Outdoor Adventures!

Whoa!  This past month has been a whirl~wind!  So many transitions... and so much fun!!  About a month ago we went on an awesome adventure with our friends Jason, Tracy, Misty & Lacy.  We had gone on a day canoe trip last fall and decided to take it to the next level this spring by turning a canoe trip into a CAMPING-canoe trip! Woo!  We found this canoe rental place that only cost $70 per canoe for the night. 

Getting ready for the launch!  Tracy's excited!

 

 Jason & Misty were too! (Misty was SO good in the canoe!)

& here's me with the Hubster!  He was getting situated... & it was really sunny that day! (hence the squinting) 

Do you see Lacy? She was the 'ultimate camping dog'... haha!

Yay for a group picture in canoes!

 This was the small peninsula where Jason found a pretty sweet campsite!

Tracy helping Jason set up camp! ;)

Our dinner!! We threw in ground beef, potatoes, beans, veggies, 

and some kickin' chicken spices!!  They just took awhile to cook...

...so, Jason prepared Tracy's camera for a 'time-shot' of all of us!!  You can actually see the group picture he took on Tracy's blog.  It's the one of all of us that's slightly crooked.. :)

Dinner's ready!!  These stones were set up already, so we made it into a table!

Diggin' in!!

We made it through the night!  And we needed some 'strong' instant coffee, 

but first we had to heat up the water.

Mmmm..coffeezzz!!!

 

This is Lacy... the 'ultimate camping dog' who primarily stayed in this chair! Haha!  I couldn't blame her, though... the not-so-fun part of the trip was that there were TICKS...EVERYWHERE!!

 There I was taking pictures of our new tent (thanks Tom Eckhardt!).... & then I saw it...







 A TICK!!!!               -------------------------->
Do you see it!?  Ah! we couldn't get away from them!

No worries!  The Hubster came to the rescue and PUT IT IN THE FIRE!!! 

 At the end of our journey we had to get one more timed-shot in, thanks to Jason :) 

It was definitely an adventure.. and there were some unexpected guests (darn ticks!), but overall we had an awesome time and we are so grateful for the memories!! Since that time, our dear friends moved back to Colorado Springs for Jason's next assignment in the Air Force.  Now there are days where it is hard to tell what is different, exactly, then I realize I just miss my friend...  We will always carry you guys in our hearts--- no matter the distance :) 

Another 'outdoor adventure' I wanted to share with you just took place this past weekend!  Our friends, Reed & Lesley, got married!!  Remember them in my post about Lesley's shower?  Well their wedding day finally arrived!!!  It was held outside in Lesley's yard--- so beautiful!!  Though going to a wedding is not typically an 'adventure,' it was such a blessing to be there and witness the first day of their adventure together as husband & wife.  Weddings tend to remind me of our wedding day... and all the LIFE that has happened since then!  Marriage is definitely an adventure!  It's been great to be with this couple this past year as they grew to love each other more and more no matter what.  We both send them our love & prayers as they step out into all that God has for them!

Here are some pics from there wedding!

We're walking up to where the wedding was held!  Notice the golf cart behind us... there were 3 or 4 of them picking people up and taking them to the ceremony. Good idea!

 

This was the cute gift table!! Funny story... I forgot to not only get them a card with our gift, I also forgot to sign the tag on their gift bag!  I remembered this during the ceremony and made a mental note that I would sign it later... Totally spaced and forgot about it until we were on our way home!  Oops!

  






The Hats

 The invite to their wedding asked for everyone to please wear hats. Not only was this a really cute idea for an outdoor wedding, but there was a lot of meaning behind it for this couple.  Both of them have experienced tremendous loss by losing their mothers years ago.  Though their stories are different, the heartache was similar, and it was one of the things that brought them closer together as friends.  They would both agree that God has done a lot in their lives and has even brought joy into their hearts again.  Even still no one could possibly take their place, and Reed & Les wanted this day to really HONOR their mothers... and it was so beautifully done.  The Hats were in honor of Lesley's mother who wore & collected hats.

When we first sat down, there was an easel and a coat rack up front...

At the beginning of the ceremony, Reed's father placed the painting on the easel and Lesley's father placed the hat on the coat rack.  Each symbolizing their mothers, for Reed's mother had painted that picture & Lesley's mom had worn that hat.

The Ceremony!!!

Their programs were super cute!

PETER WAS THERE!!!  

It was so great to see Peter again before he headed up to Chicago! 

We definitely weren't expecting that :)

Here are some other cute things at their wedding...

