Trying to think of a hundred interesting things about me was harder than I expected. I'm sure there are tons of things no one really wants to know, so I'll just keep those to myself. I have tried not to repeat the things I've already mentioned in previous memes. To those of you who were looking forward to this, I hope you're not too disappointed. Well, let's get on with it, shall we?
1. I am abundantly blessed. Haven't counted lately, though. Have you?
2. I adore my husband. I think he's cool. I also think he's hot.
3. I love to harmonize. I'm an alto. I was a soloist in my previous church.
4. I was in choir at church and school in 7th through 12th grade. I sang 2nd soprano.
5. I'm an aunt to 24 nieces and nephews.
6. I'm the 2nd of 4 children, 3 girls and 1 boy.
7. I was a middle child for 7 years.
8. I was my mom's biggest baby at 7lbs 9oz. I'm the smallest now.
9. I was bald until I was 2 years old. My hair came in curly. The curl relaxed considerably after the birth of my children.
10. I was born again when I was 14 years old.
11. I was raised Southern Baptist.
12. I do not consider myself Southern Baptist, although I'm not sure exactly which label fits.
13. I don't know why I feel a need to have a label.
14. I am not allergic to exercise. I used to be in excellent shape.
15. I'm built like an athlete. If athletes were, you know, short and dumpy.
16. I'm not very athletic.
17. I can swim, but I cannot dive. Nor can I water ski.
18. I have never tried snow skiing.
19. I was on the Bozo show in 1st grade. Clowns do not scare me.
20. I have never had a broken bone.
21. I have been to California 3 times in my life. Once when I was 7, once at 11, and again in March of this year.
22. Chocolate cheesecake is my absolute favorite dessert.
23. I am dependable.
24. I am a dork.
25. I can't dance, but I do anyway.
26. I prefer daisies to roses.
27. My favorite food is cheese enchiladas.
28. I am very easy-going. It takes a lot to get me riled.
29. I am empathetic. Other people's pain bothers me more than my own.
30. I have few close friends. I'm not good at keeping in touch.
31. I have green eyes.
32. Green is one of my favorite colors.
33. I'm not a girlie girl.
34. I do not like hard candy, except peppermints.
35. I don't like hospitals.
36. My kids don't understand my sense of humor.
37. I hate to take medicine.
38. I had my first alcoholic beverage on my 21st birthday. One is my limit. I do not drink beer.
39. I tried smoking when I was 11. I started smoking at 21.
40. I tried my first joint with my first husband.
41. He also introduced me to cocaine.
42. Until then, I had never ever put any foreign objects into my nose.
43. I have never kept a journal.
44. I can keep a secret, but I don't keep anything from my husband.
45. I did not go to kindergarten. It wasn't required back then.
46. I love to laugh.
47. I look a lot like my mom.
48. I'm late everywhere I go.
49. I do not believe in luck.
50. I can read music.
51. I took mandolin lessons in 5th grade.
52. I still have that mandolin, which is warped from years of storage.
53. My husband bought me a new mandolin, but I can't play it either. He can.
54. I have never had braces.
55. I have never had lice.
56. I have never had my nails done professionally.
57. I took piano lessons in 5th grade. I can only play with my right hand. I can pick out a melody by ear.
58. I'm quirky.
59. I am quiet.
60. I was painfully shy as a child. I'm still not terribly outgoing.
61. Red is another of my favorite colors.
62. I do not understand road rage.
63. I am very soft-spoken. I usually have to repeat myself. I SAID I usually have to repeat myself.
64. I taught myself to sew, and I have made quite a few dresses for myself and my girls.
65. I taught myself to quilt.
66. I rarely watch television. I'm the only one in the family who can walk into a room without turning on the TV.
67. When I was little, my mom dressed me and my younger sister alike. Everyone thought we were twins.
68. I prefer homemade tacos to restaurant tacos.
69. I have varicose veins.
70. I do not have stretch marks.
71. In second grade, Kitty and I painted each other's pants with watercolors. Mine were hot pink double-knit polyester high-waters. I was some kinda cool.
72. I stayed in at recess because Keith and Delbert liked me and would chase me. I didn't like boys. Mrs. Johnson was my teacher.
