About Me

If we’re going to be friends, here’s some things you need to know

April 20, 2013 8 Comments

Hey blog readers, if we’re going to be friends here are some things you need to know about me:

1. I very rarely rinse dishes before I put them in the dishwasher. This makes Michael a little bit crazy (sorry, babe). It’s just…that’s what dishwashers are for! I mean, if there is a ton of food in there I’ll clean off the worst of it, but usually I just put my dishes straight into the dishwasher. And they almost always get clean, so I feel justified.

2. Finding a double-wrapper-ed Reeses was one of the best things ever when I was younger (that’s when your Reeses has two of the brown waxy paper cup things on it). I have no idea why that was a big deal to me, but I just thought it was really special!

3. I real.bad want to be part of a flash mob.

4. I will feel like I’ve made it when I have all matching hangars in my closet. Not sure why this one matters to me, but having all matching hangars just seems really luxurious.

5. I do not like to talk on the phone. The awkwardness of the beginning of the conversation, trying to figure out how to end the conversation, it just stresses me out. I’d much rather text or email than call, with the exception of a few people.

6. I’m right handed, but left eye dominate. When I take a picture or shoot a gun I always close my right eye and use my left eye to see out of. It’s actually pretty hard for me to close my left eye and leave my right eye open. Maybe I have weak right eye muscles?

7. I have a secret desire to dye part of my hair purple. I have never wanted to dye my hair – not blonde, not highlights, and certainly not a crazy color. But one year I had a student who had should length brown hair, very similar to mine, and she had the underside of it dyed purple – it actually looked really cool. When she wore it down the purple just peeked out a little, but when she wore it up in a ponytail you could see it. I don’t think I’ll ever be gutsy enough to do it, especially since I’d have to bleach the hair before then dying it, but that’s one of my secret, if-I-lived-another-life, wishes.

What about you? Are you a dish rinser or not? What are your little quirks?

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26 in pictures

March 7, 2013 Leave a Comment

1. birthday-eve snuggles with my favorite little owl

2. birthday breakfast in bed (I had already gotten up and done my makeup and hair before getting back into bed for breakfast…lest you think I wake up looking like that)

3. chocolate from a sweet co-worker

4. my wild birthday night…watching Criminal Minds and playing Disney Fairy Fashion Boutique (my latest app obsession)

5. favorite dessert…Longhorn brownie sundae

6. Sure wish I’d timed just how quickly we demolished that dessert!

Here’s to turning 26…so far, so good :)

Filed Under: about me Tagged With: birthday

5 things about me (and a giveaway!)

February 21, 2013 1 Comment

***********This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations Michele W. for winning this awesome necklace!***************

Because it’s my birthday.

Because I love you.

Because I love this necklace and I can’t stop thinking about it.

I’m giving y’all a birthday present today…one of you lucky readers will win this necklace.

(Well, not this exact once obviously since it’s mine and I’m not parting with it…but one just like it)

But first, since it’s my birthday I get to blather on about myself for a bit. Here are five things about me you might not know.

1. One dream I have is to play Maria in The Sound of Music. I have no idea why. It’s not like The Sound of Music is my favorite movie ever or anything, I just really love all the songs and I think it would be so fun to be in a musical. I have no clue when that opportunity would present itself, but if it did I’d be so on it!

2. My hair is currently the longest is has ever been since I was 5 years old. I’ve always been one to try to grow it out but get tired of it and cut is short again, but this time I just keep letting it grow and grow.

3. Once I wore footie pajamas to school (as a teacher) on pajama day. My feet hurt by the end of the day from standing basically barefoot on concrete floors all day. But I looked cute.

4. I will own, wear, and get up on a pair of pointe shoes before I die. I didn’t do ballet long enough to get my pointe shoes and I always regretted that. I sure hope they make pointe shoes in size ~~gargantuan~~ 11.

5. When I ran my very first 5k I made a gigantic novice mistake and ate a big breakfast that morning, thinking I needed lots of fuel. I’m talking big bowl of oatmeal plus bacon, and eggs big. That was a mistake. I threw up.

(This was approximately 45.672843 seconds before the puking started)

(Michael just looked at this picture over my shoulder and said “oh hey, that’s a picture of your first 5k. You puked bad.” Yep, and he was a trooper and stood right by me and held my ponytail up so it wouldn’t get barfed on. I knew he was a keeper.)

So back to the giveaway at hand…

If you want this fantastically beautiful necklace, just fill out the rafflecopter below.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

(FYI, I was not compensated in any way or asked to review or giveaway this necklace. I just really love Rugged Wearhouse and this necklace in particular so I wanted to share the love.)

