Where am I?

In Pennsylvania, of course. Alicia, Rachel, and I are up here for my grandmother's memorial service tomorrow.

I am going through internet withdrawal. It's awful. I knew I was always online, but I hadn't realized just how much I relied on it. *sigh* It's so bad, that all I've talked about today was getting to go to Panera to use the free wifi. See, McDonald's has wifi, but it's not free. Terrible. I'd rather drive five more minutes to get it for free. So, I'm here, sitting at Panera, using the internet and mentioning my FAVORITE DAD because I was told that I had to. By Rachel. Demanding leetle seester, isn't she?

I caught up on my Facebook wrestling (yes, i'm addicted to it. eeek!) and I'm currently going through my blog list. Ya'll, this just doesn't bode well for me. If I ever seriously lose my internet access, I'm going to die.

Book List

I've seen it done on other blogs and I've actually been keeping track myself for two years already, so I have decided to list the books that I have read so far this year and I will update every month. I started writing down the books that I had read in January 2007 when Joseph and I were still in the apartment, but since I REALLY want to read 100 books this year, I figured a post on my blog every month would keep me motivated. Honestly, it shouldn't be hard since I don't even have to read ten books a month in order to accomplish my goal. So far this year, I'm well on my way.
With no further ado...Here's my list of books read this month. (That means books completed this month.)

January

Sandry's Book ~ Tamora Pierce
Tris's Book ~ Tamora Pierce
The City of Ember ~ Jeanne DuPrau
The Mary Kay Way ~ Mary Kay Ash
Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg ~ Gail Carson Levine
Teddy Jo & the yellow room mystery ~ Hilda Stahl
Teddy Jo & the ragged beggars ~ Hilda Stahl
Teddy Jo & the magic quill ~ Hilda Stahl
Land of Hope ~ Joan Nixon Lowery
Land of Promise ~ Joan Nixon Lowery
Boxers for Dummies ~ Richard Beauchamp
Fairy Haven and the Quest for the Wand ~ Gail Carson Levine

I'm sure you noticed that I read alot of children's/young adult's books. I will freely admit that they are some of my favorite reads, but I'm really working on expanding my horizons. I just know that young adults books are "safe". I don't like to read books that are full of language or sex. Now violence, I'm okay with that. Anyway, I currently have four books that I'm working on so I hope to have at least two more added to my list for January, but who knows what will happen.

What is your favorite book? and Who is your favorite author? Do you prefer a particular genre?

Oh! How my Baby has grown!

I got Rocky on November 1, 2008 for my birthday when he was three months old. He was the puppy that I wanted. The only one that I would have picked out of the litter. Imagine my surprise, relief, happiness when I discovered that Rocky (or Miles, as he was named originally) was the only puppy left. I was sooo excited.

This was taken the day after Joseph and I bought Rocky.

Same day as the one above. We were able to bring Rocky home the day that we bought him.

This is my puppy tonight. Obviously, you can't see his length since he's sitting, but you can still tell that he's grown quite a bit! I love this puppy to death and already cannot imagine life without him.

Apology

Please forgive me for the very raw post that I wrote yesterday about my grandmother. I hope that I didn't cause any discomfort. I was, and still am, rather upset with myself for not having said goodbye, I love you, Jesus loves you, etc.

Hopefully, my next post will be a bit more upbeat. Thanks for bearing with me.

Of Life and Death

My Nanny died yesterday morning. Nanny was my dad's mother. I can't say that she was my favorite grandparent, in fact, more often than not the name "Nanny" raises unwanted urges to strangle someone. She never really got along with my mother. She snubbed my siblings and I. BUT...she was my grandmother. She had her moments when she was the grandma that any kid would kill to have. She took me to Sight and Sound in Lancaster, she took me to Dutch Wonderland. She always bought me beautiful jewelry for my birthdays and Christmas. And despite everything, including the wrongs that she committed towards my family, I loved her.
The last time I saw my Nanny was two years ago. She only lived 10 minutes from my parents' house, but I never went to see her. I didn't go to see her in the nursing home when my family went to visit her at Christmas. I didn't want to go because I wanted to keep those few good memories that I have of her as the ones that I will look back at. Not the memory of her not knowing anyone in the nursing room visiting her. I didn't want to see her sick.
It was pretty fast, her decline. She fell and broke her hip early last summer, went home, fell and broke it again, then ended up in an assisted living home. Because she made no effort of her own, the assisted living home recommended her to a nursing home. That's where she lived the rest of her life out. She had dementia. She didn't recognize anyone who came to visit her, in fact, there were days when she didn't even know that anyone was even in the room with her.
I could have gone to see her this past Saturday. But I didn't. You will never know just how much I regret that decision. She may not have known me had I gone, but maybe, just maybe, I could have told her one more time that Jesus loved her and wanted her to belong to Him. See, unless a miracle occured in her sleep, my grandmother died not knowing Jesus. She will spend the rest of eternity in Hell and despite anything my husband tries to tell me, I'm guilty of not telling her ONE MORE TIME.

