Spending the night at the airport, I made sourdough bread (!!), and some books I'm loving!

Plus, snow week pictures!! Hi, Friend! Well, after a very successful first week of our new schedule (if you didn't get last week's email newsletter where I shared our schedule, hit reply and ask me for it and I'll be happy to forward it to you!), we had a very eventful week that was completely off plan! For starters, I flew to Wichita, KS to spend the weekend with my parents (my mom has been having a lot of health issues and I am going to try to visit as often as I can this year as a result). I had a few delays getting there, but the winter storm kicked into gear around the country while I was there and when I went to fly out on Sunday afternoon, it was beginning to be in full force. My CRAZY Airport Adventures... I ended up making it to Dallas, but then -- after hours of waiting for a flight and then sitting on the plane for two more hours -- they cancelled the flight an I couldn't get the app to work for a bit so by the time I got my flight changed to a different flight, the soonest flight available was at 3 p.m. the next day. At this point, it was 12:15 a.m., it was blistery cold outside, I had 18-month-old Micah with me, and the hotel attached to the airport was completely full. It was too late to call any friends who lived nearby and Jesse and I were calling and looking online and couldn't find a hotel nearby that had a room available + I really didn't want to go outside and wait in the freezing cold with Micah for a shuttle to pick me up to take me to a hotel (I've found that late at night, you can sometimes wait up to 20 to 30 mins since the shuttles don't run as often!). What was I to do? I honestly was so tired and felt pretty overwhelmed. But I preached to myself the truth that God was with me and He was watching out for me and I could look to Him, even in this not-so-ideal situation. I prayed and asked Him to please help me find someone who could help me find a place to sleep for the night. I felt this strong prompting to walk back to the gate I had just deplaned from and see if anyone was there. Seeing God's Faithfulness... Sure enough, the gate attendants were still there helping people from our flight. I only had to wait a few minutes, got right up to the counter, and they took one look at me and Micah and seemed to have so much compassion and kindness toward me -- even though I can only imagine how long of a day it had been for them! I told them I had a flight out at 3 p.m. the next day, but was wondering if I could get on standby for any earlier flight. They looked things up in the computer and found an available seat on the 8 a.m. flight. And get this: the seat was in first class!!!! They told me that they were absolutely giving me the seat since I was stuck at the airport with a baby. They then told me that they thought it would be totally okay for me to spend the night in one of the nursing mother's rooms at the airport. The nursing mother's room had a chair that laid back, I could turn the lights out, and there was a little stool to put my feet up on! I only got about 20 minutes of sleep and someone came and knocked on the door in the night to see what I was doing in there, but Micah was able to sleep quite well laid on top of me -- which was a huge blessing! My flight the next morning ended up getting delayed multiple times and we didn't leave Dallas until close to 11:30 a.m. but we made it into Nashville -- one of the very last flight (or the last flight!) of the day. The three additional flights from Dallas (including the original one I had re-booked myself on) all got cancelled. SO. MUCH. SNOW! There was so much snow in Nashville when we landed that we had to wait for them to de-ice part of the runway and then clear a path with equipment for us to get to our gate. But we made it and I was never so happy to be back home and in my own bed! In fact, I slept for 14 hours -- I took a 4-hour nap and then slept for 10 hours that night!!! I look back and see God's hand and faithfulness and provision all during those almost 24 hours I was trying to fly back home. So many, many flights were diverted or cancelled, but somehow I ended up on one of the few flights that got into Nashville that day. It was truly the kindness of those gate agents and that one seat opening up in first class right as I walked up to the ticket counter at the prompting of the Holy Spirit. It also made me think a lot about what it would be like to be someone who doesn't have a place to stay -- especially when it's cold. I had warm clothes, money to buy food, enough diapers and warm clothes for Micah, and a roof over my head. So many, many people don't have those luxuries. It gave me a newfound compassion and empathy for mamas who are caring for babies in much, much more difficult situations on an ongoing basis. A WEEK of SNOW DAYS! After that crazy travel experience, I came home to an entire WEEK of snow days! Yes, you read that right! We got 5+ inches of snow + it was super cold and icy, so school was cancelled all week and all activities were cancelled and many things were closed. In fact, after I came home from the airport on Monday, I didn't leave the house (except to go on a walk in our neighborhood or to sit on the back screened-in porch) until today! = MY FIRST ATTEMPTS AT SOURDOUGH! But while we "snowed in", I made my first 4 loaves of sourdough bread!! This was a goal of mine for 2024 and, thanks to the step-by-step help from the [ActsofSourdough instagram account,]( I successfully baked a loaf of sourdough on my very first try! I was SHOCKED! And it was so delicious! I've since baked another loaf, made sourdough banana muffins and pancakes, and have two other loaves cold-proofing the fridge right now! In addition, I'm so inspired by this success that I ordered a Kobumcha-making kit AND water kefir kit online this week. Who am I even?? I guess we'll call 2024 my Ma Ingalls era! :) Links You Might Be Interested In: - [What We Ate Last Week + What We Bought at the Grocery Store](//moneysavingmom.com/from-crystal-what-we-ate-this-past-week-what-we-bought-at-the-grocery-store-2/) -- instead of posting my menu plan and grocery purchases, since [I often reverse meal plan](, I thought I’d share with you what we ate this past week and then what we bought for this coming week. I don’t do a rigid meal plan most weeks; I usually just make sure we have enough on hand for 8-10 different dinners and then [I plan that day what we’re having based upon the time I have and what sounds good.]