One Year

Yesterday was the one year anniversary of the day I bought my car. Here are some interesting facts about my car over the past year:

• 17,456 miles
• one accident
• one broken windshield
• too many visitors to count
• several trips out of town: Champaign, Effingham, Chicago, Sycamore, Clare
• multiple car washes (which is only significant because I never used to wash my other cars!)
• an average of 40 miles to the gallon each tank (give or take a few MPG)
• 10 people in my car at one time in order to "initiate" it New Year's Eve last year (2 in the front seat, 5 in the back seat, 2 in the trunk, and me driving)
  
  I have had a good year in this car and hope to have many more, without any other mishaps! Maybe I'll even take it on a road trip out of state.
  

Conglomeration

For all those faithful readers who anxiously log onto my blog every day, several times a day to see if I have posted, I am extremely sorry that I have been such a slacker! So, I thought I would create a random list of events for you. Here you go, in no particular order:

I was driving with a client in my car this week and saw a bumper sticker that said "I'm only speeding because I really have to poop." It kept me entertained for two days.

I worked on Christmas Eve. Okay, "work" is a very loose term. I mostly talked to a coworker and then rushed the last hour or so to get my paperwork done.

I got lots of new games for Christmas: my own copy of Settlers, Carcassonne, and Ticket to Ride Europe. Daynah is already really enjoying Carcassonne and we have played a lot.

I went to the car wash the other day just in time to get it rained on and covered in snow. But it looked so good for approximately 3 hours!

I got season 7 of Gilmore Girls. My collection is now complete. I also got several seasons of the Cosby Show. My all time favorite show!

Okay, so far my conglomeration of events hasn't been as entertaining as I had hoped. Bummer. I might have to think about it and post a part II.

Merry Christmas Adam!

A friend of mine from college always used to refer to the day before Christmas Eve as Christmas Adam. I'll give everyone a few minutes to figure that one out, while I post other exciting news...

Kevin survived his first Forsberg family gathering! We went to my family Christmas party last night. It was a lot of fun. Everyone was very nice to him : ). He also got to meet my mom. She was very well behaved (hi Mom) although I think I only left him alone with her once! We even got to see Santa. We were almost-but-not-quite able to avoid having to sit on Santa's lap. If my cousins hadn't ratted out our hiding place, we would have made it. But "my favorite" aunt Kathy would not let us stay hidden. So, the moral of the story is, we had to sit on Santa's lap. I mean, we got to sit on Santa's lap! We were so excited to do it! We couldn't wait for everyone to take our picture! It was the highlight of my December! Okay, end sarcasm here. Anyway, I think Kevin enjoyed the party. It's one day later and he hasn't broken up with me yet, so I may be in the clear. : )

Now, back to Christmas Adam. For those of you who haven't figured it out, Christmas Adam is the day before Christmas Eve because Adam came before Eve. So, Merry Christmas Adam!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Okay, in another 198 days. I just thought everyone should know that the count is under 200 days. What do you think I should do for my birthday this year? If I start planning now, it could be truly amazing!

Only one more day of this incredibly long work week.

I finally got all of my Christmas shopping done. HOORAY. Well, I think. Maybe a few odds and ends. And tons of wrapping. Okay, maybe I'm not in the clear at all and I should be really stressed. I'll get right on that.

Nobody Likes Me...Everybody Hates Me...

No comments on my blog. Only 5 votes on my Would You Rather. Not even my mom is commenting anymore. Sigh. Tear.

Further verification of SAD

So, here is my theory about SAD in action. Saturday it snowed. All day. I was okay with that. I have long ago figured out that I am okay with cloudy days as long as they have a purpose. ie: snow or rain. But cloudy days for the sake of cloudiness make my mood plummit. I was excited about the snow Saturday. I was even more excited to wake up on Sunday to sunshine on the pretty white snow. I went to church with a smile on my face (okay, that might be an exaggeration. I was not happy to have to go early for a meeting, but the sunshine did make me smile). When I left church for lunch, I began making all these plans for what I needed to do that afternoon before heading back to church. The sun had energized me to the point that I felt ready to tackle the world's problems (or at least my insurmountable to-do list). Well after, lunch, as I was heading home I realized I was heading straight into a bunch of gray clouds. Sigh. My energized mood almost instantly evaporated. I pulled into the driveway and there was no longer any evidence that the sun had been shining. Remember the insurmountable to-do list I was so ready to tackle? Yeah, neither did I. I took a nap because all of a sudden I was extremely tired and not motivated to do anything. But then my workweek started with sunshine and it was the best day of work I've had in a while. That might have to do with all the non-work stuff I did. Like play with a coworkers baby. Or watch kids drop off presents for our clients. Or talk about my weekend with coworkers. But that happens even on a gloomy day. I really feel like it simply had to do with the sun shining. It's the weirdest effect, but I don't think it completely mental. Anyway, I promise I won't bore you with any more stories about how the lack of sunshine effects me!

