Christmas Letter 2012

Well, hopefully for those of you in the US of A, you already received our Christmas card/letter!  For all our friends overseas, we're sure you won't quite get it before Christmas (*ahem* that may or may not be because we still have them... :P), so here's our Christmas end-of-the-year update!

Merry Christmas!

         We have been married almost two years now - we can hardly believe it!  Time flies and we can honestly say we enjoy every minute and are so thankful for life together!  (Our favorite night of the week is date night! J)

Apply your heart to instruction and your ear to words of knowledge. - Proverbs 23:12 ESV

         This year has been a time of seeking for us.  Understanding how to prioritize and balance ministry, work and family isn’t an easy thing to do.  Marriage requires a lot of work, but the rewards of a great relationship far outweigh the time and effort spent!  Prioritizing a set amount of time each day to be spent in prayer (together as a couple) has been a great new habit.  Reading has been a big part of 2012, and thanks to EntreLeadership, we developed personal mission statements that helped to push us to a more purpose driven life.  Another book that we learned a lot from was Boundaries, about relating with people and how to say yes to the truly important things.  We love to ask questions and listen to the advice of Godly role models we would like to emulate.  Our ‘Christmas wish’ this year, and every year, is that we are doing what God wants us to with our lives, our time and our careers.

     Naomi   became a certified emergency medical First Responder and though our rural area does not get many calls, she appreciates the first aid knowledge gained and sense of responsibility, and loves serving her community.  She also learned how to drive a manual car. J  After an additional summer job as cashier at Walmart, Naomi switched from that and serving pizzas, to investing in children’s lives at Walnut Grove Elementary school!   She is a paraprofessional (teacher’s assistant) in preschool, working with 30 three, four and five year olds every day!

         We love living close to Ben’s family and often are a part of the action and excitement that’s happening over on their hobby farm (including a new baby sister, Alaina Blessing)!  Towards the beginning of the year, Ben had time to work on the house we hope to someday live in and buy, but for now we are still across the road in Purves’ rental.  We are so blessed to have such wonderful neighbors!  We became members of Tracy Alliance Church and also teach Sunday school for 1^st-6^th grade.  The past few months Naomi headed up Operation Christmas Child at our church, and the grand finale was taking a group to the Minneapolis processing center where we shipped the boxes off to bless children in Uganda!  We are saving up $$ and planning a big trip to visit Naomi’s family in China, Lord willing sometime in 2013!

     Ben  continues to work for Sahlstrom’s Heating and in September became a Journeyman plumber.  He not only passed the difficult test, he did so with such a high score the proctor personally called him to congratulate him!  Being a Journeyman is one year away from his Master Plumber license. Those of you who knew the big-spender Ben would hardly recognize the wise, frugal saver he is now!  Listening to The Dave Ramsey Show has sparked a growing interest in finance.  We are seeking God for life direction and long-term career plans for Ben and our family in the future.

         One of our biggest highlights this year was learning a lot of practical things about wise money management according to the Bible through Dave Ramsey’s 9-week course, Financial Peace University!  Since the class wasn’t offered in our area, we became class coordinators so we could host it.  The first time we went through it as a small group with several other young couples, and then this fall hosted it at our church with 40+ people from the church and community attending! God has given us a desire to help people in this area of life, and we are passionate about continuing to live as an example and offering hope to others!

May the Joy  and Peace  brought through Christ’s coming fill you with Hope  for the New Year!

Ben & Naomi

Playing with Rocks and Dirt

You know that song, Big House, by Audio Adrenaline?  It has new lyrics now.

Come and go with me / To the Engen's field
Come and go with me / To the Eng-ens field!


It's a big, big field / With lots and lots of rocks 
A big, big wagon / And lots and lots of stalks
A big, big quad / That we can all ride on...


[courtesy of Charisma and Tricia - I guess 9 hours was a long time on the 4-wheeler together!]

Look at that expanse of sky!

So, here's the educational bit about rock picking in the country (yup!  another post about life in the country!):
Every year, in late spring, comes rock picking season.  Basically the only manual part of crop farming (that I know of) remaining in America!  Each year when the farmers till the fields, rocks surface.  Don't ask me where they come from; I just know that no matter how many you hauled out before, the next year more appear!  So farmers hire teams of people to go through the fields, usually with a tractor or 4-wheeler (ATV) pulling a wagon, and pick up the rocks so that they don't damage the expensive equipment during harvest...