PLEASE! If your family does not know the truth, make sure you tell them One More Time. You never know when the last time you see them will be.

Where were you?

When the newest President, Barack Obama, was sworn in? I didn't vote for him, don't agree with his standards or political beliefs, but he IS our President. And, he is the very first black President. It was a historic moment.

I was at work. Watching the swearing in on streaming live MSN.com. Humorous, the actual oath. Both President Obama and the Justice that swore him in slipped a little. It did, I think, add a bit of lightness to the entire ceremony.

I have to admit, though. President Obama did surprise me with his distinct ability to keep his cool despite the flub.

I will be praying continually for our country for the next four years. I can only pray that our country will realize the truth of this new President before we end up losing more of our rights as free citizens of the United States.

So, where were you and what do YOU think of our new President?

When I am Interviewed...

I really do try my best to give good answers. Britt @ Nor-Cal Girl started this Interview process.

Here are the rules if you would like to be interviewed:
1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. I get to pick the questions.
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions


1. If you were to have a child right now (worry-free, no money issues or anything), would you want a boy or girl and what would their name be?
I would love to have two boys actually. Twins, if my prayers were answered. As for the names, assuming my husband let me name my boys, Jedidiah Andrew and Jack Lee.

2. You have the chance to spend a whole day doing ANYTHING you want, what would you do?
Definitely reading. Give me a nice warm spot in the sun, a stack of books, box of tissues (for my allergies), and an unlimited supply of either sweet ice tea or hot chamomile tea (my favorite).

3. If you HAD to lose one of the five senses (sight, smell, hearing, taste & touch), which would you willingly give up?
Smell, of course. Sight-seeing is a favorite pasttime, I need to be able to hear my babies crying (assuming #1 comes true), I LOVE food, and I'd hate to burn myself while cooking but not know it if I had no touch. Of course, the flavor of food would change a bit since half of what we as humans experience and associate with taste is actually our sense of smell.

4. If you had to eat one complete meal for dinner for two weeks, what would that meal consist of?
Steak, potatoes, and broccoli. Yum.

5. You get to have any exotic animal as a pet without having to worry about it attacking you or anything, what animal would you choose?
Hmmm. I'm stumped on this one. I kinda think maybe a kangaroo (it'd be a GREAT watch-animal) or a wombat (cause I think they're soooo cute!).

Anyone interested in joining in?

Seeing the "Hobbit Hole"

Alicia spoke of our parents house as a hobbit hole so I figured I might as well show you a little of what she meant.

This is the girls' room. Imagine three girls in here. Where the dresser is now, was where Alicia's bed used to be. That blue chair with the plastic bag on it... there were two dressers back to back there for Rachel and I. Alicia's dresser was in the corner that you can't see to the right. The ceilings in the house are about 6 1/2 ft. high which is why it seems as though I was holding the camera really high. Everything is really just super short in order to fit properly.

This is the "playroom". Well, it used to be anyway. Now it's more the TV room. The entire left wall (that you can't see) is a floor to ceiling bookshelf that is two layers of books deep plus books piled on top. Way back in the way backs, Mom used to correct our school books in this room. The love seat wasn't right there to the right. Instead, there was a desk and a shelf of school books.

This is the living room. The door to the left straight ahead leads to the attic. That's the playroom ahead there too. Mom's piano, that will be mine someday, is right there in the front left corner of the picture. This room is long, but not much else. Where that table is by the piano...that's where Mom's Christmas tree goes.

The kitchen. The last time the whole family fit in there at the table...I don't even remember it. It's tiny, but homey.

Another angle of the living room. That's a little more of the piano.

Thanks for coming on the tour. I obviously didn't show the parents' room, and the boys' room, but I'm sure you get the idea that the house is...SMALL.