In more exciting news, Daniel and Whitney found out they are out of PGN and will be able to bring Ellie home in about a month! I am so excited for them and can't wait to be able to see Ellie again. It seems like so long ago since we saw her in Guatemala. She has grown so much.

SAD

So, I realized last year that I must have a mild version of SAD--seasonal affective disorder. It is a disorder that effects people in the winter months because of lack of contact with light/sun. On the yucky, gloomy days of winter I don't function as well as I do on the sunny days. Today I saw a brief 30 minutes of somewhat-sunshine. It is unbelievable how much that boosts my mood. It is on the gloomy days of winter in Illinois that I miss Texas the most. There is a lot more sunshine in Texas throughout the winter. But then I don't get the snow. What's a girl to do?!

The Carpet Saga

Here is a very uneventful, long-winded Teresa story:

Several months ago, we got an email at work saying we were going to get new carpet in our offices. We were all very excited. Hooray for new carpet. The last time our carpet was replaced was at least 10 years ago. The carpet is dirty, gross, and you can see the walk pattern in it. So, two weeks ago, the carpet guys come and start putting carpet in the lobby. Last week I received the very depressing news that only the lobby, back office, hallway, and two offices on my hall were going to get new carpet. Mine was not one of the offices. Very depressing. Well, then while they were installing the carpet in the hallway on Friday, the carpet guys got confused and thought that my office was one of the two that was supposed to get carpet. I was not going to argue with them. But then they figured out which office it was really supposed to get the carpet. Still no carpet for me. So then today they were putting the carpet into the office next door when they come in and start measuring my office. Turns out they have extra carpet so they can carpet one more office. Let's pause here because I know the suspense is killing you. You are sitting on the edge of your seat. Will Teresa get new carpet, or will she be left with the old stuff? You don't know what is going to happen next. As they are telling me they have enough carpet for one more office, they also inform me that my office is just a little bit too big. Again, no carpet for me. Sigh. And I get to here my director discussing which office will get the new carpet. How depressing. The dirt spots are just getting more enhanced by the second as I stare at my dirty old stinky carpet. Fast forward two more hours. The director, Karen, sticks her head in my office to inform me that she has pulled some strings and EVERYONE is getting new carpet! Hooray for new carpet! We will again be able to follow the five second rule when we drop something on the floor (right now we don't even want to touch it for fear of what might have contaminated the food for the few seconds it was on the floor).

It's Just Another Manic Monday...

So, now I'm going to have that song stuck in my head. Not my intention when I was thinking of a title.

"Of all the Charlie Browns in the world, you're the Charlie-Browniest!" In case you were wondering, I got to watch A Charlie Brown Christmas for the second time this season. It makes me happy. I might say that line multiple times this week for no apparent reason. Just a warning. Than you can't quite look at me as if I'm crazy because you will already have some warning. It's okay, you can still look at me like I'm crazy. I can handle it.

Then I got to watch Elf. I am not a huge Will Ferrell fan, but Elf is a great movie. Made funnier when you watch it with the right people. Although, any movie for me is made funnier when I watch it with the right people. I know that most people would think that watching a movie does not really engage people because everyone is looking at the screen. But for me, watching a movie with friends or family provides extra entertainment because then I can look at the reactions of others to their favorite parts of a movie. Or hear their laughter. Or watch their look of horror when something horrible happens. It is so much better than watching a movie by yourself. I am definitely not one of those people who can go to the movie theater by myself. I can handle a restaurant solo, but it's just not worth it to me to see a movie by myself.

