Lambeau Field.

My favorite Cody got tickets to the Packer game last Thursday and decided to take me.  (All ladies may direct applications for getting to know Cody to me.)  I had never been to Lambeau Field (inside the stadium) before… So, you could say I was excited! 

As we walked toward the stadium in a sea of green jerseys, I felt… privileged.  I guess that is the best way to describe it.  It was like, I was a part of something bigger, I had a ticket to the party, like we all knew a secret and were going to be let in.  A smile was smeared across my face the whole time.  The stadium, inside, was… life-size.  It was giant and full and majestic.  The guys on the field were visible – not like you see on TV – just normally sized.  It was… wordless.

The night was warm and humid – I could not imagine being there in the dead of winter without hand warmers and a good pair of wool socks!  Cody and I had so much fun on this little adventure together.

I would recommend Lambeau to anyone.  The fly-over after the national anthem... totally awe-inspiring!  It left me breathless!  Oh, and we won!  But what else would you expect from the reigning world-champion Green Bay Packers! ?

Thanks for taking me Cody!  I love you bro!

SFOOG: 2011 -- We're Back and Better than Ever!

Sunday was the 3rd mostly annual SFOOG (Sherf Family Outdoor Olympic Games).  I say "mostly annual" because last summer's weekends got eaten up by planning a wedding!!  :)  The events of SFOOG are Jaime originals, at least the twists are.  We pair up and compete in the activities I create and then we dress up in the medal outfits for a picture based on our finishes.  Enjoy the picture and blurb recap of highlights!

Bring Sally Up, Bring Sally Down

  We all got down on our stomachs for some good ol' fashioned push-ups.  As we listened to Moby's Flower, we came up and went down with the lyrics for Sally.  The person who lasted the longest in the song without stopping got to pick his/her partner for the day.  Cody won!  Congrats bud!

Gold Medal winning Ice Escape performance

 The first event was Ice Escape, formed in my mind while we were ice fishing this winter on the Lake of the Woods.  As we were in my dad's car, we contemplated the best possible way of escape if we were to break through the ice.... the sun roof!  One member from each team had to start in the driver's seat and be timed as they projected him or herself out of the car and onto the pavement.   Winning time?  5.72 seconds.

Winner?  ME!  That's right, Jaime Sherf beat out 2 of her 3 brothers for the title of quickest escape out of an Impala sunroof!

 Event #2: Roofball - the family fav!  Technical rules (which only Cody and I really know since we made them up).  It's a hoot!   A pregnant woman and her husband took the gold in this event.  By the way, the "gold" medal was an Aaron Rodgers' jersey, a tiara and a superman cape :)

Event # 3: Fru-Bik-alad

The names are just as fun to come up with as the actual rules of the game!  One team member headed out via bike around the block.  Once one lap was completed, his or her teammate proceeded to eat a bowl of fruit salad.  After the consumption of the salad, the first teammate would set out for another block of biking.  The first team to make it back to the mailbox won gold.

The Bikers of Fru-Bik-alad

The 2^nd place finishers got to don a straw hat, a maraca and a Ghanaian head wrap.   The third place team really was worse than getting 4^th because you had to show up in a picture wearing the pitiful jersey of GB#4.  There was also a Marilyn Monroe style wig and some Viking colored beads.

The winners of Fru-Bik-alad!

Bonding over a cold soak!

 Event #4: Cold Feet

The kiddie pool scares my family.  It might have been from the time I made us all stick our heads underwater at hold our breath in a competition of lung capacity.  In any event, it’s always fun to spice it up a bit.  I filled our pool with a few layers of ice and then freezing water.  Then, we stuck our feet in.  We shared moments of intense pain while we strengthened our wills to be the last foot in.  40 minutes.  Not bad.  It all came down to a quiet conversation between my brother, Jeremy and me… and then I took my foot out, securing second place.

Medals for Cold Feet

Event #5 Bean Bag Toss

Nothing new or insane about this, which I think my family was thankful for… because their feet were still tingly.   By this point, Jeremy and Nicole have completely run away with the day… winning all by one gold medal.

