New Home=New Business Venture

Well, things have certainly been exciting around our house lately.  About a year ago we started praying about a piece of land that we had only dreamed could one day become our home, our business and our mission.  In January 2008 we were engaged at 18120 Dean Lane in Nampa and if all goes accordingly on October 18th, 2011 we will be calling it our home.   We will also be calling it Still Water Hollow.   Throughout this whole process of writing a business plan, putting our house on the market, etc.  the verse Psalm 23:2 "He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters" has been our anthem.   It has reminded us to trust in His will and His timing.  We know that none of this could be possible if it weren't for God's incredible plan and we must give Him and only Him all the glory. 

Just a little information on the property, for those of you who are curious.  It's 5 acres of beauty!  There's a 700 sq. foot pond located right in the center with a gorgeous water fall.  The chapel, located at the back of the property was built in 1899 and originally located on McMillan.   The previous owners, the McKellips, moved this little white chapel onto the property and restored it.  The chapel holds approximately 160 people and has a vintage organ inside that just completes the feel.   There's also an adorable mining town with old shacks and a mint still that transports you to a simpler time.  In the front of the property there's a shop that we plan on turning into the perfect place to hold indoor events.  We went coffee shop hopping the other day and gleaned ideas that would help give it that rustic, yet cozy feel. 

Some insight into our plans for Still Water Hollow:
We obviously will love having weddings, family reunions, class reunions, birthday parties and other special events out there.  Our hope is that this will become a place families can come and make memories.   We all know this is a difficult time for families to find fun activities to enjoy together while staying on a budget.   I wish we could go to the movies every weekend, or Roaring Springs, but it costs an arm and a leg these days.   It's our goal to create fun events at Still Water Hollow that are affordable and sometimes even free for the community to come and enjoy themselves even while their on a budget.  Music is obviously a passion of mine, so it's my dream to create an atmosphere where great music can be enjoyed while being in such a gorgeous atmosphere.  We plan on having concerts and jam nights out there.  Remember Sunday's when you'd go to church, then come back home and enjoy a big dinner with great fellowship alongside family and friends?  Well, someday we'd like that tradition to turn into you all coming out to Still Water Hollow to enjoy food, fellowship and great teaching.   Just taking it back to basics where we learn, encourage and uplift one another.  Stripping aside the worries and politics we tend to get wrapped up in and reminding our selves what it's all about.

So, I hope this little post helps give everyone some insight into our plans and dreams for our soon to be home and business.  The biggest favor I could ever ask is for you all to spread the word.  It would mean so much to us if you'd tell all your friends and family members, especially those who may be looking for a place to hold their next event.   We now have a Facebook page and we are working on gathering all the marketing tools needed.   The website should be up soon.   We are still 2 weeks away from moving in, but we'd like to hit the ground running, starting with getting the word out! I hope we'll see some of you at the Harvest Party, or at one of our other events.  

Much Love!

I Call Him My Son

I prayed for him each night before I knew there was a him to pray for.   I prayed he'd grow healthy and strong inside the womb.   I cried when they said, "It's a Boy!"  I fell in love before I saw his face and then I took a free fall when I held him in my arms for the first time.   I've wiped away his tears, rocked him as he's cried, sang to him as he falls asleep and kissed him goodnight.   I've been up with him all night and chased him all day long.   When he smiled for the first time I was the one standing over him, when he rolled over for the first time I was the one with the camera and when he crawled for the first time I was the one cheering as though it was a football championship.   My heart breaks each time he's sad, sick or uncomfortable, my soul smiles every moment that I look at him, think about him or hold him.  I've called him my son since the day he was born.   And after 281 days they now call me his mom. What an honor, what a blessing and what a day!

