashion.

Thinking about this tonight and the strong power of confidence...

Wed, 08 May 2013 22:00:35 -0400

Thinking about this tonight and the strong power of confidence in who I am in Christ. It changes how I walk, who I talk to, what I do, and what my goals are.

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. I Corinthians 10:31

30.

Tue, 07 May 2013 08:14:22 -0400

HAPPY 30 YEAR ANNIVERSARY to my wonderful parents!

You two have given Caleb and me a marriage to look up to. You have taught us how to be joyful through struggles and laugh in life together. We talk of your love and dedication to each other every week.

I can remember being in high school and asking my mom how she stayed married so long. She looked at me and said “Hannah, it’s nothing I do. You have a great Dad.” I then walked into the family room and asked my dad the same question, thinking he must have the answer then! “It’s all your mom. She is so good to me” was his answer.

A marriage where the other one is put higher than yourself. A marriage where you are continually thankful for what Christ has given you. A marriage that grosses your kids out because you kiss so much. What a great example.

If you know my parents, shoot them an e-mail or text and wish them happy 30 years! CONGRATS MOM AND DAD!

impromptu.

Tue, 07 May 2013 08:00:37 -0400

Our Real Life Group had an incredible weekend together. What a wonderful group of friends to spend life with.

On Thursday for our normal group, we cooked out and enjoyed dinner together.

Almost everyone was there, it was delicious as well!

Friday night we had a girls night playing games, while the boys were away at an Akron Aeros game. Considering it was a competitive game, Michelle clearly won.

Saturday morning we were a part of “March of Dimes”, walking 4 miles around downtown Akron.

After the walk, we went over to Portage Lakes and hopped on a boat to lay in the sun and spend more time together.

The best part of this weekend was it was kind of impromptu We knew we were going to go on the walk Saturday morning, but everything else just kinda popped up. When you have true friends that you value, often times quality time is something you have to be very intentional with. With busy schedules, different priorities, and juggling different relationships, it’s hard to find time to grow and learn together. But… this weekend it just happened.

Acts 2:42 All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals, and to prayer.

I’m thankful God put community on such a high priority, and thankful for such funny, challenging, and charming friends!

garden.

Sun, 05 May 2013 21:08:10 -0400

That time of year is here… to reinstate our garden! If you remember, we had some great memories last year. Here was Caleb building the beds. Here was the day we planted the garden, here is how big it grew, and here was the broccoli! This year is our second round of growing.

We spent the morning at Suncrest Gardens, picking out what we wanted to plant and grow this year.

We finally narrowed it down and stocked up our cart.

Peppers, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and zucchini.

We worked hard to get our beds ready and enjoyed the wonderful sunshine.

Cucumbers.

Baby tomatoes.

Jalapeno.

After the planting, here is the final product! Looking forward to a great summer of fresh produce!

resolutions.

Sat, 04 May 2013 11:00:39 -0400

As I mentioned earlier, I love warm weather. Instead of singing while putting Christmas lights up, I hum when the flower pop up. Continuing that trend, instead of new years resolutions, I am making some warm weather resolutions.

1. I want to wear brighter colors. Why do I always dress is black?

2. The resolutions everyone always says. I literally did not work out all winter. That’s pretty sad. I’m going to shake my tail feather in Zumba every week.

3. I’m going to spend more time reading books. I really love reading, and I really should spend more time doing it.

4. I am going to go visit Anna Pawsey at least once this summer.

5. I’m going to study the book of Isaiah.

Here is a shirt I bought this week to try and hit my new goal- it is bright orange, not black.

change.

Fri, 03 May 2013 17:00:41 -0400

Happy Birthday to my sweet friend, Megan. This weekend we were...

Thu, 02 May 2013 08:00:47 -0400

Happy Birthday to my sweet friend, Megan. This weekend we were able to spend some time laughing, shopping, telling stories, and eating root beer floats.

bloom.

Wed, 01 May 2013 21:17:52 -0400

Look what bloomed today!

Our house is so beautiful. What a blessing to live our life here.

mom.

Wed, 01 May 2013 20:00:47 -0400

Happy birthday to our beautiful mom! This weekend, we were able to spend some time as a family celebrating another year for our wonderful mother. Caleb and I drove over to our parents to meet for dinner, and Stephen showed up!

He drove from Ohio University and just showed up to dinner! Well done, Stephen! Mom was so happy to have the 5 of us all together to celebrate.

We went out to eat, told stories, shared some laughs, and ate some GREAT food.

What a handsome date I had for the affair.

Happy birthday mom! Thanks for blessing us with such a great family.

rain.

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 07:49:41 -0400

Whenever it rains, I am reminded of a musical I love so dearly.

Growing up, Singing in the Rain was a classic family night movie. We watched it many many times, and would wake up singing “Good Morning” and “Make em Laugh”. I can quote most of the movie, and often day dream about dancing with Gene Kelly.

In college, I had the honor of performing in Singing in the Rain the musical at Bluffton University. I did not play a main role (as I can’t sign and my tap dance is pretty pathetic) but it was such a blast to dance with the crew!

With Megan in town this weekend, we reenacted a little Singing in the Rain.

Even among rainy weather, great memories are made.

quiet.

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 16:00:58 -0400

Sunday I had the entire night to myself. The house was mine from 4:00-11:00pm. Let me tell you what I did.

Organized my closet, got rid of old clothes, wrote 4 blogs, took pictures off my camera, made dinner, watched The Voice, scanned through Esty, sat on Facebook, emptied the dishes, folded laundry, flipped through TV channels and pinned a board on Pinterest for organization ideas.

Let me tell you what I wanted to do.

Read a book, spend time with God, Go on a walk, Enjoy some quite time.

Why is it so hard for me to be quiet? Why can’t I stop and unplug myself from technology? Why do I put time with my Creator on hold to watch silly TV shows?

I realize I’m not the first and only person to deal with this, and thankfully it isn’t a constant struggle for me. Some weeks I’m really good. Some nights I dig into reading without even hesitating! But nights like this, I just want to lay on the couch and not think.