{Knowing You}

I realized just recently that sometimes we learn the most about people when we really aren't expecting it. Like the meeting I attended not too long ago, which was designed for "fun", ended up revealing so much about peoples' thoughts and inner-workings. With that said, here is my first batch, in a series, of questions, designed to get to know you. Not like Coke vs. Pepsi question I mentioned previously (but we all know anyways that Pepsi is much better~LOL)! I will just post them as they come to me. I look forward to your responses.

1. The Bible exhorts us to, "..speak the truth in love..". Do you tend to be more on the truth-side, the love-side, or are you a nice blend of both?

2. Are there friends you go to for certain things depending on what you need or are most of your friends the all-purpose type? For example, would you call one friend if you wanted to go out & have fun, another if you needed great (spiritual or otherwise) advice, or another if you needed to cry on her shoulder.

I will also respond to these questions in the comments section. Hope ya'll have a great weekend!

Still Breathing

Yes, I am still alive. Taking it one day at a time. I have been so BUSY lately. Just trying to juggle too many balls in the air at one time. Plus with homeschooling now, I feel like that added a watermelon to my other smallish juggling balls. I am trying to finish a HUGE scrapbook-for-hire project and only have 1 page left to go, plus some touch up work. I started knitting a sweater for Sienna that is near completion. I started knitting a super fun looking hat for Tatiana. This last weekend I went to Jacob's homecoming football game and then to Buffalo Wild Wings, since it was my 10th high school reunion. So much fun! I realized I think I am too old to be staying up til 2:30 am. Then again, in a way, I'm too young not too. Here is a picture of my best buddy Michelle & I (can you believe we have actually been friends for UM....12 years??!!):


These are the pictures of the kiddos that I brought with me to show my friends:



This coming weekend my dear old friend Justine is driving up from North Carolina to visit for a couple days, as she has 3 weeks of army leave. I am so excited I am just beside myself. I haven't seen her since Tatiana was about 1 year old. That means I am planning weekend food/activities & trying to clean house (well, haven't started that part yet, but I will). In the midst of all this, I have been working on my part-part-part-time job of surveying housing developments, which needs to be completed by Friday (when I will have to drive out to Schaumburg~YUK!~to return my materials). Sometimes I feel like I am streeeeeeeeeeeetching so thin with so many things on my plate. Which leads my to a parenting related thought: does anyone out there use a family schedule? You know, like a Supernanny-type routine where the whole day is planned out? If you do, please tell me how you like/dislike it. Maybe it would work for me. Maybe I would feel like there was a definite time for things like cleaning, playing & working. Otherwise just let me know that you are still alive too OR what you do to keep yourself from going insane when your plate is ready to spill over. God Bless!

P.S. I just have to share this picture that I took today. Sienna got to join us for some school time, since she was being so well-behaved before her nap time. I *so* love the girls and I living life TOGETHER ;-)

Survey Says....

I used to love watching Family Feud (and lots of other game shows for that matter). I think the part I liked the most was seeing whether or not I seemed smarter than the contestants. Of course from the comfort of my own living room without thousands of dollars at stake, I probably had an advantage. I distinctly remember the way Ray Combs would say, "We surveyed 100 people with the top 5 answers on the board....." I guess surveys were popular even back then. It seems like the 21st century version would be internet surveys. They are everywhere: myspace, forums, and most of all...my inbox. I sometimes wonder what the point of them all are. Mostly they are useless information. Do I ever remember which of my friends like vanilla and which ones like chocolate? Or the jobs they have had? Or whether they drink coke or pepsi? Does it really matter what they were wearing when they took the survey? I wish someone would come with a survey and title it, "The Only Survey You'll Ever Need" filled with the most crucial of questions. Then I can send it to all my friends and keep a copy of all their responses. I doubt many would answer (maybe save for my really, really close friends) because the reason most people participate in surveys is for FUN. It would have questions like the date of their birthday (so I don't forget), their love language (so when I want to do something nice I know what type of "thing" to do), their favorite meal and dessert (so when they come over I know what to cook), maybe things like their greatest strength/weakness, what they tend to cry about (why does everyone cry so much anyways?? I can't even remember the last time I cried...), maybe things that they find aggravating (so I can try not to do it), and probably the things they find most important in life & what they have the strongest convictions about. I think that REALLY tells the most about people, don't ya think? Anyways, the reasons I usually participate in surveys is either because a) I am in the mood or b) my "friend" wants me to send one back to her with my responses. So hear is a freebie for ya'll (reason "a"):

3 Weird Things/Habits about Me

1. I like to eat raw flavored oatmeal. Only Quaker Cinnamon 'n Spice. I usually eat about 2 bags at a time. I started out just using less and less water because I really like the spicy flavored powder. Eventually I got to the point where I wasn't using any water at all.

