Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Thanksgiving Top 10!!

In honor of Thanksgiving, here are The Top 10 Reasons Why I Love Thanksgiving:


10.  Turkey & homemade stuffing! mmmmmmm
9.  Mashed Potatoes!!!!
8.  Getting to visit with lots of family.
7.  No gifts to buy.  :)
6. No costumes to feel guilty about not being homemade.
5.  Mid day naps actually encouraged!
4.  Pies!!!!
3.  Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
2.  Mashed Potatoes...can you really ever get enough???
1.  So much to be thankful for!!!





Have a GREAT Thanksgiving!!

Monday, November 24, 2008

Another Teenager in the House!!


Last week Charlie celebrated his 13th Birthday!!!  I can't believe it!!  Now we've got 2 teenagers in the house.....lookout!!

The pix isn't the best, because I forgot my camera....this is from my phone!

I love you so much buddy, and am proud of the person you are.

Hope you LOVE being 13!!


Tuesday, November 18, 2008

More than you ever wanted to know....

This is fun!!! I got this first 150 things from Jennifer and Jenn. The extra 99 things are from Lizzy. The things I've done are in bold.




01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink





02. Swam with dolphins





03. Climbed a mountain





04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive





05. Been inside the Great Pyramid





06. Held a tarantula - (Never!!!)





07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone





08. Said "I love you" and meant it





09. Hugged a tree





10. Bungee jumped-(on my list!)





11. Visited Paris -(on my list!)





12. Watched a lightning storm at sea





13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise





14. Seen the Northern Lights





15. Gone to a huge sports game





16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa





17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables





18. Touched an iceberg





19. Slept under the stars





20. Changed a baby's diaper





21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon - (See Here!!!)





22. Watched a meteor shower





23. Gotten drunk on champagne





24. Given more than you can afford to charity





25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope





26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment - at a wedding (I know that is terrible.)...my friend and I were totally out of control...the couple ended up divorced 5 years later...hope we didn't jinx them!!





27. Had a food fight





28. Bet on a winning horse (okay, this was when I was a kid...my family would always bet on the Kentucky Derby.)





29. Asked out a stranger





30. Had a snowball fight





31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can





32. Held a lamb





33. Seen a total eclipse





34. Ridden a roller coaster





35. Hit a home run





36. Danced like a fool and didn't care who was looking





37. Adopted an accent for an entire day





38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment





39. Had two hard drives for your computer





40. Visited all 50 states-(Close!!! I've been to 45!)





41. Taken care of someone who was drunk





42. Had amazing friends -(Still do!!!!)





43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country





44 . Watched whales





45. Stolen a sign





46. Backpacked in Europe





47. Taken a road-trip





48. Gone rock climbing -(on my list!)





49. Taken a midnight walk on the beach





50. Gone sky diving -(on my list!)





51. Visited Ireland





52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love





53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them





54. Visited Japan





55. Milked a cow -yep, it was gross!!!





56. Alphabetized your CDS




57. Pretended to be a superhero-Wonder Woman...loved the outfit...funny thing is that Brian actually met Linda Carter about 10 years ago....and was at her house in Potomac Md!!!!





58. Sung karaoke





59. Lounged around in bed all day





60. Played touch football





61. Gone scuba diving





62. Kissed in the rain





63. Played in the mud -(need to do this!!!! Sounds fun!)





64. Played in the rain





65. Gone to a drive-in theatre





66. Visited the Great Wall of China





67. Started a business





68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken





69. Toured ancient sites





70. Taken a martial arts class





71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours (LOSER!!)





72. Gotten married





73. Been in a movie-(No, but I was in a commercial!)





74. Crashed a party





75. Gotten divorced





76. Gone without food for 5 days





77. Made cookies from scratch





78. Won first prize in a costume contest





79. Ridden a gondola in Venice





80. Gotten a tattoo





81. Rafted the Snake River





82. Been on a television news program as an "expert"





83. Gotten flowers for no reason





84. Performed on stage





85. Been to Las Vegas





86. Recorded music





87. Eaten shark





88. Kissed on the first date





89. Gone to Thailand





90. Bought a house





91. Been in a combat zone





92. Buried one/both of your parents





93. Been on a cruise ship





94. Spoken more than one language fluently





95. Performed in Rocky Horror





96. Raised children





97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour - No but I've seen Jimmy Buffet & Huey Lewis each in concert about a bazillion times!





