life and chicken

hey there. Not going to waste words telling you about how busy life is which is why I haven't blogged in almost 2 months. But here's life in 5 little bullets just to keep you up to date:

1. Campers arrive at Windy Gap Sunday. SUMMER IS HERE YALL.

2. I've been weaving a lot. I love it but it sucks up all of my creative juices.

3. Marcel leaves in exactly a month tomorrow. Love him. We'll miss him. 

4. Albus weight over 100 pounds now.

5. I'm growing my hair out. Because we've been talking about babies. Not right now. But I want to be a long-haired mommy so I'm growing my hair out.

Here's some good chicken I made:

maple dijon chicken

ingredients:

3 chicken breasts

1 cup dijon mustard

1/4 cup organic maple syrup (or whatever kinda syrup you wish)

a lotta lemon pepper

sprinkle of garlic salt

directions:

Throw it all in a big ziplock. Leave it in the fridge all day. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes depending on how big your chickens are. Add some more dijon and maple syrup to a pan and thicken it with some tapioca flour (or cornstarch or regular flour) if you're feelin fancy. You don't have to. But I did.

short and sweet. hopefully I'll write again soon

twenty three

A weekend with my mom is a good weekend indeed.

She's a beauty. And the picture of a servant. And naggy because she loves me. It took me a long to realize how she does everything, even the most annoying mom things, out of love.

 

We spent my birthday doing my favorite things: eating good food, shopping, exploring windy gap, eating a homecooked steak dinner, Settlers of Catan, drinking foo foo drinks and hanging out with a few friends. My birthday gets more fun every year!

 

 

 

This week's goals:

1. EXERCISE BEFORE WORK. Done and done on a Monday! My goal was to go at least once. Maybe I'll go for twice. All you need is 30 minutes if you go hard.
2. ACTUALLY EAT MY LUNCH I BROUGHT TO WORK. Don't live off of camp food. Don't be a loser.
3. MAKE GOOD USE OF MY COMMUTE TIME. No listening to Friends on Netflix on my way to work. Spend some time with Jesus.

What are your goals for the week?

 



a weekend away

This weekend, we spent the weekend at a "cabin" in Hot Springs, NC. We thought we rented a cabin...but when we got there it was actually a beautiful, spacious house out in the middle of nowhere! We had it all to ourselves and it was so peaceful to have nobody else around. It was quiet. I was dancing on my toes with excitement when the Moose's (Mooses, Meese? I'm not sure what to call them) pulled in, with baby Merritt packed nicely in the womb. I am already so in love with baby Merritt already! Casey and I thought for sure that Matt and Aly would decline our invitation to our weekend getaway seeing as Aly is 8 months pregnant, but nope. Turns out Aly is the coolest, most low maintenance prego lady I've ever met. #teamAly

We spent the weekend playing games, sharing life, eating great {whole30} food together and laughing. I didn't get out of my pajamas all day yesterday and it was glorious. I also drank 5 cups of coffee simply because I could sit and drink it before it went cold. We talked about babies and the fever is boiling y'all. But we will continue to wait! We missed Albus and Marcel a lot but it was nice to have some "adult" time. 

It was so much fun to spend so much time with our closest friends who have walked with us through our marriage and to look at all of the stories and adventures and happiness the Lord has brought us through these four. We are truly blessed.

5 things I learned in 2014

5 things I learned in 2014:

About being a wife:
Trusting the Lord means trusting your husband. When the idea of inviting Marcel to come live with us FOR A FREAKING YEAR was presented to me by my dear husband, I thought he was insane. No way could I handle having someone else in my house, in my space, taking up my time, my precious private time for a whole year. No way could I trust myself to be in charge of someone else's life. But you know what I could trust? That my husband is a man rooted in the Bible. That he seeks the Lord's wisdom every single day. That he loves me sacrificially and never looks at life without taking me into consideration. And so when Casey said he thought it was a good idea, I let him make that decision for us. Sometimes trusting the Lord means trusting your husband.

About chasing your dreams:
Don't let anyone but Jesus tell you no. Give your whole self to the mission of pursuing your dreams. If it's your dream, you can't just get sad that it's not working out and find a new dream. I applied for a job at Windy Gap 4 times before they told me yes. Unqualified, undereducated, unexperienced as I was, I had faith that if I kept chasing hard enough, it had to work out. And it did.

About health:
That I am and will always be a food addict. But that skinny and healthy tastes better than that second helping of mashed potatoes. That a day without potato chips or Chick Fil A or bread leads to a night without interrupted sleep. And that leads to me having way more energy. And that sometimes means I'll actually get up that extra 30 minutes earlier to read my Bible. Which leads to me being a WAY more gracious and loving wife and fake mommy. But that living a healthy life, eating good food and exercising is a journey not so smooth at times...because I am a food addict.

About Young Life:
To be an interesting person, do interesting things. My friend Leslie said this to me a long time ago and it's rang true in my head every since. This mission of pursuing high school kids can be more than coffee dates and campaigners. Living life with Jesus is fun and exciting. Show them that. Show them what a life without fear of being weird or failing looks like.