Peter originally wanted to place his fingerprint right on the 'love birds,' but settled for right above their heads :)  Oh Peter...

 Table assignments and a lemonade stand!!

 I had Peter take a picture of us... he had a minor fail his first try.  ---->

Oh Peter :) 

We were so glad he was there!  & he did end up taking a real cute picture of us! ;)

We also missed this girl... SO good to see her, encourage her, & remind her of Father's love for her no matter where she goes in life!  Tears were shed... yet our hearts remain full of love for her.  The beauty of living in community.

Finally... the beautiful bride!!
I was able to snatch a pic with her before we had to head home... a 3 hour car ride awaited us.


It was a wonderful day & a beautiful wedding. 

The Hubster was pretty wiped after the late night... here he is taking a nap after church the next day.

He is so stinkin' cute :)  Really grateful he's in my life.  

My favorite adventures are the ones where I'm with him.

In Him,

Bekah

A Combination of Spice, Shrimp, & Graduation Celebrations!!

I've recently tried a few recipes, or concoctions that I have put together, and I thought I would share them!!  When I went back to the pictures I took, I realized that there were some similarities: we love shrimp and anything spicy in our house! 


Pictured below, this dish is called Spicy Parmesan Shrimp Skillet.  I found it on Pinterest and made it for family friend's of ours.  It's a fun mix of brown sugar, soy sauce, and crushed red pepper flakes! It's delicious!

This next dish was a fun concoction I tried from memory.  My best friend, Whitney, had introduced this dish to me a long time ago.  One night I had a craving for this!  It definitely includes shrimp, but it is not that spicy.  It consists of pesto sauce, red, yellow, and orange peppers, shrimp, & linguine pasta (you could also use angel hair pasta).

 

Start by sauteing the peppers, and making the pesto sauce.  I simply used a packet of pesto mix that just requires that you add olive oil and water.

Once the peppers are sauteed and the sauce is done add the shrimp and sauce to the peppers.  In the mean time, cook the pasta.

Let this cook for about 5 min on high, and then add the pasta.

MMMmmmmm, YUM!

Top with Parmesan cheese, and eat up! Thanks, Whitney!! ;)

I have one more dish to share with you.   It does not have shrimp in it, but it is spicy! This was another concoction that sounded good- Tilapia with corn & rice.

 I baked the Tilapia with cumin, black pepper, a pinch of cayenne pepper, and dried cilantro.  I also took a can of drained tomatoes with green chiles.

We had this with a side of rice mixed with a drained can of corn.  Yum!! 

This may not be another dish, but it is a delicious, spicy, appetizer!!  The Hubster and I are apart of an amazing church small group that meets weekly.  We have someone, or some couple, signed up for a sweet snack and a savory snack each week.  One week that I had signed up for savory, I knew that I wanted to try this recipe on Pinterest for a cream cheese, bacon, and jalapeno crescent roll delight!  Here are my pictures of the project... 

For more specifics, you'll need to go to the Pinterest link above.  I will say one thing here though... I tried using turkey bacon bites rather than cooking bacon first, but I will admit that you could not taste these pieces.  I wonder if the real bacon crumbles would have been more tasty? :)

In other news,

I GRADUATED WITH MY MASTERS!!!  WOO-HOO!!!

For that, my mom came to visit!

We had strawberry shortcake on the square... 

& delicious spicy cajun food at one of my favorite restaurants!

Mom was happy for spicy food, and I was glad she came to visit!

The Hubster & I also celebrated, and a fancy date!  

And we had the most amazing chocolate cake!

It's still pretty surreal that I'm done!  My new job will be starting sometime next week.  There's been a lot of changes & transitions this past month for us.  More than adjusting to graduating and accepting a new job, many people that we have come to really love and care about are moving on, starting a new chapter in the story God has for them, and we are staying here.

This is new for me... I am used to being the "one to leave" & go on to the "next thing" God has for me.  When I have surrendered my life over & over again, I meant it...  

"Lord, take my life & do with it what You will... Wherever that may be."  

Sometimes God asks you to step out, but sometimes He asks you to stay where He's planted you.  The Hubster & I KNOW that we are called to our church, & to our town right now.  We also KNOW that we can TRUST FATHER to take care of the people that we love as they step out into all that He has for them.  The Hubster has continually said we need to "LOVE people FIERCELY, but hang onto them LOOSELY."  God ultimately has a BETTER, the BEST, plan for them than we do.  

I'm grateful for all that Father has been doing in us this past month... I pray He continues to do His work in us & in our dear friends as we continue to say 'good-bye' for now to those we love.