August 2020 – The Sweet Tea Sisters

August 26, 2020August 29, 2020

10 Simple Ways to Stay Connected When COVID Keeps Us Apart

Are you missing your friends as much as we are? While some states are slowly opening up others are still pretty locked down, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t stay connected to those you love. Physical distancing shouldn’t mean social distancing! You don’t have to gather in person to be social. We’ve put together a list of simple ways you can show your friends and family that you are thinking about them and that you care.

Send a quick text

Don’t underestimate the power of a simple text letting someone know you’re thinking about them. It can be short and sweet; “Thinking of you and hoping your day is great!”, a longer, heartfelt message of encouragement, or even a funny meme that reminds you of them. Simply letting your loved ones know they are on your mind can brighten their day and put a smile on both of your faces! Check out the “encourage” highlight button on our Instagram page for some fun messages you can screen-shot to send a friend any time.

Make an actual phone call

We know nowadays some people groan and think, “hang-up and text me” when their phone rings. For those people, refer to idea number 1! But for many people, getting to hear your voice will bring great joy to their day. You can even multi-task and make the call while you cook dinner, fold the laundry, or run an errand. The speakerphone feature is great so long (as you’re not out in public, of course!) Always remember to use hands free-features if you are calling from your car. No distracted driving, please!

Snail mail

When was the last time you received something other than bills or junk in your mailbox? Wouldn’t it be fun to see something from a dear friend? You can easily purchase a card at most grocery stores or if you’re feeling crafty you could make one. But you don’t have to be fancy to be thoughtful! A simple note written on lined school paper would be a delight as well. If you are feeling a little bit fancy, adding a bit of washi tape to your envelope or paper never hurts! And don’t forget about post-cards. These are great fun to receive in your mailbox if you’re young or old!

Greetabl

This is a really fun way to send a little surprise through the mail. Through their website, you can send a cute, customizable “thinking of you gift” in a variety of price ranges. It’s even possible to send them anonymously if you’re feeling sneaky!

Amazon

We already know how easy it is to have Amazon items delivered right to our door, but have you considered having it delivered to a friend’s door? With a few clicks of a button, you can generate a list of gift ideas for a specific gender or age that is sorted by price. You can even choose to have your gift wrapped and include a little note. Books, blankets, candles, and more are right at your fingertips, Amazon even offers gift cards to many chain restaurants and shops. As Ina Garten would say, “ How easy is that?!”

Drop off a baked good, meal, or treat

Do you enjoy spending time in the kitchen? What friend wouldn’t love to have a tasty treat dropped off on their doorstep? Homemade cookies, a full meal, or even a yummy store-bought treat all show that you care.

Video Chat

We may not be able to visit in person, but we can still talk face-to-face thanks to modern technology. There’s just something about seeing a loved one’s face that makes life a little bit better. FaceTime, Houseparty, Facebook Messanger, and Zoom are all simple to use and can help us feel close even if we are far apart.

Flowers

Cut them from your yard or pick them up at the grocery store and place them in a jar or wrap them in brown paper. Hang them on your friend’s doorknob, then “ring and run”! You could use a florist to have them delivered as well. No matter how they arrive, flowers can brighten up anyone’s day!

Run errands for a friend

Know a mom with small children or someone for whom getting out is just extra work? Offer to run a few errands for them while you are out and about! You could pick up or deliver dry cleaning, handle their groceries, or even take their pet to be groomed. This could be a huge help for many of the friends on your list.

Drop-in Driveway Chat

Keep a couple of lawn chairs in the back of your car then call your friend to set up an impromptu drop-in driveway chat. You can giggle and catch up all you want, as long as you keep physically distanced!

Let us know which ones you try!

XOXO,

Shan and Doe

August 19, 2020August 29, 2020

A Few of Our Favorite Things–Love, Welcome, Serve Style

“Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins. Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay. God has given each of you a gift from His great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.”
1Peter 4:8-11

One of the best things about friends is they share the things they love with each other! We plan to share a few of our favorite things regularly. If we love it, you know we won’t be able to NOT talk about it with all of our friends!

Today we are sharing Amy Nelson Hannon’s cookbook “Love, Welcome, Serve”. We stumbled across her Instagram account some time ago and immediately fell in love with her sweet and authentic personality–and her recipes!

“Love, Welcome, Serve” is her first cookbook and it is a delight! The recipes are delicious, Cobbler Roast Beef, Chicken Pot Pie, and Gran’s Strawberry Cake are a few favorites, and they are easy to follow. We have each made many recipes from the book and have not regretted any of them! Amy’s heart shines through each recipe, revealing her love of cooking and her desire to live a life overflowing with authentic hospitality.