The fields we had to do weren't too bad.  That means, there weren't SO many rocks.  We could even ride the 4-wheeler some (one picker on each side and one driving and we would trade off) jumping off every time we saw a rock.  We had to spot, pick up or dig out anything the size of a fist or bigger.  Most are about half the size of a soccer ball with the occasional big one that requires a shovel and we need two people to lift it!  Bailing out while it's still moving reminds me of lifeboat MOB drills where sometimes I would get to be the victim and (with the officer's permission beforehand) I would just randomly ditch the vessel.  It's exhilarating to bail and the forward motion of the quad sort of 'launches' you like jumping off a diving board give you that extra spring.  And then of course when you hit the dirt, it's like after you've bounced on a trampoline and then jump off onto ungiving ground.  I half felt like trying that thing they're always doing in movies, how they jump out of a moving vehicle and roll out of it... but I was too scared (and it probably wouldn't have been smart)!  No worries Mom!  We weren't going all that fast, just 3-10mph!  We could see about 10-15 rows over on each side; so that is how wide a swath we could make.  Up and down, up and down the rows... for 300 acres!



I quickly caught on to the things that can make rock picking DELUXE rock picking!  Gloves definitely help save the skin on your fingers, though keep in mind it will add to your unique 'field tan' with wrist lines!  Sunglasses are nice for the sun and especially helpful in keeping the dirt out of your eyes (it's windy!).  Once again, they will add raccoon eyes to your tan.  Bringing an iPod or similar device to listen to upbeat music adds to the experience; drawback:  it does hamper conversations with coworkers.  Bring LOTS of food!!!  Sunscreen, and long pants and a sweatshirt will get you through any kind of weather, from cool mornings to rainy to the blazing sun!  Water is a necessity and is the only item - besides bringing yourself - on the basic list!  


"How do you like rock picking?"  People ask me, seeming to expect that I would say it's not all it's cracked up to be or something like that.  Actually, I quite enjoyed myself, even though it is a bit monotonous.  You get to work in a team, work outside, it's seasonal (I enjoy monotonous work short-term), and it makes decent money (especially a good way for kids to earn)!  It's not particularly 'skilled' labor, so you have time to think or listen to sermons/podcasts... in fact, I had so many hours to think I wrote this blog post five times over in my head! :)

Annika and her heart-shaped rock! <3

P.S.  One of the affects of rock picking was that I seemed to have developed ROCD - Rock Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - you know, when I see a rock half-buried anywhere I have a sudden urge to dig it up and throw it far away!

P.P.S.  You know how when you've been to the (ocean) beach the whole day and played in the waves and when you lay down at night drifting off to sleep you still feel the waves crashing over you?  After rock picking I laid in bed and as I was falling asleep my eyes seemed to be sailing over fields and fields never ending and I saw rock after rock, oh so many round humps just barely showing on the ground that I needed to get out!  Blah! :P

City Girl turned Country

For all my readers around the world who thought life in China and life on the ship to be so exciting... here's proof that I can make ANYTHING exciting!  You will now be reading about cleaning out the cow barn...  :D

It was deep, 1.5 feet approximately.  I looked at that gooey mess and wondered how it would be possible to not get stuck in it!  

I was attempting to muck out the barn.  (A phrase that Ben didn't even know!  One up for the city girl! :))  I only recently learned to drive the little skid loader and I figured this would be a great project to hopefully get my hands/feet/levers/foot pedals coordination down!

  

No worries!  Ben assured me that if I got stuck, all I had to do was use the bucket/tines to push my front end up and then shove the skid backwards and just like that I would be unstuck!  He explained the general rules and we sent the big Holstein ol' Bessies outside (this was the open doorway I was piling all the you-can-imagine-what-was-on-the-floor-of-the-barn stuff right outside - so unfortunately there wasn't anything except the fear of the skid that was keeping the cows outside).

