A Time To Dance

To everything, turn, turn, turn

 

 There is a season, turn, turn, turn

 And a time for everything

Under heaven

 A time to build up

A time to tear down

A time to embrace

 

 A time to be born :)

A time to laugh!

 A time to dance!
(teach me how to dougie...)

 A time for peace

 A time to enjoy

 

A time to cherish

 A time to love

"What do workers gain from their toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live." Ecclesiastes 3:9-12

Congratulations Nikki! And thank you for the excuse to reconvene in San Diego one last time with these special friends. It was, indeed, a glorious time... a time to dance! 

March at Home

I don't know about you, but for me March is one of those months that tends to drag on a bit. Maybe it's because February always flies by, extra short, sprinkled with holidays, and jam packed with birthday fun and 3-day weekend trips. Or maybe I still associate March with being the last month of deployment to trudge through, which is never fast enough. Well, obviously time is going way too quickly out here because I seriously cannot believe it's April already. In addition to painting a mural with my sister, watching Nick crush the XTERRA, and starting a new foodie column, we did a bunch of other stuff this month that I haven't even mentioned. So here, for you, a photo dump of the random things we did here on Guam, home together for an entire month... something I don't think has happened since we moved here!

 The first weekend of March was 30-Hour Famine with some other youth groups from around the island. Here are me and some of my flock at a beach clean-up at Tarague Beach. At this point we hadn't eaten for almost 24 hours. And we slept on the floor. I am wondering at what age you are officially too old to be a youth director, because I am seriously starting to think it's 29.

 

 Nick and some of his coworkers put a team together for the golf scramble tournament (best ball) against the other commands from around base... and they won! Together they shot an impressive 63! I was so shocked when Nick showed up at home with a trophy. They even used some of his shots, including some clutch putts. They also did a nice job of coordinating their outfits...

I have been cooking like crazy. Other than Court being here, I can count on two fingers the number of times Nick and I have eaten at a restaurant this month. We hosted our dinner club one night and did a farmer's market theme, using as many locally grown or acquired foods as possible, like this yellowfin tuna from the co-op prepared Mediterranean style with herbs from our garden... yum! We are still eating paleo after 6 months. I will have to post some of my favorite recipes soon. They are delicious and easy whether you care to be paleo or not.

 

At said dinner party, Nick decided to get in a bonus workout with our friend's son Noah. 

 We hosted our rummage sale at church to raise money for our Manila trip. The sale was extremely successful again this year thanks to a big furniture donation by one of our many awesome families.

I competed in a QUAD. What's that, you ask? A QUAD is a triathalon with a fourth competition... Swimming, biking, running, and kayaking! It was a lot of fun and a fantastic workout.

Last week Nick took me to play at a new golf course I have never been to, Onward Talofofo Country Club on the east side of the island. There really is no comparison between this and the other rinky dink courses we usually play here. The fairways and greens were impressively manicured, and the cliffside views of the surrounding jungles were stunning. I could have spent all afternoon here just riding around in the cart staring at nature. The golf was pretty fun too, and unlike the other courses that have chickens, this course had some very friendly ducks.

 I've also been doing a lot of singing! Our music director Kevin and I have worked together to put together a number of really inspiring arrangements for Lent, adapted from the album by New York Hymns (free download!).

And as for things I don't have pictures of, this month some friends and I started a workout group on the playground in our neighborhood. Crossfit Lockwood meets Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings. We use the swing set, monkey bars, yoga mats, and steps to put various workouts together. Despite being really hard, the workouts are actually a lot of fun in a small group like this. There's great accountability, built-in cheerleaders, tons of workout variety, plus the bonus of getting stronger and faster along the way.

It's so strange how this island warps and transforms itself every so often. I am loving my weekly routine here and only wish it weren't making the weeks fly by so quickly. Won't be long (only a few days actually!) until this season at home comes to an end and another season of travel begins!

Keepin It Simple

So usually I sit down to write a post after I have a clump of pictures to share with you. This may be one of the reasons it has taken me so long (two weeks!) to sit down and write a post about Guam after being back. I say that because so far, the only pictures I have taken since being back here are the one above (explanation to come) and these:


Just some wild pigs that crossed the street in front of us on our way back from the grocery store on base. Man those things are ugly.