Filed Under: about me, fashion Tagged With: birthday, Gabriel Brothers, giveaway, necklace, Rugged Wearhouse

5 tv shows I’ve never watched

February 19, 2013 Leave a Comment

I’m sure there are a ton of popular shows that I’ve never seen, but here are 5 that I think just about everyone else in the world has watched/currently watches but that I just never (or haven’t yet, at least) gotten in to.

1. The Simpsons – I was definitely not allowed to watch this growing up, and then when I got older I never had the desire to watch it. It doesn’t seem like my kind of humor anyway.

2. Seinfield – Wildly popular and apparently very funny, and yet I don’t think I’ve ever seen a single episode.

3. Lost – This was big when I was in college. I remember my roommate being really in to Lost, but I never watched it. I don’t know anything about it except that it had something to do with an island and that it seemed like one of those shows that went on a a bajillion seasons and nothing ever got resolved. I haven’t written it off, though, and someday I might watch an episode or two and see if I like it.

4. Downton Abbey – I can’t say I’ve never watched this, because I did actually try to watch the first episode. I was totally bored and didn’t make it through that first episode. I don’t know what’s wrong with me since it is one of the most popular shows around right now, but it holds no interest for me (fun fact: I actually don’t like British accents, except in Harry Potter. But I do a pretty good British accent if I do say so myself…but that’s story or a another day). Besides, thanks to Facebook and people who post spoilers before considering that some people haven’t yet watched a current episode (HUGE pet peeve!), I already know all the important stuff and that takes the fun out of it.

(Actually until just now when I googled to find an image to use, I thought the show was Downtown Abbey, and always wondered why people pronounced “downtown” so funny…duh, because it’s Downton)

5. The Walking Dead – Another super popular show right now. I actually considered giving it a try after so many people raved about it, but then I heard it was really gory and I don’t do well with blood and guts.

Honorable Mention: Duck Dynasty – I think everyone I know watches Duck Dynasty. Since we don’t have cable we’ve only ever seen snippets of episodes at our friends’ houses. That’s about to change, though, since I bought Michael seasons 1 and 2 for Valentine’s. I’ll let you know how we like it :)

Like I mentioned yesterday, I was very restricted growing up with what I was allowed to watch on tv and in movies. And like I said, I didn’t mind that at all but is has caused me not to be as knowledgeable about popular tv/movie references (not necessarily a bad thing…). Really there weren’t any shows that I watched consistently (except maybe American Idol) until I got to college and discovered the wonders of cable in our dorm rooms. So there are a ton of shows that I didn’t start watching until years after they aired.

Here’s a bonus list for you of 11 shows I have watched but didn’t watch when they were first popular.

1. Full House – Mom let me watch one episode once when I was little because all my friends were watching it, but apparently I was a pretty impressionable kid because I immediately started mimicking Michelle and her disrespectful toward-adults attitude. So that was my one and only episode of Full House until I started watching it on ABC Family in college.

2. Friends – I wasn’t allowed to watch it when it was popular in high school. Since then I’ve seen a few episodes but never been interested to sit down and watch a bunch.

3-4. Boy Meets World and Gilmore Girls – Also discovered in college via ABC Family.

5-10. CSI, Law & Order, Numb3rs, Criminal Minds, Bones, The Closer – What can I say, I’m a crime show junkie. I never watched a single crime drama until college when I found the Law & Order SVU and Criminal Intent marathons. Then I just kept discovering more and more that I liked. My M.O. seems to be that I always wait until the show is several seasons old, the watch all the seasons in a big marathon via dvd, Amazon Prime, or Netflix until I get caught up to the current season.

11. 24 – I actually blogged about this last year when Michael and I discovered 24 for the first time (years after it aired) and holed up for weeks watching every.single.episode.

These past few days of sharing the things I’ve never read or watched have been fun! There’s been lots of fun comments left on the posts and Facebook, too, about the ones you have or haven’t seen. So let’s dish one more time…what tv shows have you never watched or did you not watch until way after they were popular?

Filed Under: about me Tagged With: tv

10 movies I’ve never seen

February 18, 2013 5 Comments

So keeping with the theme of things I’ve never done, let me share my list of 10 popular movies that I’ve never seen. I was pretty sheltered as a child and was not allowed to watch a lot of movies or tv shows (I think I saw my first PG-13 movie at age 14). I am not complaining about that at all and I am actually very thankful that I wasn’t allowed to watch the tv shows and movies that most of my friends saw. However, that means I miss out on a lot of pop culture references since there are so many movies I haven’t seen.