I almost forgot. I finally got to vote on the latest Would You Rather. I was the one who tipped the scale and broke the tie! I was very excited to actually be able to participate in the poll.

Okay, enough of my random rantings for one evening. Stay safe in the ice. Maybe I won't have to go to work tomorrow...

Fun-Filled Friday

I went to see Third Day in concert tonight. It was their Christmas tour with Jars of Clay. I highly recommend the CD!


Oh, and I went with my boyfriend. It was a lot of fun, even though we got ditched by some other people who were supposed to go with us! It was fun to have a surprise date to ourselves!

Dodge Ball

Here is a quote from a book I am reading: " 'What I liked was getting out on the wrestling mat, taking charge on the football field, and dodge ball. Watch out.' 'What is it with men and dodge ball?' 'An evolutionary instinct to wipe out the weak.' " So, here is just another reason I don't play dodge ball. I have no instinct to wipe out the weak. It's my new excuse and I'm sticking to it!

And more pictures!



This is one of my favorites! He is so alert and looking right at Grandma.
And here is a picture of his oh, so cute feet without his socks! Mom says I have a foot fetish, but who wouldn't like perfect baby feet?!

Another Lazy Day at the Homestead

We did our very own photo shoot!
These socks might just be the cutest baby item EVER. They even have the non-slip grip on the bottoms (which I also have a picture of, but I didn't think anyone else would really care to see).


The last three pictures are from when I had the 10pm-1am shift of babysitting while everyone else slept. Every time he stretched, he would reposition his arms and he was making me laugh, so of course I continued to take pictures.

I also got to go to lunch with my two best friends from college and their babies. It was fun to catch up and see them in mommy mode.

And of course I've taken lots of pictures of Chris and Ann's cats Tabitha and Bucky. They are fun. Bucky is very skittish and I've only seen him once or twice because he hides in Chris' closet most of the day. But Tabitha loves to cuddle and be in everyone's business. She really enjoyed watching the Christmas tree go up. I won't bore you with those pictures either, but you might have to see them when I get home.

Today it's off to spend some money. Mom and I are going shopping. Hooray!

Pictures

Another great picture on my blog with someone in a Santa hat!

This was the first time I got to hold John. He cried a little. Everyone blamed me, but then he fell asleep again in my arms. I'm not a bad aunt, I promise!

A family portrait.

All tuckered out after a successful trip to pick out a Christmas tree.

He just cracked me up here. He sits on his hands when he is in the carseat.

Oh So Cute

Okay, so as Aunt Teresa, I must brag a little. I do believe I have the cutest nephew EVER! He's so cuddly and cute. And remember the pouty lip? Even cuter in person. I'll have to post some pictures tomorrow. Not that I've taken any. Well, maybe a few. : )

My biggest surprise of the day...I totally forgot that I would be able to get Chick-fil-a while in Georgia!!! We had it for lunch. It was so good.

Then we took John for his first ride in my brother's truck in order to go pick out a Christmas tree. I tried to convince Ann that we should use John to stand by the tree that was a maybe (this is what my brother and mom always used me for) but Ann decided that she was not going to continue that tradition. I'm not really sure why. John seemed agreeable.

When I was flying in to Atlanta, I got a little teary eyed. I didn't realize until that moment how much I really do miss Georgia. It was home for about 16 years of my life. It was good to see the Georgia pines and the red dirt. Although it was a little weird shopping for a Christmas tree in 60 degree weather. Ann had on capris. Not quite what you're expecting when you go Christmas tree shopping.

Leaving on a Jet Plane

So, it is currently 4:47am on a Saturday morning. I am awake (although that is yet to really be determined) and ready to go to the airport. What weirdo was thinking "A flight at 6am is a great idea. It will get me to Georgia really early and I'll have most of the day ahead of me." Someone should give that person a serious talking to!!! Did I mention that this has been a crazy week and I started packing at midnight? Did I mention that I was on the phone with some guy until 1:15am? Did I mention that I really like sleep? Oh, one last one...did I mention that I am only going to Georgia for 3 packing days and I packed in my largest suitcase. Partly just to say I could and partly for the reaction it would get when Kevin sees it! : ) Did I mention that this great guy I am dating is also sacrificing sleep in order to take me to the airport?! Okay, enough, I have to lug the suitcase to the front door. For all my Peoria friends, I'll see you on Wednesday. I think I'll have Internet access at the house, so I might post pictures over the next few days.