 

Event #6 Nut Stack

We had a four way, head to head, team nut stack.  Oodles of fun.  The goal was to stack 7 nuts (three different sizes), alternating team members, using a shish kabob skewer. 

Nut Stack Results

 All in all, it was the best way to spend a Sunday afternoon with my dear family… making memories!

What memories did you make this last weekend?

Euchre in the Ice Box

A couple weekends ago, I had the sweet opportunity to spend the weekend in the bitter cold "ice fishing" with some of the men in my family (and Aryn, but we didn't just come to cook!).  I say "ice fishing" because I don't actually fish... I sit in the ice house and play euchre and sometimes pinochle or hearts.  Here's how it works...  

We get out to the fish house at about 8:30am, after waking up with icicles in our noses from sleeping in negative temps.  (Seriously, -20F is a WARM morning!)  In the fish house, I snag a spot by the heater while everyone puts down a line or two.  They check the depth and set the bobber while I make conversation and "consult" on lure choice.  This year, my fun uncle brought two of his three children.  And my older brother, Jeremy, joined Cody, Dad and me... we just had a ball!  Once everyone's lines went down, the table comes out and everyone gets into a position where they can see and attend to at least 2 holes.  We don't fish with tip-ups. So, the dealing begins. Euchre is a quick-handed game so that's nice.  Every time I mix and deal, I call for an ice-house-wide jig and/or bait check.  This year, my uncle began dancing every time I called for a jig.  Hilarious.  We didn't catch much fish, but we did laugh a lot.

The playing goes on until lunch, with occasional interruptions for a bite or re-bait.  We clear the cards for lunch and get out the sandwich fixings.  We eat as if we haven't just had breakfast, second breakfast and 11sies...  It's always good.

After lunch, the perfect, yet opposite, delight occurs.  I leave the fish house... my dad or Cody take me back to the cabin, draw me some water and build a fire and then leave.  I have the whole afternoon with my tea, a blazing fire, a book and my journal.  There is no one near me.  It is bliss... the perfect antithesis to the camaraderie of the fish house.  I love this annual weekend.  Most times, I don't even mind not showering for 4 days!

My dear fishing buddies :)

The evenings are filled with more food and cards until we all venture off to rest, snuggling in under tons of blankets.

I did actually jig just once this year.  It yielded this fish :)

Thanks for a great weekend everyone!  Until next year...

A Daddy Date

I was a cheap date.  Half of a $6 gas station pizza and a $5 State Park pass.  I was eager to spend this time with my dad... & also try out my brand spankin' new snowshoes & boots.  It was even degrees - neither positive nor negative - windless and quiet, as we approached the guard shack.  The attendant took the money and gave us a map of the candlelight loop.  We strapped on our shoes as others finished the loop, beaming at the beauty of the moonlit trail.  We started out, following the luminaries down the trail groomed for cross-country skiing.  

The air was crisp and still.  We clopped.  We chatted and wondered at things as we had done on the 9 hour journey to this tundra.  I love that about my dad... he taught me to wonder well, and to ask questions.  The trail was 1.25 miles, lit intermittently by candles.  God's yard light show with pure luminescence through the trees and along our path.  At times, we'd stop and admire the moon and list to the wind fly betwixt the trees.  We rounded back toward the car.  We were breathless and radiating heat as we finished our little adventure. 

These moments with my dear daddy will always be tucked in my heart.  I know it will not always be like this... but I am so grateful for the time we do have now.  It is a happy little part of my cave of now. 

A Family Education

I wish that I knew more about my ancestors.  I don’t necessarily want to know if they were famous or did something cool.  I want to know what they were like, what their sense of humor was, how they cared for family, what occupied their thoughts.  I’ve recently uncovered a lust for history, specifically my history. 

 

The electronic age will surely mean that people will know about us for many years, if they choose.  My great great granddaughter may read this someday and that thought is astonishing.  How I wish that I could uncover a journal from my great great grandpa Charles, who lived in the 1850s.  The only information I have about him or his wife, Esther, is what limited memories my own grandfather has. 