An excerpt from the introduction in the cookbook sums up perfectly what Amy is striving to do and what we hope to inspire in all of you as well: “The ‘Love, Welcome, Serve’ lifestyle means living with an awareness that people have emotional, spiritual, and physical needs, and using the comfort and ministry of food to respond to those needs, demonstrating the goodness of God in their lives. It’s opening your heart to impact theirs. It’s opening your home to give people a place to belong. Love, Welcome, Serve is deliberate and considerate.”

Amy also owns a kitchen store called Euna Mae’s Kitchen in Springdale, Arkansas, named for the beloved grandmother who taught her to cook. While we were on our Sister Trip last year we were able to visit the shop and it was everything we had hoped. It was worth driving MANY hours out of our way to visit.

Do you have a favorite cookbook that you reach for time and time again? We know Love, Welcome, Serve will quickly become another favorite and we hope it encourages you the way it has us. May you enjoy many hours of fellowship gathered around a table with those you love!

XOXO,

Shan and Doe

August 12, 2020August 29, 2020

A 2000 Mile Journey to Home

I’ve dreamed of owning a historic home with a front porch for as long as I can remember. At age 44 I had pretty much accepted a front porch was not in my future and was working on digging out any roots of bitterness and envy I might have had when God flipped my world on end, brought my family and me out of rural Idaho to “Almost Heaven” West Virginia, and gave me a front porch. The journey to my porch wasn’t direct, rather it came by way of a 25-foot travel trailer and a whole lot of faith.

I wouldn’t say my husband and I are the most adventurous people. We’re pretty content to have a nice, quiet routine consisting of morning coffee, a little work, dinner at home, and restful weekends with family. We might throw in an impromptu date night, live musical, or weekend away to keep things from being too sedentary, but we aren’t typically known to throw caution to the wind and fly by the seat of our pants taking great big chances. If you think that makes us sound a bit like Hobbits you aren’t too far off.

Our first big step of faith came when I quit my job. There wasn’t really a plan to replace my income, more like eliminate the need for it. We decided that selling our house and shop on five acres was where we should start, so we began making some long overdue home improvements to get it ready to be put on the market.

Our next exercise in trust came when my husband began to feel he had advanced as far as he could at work and decided to cast his net a little further out in the water. We prayed for God’s leading as I updated his resume, posted it online, and he began applying for jobs–even those across the country. I think we were both thinking this was simply a fishing expedition and not much would come from it. **Spoiler Alert** It wasn’t and much did.

Amid interviews and home improvements, we learned that my unborn grandson was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect and would require open-heart surgery soon after his birth. We began pleading with God for this little boy’s life and making plans with his parents for what his birth might look like, all while trying to figure out if this curveball was a sign that God did not intend for us to move after all. **Spoiler Alert** It wasn’t.

Shortly after my grandson was born, my husband accepted a great position with a company that offered more opportunities to advance, both personally and financially. The kicker? It was 2000 miles away from everything–my children, my friends, my church. I couldn’t help but wonder if I was, in fact, strong enough to leave our two oldest daughters and a medically fragile grandson in Idaho. By the grace of God, I was, but it was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.

The old hymn, “He Leadeth Me” could have been my theme song for 2019. Most of the time I had no idea what we were doing or where we were going. I just knew that God was in control and it was my job to take the steps of faith–even if it meant living in an RV for an undetermined amount of time.

Much like the Israelites wandered the desert for 40 years before they could enter the promised land, I, along with my husband, 20-year-old daughter, 16-year-old son, 12-year-old daughter, a 70-pound black lab, and cat, lived for 4 months (which seemed like 40 years) in a new-to-us recreational vehicle. Surprisingly, it wasn’t as bad as it might sound. I could have done with better internet and cell phone coverage, stronger AC, and not lumping dirty clothes once a week to the laundromat–first world problems, for sure! But we survived and aren’t too worse for the wear–us or the travel trailer!

When it finally came time for us to start looking for a house, my husband and I each had a list of hopes and dreams, along with a few hills-to-die on. As you can guess, my hill was a porch. It didn’t have to be big. It didn’t have to wrap around. All I asked was room for a porch swing and maybe some rockers. We looked at a few great options and even considered making an offer on some, but until I scrolled past that yellow house on Zillow, none of them cried out “you’re home!” like this one. So here I am, now 45 and guess what? My porch is big and it wraps around. My rockers are comfy and I hope to have a porch swing up soon. Yes, the house is old, it creaks a little, and some work needs to be done to bring her back to her glory days, but I can relate to that so she and I are in this thing together.