If you've ever been in a skid loader before you'll know how a steep little hill makes it feel like you're going to tip over.  (And I had to drive up it and through to the other end of the barn where I was dumping everything.)  The thought that came into my mind which was somewhat a consolation was, This deep in manure... it'll be a soft landing!  Well I made it up the first bit and then had to go back and forth dumping bits of hay-and-dry-manure-clumps into my tracks to keep the tires from spinning out since I was having a hard time making forward progress.  Finally I made it almost through the worst of it when I got STUCK - in the middle of the barn.  No worries, right?  I tried every technique I could think of and even Ben's no-fail method was to no avail.  Finally, frustration and determination found me climbing over the top of the skid loader trying to figure out a way to get out without getting my boots too filthy (forget that) and without being attacked by the roosters.

Oh yes, the roosters.  

There is something you must know about the Sahlstrom Family Farm.  There are currently these roosters.  Not just any roosters, these are MEAN cocks with a sickly crow.  Scrawny as, they live to fight like Roman gladiators; the worst ones pecked half-featherless - ugh!  I am not sure how they are still alive actually, because no one likes them, but they are too tough to eat and too entertaining to get rid of!  Being chased by one of them is a nightmare for a little kid - Simeon once clambered up on top of the grill and was banging on the window in a desperate attempt to evade one (as the crazed thing jumped and squawked around his hanging feet).  In my mind making little kids scared = it should not be around.  I even mentioned I should walk out there with an ax and in the event of an attack I would swing it round and round yelling, "Off with his head!"  Johann, the 2-year-old, must have heard this (whoops!) because today at lunch he was chopping imaginary rooster heads as he declared, "I not scared!  I have big sword and I KILL THEM!!!"  The worst part about these roosters is they go about their own business like they didn't even notice you and wait to attack until you have turned your back!  The instant you're not looking, they lunge at you!

Well I made it out past the roosters (whew!) to my phone to call Ben and my wonderful husband eventually got the skid unstuck all the while shaking his head because I would be the one to be able to get it stuck on my first time, in the first 20 minutes no less!  I got some area cleared uneventfully.  

And then the cows.

I drank a glass of milk right before I started so I would remember why I was doing this.  Unfortunately,   even my huge love for milk did not lend me very much patience when those lumbering beasts decided it was time to come back in.  Through the huge pile of manure that I was piling right outside the door.  Into the barn and slipping and sliding around on the slick, now mostly-cleared, cement floor.  I don't know if it was too hot outside or if it was the flies or if they just wanted to be difficult, but I wasn't intimidating enough - hardly.  Just enough so that they ran around in circles on the slippery barn floor like they were possessed and I was pretty sure one of them was going to fall and break a leg.

It wasn't so much that I minded the extra work and time of shutting off the skid loader and getting out to chase down the cows, as much as it was that I did not, for any reason, want to leave my protective metal cage, making myself vulnerable to those horrid fowl.

So there I was, little me, in the middle of the barn, standing with pitch fork in hand as my only defense between two ornery-looking cows (who did NOT want to go outside) about to barrel me over to get to the grain, and the angry roosters threatening me with the one-eyed look and just daring me to try to get past them out my only exit on the other side!  The cows were much bigger, but honestly, I was more scared of the roosters... until the cow started moving around her hind quarters to face me and I remembered that she kicks!  In a split second I had already envisioned myself getting hoofed in the stomach and the wind knocked out of me, laying flat on my back in six inches of manure, unable to move or call for help or in any way fend off the roosters descending like vultures to peck away at my almost dead carcass.  Maybe I poked her a little harder with the pitch fork after that thought and magically, the cows went out and the roosters decided to not forge their attack.

Five hours later, the barn was clean.  I was happy ...to be alive!

Amelia's Birthday

BEFORE

The upper right hand corner of the "before" picture (above) is what we sawed down, cleared out and mowed...  

