Meet Me on Monday by Acting Balanced

Questions:

1. Did you prank, get pranked or ignore April Fool's Day?

I got pranked and a big-time pranking it was! I have been waiting for ages for the release of the 1940 Census. Today, April 2, is the release date. One of the genealogy related blogs, RootDig, that I receive via e-mail sent out a note about a federal act that would keep it from being released without a presidential directive. ACK! I was all ready to send out a post of my own griping about this eleventh hour snatching, but I needed to go back to that blog e-mail to get the link for the offending Act. I clicked the link to be greeted by the fact that it was an April Fool's joke. Too funny! I'm glad that I hadn't posted my upset post! The only thing I can think of that would have been worse would be an e-mail saying that the depository housing the 1940 Census had burned. I would have been bawling my eyes out so hard that I wouldn't have been able to read the words "April Fool!" They got me good!

2. What is the most unusual thing you have in your pantry or refrigerator right now?

We have balloons in the freezer. Our youngest daughter makes balloon animals and these balloons have to be stored in the freezer before she makes them into animals.

3. If you were in the "Miss America" (or another) talent competition, what would your talent be?

If I were in the Miss America contest, I would have to say my biggest talent would be making people see something that isn't there, because if they saw what was there, I wouldn't be in the competition. :)

4. What is one thing you miss about being a kid?

The freedom to not worry about adult responsibilities. Worrying about how to clothe and feed people was for the grown-ups to worry about and I knew they'd take care of it. I also miss being able to zip around through the woods on my bicycle. That was lots of fun.

5. If you HAD to change your name, what would you change it to?

I would possibly change it to "Lily". "Suzanne" means lily and it is a flower that I like very much, especially tiger lilies.


Post the answers on your blog and link up below or respond in the comment section. Either way, I'd love to hear from you!

Meet Me on Monday with Acting Balanced

This Meet Me on Monday was started by Acting Balanced because we missed Java from Never Growing Old so very much! Please be sure to visit both sites.



Please be sure to click the button above to play along!

This week's questions:

1. How do you like your eggs?

I like them the most where the whites are cooked and the yolk is in a bubble that can be popped to make the yolk ooze everywhere. I also like them scrambled and boiled.

2. Who is the last person you spoke to on the phone?

I think that it was my youngest son, but at the moment I'm not positive.

3. Do you have a place you keep 'junk' in your home?

Yes.

4. What is on your 'spring cleaning' list?

We're working on doing the entire house and rearranging how we're using the rooms.

5. What blog post have you written recently that you'd like more people to know about? (don't forget to link it up)

It is a post on my One Thousand Gifts blog titled "Forgiveness". It is actually about a month old, but I haven't been too faithful with posting lately.

Saturday 9

1. Do you enjoy going to a casino now and again?

I've never been to one and don't really think that I would enjoy it. I don't enjoy a lot of noise or crowds.

2. What makes you happy most of the time?

Knowing that Heavenly Father is there for me makes me happy. My genealogy work, my family, and pretty flowers make me happy. There are frustrations that come along with each of these at times, but overall these things make me happy.

3. Are you jealous of someone right now?

In a manner of speaking, yes. But at this point it has gone beyond any jealousy over alienation of affection to downright loathing.

4. You're stranded on a desert island with one fictional character. Who is it? Why?

Eeyore would be my character of choice. He's the only one that I can think of that would understand my way of seeing things.

5. Have you ever been in the emergency room? If yes, for what (most recently)?

Yes, I have been many times for myself and with my children. The most recent time for myself was 18 June 2010. It was when they diagnosed severe anemia and the tumors.

6. Where is the last place you drove to just for fun?

I haven't been anywhere "just for fun" in ages. There are lots of places that I go to that are work-related that are fun sometimes. The last one was in Nacogdoches, TX.

7. If you were to make your living as a photographer, what would love to shoot?

I would love to be able to shoot beautiful landscapes, rural scenes, florals. I also would really enjoy photographing teeny-tiny things and making them look huge.

8. Tell us about a band you like that we might not have heard.

I don't know about any bands, per se. But one of my favorite is a one-woman wonder: Enya.