Today we had Ryker's finalization at the Canyon County Courthouse.  We were surrounded by our parents, brother, sister, and brother-in-law.   There hasn't been a time during the last 9 months that I haven't thought of Ryker as my son, but now I can officially say that I am his legal parent and he has the birth certificate to prove it :)  It was such a special moment in the court room seeing as our judge is a long time family friend and made it extra special for us.   At one point she said she didn't feel she should even ask any question or else she might start crying.   We each had a moment to share what Ryker means to us and how it has been as a family the past 9 months. Tyler went first and explained our excitement we felt as we waited by the phone to hear of his delivery and then the love that grew and grew from the moment we laid eyes on him.   My favorite words I heard my husband say were, "I would do anything for him."   I know that's true and he is such an incredible father.   I have a feeling the words he spoke will mean so much to Ryker someday.   Well, then it was my turn and as usual I was a blubbering mess. About all I could get out was how much we love him and how special he is to us.   I can hardly even think about him without my eyes welling up and my heart bursting with love!  What a blessed mother I am.   I could have never dreamed of the love that would fill my soul once you become a parent.

We are off to celebrate with family and friends this evening and I hope one day Ryker can look back and the photo's and memories shared of this day and realize how deeply he is loved by so many!

Wanting What You Can't Have

There are silly little things that are making me go absolutely crazy right now.   I've never been great about being told "NO", ask my parents.   They said, "no" and I usually found a round about way to turn it into a yes.   So, needless to say there are some no-no's of pregnancy out there that are driving me banana's...things that never used to even phase me and others that I've realized have become an addiction!

The billboard with the soda cup filled to the brim and frosty drops of water sliding down the outside....

The sound of a soda can being opened and that infamous "ahhhh"....

A turkey sandwich piled high with yummy veggie's, but COLD COLD turkey sliced perfectly and stacked just so....

The glass of wine I carried down the stairs that smelled so sweet and had a hint of raspberry, only to hand off to one lucky lady who enjoyed the crisp cool flavor in the hot evening sun...

The trampoline....yep, I just wanna go jump on one...

The smell of bleach.   I just want to go clean something top to bottom and maybe even sit in a room that smells like bleach (oh man I think I'm getting this one from Ty)....

I'm sure as soon as this is all over none of these things will be appealing to me, but if you asked me today I would tell you the day after this baby comes into this world I will spend the afternoon scrubbing everything in sight with the strongest cleaner I can find, then I will go get my workout by jumping on an unexpected strangers trampoline, and finally I will reward myself by sitting in a hot tub with a Big gulp, Starbucks coffee, and glass of Ste. Chapelle wine...alternating sips after taking large bites of my cold turkey sandwich ;-)

A Post for Jen

I can only imagine as a parent to be separated from one of your babies would be extremely difficult.   So, I thought I'd write this post for Jen in hopes that she would feel like she spent the day with her beautiful Ari. I had the privilege of watching Ari this evening and as we speak she is cuddled up under her fort we made in Ryker's room.   When Ari got to my house I was told she had been up since 5am (wow, I didn't even realize that there was such a thing as 5 am), so a nap was probably necessary if we were going to make it through the evening with a smile :)   Ari informed me she was not tired though because Ty had just told her we were going to the RODEEEOOOO that evening and she was so excited.   I still insisted that she go lay down and at least have some quiet time before we packed up.   Within minutes she was sound asleep and not even Ryker's high pitched screeches were fazing her.  By the time we had to start loading up the car she was still in a slumber, so I had to wake her up.    I know, I know, I'm pretty sure this is a no no in babysitting 101, but we had to go.

We headed toward the rodeo and her excitement was building.   Somehow she got the idea that she was going to get to ride the horses and kept talking about how excited she was to ride the nice, slow horses.  I tried to clue her in on the probability of that not occurring tonight, but she has faith like fire!  As we were walking into the rodeo I think the heat and lack of sleep had hit her.   I started seeing the happy, smiling face turn into a pouty one and when we gave her the "cool necklace" (aka her ticket on a lanyard) to wear she was not in the mood to put it on.  I tried my tactic I had used with students.   I immediately stopped and said, "OK, we can just go back to the car and hang out there for a few hours"  She looked at me very puzzled and said, "No, I want to go to the rodeo".  I told her we couldn't go to the rodeo without the necklace on, she told me she didn't want to put her necklace on, I said OK and started walking to the car.   She looked at me, handed me the lanyard and let me put it on her, but then wanted some consoling in return.   I picked her up and her head went straight into my shoulder.   I started feeling bad and wondered if I had chosen the right tactic, but by the time we got through the gates she had that big beautiful smile on her face and was asking where the horse she was going to ride was waiting for her at. Whew :) I guess I didn't completely mess up because we had a wonderful rest of our evening.