About tragedy:
The Lord is bigger than it. Bigger than Gatsby dying. Bigger than my parents divorce. Bigger than Casey getting laid off the week before Christmas. He's louder than the Enemy that whispers lies through pain and brighter than the sun that seeps through the darkness. He is.

16 gifts for guys that aren't clothes

Boys are hard when it comes to gift giving...I always struggle to find gifts for my dad, uncles, etc. way more than I do the women in my family. So to help, I've compiled a list of items approved by Casey and some other guys that are worth looking into! Christmas is just around the corner but it's not too late to snag one of these great gifts!

1. Wireless iPhone Boombox Speaker $40
2. REI Flash 18 Pack  34.50 $26.93
3. For the man who loves a good shave $60
4. UGG man slippers  $109.95
5. Leatherman Wingman Multitool $34.95
6. For the guy who's into working out $39.95
7. The best thermos in the world $25.99
8. waterproof flashlight  $14
9. sexy man blankey $178
10. for the man who doesn't ever shave $45
11. for absolutely no reason $24.95
12. for the man who loves camping  $130
13. pocket rocket camping stove  $39.95
14. charge/sync portable cable $25
15. nike+ gps watch 199.95 $165.95
16. beer of the month subscription  $39/month

the best friendsgiving there ever was

Yesterday Casey and I invited our Young Life kids over for a friendsgiving meal and it was so much fun! I bought a smallish turkey and asked the boys to bring leftover side dishes from their Thanksgiving and the girls to bring desserts. We were expecting to only have like 12 kids accept our invitation, thinking most of them would be out of town for the holiday. We were wrong! We ended up having 25 kids show up and had to have them bring fold up tables and chairs that spilled into our living room. Our little 1200 square foot home was bursting. It was incredible! Best idea we've ever had and it was so easy! This will for sure be one of our new traditions we do every year.

1 Thessalonians 2:8
We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.

turkey day 2014

This year we spent Thanksgiving with our good friends Graham and Olivia. Olivia was a yearlong intern at Windy Gap last year but we met Graham first. We were placed in the same training group last fall when we were going through wrangler training to be able to run the ropes course on the weekends at WG. The Lord definitely knew what he was doing when he placed us in the same group! It's been so fun to walk with these two this past year while they were engaged and now we get to be married friends!

Yesterday morning, Casey and spent some time going back and forth talking about things we were thankful. It was amazing to look back on the last year and see all of the things the Lord has brought to us in just one year. At this same Thanksgiving last year, we were both part time in our jobs, we had a few friends and fewer deep relationships and Asheville still felt like a weird vacation that kept on going. Since then, Casey's been made full time at the Y, we moved into our house, and developed deep relationships with people who feel like family. We lost Gatsby, gained Marcel and I started my dream job at Windy Gap in the same week. We figured out this great juggling act of full time jobs, full time loving on high school kids, and full time being in charge of a teenager. Then, we had added another teenager/man to live with us. I've grown so much as a person and wife and watched Casey evolve into a man greater than one I could have cooked up in my dreams. The Lord has blessed us so much. I can't believe my life has turned into what it has.

Hope you all had a fantastic Thanksgiving!

xoxo

The Zagspersens

family weekend

Such a sweet weekend. I wish it could have lasted longer. My dad and sister made the long drive to Asheville from Dallas on Thursday night. We went to lunch on Friday at the epic Tupelo Honey and were full for the rest of the day. Seriously. We didn't even eat dinner. That night we dressed up in our Halloween costumes {Marcel was James Bond} and waltzed around downtown. AND THEN on Saturday we woke up to SNOW!!! It was our first snow of the season and it was a really good snow. I think it snowed at least 8-9 inches. Dad, Casey and Aerica came to the wonderful Windy Gap and worked in the bakery with me once they woke up on Saturday and we sled there once I got off of work. It was such a full but relaxing weekend and I'm so glad Dad and Aerica got to come and see my life here in Asheville.

Come back soon please!

 

xoxox

life lately in photos

Last weekend we ran a 9 mile Spartan Race and survived. Marcel turned 17. Albus is over 3 times the size he was when we got him. Casey and I worked a lot. My dad and sister are on their way to Asheville right NOW! Get ready for a picture overload on Monday.

19 interesting contact work ideas

 

This post is inspired by my rockstar husband, who figured out in his first year of leading Young Life what I've dreamt of mastering for a long time...contact work.

 

This year is my 5th year of loving on high school kids through Young Life and I know that each year the Lord grows me more and more through giving my life away. I wrote another post on what the Lord has taught me about leading Young Life here. This past year of leading with Hubs has been the most mind blowing and fruitful year of ministry in so many ways. Our day-to-day life looks so crazy from an outsider's perspective and I feel weird and braggy in saying that but it's just the truth. We moved across town to live close to the school where we lead, in order to have an open door, welcoming kids to come over whenever. We go to high school parties. We have two teenagers living with us right now and hang out with other teenagers at least every other day. Loving on our high school friends is just a part of our life. I'm so thankful that the Lord has blessed me with a husband who not only agrees with me on what our life together should be about, but excercises that mission perfectly and inspires me to do the same.