More Pictures

Yeah! My sis-in-law sent more pictures. Isn't he SO cute?! I get to see him in less than 2 days! Hooray!

Happy Birthday Chris!

Today is my brother's birthday. In keeping with family secrets, I won't disclose how old he is. Just know that he is OLD. Well older than me anyway. Although he told me that I'm not much further behind him. At least I'll always stay the same distance behind him! I love you Chris!

PS. My brother is the one holding my cute, adorable nephew! But I think John must get his cute, adorableness from his aunt or his mom...

Ho Ho Ho

Santa comes in many shapes and sizes in our house!

Here's Santa with Samson. Samson wants some catnip for Christmas!
And here is Santa on his sleigh!
Doesn't Santa look a little hairier?
Oh wait, it's just Samson with a Santa hat on!

Our First Snow

I left church today, only to find it pouring huge, perfect flakes of snow! Totally unexpected. While I don't know if I am exactly ready for snow, it makes me smile to think of it. Snow does that to you. There are several Gilmore Girl episodes where Lorelai exclaims about her love of snow. She is so right!

Black Friday

What a horrible name for the day after Thanksgiving. I celebrated by getting up at 2:00 this morning and going to Best Buy. Then I went to Circuit City. Then I went to Target. Then I went to Walmart. Then I ended up at the mall, where I shopped like mad at JCPenney.

Okay, totally just kidding. I slept until 9:30. Then I had breakfast. Then I attempted to balance my checkbook, which didn't work, and I was getting REALLY frustrated, so I decided, who cares if it's not balanced. So, now I am posting on my blog!

The Christmas decorations are going up around the house as we speak. It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

I talked to my mom last night and she said the plan was for Ann to be released from the hospital this morning at 11:00! It sounds like her and John are doing good. I am so thankful for that. And I will be in Georgia in one week to see them!

I feel like I am living in a constant Saturday! Yesterday felt like Saturday and so does today! I love four day weekends!

Update

I talked to my brother late morning. Ann is doing much better today. They were moving her to a new room and hoping to get her up and moving around today. Her platelet count continues to rise, so they haven't had to give her any more transfusions. So, she seems to be getting better bit by bit. I took some pictures to work with me today to show John off. It was lots of fun. One of my coworkers also had a baby boy yesterday, so we are celebrating lots of births.

Two random thoughts:
It occurred to me today that it is weird whenever you guys refer to me as Aunt Teresa. My mom's sister's name is Teresa, so she has always been Aunt Teresa and I have been Cousin Teresa, but now I'm an aunt too....hmmm...how do we solve this dilemma?

This isn't the first time I've had this thought, but it reoccurred to me this morning. Not only am I an aunt, but Daynah is an aunt and Josh is an uncle!

I'm An Aunt!

John was born this morning at 8:36! Isn't he a cutie! I love his lips...they always look puckered! He is healthy. He was 7lbs 13oz and 18 and some odd inches long (mom will probably post the exact length, but I don't remember off the top of my head).

Pray for my sister-in-law, Ann. She had to be rushed in for an emergency c-section this morning. She lost a lot of blood and they have had to do a couple of transfusions today. She is not entirely out of the woods yet, but she is doing well. My mom was able to talk to her for a few minutes this afternoon. My brother sounds like he is doing well, just tired.

For those of you who haven't heard, my travel plans changed slightly over the weekend, so I don't get to go see Chris, Ann, and John until next weekend. Until then, I'll just talk to them on the phone a lot and bug my brother for more pictures : )!

Give Thanks!

What a weekend to be inundated with reasons to be thankful! Stress is not a good thing, especially when you bring it on yourself. So, today in church Pastor Lyall preached on thankfulness and then this evening we had the feast of thanks. Thanksgiving is not my favorite holiday, but I appreciate the holiday for the simple fact that it gets me thinking about what I have to be thankful for. The busyness of life often sneaks in and I forget that my life is a bed of roses compared to the lives of so many others.

Pastor Lyall had us say Psalm 100 today as a congregation. It is one of my favorite psalms!

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.

It's Friday!

