Knives are for wives...?!?

Today, my mother-in-law to be will be venturing to MN, where she will join Thomas and I in our celebration of Easter.
In preparing for Easter, the chef side of me has conjured up some delectable ideas. Thinking back to one of the bridal showers, I/we were given a knife set. Preparing for Easter Dinner reminds me of one of my cooking adventures over Thanksgiving 2006 (freshman year in college).

Mmm, winter squash - butternut and acorn.

Alright, time to get serious - squash-cutting time.

AHH! FLYING SQUASH!

Although Thomas and I are not due to open this box of knives until we return from our honeymoon, I can only imagine what sort of adventures this future wife will have with those future knives...!

 

99 bottles of....

...
95 bottles of (root)beer on the wall
95 bottles of (root)beer
Take one down; pass it around
95 days remaining till wedded

(See previous posts: 4/15 & 4/16)

Shirley Elizabeth

When I was in MI, I visited a number of people, including my grandpa. As of late, my grandfather has been sifting through photos, especially those of my late grandmother.

For those of you who are not aware, my grandmother was called by the Lord on October 23, 1985. This took place exactly one month and two days after my older brother was born, her first grandchild. When I was born a few years later, I was the first granddaughter, and my parents (especially my mother) decided to honor my mom's mom by christening me with her name - Shirley Elizabeth.

Shirley is of old-English origin, meaning "bright meadow" or "white meadow" ("shir" = white/bright, "ley" = clearing/meadow) It was formerly a male name. As the story (rumor) goes, Shirley Temple's parents named her before she was born, and they were hoping for a boy. When she was born and clearly a girl, they kept the name. Given Shirley Temple's popularity, numerous girl babies born in the 1930s were given that name, which is why most "Shirleys" nowadays are women of the age ~70-80. Shirley Temple was also one of the first women to speak openly about her personal experience with breast cancer....hmm...
Elizabeth is of Hebrew origin, meaning "God's promise" or "God is my oath." This name was made popular in the 16th-century by Queen Elizabeth I, making it an English name to many.
From this, one can infer that Bradley means broad clearing ("brad" = broad). So yes, my name literally means "bright meadow - God's promise - broad clearing." Cool, huh!?! What's also cool is that my Grandma Shirley is a daughter of the American Revolution, and my name is pure English...weird!

When I was going through the photos at my grandpa's house (Grandma Shirley's husband), I felt indescribably connected to the photos. Here are a few of my favorites.

Shirley with her parents. She was an only child.

It turns out that my grandma was on a postcard (The previous photo is the front)!!! I like to collect postcards. I wonder if this postcard-thing runs in the family or comes with the name.

Shirley Peterson when she was ~2 years of age.

What do you think?

Shirley Bradley when she was ~4 years old (aka - me).
Do you think the Shirleys look alike?

With all of this talk about names, I feel strongly that I should keep my birth-name when Thomas and I get married. Thomas has voiced his desire for me to take his surname, which means that I either need to drop my (father's) surname entirely, hyphenate our surnames together (potentially makes my career life easier) or adopt two middle names. Although the decision is not final, I am certainly taking Thomas' last name, and I will likely adopt two middle names, making me Shirley (Elizabeth Bradley) Dean or Shirley E.B. Dean.

Sometimes things EXPLODE!

Today is Palm Sunday - the beginning of Holy Week.

During this Church Holiday in 1865, there was a momentous occasion in American history.
   Many of you are aware that on Good Friday (April 14, 1865), President Abraham Lincoln was attending a play at the Ford Theater. Then, when his body guard stepped out during the intermission for a drink, John Wilkes Booth seized the opportunity to carry out his assassination plan and shot the President in the back of his head at point blank range. After being in a coma, the President died the following morning, April 15.
   What you may not recall is that on Palm Sunday preceding this tragic event, Union commanding general, Ulysses Grant and Confederate commanding general, Robert Lee met at an abandoned farm house in Virginia to negotiate terms of the Confederate's surrender to the Union Army. This date, April 9, 1865, brought the end to a four-year explosion of turmoil that tore the country in two. At the request of President Lincoln (who at this time was still alive), General Grant was gracious towards his opponents, sending them on parole without weaponry opposed to imprisoning the whole lot. It was this wisdom of President Lincoln that allowed for reconciliation and the mending of the country back together.
   Unlike those of us today celebrating Palm Sunday for the Passion Week, the Union Army was not in church that Sunday morning, but was celebrating the end of war - the end of a war which reigns as the most destructive war (highest casualties) America has ever endured - with over 600,000 casualties.
   I can proudly state as a former Michigander and a current Minnesotan that both Michigan and Minnesota made notable contributions even though they were physically removed from the conflict. Michigan was recognized for sending one-fourth (1/4) of its male population, and Minnesota was the first to send troops to the Union Army; both aiding significantly in the Battle of Gettysburg.

This pivotal date in the history for our country was brought back to my attention when I was listening to Insight for Living - "A Day of Unusual Celebration" on the local Christian radio. Check it out for yourself (April 12, 2011 broadcast).

EXPLOSION!
I'm looking forward to coloring eggs with Thomas and my future mother-in-law whom are visiting me over Easter.

A day goes by...

98 days remaining till wedded
98 days remaining
He's the love of my life; I'll be his goodwife
98 days remaining till wedded

Double Digits!

99 days remaining till wedded,
99 days remaining
As days go by, it will be July
99 days remaining till wedded.

The Century Mark!

Take a quick peak at the countdown on the right - 100 DAYS REMAINING UNTIL OUR WEDDING!!!!!!!