...to make a CAMPFIRE!  Well, that was the incentive.  Naomi has conniving ways of getting child labor to help her clear the jungle.  Um, no, I think that was a bad sentence!  Actually, I was babysitting away from the house for my mother-in-law who was hosting sophisticated dignified ladies such as those attending the homeopathic class.  It just happened to be on Amelia's birthday!  So we went to Ben and Naomi's house.  Because Naomi had some other work that needed to be done... and it's always more fun to work all together, right?!  And a few toddler hands in the mix help get more done, riiiiiiight? :P  

Well we hacked and yanked and grunted and moved fallen tree-logs (with very impressive girl power!), and eventually the job was done!  Then we carried stones and Ben helped dig the pit for our new campfire!  We had many lemonade breaks and made it a "party" by having a treasure hunt all over our property with the kids finding in the end a special gift for Amelia and the makings for s'mores for everyone!  At one point Simeon spied a helicopter not far down the road - it is unusual to have helicopters around here except for medical emergencies airlifted out - so I ran and grabbed my [emergency radio] pager and we loaded up and headed out to investigate!  Soon we saw it was a modern flying sprayer (crop duster) for the fields so we all jumped out and stood in the open prairie space on the gravel roads, surrounded by fields all around and an interesting helicopter above!  It kept coming around and then landing on it's truck to re-fill it's tanks with whatever chemical it was spraying.    EDUCATIONAL MOMENT!!!  Naomi was thinking!  Lol, I don't care if school is done, if kids are with Naomi we are still going to learn, even if it means chasing helicopters!  The cool thing was, we waved to the man in the bubble in the little funny-looking specially-designed helicopter and he buzzed us - lower than the power lines!  It was so exciting and special for Amelia's birthday!  And he did it TWICE!  So, to whoever that was, thank you; you made our day!!!  (Unfortunately my phone was being uncooperative and not working at the time of the helicopter so sorry, no pics of my own.)      

The Work Crew  er... birthday party go-ers!

The girls!  Amelia (turning 12) is in orange.

P.S.

As a random ending to this post, Mom texted us just as we were eating the last of our s'mores and said Pastor was coming to pick up the 15-passenger van (which we were, of course, using)... in HALF AN HOUR!  And it really needed to be cleaned out!  Yikes!  So we loaded up, went back home, got the shop vac and emptied that bus out!  A lot of people must have been missing a lot of things, because in addition to the normal junk of gum wrappers, tissues, and other trash, we found 1 guitar, 13 shoes, 6 winter coats, and a host of matchbox cars, books water bottles and the like!  Welcome to life in a big family! :D

[this day happened on May 16, 2012]

My Wall

Ben helped me screw all the screws (since the drill and I don't really get along) and I measured and cut all the boards - it was a team effort!  I enjoyed this small project that could be tackled in a day and had clear start and completion points!

Now we have a little coat & shoe nook!

Later...

This evening (May 9) Tracy Fire Department came out to Bob & Barb's (where we're living now) to burn the prairie.  SUPER interesting to watch!

 It was a very controlled fire and there was not much wind, but you can see how in Mary and Laura Ingalls day a prairie fire would have been so scary and monstrous with the wind blowing it in an uncontrolled path of destruction!  The firemen made sure to have lots of water on hand though! :)

Home Alone 2

Dad and Mom are gone to Hawaii to visit sister Annika, so we have 10 days home alone!  Not alone per se, with six kids, two big sisters, a Ben and Naomi, Grandma and Aunt B!  This is just the right conditions for...

...PARTY TIME!!!!

actually NOT.  

The youth thought they were coming over for TrueU (Bible study), but had an April Fool's surprise instead - scrubbing floors!  Haha, well, we didn't make them work TOO hard and Ben was the hardest worker of all! ;)

Reuben and Simeon cleaned the boy's room

First asparagus of the year!

BEFORE

AFTER

Tracy's newest hobo  No, I mean, he is being well cared for, well fed and well clothed... ok, maybe not the last one?  Honest!  He's doing great! :D

and the littlest dinner-bell-ringer!

10 Reasons I love Warm Weather

Top 10 list of why I love warm* weather:

*'Warm' being defined as temperatures at or above 65 degrees F and not exceeding 80 degrees F, with no more than 60% humidity, and a breeze 



1.  Open up the windows and let that lovely breeze in!!!


2.  It is the perfect sleeping weather with the windows open (see reason above)!  Just ask my hubby; I can sleep a LONG time in these good conditions!


