Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Friday, April 11, 2008
I'm Back! And So Is Spring!
Boy, have I got a lot of catching up to do! First of all, I'm glad to hear that Kristi's daughter is doing so well. So many were praying for her. I enjoy reading Kristi's blog. She's a great writer.
So, what's been going on with me? Well, let's see...
Easter and the Egg Hunt (March 23)
When it's time for us to pray, Gary knows when to fold his hands and when we all say, "Amen," he confidently says, "Men!" Kari knows several songs about Jesus: "Jesus loves me, this I know" and "Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world..." There is a children's Bible that they enjoy having us read to them. They enjoy going to church and they certainly bring smiles to the adults there.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Animal Stories
This may not seem interesting to you, but kindly remember that I am a city girl. Last week on a Thursday morning (April 3rd, to be exact), I heard this strange noise outside and investigated. There were 3 horses on the loose and they seemed to be enjoying our grass!
I called my mother-in-law to see if she knew anything about them. She said they probably belonged to a neighbor of hers, so she called her and that neighbor called me to let me know that her boys were getting off work to pick up the horses and that it would probably be in 20 minutes. I told her that they were nearing the end of my driveway and are probably going to get on the road. She said that that was OK.
In the meantime, I took pictures of the pretty horses. What do you think?
The horses were later picked up and the broken fence from which they escaped was mended.
Now let's fast forward to yesterday. Living out in the country, I rarely get visitors, or if I do, they usually call first. Anyway, it was in the late afternoon when I was in the middle of making a homemade birthday card for my brother-in-law, the children just woke up from their nap and the house was in chaos with toys strewn all over the place. That's when I heard a knock on the door. I looked out the window and there's a blond-haired woman whom I've never seen before. Someone was driving a shiny new blue minivan and doing a U-turn on our driveway. I opened the door and here was how our conversation went:
Me: "Hi!"
Her: "Hi, I've lost 2 sheep and was wondering if you've seen them." (She looked agitated, as if she wanted to be anywhere but where she was right now.)
Me: "Excuse me?"
(I wasn't sure if I heard her right and I resisted the urge to ask if she was Little Bo Peep.)
Her: "They're really small sheep. They kind of look like goats. The neighbors in the brick house down the road say they've seen the sheep 4 days ago and I was wondering if they passed by your place. I've been knocking on other houses to see if they've seen my sheep."
Me: "No, I haven't seen any sheep lately. All I've seen are horses, stray cats and dogs and an occasional herd of deer, but no sheep. But if I do see your sheep, do you have a phone number which I can contact?"
Her: "Yes." She checks her jacket for something to write.
Me: "Hold on."
I was carrying Gary in one arm as I scrambled to find a green Crayola magic marker and an old receipt on which to write. I handed her the 2 items and she wrote down 2 phone numbers. One was her home number, the other was her husband's cell phone number.
Her (as she's writing): "My husband's Mexican. If you get a hold of him, do you know someone who speaks Spanish?"
Me: "No. What's the Spanish word for 'sheep'?"
Her: "It's 'oveja.'"
I repeated the word over and over until she no longer corrected me. She handed me the phone information. Since I am quite ignorant of sheep, I casually asked her what do I need to do should I see them on my property. I mean, is there anything I should do to make them stay where they are until you get them?
Her (frustrated): "How should I know?!" I surmised that she's not really a people person and that her husband is making her knock on people's doors because she speaks better English than he does. Also, as I had Gary in one arm, he kept waving at her, saying "hi" and she didn't even acknowledge him. Clearly, she was a nervous individual.
She continued, "I need those sheep this weekend for my children's birthday party. I plan to barbecue them."
I couldn't help but feel sorry for the sheep. It's a ridiculous feeling, I know, since I enjoy eating meat (steak, chicken, beef), but I still felt sorry for them.