( [See what we ate and what bought.]( - [ABC Date Night #1]() -- Jesse and I are working our way through the alphabet this year with letter-themed date nights. Our goal is to finish the entire alphabet by the end of the year. [See where we went and what we did for our A-themed date last week.]() - Some Pics From My Trip to Kansas -- I had such a great trip to Kansas to be with my parents (minus the flight issues and overnight stay at the airport!). [I shared some pictures and details from my trip here.]() - If you love deals, don't miss the [Top 10 Deals From This Past Week post!]( There's a hot deal on face serum, granola bars, Under Armour clothes, Lululemon, On Running shoes, and more! MY INTERVIEW WITH HEIDI LEE ANDERSON On [this week's episode of The Crystal Paine Show](, I’m sitting down with my friend [Heidi Lee Anderson](), whom I initially met on Instagram, but our online friendship turned into a real-life bond. Join us as we dive into Heidi’s inspiring journey and discuss her new book [P.S. It’s Gonna Be Good](=), which explores how God’s Word addresses our deepest questions about faith, fear, and everything in between. Heidi opens up about facing a cancer diagnosis over a decade ago and the emotional rollercoaster that followed. From chemotherapy to radiation, she shares the highs and lows, including the unexpected turns that left her in awe of God’s miracles. We touch on the power of community and the role of faith in navigating through the darkest moments, and Heidi’s authenticity shines through as she discusses meeting her husband, overcoming challenges, and ultimately embracing the unexpected beauty that God unfolds in our lives. As we explore Heidi’s book, we delve into the questions many of us grapple with: what if the worst-case scenario happens? How do we trust God when He seems silent? What if our reality doesn’t align with God’s promises? Drawing insights from the lives of Bible heroes like Gideon, David, Joshua, and Martha, Heidi shares how their stories offer profound wisdom and hope for anyone facing uncertainty. I hope that this episode offers you assurance that, no matter what, it’s going to be good. Listen to my episode with Heidi [here on Trusting God When It Feels Like Your Life is Falling Apart.]( AND HEIDI INTERVIEWED ME, TOO! Also, I had the privilege of being interviewed on [Heidi's new podcast called Trade a Lie for a Truth.]() We talked about the lie we often believe that everyone is more put together than us. I share really honestly some pieces of my journey that I don't often share online. Plus, Heidi asks some fun rapid-fire questions and we plan two truths and a lie. I've heard from multiple people who have listened to the episode and said how much they loved me sharing more of my journey and how it deeply inspired and encouraged them. [Listen on your favorite podcast app here](). Or, [watch the video on YouTube here.]( = MY REVIEW OF EXPECT SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL Laura Booz, the author of this book, sent me a copy awhile back of her book [Expect Something Beautiful: Finding God's Good Gifts in Motherhood]() and it's been sitting on my shelf calling my name ever since! Years ago, I had the opportunity to meet Laura at a blogging conference and I remembering her just oozing with kindness and wisdom... someone you just wanted to sit at the feet of and learn from. So I was so grateful to get to read her hard-won wisdom in this book. She is a fantastic storyteller and I loved how the book followed her journey of motherhood -- from struggles with infertility, pregnancy loss, grieving the death of her daughter, and the very real challenges of raising six kids. She was honest and didn't make you feel like she was somehow more put together than you, but she also did a great job of pointing you to Jesus. One thing I did want to mention is that this book is written more for younger moms/moms with young children. Laura didn't give many examples that included the challenges that come with raising teens and/or launching children into the world... likely because when she wrote the book, it sounded like her oldest were just moving into the teen years so I believe that's why all of the examples in the book seemed more geared toward the younger years. What I'm Currently Reading: [If I Were You]( -- I'm listening to this audiobook. It's come highly recommended to me by multiple people but I'm not sure what I think of it. However, I'm intrigued enough to keep listening! [The Warsaw Sisters]() -- The author sent me this book and I'm over halfway through it and really enjoying it. [Words With God]() -- I'm only two chapters into this book, but so far it's been a powerful read! As I sign off, here's a picture of David in the snow! He just wanted to sit there and look around. He constantly reminds me to slow down, to savor life, to enjoy the moment... to not miss what's right in front of me. That there is beauty and goodness in stillness and finding joy right where we are. Have a wonderful weekend! -Crystal P.S. If you love deals, don't miss the [Top 10 Deals From This Past Week post!]( There's a hot deal on face serum, granola bars, Under Armour clothes, Lululemon, On Running shoes, and more! [Unsubscribe]( Money Saving Mom, LLC 2020 Fieldstone Parkway, Ste. 900 #313 Franklin, Tennessee 37069 United States