3.  It is not freezing when you get out of bed.


4.  The toilet seat is not cold.


5.  Sunshine is a great anti-depressant and helps me be in a great mood!  If it rains, as in more tropical parts of the world, it is warm enough to splash in the puddles and run in the soaking rain!  See?  Warm weather is always happy!  :D


6.  There are almost exactly 12 hours of daylight, which is perfect in my book!


7.  The dishwater stays hot for longer.  (Which reminds me, I should get back to that soon! ;))


8.  With short sleeves and less layers than in winter, you feel so light and free!  And if you still want or have to wear long pants, it is not unbearably uncomfortable.


9.  It is warm enough to wear my favorite footwear - barefoot or flip-flops, the closest you can get to natural!


10.  The outdoors just CALLS in this temperature weather!  The birds are back and are singing (and I'm pretty sure all the other kinds of animals are "twitter-pated" :P)  I could just LIVE outdoors!


...but unfortunately I can't.  Dishes, laundry, laying plywood pre-flooring, and a host of other things all require me to be inside.  And I better get back to it now!  See #7 for what I was doing, before this warm weather made my thoughts run faster and the words flow better and I just HAD to come write!  Such a glorious day begs to be appreciated by those enjoying it!

P.S.  For St. Patrick's Day, I will have you know that our grass along our ditches is the greenest around!

Millionaire

If I could make money from my ideas, I would be a millionaire.  It would work if I could just find someone who needs them!  Or, as my loving and supportive husband says, if I someday had a good enough idea!

I'm always brainstorming, always the entrepreneur, trying to advance up, invent something, change the world!  Ok, that last one went a little far (little bit TOO optimistic there, Naomi!), so moving on... to my next idea!  

It's not even about the money, though unfortunately most of my ideas require some!  I have a passion for children, for learning, for teaching, for seeing wives and mothers live out their Godly calling.  I just need to wrap it all up in a self-supporting (doesn't necessarily have to make money, just has to support itself) practical lifestyle that I could start NOW!  Patience, as is probably typical (though still not justified), is not a top trait of an entrepreneur.   

In the second-half of the chapter we read from Dave Ramsey's book EntreLeadership, he introduces the word "Mompreneur" (moms who are entrepreneurs, working from home or a variety of other ideas and the like) which is my coolest new word of the day and set me on fire all over again!

Poor Ben, he is so patient with me as I jump from one inspiration to the next!  It is a roller-coaster of an adventure - the ride of a lifetime! (who wouldn't want to come along, anyway?!) - that starts with one idea that leads to the next to the next to the next... "What about the house!!!?????"  he cries, as we go flying off.  (Our long-term taking-a-long-time-project that needs to be completed.)

"Don't worry, it'll still be sitting here when we come back around someday!"  (Envision something like Santa's sleigh flying back to the house and swooping round it.  Also, a play on words that someday I'll come down from the clouds back to my senses and do something practical!) 

Currently I work at Pizza Ranch, which is a great place to start!  I really do like working there, so I'm aiming to work my way up to manager.  I just found out that MN is one of five states left that still hold the minimum wage at $7.25 for waitresses PLUS tips!  We could save a lot more money faster if I worked at a full-service restaurant such as Perkins.  So maybe I could get an evening job there.  After working at the front counter at Pizza Ranch for the lunch hour.  Or the Bistro, a super fancy restaurant in the downtown.  At up to $40 a plate, probably the people frequenting there would tip even better for exceptional service!  It would be top-notch of course, because when I decide to do something, I am going to do it WELL!  Coinciding with whatever food service job I may have, I could take a short course and test to become a first responder serving the small town of Tracy (one of the ideas of this week).  With just a little more training (about 3 months) I could be certified as a basic EMT.  I loved the drills on the ship, having responsibility and being prepared for emergencies, (and have dreamed of being a first responder to worldwide disasters) so this would be right up my alley!  Just today we took the class and did some shooting to get our Permit to Carry...  and now I have learned one more thing!  Ever learning, ever onward.  Which reminds me that I would like to be a teacher.  To home school our kids, and if I studied for and took the Pre-Professionals Skills Test (PPST, now called Praxis I, I think?), I could homeschool other people's kids.  My dream would be to run a one-room schoolhouse!  Upon considering that idea more, it might be better to adjust it slightly, to be a sort of on-call person who could invest in helping mothers teach their own children.  I could be knowledgeable about a lot of curriculums, do lots of research, be a great encouragement, write a blog for these moms and tonight I started writing a book to that effect!  Be prepared, long-time home school moms!  Some survey questions might be coming your way soon!  These latest ideas are after we've narrowed down my vision and goals through writing a life mission statement.  Which helped me say "no" to several job offers I've received lately:  Three times I've been asked/told I should be a car salesperson, offered a $30,000/yr + full benefits full-time job with Schwans as a Route Sales Representative Trainee, and the latest, a Mary Kay professional beauty consultant.  This was after wondering about being a photographer and initially getting a job at PictureMe!  I almost forgot the things I'm working on right now, that would be Medical Transcription courses, learning about and implementing interior design for our house, and teaching Sunday school.  Of course, my life dream to be a wife and a mom haven't changed; I figure I'll just do more things along the way!    

