Thankful

Have I ever expressed how much I love Thanksgiving? I really REALLY LOVE IT! Not because of the turkey- I actually would prefer a lot of other foods to turkey... Not because of the stuffing or the green bean casserole or even the pumpkin and french silk pies (GASP!). I love that, at Thanksgiving, anyone and everyone gathers around and shares in the awareness of all that we are blessed with in life. There are so SO many things that each of us have or receive that we could spend literally hours on end talking about them and being grateful. And the THINGS are really so insignificant in comparison to the PEOPLE and the relationships that we are blessed with throughout our lives. And the promise that we will always be satisfied in our Lord- is there enough thankfulness to even begin to cover that?

This year my Thanksgiving break was spent with two of my favorite groups of people. Trey and I ventured down to Yankton on Thursday to spend the day with his family. We were supposed to bring cheesy potatoes and I (or my Crockpot) somehow managed to ruin those... Luckily for us, the turkey wasn't done on time; we made some impromptu mashed potatoes upon arrival and everything was fine (WHOOFTA!). We got to sit around the table with the family and tell fun stories and reminisce on holidays of the past. Eventually, after the table was cleared and dishes were done, everyone made it to their respective sleeping spaces to take naps. When we all were up again some more quality time was spent in conversation while we sat on the couches in the upstairs family room before we had to head back to Sioux Falls for the night. It was a GOOD day. 

Friday morning we hit the road by 6:15 to head for Elk River. Trey and I traded off driving and napping on the way up, so the lack of sleep didn't seem so bad by the time we actually arrived. My family's second Thanksgiving was on Saturday. We got up early to stand outside by the trashcan (which is where dad cooks the turkey), with hoods up and coffee mugs in hand (not necessarily with coffee in them...). A hilarious home video was shared, along with some other comical YouTube videos, while the final touches of the meal were prepared by all. Gourds of all shapes, colors and sizes held name tags on the table for each person to know their chair. After the meal a card game commenced, with many comical moments throughout. Getting to enjoy food, games and much needed conversation with family is such a blessing in my life. The rest of the evening was spent playing games/watching movies with my nephew and returning to the table for another round of cards. To top it all off, I got to snuggle with Trey on the couch while we watched Dexter with the family. Perfect.

I like the definition of "thankful." 

thank·ful

1. Aware and appreciative of a benefit; grateful.

2. Expressive of gratitude: a thankful smile.

I like that the word aware is there. Because I think, too often, we do not spend time being aware of what we have, so we forget to be thankful for it. I guess, the way I interpret it, to increase our thankfulness throughout the year, we should increase our awareness. And then I love how the second definition includes expressive. We should not hide that we are grateful for life's blessings. We should share it in outward expression that we have been blessed beyond what we deserve. The fact that we know that we have the greatest blessing of all, the unwavering love and forgiveness of our God, is more than enough reason to give "a thankful smile." We should dance and sing and shout in gratefulness of all that we are given, not only this past week that surrounds Thanksgiving day, but always.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend filled with celebration and reflection on all of your blessings. 

"Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind, for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things." Psalm 107: 8-9

.hme.

Enjoying It

In a mere thirteen days I will be a Mrs. and I like that. A lot.

I absolutely should not be writing a blog right now. I should be sleeping. Or, at least if I'm not sleeping, I should be working on wedding things. But I am fooling myself into believing that it doesn't need to be done tonight... whatever "it" is. I'm ready for the wedding to be here. I am ready to post a blog showing you all some awesome pictures of all of the things that have been made by my parents, Trey and myself. It has been awesome DIY-ing so many things, and I am SO grateful for my parents (and Trey's) willingness to help with everything! Getting married at my parents house, at the place I grew up, is such an awesome thing. I know that I took it all for granted as I was actually growing up, but now, now I truly appreciate every little thing about this place.