 

These moments with grandpa and his lucid memory are so precious, though few.  Often, I have to ask similar questions a couple times during the conversation to clarify and confirm his answers.  I love a good story too and when he tells them, I try to memorize every word. I've written a lot of them down and wish that I had the energy and time someday to compile them.  The writer in me longs for so much.

Last year, when my family was helping my grandfather downsize from his house to an apartment, we came across a jewel... an old family trunk, filled with pictures and letters.  I received an amazing education that day.  I met my great great grandfather, who was the original owner of the trunk.  I met his children and their families.  I held a stack of love letters that my great great grandparents exchanged before they were married.  I felt so honored to have this peek into my past.  I hope for more days like that soon.  It made me wonder... will any of my ancestors be in Heaven?  I have so many questions for them.

Photo by Ann Ilagan

 Do you ever wonder about the people you came from?

April Fool's Day (Part 2)

This is the first time in awhile that April Fool's Day has fallen during Cody's spring break.  Thus, he was home all day to ponder and plot a revenge against me.  How I wished he'd had school to take his mind off of me.  I was envisioning buckets of goop over my bedroom door or dead spiders in my bed.  I was trying not to be paranoid, just cautious and a bit more aware of my surroundings.

My day was full of engagements (wedding and others) so I did not arrive home until near 11pm.  All evening, I received texts from Cody (via Mom) inquiring as to when I would be home.  I couldn't tell if this way simply a part of his paranoia plan or not.  I had bags and things to lug in from my car.  As I came through the darken garage, a figure jumped at the window.  I didn't scream, but I jumped back a bit.  It was Cody, performing his "Pre-prank-so-she-let's-her-guard-down-prank." Of course, I didn't realize this is what it was until about 2am on April 2nd. 

I am awakened out of my dream to Jason Mraz playing inside my bedroom.  20 seconds, then off.  At first, I am not sure if it was occurring in my waking consciousness or in my sleep.  30 seconds later, more of Jason, then off.  Cody.  He has somehow wired speakers into my room to play off of his iPod. The music continues for 30 minutes like this... on for 20 seconds, off for 30, fast forward, on again, off, new song, rap, hip hop.  I really wanted to wait it out, but I also wanted my sleep.

Finally, I get up to talk with Cody. He played sleep, but then finally fessed up to running the controls.  I congratulated him on a prank well-played, suggested that next time he plan it so that he could sleep through it, and inquired about how much of the carpet he had to pull up to lay the wire.  We chatted for about 10 minutes and then went back to bed at a quarter to 3am.

I will leave you with one question: Does anyone have access to exercise bungee bands (used for resistance)?

April Fool's Day (Part 1)

April Fool’s Day always creeps up on me rather quickly.  I began conniving this past Wednesday for the perfect trick to play on Cody.  I was restricted to the items I owned or was willing to acquire in the next several hours.  No prank at all is better than one ill-executed.  I settled on random cell phone alarms and a simple mid-hallway fish line web.  I collected a few old cell phones that were lying around (I’m so thankful that we haven’t donated those old phones yet!).  I chose the ring style, volume and set the times in 20-30 minute intervals.  The hurdle in getting this part of the prank set up was in the fact that Cody’s door squeaks and rattles as you open it.  There is no sneaking into his room, sometimes no entry at all if he’s locked it.  I tiptoed toward it.  I turned it, nudged it, thought I was home scot-free, when I hear: What are you doing?  Cody was still awake in his bed!

I announced myself more openly as I reeled inside for a plan B.  A story.  Yes, a story is what I needed.  Cody liked a good story! Cody, I haven’t seen you all day!  I’m glad you are still up (DRAT, he’s still up!)… I wanted to tell you a story about my night at camp tonight.  Sitting down next to his bed, I began to spin a tale of woe while wondering two things.  I wondered firstly if he’d even believe my story, or at least be mildly entertained.  Secondly, I wondered if my story could create enough of diversion so that I could slid a few phones to various places underneath his bed.  I began in.

