20 Things About Me

1.   I am 37 Years old.

2.   My birthday is 2 days before Halloween.

3.   I lived in Germany for 6 years.

4.   I lived 2 blocks from the wall in Berlin.

5.   I love a good Margarita! (Stephanie’s Hubby makes an awsome one!)

6.   I had a starter marriage.

7.   I handwash my bras.

8.   I learned to ski in the Bavarian Alps.

9.   I play the clarinet.

10.  I want to take piano lessons.

11.  I love to go camping in our travel trailer because it reminds me of playing house when I was a little girl.

12.  I have gray hair under those hghlights.

13.  I love Ghiradelli chocolate.

14.  I have one brother.

15.  I do not have any sisters.

16.  I drive a BIG SUV and LOVE it!

17.  I pay a lot of money for gasoline.

18.  If I had a daughter, her name would have been Hannah.

19.  Both of my parents are twins.

20.  I did not have twins!  (Praise God!)

Will this be you in 20 years?

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.  So throw off the bowlines.  Sail away from the safe harbour.  Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
- Mark Twain

Is He OCD?

Recently I shared with a very good friend that I am a little concerned that Son #3 might be obsessive compulsive.  This friend’s response was, “Well, he certainly comes by it naturally!”  To which I responded, “You have never met my husband.”  To which he quipped, “I didn’t have to meet your husband!”

So, it seems that this friend thinks I am obsessive compulsive.  This is not possible, I am the most normal person anyone could meet.  Okay, I couldn’t even write that with a straight face.  Anyway, this post is not about me, but about Son #3.

If he is with me for Saturday errands, and asks where we are planning to go I am careful how I answer.  For instance, in the past, I might have told him that we were going to Target, the bank, the dry cleaner and Kohl’s.  If I chose to go to the bank and Kohl’s before heading to Target and then the dry cleaner, Son #3 would get upset.  He would remind me that this is not the order in which I told him we would be doing errands and this was not acceptable to him.  Never mind that Kohl’s and the bank are in the same shopping center and on the way to Target.  This little geographical tidbit was lost on him.  Maybe it was lost on him because he does not yet drive, doesn’t have to pay for gas and therefore doesn’t understand the need to do errands efficiently.  Another error that I have made in the past was to say that we would be going to Target, the bank, the dry cleaner and Kohl’s and then change my mind and not go to Target because I found what I needed at Kohl’s.  This also was unacceptable to Son #3 and would upset him.  Many questions would be asked as to why I changed the order of the errands, or why I changed my mind about going to a particular store.  These questions would be answered, however they would get asked repeatedly.

We are finally at a point that when he starts to ask the same questions over and over again, we remind him that he has already gotten an answer to the question and he needs to think about what that answer was.

Anyone else have these issues?  Is this typical kid stuff, or should I be worried?

Blessed and Highly Favored

I ran into a friend that I had not seen in a while.  I asked how she was doing and her response was “Blessed and highly favored!”  I looked at her somewhat puzzled and she shared the following story with me.

There is a lady that works for her husband.  She had a husband and two young children, a boy and a girl.  Her husband was very successful and she stayed at home raising their children and volunteering at their church.  One night there was a terrible fire that took the lives of her husband and her children.  She was burned over 50% of her body and spend months in the hospital recovering.  She was placed in a drug- induced coma for several weeks and had no idea about the fate of her family until the doctors decided that she could handle the news.  This lady now is a housekeeper at my friends’ motel.  If you ask her how she is, she will respond, “I am blessed and highly favored!” 

If this woman, who has been through so much tragedy and heartache, can see through her circumstances to more heavenly ones, maybe the next time we start to gripe when someone asks how we are, we should step back and remember this woman and how blessed we really are!

My New Artwork Backstory

I have been asked to share a little more about my new artwork.  Here goes…2005 was a very difficult year.  January brought the passing of a friend due to complications from treatment for breast cancer.  She had previously been a breast cancer survivor for 5 years, so her death was a shock to all of us.  She was a wonderful woman who was full of life and laughter.  She left behind two children, two stepchildren, her husband, along with many other friends and family that loved her dearly. 

March brought the sudden illness of a woman who was like a grandmother to my children.  She had not been to the doctor in years and thought that the pain she was experiencing in her back was due to her age.  One day she was in so much pain that she could not stand up straight.  Her son and daughter-in-law made her go to the doctor and, after many tests, it was determined that the pain in her back was caused by cancer in her spine.  Further tests showed that cancer was throughout her body and had actually started as breast cancer.  She only lived for a couple of months after the initial diagnosis.  This beautiful woman left behind a son, a daughter-in-law, two grandchildren and dozens of children that loved her as their grandmother because she was their daycare provider.