Whew!  Did that tire anyone else out?  And these are just some of my ideas from the last, oh, four months or so.  I come up with an average of about three new ideas for my life per week, and a new revelation this week has proved that when I drink coffee (caffeine) it can jump to as many as 3 per DAY!!!  The Energizer bunny on steroids - an understatement.

"Hang on, Benjamin!  We're in for the ride of our life!!!"  You are the most understanding fun man I could ever spend it with! <3

And from today...

      

On the Pizza Ranch blog!

It is really special to be featured on PizzaRanchServes' blog today!  You can read it HERE. :)

P.S.  Don't forget to come visit me at work!  Marshall, MN between Walmart and Menards~

Pizza Ranch

The continuation of my crazy job-story, Part 2.

Of how I came to work at Pizza Ranch instead of PictureMe... it still starts with a "P"!

(Didn't that sound like a Winnie the Pooh title?)

          I woke up on this dreaded Friday morning and dressed again in classy black and white.  It was only my second day at work - and I hated my job.  (I am sorry, kids who might be reading this - that is a very strong word... I should say greatly disliked my new job.)

          I had five minutes before I needed to leave out the door and I needed something that would make me feel a little more cheerful.  So I decided to look up Pizza Ranch's website!  At the bottom they had a button that said "PizzaRanchServes", I clicked it and it was a link to their blog.  This is what I saw:

Go to HERE to read it

A devotional???  A link on the left that says 'Prayer' and they will pray for your prayer requests?  I clicked on the 'About' and it listed their Vision and Mission.  The Vision?  "To glorify God by positively impacting the world we live in."  Glorify God!?  How cool!  And what on earth...???

          But it was time to go, and face the dreaded job and tell them I'm sorry, it's just not me, and I need to do what's best for me - it is not worth the physical and emotional stress/damage except maybe for a much higher pay wage and for sure confirming time off at Christmas.  Both were impossible to grant. Legally they must give the new employee the choice after two days of video training to take the job or not.  I said I'm sorry, but no, I cannot stay; I have no peace about it.

          I wasn't sure why God had it be this way.  I had been excited for working here, I worked hard to get accepted and I tried my best to like it even when negative aspects came to light.  I thought it had been God leading up to this point!  So why was I here and it didn't work out?  Maybe God was trying to show me that the working world is not all it's cracked up to be and I should be content to be at home.  That sounded great to me - anything besides working at a job!  If this is what jobs are like, I was scared away from wanting any job.  For now, I was jobless and FREE, and couldn't have been happier!           

          I called Ben when I stepped out of Wal-mart, "Ben!  I DON'T HAVE A JOB!!!!  And I'M SO HAPPY TO NOT HAVE A JOB!!!!!!"

           

          An hour later I texted Ben:  "I'm HIRED at Pizza Ranch!  Doing training the rest of the day!"  What happened between then and then, you say.  That morning - by faith - I had brought along my cowboy boots, work appraisals and resume from the ship, and the checkbook (in case of direct deposit).  I was thinking that if the job didn't work out, I could at least hope to get called for an interview for Pizza Ranch that day so that I wouldn't have to make another trip to town.  Well after I didn't have a job anymore, I decided to go over to Pizza Ranch to follow-up on my application and amend the date I was available to start work.  Instead of January, it was now!  Anytime!  I am here!

