I'm Listening - kind of

You know what they say about assuming things.  Well, I used to assume that I knew myself better than anyone.  But being married has taught me a few things I didn't know about myself.  For instance, I do not have the gift of gab.  Unless I'm with my husband, my sisters, or a rare few people, I just generally don't have that much to say.  Since I don't always like to talk, I assumed that I was a good listener (insert "ass-u-me saying" here); however, that's not entirely true.  Maybe a more accurate statement is that I'm a good partial listener.  Frequently I find myself listening just enough to catch the general gist of the conversation and missing a few minor details.
For instance on our trip to the Denver airport this weekend, Taylor asked me to remind him to put a check in the mail for the ticket.  Confused, I asked, "What ticket?"  He said, "The speeding ticket I got this week in Ashland."  He then proceeded to tell me what he apparently already told me earlier this week.  He couldn't understand why I chose to be irritated with him at that point for getting a speeding ticket when he'd already told me about it.
I've decided that Taylor must have been talking to me about something else, and when he mentioned the ticket, I had already moved into partial-listening mode.  From now on I'm going to work on being a more present, engaged listener.  Anytime I'm talking to any of you, feel free to help me in my efforts.  You can stop at any point and ask me to repeat what you just said.  Hopefully I'll develop a habit of truly listening!  :)

Anyway, Taylor and I drove to Denver this Friday and flew to Nashville.  My good friend, Heidi, was getting married so we went back for the wedding.  We got there Friday night, went to the wedding Saturday, and flew home Sunday.  It was a super quick trip, but we were really glad we were able to go, and we felt very honored to be there.  I actually only met Heidi about 6 months ago, but we immediately became really good friends.  I knew her parents first, then I met her and we truly got to hang out for the first time when we were in Vegas at the National Finals Rodeo.  One night the three of us went to a little party, then we went to a dance club, then we spent the rest of the night playing black jack (a big feat for me; I am NOT a night owl.  I've even been known to fall asleep standing up when going out to the bars at night). :) That night we talked them into lowering the minimum bet for the table, then we played and joked around with the dealer until about 6 a.m.  Surprisingly we won quite a bit of money! It was a great night, but mostly because I'd made a new friend! She's one of the few people I can easily talk to without having those weird awkward moments.  Heidi made a gorgeous bride and her wedding was beautiful.  It was the perfect setting out at her family's farm. 

 Heidi and her dad, Rory
Heidi and Casey (I did not take either of these pictures)

 

On a different subject, Taylor and I have been enjoying a little produce out of our garden.  Our potatoes and peas look the best right now, but the corn is growing.  Our tomatoes, peppers, and green beans look a little worse for wear.  For now I'm going to blame it on the wind and the fact that we just tore up our garden plot this year and that the dirt isn't well developed yet (I'll give it a couple of years before I accept the blame for my lack of gardening skills!)  :)  We have been eating quite a bit of homegrown spinach, and yesterday I cooked our first potatoes.
 

There's something fantastic about a completely homegrown meal!!  Spinach and potatoes out of our garden; beef from my dad's herd.  

On an exciting note, we should be getting a yard soon.  The lawn company has been here the past two days and they are putting in sprinkler systems, etc.  Once the grass grows I'll put up before and after pictures.

Western Kansas Fact #? (I'm losing count):  Out here sunburns happen without you noticing.  Back home I could always feel when I was starting to get red.  Here, though, there's no humidity and if it isn't that hot out, you can be getting crispy fried without even knowing.  The air feels nice and your skin doesn't feel that hot.  I found this fact out this weekend while working in the garden.

My favorite scripture this week was "Your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him."  Matthew 6:8  I really liked this one because the lesson reminded me that praying shouldn't just involve me asking God for things.  It should more fully focus around my faith and trust in His ability to provide for me what I truly need.  I can ask for things, but I also need to be ready to accept that I don't always know what is best for me, and I won't always get what think I want.  But if I rely on Him I will always have what I need.

Happy summer everyone!

Lyndee