little black journal

Since my New Year’s resolution to Sabbath more intentionally, I’ve been mulling over what this looks like for me.  I want Sabbath to be special and distinct from the rest of the week, a day set apart from the hustle and bustle of the daily grind.  Sunday used to be my last-ditch chance to cross as much as possible off my to-do list before returning to the busy-ness of work on Monday, but I’m making an effort to change that, to wrap up errands and chores and running around on Saturday, so that I can truly spend Sunday as a day set apart.  A day for pause and rest and reflection. And although it’s tempting to find this rest in the form of a lazy chick flick marathon, I’m digging deeper.  Today, Sabbath was a long walk along the waterfront, during which I prayed for dozens of friends and family members and coworkers as their names were laid upon my heart.  It was an hour spent warming up at a neighborhood cafe, reveling in the joy of coffee and books and free time.  It was a phone call to my parents to see how their week was.  It was quality time with Shane, cooking and eating and napping together (Lord knows, it just wouldn’t be Sabbath without a nap).  And in the midst of all these good, life-giving things, I’m striving for a spirit of reverence and gratitude.  That’s the crux, because in the end, Sabbath really isn’t about being rested and refreshed – it’s about handing ourselves over to God and giving Him our undivided attention.  And when I slow down to open my eyes wider and seek Him out, He can be found around every corner.

This being our first weekend home in awhile, I spent the past couple of days in catch-up mode:  errand-running, house-cleaning, grocery shopping, list-checking.  But we took a moment for a deep breath this evening and headed over to Lincoln Park to watch the sun set over the Puget Sound.  Shane and I are both in the midst of busy seasons that have left us a bit drained, so we reveled in the chance to just sit on a driftwood log and listen to the sound of water lapping over the pebbly shore.  A moment to watch the ferries pass us by, to be thankful, to rest my head on my man’s shoulder and tell him how much I like him.

Oh, I really, really needed that.

I’m a sucker for a good deal, so when Jack sent us a link a few months ago to a voucher for a discounted stay in Friday Harbor, we jumped on it right away.  I was so looking forward to a chance to get out of town with the Chens, to explore San Juan Island, to cozy up in a beautiful room and unwind – I had high, high hopes for the weekend.  And they were met on all fronts.  Plus some.

We picked up Jack and La Verne yesterday morning and headed north to catch the afternoon ferry to Friday Harbor.  We wound our way through the islands, excited by the sight of sunshine glistening off the water – the forecast had called for wind and rain, but it looked like Mr. Weatherman was mistaken.

We checked into our rooms at the Friday Harbor House and all said a little “wow!” when we opened our doors.  A fireplace, a jacuzzi tub, and a deck with this view.  Oh, this view!

We dropped off our bags, picked up a few snacks from the corner market, and got back in the car to make the short drive to San Juan Vineyards. Shane and Jack picked out a bottle of Sangiovese while La Verne and I spread out a little picnic lunch on top of a wine barrel in the corner of the shop.  We ate and drank and chatted, thankful for a little fuel after our three-hour journey.  Once the bottle was dry and the cheese devoured, we headed back out to do some exploring, stopping for a minute of sun-soaking on the winery’s porch.

Our Tour de Island brought us to quaint Roche Harbor, which was something of a ghost town on a chilly February afternoon.  But we’ll be back for spot prawns come summer!

The cloudy sky showed promise for a beautiful sunset, so we drove south along the west edge of the island in search of a good lookout.  Our hunt landed us at Smallpox Bay, which sounded less-than-inviting on the map but turned out to be the perfect place to watch the sun drop below the horizon.

Shane was pretty pleased with his front-row seat.

But was willing to give it up when Jack challenged him with, “Dude, jump!”.