And a dog riding a carabao.

It has been on my Guam bucket list to get a picture of the above spectacle. Their owner, Mr. John, leads them on long walks up and down main streets all over the island. The Japanese tour buses stop and take pictures with him. So do island residents like me, it appears. He is definitely an icon here on Guam and I can't believe it's taken me this long to (a) see him (b) have my camera with me and (c) have time to stop. Looks like today the stars aligned. Extremely nice old man. He has two dogs with him... sometimes they both ride the carabao at the same time. While wearing sunglasses and hats. Sometimes a smaller dog rides on top of the bigger dog that rides the carabao. Pretty impressive little roadside circus if you ask me.

So other than taking pictures of Guam farm animals, I have jumped full speed back into island life. That means doing three crossfit workouts a week, cooking two to three paleo meals and snacks a day, starting a new Beth Moore Bible study on Daniel, organizing youth group events and fundraisers, and training for a triathalon, which is tomorrow. In addition, Nick and I have fit in a few rounds of golf, plus we are halfway through our Rescue Diver certification course. I have also started playing indoor volleyball with a bunch of really good people (I'm not one of them) who happen to live out here, and I've been singing with our worship team at church and helping out with the Confirmation class. 

It may sound to many of you like I am crazy busy, just as always. But actually, I am doing my very best to maintain a reasonable pace for all of this. During the fall, our Bible study group did a book called "Becoming a Woman of Simplicity," by Cynthia Heald. This study was exactly what I needed to learn when I needed to learn it. If there were ever a chance of obtaining life simplicity in this crazy world, it is here on this island, where you arrive with zero obligations from anyone to do anything. It's a slower pace to begin with and having a part-time job makes simplicity entirely doable, though even here, it still takes effort.

Our study focused on how and, more importantly, why we choose to spend our time doing what we do. I quickly came to realize that despite my previous assertions that "I like to be busy!" I was really just busy because I kept accepting invitations from people and packing my calendar, simply because that's how I always did things. Being busy even became a source of arrogance ("I'm sooo sorry I didn't call you back, I was just soooo busy with my awesome, impressive life that I didn't have time for you"). So now I try to avoid using being "so busy" as an excuse. Instead, I am choosing to do worthwhile things and choosing not to do things that don't help me meet my personal, physical, or spiritual goals. You could call it a new year's resolution, but it's really a paradigm shift in my life outlook, much like the paradigm shift in our eating habits.

Speaking of, after four months, we are still eating paleo. This topic emerged in many of our conversations during my USA journey, as most people think we are nuts for eating, well, nuts... while giving up pasta and rice and bread and candy. It was somewhat difficult to stick to the eating plan during the holidays with so many other people hosting us, but now that we are back in our own home and our own kitchen, it's been a whole lot easier. I am making more of an effort to shop for produce locally at the farmer's market. The local produce tastes pretty amazing compared to the stuff shipped in. Plus, we returned to find that it's mango season, so no more eating mangoes from Ecuador and Brazil! We are having fresh Wahoo from the Fish Co-Op with mango salsa for dinner... yummmm!

Oh, and I have a great new paleo recipe source... my mom! She's on board too and has discovered some great snacks and meals she's shared with us. We aren't trying to convert anyone, by any means, but the energy and trimming benefits of ditching the excess carbs are pretty notable. Looking good is one thing, but feeling good is what makes it easier and easier to turn down cupcakes and soda at social functions. 

So that's all from me. Thanks for joining me here, back on Peyt's Island. Time to go peel some mangoes :)

Attacking the Mending Pile

Soooo this post topic is a bit of a stretch for something that poses as a travel blog. I am about to tell you about my awesome evening last night attacking my two-year built-up mending pile. Yes, mending. At this point I offer you every liberty to surf right along onto your next internet errand. Because I am about to attempt my first fashion-related blog post. You have been warned. 