Now, the story wasn’t particularly exciting, except for the suspenseful inflection and various climatic moments.  In reality, the story was about how I was down at Riverside looking for my Starbuck coffee mug that I’d lost there a couple of months ago.  I rehashed every light switch I turned on, every thought, every fright.  Well, he took it all in, gasping and sighing at all of the right spots.  I left his room with my phones planted in the best spots imaginable, all the while dispelling any suspicion that Cody may have had that I was pranking him.  Good night, Cody.

The fish line: My only comment about the fish line is that it’s hard to work with in the dark.  I had to create the illusion that I was in bed (hence, no lights on) so… well, I lost quite a few strands, to be found in the morning.  That said, it was also pretty easy for Cody to see the fish line early on April 1^st.  The alarms wake him up, flashing, vibrating, ringing, dinging.  And I received a text after the last one (a phone that actually had service attached)…  nice Jaime.   And then a bit later, can you please take down the fish line?  

Over breakfast, we discussed the strengths and weaknesses of the prank and by the end of our conversation, I’d convinced Cody to walk into the fish line net just for posterity’s sake.  So, for the next few minutes, we walked and got tangled in it. 

I left for work on Thursday in a happy mood.  As I walked out, Cody mischievously asks me – so, when are you going to be home tonight, Jaime?  

I knew I was in for something. 

On the Road to State

The Amherst boys basketball team has advanced to the third round of the playoffs this season, a game this afternoon against top ranked Marathon.  I have be delighted to watch them play.  There is something, however, about the playoffs - a precarious sense of survival.  It seems to be that one wrong step, pass, shot will send your team to the off season.  Yes, we have been blessed in Amherst to advance several rounds each year at least.  (I cannot imagine following a team that gets out in the first round.  It has just not ever been my experience.) 

And yet, we still see the frustration on the court by our guys when a clutch shot is missed.  The determination when the ball is coming down the court and gosh-dang-it, we need the steal.  This is what these players have prepared for all season!  They've practiced and played together for the past 5 months.  They know each other well.  Some plays are new and delicate while others, we have seen every game, like base-line Lutz or drive and dish Doll. 

I get nervous as a fan.  Perhaps it is because, at one point, I was a sister.  (I still am a sister, but not to varsity basketball players this year).   There is something about watching your own brother out on the court - knowing his strengths and weaknesses - having lived with him and seen his tantrums and triumphs, that brings the game to a heightened level.  You want his hard work to pay off.  You want to see him shine.  Trouble is, all of the players on the other team have families that want the same thing.  So, it is a battle. 

After watching these players all year, I've come to enjoy their teamwork.  The looks of encouragement, the shouts of praise and the helpful suggestions after a cheap foul.  I love seeing the determination in their eyes and the hustle in their bodies as they go for the ball.  There is a passion here.  I hope this passion continues, if not for ball, for something, for life. To live it well and with confidence, the same confidence that they have popping up the 3-ball when they know they are "on." 

Oh yes, can you tell I love high school basketball?  It is a tradition in our family. Going to these games makes me miss the days of high school as Sherf's Little Sister.  It makes me a little sad that I will not be present for the next few seasons of watching my "biggest/youngest" brother play for Jensen.  But for today, I'm going to cheer and enjoy these men and their excitement for a chance at Marathon!

Play the game of your lives!

Family Times

We spent last night trekking back in time… to when we set out on an adventure together – to new places and seemingly “more refined” tastes. We started out the day in snow-dusted Solway, saying good-bye to the curved driveway and bare trees. We had packed up our lives into boxes. Each of us had taken a stroll through the house with the video camera, reliving old memories and trying not to forget. For me, it was my first noteworthy venture into complete unknown. I was thankful that I had my family to go through it with the first time. Our dogs, Ginger and Blackie, are quiet and contemplative, as if they feel that was are leaving. Dad shows us the garage… the place where he created, now his vacant workbench and custom shelving. The tractor that carried our wood so many faithful years sits in the corner, to be picked up by a new owner. The yard is a dismal brown, looking so forlorn, even after the winter’s cleansing. The swing set where I first learned to pump my knees. The basketball hoop where I first went Around the World. The memories come rushing back as we view this piece of our lives.