There are so many simple, lovely memories that come back to me every time I stroll through the yard: rolling and sledding down the hill back by the pond, which apparently is not all that big... playing baseball/soccer/football in the yard in front of the barn... playing countless games of horse/1on1/2on2 in the driveway... swinging on the swings just to get to the highest point so we could jump off on the count of three... getting "under-dogs" on the tire swing and quitting when my brothers would start to spin me so much and so fast that I thought I would die... hunting Easter eggs... riding horses... playing in the sand box... running through the sprinklers... building snowman families and igloos... skating on the pond... raking all of the leaves into one huge pile so we could jump in them just to realize that no matter how many leaves we put in one pile, the ground under them was still very much solid and painful... following mom from garden to garden pretending to help weed but having no idea what a weed was in comparison to a potentially gorgeous flower (sorry mom, for probably pulling out a whole lot of your flowers)... playing fetch with the dogs... lining the cars up for our own car washes... asking dad to help me fix/build something and standing next to him while he did it... I enjoyed it.

And inside the house has it's own endless list of vivid, beautiful memories: playing dress-up with the daycare kids (even the boys)... racing matchbox cars down a ramp and fighting to get the fastest car... building all sorts of unrecognizable things out of Legos... coloring in coloring books at the table and always being the last one to get bored with it... helping mom make snack... playing dolls and barbies in my room, often by myself, simply changing their clothes and putting them away... playing cards and board games... Christmas time when the living room gets filled with Tuperware bins FULL of holiday decor... dying Easter eggs... sliding down the stairs in sleeping bags... building blanket forts... Friday night pizza on a blanket in the living room watching TGIF... the smell of mom's caramel rolls fresh from the oven... hearing the cuckoo clock every 15 minutes... dad waking me up and making me put my feet on the floor before he would leave my room... playing Monopoly until everyone was mad at everyone so we were told it was time to stop, at which point we were all ready to quit anyway... dinner conversations... praying with  my parents before I went to sleep...  I enjoyed it.

This place is what I know. It is everything I grew up knowing to be a home. Until I moved out to go to college, I didn't know people lived any differently. I had a blessed childhood and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I continue to have a blessed life and I am enjoying it now as well. In the next two weeks, I know I will become overwhelmed at different points by the details of our wedding day and I know it will be hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel, the rainbow after the storm, the prize at the finish line. But, when all is said and done, I will enjoy the day. Yes, I want it to be gorgeous. I want it to be fun. I want it to be perfect. But really, that's not what's important. I will spend my last moments as a Downing in the place I spent all of my firsts, and, come the end of the day, I will be married to my best friend and I will be an Erickson. I have been reminded by many people to, "enjoy it; it all goes by so fast." And so, that is what I plan to do. 

I will enjoy getting ready in the house I got ready in for so many years. I will enjoy taking too many pictures to count in the yard I played in so many days. I will enjoy sharing the day with our closest friends and family. I will enjoy praising the Lord, through it all, and spending time in worship. I will enjoy all of the hard work we put in to make the day happen. I will enjoy my Trey, my best friend, my HUSBAND, because I love him. Whatever the Lord blesses me with, not only on June 23rd, but always, I will do my best to enjoy it. 

-Han

61 years

As I plan and prepare for my own wedding, I continue to think about how marriages and weddings were back when my parents got married. Or even when my grandparents got married.

This article was published in the Elk River paper today. It is a wonderful story about my grandparents Orie and Nellie. If you like love even a little bit, you should read it. 

They're beautiful, aren't they?

I love my family. God is great.

Food. Football. Fun.

Many fun things have happened today. From beginning to end, the day was filled with wonderful flavors (either scents or tastes), wonderful people, and wonderful experiences.

My parents got in last night around 7:30 and came downtown to visit me, and eat, at Chedd's. After they were all done eating, Trey took them for a stroll along Phillips to look at some of the cool sculptures downtown. Luckily, I worked with one of my favorite and speedy co-closers and we were out of that place shortly after 9 o'clock. From downtown, we headed over to Falls Park to take a nice evening stroll by the Falls. It was fun to see them at night and to share the view with three lovely people made it even better. From the Falls we decided it was time to unload the trailer full of my stuff into the home I would soon call mine. We unloaded the whole trailer into my new room and called it quits for the night. But it was very comforting to know that all of my belongings would not be stolen from the trailer while we slept! By the time we got back to the apartment, sleep was just what we did. I set my alarm, brushed my teeth, told my parents and my boy goodnight, said my prayers and I was in dreamland.