Here’s just a small sampling of such movies:

1. Lord of the Rings - I read the Hobbit in high school (and reading that is the only thing that kept this series off my list of books I’d never read) and it was semi-enjoyable. But I never saw the movies, don’t care to see the movies, and don’t think it’s really my cup of tea.

2. Star Wars - These came out well before I was born, but they are still super popular among many from my generation. I did see a few minutes of one once but I didn’t pay attention.

3. Top Gun - No idea what this one is about, but it seems like it’s quoted all the time.

4. Sleepless in Seattle - Apparently the quintessential watch-on-Valentine’s movie but I’ve never seen it.

5. Princess Bride – What is this even about? I have no idea. But it seems to be hugely popular.

6. Christmas Vacation – Some people watch this every Christmas. Not me. I haven’t seen any of the National Lampoon movies.

7. Forrest Gump – I’m not sure how I survived as a child of the 90s without seeing this, but somehow it happened.

8. Pretty Woman – I’m not at all surprised I haven’t seen this, given the subject matter of the movie, but it’s so famous that I figured it deserved a mention.

9. O’ Brother Where Art Thou – I can actually sing every song from this movie, I think. We had the soundtrack and listened to it all the time, but I never saw the movie. This is most surprising because it is one of Michael’s all time favorite movies and yet I never watched it with him.

10. The Matrix – When I taught math and we’d be using matrices I always wanted to make some witty pun about The Matrix, but since I never saw it (and, quite frankly, am not very witty) that didn’t happen.

Honorable mention (aka movies that technically I’ve seen but wasn’t paying attention close enough to remember the story line or for it to really count as “watching”): Steel Magnolias, Sandlot, Sister Act, A Christmas Story, and Jurassic Park.

I found this list of of the AFIs top 100 movies of all time and I thought it was pretty interesting. I must not be very cultured as I haven’t even heard of probably half of these movies and have only seen nine (The Wizard of Oz, It’s a Wonderful Life, E.T, Snow White, The Sound of Music, Jaws, Titanic, The Sixth Sense, and Toy Story).

Ok, your turn…what movies have you never seen?

(P.S. Don’t hate me for my lack of pop culture knowledge)

Filed Under: about me Tagged With: movies

5 famous books I’ve never read

February 17, 2013 6 Comments

Guess what? It’s birthday week! That’s right, we celebrate birthdays for at least a week around here (sometimes more!) and on Thursday I turn the big 2-6 so it is officially my birthday week :).

Last year for my 25th birthday I showed you 25 of my favorite things (1-5, 6-10, 11-15, 16-20, and 21-25) and told you 25 random facts about me. Obviously I don’t want to repeat all that info and I don’t know if I can come up with 26 more favorite things of random facts, so this year I’m going to do some other fun little tidbits about me. I hope you’ll indulge me as I selfishly blab about myself for a few days (oh wait, that’s what blogging pretty much is anyway….).

First up, 5 famous books that I’ve never read. This is probably the most embarrassing list I’m going to share with you, since I’m an avid reader and an elementary librarian for crying out loud, but the truth of the matter is there are some very well known books that somehow I just never read!

1. Chronicles of Narnia. I’ve never read these and I honestly haven’t had the desire to read them. Everyone raves about the Chronicles of Narnia but I really haven’t been interested. I watched the movie The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe when it came out a few years ago and didn’t care for it either. I’m sure that if I picked them up and started reading them, I’d probably like them, I just never seem to think about it when I’m looking for a new book to read.

2. The Polar Express. I had no idea that The Polar Express was such a big deal until I started teaching elementary school this year. I mean, I had heard of the book and knew there was a movie, too, but that was it. From what I hear, there are tons of elementary schools that do big Polar Express days right before Christmas: wear pjs, drink hot chocolate, watch the movie, do activities, the whole shebang. That was news to me. It’s a pretty short picture book so I think before next Christmas I definitely need to read this one!

3. A Wrinkle in Time. I’ve heard A Wrinkle in Time mentioned nearly my whole life and yet couldn’t even tell you what this book is about, other than that it’s shelved in my science fiction section so it must me science fiction-y.

4. Gone with the Wind. Another classic, although I’m not sure if this one counts because I know that I at least tried to read Gone with the Wind when I was much younger. I remember my mom recommending it and me reading some of it, but I don’t remember anything about the story so I must not have read much or retained anything. I haven’t seen the movie either. Again, it’s one of those that people talk about all the time but somehow it slipped past me.

5. Bud, not Buddy. Again, one that I don’t even know what the story is, but I’ve certainly heard of this book and I know it’s pretty famous. I feel like I should have read this, but… apparently not.