And on some levels this post is highly relevant to my time on Guam. After all, one of the things I wanted to do here was sew, which I've succeeded at. One of my goals after returning from the trip to Manila was to organize all of my craft supplies and fabrics into one place. After six hours of organizing, sorting, folding and compiling last week, I now have a fabulous sewing closet! And it rivals the golf closet for favorite storage space in our house. (And I am fully aware that last line means we sure are lucky to have such a great house here).

Doesn't look so bad, right? Just wait...

Compiling everything sewing related meant I could no longer ignore the heap of clothes that had accumulated over literally years in the mending pile. Most of these items were given to me as gifts and just didn't fit right, but I liked them enough to hang onto them. Some of them were favorites that broke and as a grandchild of Great Depression survivors, I just can't bear to throw it out and buy a new one. But for one reason or another they landed in the mending pile where I swore I would get to them one day when I had free time.  For some reason Sunday at 8p.m. (when I should have been making myself dinner), I found that day had arrived.

Enter Tragic Frock #1. This sweater from Anthropologie was a Christmas gift from my mom LAST year when we were living in San Diego. I tried it on and immediately thought Mom was trying to tell me something. I look like completely prego! The button-down sweater bunches at the neck and has a tie that creates a clown ruffle collar. Plus it has massive pockets that hit at the hips, creating a baby bump where there most certainly is not one. With any hope this will be the worst picture of me ever posted on the Internet (aside from the subsequent ones I am carelessly about to share).

 I really didn't know if there was hope for this one when I started, but figured I'd give it a shot. I started by trying to remove the maternity-ness from it by slashing out the waste-magnifying pockets. Snip snip...

 Then slashing out the baby belly sweatband cuff on the bottom. Side note: It's really hard to take pictures of yourself cutting something. Slice slice...

And I live near the Equator, so if I have any hope of wearing this thing in the next year, these long sleeves have got to go. Chop chop...

 At this point, I tried on the shirt and played around with it in a zillion different ways. Finally, I realized I could unruffle the clown collar and wrap one of the neck ties through the hole where the pockets had been... and suddenly I realized I was working with a future wrap shirt... hope at last! Now to clean it up.

Buttons have got to go

Sew up those pocket holes

Pin off the areas to trim

I played around with the sleeve length a bit, and just like that, a wearable wrap shirt that I actually really love. At this point, I finally cut the tags off the shirt (surely returning it would have been much easier... but not nearly as rewarding.)

 

The back came out pretty cute too... neck tie through the pocket hole. Who'd of thought?

 Enter tragedy #2. Another Anthropologie shirt that I really loved the fabric for, or I would have ditched it much earlier. This one was a birthday present from my mother-in-law (which apparently my mom helped pick out) and it ALSO makes me look prego. What's the deal, Moms?? These little hints aren't getting you any closer.

So here we have another tragic shirt that I have put on a zillion times to make it work, tried belting it, adding ties, etc. To no avail. It's completely unwearable. Of course I could give it away... or keep dragging it along with me to various spots on the globe until I really am preggers (and FYI, Moms, every maternity-like shirt I get as a gift adds a YEAR to that prospective date). But since I liked the fabric so much, it was also worth a shot.

And again, what's up with the belly-button level pockets? Am I supposed to put my cell phone in there or something? 'Do you know where I can store a pea?' 'Yes, I have some spaces available.' (~Mitch Hedberg)

After assessing my altering options, I realized my best place of attack was along the straight back seam. So my first step was pinning where I wanted to bring it in. Sadly, this is one of the hardest pictures I have tried to take for this blog. You have no idea. And looking at it now I realize it wasn't even worth the effort.

 

After pinning and stitching the new back seam, it's time to snip snip once again.

And voila! Tragedy #2 is now going to be a great edition to my wardrobe for my upcoming girls trip to Korea. Instead of going in the trash. That is something to celebrate, people!

P.S. Taking timer pictures of yourself is super awkward

New seam does not bunch. Or suggest babies are coming. Sweet.

Okay, so if you've read this far, hopefully you don't think this post was as much of a stretch as I did. Or you just couldn't turn your eyes from the train wreck. With any luck I will go hiking or diving or do something adventurous soon to get this post off my home page. But I guess despite all my hesitations, there's a part of me that will always love sewing, even mundane stuff like mending. Creating something out of nothing. Turning useless into useful. Triumph from tragedy. Okay, so that's also a stretch, but hey, you can't argue that I totally conquered Tragic Frock #1.