In seconds, we find ourselves saying hello to a new house, even to a new life. First, we are introduced to the office that seemed to set this whole chaos into motion. It was a brown building with several different office spaces inside. Worldbook had the sliver office at the end. My dad was moving up in his company. I am awed by a town that was twice the size of Bemidji, MN. We caught our first views of our street, our drive home. This place would be where we opened our lives, the new chapter. The grass is green in our new manicured lawn. Here, the trees are intentionally placed and not left to come up where the wind blows the seed. As we watch, we are reminiscent of shorter trees, basketball hoop-less driveways, and old wall paper. I remember the new excitement that accompanied this house that has become so acquainted and comfortable. My room has dry-wall on all four sides!

The screen goes blue. I am torn from my reverie, being met again with the reality that it is 14 years later. It is late in the night. There is church tomorrow. All that I want to do is put in the next tape and continue to cuddle with my daddy. Times like these are precious, becoming scarcer with each passing day. I live in the same room that I did while in high school, but so much time has gone by. I can see it in the shooting height of the trees and Cody, in the extra gray hairs around dad’s ears, in my own body’s commencing physical decline. Life continues to go on, picking up speed by the minute. Most days, I long for a cave filled with now…

We hear a song or read a story, & the good feelings get don’t remain inside of us. We are either anticipating them, or we’ve had them and they are gone. We never experience them as now… I’m writing a story about a little girl who discovers a cave where there is a lasting now. – Chaim Potok [The Gift of Asher Lev, p.99]

May you enjoy your Thanksgiving with friends and family, in the now...

Awhile.

It seems like the best thing to do to get blogging again is just write... something or anything.

I was in Florida last week. It was wonderfully warm and sunny. My mom, Codster and I drove down to visit my grandma who is in a nursing home down there. She and my grandpa retired down there at the retirement village for the Mission that they were with in Africa. Anyway, we stayed and the village while we visited grandma. I loved talking with all of the retirees because most of them knew of me through my grandparents and mother. Many of them had taught or lived in Jos with them. It's always so cool to hear the stories and I'm just blown away by their dedication to the Lord.

I have a new project at work. It involves taking the staples out of about 2,500 documents - each averaging 2 staples. It's in an effort to get the documents scanned so that if we lost the paper copy due to flood, fire or terrorism, we'd still be okay. I have cut the time in takes me to do 150 from 2 hours to 1 hour. It's just as boring though. I like to be efficient.

There. I'm fairly certain that more thoughtful thoughts will come soon. I have been writing, just not near my blog. So, tell me how you all have been doing!

Snow-roof-ball.

Roof ball in the winter is a whole new ball game! I won't say that it's even more fun that the other variations because summer barefoot roof ball and rain roof ball is super fun, but winter definitely brings some new challenges. The snow on the roof for instance... it makes the ball resemble a Plink-o chip and sometimes it gets stuck. Cody had to boost me up on the roof to rearrange the snow and retrieve the ball several times. That was only after we threw our hands numb with snow balls trying to dislodge the ball from its hole. The snow on the ground also poses a problem... It's a foot deep in spots, but also packed into large piles in others. It made for jumping, climbing, and flying in pursuit of the next play. Let's just say that at the end of the game [i won!], we were soaked to the core, laughed-out and dog-tired.

It was a beautiful day. I also knocked myself out for about an hour in the snowbank today. That sun, it was just gorgeous and warm! I couldn't help but smile as I napped in its rays. The birds chatting, the ice melting, the icicles dropping off the roof and crashing me awake. There is hope of even more warmth out there... someday. It's been a good sabbath... and back to work tomorrow.

Birthdays Birthdays

There have been lots of great memories of this day and celebrations of this day – the day God brought me into this world. And as each one comes and goes and I reflect on them, I become more and more thankful for God’s good provision for me… of family and friends from so many cultures and stages of life. I am truly thankful for all of you.

Some birthday memories:

1991 – The overnight blizzard on Halloween and none of my sleepover guests had boots. I have clear images still in my mind of my daddy carrying my tennis-shoed friends to our station wagon to bring them home after the party.

1993 – What? I’m getting a brother? Yes, I got a really cool bday present exactly TWO weeks after my day.

