2020

Of all the states we were planning to travel to in our 4 months of wandering, South Dakota was the only one I had never been to. So obviously I was most excited about this one! I had always wanted to see Mt Rushmore, and even though I've heard people say it is disappointing, I didn't care. It was still tops on my bucket list! After visiting Devil's Tower, Wyoming, we once again started heading east, making the short drive to South Dakota. We stopped at the rest stop/visitor's center on the border of the two states and asked for a recommendation of an RV park. The woman suggested we go to Wyatt's Hideaway in her hometown of Belle Fourche (pronounced "bell foosh"). We had already been to Belle Fourche -- it was the geologic center of the United States that we had passed through earlier in the day -- but we were all about taking recommendations from locals, so back to the center we went! And we were so glad we did. The plan had only been to spend o...

We're nearing the end of Lent and while I'm sad that I've gotten too busy to devote more energy to learning about and sharing these organizations with you, I remember that God called me to GIVE and as long as I am doing that I am being faithful. So here's another digest for you, days 31, 32, and 33. I'm so close to getting my 40 donations of $40 to 40 organizations in before Easter Sunday! If you have last minute suggestions for my final 7 donations, PLEASE send them my way! 40-40-40 ... Day 31: Sugartree Ministries Sugartree Ministries is located in Wilmington, Ohio. Their vision is to reach the poor, broken, lonely & addicted. Their ministries include "Your Father's Kitchen", a soup kitchen and food bank, and "Joe's Java", a coffee shop that brings in live music to raise funds and generate a sense of community. You might remember when Rachel Ray visited Sugartree Ministries in 2009. DHL had just shut down in Wilmington, ...

Welcome back to the 40 days of Lent! Between traveling for my grandmother's memorial and coming down with the flu, my 40-40-40 train definitely got derailed. Yet even in my derailment I've seen how God has already opened my heart to his generosity through this Lenten practice. (For example, at the airport on Wednesday I bought a candy bar and a book -- Ready Player One -- to send to our troops, without even thinking about what it would do to my budget.) Being at my grandmother's memorial also reminded me of the beauty of family. The opportunity to get together with cousins from afar and share stories of when we were kids was everything Grandma would have wanted it to be. And since I'm very much in family mode, I'm excited to share today's guest blog post by another family member! There is so much good being done in the world, and this good is being spearheaded by a Terrell... how cool is that! (Okay, so Sarah and I are 5th cousins by marriage or somethin...

I took another day off of blogging/donating yesterday. Why this time? I decided to change my Sabbath. Normally Sundays (or Saturdays, depending on your church) are considered the Sabbath, the day of rest, the day you go to church, and the "cheat day" for Lent. But Wednesday is my ONE day off of work each week. It's the one day I don't have to come in to the office (which is just a few steps across the hall from our apartment, but still...). It's the one day I don't have to find crayons or pencils or folders or shoes or snacks for 20 little voices crying "I need, I need, I need..." It's the one day I don't eat beans and corn tortillas. It's my one day to not "have to" do anything. And so it just seems logical that Wednesday would be my one day a week to not "have to" participate in Lent. Christians (I speak for myself here) can get really legalistic about unimportant things. Like the "right way" to ...

On Thursday, while I was avoiding reality for a day, Randy and I happened to turn on the television just in time to catch an episode of Life Today . Life Today is the television program for the organization Life Outreach International, which focuses on bringing water and food and shoes and other necessities to the world. While I can't usually bring myself to watch the last 15 minutes of the program, with the sad pictures of children with flies in their eyes and distended bellies, the first 15 minutes always include an interview with individuals whose lives have been turned upside down for Jesus. And who are using that upside-down momentum to make a difference in the world. The stories are incredibly inspiring. I ALWAYS love those first 15 minutes of the show. Thursday was no different. Thursday's episode included an interview with Cassie Hammett, founder of The Hub: Urban Ministries . On The Hub's website, Cassie writes: The call to love the poor is clear in scr...

Time for another guest blog! This one comes from my friend Nathan Sheets, who interned for me while I was the Communications Editor at Friends United Meeting in Richmond, Indiana. Now Nathan is working in Hollywood as the EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR of an organization that is working to end isolation and homelessness in Hollywood. What?! How incredible is that?! He shares with us just a taste of what The Center at Blessed Sacrament is all about: THE CENTER “The Center is a place that not only helps you. It’s been a place where I’ve discovered how to help myself.” Long before any of the current staff knew the place existed, "Social Services at Blessed Sacrament" and the staff/volunteers therein were devoted to facilitating a chaotic shower and (occasional) meal program, where people shuffled in as fast as the showers they were allowed. John F. was around in those days. “It wasn’t pretty,” he laughed as he talked, recalling how his life has transformed from tho...

I have to admit, life has been pretty stressful the past couple of months. We're excited and we're busy and we're happy, but we're also tired and overwhelmed and are struggling to find time for just the two of us without a to-do list in our laps. We tried to have that day on our anniversary last month. We booked a room in Dayton, Ohio, and had big plans to hit up our favorite restaurants and theaters and whatever other adventures we could find. No budget conversations. No packing lists. No calendars and organizers. Just the two of us.  Only we were sick. Achy flu-like symptoms. Rand napped all afternoon while I curled up in a hotel chair and read. We forced ourselves to go downstairs for the complimentary hotel dinner... hot dogs and macaroni. Not exactly the day we had planned. But it all made this past Monday that much more special! Last Christmas my brother bought us a "Culinary Walking Tour of Sacramento" and we decided to cash it in this week...

After our 10-mile hike on Saturday, and climbing over 180 flights according to our Fitbits , our bodies were craving carbs. We raided our "Backpacker's Pantry" and came up with Lasagna . As soon as it started cooking it smelled exactly like we'd put a lasagna in the oven. And it tasted just as good! I filtered some more water and did our dishes in the lake. Then Rand pulled out another tasty treat as a surprise... Reese's Peanut Butter Cups! This treat was extra special because I know Rand can't eat them (they give him migraines). So I knew he'd been thinking only of me when he froze them before we left on our trip and carried them out into the backcountry. I savored my chocolate and peanut butter as we finished the last of our red wine, looking out at the mountains and the water, thankful for every moment. It was much colder this second night than it had been the previous evening, and we were extra tired, so we crawled into our tent at 8 p.m. We...

I wasn't sure how Jovi would handle sleeping in a tent, or if the three of us would be uncomfortably tight, but I was pleasantly surprised! That doesn't mean any of us had a great night sleep, of course. The night started eerily quiet, only to be invaded by the sound of frogs calling out to one another until the early morning hours. One of our sleeping pads had a hole in it, so Randy let me have the good one while he slept on the hard ground. Jovi was disappointed that we didn't bring her a sleeping pad and kept trying to sneak onto mine. We were definitely ready for coffee when the sun finally came up! Already our camp felt like home. Randy made some really good coffee (Starbucks instant) and some not-so-good scrambled eggs (not his fault! freeze dried eggs are simply not good!). I purified some water out of the lake to prepare for that day's needs. Jovi patrolled the area to see if any creatures had tried to sneak into our camp at night or if there were...