At 7am, my alarm began to play. For those of you who don't know me, you should know, I am definitely not a morning person. I don't think I am particularly cranky in the morning, I'm just not alert. I am not really interested in much for the first half hour to hour that my eyes are open. And, to be completely honest, I may set my alarm with the best intentions of getting up to do something special, but when it goes off, I generally hit snooze at least twice; sometimes three or four (and by four I mean five) times at which point my alarm turns off altogether. It's almost like my alarm is giving up on me, really. This morning, however, I was out of bed at precisely 7:02am! I was in the kitchen and preparing to create some cinnamon rolls. Some cinnamon rolls that would make all other cinnamon rolls inferior for the rest of my existence on the earth. I also made sure the pot of coffee was beginning to brew; I wouldn't have made it very far if there wasn't a promise of some coffee this morning!

BEFORE

AFTER

YUM.

THEY WERE PERFECT!!!! Seriously, I am in love with this cinnamon roll recipe. Of course, it didn't hurt to have good company to not only eat them with, but to visit with while we waited (somewhat impatiently) for them to be done. The smell as those cinnamon rolls were baking was almost unbearable! I wish I could have boxed it up so I could smell it every day!

My source for the recipe is Miss Julie, a.k.a. "The Skinny Cook." She used a different icing than I did. Her's is an actual icing while I modified it to make it the cream cheese frosting. Either one would be lovely, I'm sure!

After we each ate our share of cinnamon rolls, we got ready for a 7th grade football game. Trey coaches a middle school team and we all thought it'd be fun to go watch and support the O'Gorman Knights! The best part, they were playing the Mitchell, Kernels! Not only is that exciting because I went to school in Mitchell, it is also exciting because Wade and Monica's son, Kevin is on the 7th grade team, so I got to see them there too! Trey's dad, and grandparents also enjoyed the game with us. It was a lot more fun watching the game with people I knew than it is watching by myself. I do like going though. Afterall, what is fall without some live football?

Mitchell got an early lead and was up 13-0 in the first half, but before we knew it, O'Gorman scored a touchdown followed by an extra point to bring the game back within a single touchdown. The Knights scored again to tie the game 13-13. Come the end of the 4th quarter, the score remained tied. This meant overtime! I promise, I have never been more excited about 7th grade football in my life. Each team received an additional 4 downs to see who would walk away with the "W."

The Kernels were up first. They managed to score a touchdown on the 3rd down, but couldn't muster out the extra point conversion. Then came the Knights. They ran a successful first play to gain 8 yards, which meant there were only two measly yards to the endzone. The Knights pushed through the line and got their touchdown! Finally, it came down to the extra point; the question in everyone's mind was, "can they get across that line again?" Sure enough, the Knights pulled it off and won the game by a single point!

I cheered. Everyone cheered. The band was even there and played the fight song. It put the cherry on top of the perfect ending. The boys were ecstatic. My whole being was filled with happiness. I like when that happens.

Wade and Monica had to leave before the end of the 'B' game, so I offered to let Kevin stay in Sioux Falls and hang out with us for the afternoon since he wasn't getting to go to the DWU game like he had planned. So we took Kevin under our wing for the afternoon. And MaryChar arrived just in time for lunch!

After the games were over, the 9 of us went out to eat at Old Chicago. It was wonderful. The people, the food, once again, I was filled with happy.

We all parted ways a little after lunch. Trey and Kevin went to the apartment to get cleaned up, MaryChar and Rich II went to Sam's Club. Dutch and Char headed back to Yankton. My parents and I went to the antique store.

I got a new lamp. It is really cool. I did not take any pictures of it, yet. I will though! It is too cool not to share!

Some relaxation time was much needed. The 'rents and I headed back to the apartment to rest with the two boys for a bit. We had all had a very busy morning, afterall.

Wade and Monica came back. And they brought more fun-loving people! Chane, Brandon and Andrew rode back from the DWU game with them, so they all came in to see the apartment and visit for a little while. This somehow morphed into them tasting some cinnamon rolls, playing football, and engaging in wonderful conversation! I am glad it did! MaryChar, Lynette and Rich II were next to arrive. And finally, Austin's plane landed in SF so he got a ride over to the apartment! So many wonderful people all in the same place at the same time. It brings a smile to my face just remembering the happy afternoon. We played catch out in the grass for a long period of time, all the while laughing, smiling, sharing stories and just absorbing everything that was fall about the day. It seriously could not have been designed more perfectly in my head.

