5QF and a bit of technical difficulty

We had a 45 second storm last night - which crashed out power our for about 3-4 hours.  And since it went out unexpectedly, my computer was shut down with out proper channels.  Which means, when I went to start it back up this morning, it was running at a snail's pace.  It's a crappy computer anyway...  matter of fact, snail's pace would be an improvement right about now. 

So, let's start with the 5QF and see how far we get and how long it takes me.  The time is currently 10:46am.

1. Do you apologize to your kids if you're wrong?



If I didn't, that would make me an authortarian parent, wouldn't it?   The honest answer, is that Yes, I do apologize to them- IF the situation warrants it. 

Like years and years ago, when I first started working from home, A. came up behind me at my computer desk and I didn't know he was there.  I brought my arm back really fast and elbowed him right in the cheek.  Whoa did I feel horrible for that one!  I apologized to him- because even though it was an accident, his little face had been wronged. 

Personally, I believe that we, as parents, need to model good behavior- including the humility that goes with an apology.



2. Do you have a class ring, Letterman's jacket, or similar obscenely priced high school "must have"?


I have a class ring.  I loved it at the time, and I didn't know that my life would go on without it!  (brings hand to forehead). 

Oh, the wisdom of being far far faaaaaaarrrrrr away from high school years.  Why can 't we start old and go younger.  Then, the crap in high school would seem so insignificant....
3. If you could be one age for the rest of your life, what age would you choose?


I'd pick 30.  I really enojoyed 30.  I enjoyed 25 too, but I was soooo selfish and stupid then.   It was just D. and I, and other than a skeevy boss, I had no cares.  But, I also didn't care or wasn't as passionate about things as I was at 30.  I'll take the extra 5 years of maturity.

4. What is your favorite (unused) baby name?


We had one name for a girl with both pregnancies:  Reagan.

My unused boy names were:  Seth, Brady, and Trevor.  Thank goodness two of my friends named their little boys two of them!  I love those cute little boys.  Anyone up for a Seth?


5. If you could make your child like something what would it be?


VEGETABLES!!!!!  Actually, food of any texture.  Which includes ALL food.

I.am.so.sick.of.the.breakfast/lunch/dinner table battles.
 (insert Howard Dean Scream here)
 
 
HAPPY WEEKEND!!!
 



By the way, the time is now 8:04pm.  While I also had an entire day tha thappened in there....holy cow, is my computer slow.

Random Post where I drop a rediculous amount of friend's names.

- Yesterday, I spent over an hour on the phone talking to my friend Mandi.  She was calling to check up on me after I gave my small group a prayer request.  Since the incident already passed, she was calling to see the outcome.  In my world, I'm texting all the time.  It was nice to reconnect on the phone with conversation.  Thanks for the prayers, friends!  I could really feel it!

-  Today I'm carpooling with my friend Sarah.  This won't last much longer- since they are moving to an inconvenient location, but its nice to not have to get up early every morning to drive.  My adrenals are so thankful.

- Tomorrow, I'm walking with Michelle.  She's currently one of my favorite people.  The past month, I've struggled with exercise motivation, but I still really look forward to our walking dates.  Her friendship is so unassuming and supportive...and funny.  And she has the most absolute cutest little boys.

-  Saturday, I'm applesaucing with my mom.  That is, if she finds a replacement for that bolt she shredded while saucing without me. 

- Saturday, after saucing (is that a word?!?!)  I'm making a birthday treat for a friend of A's.  Because every child deserves to be celebrated on their birthday.

-  Saturday afternoon, I'm hoping to make it to my friend's house for a little Catan action.  Girl's afternoon in.  Catan style.  Yes, I'm a gamer.

-  Sunday, I'm spending it with my best friend, Dave and our boys whom I hope turn out to be friends some day.

-  Next week, I'm crafting with my friend Lesley.  We haven't crafted in a very long time, and I really looking forward to reconnecting (over a Cricut machine)!

-  Next week Thursday ( a special day for ME), I'm celebrating the morning with 72 of my closest mommy friends at MOPS.

- Next week Friday, I'm going to experience my first gluten free fondue dinner with Melody.  I'm very excited to see her and to fondue.

-  Sometime in the near future, I need to see Erika who is sewing me a purse to celebrate my 50 pound weight loss (2 pounds to go!).

-  I need to schedule a game night with my fellow gaming friends.

-  I need to go to a movie by myself (another friend).