          I went in and once again, many happy people in a very busy/fun atmosphere!  They found a manager who happened to have a little time open so they could interview me.  First, they had to find my application in the stack... they hadn't even looked at it yet.  Eventually the guy dug it out and we sat at a brand new table for an interview.  Basically they wanted someone cheerful with a positive attitude and a smile, who could work in a team and also interact with people (customers) well and could handle it being very busy/hectic.  I said THAT'S ME!  Wow, what a perfect fit!  My favorite foods?  Spaghetti, PIZZA, and lasagna (no correlation there, is there?!).  And I love a western theme (see the boots?)  They saw enough from my work appraisal on Deck and my initiative trying to get this job even though I was a latecomer and my smile, that before I had time to even talk to Ben about working here, I was hired!

          But there was no time to lose!  The rest of the new crew who had been hired over the past two months all had started work with orientation on Wednesday and training on Thursday.  Now, it was Friday.  The miracle about it was, all the training that had been given on Thursday, was repeated Friday.  Today.  NOW!  They ushered me quickly into the first session of the day, and on I went on this roller-coaster of a whirlwind from training to training and in between I would run back, fill out more paper work, and back to class!  Then I would dash out, they threw a uniform at me, I changed and back into training session I went!  The next in between time, I was registered into the system and there I was, clocked-in for my first day at my second job in two days!

          There was only one little breather of a break between two of the sessions, after everything had been sorted out paperwork-wise, so I had a little time.  It was late afternoon and I hadn't had any lunch yet so I drove across town to grab a bite, gas-up and had just enough time to stop at Goodwill.  My dressy clothes weren't quite right for a restaurant!  By now I was partly transformed; a Pizza Ranch visor, name tag and T-shirt that was too big for me (they didn't have any more smalls), along with my dress slacks and white cowboy boots!  I had 5 minutes to find the perfect pair of jeans at Goodwill.  I ran in, grabbed two off the rack, tried them on, one pair fit and I just left those on and went up to the counter and said, "I'd like to buy these jeans that I'm wearing!  I'm in a time crunch and it's part of my uniform and I just left them on!"  Poor lady, she must have been confused.

          Back I went to the brand new restaurant, one article of clothing at a time getting the right dress code on.  At least I didn't stand out so badly now from the rest of the crew!  All that was different now was I was still wearing white cowboy boots, which unfortunately I can't wear for work because I have to have slip-resistant shoes.

          By Friday night I was caught up to everyone else who had been working on applying for the last two months.  It was definitely a God-thing to walk in and walk out with a job!

          I feel so privileged to get to work in a brand new restaurant that still smells like wood and fresh paint, to be part of the team that gets to set high standards in this not-even-open-yet franchise branch, and to work in a place where God is hung on our walls right in the front door where you come in, big and bold in our vision statement.  God is good.  I get to sing along to my favorite Christian artists (Casting Crowns) as I clean the buffet glass because we play either country or Christian radio.  I work in a team, and I am getting to know some of the other girls.  I work in an atmosphere where we smile and build each other up.  I work in a family-friendly restaurant (that doesn't serve alcohol) where I'll be able to interact with lots of kids.  I get to serve people and make them happy!  I get to bring out their favorite kind of pizza!

          We have a higher calling than just making pizza and chicken.  As we learned when we watched a video made by Chic-fil-A - on a computer that was on a chair which was stacked on top of a table... great makeshift movie theatre there! - it's about serving, about making a difference in our communities.  As our mission statement says, Pizza Ranch is a ministry opportunity to give our guests our very best - Legendary service!  And I get to work in such a place as this.  God is good!

We open on Monday.  

I get to be the first one to welcome the guests to Pizza Ranch!  

My one-day job

Could I spend six and a half weeks applying for a job and finally get it, just so that my first day of work brings me 'in town' the exact day necessary to apply for the job I wanted in the first place... 

to walk in in cowboy boots the next day and get accepted at my dream job???

God works in mysterious ways!

This is the story of my one-day job.