101 Dalmatians!...I mean...

101 DAYS!
In the movie, having 101 dalmatians equated to having a lot of dogs. In this instance, however, I prefer to think of having 101 days as equating to NOT having a lot of days remaining until Thomas and I enter into ever after through a holy union. While Thomas and I are honestly both anxious to be married, we also know that God says:

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Philippians 4:6

So, in the meantime, we are practicing the fruit of patience. After all, what does being anxious or worrying do? Jesus says:

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34

 This verse reminds me that God has a plan, and everything will work out according to His will.

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

There is nothing we can do by worrying to change that and to make the days go faster or slower. Henceforth, I intend on taking it one day at a time, and living that day to the fullest and serving my master - Jesus.

We'll be a married couple in 101 days...!!!
...you decide who is who in this photo.

*Pictures were found using www.google.com

Helping through Heifer

Many of you may remember that Thomas and I registered through Heifer International. At one of the showers, Thomas and I were blessed to receive a flock of chicks and a flock of ducks. Actually, these items were purchased in our honor, and they were given to less fortunate people in a third world country to help combat hunger. Recipients of the chicks and ducks are required to give some of their livestock offspring to another person in the community. That person in the community is instructed to do the same thing. Eventually, the entire village has eggs, meat, and feathers to live off of and share with other villages.

Please keep those in need in your prayers, and please give whatever you are able (time, money, talents, etc.) to aid those who are less fortunate. The Heifer Project is an excellent outlet for a self-sustaining way to feed the world.

Photo: China
Ducks provide poor families protein from eggs, money
from the sale of eggs and ducks, and better crops in the
fields, as they remove weeds and bugs and add fertilizer.

Also - I would like to quack shout out to some peeps, my Uncle and sister-in-law, who celebrate their respective births on this day.

When it rains, it pours!

Every time Thomas/I travel to/from MI, our route takes us past quite a few unique bulletin boards and advertisements. On my way back to MN, the scenario was no different. I was traveling by myself, so I couldn't take a picture of what I saw, but here is a similar photo on I-90/I-94 in downtown Chicago.

Thomas and I would like to thank all those who showered us with gifts by contributing to the Bradley and/or Dean Bridal Shower. This past weekend, Thomas helped me stow the gifts away in my apartment until we get them out after our honeymoon. We would especially like to thank those who aided me in the transportation/packing of the gifts, like my older brother and my father.

In closing, check out the water tower visible as one enters Chicago on I-90.

We were Showered-rite!

Bumps and bruises...

As many of you know, especially the women who frequent bridal showers, there is a long held tradition/superstition stating that for every ribbon the bride breaks, the showered couple will have another child. With this in my mind, I decided to prove to people that this superstition is false (as are all other superstitions). I did so by breaking every ribbon (not bows) I came across at any expense. Let me tell you, some of the presents had some serious ribbons. My determination to break every ribbon cause me to endure an injury. Yup...when breaking a ribbon on a box that had too much give, the ribbon rubbed my engagement ring against my skin, and it gave me ring burn (not to be confused with ringworm). The worst part of this injury (and I'm still noticing the effect seeing as it is only now beginning to scab over) is that wearing the ring makes it worse. The ring continues to rub the surface, preventing it from healing. This was compounded by wearing gloves in lab, which made my ring dig into my finger even more. Since my finger was more important than having a sparkling object on my finger, I opted to remove the ring for a day to initiate the healing process and to preserve my digit. If it was a wedding band, I think it would take a more serious injury to warrant removing my band.
Here's some proof of the mishap:

Yikes...day one and my finger was sore.

After four days, the wound was getting deeper, so I took my ring off (and Thomas didn't mind).

Fortunately, after a day of not wearing my engagement ring, my finger has started to heal enough to the point where I can wear it again. WOW...who knew that opening presents could be so dangerous as to damage a delicate young lady's hand...!?!?
I guess I'll have another battle scar to add to my collection...

Road trip!

After the Bradley Bridal Shower, there were many doubts about whether I would be able to haul the wonderful gifts back to MN.

I too began wondering about whether or not they would fit in the Buick, but once I saw all of the presents neatly stowed away in my parents' basement, I was once again confident in Thomas and my decision to use the more fuel efficient (and older) vehicle for my return to MI.
Check out my success!

...leaving for Chicago and eventually MN from the Dean Bridal Shower.

Although one can't tell from this picture, all of my blindspots were made visible. In other words, I could still see out every window when I was driving; ask my sister (who I visited in Holland on the way back to MN).

April showers bring May flowers!

After spending a week traveling nomadically through MI, I was off to the second of two bridal showers. This shower was thrown by members of Thomas' side.
Here are a few pics of the Dean Bridal Shower:

...goats...finally!

Stackable bowls!

Camping = YES!
(Don't ask me what this face was about...)

Cereal?!?

...just kidding! (No pun intended...lol)

A make-up bell...!

Thomas is very particular about cooking utensil holders, and this is the type he wanted!

Thanks everyone for all of the effort you put into the showers. Also, thank you for the advice noted in the book, and the assistance planning the wedding!

Oh...and May flowers bring pilgrims!

The Present Presents

As promised, here are a few pictures of the presents (Thomas and) I received from the Bradley Bridal Shower. Admittedly, the lighting made quite a few of the pictures blurry, so I tried to post the better quality photos here.

TOOLS! Now the question is - who will use them more? Thomas or me?

Large frying pan...quite the weight to swing.

Yay for "jamming" materials - jars, preserving book, and even pectin!

 

Canners make canning easier. Water baths are great, but these are better (I think).

A crockpot that will cook enough for visitors (or whatever the quiver ends up being).

Thomas likes plants. I like cooking. So, why not grow plants you can cook with!?!

Thanks everyone!