73. I aced all my tests in school until my senior year.
74. I was popular with the jocks because I'd let them see my answers.
75. Mr. Loibner, my 8th grade science teacher, always wrote my test score on the chalkboard. (Highest in class.)
76. I got bonus points on one of his tests because I spelled out "deoxyribonucleic acid" when everyone else just wrote "DNA". I was NOT trying to show off.
77. I got a C in Calculus.
78. I got my first F in 11th grade English when I didn't turn in my research paper.
79. I hated math until 7th grade.
80. I was in the National Junior Honor Society in 8th and 9th grades.
81. I was in the National Honor Society in 10th and 11th grades.
82. I did not graduate with honors, but I did score high enough on the ACT to merit a scholarship to the University of Central Arkansas.
83. I was going to be a Speech Pathologist, but I didn't finish college.
84. I lost my scholarship with a 3.75 grade average because I didn't have enough hours.
85. I have never taken the SAT.
86. My first husband was the first person who ever said I was beautiful.
87. That's one of the reasons I married him.
88. My sisters and I were in a family "band" when we were younger. We played (poorly) for my dad's Optimist Club meetings.
89. I'm a grandma. My ex's 28-year-old daughter has a little boy. He's 18 months old.
90. I worked at the Little Rock Post Office for 7 years.
91. I know almost every ZIP code, or at least the first 3 digits, for the state of Arkansas.
92. I was in a puppet ministry in junior high.
93. I love to be wined and dined. Burgered and fried is OK, too.
94. I have had only one speeding ticket in my life.
95. I was the financial secretary of my church for 5 years and served as church clerk for 6.
96. I taught a junior high girls Sunday school class for 3 years.
97. I taught 5th grade Sunday school for one year.
98. I fell in love for the first time in my life when my first child was born.
99. The job I have now is the first job I've ever had where I have not been subjected to sexual harrassment.
100. When I was a kid, I paired my crayons by "gender". Dark colors were male and light colors were female.
Yes, I know, it couldn't have been more random, but there it is.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Post #99 (You Know What Comes Next)
In light of the fact that my next post will be a doozy, I'll keep this short and sweet.
I've been tagged by Lauren and Laurel Wreath for a couple of book memes, and I'll get to those as soon as I can. Thank you ladies for thinking of me!
I learned from my little girlfriend Kayla's dad today that she's been in the hospital for a week(!) recovering from a car accident. Kayla is my daughter's soccer teammate from last year. She's doing well and expected to go home with her dad tomorrow, but she is lucky to be alive (the car flipped and hit a tree.) I've mentioned her before at the end of this post. Her dad is optimistic that they can work things out, and I'm so thankful for God's intervention. He is good. All the time.
I found an interesting post here , and I'd like to hear your thoughts. Agree or disagree? Let me know!
Hope the rest of your week is fantabulous!
I've been tagged by Lauren and Laurel Wreath for a couple of book memes, and I'll get to those as soon as I can. Thank you ladies for thinking of me!
I learned from my little girlfriend Kayla's dad today that she's been in the hospital for a week(!) recovering from a car accident. Kayla is my daughter's soccer teammate from last year. She's doing well and expected to go home with her dad tomorrow, but she is lucky to be alive (the car flipped and hit a tree.) I've mentioned her before at the end of this post. Her dad is optimistic that they can work things out, and I'm so thankful for God's intervention. He is good. All the time.
I found an interesting post here , and I'd like to hear your thoughts. Agree or disagree? Let me know!
Hope the rest of your week is fantabulous!
Sunday, August 13, 2006
Weekend Update
Last week in Blogland proved to be quite interesting and thought-provoking. Boomama started it off with this discussion about the Sovereignty of God, which led to many more discussions and shared testimonies, lots of encouragement and prayers for those who are struggling, and most importantly, evidence of the very topic of discussion. The way I see it, it was no coincidence that some of those who visited her blog that day and participated in the discussion were brought together. Yes, I believe He orchestrated it so that those who are struggling would be ministered to by those who had endured similar trials.