Before - ewwwww!

After!

In addition, I also walked away from my mending session with a new dress, a new workout shirt, and a new workout bag. So basically I went shopping in my own house :)

Our “Happy Gilmore” Home

Hard to believe, but we've officially been in Guam for one month now! And one month in, I’ve had my first request for a writing topic, which is great for two reasons. First, it means at least one person out there is actually reading this (shout out to Kristen in San Diego!). And second, the request was for pictures of our new home, which makes my life easy since I’ve been spending a lot more time at home now that Nick is working and we only have one car, er, truck.
 

So as I may have mentioned previously, I didn't have the best first impression of our house here. In fact, I had a two-year-old-style meltdown the first time we saw it (luckily, the only meltdown of our first month here). But now that we're all moved in and have memorized where we put everything, I actually really love it. For starters, there are eight closets inside and two outdoor storage units. The closet at the front door where coats usually go (really, Guam?) is entirely dedicated to our golf stuff. Combine that with the fact that we live on Gilmore Avenue and aren't afraid to practice chipping in the front yard, and that's where we get our loving nickname, the "Happy Gilmore" house.

Continue through the entryway, and welcome to our living room, the only room we chose to paint (those of you who know Nick know he hates painting more than any other type of Home Depot-type project, so this was a real victory on my part). Nick came up with the genius idea to create a concert space for my keyboard (though when my disharmony fills the whole house, he may be rethinking just how genius this is).

Behind the piano is our sitting area, featuring our new rug, new coffee & end tables, and same comfy couches that are just as easy to snooze on here as they were in Coronado. I can't wait to watch Tuesday Morning Football in this cozy space.

One of my favorite areas, and the place where I update Peyt's Island from, is the dining space. On the left wall, we have a shrine to San Diego, complete with a panorama of the bay, a sailboat, a picture of our sailboat, and some of our favorite mementos from our last home, including the grace book that many of you have been forced to read out of before diving into steaks. Yes, the tradition continues!

Moving into the kitchen, you'll immediately notice the beautiful marble countertops... Okay, so I'm pretty sure they stopped designing kitchens with these materials the year I was born. But while the design choices leave much to be desired in terms of aesthetics, the cabinets hold all of my kitchen gadgets and dinnerware while the countertops and layout make for a very functional food prep space. All this to say, I really love cooking in this kitchen.

 

And here's one of the reasons I really love it... We used our second cable box for Nick's old computer monitor from the Academy, and voila! I get to watch Sportscenter, or HGTV, or the Food Network while I make meals! More pure genius from my favorite husband.

Attached to the kitchen is a beautiful area I like to call "our first washer/dryer that does not require quarters or stepping foot outside the house!" Those of you who saw our last place may notice the old desk from the office (which made a horrible work space), recycled into a microwave stand, which fits perfectly (again, Nick's idea).

Moving on, there are three hallway closets, one of which is entirely dedicated to Nick's tools, gadgets, and other man gizmos I don't know the names of.

There's a guest bathroom that's not worth posting a picture of, followed by a guest bedroom that is currently empty.

We are going to wait until someone actually buys a plane ticket before we invest in creating the Happy Gilmore Bed & Breakfast. Until then, it's a great space to store things that don't fit anywhere else.

Enter the master suite, with the "sweet" part being that I get this entire room-length closet all to myself :)

Last but not least, we have the office/Nick's closet/sewing room, featuring our new bookcase, desk & filing cabinet that we put together once we got out here.

It's nice having space for everything, and we realize we are truly blessed to have this much space for just the two of us, especially with such a great location near Nick's work and the water. Yay navy housing :)

Nick had his first full week of work last week and between working out, hanging out, and keeping in touch with friends & family back home, the time really flew by. In the evenings after work and over this past weekend, we were able to fit in fun things like diving, snorkeling, golf, cave exploring, and lobster-less lobster hunting. More on that to come. Until then, thank you for visiting our home! Let us know if and when you are actually visiting, and we'll get moving on that guest room.