9. Where was the last place you went shopping? Why?

HEB was the last place that we went shopping. We had to buy groceries.

Five Minute Friday: Real

Please click the button above and be prepared to be inspired by The Gypsy Mama's writing. Join the rest of us as we write life five minutes at a time, unedited.

This week's prompt is: Real.

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Keeping it real; that's what me and my friends do. We share our hearts, the dark and the light. Nothing is too ugly to talk about, to learn from. We've had the love of a lifetime and we've lost it through death or divorce. We've had babies, schooled them, sent them off to war, and watched those babies have their own. We've loved our parents and said good-bye to them as they left this life. We've put Him on the cross and brought Him into our hearts. We've tested and been tested. We've been through it all and shared it all, the laughter and the tears.

Real is what we are, what we're meant to be. We live in the real and in the love that He gives us for each other.

We're living life, keeping it real, one day at a time.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. It's that most wonderful time of the year...tax season! Do you complete your own returns or farm that job out to the professionals?

My husband has a Master's Degree in Business Administration/Accounting & Finance, so he does them. I wouldn't touch them with a ten-foot pole!

2. This next question comes from Kansas Bob...he posed it in his response to something I asked in an earlier Wednesday post and I asked him if I could add it to the Hodgepodge some day. Today's the day....

Which do you think has changed you more-love or pain?

I'm thinking it is a mix of both, but pain has made the most obvious changes. Actual, to-the-core, hope is generally a thing of the past and laughs are few and far between. However, that trend seems to be changing and when I do laugh, it is a deeper, more true laugh than in the past.

3. Tangerine Tango has been named color of the year for 2012. Your thoughts? Would I find this color anywhere in your house? How about in your closet? If not, will you be adding this color to your life in some way in 2012? If you're not sure what tangerine tango looks like click here.

I'm allergic to citrus fruits and that carries over to home decor and clothing. :) I'm more into earth tones, blacks, and reds.

4. Are you a collector? What do you collect and does it get admired, used, and/or dusted regularly?

I collect angels and books. No, no, no in regards to the angels and yes, yes, no in regards to the books. The angels are in the living room and I rarely am in that part of the house. The books are here in the room with us.

5. February is National Heart Month...besides a green salad what is one tasty heart healthy dish you like to prepare?

Anything loaded with garlic would be our choice. Garlic helps to reduce blood pressure and that can't help but be a good thing for the heart.

6. When was the last time you had car trouble?

We had our last car trouble about a year ago, unless you want to count a flat tire. That happened on the way to take our daughter to class just a few months ago.

7. Have you been more demanding on yourself lately or less? Is that a good trend?

In some ways, yes, I have been more demanding of myself lately and I do think that it is a good thing. Rather than taking things at face value and assuming them to be the truth, I am digging deeper and looking for confirmation. This comes out the most in my genealogical research. Just because someone says A belongs to B doesn't mean that this A belongs to this B. There are a lot of factors that need to be considered and records to track down to prove the connection. It would be easiest to assume that all information that I was given was correct and let my research stop there. But, I need to go the distance and get that confirmation through legal papers and other fact comparisons.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

I do not like waiting. Most of my life I have been an impatient person. Over the last couple of years I have become a far more patient person. Until last night, that is. Someone dangled a blasted carrot that they know I want and now I have to wait to see if I can have the carrot. Hurry up and wait. OY! One problem with this particular dangler is that they dangle and then take it back without following through. I know this, but I can't help but get my hopes up each time, hoping that something will change for the better. I am determined, however, whether they follow through or not, I'll find a way to get that carrot with or without their assistance.

Diary of 5

I ran across this Diary of 5 meme just a couple of days ago and decided to give it a go. It is a companion to The Simple Woman's Daybook. Maybe you'd like to join in, too.

These prompts are to help us be more aware, through our 5 senses, of what is going on around us at any given moment.

I am seeing...a picture of someone's feet on my computer screen.

I am hearing...my husband telling funny stories to our youngest daughter.

I am smelling...not much of anything as I am very congested right now.

I tasted...peanut butter crackers and Diet Coke earlier today.