-  I need to call Gina back.

-  I need to call Jeanie for a GNO.

- Yesterday, today, all the time.  I love my friends.

Wednesday.....wednesday....wed.....w....

After I purchased my new camera,

I started cleaning out my old camera bag.

I found a few old SD cards.

Oh my, these things a an emotional gold mine!

I found the card from the first day I purchased my old camera.

It was Labor Day weekend, 2008.

Here's the pictures I took that afternoon.

A. was 4, C had just turned 1.

Taking a rest from running through the sprinklers.

D. taking a rest from working on the house.

A. was "trying" to pull them in the wagon.

D. went back to working on the house.

(oh my, we've come a long way, baby!)

My sweet munchkin waddling through the sprinklers.

The Frankenstein walk

A few days later, A. started 4 year old preschool.

Excuse me, my ovaries are hyper-ventilating.  My heart is weeping, and I need a sedative.

Just kidding....kind of.  :)

So glad these days are documented.

I'll admit it: I'm a gamer

Yep...you read that right.  I'm a gamer.  I love playing board games.  The logic, the togetherness. the fun, the victory!  (well, if you play it right).  Here's a list of my favorites.


1. Settlers of Catan. 

Right now my ultimate favorite.  First introduced to it by the Hassenrik's.  There's a few different versions, but we haven't played the Traders and Barbarians yet.  3/4 of our small group gets together to play, and its a blast.  Certainly my favorite right now.

2.  Life.

I've always loved this game since I was little.  If I saw it in my friend's game closets, I always grabbed it first.  I loved the imagination of the different routes you can take in Life.  I have a lot of great memories with childhood friends and this game.

3.  Balderdash.

The only game where it's ok to lie.    Tons of fun to make up words too.  Love it.  My favorite made-up defination  from this game was for "Bodkin."  He said it was a "midge corpse."  Made up by a member of our small group - everyone knew it was the false defination, but he won based solely on "style points."

4.  Phase 10.

This is my one of my favorite games because my sister-in-law loves to play it. I still remember learning to play it at their kitchen table in Germany.  It's a relatively easy game to learn.  If you can do Uno, you can do Plase 10.  Speaking of Uno....

5.  Uno

This reminds me of playing while we were camping.  The kids didn't know how to play euchre yet, so we played Uno.  Uno Attack is also a favorite of mine.  You can get really nasty while playing that game.

6.  Hugger Mugger.

Book worms unite!  If you can unscramble words, and put like words together, you are golden in this game.  I'm not sure this game is even on the market anymore.  My aunt has it...one more reason to go back to Kentucky.

7.  Euchre.

If you're from Michigan, you are familiar with this game.  Euchre parties, Euchre tournaments, you name it.  I love Euchre.

8.  Battle of the Sexes.

This pits sexes against each other.  How much do you know about the world of the opposite sex?  I love this game because my not-being-a-girly-girl has come in handy more than once in this game.

9.  Scattergories.

Yet another word game.  Can you tell I'm a book worm?

10.  Monopoly.

Yep, I like that game.  Capitalism at its finest.

All photos courteousy of google search.

What we did on dat dere tinniversary alternately titled: My First Trip to the Big House

The night of our tenth anniversary was rather uneventful.

I made the World's Best Vegetable Soup.

Dave brought me a beautiful flower arrangement.

I gave him a silly card.

We ate dinner with the family.

The boys did homework.

I did some audits.

We went to sleep.

Other than the fact the my husband hasn't brought me flowers since....

(thinking.....)

um.....

Valentine's Day!

(He's really a good guy, just doesn't do the whole flower-thing)

Anyway, the flowers were/are beautiful.

They smell fantastic.

Perhaps I"ll take a picture and share them.

Or, perhaps I'll just hoard them and enjoy them for myself.

Anyway, a dear friend of mine has season tickets to the Big House.

(for those of you who don't know...that's U of M's stadium)

We're big Michigan fans.

She and her husband gifted them to us.

It was AWESOME to surprise D with these tickets.

(turns out he was going to surprise me with a dinner and had already coordinated babysitting!- I figure he can do that another weekend, I wanted to go see some Michigan football)

So, I went out and treated myself to a new Michigan shirt (my old one was too big!)

And I grabbed some ribbons to french braid into my hair.

Here's my crappy attempt to show you the blue ribbon in the braid.

You can see a wee-little bit:

Since D. doesn't drink, we decided to have a little picnic by our car before the game.