At approximately 5:15 this evening, my weekend will officially begin! HOORAY! It has been a long week. I am looking forward to hanging out with friends and family this weekend. Weekends are always busy, but they are filled with things that I want to do and I can leave the stress of work behind.

We'll make it another random fact day:

Andy Warhol designed the Campbell's soup label in 1968. And the can is considered a form of pop art according to a coworker's dictionary.

It is one day after Ann's due date.
6 more days until I have 6 days off of work!
66 days until my spiritual birthday.
104 days until I leave for Thailand.
232 days until my birthday.

Oh, and I was supposed to post my answer to the would you rather column since I can't vote from my own computer. I would choose the flailing arms. I figure, I don't really want to announce my emotional state to everyone at all times. And I figure that people would get used to my arms flailing. And if they didn't I would still have Jerelyn. We could just flail our arms wildly together.

On a sadder note...

My Would You Rather column has lost several voters. Or my blog has lost several readers. What to do? What to do? I guess I could start by thanking the faithful readers of my blog who inspire me every day to write more! I never expected so much support and encouragement (tear, tear)! You, the fans, are the reason I do what I do. Thank you Mom and Dad for encouraging me to be the best that I could be in everything! Thanks to all my English teachers who never stopped pushing me to do my best when writing papers. Thanks to Holly who read and edited an endless amount of papers in college, always correcting my grammar and making sure that the content made sense. Every last one of you have made my blog what it is today!

Okay, enough with the nonsense! Vote, people, vote!

Neglect

I feel as if I have had no inspiration for my blog lately. When I feel uninspired, I feel like I shouldn't post because than I am just giving a half-hearted effort to come up with something to write. I feel like I am letting my readers down. But part of the reason I haven't updated is because I haven't had the time. Something about being on the phone every night. Or is it something about dating some guy? Oh wait, maybe the phone issue and the dating thing are the same thing?! And I think they relate to me not getting sleep anymore : ).

Kevin, sorry that your first mention on my blog is such a random one! Just be glad you got mentioned : )!

Okay, you guys caught me. I really just wanted to post so that I could officially say I'm dating someone : ). Hey, it's what's going on in my life right now and it feels weird not mentioning it, so I'm solving that while I am functioning off of little sleep and should be in bed and don't have the energy to decide whether this is a good idea or not!

So, I'm interested to see the comments that will come in on this posting...

Another Tuesday

Go ahead everyone...comment away. I am perfectly willing to admit that it is again 10:00 on a Tuesday and I am still at home! Even though I don't feel like I need to justify the fact I am not at work, I will let you all know my schedule for the beginning of the week : ). Monday I worked 10 hours. Today, even though I won't get to work until later, I will work 9 hours. Tomorrow I will work another 10 hours. So, there you have it.

How about some random facts today:

I tried a cotton candy blizzard from Dairy Queen yesterday. Pretty good, but too sweet to finish the whole thing.

Still no news that my nephew is born. But it could be any day now.

I forgot to watch the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown before Halloween. Maybe I'll watch it anyway.

I feel compelled to wait until after Thanksgiving to listen to Christmas music, but I really want to listen to the Charlie Brown Christmas CD today.

It was at least 100 degrees in my office yesterday because they still had the heat on. It made me very sleepy. Oh wait, I might have been sleepy for other reasons : ).

My sleepiness almost caused me to fall asleep at my desk yesterday while doing paperwork. Oops!

I have a new client that is taller than me : )!

That's all for today!

Pictures

Here is Isabell all comfortable in my bed. If it looks like she is glaring at me, it might be because she is. She does not like to get her picture taken : )!
Here is Isabell ignoring me after the first picture...she really doesn't like the flash. But she wasn't too offended. She stayed. And I can hear her purring next to me as I type this! Okay, seriously, I'm going to go shopping now. I just thought pictures would be an added welcome to an extremely random and relatively boring blog posting.

Oh, less than a week until my sis-in-laws due date.

And for those of you anxiously awaiting this countdown: only 238 days until my birthday! Don't worry, it hasn't made it onto the screen saver of my phone yet. I have to at least wait until 2008 to do that!