2. I was born with one crossed eye. It couldn't move at all, it was just always pointing in. I had surgery for that, but now it tends to overcorrect itself so it may not look like I am looking at you, when I really am. I am kinda sensitive about it and it is so frustrating to hear store clerks/strangers/people-who-don't-know-about-it asking, "Are you talking to me?" It happens especially when I am tired too. This also means that I DON'T have BInocular vision. Most people's eyes work together, mine work separately from each other. Like when you go to the DMV and you look in their little vision test machine and they ask you if the dot is inside or outside of the box, I can't tell. One eye sees the dot, one eye sees the box. So far, I've guessed correctly.

3. I like to crack my back. Maybe this is not so weird, but some people might think so. It just relieves a lot stress and I feel looser after I do it. When I was pregnant with T., I used to lean backwards over a chair so that the chair back would push on my vertebrae.

I was planning on listing 6 things, but I guess I'm not as weird as I thought. I'm sure these are things that you wouldn't readily forget, not like whether I prefer Coke or Pepsi.....

P.S. In case you were wondering, I'm a Pepsi girl. Coke just tastes too sweet to me. I usually drink Caffeine-free Diet. It has a nice crisp refreshing flavor.

Things I've Been Reading Lately

I came across this blog recently and loved her blog's purpose and the idea of dreaming a really BIG dream. That with the fact that she has six kids makes me all the more interested. I think from there I linked over to the blog at S.H.M.I.L.Y . This is the purpose as posted on the blog:

"S.H.M.I.L.Y. Time" (See How Much I Love You) focuses on our priority after God as wives, which is to bring glory to Him through being a wife. It doesn't matter what stage (or state) your marriage is in right now. Pray to the Lord to give you the strength, forgiveness, and love you need to be the wife He intends for you to be.

Seems like a really great place to get some new ideas for keeping the spark alive in your marriage.

This is another blog I've been checking into which I believe can be linked from the SHMILY blog.
Here is just a small snippit of what the blog is about:

A CLEAN HEART will not tell you that you deserve a break or that you deserve some praise for everything that you do. The reason is simply: we have been called to, and have the privilege of, being wives and homeschool moms... along with everything that entails. A CLEAN HEART will encourage and uplift, never belittle or begrudge the God-given task we have as women, wives, and mothers. (Please note: I am a wife and homeschool mother, so to those of you who are single or not homeschool moms, please take the information given here and use what you can to bless you as well! I'm glad that you're here!)

A CLEAN HEART Blog will also offer FREE printable schedules, organizers, and many other helpful forms to help you get control of and maintain your home and homeschool. More importantly, your HEART will not be forgotten along the way by offering devotions and printable prayer pages as well.

I am so excited to have found this site and can't wait to start checking it out a little more thoroughly. I think the printables will be useful for my home journal. They also have a group challenge which I think would be neat to do with some friends. (*hint*hint*)

I've also been lovin' this forum over at recipezaar. They also have other great cooking forums to check out if you're not into budget/freezer cooking.

I've been reading the book Saving Dinner: the Menus, Recips, and Shopping Lists to Bring Your Family Back to the Table, which I had checked out from the library. I'm going to purchase it from amazon though, since so many of the recipes are things my family would really use. She gives you a recipe a day for every week of the year. One recipe a week is a crock-pot meal. Many of these recipes could easily be frozen. *I already have Asian Honey Chicken in the freezer.*

I've been trying to focus more lately on my purpose in the home and making it a sanctuary for all who enter. I guess I've been on a cooking kick lately too. Let me know what you've been reading or if you've found any of my links to be interesting ;-)

What would you do....

...if you witnessed a mother back-hand her child across the face in a public place?? I was in Target yesterday and came across a family in the toy department. The three kids were in the 8-11 year old range and were arguing with the mother over purchasing a toy. Mom was yelling that she doesn't have $20 per child to spend and the family seemed to be agitated. I felt sorry for the mom at that particular moment. Later on in my trip, as I was approaching the checkout area, I could hear screaming and crying. The 10-ish year old daughter was extremely upset and was trying to explain to mom that mom didn't keep her word about something. At the exact moment I was walking by, mom back-hands daughter across the face. It wasn't with all her might or anything, but it probably stung. I was just bothered by that display. It seemed inappropriate. Period. I just kept on walking. Rick said I should've just hit the mom and ask her how it felt! LOL! I really don't know what I could've done. What would you do??

I also wonder when the law steps in. Hollie, if you read this, I wonder if Jeremy could shed some light on this. Do they ever get calls about a parent hitting a child in public? Would they even respond? Just wondering....