G-rated tail gating, I guess.

We walked about a mile to get into the Big House.

Here's our self-portrait. 

We were in row 32.

It was awesome.

I don't know what the heck I'm doing with my smile here.

Nerd alert:

Go marching band!!!

They even did a little "Thriller" Dance.

I found myself a little jealous of the color guard.

There were three ladies in front of us.  One mother, two daughters.

Every time the Big House Cam was on, the mom held up this itty bitty sign hoping to be noticed.

Only she wouldn't hold it high, and it was written in yellow.

Apparently, she needs a lesson in signage.

It read:  "Hi Uncle  Mikey!  We know you're watching.  We finally made it to the Big House!"

Uncle Mikey, I hope you're reading this blog...

...because that's the only way you're going to see the itty bitty sign.



The stadium...the bright maize is the student section.

We were in the 234th game with more than 100,000 fans in attendance.

There were a total of 110,707 people there.

Approximately 45 of them were San Diego State fans.

Another self portrait

I'm looking a little less dorky (question mark)

At the end of the night- another view of the braid...

Again, you can barely see the ribbon.

So glad I spent so much effort on it.

Sheesh

All in all, it was a fantastic way to celebrate our anniversary!

5QF

1. Dream job...realistic and completely unrealistic.


Realistic- I'm not sure what I'd love to do that's within reach.  I'm a dreamer, and I dream big...not realistic.  I'd like to own my own business - so I don't have to worry about pleasing my boss or meeting quotas someone else set for me.  I'd like to have control over setting my own goals and pleasing myself with my work.

Unrealistic-  I'd love to travel the world photographing interesting sites and people.  I once saw this picture of a wall cloud over water- the other half of the sky was an incredible salmon pink.  It was awe-some.  I could only imagine what that photographer was thinking and feeling at that moment in time.  Seriously - amazing.


2. Do you fart in front of your significant other?

Why, yes I do.  Only he doesn't know I fart in front of him until a little bit after I've let it slip.  You see, I specialize in the SBD* variety of flatulance.  Having gastrointestinal issues automatically puts me into this category.    Knowing this, I usually try to hold it in until it forces its way out....then all I say is, "Hey...I'm sorry."  This is warning enough to let him know to evacuate the immediate area.  However, this is extrememly problematic when in the car.

*Silent But Deadly

3. What's the furthest you've ever traveled from home? How far and where was it?

In June 2000, Dave and I went to Europe with my family.  My brother was stationed in Germany with his wife and son, so we went to visit, and my parents were generous enough to bring my boyfriend along.  It was an amazing trip - one I still remember like it was yesterday.

The worst part about the trip- the airplan rides.  On the way there, D and I were stuck in an aisle right in front of the emergency exit.  Meaning our seats didn't recline.  You would think that 2" wouldn't make much of a difference, but when they CRAM 3 rows infront of the exit- when there's really only room for 2 1/2...well, that made it just a tad cramped.  A lot cramped.  We were travelling essentially overnight...there just wasn't enough room to move and get comfortable.  The way back, I was in the center of the plane.  Roomier seats, but everytime the plane pitched, I felt sick.

Other than that, it was an amazing trip!  I saw the most beautiful countryside.  Realized that France isn't really all it's cracked up to be.  Speaking of farting- ask me sometime about my BROTHER farting the most GASTLY fart in the elevator on the Eiffel Tower.  Seriously.... 

 Give me the European countryside.

4. How do you celebrate birthday for your kids? Family only or friends? ... Alternate for those without kiddos: How did you celebrate birthdays as a kid?


We do big parties for 1, 5, and 10.  The first birthday is lost of family, the 5th and 10th will be friend parties.  All others are grandmas and grandpas.  We really aren't the type of family that needs to celebrate in mass quantities.  Plus, the boys have every toy imaginable....why invite people over to bring more toys?!?!?

My birthdays were a good mix of friends and family.  My brother and I each had one large off-site birthday party (mine was at a roller rink, Dan's was at a bowling alley).  I think my mom did a really good job of making the others special with having grandmas over.

5. Fave thing about fall?

Seriously, what's NOT to like?  Chilly air, long sleve shirts, best veggies, apple cider, pumpkins, crispy leaves....seriously.....I love ALL of fall.

The tin anniversary

The tenth wedding anniversary is the tin anniversary.

Not that our anniversary has anything to do with tin.

It's not always a rosy life. 