So, are you shocked? I have to say that it was somewhat hard for me to think of books that I hadn’t read. ’Cause I’ve read tons and tons of books, both for school assignments and for fun, over the course of my (almost) 26 years. But there were still a few classics that slipped through the cracks.

A co-worker of mine found a list of the 100 best children’s chapter books (I think it might be this one) and her goal this year is to go through and read (or re-read if it’s been a while) each one. I think that’s a neat goal and might have to try to do that challenge myself next year.

Alright now it’s your time to air your dirty laundry…which well known books (children’s or otherwise) have you NOT read?

Filed Under: about me, books Tagged With: birthday, books

my favorite posts from 2012

December 29, 2012 1 Comment

I thought I’d do a little round up of some of my favorite posts from 2012 for those of you who might want a little light reading this weekend ;). There’s nothing super special about each of these posts, I just happen to like them. Some are humorous some are serious, some are just recipes or tutorials…enjoy!

(click on the link under each picture to take you to the post)

Parmesean Lemon Basil broccoli

Card-Keeper Book Tutorial

My Struggle with Fear

25 Random Things About Me

Baby Name Blocks

How to Be a More Welcoming Church

Sticky Note Surprises

Star Bellied Sneetch Shirt Tutorial

How I Use my Erin Condren Life Planner

Mess Free Icing Bag Trick

Scales of 1 to 10 don’t work for me!

Book Themed party

Pictures from Our Wedding

Regarding Fifty Shades of Grey and Magic Mike

If you told me I’d be ziplining I would have laughed at you

My Top 10 Facebook Pet Peeve’s

The Motherhood Double Standard

Banana Mocha Smoothie Recipe

Classroom Organization Tips

School Pictures

Unconditional Love

DIY customized lesson planner

Coconut Hair Oil Treatment

DIY e-reader case tutorial

Homemade Pizza Sauce

What I Don’t Miss about Apartment Living

How NOT to Sell Your House

Funny Things My Students Say

Family Rules

The Gap Conundrum

Filed Under: about me, blogging Tagged With: 2012, blogging

2012 goals and bucket list update – November

December 1, 2012 Leave a Comment

Is is seriously December first already? How did that happen? This year has flown by! I haven’t gotten as much done on my goals and bucket list as I’d like, but I have completed quite a few so I’m happy with what I’ve done.

(to see previous updates: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, and October)

read through the entire Bible - We’re almost done! We got behind during the move, Halloween, Michael’s two business trips, and Thanksgiving but we are working hard to get caught up. We’ve gotten this far and we will finish reading the whole Bible by the end of December!
get my healthy lifestyle back, specifically to lose the 20-25 pounds I’ve gained since getting married. - Sigh. Trying to lose weight stinks.

2012 bucket list:

make an apple pie from scratch
~~take cake decorating classes~~ - I took the Wilton Cake Decorating Course 1 classes in March (see here, here, here, and here) and took Course 2 in April (here, here, here, and here).
learn how to make Mom’s homemade Christmas cookies
make 72 hour emergency kits for our home and cars
~~make my own laundry detergent~~ - done!
~~bake a loaf of homemade bread~~ - Done! I’ve now made some Amish friendship bread and whole wheat honey sandwich bread.
make a quilt - Working on it! I made all my blocks (see January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, and October), I’ve pieced the top together and basted the backing and filling together. Now I’m quilting it. I’m doing it by hand so it is taking a while, but I think I’m making pretty good progress. I should have it done by the end of the year!
~~grow something~~ - tomatoes and herbs…check!
~~can pickles~~ - It was quite possibly one of the stinkiest things I’ve ever experienced, but we now have 7 quarts of sweet lime pickles canned (plus 7 quarts of tomatoes, 11 pints of green beans, 13 pints of tomato sauce, 17 pints of salsa, and 9 pints of pizza sauce)
~~take some sort of vacation~~ - Chicago!
get at least one scrapbook done for my in-law’s
???start an Etsy shop??? – This one was a big maybe when I wrote this list and I’ve definitely decided not to start one, especially at this point in my life. Maybe someday, but not now.

Other notable things:

Michael turned 27 and we had our first little get-together in our new house for his birthday.
I was contacted twice about doing reviews and giveaways on my blog – I’ve never done that before and that was really exciting.
I had my very first bookfair at school and it went better than expected.
I made my first “for hire” cake for Nora’s Wizard of Oz themed first birthday.