Don

Yesterday I went shopping at Giant for a few necessaries. I came home with six bags of groceries. Not just six regular bags, but six reusable bags. When I was ready to checkout, there were two lanes open other than the self-checkout. One had three people with just a few items and the other had two people with alot of groceries. I chose the line where the people had many items. The person running the lane was a middle-aged white man whose name is Don. I don't know where Don is from but he had a drawl like none other. He was extremely friendly and very capable. He bagged my groceries perfectly. Didn't complain about me using the re-usable bags. Carried on a conversation with me as he worked. I was very thankful for he friendliness. This is what I came home with.

My perfectly full six re-usable bags. Not too full, but not empty either.

This is what was in the bags.

Spaghetti sauce for the spaghetti that we had last night, with 5 extra jars. Tuna for tuna salad for Titus and I. Gluten free rice krispies and Fluff marshmallow for rice krispy treats for Titus. Chips and dip for Joseph. Salad greens, green onions, and oranges for me and just a few other things. I didn't find any GREAT deals, but the deals I found were good and helped me gather the items for the next two weeks dinner. Oh yeah! and ground beef. Extra lean, but still...ground beef. We had meat sauce for our spaghetti last night.

Pictures in Winter

I keep looking at my blog after I publish a post to make sure the spacing turned out properly and just to make sure it still looks good in general and every time that I do, I can't help but stare at the picture I have in my header. *sigh* I would really like to get a picture from the same angle for Spring, Fall, and ...well...maybe not Winter. Winter around here just magnifies any trash that's lying around, the bare branches, the lack of color. You get the picture. But at the same time, I still want a picture for Winter. I mean, maybe it will emphasize the beauty of the two bridges and you'll be able to overlook any imperfections. Hmm, perhaps a mission for Saturday?

Opinions, people! I need opinions! Should I change the picture at the top to a Winter picture or should I just wait until Spring and find myself some breathtaking picture then?

Looks So Empty

My house was beautiful for Christmas. I've really enjoyed every bit of greenery and decoration in my house this Christmas season. My parents' home was much too small to ever have much more than a small Christmas tree for the longest time and even now, they only have a 5ft. tree. Because of that, it has always been my dream to decorate my home with as much as my house will allow while still remaining classy (as in...not overdone). Unfortunately, Christmas doesn't last forever and this weekend was the weekend Joseph and I finally had the time to take everything down. Things went from green to very bare.

The stairs

My beautiful tree

The tree and its lights now

The emptiness left after the tree was taken down.

The stairs now. They look so PLAIN! I can hardly stand it. I've seriously been trying to think of what I can put on the railing to make it look a little less lonely, but I have no ideas. I suppose it won't look so bad once we start painting. (That starts next month, I think.) Do any of ya'll have any ideas of what I can do to add some color to my entryway until the paint starts going up?

In the Small Stuff

I went out tonight to pick up supper for Joseph, Titus, and I. There is a kind of food court of fast food joints about fifteen minutes from my house. Joseph wanted me to pay for everything with cash so he gave me $22. First stop in the Food Court, Arby's. Titus wanted a large roast beef with curly fries. $7.74. Second stop was Taco Bell. Joseph required a Mexican pizza and a number 6. That's the two chalupas, steak, baja. $9.95. That left me $4.31. I headed to Wendy's for my typical Baconator combo. I ordered a large knowing that my credit card was in my wallet to cover what the $4 wouldn't. Only when I got to the window...my card wasn't there. So I asked the man in the window if he could tell me how much a small would cost. Still too much. "Please, may I just have the sandwich. I thought I had the money, but I don't have enough for anything else." He changed my order to just the sandwich and I paid for it with the $4 and the extra change that I still had in my wallet from earlier today. When I pulled up to the second window to pick up my sandwich, the lady there handed me a bag, which I immediately knew was too bulky to just contain a sandwich. I told the lady as she proceeded to try to hand me a soda, "I only paid for the sandwich, not the meal." Being the typical non-English speaking fast food worker of the area, she didn't understand me and turned to have the manager come talk to me. I told him the same thing that I told the woman. He responded with, "We're giving you the meal."
"Really? Are you sure? Thank you!!" I could hardly believe it. God knew that I needed the lesson that He is ALWAYS watching and waiting to help me. He took care of me in a way I never expected tonight and I thank Him for that.