As if this wasn’t enough for one year, my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in November.  Fortunately, she is the poster child for self breast exams.  She found the lump herself.  She had a biopsy, then had the lump and some lymph nodes removed.  Due to the early stage the cancer was in, she only had to have radiation treatment and no chemo therapy.

Fast forward to 2007.  Not one but two co-workers were diagnosed with breast cancer.  They both had surgery and have gotten through the follow-up treatment.  I continue to pray for them both.

The pink ribbon is a symbol for breast cancer awareness.  It is a reminder that we need to do self exams and get mamograms annually. 

In my search for a memorial tattoo that incorporated a pink ribbon, I came across a dragon fly with a pink ribbon body.  I love dragon flies and decided this was the perfect design for me.

New Artwork

This is now on the top of my right foot!

Yes, it hurt!

Back

I know it has been quite a while since I last posted.  Much has happened in this period of time. 

• My brother and his wife found another house and should be moving here at the end of July. 
• Son #1 is now a licensed driver.
• Son #2 is officially in middle school.
• I have started to clean out our garage, so that one day we will actually be able to park a car in there.
• I participated in my communty garage sale and got rid of much of the stuff that I cleaned out of the garage.
• My Hubby finally had the new patio slab poured.
• We went camping one weekend.
• We celebrated 3 family birthdays.
• We celebrated the first Mother’s Day and Father’s Day without My Hubby’s Brother.  (The year of “Firsts” is always so hard!)

There is a ton more, however I will save those stories for another post.

Canceled Contract!

My brother called me Monday to bounce some things off of me.  He and his wife were feeling like the house they wrote the contract on is not the house for them.  We talked for awhile, I shared what I know about the market and the issues that they were concerned about, but ultimately the decision is theirs.  The law gives them three business days to cancel the contract.  They did just that yesterday.

So, back to square one, well not exactly.  They know exactly what house they want, they just have to find one with the right siding.  I know that sounds crazy, but if his company decides to move him again, the house that they buy now needs to be eligible for a buy-out in the future.  The house that they really want has siding on it that is not eligible for a buy out in the future…details, details.

I asked him if this meant that they may change cities and he said no.  Hopefully they will find what they want soon!

They Did It!

My brother and sister-in-law arrived Wednesday morning to look for a home.  After my brother’s visit in early April, and after firing their first realtor, they were fairly certain that my city was the city for them.  This was confirmed when my brother called yesterday evening and asked if we would like to come and see the home that they just bought.  I am soooo excited. 

They found a builder that has an inventory home that meets almost all of their requirements.  It is in an area with a country club and their lot backs up to the golf course.  It is beautiful!  In case you were wondering, My Hubby and I can only afford to visit a neighborhood like that!  Anyway, I am thrilled for them and for us!

Awesome Display of Sportsmanship

A friend emailed this story to me and I decided I needed to share it here.

PORTLAND – It’s an incredible story of sportsmanship. In one moment, two college softball teams showed an incredible act of compassion no one will forget.

Last Saturday, Central Washington University senior Sara Tucholsky came to the plate for Western Oregon.

“You know when you hit a ball really good you don’t really feel it. It hits the sweet spot and just goes,” Tucholsky explained. 

Her first ever home run.

“I’m rounding first base and as I’m supposed to be touching the bag and I glanced up as it was crossing over the fence… and I missed first base,” Tucholsky added. 

She turned back and crumpled.

“My cleat kinda stuck and my knee went some other way. It just changed, instantly… in a second. My knee gave out,” Tucholsky said. 

“I don’t think I remembered I hit a home run. I was just in a lot of pain.”

If Tucholsky couldn’t round the bases her home run wouldn’t count.

What happened next surprised not only Tucholsky but coaches, the stadium, and the sports world.

A player from Central Washington Softball explained, “I went and asked the home plate ump if we could carry her around the bases, and he kinda looked at me a little awestruck and dumbstruck at first.”

Two Central Washington players hoisted Tucholsky up and carried her. 

“They knelt me down at each base and I touched it with my left foot,” said Tucholsky.  

A Central Washington Player added, “We were in kind of a bubble the three of us as we went around the bases… didn’t really recall what was going on outside of us. Our coaches always taught us its more than a game. And if someone hurt or injured, you do the right thing. You’re not gonna remember if you won or lost. You’re gonna remember this.”

Tucholsky’s run: the game winner for Western Oregon.

And she never would have scored if not for the selflessness of her opponents. 

“If I have to go out I would like to go out that way,” she added. 

Tucholsky will have an MRI on her knee on friday.

Doctors say its likely her softball career is over.

But, as Tucholsky says, what a way to go out.

(Copyright NBC Newschannel, All Rights Reserved)