Post-sunset, we made our way back to the hotel to crank up our fireplaces and grab a catnap before dinner.  The rest of the evening was perfectly mellow – a two-hour dinner at the hotel’s restaurant, a game of cards in Jack and La Verne’s room, and lots of laughter.  Gosh, so much laughter.  We reminisced about our romp through Portugal four years ago, we talked about adventures to come, we reveled in that happy, easy comfort that comes with spending time with people who know you inside and out.  I like to think we’ll be having these same conversations in some other island lodge 20 years from now.

We woke up good and late today, stuffed ourselves at the hotel’s breakfast bar and then, far too soon, it was time to get in line for the east-bound ferry.  One final stop at the Tulalip outlet mall for a few things, and we were putting a bow on our short-but-epic getaway.  It was fun while it lasted…

February continues to kick January’s butt with a vengeance.  Sure, last month had its nice, quiet moments at home, but I’m fully reveling in the joy of weekends spent spreading my wings and getting out on the town.

We’re trying not to over-indulge this month as we have in Februarys past, but we did allow ourselves a few small luxuries this weekend, starting with ramen at Kukai on Friday night with some new friends.  Shane loooooves him some noodles, and since the only ramen I know how to prepare is of the “Top” variety (a college staple at 18 cents a serving), this was money well spent.

I made a bakery/West Elm run with La Verne yesterday morning and then set out on my own to do a little shopping in Southcenter.  Gosh, I love picking up a tall Orange Dream Machine smoothie from Jamba Juice and wandering the aisles of DSW.  I know, it’s shallow and silly, but I got a special little buzz when I walked out with that pair of boots I’ve been eyeing since October.  My name is Kelly and I have a shoe problem.

I spent the better of this afternoon hunkered down at my favorite table at Columbia City Bakery.  Latte, scone, journal, book, happiness.  This is what I missed most last month.

Of course, I also appreciate that lots of life’s joys are free: a walk in the peaceful morning fog at Jefferson Park, an evening spent watching the Grammys with Shane while I sip my mint tea and he swigs his home-mixed Manhattan, a moment of much-needed quiet as I turn everything off and reflect on God’s abundant goodness.  And that’s really what our practice of January frugality is meant to show us – our lives are undeservedly rich, in both intangible and material blessings.  The friendships, the food, even the new shoes – they’re all gifts.

February is here and I am funk-free! It’s been a pretty great weekend, spent in the company of our favorite Seattle peeps. We rang in the new month in style on Friday night – dinner and drinks at Tavern Law with our fellow frugal-ites (Jack and La Verne have started something of a movement with this no-spend thing…), followed by dessert at Capitol Hill’s best gelato shop. Felt so good to be out.

The hoped-for sunshine never made its way from behind the clouds on Saturday, but that was alright – it was a perfect day for brunching with my book club ladies. We ate quiche and drank tea and then cozied up by Angela’s fireplace. And I still made it out for an afternoon walk around Seward Park with Shane – this felt like the first time in months that I was able to find a quiet kind of beauty in the the gray skies and bare limbs.

Plus, there’s plenty to be said for cafe weather! Post-walk, we warmed ourselves with coffee and scones at our favorite neighborhood bakery.  We sat across from each other and talked about books and batting averages and ERAs (I’m reading The Brothers K and needed schooling on a few baseball specifics).  Shane is much relieved to find that the Ice Queen has left the building – we were due for a good all-in catch-up session.  We capped off the day with dinner and a movie at Jason and Nance’s, which has come to feel like our second home in Seattle.  We have eaten dozens of meals, shared hundreds of laughs, and shed a number of tears at their dining room table over the past couple of years.  They feed us so well, in more ways than one.

This morning wall full of church and grocery shopping and the usual stuff of Sundays.  The afternoon was dedicated solely to football as we made our way to Jack and La Verne’s (our third home in Seattle) for their Superbowl party.  We pigged out on pork sliders and fried chicken and every variety of chip until it was all I could do to keep my eyes open as I sprawled out on the couch and waited for the power to come back on in New Orleans.  It was a little hard to see the Niners take a loss, seeing as how Kaepernick hails from my California hometown, but I’m thrilled for my family in Baltimore – there is much celebrating going on among the East Coast Jarrells tonight.