A Relaxing Morning

This is the first Saturday in several weeks that I have not had to get up in the morning to do something. I have taken full advantage of it. I did not get out of bed until 9:30 and then I just bummed around until about 11. The funniest (and I use the term loosely, because most of you won't understand the significance) part of my morning is that Isabell (the cat) has been attached to my side all morning, following me from room to room, and being extremely cuddly. I know that I am only second best because Daynah spent the night at a friend's house and Isabell doesn't quite know what to do when she is gone. But, it still has been entertaining because Isabell rarely spends a significant amount of time in my room. I have clocked her at well over an hour of time laying in my bed this morning and begging for me to pet her. Daynah comes home at 3 and then I know I won't see Isabell the rest of the day, but I'll enjoy the time while I can : )! Now, I'm off to get ready to go shopping!

Just to verify...

So, I had to go back by the dead deer today. Yep, it was still there. It was not a figment of my imagination. I have a picture on my cell phone to prove it. So, for those of you who are in Peoria, just ask and I can wow you with the dead deer hanging from the tree. And my amazing photography skills.

You know you've entered a parallel universe when...

So, I'm driving two clients home this afternoon. I was driving through main street of a pretty small town, but it was still main street. I innocently look to the left and there before my eyes is a deer hanging from a tree in the process of being gutted!!! Not joking. I saw it with my own two eyes. My client thought it was funny until she realized that it was a real deer. Then there was a few seconds where I thought she might hurl in my car!

Side note...

My readership has almost tripled...well at least my votership on my Would You Rather column has almost tripled since the first one. That makes me excited : ). And was also another excuse to procrastinate! I am so going to get ready for work now!

Procrastination

I am laying in my bed under my warm covers telling myself that I should really get up and get ready for work. It is, after all, approaching 10:00. However, bed under covers equals warmth. Rest of the house outside of covers equals really, really cold. The sound of the wind in the trees outside the window also makes me believe that outside the house equals cold. Granted, I'm excited to wear a sweater to work today, but the process of getting there has me procrastinating. What's a girl to do? Well, post on her blog was my answer! Plus there is the whole dilemma of which sweater I want to wear as the first sweater of the season. It's an important decision and one I will have to live with for the rest of the winter. If I choose the wrong one, there is no going back. Maybe it's too important of a decision and I should just stay in bed all day and call in sick to work. Bad idea, I know. Okay, okay...paperwork and clients are telling me its time to face the day, embrace the coldness, and suck it up!

Pics

This is me smelling the roses : )
Zuela wanted the chance to smell a flower too!

Lisa, Zuela, and me in the backyard. Zuela was supposed to go with us on our adventures throughout the day, but she didn't get ready on time, so we had to leave her behind. It sounds cruel, I know, but you should see how much time it takes a sea horse to get ready!!!

More Pics

View from the Tower in the Heights
I look kind of freaked out, but I promise it was just really sunny!
And it was really windy!
Lisa was so excited every time we saw a "Christmas tree"
We walked along the river downtown. This is Lisa soaking in the atmosphere!

A Fun-Filled Visit with a Friend

Lisa got into town last night at 9:00. She is leaving at 6:40am tomorrow :(. So, we had to pack all our fun into one day. We slept in a little this morning, but were out the door before 11. I took her to Tanner's where we shopped, ate apple cider donuts, saw the billy goats and llamas, took lots of random pictures, and then headed for our next adventure. Well, first we stopped at Applebee's for lunch. Then we drove down Grandview Drive. Once at the end of the drive, we decided to go up into the tower. Then we went back down Grandview Drive a little ways in order to take some pictures. The trees were BEAUTIFUL! Then we went by my office so she could see where I work. Then we went downtown so she could see the riverfront. Then we went back to my house where we took some random pictures around my house. Then we took a much needed hour long rest. Then we went to Avanti's for dinner where Lisa got to eat a gondola! Then we went ice skating. Then we came back to my house and hung out and talked. Oh, and in the middle of all of that we made three trips to Walgreens to pick up some pictures. Third time is a charm!

Here are some pictures from the day.

Lisa made some new friends at Tanners!
I got to ride an Oveja!
A closeup of us on Grandview Drive.
My friend Zuela also came to visit me from Texas! She got to play in the leaves!
We decided to play in the leaves instead of do anything useful like rake them! We enjoyed crunching them under our feet all day long!