I learned Ari is a very friendly young lady and I think she was saying hello to almost everyone that walked by that looked half friendly.   She was also telling anyone and everyone that she wanted to go ride a horse.   She went right up to one of the cowgirls and started a full on conversation with them asking, "Do you know Brianne?"  We also found out that one of the board members of the CNR and a Caldwell Police Officer love Jesus, to which Ari exclaimed, "Great!  That means you're going to heaven!"  They both laughed and said, "That's right".

The woman in front of us, whom Ari called Heather (not sure that's her name, but we went with it), was smitten with Ari and kept telling her she was going to go find Ari a nice horse to ride every time she made her way to the beer stand.   Ari would turn to me and say, "She is a very nice lady."   I thought to myself yes, she is certainly in her "happy place".  I sure wasn't complaining though because between my child who was screeching in that high pitched, make me want curl into the fetal position and hide, scream and Ari shouting at the top of her lounges, "GO COWBOY! GO COWBOY! GO COWBOY! GO COWBOY!" (Yes that was my fault,  on the way to the rodeo I told her to yell that each time they rode by....learned a valuable lesson) I was just thankful the group in front of us was turning around with smiles on their faces, let along making friends with us.

So, I just want to end with telling Jen she has raised a beautiful, sweet young girl.   I had so much fun tonight with her and as I tucked her into bed and we said our prayers I thought how blessed I am that Jen feels so comfortable with me watching her sweet baby.   I could not have asked for her to be more well behaved, especially because I know it must be tough taking orders from someone other than your mommy, but not once did she ever say to me, "you can't tell me what to do" when I would correct her.   She has such a tender heart and my favorite comment of the night was when her flip flop fell off her foot, but she grabbed it before it fell below the bleachers, she said, "God caught my shoe!   How does he do that?"  So sweet......

Domestic Mommy Makeover

I feel like I've had a domestic mommy makeover this month.   Between making home made strawberry freezer jam, cooking my sons baby food, and making home made meals much more often I have completely transformed.  

There's something very therapeutic about preparing food for your family.   I've never been much of a cook and between the three recipes I had mastered we were eating the same thing week after week.   I think I was afraid of cooking.   While in high school and college it seemed I'd always mess up a recipe.....even if it was on the back of the rice a roni box.   I'd put all the ingredients in at once when I was supposed to put them in one at a time.   We were out of vegetable oil, so I figured peanut oil would do the same trick in my brownie mix.   Let's just say most of my dishes came out tasting anything like the real deal, so they'd get tossed and I'd head to Mongolian BBQ.  

The most rewarding task I've taken on is making my sons baby food.   My Aunt Marci got me this amazing cook book for baby food called Top 100 Baby Purees by Annabel Karmel (highly recommend).   I haven't found a recipe that Ryker doesn't love and it's amazing how excited he is to eat dinner when it's the home cooked meals compared to the jar baby food.   After my parents got me a food processor/blender making his meals was something I could accomplish while he napped and I even had time to spare for reading a good book or taking a nap myself :)   Today I made him blueberries with plums, bananas and apples- Broccoli with potato and carrots- Sweet potato with cauliflower, onion topped with a tomato cheese sauce.   Sounds so gourmet, but it was a piece of cake.  

My new favorite website for tasty recipes for the grown ups is thepioneerwoman.com.   I have had so much success with everything I've tried from her site.   Tonight we are cooking up Spicy Dr. Pepper Shredded Pork.  Go to this website to try out the recipe for yourself!

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/03/spicy-dr-pepper-shredded-pork/

Last night we had some great friends over for dinner and enjoyed my favorite lasagna ever!

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/06/the_best_lasagn/

Overall, I think my family is really benefiting from this makeover of mine and so am I :)  Happier, healthier and such a feeling of accomplishment washes over me!