Be Inspired...

I was reading Anna's blog again this morning and I finally followed the link that she had posted here. While I watched, I cried. Then, I Googled Nick Vujicic and I found a few more videos of him on YouTube. I don't know if this will work...I'm not sure how to embed a video here so if my attempts don't succeed, I'll just post the link and tell you that you HAVE to go watch Nick speak.

Yay! I finally got it to work. Thanks Alicia!



Then, come back and tell me what you think.

O-B-E-D-I-E-N-C-E

NOT Rocky's favorite word. I promise. However, he made me look really good last night at his very first obedience class. I signed us up at PetSmart since that was the only close and affordable class I could find. We learned 'Watch Me', 'Come', and what to do to discourage jumping. The class started with socialization which consisted of passing the dogs in the class around the room to another pet owner. Let me just tell you that all the other dogs were straining on their leashes to get to the other dogs or to their own people, but not my dog...nope, Rocky loved up on every person in that class. Laid back, lazy boxer! Smokey the poodle, Foxy the German Shepherd mix, Mae the German Shepherd, and Wiggle the Australian Shepherd are all older than Rocky. You'd think they would be a little bit more relaxed. I'll tell you, Foxy was the strongest dog there. Second smallest, but the strongest. Mae was the jumpiest, Wiggle the loudest, and Smokey the most timid. I don't think the pet trainer knew what to think of Rocky. He did each command correctly the very first time and when she was just talking and explaining things he laid on the ground at my feet. Have I mentioned lately how much I love my dog? I think we'll be just fine through this class...IF we can manage to get him to pay attention to me when we go off the leash in two weeks. Start praying for me now.

If you like Movies...

You may just like I Watch Stuff as much as I do. LaDonna actually sent me a link to it yesterday. I don't even remember what it was that she sent me exactly, but I was hooked when I saw the sidebar of movie trailers. I am a HUGE fan of superhero movies and the fact that this site is all about superhero movies...I'm in awe.

Oh. and can I just say that Taylor Kitsch is playing GAMBIT in the Wolverine movie. The hotness of the men in that movie has just gone through the roof. Taylor Kitsch played Pogue Parry in The Covenant. He was, in my humble opinion, the hottest guy in The Covenant.

Anyway, you should totally check out I Watch Stuff. You may find that you like it as much as I do.

My Blog Title

I've been thinking more and more lately over the past week or so about what my blog title means to me and how it plays into what I write on this blog. I don't want to back myself into a tiny corner of possible subjects to write about just because of my blog title, but I don't want to go so far off base that people start wondering why I ever chose the title I did. (I suppose I could always change it again if things start to change, but I'd rather not.)

All that to say...just writing on here is a change for me. I use to have a blog before until someone started leaving VERY disturbing comments which prompted my husband to tell me to delete that blog and not to blog again. While I suspect that I know who was leaving those comments, there is no way for me to know for sure anymore. I suppose at some point I may write a post about what exactly happened, but this is not that post.

Another way that writing on here is a change for me is that I used to write daily in journals while in college. In fact, there were many days where I wrote up to ten times. It was all nonsense, but it was me at that time. Reading back through my journals, I have begun to realize why I had more guy friends than girl friends. I wanted to hang out and have fun more than I wanted to open up to anyone other than my very few select girl friends. Writing this blog opens me up to people I don't even know. Scary thought, but at the same time, it is very relieving. I don't have to hide me anymore. I really am a dork. I really am unconfident.

Now, if my posts from now on seem to go too far out of line and start to bore ya'll, please let me know. I really wanted to write a blog that would entertain people, but so far it has almost turned into a therapy session for me instead. Maybe you just have to know me to laugh at what I write. (not saying you don't laugh already, but I do know that sometimes my sense of humor is VERY twisted.)

Are you still reading? Wow! I'm impressed! I almost lost mySELF in all that dribble.

Let me now apologize for my rambling. I'm sorry I dragged you through all of that, but I had to get it off my chest. Now, let's see if my following posts can be more lighthearted and upbeat.

What else can go wrong?

This morning I forgot my badge and my keys for work. First time ever. I had to "sneak" into with someone else and then after logging on to my computer ourside the elevators, I IM'd my former boss, who, since it is Monday, was in the office early. David came up to the front of the office and let me in, but I was still without keys. I quite actually sat at another person's desk for two hours this morning, working while waiting on Adam, our IT guy, to come in and unlock my actual office. While I was waiting, I managed to tear a huge hole in my nylons.