Cheers to a killer kick-off to a happy new month…

The stuff of quiet January Sundays…

Morning fog:

Fresh-baked apple muffins (because Shane’s Saturday batch of blueberry muffins magically disappeared in 24 hours flat):

Knitting progress:

Chips, salsa, and too much football:

We spent this evening enjoying Sunday supper with a few friends and are ready to put a bow on this perfectly lazy weekend – I don’t know the last time I spent a full two days resting with such “intensity”.  Bring it on, Monday.  Or on second thought, please don’t…

Grand ambitions gone awry – it’s kind of a weekend theme at the Schnell household.  I figured I would take advantage our open schedule to get some housework done, do some cooking to counteract all the eating out we’ve been doing, finally get out in the yard to rake up those leaves that fell from the trees so many weeks ago. But then we decided to head downtown and see a movie on Saturday.  And then we decided to make a whole date out of it, with shopping and coffee, followed by dinner with Jack and La Verne at a Korean joint we’ve been wanting to try.  Those leaves could wait.

We left church today with an entire plan-free afternoon stretched out before us.  What to do?  Hot tea in the snowman mug I unearthed last week in my search for my cookie cutters, macarons fresh from Paris (thanks, Jack and La V!), and a whole lot of snuggling under a blanket with my Kindle and Mr. Schnell.  Oh, and a nap (the really, really good kind where you wake up and haven’t the foggiest idea how long you’ve been out). We capped off the day with dinner at Jason and Nance’s, and I had officially made it through the weekend without doing a bit of cleaning, cooking, or raking.  I’m feeling just the slightest twinge of laziness-induced guilt.  Better pop in an episode of Dawson’s Creek to see if that can take my mind off of it…

I remember having a “preach it, sister” moment when Nance shared in c-group a few weeks ago about how hard it can be to hold sorrow and joy in tension, not letting one disallow the other.  This has been particularly difficult for me this holiday season - our unrealized baby hopes have squashed my spirit, leaving me frustrated and broken at a time of year usually marked with thankfulness and cheer.  I’ve had a hard time finding the good in the midst so much sadness.  But I resolved last week to turn it around – to hit pause on my wallowing and enjoy a weekend full of Christmas parties and gift-wrapping and soaking in God’s abundant blessings.  I had my Christmas playlist all queued up, my little black dress picked out for the office holiday party, our cupboards stocked with the ingredients for pumpkin bread and my favorite biscotti.

And then Friday morning happened.  I was out shopping at lunchtime when a friend’s Facebook update popped up on my phone – I saw the words “tragedy” and “children” and pulled up the NY Times to check the latest headlines.  Tragedy didn’t even begin to describe it.  I stood there for a minute on the sidewalk, stunned and suddenly feeling very alone among the crowds that were rushing in and out of stores, chatting and smiling and going about life as usual.  I headed back to my office and nearly came unglued as I read the latest breaking details.  27 people dead.  20 of them precious little children.  Moms, dads, brothers, sisters, teachers facing the loss of so much innocent life.  God, where were you?  It’s hard to find His light in the midst of such suffocating darkness.  It’s easy to feel forsaken and lost.  But I can’t, I won’t forget His promise.  I won’t forget the baby that came so long ago to redeem the world, to defeat death and pay for our sins with His suffering and sacrifice.

It still seems awfully dark out there, but as I stumble and search and cry out to Him, a light flickers as He reveals His ultimate goodness.  I see Him in the stories of the courageous and selfless teachers that loved and protected their students.  I see Him in the candles that were lit across the nation as people stood in solidarity with Newtown.  I see Him so vividly in our community of friends, our “Seattle family”.  He was there when we gathered on Saturday night for our sixth annual fondue party, where we ate and laughed and danced and experienced the joy of belonging.  God is indeed good.  Yes, there will be reasons to weep and mourn and question His ultimate plan, but there will also be reasons to dance.  And I think I’m finally seeing those reasons through the blur of my tears.