98. Passed out cold





99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country





100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over





101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge





102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking





103. Had plastic surgery





104. Survived an accident that you shouldn't have survived





105. Wrote articles for a large publication





106. Lost over 100 pounds





107. Held someone while they were having a flashback





108. Piloted an airplane -(on my list!)





109. Touched a stingray





110. Broken someone's heart





111. Helped an animal give birth





112. Won money on a TV game show





113. Broken a bone





114. Gone on an African photo safari1





15. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears





116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol





117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild





118. Ridden a horse





119. Had major surgery





120. Had a snake as a pet - NEVER!!!





121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon-(No, but I watched the Brady Bunch do it!!)





122. Slept for 30 hours in a 48 hour period





123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. States





124. Visited all 7 continents





125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days





126. Eaten kangaroo meat





127. Eaten sushi





128. Had your picture in the newspaper





129. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about





130. Gone back to school





131. Parasailed -(on my list!)





132.Touched a cockroach





133. Eaten fried green tomatoes





134. Read The Iliad and The Odyssey





135. Selected one "important" author who you missed in school, and read





136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating-(Never!)





137. Skipped all your school reunions-(Nope, been to them all and even helped plan them!)





138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language





139. Been elected to public office





140. Written your own computer language




141. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream





142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care





143. Built your own PC from parts




144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you





145. Had a booth at a street fair





146. Dyed your hair





147. Been a DJ





148. Shaved your head





149. Caused a car accident





150. Saved someone's life (When I was a lifeguard!!)







These are the 99 from Lizzy, a couple of them are duplicates, but not all.




1. Started your own blog




2. Slept under the stars




3. Played in a band




4. Visited Hawaii - TWICE & still want to go back!!!!




5. Watched a meteor shower




6. Given more than you can afford to charity




7. Been to Disneyland/world




8. Climbed a mountain




9. Held a praying mantis




10. Sang a solo




11. Bungee jumped




12. Visited Paris




13. Watched a lightning storm at sea




14. Taught yourself an art from scratch




15. Adopted a child




16. Had food poisoning




17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty




18. Grown your own vegetables




19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France




20. Slept on an overnight train




21. Had a pillow fight




22. Hitch hiked




23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill




24. Built a snow fort




25. Held a lamb




26. Gone skinny dipping




27. Run a Marathon - Oh Yea!!! I did it!! See Here!




28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice




29. Seen a total eclipse




30. Watched a sunrise or sunset




31. Hit a home run




32. Been on a cruise




33. Seen Niagara Falls in person




34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors




35. Seen an Amish community




36. Taught yourself a new language




37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied




38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person




39. Gone rock climbing




40. Seen Michelangelo’s David




41. Sung karaoke




42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt




43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant




44. Visited Africa




45. Walked on a beach by moonlight




46. Been transported in an ambulance




47. Had your portrait painted




48. Gone deep sea fishing




49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person




50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris




51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling




52. Kissed in the rain




53. Played in the mud




54. Gone to a drive-in theater




55. Been in a movie




56. Visited the Great Wall of China




57. Started a business




58. Taken a martial arts class




59. Visited Russia




60. Served at a soup kitchen




61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies




62. Gone whale watching - and seen tons of whales too...in Hawaii!!




63. Got flowers for no reason




64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma




65. Gone sky diving




66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp




67. Bounced a check




68. Flown in a helicopter




69. Saved a favorite childhood toy




70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial




71. Eaten Caviar




72. Pieced a quilt




73. Stood in Times Square




74. Toured the Everglades




75. Been fired from a job




76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London




77. Broken a bone




78. Been on a speeding motorcycle




79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person




80. Published a book-(on my list!!)




81. Visited the Vatican




82. Bought a brand new car




83. Walked in Jerusalem




84. Had your picture in the newspaper




85. Read the entire Bible




86. Visited the White House




87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating




88. Had chickenpox




89. Saved someone’s life




90. Sat on a jury




91. Met someone famous -(Was asked out in college by the quarterback who went on to play in the NFL for many years....I turned him down...it was a smart move.)