My day managed to right itself within a matter of moments once I made it into my office. BUT, then I found myself starving by 10:30am. For LUNCH. At 10:30am. So, I ate lunch, Chicken Noodle Soup, at 10:45am.

The remainder of my day at work went by without any more hiccups.

When I got home, I needed to give Rocky a bath. Consequently, I bathed Rocky then proceeded to clean the bathtub and my shower since Rocky gets his bath in the master bathroom's bathtub. Unfortunately, while I cleaned, my wonderful puppy decided that he needed to pee. Right on my carpet.

Other than all that...my day really was fantastic.

How was yours?

Meal Planning

One of my unwritten (as of right now) new years resolutions is to have more of a plan for meals each day. I'm so discombobulated when it comes to knowing what to make for dinner each day after work. So, after leaving church this morning, I told Titus that he needed to help me plan dinners for the rest of the month. He didn't really help at all, but I did get half of the month written down.

My Workspace

My calendar book with a meal listed on each day that I'll be cooking something. Sundays will be my leftover days.

What do YOU do to keep track of what you're making each day? Do you use meal plans or do you just wing it? What works for you?

Pizza Fact

Did you know that you can watch as your pizza is made if you are ordering online from Domino's? I didn't. Joseph ordered pizza last night and after the order was placed online, the following screen popped up. It turns red as each step is reached from the order being received until delivery. There's even a section for when the pizza is put in the oven...and it tells you the name of the person putting it in the oven. How cool is that!?! Anyway, I just had to share the experience with you.

Totally awesome screenshot taken by Joseph with his brand new phone.

I Cannot Take Any Credit for Having Written These...

but I really have no idea who did. Let's start with:

21 Thoughts to Get You Through Almost Any Crisis

1. Indecision is the key to flexibility.

2. There is absolutely no substitute for a genuine lack of preparation.

3. Happiness is merely the remission of pain.

4. Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.

5. The facts, although interesting, are irrelevant.

6. The careful application of terror is also a form of communication.

7. Someone who thinks logically provides a nice contrast to the real world.

8. Things are more like they are today then they have ever been before.

9. Anything worth fighting for is worth fighting dirty for.

10. Everything should be made as simple as possible but no simpler.

11. Friends may come and go, but enemies accumulate.

12. I have seen the truth and it makes no sense.

13. Suicide is the most sincere form of self-criticism.

14. If you think that there is good in everybody, you haven't met everybody.

15. All things being equal, fat people use more soap.

16. If you can smile when things go wrong, you have someone in mind to blame.

17. One-seventh of you life is spent on Monday.

18. By the time you can make ends meet, they move the ends.

19. Not one shred of evidence supports the notion that life is serious.

20. There is always one more imbecile than you counted on.

21. Never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig likes it.

I Lost My Cell Phone

For the very first time EVER on Monday. To start off, I feel like an idiot because I've never done that before. I've had a cell for about 4 years and have not lost it ever before. (I'm sure you get the point that this is a first for me.) Anyway, thankfully, December marked the time for a phone upgrade. God's grace alone provided me with that timing. The phone I lost was a Motorola Razr. In pink. The most beautiful color of all time (aside from blue). I pretty much hated the Razr which is sad because it was my first upgrade and I wanted it so badly. Boy, did I ever learn not to just go get the coolest new phone available. This time, I talked to Titus and Shayla. They both have the LG ENV2. Hot phone. Great for texting. After discussing with them the downsides of the phone as well as the upsides, I decided that I was going to get one too. Tonight, Joseph and I went to the Verizon store and upgraded both of our phones. Of course, getting a new phone requires getting a new holder/protector as well as a new headset since the Razr didn't have a headset plug that I could ever find. It will take a bit of getting used to, but I really like the ENV2. Isn't it purty? I know, you're jealous. Now...I REALLY need to go find Joseph so I can copy ALL of my friends phone numbers onto my new phone.

Happy New Year

This is my obligatory post wishing everyone a Happy New Year. I'm still working on my resolutions right now, but I'll be sure to post them once they're finished. I am also working on a Bucket List. Yes, you read that correctly...A Bucket List. I figure it's never too soon to start working on mine.

Are your resolutions written? Have you started a Bucket List of your own?