I started baby-sitting Shane’s cousin Elizabeth when she was just two or three years old.  A couple of years later, her parents introduced me to their super-hot nephew, who was visiting from Minnesota for a summer job and looking for friends (“friends“) in the area.  Seven years later, I married that guy.  And six years after that, sweet little Biz is visiting Seattle to tour UW in hopes that she’ll start there as a Freshman next Fall.  Where do the years go?  It was tough not to dwell on the fact that I’m gettin’ so dang old, but I put my vanity aside for the weekend and set out to woo Shane’s cousin and her best friend with our city’s finest charms.  We dined on fresh pasta at Tavolata and desserted with waffle cones from Molly Moon’s. Shane showed them around the U-District and gave them their first lesson in chopsticks at Thai Tom. We did the whole market shebang – gum wall and brass pig and mini-donuts and all.  We walked along the waterfront to the sculpture park and then headed over to Capitol Hill to warm up with coffee at Bauhaus.  It was fun to do the grand tour and hit a couple of our old favorites.  We’re hoping that a year from now, Biz will be coming over on Sunday afternoons to do her laundry and fill us in on what’s actually cool in Seattle.  Fingers crossed!

After dropping the girls off at the airport on Sunday morning, we set out for our annual trip to North Bend for our Christmas tree.  It was cold and drizzly and I almost bailed on our tradition, thinking it would be so much easier to just hit up the tree lot in front of Home Depot, but I’m glad my sentimental spirit (with Shane’s prodding) won out.  Snow-dusted Mount Si was beautiful, and we found our perfect tree in record time.  Plus, Shane makes a cute lumberjack.

This is one of those times when I could really use a post-weekend weekend to catch my breath, but I’ll have to settle for a quiet Monday evening reading by the light of the Christmas tree.  Not too shabby…

There are a list of things I’ve developed over the years as sure-fire “pick-me-ups” – a pampering massage, a bout of retail therapy at the mall, a long chat with a girlfriend…  And then there are perfect weekends like this past one, when all of these little pleasures were wrapped up into a couple of epic days of relaxation and fun:

Nancy, La Verne, and I had such a good time on our trip to Woodinville last year that we declared the getaway an annual tradition and named it L-Dub (short for Ladies Weekend).  After much anticipation, L-Dub 2 kicked off on Saturday at Truce Spa in Bellevue.  Massages, facials, manicures, oh my – we walked in there with our crazy internet deal vouchers and walked out three hours later with perfect nails and glowing skin.  My joy overflowed when Nancy suggested that we do some shopping before heading up to Kirkland to check into our hotel.  Nance is not a shopper – I don’t know if I’ve set foot inside a store with her, ever, but she must have taken a drink of La Verne’s and my Kool-Aid, because she was wanting to hit the mall hard.  We wandered from store to store, offering each other advice on the perfect wallet or the best deal off the sale rack.  I didn’t buy much, but there’s something about shopping with girlfriends that seriously tugs at my female bonding heartstrings.  As we sat on that mall bench together and ate our frozen yogurt, shopping bags tucked between us, I felt so content, so close with those two.

We checked into our lake-view room at the Woodward around 7:00 and settled in for a wild night of room service and chick flicks.  The food was so-so, the movie was kind of terrible (Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones in a romantic comedy?  What were we thinking?), but the late-night conversation was the perfect way to round out a perfect day.  It’s nice to know that I’m not too old to enjoy a good slumber party.

Breakfast was delivered right to our door on Sunday morning (room service – so brilliant!) and we ate our pancakes in bed.  Coffee, toenail painting, a bit more lounging, and then that dreaded check-out time rolled around and it was time for us to hit the road.  I was ready to get home to Shane and show off my fancy French manicure, but still, it was hard to see this little escapade come to a close.  We had taken “pick-me-up” to a whole new level.