 

So because of that, I've created a list of 19 contact work ideas. Pick one and do it this weekend. Or today. Or right now. Life with Jesus is exciting and interesting and we, as Young Life leaders called to the mission of loving on teenagers, have the privilege of walking with them through high school. We get the privilege of showing them that high school doesn't have to be about partying. And life without partying doesn't have to mean sitting at home on the couch being bored.

1. Go wrap another Yl leader's house...or Saran wrap their car...or put pink flamingos in the yard

2. Visit a haunted house and pee your pants

3. Have them teach you how to do make up...because most of my high school friends are way more put together than I am. Example: my sweet friend Ashleigh Vaughn in the pictures above.

4. Volunteer at an animal shelter as an excuse to kiss on cute puppies

5. Take them go to buy goldfish. Put a wager on whoever gets their fish to live the longest

6. Relive middle school and go try on fancy homecoming dresses just for giggles

7. Have a themed movie marathon

8. Make big cookie. Or 3 of them. Make sure and eat them straight out of the tin like you do at camp

9. Have a poker night. Which will most likely mean teaching them how to play poker

10. Decorate shirts and go all out with school spirit at their football game this week

11. Have a board game night

12. Have a craft night. You can usually find canvases and paint on sale at Michaels

13. Go on a hike

14. Go thrifting

15. Pick out a recipe and cook a fancy meal

16. Teach them to knit or some other activity you're proficient in

17. Go play putt putt

18. Have a one roll night with a list of consequences

19. Go to a local restaurant that has a food challenge. Example: a steak that becomes free if you eat it all or a really spicy wing that might make you throw up

apple pickin

Today was a good day. 

I woke up before my alarm went off feeling rested. Spent some time smoochin on my pup and hubs. Hubs made pancakes for us and some high school boys who spent the night. Went to church for the first time since I started working at WG. Came home and ate lunch. Went apple picking and checked out some pumpkins. Albus's collar fits now so we tried him on the leash and he hated it and dug his heals in the ground until we picked him up. Gotta work on that. Came home and made an apple pie. Got some alone time with Hubs while we ran around Fletcher Park. Then I came home and had campaigners with some of my high school girls and got to teach them about the love of Jesus.

Holy cow. I am blown away daily by how blessed this life is that I live.

October Bucket List:

1. Visit a pumpkin patch (so white girl..I know)

2. Pick apples

3. Make a 100% home made pie from scratch

4. Visit a haunted house (I will inevitably cry)

5. Do the zip line at Windy Gap

6. Go through a corn maze

7. Visit Max Patch

8. Ride bikes down the Blue Ridge Parkway

october bucket list

I love love love Fall. It's my favorite season by far. With Marcel being with us now, the idea of making traditions is suddenly much more exciting to me. Kind of like...when people get a kid. I want to show him Asheville and America and introduce him to new things. So to help keep us accountable to this, we've put together an October bucket list and I am so excited to complete it! Some are simple. Some are not. But they're definitely things that I always say we should do and don't do often enough or sometimes at all. So here's the list:

1. Visit a pumpkin patch (so white girl..I know)

2. Pick apples

3. Make a 100% home made pie from scratch

4. Visit a haunted house (I will inevitably cry)

5. Do the zip line at Windy Gap

6. Go through a corn maze

7. Visit Max Patch

8. Ride bikes down the Blue Ridge Parkway

What are some of your traditions? Any bucket list items for the fall? 

Albus Gats

Well...the list has grown again. The list of things in my life that looked completely different a month ago. Meeting Albus for the first time was strange. On one hand, I was so excited to finally meet him. He's been "ours" for a few weeks but we had to wait for him to turn 8 weeks. On another hand, there was definitely some weird deja vu. The puppy breath, the new toys, the peeing on my lap...all things we've experienced before. Except the last pup we took into our arms and brought home isn't here anymore. That one didn't turn out as planned. We've grieved deeply the past month and Albus is in no way a means to stop the grieving. I don't think we'll ever stop missing Gatsby. That's just the way those things go. There are so many things he never got to do or learn. He never quite caught on to the whole lifting of the leg thing when he peed. He never, ever got to that stage where we could trust him not to chew on things...but he was getting so much better at it. He never got to be big brother to our babies -- something we talked about quite a bit. He never got to turn two or to experience old age. And I know it's crazy to talk this way about him because he was a dog. It's not like he was my child or anything. But in a way, he filled our life like a child does. Every day, I still find my feet searching for him as I wake up. For a split second, I've wondered if I'm running low on dog food when I pass it in the grocery store before I remember that I haven't needed dog food. It's still really hard, even though we've chosen to love another. We've chosen to take another clumsy, wobbly baby on four legs into our home and call him ours. And maybe it's too soon but we really feel that if Gatsby were here...he would have liked this new play mate. Because he's really, really cute. And he's really, really nice.

To Albus Gats. Named after the great wizard, and the great big brother he never got to meet.