I am feeling...more stuffed than a turkey at Thanksgiving.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

Please be sure to click the button up there to join Joyce and her Wednesday Hodgepodge fun!

1. The NFL playoffs were held this past weekend and this year's Superbowl lineup will feature The New York Giants versus The New England Patriots. How do you define 'patriot'?

A patriot, in my opinion, is someone that is loyal to their country, no matter how stupid it might seem to be at the moment. They are willing to defend their country, at times risking their lives to do so. Like a parent to a child, a patriot loves their country, no matter what.

2. What's something in your life right now that feels like a 'giant'?

At this exact moment, the never ending headaches fit that description. Feeling secure is another.

3. What's the first thing that comes to mind when you think back to being 18?

YAY! I made it through school. I'm old enough to move out without permission and I'm about to get married!

4. Coconut-mashed potatoes-vanilla ice cream-mayonnaise...which white food would be the hardest to give up?

I wouldn't want to have to give up mashed potatoes. I don't eat coconut very often, so I wouldn't miss it. The same for vanilla ice cream. I would miss mayo only because I don't like dry sandwiches. I could live without it if I had to.

5. Describe an incident or a day you remember as the coldest you've ever experienced?

That would probably be a day back in South Carolina when our heater went out and it was in the single digit temperatures. The fan was running on the heater, but it wasn't putting out any heat. Even bundled up in blankets and coats and cuddled up together, we were very cold.

6. You're hosting a brunch...what's your favorite dish to prepare and serve?

I don't know what would be my favorite dish to prepare, but my husband's favorite things for me to make are custard pie and deviled eggs. I would probably opt for the deviled eggs and pray that the others liked them as much as my husband does.

7. How do you combat negative thinking?

I'm not very good at combating stinkin' thinkin'. It usually wins over any attempt to combat it.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

I was hoping to go to photograph a cemetery today but didn't get to because of rain and tornado warnings. I am very happy for the rain because we need it, that's for sure. But, I really, really wanted to go work through our list of photo requests today. Our last two trips out to this particular cemetery, we didn't find any of the people on our list. It will still be too squishy to go out there tomorrow, but I hope by Friday we can try again.

Five Minute Friday: Vivid

Please click the button above and be prepared to be inspired by The Gypsy Mama's writing. Join the rest of us as we write life five minutes at a time, unedited.

This week's prompt is: Vivid.
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Sometimes rainbows are bright and vivid and it is easy to see their beauty. Other times they are soft against the sky and you have to struggle to see them. Their beauty isn't fully realized by our weak, human eyes, but it is still present. We have to gaze past the clouds, into the darkness, and see with our hearts what our eyes don't comprehend.

It is very easy to find joy when the beauty doesn't take a struggle to see. It takes a realization that beauty goes so much deeper than what a fleeting glance can easily grasp and into the depths of the soul to find true happiness. It is in our hearts before it is in our eyes.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

Please click the button above to join Joyce at From This Side of the Pond for Wednesday Hodgepodge!

1. A new Miss America was crowned on Saturday night-did you watch? If you were a contestant what would your talent be?

No, I do not generally watch beauty pageants. The talent that I seem to have the most is ticking people off. A more positive talent, I guess, would be making something out of nothing. My husband says that I'm very good at that.

2. Do you have houseplants? Real or fake?

Does a dead poinsettia count? I do not generally have flowers in the house unless I am planning to photograph them. That isn't very often these days.

3. When you were in school did you speak up or were you more of the hide your face, avoid eye contact, and pray the teacher didn't call on you type of student?

I was always hoping and praying that the teacher would forget that I existed. The thought of being in front of the class, giving oral reports, writing on the board, all of those things scared the heck out of me and made me sick. I'm still the same way.

4. Next Monday marks the Chinese New Year....what do you order when someone suggests Chinese food?

We never go anywhere for anyone to suggest Chinese food to me.

5. How would you define a miracle? What would it take for you to consider something a miracle?

To me, a miracle is something good that has no possible way of happening, but it does anyway. For example, going to bed the night before Thanksgiving with no food in the house and waking up to people at your door the next morning with more groceries than your kitchen can contain.