We've had gains and losses, tragedy and triumph, challenges and victories.

But we get through it side by side.  Together.

Few things in life remain consistent.

It'a always changing.

But there are a few things I can always count on.

Dave is one of them. 

Happy one decade anniversary to my love!

I'd marry him again. 

In.a.heartbeat

Questions in need of advice

Few questions that I'm soliciting for advice...

1.  A. said this morning that his stomach hurt.  Not pukey, not #3 stuff, it just hurt.  I made him go to school (because I had to meet an inspector at 8, and it was my turn for the carpool).  I saw him after chapel this morning, and he was still complaining of a stomach ache.  We gave him some crackers and took his temp (no temp), and I offered to bring him home.  He said he wanted to stay - even though he wasn't feeling the best. Should I have made him come home?

2.  I signed A. up for a kid's marathon.  They run 1 mile every other day until Oct. 16.  Then on that morning, they all get together and run the last 1.2 miles.  He started out strong, and now is crying every time I tell him its time to run.  He wants to be done with it.  We're on mile 17.  Should I let him quit, or do I push him to finish.

3.  I have lost my running mojo.  Honestly, I have no desire to start again.  But I know its good for my body and my brain.  I know that my body needs exercise to loose weight (learned by trial and error over the years).  Do I just power through or give it up?

4.  I have my fancy new camera.  I love love love it.  Every time I pull it out to take pictures I feel all happy and butterfly-ish in my stomach.  I love it!  Now....what to do with this kind of passion?

5.  I'm tired.  Do I work or do I nap?  Wait...I already know the answer to this question.  Sleep will have to wait.

A prayer

Dear God,

Please put your arm over my shoulder.

And your hand over my mouth.

Amen

5QF

1. If you had a weekly newspaper column, what would you name it?

Randomness.  According to Michelle's right/left brain test (well, it's not hers...but she linked to it), I am right brain dominant, and my "specialty" is randomness.  Which is really what this blog is:  whatever comes into my mind. 

I'm like a box of chocolates.  You never know what you're gonna get.  :)

2. Who is your mentor/inspiration?

Depends on what you're talking about.  My mom is my biggest mentor.  But I have other inspirators (is that a word?!?!) that inspire me to do different things.  My friends Michelle and Melody inspire me to stay on track in diet and fitness.  My other friend Melody inspires me to push myself outside my comfort zone.  My friend Gina inspires me to be an all-together better person.


3. What is your wake up beverage of choice?

My protein shake.  I have a protein shake that tastes really great, is smooth on my stomach, and packs a whopping 26 grams of protein for only 127 calories.  Win/win.

4. Would you wear your mom's clothes?

Ummmmm....not really.  My mom is a kindergarten teacher.  Nuff said. 

(Hi mom!!!  There's nothing wrong with being a kindergarten teacher!  You dress nice, it's just not my style.  Love you!!!)

5. When you were a kid, did you put posters on your wall? If so, what were they of?

ugh....This is where you will see what an awkward teen I was.  I had New Kids on the Block all over my walls.  I used to save my babysitting money just so I could purchase those Teen Beat magazines -for the pin-ups.  I had a huge poster of Jonathon over my bed.  I was such a dork. (hangs head in shame).

Wait...there's no shame here!  NKOTB were cool back then, right?  If I wanted to hang my head in shame, I'd say I had a pin-up of Ralph Macchio or Menudo....but I'd throw those pin-ups out in favor for my New Kids.  :)  (holds head up)


Have a great weekend!!!

I'm about due for a random post, right?

I usually do a Random Friday List with the 5QF post, but I didn't do one last Friday.  I was brain dead.

There's stuff on my mind...so I thought I'd do the Random Friday List today...on a Wednesday.  I'm a rebel.  :)

1.  While I work (I work from home), I ususally have the tv on in the back ground.  I don't know how Maury ended up on my television, but this paternity stuff?  Rediculous.  First....all these "kids" cheating on each other?  Not knowing who the father of their child is?  These marriages ending?  Unbelievable.  Their moms must be so proud.  Just makes my heart hurt.