Although all of this was fun, I knew there was still work to be done. As the crowd  dwindled, the party moved inside, and football was being displayed on the television, I decided it was probably time to go start organizing all of my bins and bags that consumed my room. First, we went to Walmart to pick up some of the essentials and then we grabbed a bite to eat with MaryChar, Nate, Trey, Mom, Dad and myself. We ate at Chevy's. It was very tasty! Shortly after our plates were cleared, Trey, my parents and myself headed over to the house to begin the organization process. And that's exactly what I have to keep reminding myself, it is a process.

Some people hate moving. I honestly can say I don't. I am not going to sit here and tell you I love it, because that would be a lie. But so far, I have not had a terrible moving experience. Granted, my  mom did all of the packing of my stuff this time around, so I probably didn't get the full experience... but I have packed my own stuff multiple times as well as helped others pack for a big move, and I have never despised it. I am excited about this move. I think it will be a fun little place to live (for now). I couldn't have done any of it without the help of my parents, though! They really are the greatest!

So, after this long, fun-filled day, I am ready for sleep.

I ate another cinnamon roll as a bed time snack (that's okay, right?), typed this blog and now it is off to the bedtime routine.

As I lay in bed to fall asleep I will be thinking of all of the wonderful people God has placed in my life and how blessed I am to share perfect days with them. The love I have for these people is beyond explanation.

I hope all of you had as joyful of a Saturday as I did. Goodnight.

On the Road.... {again}

This past weekend my family embarked on yet another trip down to Evansville, Indiana. Although the overall purpose of this trip was not simply for enjoyment, we did have a lot of fun. With five of us packed into the car on the way down, the 13 hours spent on the road were anything but dull. Of course, there were spurts of sleep here and there, and considering the time we departed from Elk River, rightfully so. Nonetheless there were many entertaining moments in the car that made the sardine-like seating not so bad afterall. Below are some pictures of the road trip taken by my phone's camera, so not the highest quality photo you've ever seen, but it captures the moment (for the most part).

It was a dreary beginning to a long trip. Rain fell almost the whole time we were in Wisconsin.

After hours of rain, finally some sunshine joined us.

And with the sunshine came the next state: Illinois!

If only we knew how long we would be in Illinois, maybe we would have appreciated Wisconsin a little more...

Somehow, even though he grew up in Evansville, IN, my father found a way to get us lost... We drove on this "highway" for a long time before we finally made it back out to the interstate. What we didn't know was that there are places in Illinois where the highways are only wide enough for one vehicle and although the roads do not seem to be patrolled by officers of any sort, the bumps and potholes take care of any speeding issues. Miles and miles of corn.

^ The simple life. ^

Luckily for us, Aunt Jule packed us a lovely care package with ranch pretzels, sweet corn chip chex mix, starburst, granola bars, nips caramels and of course four delicious flavors of gum! Thanks Aunt Jule- you saved our trip!

I also kept busy by continuing to knit my very first scarf. I am so glad Grandma Jackie taught me how to knit. It will be a forever great memory and past time.

As we got to Indiana, the sun was setting. If only I had a great camera to capture the beautiful scenery; my phone hardly does the sky any justice. It was gorgeous!

Despite getting lost and adding an hour or so to our trip, we made it! It was so good to get to Evansville and spend time with the family. Whenever all of the family is gathered in one place good conversation is a guarantee! Sitting in Grandma and Grandpa's living room with kids playing on the floor and people talking all at the same time I could feel the love that filled the room. Although Grandma Jackie is no longer able to join us physically, she will always be with each of us in our hearts and minds. The memorial service held for her on Saturday was beautiful. I will forever be greatful to her and grandpa for starting such a beautiful family.

"When we all get to Heaven, what a day of rejoicing that will be! When we all see Jesus, we'll sing and shout the victory!"

"O there's sunshine, blessed sunshine, when the peaceful happy moments roll; when Jesus shows His smiling face, there is sunshine in my soul."