6. What's your favorite Disney song? If you're stuck you'll find a list here

This is one of my favorites: Beauty and the Beast

7. I should have __________yesterday.

I should have walked through a section of the graveyard looking for some of the names on our list of markers to photograph, but it was just a lazy day all around.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

I am excited to find a relative online (that I never knew existed) that is every bit as excited about genealogy work as I am. She's got information that I didn't have; I have information that she didn't have and so we're both getting to grow our family trees a little more and maybe we'll be able to knock down a few brick walls in the process. I am very happy to have found her!

Five Minute Friday: Awake

Please click the button above and be prepared to be inspired by The Gypsy Mama's writing. Join the rest of us as we write life five minutes at a time, unedited.

This week's prompt is: Awake.

Awake. That's what I am most of the time, a walking zombie. I can't sleep, really sleep, because the bad dreams are there where sleep should be. If I do fall asleep, they follow me into the waking, along with the reminders of just what happens if I am down for more than six hours at a time. Awake and in pain, physically and otherwise.

Awake, what I want to be, fully awake to enjoy the time that I have left. Awake when everyone else is and fully alert, letting the pain sleep for a change.

I want to be awake and alert and right there in the moment when the bridge is finally crossed, when what I'm looking for is once and for all found.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. Lake Superior University has once again banished a list of words/phrases they think should be banished from the Queen's English in 2012-

amazing, baby bump, shared sacrifice, occupy, blowback, man cave, the new normal, pet parent, win the future, ginormous, trickeration and thank you in advance.

Which of these words/phrases would you most like to see banished from everyday speech and why. Go here to read more about how the words were chosen.


I think the term "baby bump" is cute, so that one can stay. Of the choices given, I guess I would say get rid of shared sacrifice. Generally, they aren't truly "shared" and certainly not in the political realm.

2. Are you easily embarrassed?

YES! There are things that some folks think are totally hilarious, but they embarrass me something awful. There are some folks that I think are the happiest when they are being a goof ball *because* they know it is embarrassing me.

3. What is your go-to snack?

If I could afford it on a regular basis, shrimp would be the answer here. Shrimp fixes everything. But, for now, it is peanut butter crackers.

4. Have you ever been to Washington DC? If not, do you have any desire to go? What site/attraction would you most like to see in that city? If you have been, what's your favorite site?

I've never been to Washington DC, but I would love to go to see the Jefferson Memorial.

5. Sit ups-planks-lunges-squats-which one do you hate the least?

I don't really particularly like any of them, but sit-ups would win the most hated slot. I don't know what "planks" are, so squats or lunges would get the "least hated" spot.

6. What's a small act of kindness someone did for you that you've never forgotten?

When I was in elementary school, a girl shared her lunch with me and was my friend. In high school, my US History teacher mailed letters for me because I couldn't get to the post office. These were letters to my then-future husband.

7. Have you ever been a blood donor?

I have tried on several occasions to be a blood donor. Each time that I've gone, they have rejected me. Each time that I've gone, I've found out that I was pregnant. Now, I can no longer have babies, but am anemic, so not a good candidate for giving blood.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

Love is a hard-to-figure thing. It shows up when you aren't looking for it and disappears when you are. It either is or it isn't. You can't make it be any more than you can make it not be.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

Please click the button above to join the fun over at Joyce's place!

Here are this week's questions:

1. What are three words you would use to describe your 2011?

Way too busy! I have driven over 21,000 miles in the last 9 months. But, it was a good kind of busy most of the time. I am enjoying driving my li'l zoom-zoom.

2. Do you like shrimp? What's your favorite way to have it prepared?

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE shrimp! It is my favorite food, breakfast, lunch, or supper. I would even count it as a dessert. haha I like it fried, as a cocktail, grilled, scampied. I have never met a shrimp I didn't like!

3. Is your house de-Christmased? If so, when did you tackle that job? If not, when will the decorations come down?

The tree stays up all year around here.

4. Do you like to watch scary movies?

I used to love watching scary movies, but since I almost died, they unnerve me too much. I can deal with mild spooky, but spooky on a spiritual level (as in with demons and such), I just can't handle those anymore. They cause panic attacks and this isn't even just modern movies. We tried to watch "Angel on My Shoulder" and we had to abort mission because I just couldn't take it. I know, I'm a wimp.