2.  My annoying facebook post sure had a lot of people complaining and agreeing with me!  I feel so vindicated.  :)  (And if you're wondering if it's you that I was referring to....you're wrong.  The people I referred to in the post have no idea I have a blog.  And if they do know I have a blog, they're too wrapped up in their own life to wonder what someone else has to say.  Not saying it snotty....just truthful. )

3.  We got our 1/4 cow today.  We found a place that will give us the meat for cheaper.  (like 20% cheaper).  Our old supplier called Dave yesterday and said he has a cow ready to go, and wanted to know if we were interested.  Made me feel bad for him.  :(  His meat is tasty.  Hope this meat is just as good.  I'm trying to stay away from chicken (long story for another post), so having a freezer full of grass-fed beef is beneficial.

4.  Last week C. threw up in Costco.  It was an isolated incident....not sure what was going on.  But the cart was full of stuff....and then full of yuck.  I brought the cart to an employee and said, "I can help you clean it, but if he's anything like his brother, he'll be making more of a mess in about 20 minutes."  She said, "I'm a mom...just go take care of business."  Only another mother could take that on and understand my dilema.  I'm forever grateful.  Wish I remembered her name so I could send a "you've got a great employee" report to the store.

5.  I'm learning how to can and preserve food.  I'm enjoying spending extra time with my mom in the kitchen, and it's fun to remember those days of my childhood when I watched her can foods, but didn't quite get it.  I love knowing how the food was grown, what was used in the dirt and water, how it's preserved, and what chemicals (If any) I'm injesting.  I really want to keep my food as clean as possible, and have started purchasing organic foods in the store.  It's a hit to the grocery budget....but we feel better, and that's what matters, right?

6.  MOPS starts tomorrow.  I'm unbelievably grateful that I'm not on steering team this year.  I am serving as a table leader, but that's not as time intensive.  I'm excited, though, because the ladies on the steering team are incredible.  Looks like a fun year.  Sad that it's my last year in MOPS, though.  We'll just have to reconnect at random Mangiammo's dinners.  :)

7.  D. and I really want to go to a U of M game at the Big House sometime this season.  The tickets are mucho expensivo, and not in the budget.  Perhaps we will have to settle for the televised/radio games.  Go Blue!

8.  I just made an entire batch of "Uncle Jeff's pancakes" at lunch time today.  They weren't for lunch.  They're for breakfast tomorrow for the boys.  They've been asking for pancakes all week, but I'm not a morning person.  So, the only thing I can manage in the morning is a "mmmmmffffffff huh?"  This morning I had a second grader in tears because he wanted Uncle Jeff's pancakes.  Since tomorrow morning is a MOPS morning, and it will take all my morning strength to blow dry my hair, I chose to make them in advance.

9.  I think we've passed the adrenaline rush part of the first of the school year.  Now, we're into the "ugh, I'm tired" portion.  Dear schedule, Go easy on me.  M'kay?  Thanks!

10.  C. started soccer yesterday at the YMCA.  So far, he's loving it....and he's actually quite skilled.  I had no clue that atleticism can be a natural-born skill.  Obviously, this prooves that I am not a natural born athlete.

Top ten things on Facebook that annoy the heck out of me

Facebook is good for a few things:  reconnecting with old friends you lost touch with, coordinating people and get-to-gethers, and supporting and uplifting friends and family.

But facebook can be very very annoying.  I think we need to check the filter once or twice before we post stuff.  I am, admittedly, guilty of this in the past.  I have seen the light....and I have chosen to limit my time on the site.  When I do get on, I find the annoyances....and abruptly sign off.  These are the thing that lead to the clickety click off the site:

1.  The my-life-is-perfect posts (all the time).  Really, friends....no one's life is perfect.  Quit wearing the mask and just be real.

2.  Lovey dovey (or riske') posts between spouses.  If you're friends with both, you see the wall-to-wall conversation. Oh joy.  My response?  Get a room.

3.  Crazy people (from high school) you haven't talked to in 18 years friend you just to solicit money for their cause.  I don't know you.  The only thing I remember about you from high school is walking past you in the hallway on my way to Advanced World Literature and seeing Tim Frye's tongue down your throat.   I'm not giving you money.

4.  Passive aggressive posts.  Things like: "Some people just need to get a life" or "It's just so sad that some people have to act the way they do."  Then, there's always the BFF that's in-the-know who comments something like "I know, right?"  Ok ladies....this is a public forum.  If you don't want to air the whole thing online, don't go there to begin with.

5.  Relationship revolving door.  If you're having marriage issues....changing your status from married to it's complicated will solicit questions.  If you don't want questions, delete the relationship status all together.  If you're single and in and out of relationships every 2-3 months, just don't post that stuff.  Makes me just feel bad for you.