1994 – My daddy took me to Chicago [we flew from Bemidji , MN ] for a long weekend.

1999 – Sweet 16 – first boy-girl party. Sixteen Candles was my favorite song for weeks.

2003 – First birthday away from home. My cousin KayLynn brought me a huge cake and balloons at NWC and my parents sent me flowers.

2004 – I heard my name over the loud speaker at Sentry Insurance to call security [dream fulfilled] and they wished me a happy birthday. The next day, I forgot my security badge and when I called them to let me in, they were convinced I had forgotten it because I was out carousing on my 21^st birthday.

2006 – My au-pair family threw me a fancy 4-course dinner party. It was my first birthday party where one of the only things I understood was when they sang me Happy Birthday in English. The cards and emails I received from the States were completely overwhelming!

2007 – I organized a photo scavenger hunt in the old city section of Innsbruck for my Austrian friends. The memories made there were so sweet! On the night of my birthday, I attended my first Austrian Ball. I thought I was dreaming.

2008 – Well, I had an “un-birthday” celebration at Riverside this summer when Maria took my joke about July 23 being my birthday seriously. We had “un-birthday cookies” and they sang me “Happy un-birthday.”

On my real birthday this year, I just turned a ¼ century. That’s kind of monumental. Mama bought me a gigantic warm cookie and milk to dunk it in for lunch [dessert.] And the State of WI and the city of Stevens Point decided to unveil one of the most critical exit ramps in the city along I-39 just for the special day. I do feel appreciated.

Haziness

I have spent the last several days at work reading binders, textbooks and websites. I'm trying to get my mind around this big thing called, "my job duties," in this new position. I feel like a blind monk trying to figure out that an elephant is standing next to him by only feeling around its feet and legs. It is a hazy cloud that will not seem to lift. I used to like this learning process, but I believe that I'm growing impatient with myself.

Each night, I come home exhausted and can't muster much beyond sitting on my couch, though tonight I managed to get the cheapest gas at the co-op and make Cody bark like a dog all the way there! That was a riot!

And well, tomorrow, it's back to discerning more of this elephant - or whatever decides to emerge.

Ciao.

Concerts, Opening Ceremonies and Cribbage

This 3-day weekend has begun with a bang!! And there are still two days left of it! Rock on!

Last night, Ann and I took a little road trip up to Merrill, WI for a concert at OTTS Garage. This place is just plain cool... cool look, cool people, even cooler God, just cool! It was definitely the place to be on a Friday night in Merrill too! We saw Survive the Drive and Hyland perform. Good shows, for sure! And we decided that we'd hang out in Merrill again :o)

And then today... it started as a lazy day, in my PJs for lunch. After losing like 8 straight games of pool, I knew that I needed to spice up the day. So, I threw together SFOOG: Sherf Family Outdoor Olympic Games for the afternoon entertainment. We had team events as well as individual competitions in some lesser known, but professionally played sports. Bo-golf [a combo of Boccie and golf], Biki-ana [Biking + Banana eating], Roof-ball [of course!], breath-holding and cribbage were on the list of events. We took pictures, video and just had a blast together, enjoying the nice weather and each other!

The Roof-ball team competition was especially fierce, but mom and I came out on top!!!

The winners of the Biki-Ana Event - Cody & Dad.

And here's the highlight reel...

Ok, so I live at home...

Sometimes I think that's pretty pathetic, but tonight was a sweet treat in my cave of now. Cody and I have invented a game called "Roof-ball." There is a complete set of rules for scoring, faults, fouls and proper etiquette for play. We play to 21 by ones and you have to serve to win. I have yet to win, though I served for the win just tonight. Cody has incredibly long strides so I have to rely on the quick little spin shot in order to make a point. His height also gives him an advantage so I'm literally left with lucky shots and annoying him by talking incessantly. That's hard to do when I am constantly out of breath!

Being able to spend time with Cody is one of the highlights of living at home. He's going to be a freshman next month and he's just growing up too fast for me! I'm not sure how much longer I will be living in the States, but one thing is sure: I desire to invest every second of it that I can in people and things eternal. Putting my head in the sand is just not an option!