92. Joined a book club -(Started my neighborhood book club.)




93. Lost a loved one




94. Had a baby




95. Seen the Alamo in person




96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake




97. Been involved in a law suit




98. Owned a cell phone




99. Been stung by a bee




Monday, November 17, 2008

Winner!!!

The winner of The Shack is.....Mikki at Living Life Where Shoes Are an Option!!!!!  

Mikki is an old friend of mine....from way back before we had kids.  She started blogging years ago....I remember when she sent me an email about it...I thought to myself, what is a blog??? What is the point of that???  Ha Ha...look how far I've come!

To the rest of you....put this book on your Christmas lists...or go buy it..it's paperback, so therefore less than $10.  Trust me, it'll be money well spent.

Happy Monday!!!

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Giveaway/Must Read!!


If you have not read this book, you need to!!!!  It is truly the best book I've read this year.  If you're curious about God and relationship with Him, then you must read this book.

I am giving away a copy for free, just leave me a comment to enter.

The winner will be chosen on Monday.


Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Happy Veteran's Day!

Today is Veteran's Day.   I hope you take a minute to stop and pray for all of those men and women who have fought for our country and those who are currently fighting for our country.  

The picture is of my son's football team...this past Saturday.  This was right after they won their last playoff game and realized their dream of making it to the Superbowl.  One of the boy's uncle, John,  is over in Iraq with the Marines.   The boys have kind of  "adopted" him this season and he's "adopted" them.

They sent him his own Raider's Jersey...(that is their football team) which they all signed.   They've sent him tons of well wishes.  He's in turn sent them some of the most encouraging, inspiring emails each week before their games.  It has been such a neat thing to be a part of.

Last week, along with his email, he included a pix of him wearing their jersey in Iraq.  This week he sent the boys USMC t-shirts!!!  When the boys won their game, they all put on their shirts and posed with the USMC flag for a pix to send back to their buddy John.  

This coming Sat the boys will play in the Superbowl.  Win or lose, they've all learned a lot about self sacrifice, team work, and never giving up...thanks to one fine Marine.

Happy Veteran's Day and thank you to all of you who have served or who are serving our country.

Friday, November 7, 2008

A Day in DC!!!

Last weekend, we spent a day with some good friends in DC.  We've been friends FOREVER...literally.  Now they live in NC, so we only see each other a couple of times a year. It was a fun time!


Love these two people!!!

The Capitol.

The Washington Monument.

The Air & Space Museum.


These two have known each other their ENTIRE lives...how cool is that?

Love this pix!

How much fun can you have with a statue??



Little Buddy & the Moon Landing!


"I'm just a Bill on Capitol Hill!"
(Dont you just love School House Rock??)

The Supreme Court Building.


The Library of Congress.

Monday, November 3, 2008

Halloween Fun!!!

How do you like these Halloween lights????  No, this isn't my house.....it is a house in my neighborhood though...isn't it cool???  They put the web up a couple of weeks before Halloween and don't add the spider, who is made of balloons, until Halloween.
Boy #1.....he was a nerd this year....I loved it...he was in character the whole time.  He cracks me up!!
Boy#2....or should I say Girl #2????  Isn't he funny????  His friends all got a kick out of his costume.


Ready for Trick or Treating!!!

This is the first pumpkin that I ever carved!!!! (Usually Brian does that job, but he was away....so the boys and I did it ourselves!!!)


Here is Charlie's.....he carved his own!  Do you like his creative touch??

The sad thing was that when we woke up Sat....both pumpkins were gone....teenagers had stolen them. :(

This is my house.


Earlier in the day, we had all gone to the High School's Homecoming Parade....it normally isn't on Halloween...but it had gotten rained out a few weeks ago.

I like it, because it is such a small town thing!  Each grade makes a float.  Their are corvettes carrying the class princes & princesses and Senior King & Queen.  The marching band & cheerleaders are part of it.  The kids like it because all of the High Schoolers throw candy to the crowd.









My girl is on the cheerleader float...but I couldn't get a good shot of her...figures!