Thirsty for More

I sit here eyes filled with tears.  Not sure if it's the pregnancy hormones, or the fact that I've always had a tender heart.  Dad and I always cried while watching Touched By An Angel and when my mom starts to tear up I quickly tell her to stop before I begin welling up.   Right now though my eyes are filled with tears because I just read a blog by a pastor who has blessed me in more ways than he'll ever know.  He brought life to God's word, he challenged me to challenge my relationship with God- to grow closer and deeper than I've ever dared to go before.   He restored a hurt in me that had been broken when I was young and never fully healed....just shoved under the rug.   As I read his blog I am again encouraged because for several weeks I've been missing the authentic and real way he makes me feel as though God is sitting in the room with me and speaking right to me.

His entry is about lying down in green pastures.   Oh is that something I can relate to.   I get so caught up in the worries and even dreams that will only last me a blink of an eye compared to eternity.   Why don't I focus more of my energy on the things that I will carry with me beyond this time on earth?   Lately, I don't spend a lot of time alone just to think, pray and read.   This entry he wrote just really made me stop in my tracks.   I feel like I've got God standing next to me saying, "stop....just stop".   In my Bible study this evening Beth Moore talked about Psalm 46:10 "Be still, and know that I am God." I can not really know him if I'm running around and never taking a moment to be still.

What a blessing this entry from Tim has been to me.   I miss his teaching and look forward to when I'll be able to listen to him again soon.   After you experience a teacher like Tim you realize how the most important thing in church is the message.   I really have to admit I've focused more on the paint color, music, coffee creamer, and how much the pastor can make me laugh in the past.  Now I am thirsty for the meat.   I want to hear the good stuff....the stuff that leaves me more and more satisfied in Christ each week.

I wish that the desires of our hearts would be to simply learn and grow in God's word.   I wish we did not get so focused on making Christianity "cool", "hip", "relevant".   It just needs to be real.   The fact is a church won't save you, the sweet coffee shop (although I love them just as much as anyone else) in the corner won't bring His word to life, the lighting, the music, or even the people that fill up the pews (more like soft cushiony chairs now) won't fill you with joy, hope, grace, love and peace.   What will though is the power God can bring through those who just ask him to be used.   The kind of worship that brings the man in the Harley jacket to his knees, the message that leaves you with a deeper understanding of God and makes you want to run home and dive into His word, or as I've heard a beautiful woman put, a pastor who teaches the word in such a way that brings color to the black and white image you've had of Jesus for so long.   The real and powerful presence of God in a space where He is welcome and His opinion is the only one that matters.   That is what will draw us in.   That is what leaves my heart overflowing with His spirit.  

Radio Rescue Festival

Hey everyone I'm a part of Radio Rescue Festival, which is a concert that is going to be held out at Woodriver Cellars on July 16th from 4-8pm.  Here's the skinny....

Three local bands - Interstate, Myself and the Jake VP Band, and Grand Falconer - present Radio Rescue Festival - a full afternoon of music, food and a raffle to help children half a world away.  

This event supports the work of Invisible Children, which utilizes the talents of artists to bring awareness and action to end the use of child soldiers in the longest running war in Africa.  The war in northern Uganda has been called the most neglected humanitarian emergency in the world today. For the past 23 years, the LRA and the Government of Uganda have been waging a war that has left nearly two million innocent civilians caught in the middle. Hundreds of thousands of children have been forced to serve in the LRA as soldiers.

Money raised at the Radio Rescue Festival will help Invisible Children with its comprehensive work to help bring peace to east Africa and to give war affected children a chance to return home and begin a more normal life.

Tickets are just $5.00 and can be purchased at the door .  A raffle will also support the effort, and of course, all additional donations will go directly to Invisible Children.  

We are looking for donations for the raffle, so if this is something you think you or your company would be willing to donate to anything is helpful.   There's also lots of work to be done and some fun ways you could help out the day of, so if you'd like to volunteer please let me know.    And last but not least we'd love to have you join us and help make this concert full of energy and excitement about helping this great cause!  We are really hoping to get a great turn out for this because it should be a really great afternoon for families! Please let me know if you can help in any way briegray@gmail.com

Thanks so much!