5. ice skating~sledding~skiing~snowboarding~of the four listed which wintertime activity do you most enjoy?

I've never done any of them, unless sliding down a little hill on a flattened cardboard box counts as sledding. Of the choices given, I would love to be able to ice skate. At this point in my life, however, it just isn't going to happen.

6. Did you have a childhood hideout? Describe it.

I lived in the woods. I don't know that it was so much of a hideout; it was just fun. I don't recall having anywhere that I actually went to hide.

7. What's a place or space that motivates you?

I know it will sound weird, but cemeteries motivate me. There I am, face to face with mortality and untold stories, and it revs me up to continue the research that I've spent the last thirty years working on. I want to find out as much as I can about my family and my husband's family before I, too, am lying under one of those stones with just my name and vital dates to show for it. I want my descendants to know what filled the dash.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

This year will not be without its challenges. I hope that I can knock them out, one day at a time. That is all that I have to do, make it just one more day, and then one more day. He is with me, however many days it takes.

Happy New Year!

Saturday 9: Happy New Year!

I want to wish all of you a wonderful New Year, filled with hope, happiness, and love.




Saturday 9's questions this week are as follows:

1. Over all, how do you feel about what happened in your life in 2011?

Honestly? I'll be glad to see this year behind me. Some parts of the year were great, some goals were met. Other areas still need a lot of work! It has been an exhausting year on many levels.

2. Do you do New Year's resolutions? If so, what are they this year?

I don't do resolutions. I have goals, but those goals are subject to change as other things in my life change.

3. In the past 24 hours, I have reconnected with 3 old friends that I've not spoken to in years. If you could reconnect with someone from your past who would it be, and why?

I would like to know what happened to my friend Allison from elementary school. We were best buddies way back then. I left for private school after sixth grade and I don't know what ever became of her. She was a very kind, giving girl.

4. Do you have anything that you would have not done or done differently in 2011 as you look back?

Yes, but the list is way too long to put here. But, for starters, I wouldn't have gone so off course with food choices. I was making good progress with the vegan idea, but fell to temptation and haven't found my way back yet.

5. Going back to my ex-friends that I reconnected with, one of them ended over a boyfriend. She called to apologize. Do you have someone that you fell out with you and wonder how they are?

No one comes immediately to mind.

6. If you had a chance to reconnect with an ex (say for coffee), who would it be, and why?

There are no ex-boyfriends for me. The boy that I liked before I started dating my husband was killed in an accident and we weren't boyfriend/girlfriend. He was just a boy that I liked.

7. One of resolutions is about weight-loss. Have you ever struggled with your diet?

No struggle, really. Either I follow it or I don't. It isn't really a diet, per se, but a lifestyle choice. I am working my way back to vegan, though very slowly at this point.

8. What do you think was the top news story of 2011?

Overall for the world, I have no idea. For me, I guess it would be the earthquake in New Zealand. I still haven't heard from my friend down there. I can only hope and pray that she is OK. I saw yesterday that they've had another one down there.

9. What are your plans for (New Year's Eve) tonight?

My husband and I have watched the ball drop via Dick Clark's New Year's Rocking Eve every year that we've been together, with exception of the switch from 1981 to 1982. I was sixteen years old and in the hospital for a tonsillectomy then and they wouldn't let him stay in my room to ring in the new year. We usually watch it on television, but tonight we'll be watching it online. We will have sparkling grape juice with the kids, clink our glasses (and hopefully not break them!), hope for a better year, and then get on with life.
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Happy New Year to all of you!

Five Minute Friday: Open

Please click the button above and be prepared to be inspired by The Gypsy Mama's writing. Join the rest of us as we write life five minutes at a time, unedited.
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I opened the car door filled with both excitement and dread, not knowing what was before me. The drive would be over a thousand miles long...would I be able to do that?

I did and have never gone back.

That day simultaneously closed one part of my life and opened yet another and now I'd give just about anything to go back to the way that it was before I opened that car door, before my husband picked up the telephone, answering a call that changed our family forever.