Fun Fall Facts

Today I was playing pool with a client (really that has nothing to do with what I want to say, I just wanted to rub it in that I got to play pool while I was at work!) Anyway...we were in the attic at work which is a concrete floor. I was wearing my "clicky" boots and on the concrete floor they were really loud. Well, as many of you know, I get excited when the seasons change and I get to start wearing my clicky boots again. They make me happy. They make me smile. Have I mentioned that I like fall?

15 more days until my nephew's due date!

Raining Leaves

I love fall! I was driving to work yesterday, and I couldn't help but smile. My office is an older part of town, so the trees are huge. As I drove down the road, I felt like it was raining leaves. A couple times they obstructed my view for a few minutes and I felt like maybe I should turn on my windshield wipers. And there is a tree by my office door that drops HUGE leaves that are super crunchy when you step on them. God is amazing that He would make crunchy leaves a part of the process of life for a tree!

Did you know...

Does anyone else remember that David Schwimmer and Dustin Diamond were on The Wonder Years? I do not remember that at all...

Bumper Stickers

The other day I saw a couple of bumper stickers that made me laugh. Probably funny because they were themed. So, on two different occasions I saw these two bumper stickers:

"Silly boy. Jeeps are for girls."
"A girl and her jeep...it's a beautiful thing."

Apparently, only girls are allowed to drive jeeps.

Let's see, what else...

Still enjoying the cool weather.

My friend Lisa is coming to town on Friday (unless the plane fills up and she can't get on because she's flying standby. But as of Sunday there were still 22 seats left! Hooray!). So, I get to share Peoria with her. I'm very excited! She's excited that it might be colder here than in Texas.

Only 17 days until Ann's due date and 24 days until I get to see them all!

The Power of Music

I was talking with a friend about how certain songs/music reminds you of different times in your life. Here are a few that always conjure up warm/interesting/disturbing/funny memories...

The Simpson's Sing the Blues CD always reminds me of playing Sega with my brother in his room--specifically Sonic the Hedgehog and NHL Hockey. (Sadly enough he also regularly listened to Sir Mix a Lot's Baby Got Back, but at least the song reminds me of fun times of hanging out with my brother!)

Any Jimmy Buffett song reminds me of my mom and dad. I grew up listening to Jimmy Buffett. Sadly enough, I was belting those songs out long before I knew what I was singing about.

"It's the End of the World as We Know It" reminds me of high school graduation. It wasn't the theme of graduation, but I know it ranked pretty high up the list. Ironically it was playing on the radio as I was driving to graduation in my beloved 1983 Honda Prelude in the rain.

One of the Caedmon's Call Cd's (can't think of which one right now but I can hear the songs in my head) had been in my car for about a month when I traveled a couple of hours for a friends wedding.

There is a country song that mentions flip flops that was playing when Danell and I went to the aquarium in Dallas (we were both wearing flip flops at the time and it is our favorite footwear).

"I'm in the Lord's Army" reminds me of the year I nannied because the boys and I used to march through the dining room, around the living room, into the kitchen, up the stairs, around the playroom, down the stairs, into the dining room, etc. as we sang the song.

I'm sure there are many more, but I can't think of titles right now!

The Joy of Technology

For those of you wondering why I haven't posted since Tuesday...I don't know the answer. Last night I was going to post a video but my limited knowledge of blogspot and computers were not enough. In the middle of trying to figure it out, my computer also decided to freeze up. Technology is a very technological thing!

If a tree falls...

Apparently my efforts at artistic creativity yesterday were a little too disturbing for some. Come on people, I thought it was HILARIOUS and still laugh when I look at the pictures. And I say, as long as it's still my blog, if it makes me happy, then it stays : ).

I was at a client's house this evening and my seven year old client had a shirt on that made me laugh. On the front it said "If a tree falls in the forest..." And on the back it said "Would all the other trees laugh at it?" HAHA!

Documentation of My Highly Nutritious Dinner

Daynah decided to create a picture journal of my dinner tonight. I think she was bored and I was elected as her entertainment. I'm sure everyone wants to know what I ate and how I ate it! Warning: some pictures are very graphic...proceed with caution!