6.  Causes.  I understand that we are all passionate about things here and there.  I'm passionate about politics and faith.  I can get a little carried away with politics once in a while....learned my lesson with that one.  But, when you post holier-than-thou junk, you're gonna turn people off.  If you want someone to listen, you have to speak to them out of love....not looking down from your pedestal.

7.  Birthdays.  Ok, this is a double edged sword.  It's nice to sign in on your birthday and have an entire wall of birthday greetings.  However, we need to pay attention to the person we're greeting.  Are you close enough that you should have sent a card or called?  I think we're using facebook as a lazy way to celebrate those closest to us.  If you're a good friend to someone, step it up and celebrate them.

8.  Friend Requests.  If you've requested to be my friend, and I decline....don't keep sending a request.  I've declined for a reason.  I don't appreciate high levels of drama or women that unabashedly flirt with my husband.

9.  Half-naked or drunken pictures.  If you're tagged in these pictures, anyone can see them if they visit your wall (regardless of if they're a friend or not).  I understand you're at the beach and your confident in your body, but you need to remember that other people's husbands are looking at your flesh.  Unless, of course, that's what you were going for....then by all means, keep posting half naked pictures of yourself.  Thank goodness my husband isn't on facebook (not that he would look anyway...).

10.  Over posting pictures.  Yes, we understand that something very big happened the other day.  Do you need to post 114 pictures of your baby- in the same outfit, playing with the same blocks on the same day?  Really, do you need to post 72 pictures of the first day of school?   "Here's my daughter's right side on the first day of school."  "Here's my daughters left side on the first day of school."  "Here's my daughters SHOES on the first day of school"  "Here's my daughter looking down the street on the first day of school"  "Here's my daughter looking at the bus at the end of the road on the first day of school"  "Here's my daughter looking at the bus 100 feet away on the first day of school."  "Here's my daughter looking at the bus 5 feet away on the first day of school"  "Here's the bus doors opening on the first day of school"  "Here's my daughter standing on the first step of the bus on the first day of school."  Really?  Really?  My advice:  selective picture posting.  One or two pictures will let us all know that your daughter started school today.



No, I'm not in a bad mood.  These things just make me shake my head.  And maybe I'm feeling a little snarky today....kind of tongue-in-cheek.  But maybe, just maybe, someone will read this and make decisions to help make facebook a much less annoying place to visit.  :)  One can hope.

I.am.content.

For years and years, I have had camera envy.

I tried to squelch it.

I prayed about the level of envy in my heart.

Oh, how I love photography.

But, I had other priorities.

We had other committments.

My dream had to wait.

I would check the ads.

I would ask people how much their cameras cost (oh, yes I did!)

I kept hoping for an affordable high quality camera.

And today....

....yes, today.....


I met my new baby.

The perfect brand to fit all my existing lenses.

The perfect quality.

The perfect price.

i.am.content.

9-11. Where were you?

They say that there are certain events that are etched in your memory forever.  Where you were when you first heard, the feelings you felt.

9/11/01

was one of those days.

For everyone.

So, do you remember where YOU were?

I was working as the marketing/ admissions manager for a health care center.

I went to the hospital at 6:30am to look at a patient's chart and talk to the caregivers.

I stopped at Walgreen's on the way back to the office to pick something up for my honeymoon.

My wedding was 11 days away.

My brother and his wife were flying out of Germany this morning to come in for our wedding.

I got out of Walgreen's and heard on the radio that a plane had just hit the tower.

There was little additional information.

Accidental?  On purpose?

I hoped it was the former.

I got back to the office, and we turned on the TV.

Just as another plane hit the second tower.

We were under attack.

News of the Pentagon followed.

Then Flight 93.

The residents of my facility were scared and crying.

I still hadn't heard news about my brother and his wife.

Everything was in slow motion...yet going so fast.

Our wedding was 11 days away.

I was required to go to "sales camp" for my job.

I tried to get out of it.

No such luck.

(If I knew then what I know now, I would have told them to "shove it.")

But, 5 of us went to Angola Indiana.

And talked about selling more...while the death toll raced across the screen in the lobby.

My brother and his wife were on a plane that morning.

They were stuck on a tarmac in Frankfurt for 8 hours.

They heard nothing for 2 hours.

Then they heard that "there was a plane crash in New York."

Then, after 5 hours in the plane, they heard that the "U.S. is under attack."

They went back home after waiting for 8 hours.