There have been many openings and closings over the last seven years. I know that there are more ahead, though I don't know what they will involve, what will be waiting on the other side.

As 2011 sneaks away and 2012 is ready to pounce, I am hoping that this new year offers more openings than closings, more gains than losses, more open hearts, more love and laughter.

I hope this for all of us. May 2012 bring you days full of laughter, love, and blessings from our Heavenly Father.

Happy New Year!

Wednesday Hodgepodge

Please click on the button above to join Joyce's Wednesday Hodgepodge fun!

1. Share something you loved about your Christmas day.

I loved having absolutely no reason to have to leave the house. We didn't have any jobs to do, the stores were closed (at least the ones that usually suck us in at least once a day!) and it was just a fine day of relaxing with nowhere to have to be.

2. You get to put five items in a time capsule to be opened in 100 years, what items would you choose and why?

First: I would start with a copy of my genealogy research so that future generations wouldn't have to fight the same battles that I've had to fight to get it.

Second: I would include copies of my pictures along with an index of who the people/places are in those photos.

Third: I would want to make a blessing gown and outfit (one for a girl and one for a boy) so that my future grandchildren would have something that I made and it would have my stitched signature and the date I completed it.

Fourth: I would include a copy of Enya's version of Silent Night, called Oiche Chiun. However, I have no clue how music will be formatted in the future, so maybe they'd just have to take me at my word that it is the most beautiful version of Silent Night in existence.




Fifth: And last, but not at all least, a letter telling those in the future about how important it is to have faith in Heavenly Father in ALL things, not just some things. We are not promised an easy life, but if we keep the faith and persevere, happiness is waiting for us on the other side. No matter what is happening, we just need to make it one more day...I don't know what tomorrow holds, but I know Who holds tomorrow.

3. What do you like on a cracker?

I like several things on cracker, but not at the same time: peanut butter, cheese, seafood salad, and chicken salad.

4. Do you make resolutions? How'd that work out for you this past year?

No, I don't generally do resolutions. I have goals, but they are flexible and often change. Making resolutions is too much like setting it in stone.

5. What's a song or song lyric you'll associate with 2011?

My health battle isn't cancer, but like the song says, I just want to feel like a woman again and this is hard because of what surgery took from me. For those friends and acquaintances that have received the "c" diagnosis over this past year, this one's for you:



Jesus Take the Wheel...He's the only way this train will keep moving.




He's the only reason that I'm still here today.

6. How will you ring in the new year?

I will ring it in at home with my husband and remaining children, with sparkling grape juice and I'm not sure what else. I don't know if fireworks will be happening or not because I'm not sure if the burn ban is still on or not.

7. What is something you look forward to in 2012?

Although "freedom" was my word for 2011, it is my goal for 2012 as well. I won't go into details on that one. Also, I look forward to more family tree discoveries.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

Childhood cancer is on my mind. It stinks. They shouldn't have to fight such things...and we shouldn't have to bury our babies.




For those still fighting, like Kate and Braden and so many others, please pray for them. For those little heroes that have gone on to Heaven, please remember their grieving families in your prayers. There's a cure out there somewhere and He's still in the miracle business. Please support the fight to end childhood cancer!


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Happy New Year, everybody!

Writer's Workshop: That Red Dress!

Please click the button above for some really great writing prompts!

The prompt that I chose this week is:

5.) Put together a holiday outfit you’d love to wear at a holiday party should a holiday party ever be on your list of things to do.

It is totally weird because it is so not me, but the first dress that came to my mind was the red dress that Rhett Butler made Scarlett wear to Melanie's party in Gone With the Wind. It was so pretty and sparkly and a body would have to be thin to fit in it. I'm way too conservative for that dress, but I'd love to be able to fit in it.

In reality, I would probably choose something dark green and very conservative, as in not too short on either end. I would add to that diamond stud earrings and the necklace that my children gave me for Mother's Day one year. I would wear basic black pumps, not too low but not stiletto-height either. I don't want to break my neck! To top it off, I would consider getting my hair back to the color it was when I was a little girl because that red was totally beautiful with the green dresses that my mama bought me way back then.

Merry Christmas, everybody!