The year since our move has been as crazy and unpredictable as the year leading up to it, but I trust God has a good plan for whatever lies ahead. I haven’t quite figured out my place in this new world yet. 2020 has put a damper on reaching out, making new friends, and experiencing new environments, but joy abounds in hope and I can call this place home. There is room on my porch, so pull up a rocker and get comfy; I can’t wait to chat with you!

XOXO,

Doe

August 5, 2020August 29, 2020

A Flight Attendant and Her Farmer

I never thought I would google something like “can a chicken get an egg stuck?”or “how much does a duck poop?” But here I am!

My husband and I made the decision to move from the suburbs out to what we considered the country 21 years ago. At the time we were looking for a little more room to stretch out, not feel so closed in by our neighbors, and have a space large enough inside to accommodate our large extended family. What we ended up with is a whole lot of animals. We didn’t acquire them all at once but gradually over time, each one needing a new home.

The exception to that would be our horse Watson and we did get him on purpose. Actually, we had three horses in the beginning but circumstances changed and two of them went to live with people who actually had the time to ride them. A couple of years later we added 2 goats to the family and I thought… Well, certainly that’s the end of the animal acquisitions!

However, for a long time my husband had been wanting to add chickens to the mix but I was not on board; I thought they would be loud and stinky. I lost the battle however when last year our granddaughter informed him that a real farmer had chickens. So while my sister and I were away on a girls’ trip the two of them went and got six baby chicks. I can tell you that was quite a surprise to come home and find! Fortunately, all my fears were for nothing and now we have delicious, farm-fresh eggs every day from our hens: Esther, Della, Big Red, Lucy, Goldie, and Oprah.

The latest addition to the farm has been five ducks. A friend of our daughter needed to rehome them as she was moving. Of course our daughter thought Papa’s Farm would be the perfect place and so ButterCup, Petunia, Momba, Dennis, and Claire joined the family. Of all the animals they have probably been the most work. Farmer Greg is still fine-tuning their pond and I think will be for the foreseeable future. There appears to be quite a balancing act between water and duck poop proportions to keep everyone happy.

Overseeing all of this are our two dogs, Winchester (Springer Spaniel) and Trooper (Bernese Mountain Dog) who seem to take each new addition in stride and wait for the day someone leaves the gate open long enough for them to slip into the pasture and they can live out their fantasy of being herd dogs.

Right now our son has taken the opportunity to move home temporarily to help out with farm projects as the college where he teaches is doing online classes this semester. With him came his dog Jack (King Charles Cavalier/Shih Tzu mix) so now he is part of the herd too.

Our 7 year old granddaughter, Olivia probably loves Papa’s Farm the most. I’m sure if you ask her she’ll say we bought it just for her 14 years before she was born. Before the days of Covid 19 she could hardly contain herself waiting for Papa to get home from work so they could do farm chores together. Now that he’s working from home she feels as if he’s there just for her and they should be able to be out on the farm all day. Of course her idea of farm work is driving the tractor around the pasture while Papa does the real work. She has turned into an excellent egg gatherer and now most eggs make it into the house without incident. She loves animals and is the chief reason we have so many. I’ve no doubt that she’ll be able to get Papa to come around to her way of thinking about getting that sheep she has her heart set on.

We’ve had many wonderful times here with family and friends over the years. We’ve hosted little league parties, rehearsal dinner, graduations, showers, birthday celebrations, bible studies, and potlucks galore. Being able to share our home with others has blessed us in ways big and small. There is nothing that means more to me than to be able to share our home with others. Something magical happens to people when they sit down at a table with others over good food. Walls come down, guards are dropped, and true fellowship can happen. Is there anything better than hearing people laugh together?

For me our little farm is the place I can hear Jesus speak loudest. It’s a place that makes me slow down and listen. Pre-covid19, you would have found me 35,000 feet above the ground flying the friendly skies! For the past 7 years I’ve been a Flight Attendant and getting my wings was one of the happiest days of my life. Exploring new cities, meeting new people and experiencing new things are all things that bring me great delight, but nothing beats home. This place has become a sweet retreat from a world that seems to have gone mad. It’s a quiet place to block out all the noise and confusion that seems to be everywhere these days.

Because of the virus my airline has asked as many as possible to take a leave of absence in an effort to cut costs and hopefully prevent mass furloughs, I was in a position to be able to do that so I have been grounded since the Middle of April and likely won’t go back to work until April of 2021. While I miss flying and my co-workers, I feel like I have been given a once in a life gift of something incredibly precious…time, time without many commitments or obligations. Time to pray, read, think, listen. Time to just be still. It’s something I didn’t even know I desperately needed. But as always God was 25 steps ahead and He knew exactly what I needed. Nothing is ever wasted with him, even down time in a worldwide pandemic. I’m excited and looking forward to what he has in store for me. I know He is good and can be trusted.

XOXO,

Shan