Fortunately, his Sargent made sure he was on the first flight into the US, and they made it in for the wedding.

We did get married 11 days later.

It was surreal, and a few people chose not to come.

But those that did....we loved on each other...and we celebrated.

We lifted the veil of fear and chose to celebrate life and love.

So....where were you?

5QF

Scatter brained today.  Friday???  Wow...already.  Ok, let's see how I get through the questions.


1. What ringtone do you have on your cell phone?


Basic Rumor ring tone. 

Except for D's ring.  It's a techno ring that sounds a little like "Bom-chicka-wow-wow."  I thought it was funny.  :)


2. What is your favorite memory from this summer?

Goodness...  We've had an eventful summer!  Can I have two?

Our Kentucky trip was my favorite because I got to see some of my favorite family members and climb through some caves.

I loved our Wisconsin trip because I love the U.P., and I love anything having to do with my bestie, Gina.

3. Paper books or ebooks?

Well.....I don't have a choice in that matter, so I go with paper.  I'm not a big screen person, though....I don't like reading through websites (although I do read blogs regularly....so I may be taking that one back...).  I really enjoy turning pages, though.  I love the feel of paper on my fingertips....I love closing that last page of a book after a great ending...so, I think I'll go with paper.

4. If you could have one home upgrade what would it be and why?

Ha!  Can I say the other half?  Really....that's my home upgrade of choice.  (If you're new here, you can read our Love Shack Saga here).


5. When was your first serious boyfriend/girlfriend?

Oh gosh...  I'm not sure how to answer this question.  I didn't really start dating until college, and even then, didn't really date anyone seriously anymore than a few weeks, possibly months...but not for any great period of time.
I knew what I wanted for my husband, and I knew what requirements God laid on my heart for my husband.  So, if I knew they weren't "the one", I didn't waste anymore time with them in pursuing a relationship that was headed to the same fate eventually.

I dated a lot of guys casually.  When I met Dave, I actually had been "talking to" 3-4 guys.  Casual dates, +1's for weddings, hanging out with groups, etc.  The day after I met Dave, I bid each one of them a farewell.  I knew, in my heart, this was the man God had sent me for marriage.

TWO kitchens?!?!?! Yeah, it's not what you think it is.

I haven't posted a Love Shack update lately.

That's cause there's not much to update on.

We're still here. 


Plugging along. 


Saving little bits here and there to finish the addition and start rehabing the old house.

But in the meantime, I have two kitchens.

Yes, two.

But it's not what you think.  Both kitchens are half kitchens....so essentially, I have one kitchen (if you do the math) just in two locations.  One is in the old house, one in the addition.

So, when I cook...this is what it looks like:

Get out the meat, veggies, and cookware for the stove in the old kitchen.

Go to the new kitchen pantry for dried goods.

(up three steps)

Back to the old kitchen to assemble.

(down three steps)

Back to the new kitchen for mixing bowls and spices.

(up three steps)

Back to the old kitchen to assemble, stir, and cook.

(down three steps)

Back to the new kitchen to pick up the salad spinner and bread.

(up three steps)

Back to the old kitchen to wash veggies, spin the lettuce and cut veggies.

(down three steps)

Back to the new kitchen to grab serving bowls for salads and dinner entrees.

(up three steps)

Back to the old kitchen to assemble dinner.

(down three steps)

Back to the new kitchen to grab tableware.

(up three steps)

Back to the old kitchen to set the table.

(down three steps)

Back to the new kitchen to grab glasses for milk and water.

(up three steps)

Back to the old kitchen to grab silverware.

(down three steps)

Sit at the table to enjoy dinner.

(plop)

Wonder if I can get some My Fitness Pal exercise points?



Rhetorical Questions

There are sometimes questions I ask that either a) have no answer or b) are answered, but are asked to make a statement.  I understand that latter is an oxymoron, but hey...that's life, right?  Here are the top ten rhetorical questions I ask with great frequency...

1)  Are you cuh-RAY-zee?!?!?!

2)  What the HECK ever happened to personal responsibility?

3)  If your friends told you to jump off a cliff, would you?  (yes, I ask this out loud)

4)  Why can't good-for-me foods taste like a chocolate chip cookie?!?!?

5)  Where'd the money tree go?

6)  And just how much is this going to cost?

7)  How can I help?

8)  Can you give me a minute....or a week?

9)  Have you made a decision about (insert decision to be made here)?

10)  Can I have a hug?