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. Are you cooking Christmas dinner? How many will be round your table this year? What are we having?

A friend will be frying a turkey for us to bring home. We'll be having dressing and I'm not sure what else at this point. There will be five here: my husband, our three remaining children and me.

2. What is one must-have Christmas cookie in your house?

Sugar cookies! I love sugar cookies.

3. Santa likes a glass of milk with his cookies-do you? What kind of milk is on tap at your house-skim, almond, soy, full fat (Gasp!)

I love milk with cookies, but milk doesn't love me, so I don't have it very often. Santa and the little elves all drink 2%, when we can find it. When we can't, we buy whole milk. Skim milk is ICKY! For some reason, the local store has an awful time of keeping 2%. I can't imagine that there's suddenly been a high demand for it, but maybe everyone around here decided to lessen the fat in their milk to make room for more cookies?

4. Time magazine recently named its Person of the Year for 2011. This is the person the editors believe has had the greatest impact, for better or worse, in the past year. This year they chose 'The Protester'. Your thoughts? Who would you name person of the year for 2011?

As far as having an impact on the world as a whole, I cannot answer this. But impact on me personally and a large number of other people who are praying for them, I would have to say Braden and Kate. These two little ones have gone through so much in their young lives, more than many of us will experience in our entire lifetimes. They have cancer. They suffer tremendous pain and yet they keep on fighting. They hold onto faith. No matter what happens, they are fighters and they will win. They will find healing and I am praying that this healing brings with it long and happy lives for each of them.

They have been teachers of priorities, detours, and perseverance. They have taught what really matters: love, being happy in the moment, and being thankful for what you do have. These children are heroes in my eyes.

Here is a link to the foundation that Braden's family has set up to help all children to some day be free of such tragic illnesses: Braden's Hope

This site has been set up by Kate's family: Pray for Kate

Please pray for these precious children and all like them, fighting battles that are difficult even for adults. Thank you!

5. December 21st is National Flashlight Day...when was the last time you needed a flashlight? Did you know right where to find one?

We almost always leave something in the car that we meant to bring into the house and don't remember that we forgot it until the middle of the night. This is an almost nightly occurrence. "Fishy" (the name our kids gave the flashlight) lives on the stand beside our television.

6. candy canes...yum or yuck?

I think that candy canes are pretty but that is about as far as it goes for me. They make me sick to my stomach. I don't think that they taste bad, really, they just don't agree with me. They make great Christmas tree ornaments.

7. What Christmas carol lyric means the most to you?

I like all of Silent Night, especially the version done by Enya called Oiche Chiun. It is the most beautiful, most peaceful version I have ever heard. The song says "all is calm" and this version of the song just washes me with that calmness. Just beautiful.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

I want to wish each of you a very Merry Christmas filled with love, laughter, and family all around and a new year full of the same. May Our Father bless you all richly as you seek to be the best that you can be.

Meet Me on Monday

Please click the button above to join the fun at Java's!

This week's questions:

1.Wrapping paper or gift bags?

I prefer wrapping paper, although gift bags are easier to deal with.

2.Real or artificial tree?

I love the smell of a real tree, but that is where it stops. We have an artificial tree. My husband's family used a real tree in one of their rooms when he was a boy, but I grew up with artificial trees.

3.When do you put your tree up?

Our Christmas season officially starts on December 18 as it is the birthday of one of our children. However, our tree stays up all year long.

4.When do you take your tree down?

We don't take it down. We used to take it down on the Day of Epiphany, but now we leave it up year-round.

5.Do you like eggnog?

I don't know. I've never had it.

6.Do you have a nativity scene?

I would love to have one, but we don't yet.

7.Favorite Christmas Movie?

There are two and, no, I can't decide between them. They are: It's a Wonderful Life and Miracle on 34th Street (the old version). They are classic and both have a wonderful message of faith and love.

8.Favorite Christmas cookie?

I love sugar cookies, unfrosted.

9.Where will you eat Christmas dinner?

My husband and I will be at home with our three remaining children.

10.Angel, bow or star on top of your tree?

I prefer to have an angel on top of the tree. I collect angels and try to get one each year in memory of our babies that are waiting for us in Heaven.