          So I applied to PictureMe!, a little photo place at the Wal-mart in our nearest city, Marshall.  It was right after the miscarriage, and I felt like I needed something new to keep me busy and some outlet of getting out of the house and seeing people!  What could be better than taking pictures of darling little angels, getting to work with kids (which I love) and learning more about photography?  Excitedly, I left for my first day of work, dressed in professional black and white!

          Soon I learned, however, that most of the kids coming to get their pictures taken have never been spanked in their life, and all their poor exasperated mother can (will) do is scream empty threats... There's not much to the photography due to it all being set up and automated already; mostly it's just about sales.  I was told it was ok to lie to customers... anything to sell that super-expensive premium package!  I noticed a few other things about the work environment - that I would be working alone once fully trained and you don't actually see that many people; just stand in the shop alone and make many phone (sales) calls. :P  Training would take about 4 weeks, with two weeks left for me to work to finish out the season... that seems real practical, doesn't it?  Several more things, like lack of good communication/sense of caring among managers to employees (they are all long-distance because they oversee many locations), showed me that it's a broken system.  And basically your job is always on the line if you don't make enough sales. Oh yes, and it would be impossible to get time off at Christmas (a previous commitment to visit my family) because this is the busiest time of year!

          In my lunch break, I went out to the truck to eat my sandwich and decided to drive over to the new Pizza Ranch building to see if they had the date of opening up yet.  I had been watching for it, and for a "now hiring" sign since before it was even a building!  When it was just a sign in the ground saying it was the future home of Pizza Ranch, I started checking, every time I was in town.  I saw the roof go on.  I saw the boxes of chairs stacked outside and I saw the chairs being carried in.  But the apply now sign never came.

          So in the meantime, I had applied for another job.  And gotten it.  And today was my first day of work.  And it was my lunch break.  AND A SIGN WAS THERE!!!  They were going to be open the 21st of November!  No hiring sign.  Must have somehow gotten all the workers they needed already.  But maybe Ben and I could take a date there when they opened!

          I saw some activity inside, so I decided to check it out.  I stepped inside... it was all newly decorated - I had forgotten it was cowboy themed!  And there were all these smiling girls behind the counter, in some sort of training.  *sigh*  THIS was an environment I wanted to work in!  

          "What are you doing here?" I wasn't really sure actually, I knew my chance of applying was over and I was just so excited to see it I guess.  "Came for an application?"

          What?!  Still hiring?  "Um... Yes, actually!  Could I pick one up?"  I asked.  The guy handed me some papers and asked if I wanted to fill it out there.  Remembering I was on lunch break and didn't have much time (and still hadn't eaten yet) I asked if I could bring it in tomorrow.  No, that wasn't good enough.  It had to be by tonight if I wanted any chance!

          So I rushed out to my truck, wolfing down my sandwich as I hurriedly scribbled out names of references and such.  I had just enough time to run it back in (right away - hopefully making a good impression) before making it back to my other job just in time!

          I sat down to more video training and realized over the rest of the afternoon that this job really wasn't for me.  (See issues above)  And to top it all off, the volume could somehow not be changed on their computer so I had to hold my headphone like 1" away from my ear for hours on end!

          I went home in tears, super stressed, pessimistic and distraught over if I could even survive working at this job.

          Ben was so good at trying to help me, and we set some boundaries and conditions for if I would stay at that job.  It was a long first day.  I had a horrible headache and no peace.  I couldn't eat any supper.  I dreaded going back to work tomorrow, and I never wanted to walk into Wal-mart again.  I was sick.

Big-scale plumbing

This was a several day job this week and I am so proud of my husband!!! This was when they finally got the fitting on! (It was a very deep trench and a nasty cold, windy day outside.)

My favorite room in the house

See our new skylight?  We have two of them in so far... a special project we worked on when Grandpa Berge was here on a Saturday!  They let in so much light!

This is what the upstairs looks like right now:

The guys working hard!  This is the master bedroom:

And now, my favorite room in the house!  The ATTIC!  The other day I brought my books and studied  while Ben worked on putting in the floor... the attic is the best because of the 'porthole' windows, interesting roof lines, skylights, and the open overlooking railings (yet to come)!  I'm so happy that there's now a floor so it's easier to be up there! :)

I'll leave you with this parting shot of my hardworking hubby!