This is me getting dinner out of the fridge...yep, folks, I had leftovers! I know it looks like this is a picture of my butt, but in fact, I accused Daynah of taking a picture of my butt and she said she was taking a picture of me getting food out of the refridgerator.
Barbeque pork and a corn muffin...oh, and some chips (not pictured)
I was almost done with the meal before she actually got this picture. She said that she deleted a bunch because I was eating too fast and she would catch me too late. This one I actually posed for, just so that she would be happy!
Figured a good meal documentation wasn't worth it's gold without a closeup. Sorry for the grossness!
Ummm...and a nice, satisfyng drink of water afterwards!

Very Interesting...

My votes on the Would You Rather column have almost doubled today! Very exciting. Now I know that at least 8 people read my blog, unless some people are voting from more than one computer! And I have it on good authority that Storm isn't the only guy who reads/has read my blog. I wonder if more guys would read my blog if I changed the background color to something other than pink. Not that I will, but it's just a thought. Do you think the pink intimidates most guys? Maybe I should make that my next poll.

I played a game of Ticket to Ride tonight and someone actually beat me. It was only by 2 points, but it doesn't happen very often. Don't tell Pastor Joel, but I'm blaming it on being tired and Jerelyn blocking me and causing me to lose 12 points. It was definitely not my fault!

Go to the Mattresses

I have been instructed to update my blog! So, all of you who think that I'm ALWAYS stubborn and do the exact opposite of what you tell me to do, please note that the only reason I am posting today is because someone told me I needed to! Because I have nothing really to post about, but here goes...

We had a retreat at church today and Pastor Fred referenced the quote from The Godfather "Go to the mattresses." I have to admit, the only reason I know this quote is because it is quoted in You've Got Mail : ). And as soon as Pastor Fred quoted the line, I immediately pictured the conversation between Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks. And then she has a conversation with her boyfriend. My favorite line is "what is it with men and The Godfather?!" Maybe I should actually watch The Godfather so I can picture the quote from the actual source, or maybe I don't really care!

Blast from the Past

I was hanging out with some friends tonight and we somehow got on the subject of things we did in elementary school on cold/rainy days since we couldn't go outside to play. Do you remember Heads (pul igtyb v yghj7gyn6mhg6h76tgytjhty7jip-i99kopbgytufghr6jgy6hhyjnbtrnhmn6tyu r6t7h jighu8fgkjgkbhugbnklmj tyum). The parenthetical statement above is Jerelyn's contribution to my blog! Anyway...do you remember Heads Up 7up? We were discussing how much we didn't like the game. It was all a popularity contest...and I wasn't very popular.

Newest quote from Gilmore Girls: "The Ice Man was looking at you like you were a porter house steak!"

Counselor Bashing

So, I saw my favorite client today(remember the one who called me lame, boring, stingy, and a liar). Well, today he called me old. The funny thing is, he called me old because I have white hair (not gray, but white) but then his first guess at my age was 23. This was after he told me he HATES having to meet with me. Oh well, some clients love seeing me : ). I just keep telling him his countdown until he no longer has to see me (which is only two more weeks now).

Only 31 more days until Ann's due date and 38 more days until I go to Georgia to meet my nephew (finally booked the ticket).

8th grade algebra is not fun! Well, I'll admit, I loved algebra, but that was when I was learning it every day and was there for the process. Now I get asked to help Daynah with homework and have to come in cold and try to solve these word problems. NOT FUN. But the more I help, the more it comes back to me.

I got to meet DJ Tanner

I felt a little like a groupie, but it was still fun!
Daynah's first comment after seeing this picture: "I'm taller than Candace Cameron, too!" Truthfully, she was a lot shorter than I remember her on the show!
So, the women's event was totally fun. Candace Cameron Bure shared her testimony of how she came to faith in Christ and what God brought her out of. She talked about her family life and how her husband also became a believer. She was very down to earth and real. Afterwords, Daynah and I waited in line to get one of her seasons of Full House signed. Daynah was so excited and took lots of pictures with her own camera (I might have taken a few with my own camera, but it was only for the sake of wanting to get the perfect picture for Daynah). Then we waited around until the end so that we could get our picture taken with her and not just act like paparazzi and take pictures of her. I am not a big celebrity person, but it was still fun. I'm sure when I was Daynah's age I would have been SO EXCITED to be able to be doing this, so it was fun to have Daynah with me and see things through her eyes.