I am currently working to formulate a coherent response to Lori's post at Rattling Around, and like her, I'm sure in my beliefs but unsure of my ability to explain them to someone else. I do love a challenge. I seem to have more questions than answers, but I trust God even when I don't fully understand His ways. I hope you'll weigh in with your thoughts.
I am currently working to formulate a coherent response to Lori's post at Rattling Around, and like her, I'm sure in my beliefs but unsure of my ability to explain them to someone else. I do love a challenge. I seem to have more questions than answers, but I trust God even when I don't fully understand His ways. I hope you'll weigh in with your thoughts.
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Back to School Blues
First things first: Please go here and pray for Kim's husband's safety. I'll wait until you get back.
This is the first year I haven't had to buy school supplies. I didn't get to take my girls shopping for school clothes, not that I miss shopping, it's just... different. I'm not fond of shopping, especially with my older daughter, who is so picky - MY WORD, that child is impossible to please. OK, truth is it isn't the shopping I mind, it's the spending. I could window shop all day, not spend a dime, and come home, happy as a clam, empty-handed. If a clam had hands, that is, which they don't, but you get the picture.
Anyway. My office building is located right next door to one of our two high schools. It isn't the school my girls would attend if they were here, but it's school all the same, complete with buses loaded with kids and parents in SUVs dropping off and picking up their offspring. My office window affords me a view of the school's driveway, so at about 3:30 each afternoon I get to watch the cars line up as parents wait to retrieve their children from the clutches of public education. This was my cue last year to give Lindsey a call to make sure she was on the bus and on her way home. That isn't the case this year. Sounds depressing, don't it? Yeah, well, that's not my thing, although I could stand to lose my appetite and drop a few pounds. I appreciate the irony of it is all I'm saying.
School for them doesn't even start for another week and a half. I've often wondered if we should have homeschooled. I did consider it prayerfully before Lindsey ever started school. Back then, she was the sweetest thing. I couldn't bear the thought of sticking my precious baby on a bus with all those older kids. All the schools there are on one big campus, and each bus runs one route to pick up all the kids from Kindergarten through 12th grade. Her older sister, Robin, was in high school at the time, and I knew that Lindsey would be trying to tag along with her and her friends. Terrifying thought, actually. I began to pray about it well before she turned 5, but her dad was against it. It wasn't a popular choice among parents in the community. Most of them were teachers, and many of them were members of our church. Kids need socialization, don't they?
Miraculously (?) as soon as she turned 5, all the sweetness and light evaporated, and I couldn't wait for the bus to run so I could shove her sassy little self out the door and lock it securely behind her. I didn't, of course. She turned 5 in February and wouldn't be eligible for kindergarten until August. So, you know, I had to wait.
Oh, she was so excited. She already knew how to read and tie her shoes and a bunch of other stuff that parents leave up to the public schools to teach. Can you believe some parents don't teach their children to read? Kindergarten started one week later than the other grades, and Sarah and I accompanied our school girl to her class. To get pictures of her first day of school, not because she wanted us there. We had gone the week before to find her classroom, meet her teacher, and choose a desk. I was so proud of her when she led the way down the hall straight to her class a whole week after having been shown the way only once. That's my girl!
Sarah and I hung around just long enough to let the teacher know that we were available for field trips and whatever else she might need us to help with. Then we were free to go do our own thing. That was a pretty good year.
This is the first year I haven't had to buy school supplies. I didn't get to take my girls shopping for school clothes, not that I miss shopping, it's just... different. I'm not fond of shopping, especially with my older daughter, who is so picky - MY WORD, that child is impossible to please. OK, truth is it isn't the shopping I mind, it's the spending. I could window shop all day, not spend a dime, and come home, happy as a clam, empty-handed. If a clam had hands, that is, which they don't, but you get the picture.
Anyway. My office building is located right next door to one of our two high schools. It isn't the school my girls would attend if they were here, but it's school all the same, complete with buses loaded with kids and parents in SUVs dropping off and picking up their offspring. My office window affords me a view of the school's driveway, so at about 3:30 each afternoon I get to watch the cars line up as parents wait to retrieve their children from the clutches of public education. This was my cue last year to give Lindsey a call to make sure she was on the bus and on her way home. That isn't the case this year. Sounds depressing, don't it? Yeah, well, that's not my thing, although I could stand to lose my appetite and drop a few pounds. I appreciate the irony of it is all I'm saying.