Now I guess it’s time to get cracking on finishing up this list before the end of December. And getting decorated for Christmas. And buying presents. And making tons of food for all our holiday gatherings. And deciding what’s going to be my goals and bucket list for 2013. It’ll be a crazy (but fun, I’m sure) month!

Filed Under: about me Tagged With: 2012, bucket list, goals

thankful

November 24, 2012 Leave a Comment

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving – I know I did (and we’re still Thanksgiving-it-up around here…one more tomorrow!).

Many of my friends on Facebook have been posting one thing per day in November that they are thankful for. I don’t have it quite together enough to do that each day, but I do want to take a minute to post some of the things I am thankful for. I try to be thankful every day, but it’s nice to take time to sit down and really thank God for what he’s given me. Obviously this is not an exhaustive list and in no particular order, but some of the things that come to mind are:

a husband who is my best friend and treats me like a princess - I couldn’t have asked for a better man in my life. I love him more than I ever thought possible.
family and friends – This has been a very difficult year for our family and we’ve been so blessed by the people that have wrapped their arms around us. I gotta tell you, we have some of the best family and friends.
our house – Living in a small apartment with not-so-great neighbors for a year has made me even more appreciative of our new home. We have great neighbors
our church family – Your church truly becomes your family, especially when you don’t live in the same town as your biological family. We are incredibly blessed to have found such a wonderful church.
a garage – I know that goes along with our house, but I have to put it as it’s own thing…I am so happy to have a garage again and not have to get in a freezing car in the morning or try to unload groceries in the rain.
social media and the Internet – After growing up in one city, going to school in another, living in yet a third for three years, and finally moving to our fourth (and Lord willing, final) city last year, I have friends all over the place. Things like Facebook and email allow me to keep up with many of those friends. I love being able to read about what’s going on in my friends lives, see pictures, watch their children grow…even though I don’t get to see them in person on a regular basis.
this blog – Along those same lines, I’m thankful that I have this blog as an outlet to write (I never ever thought I’d to write…my how things change!) and as a way to keep our family and friends updated on the goings-on in our lives. Plus I’ve made new friends and have become part of a great community of bloggers.
our jobs – What a blessing to have jobs that we both love! This is the first time I’ve ever had a job that I really enjoyed. I love my job as a librarian and I adore the kids that I work with. I am so very thankful that I was able to find a librarian job so quickly after getting my degree.
my iphone – Seems frivolous but it really is so useful. From taking pictures of the way cords are hooked up at work so I know how to put them back to looking up recipes while I’m at the grocery to being able to access my documents and notes, it does much more than I ever expected when I first got it.
my masters – It felt amazing to walk across that stage and get my diploma! It feels even more amazing to not have to do any more homework :)
peanut butter – Hey, it’s the little things in life, right?
my faith – This year my faith has been tested and strengthened. I can say for sure that I don’t necessarily know the future, but I know Who holds my future and I trust in Him.
our local farmer’s market and other local stores – This has been a huge help for us as we made our switch to mostly all real, natural foods.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg but it’s time to get ready for tomorrow’s Sunday school lesson, birthdays (Michael turns 27 tomorrow!), and Thanksgiving #3.

Happy Thanksgiving from our house to yours!

Filed Under: about me Tagged With: blessings, thankfulness, Thanksgiving

High Five for Friday

November 9, 2012 8 Comments

It’s Friday, y’all. Whoop whoop! I’m pumped because…

1. Nora’s cakes turned out way better than I ever expected and her party was so cute and fun.

2. I got quite a bit done on my quilt over our extra-long weekend – not as much as I had hoped, but I’m still pleased with the progress. The quilt top is sewn together, I’ve basted the top to the batting and back, and now it’s time to start quilting! So exciting!

(ok I don’t know why I can’t get this picture to rotate correctly, but the row with the purple and orange block should be at the top)

3. My new Unii palatte came yesterday – I’m super excited to give this a try! A Unii palatte is a magnetic cosmetics case designed to coral all your various eyeshadows and blushes and stuff. I’ll let you know if I like it.

4. The bookfair is going well so far. I don’t really have much to base it on since this is my first one, but I feel pretty good about it. And who doesn’t love being surrounded by new, shiny books all day? (oh the temptation to buy them all…)

5. We have a fun weekend planned – babysitting some of our favorite kiddos tonight, Ladies’ Day at church tomorrow morning, and a chili supper and silent auction tomorrow night to benefit our local Christian school. Bring on the weekend!

(hey, don’t forget to enter to win my Disney-Pixar’s Brave Blu-ray and DVD giveaway!)

Linking up with Lauren

Filed Under: about me Tagged With: High Five for Friday, Unii cosmetics