11.Most annoying thing about this time of the year?

The crowds and crazy drivers...and the commercialism are the worst things about this time of the year.

12.Do you like Fruitcake?

I'd rather have chocolate cake or my granny's pineapple-coconut cake.

13.What are you most excited about the holidays?

I'm not really excited, per se, but I do enjoy seeing the way folks have their houses decorated. It is really pretty driving through town at night seeing all of the lights.

14.Do you open presents Christmas Eve or Christmas Morning?

Yes! It just really depends on our mood at the time. This isn't something that we've been really tied down on over the years.

15.Will you still be wrapping presents on Christmas Eve?

No. There's nothing left to wrap.

Merry Christmas, everybody! May your day be blessed with laughter, love, and lots of family all around to thank Him for the wonderful gift of His love, born as a baby in a lowly stable that silent night so long ago.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. Do you put Christmas decorations in every room of your house? If not, what rooms do you decorate?

We have angels in the living room and on the tree. The tree lives in the dining room. Other than angels, we don't really have a lot of decorations.

2. If you could visit one of the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden) which one would you choose and why?

I think that I would choose Denmark. There is a large Danish population here where I live. These folks are really nice and I think that it would be nice to see the area that they came from.

3. What does the word faith mean to you?

It means believing without seeing. It means you don't give up just because things are bad. You know that He has it covered and Who wins in the end.

4. You can go back to your childhood for one day...what day and age would you choose?

I have been doing a lot of genealogy research lately, so those relatives that have gone on to their rewards have been on my mind. I think that I would choose age fourteen and the day before my Papa Gunter died. I would want to go back with the knowledge that I have now and be able to prevent the event that led to his death.

5. When did you last have 'punch'? If its not too much trouble share your favorite punch recipe.

I can't remember the last time that I had punch, at least not any that I made. When we make it, we make what we call "Gremlin Guts." I can't remember the recipe at the moment, but two of the ingredients are lime sherbet and ginger ale.

6. Do you fill stockings at your house? Are stockings opened before or after the bigger gifts?

We usually fill stockings. There isn't a particular order of events here.

7. What takes your breath away?

Physically, cigarette smoke, strong chemicals, and perfume/cologne so loud that it seems the person fell into the bottle.

Emotionally, my children and some of the things that they come up with. The twinkle in my husband's eyes along with that grin of his do a pretty good job of it, too.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

I have been researching the family tree of Jesse James as well as my branch of the James family to try to find if and where our families cross paths. One thing that I decided last night is that Jesse's family tree is about as twisted as my own, so I won't be the least bit surprised to find that he is, indeed, a relative. Sometimes I wonder if other folks have family trees that look like the people were in a braiding contest!

Meet Me on Monday

Hop on over to Java's place to join in the fun!

Questions:

1. Tomorrow I'm going to _________?

Take my oldest daughter to one of her final exams and take another one to the dentist. From there, I'm not sure what the day holds. We're always on call and never know when we'll be called to do a job.

2. Pudding or Jello?

Can't I have both? I love them both, but since I have to choose, I will choose pudding, chocolate pudding. I'd like that with Cool Whip, please.

3. What book are you currently reading?

     

I actually have two going at the moment. One is Twilight Serenade by Tracie Peterson and the other is Jesse James: Last Rebel of the Civil War by T. J. Stiles. I've been doing an awful lot of "help you feel better and grow into a better person"-type books lately. It is time for something light. What better than a book about love and life in Alaska and one about the Robin Hood of the South? I'm on a quest to prove or disprove my kinship with Frank and Jesse James, so am reading and watching as much as I can about the guys. If it turns out that we're not really related, it has still been an interesting adventure.

4. What is the first concert you went to see?

I believe that the first concert that I saw was a Sandy Patti concert. I think that she's great! "We Shall Behold Him" is my favorite of all of her songs. Just beautiful!



5. What is your current weather?

It is cooler than it usually is around here, but not cold. It has been overcast and yesterday there was so much glare that it made my eyes hurt. It never gets really cold around here although it did get to 27 degrees a few days ago. I put on my regular shoes for that one. Usually, I just wear my sandals everywhere.