School for them doesn't even start for another week and a half. I've often wondered if we should have homeschooled. I did consider it prayerfully before Lindsey ever started school. Back then, she was the sweetest thing. I couldn't bear the thought of sticking my precious baby on a bus with all those older kids. All the schools there are on one big campus, and each bus runs one route to pick up all the kids from Kindergarten through 12th grade. Her older sister, Robin, was in high school at the time, and I knew that Lindsey would be trying to tag along with her and her friends. Terrifying thought, actually. I began to pray about it well before she turned 5, but her dad was against it. It wasn't a popular choice among parents in the community. Most of them were teachers, and many of them were members of our church. Kids need socialization, don't they?
Miraculously (?) as soon as she turned 5, all the sweetness and light evaporated, and I couldn't wait for the bus to run so I could shove her sassy little self out the door and lock it securely behind her. I didn't, of course. She turned 5 in February and wouldn't be eligible for kindergarten until August. So, you know, I had to wait.
Oh, she was so excited. She already knew how to read and tie her shoes and a bunch of other stuff that parents leave up to the public schools to teach. Can you believe some parents don't teach their children to read? Kindergarten started one week later than the other grades, and Sarah and I accompanied our school girl to her class. To get pictures of her first day of school, not because she wanted us there. We had gone the week before to find her classroom, meet her teacher, and choose a desk. I was so proud of her when she led the way down the hall straight to her class a whole week after having been shown the way only once. That's my girl!
Sarah and I hung around just long enough to let the teacher know that we were available for field trips and whatever else she might need us to help with. Then we were free to go do our own thing. That was a pretty good year.
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
My Fortress
A week and a half ago, I made the trip to Arkansas fully expecting my girls to come home with me. I have explained to them and their dad (and anyone else who'll listen) my reasons for believing that they need to be here with their mother. They don't necessarily disagree, it's just not what they want. Their dad disagrees that it's what they need because it's not what they want. I've been praying non-stop, and countless others have joined me in prayer over them, and I trust they (and you) will continue to do so. I know God is listening. He's working on it. On them. On me.
Making the trip home without them was next to unbearable. I was angry. I was heartbroken. The pain was overwhelming, and I was tempted to stifle my feelings, but I realized that was my old way of coping. I would retreat into "safe" mode, behind a wall of denial and a facade of happy-go-lucky. I had many people fooled, including myself, for many years. Pretending not to care can lead to actually not caring. I don't want that. God doesn't want that. As much as I would like to not feel the pain, I can't be that person anymore.
Bev's comments on Captivating - Chapter 8 reminded me again that I am not who I was then. This quote resonates with me: "But the experience of sorrow in no way diminishes the joy of living. Rather, it enhances it. A heart awakened to its sorrow is more aware, more present, and more alive, to all the facets of life." That is so true! Numbing my heart to pain robbed me of the ability to feel much of anything. My empathy turned to apathy. How pathetic is that?
I still have moments when I wish I could retreat into oblivion, but God has been at work tearing down that wall. What then shall I do? I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. (Psalm 91:2)
Making the trip home without them was next to unbearable. I was angry. I was heartbroken. The pain was overwhelming, and I was tempted to stifle my feelings, but I realized that was my old way of coping. I would retreat into "safe" mode, behind a wall of denial and a facade of happy-go-lucky. I had many people fooled, including myself, for many years. Pretending not to care can lead to actually not caring. I don't want that. God doesn't want that. As much as I would like to not feel the pain, I can't be that person anymore.
Bev's comments on Captivating - Chapter 8 reminded me again that I am not who I was then. This quote resonates with me: "But the experience of sorrow in no way diminishes the joy of living. Rather, it enhances it. A heart awakened to its sorrow is more aware, more present, and more alive, to all the facets of life." That is so true! Numbing my heart to pain robbed me of the ability to feel much of anything. My empathy turned to apathy. How pathetic is that?
I still have moments when I wish I could retreat into oblivion, but God has been at work tearing down that wall. What then shall I do? I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. (Psalm 91:2)
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