I wished her good luck in finding her sheep and she kept looking back at my enormous backyard - I guess she was wondering how our land connected to hers. I think she was also wondering if I was hiding her sheep there - oh, I don't know, it's all speculation. I found out from my MIL that that lady was actually my neighbor on the left. After their minivan drove off, I was reminded of that scene from "My Big, Fat Greek Wedding:"
Aunt Voula: "What do you mean he don't eat no meat?" [The entire room stops, in shock.] Aunt Voula: "Oh, that's okay. I make lamb."
I called Larry and told him about my incident. He thought that it was a prank door knocker. I told him that was not the case because the lady seemed too serious to be playing a joke and she would not be giving me her phone numbers if she wasn't so anxious about those sheep. We laughed about it. I told him that last week, it was horses. This week, it's sheep. What will next week bring, I wonder? Cows?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Storm Was Worse Than I Thought
What I thought was just heavy rains turned out to be serious as we were without electricity for about 9 hours on Friday, April 4th! It would've been helpful if the sun shone, but the clouds dominated so it still looked dark in the house despite opening the curtains. The children enjoyed shining flashlights on the ceiling. We sang songs, read books with the flashlight and fortunately, the dreary weather seemed to make them nap longer. We all applauded when the lights came on!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Visiting with the McCowns
On April 6th, we drove to Mt. Pleasant (about a 2-1/2-hour drive from Center) after church to meet with some old friend
s of ours, Frank and Becky McCown. We had attended church with them in Virginia Beach. They have an adorable one-year-old son named Ethan whom we've never seen before except in pictures. Becky was pregnant with Ethan when we moved to Texas in January 2007.
The McCowns moved to Searcy, AR where Frank is an assistant professor of Computer Science at Harding University. They were attending a wedding in Dallas for Frank's brother and we met them off I-30 as they made their way back to Arkansas. It's always good to visit with dear friends!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Married for 8 Years Now!
Larry and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary on Tuesday, April 8th. We drove to Nacogdoches and toured the Arboretum at Stephen F. Austin University. It was a pleasant stroll and the weather was splendid. Then we ate at a restaurant and went to a few stores. It wasn't anything exciting, but just being together as a family is just the best feeling to have. Larry is usually working a lot, whether it's building our house or working some overtime, that we don't see him as much, so I cherish the times that he is with us.
Well, I think that's it for now. We are looking forward to our trip to Virginia in late May/early June. My parents are eagerly awaiting our arrival. I'm sure it's going to look like another toystore at their house, but that's what grandparents are for, yes?
So, what's been going on with me? Well, let's see...
Easter and the Egg Hunt (March 23)
When it's time for us to pray, Gary knows when to fold his hands and when we all say, "Amen," he confidently says, "Men!" Kari knows several songs about Jesus: "Jesus loves me, this I know" and "Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world..." There is a children's Bible that they enjoy having us read to them. They enjoy going to church and they certainly bring smiles to the adults there.
The children had a great time with their egg hunt. It was Gary's first, s
o he was unfamiliar and uncaring of the egg hunt rules. He was so fascinated with the first egg that he found, that he gave his sister plenty of time to find the rest of the eggs! We all had a good time. Kari enjoyed the discovery of chocolate coins. She thought coins were just for kiddie rides and candy machines. She had no idea that they could be delicious!
o he was unfamiliar and uncaring of the egg hunt rules. He was so fascinated with the first egg that he found, that he gave his sister plenty of time to find the rest of the eggs! We all had a good time. Kari enjoyed the discovery of chocolate coins. She thought coins were just for kiddie rides and candy machines. She had no idea that they could be delicious!
Animal Stories
This may not seem interesting to you, but kindly remember that I am a city girl. Last week on a Thursday morning (April 3rd, to be exact), I heard this strange noise outside and investigated. There were 3 horses on the loose and they seemed to be enjoying our grass!
I called my mother-in-law to see if she knew anything about them. She said they probably belonged to a neighbor of hers, so she called her and that neighbor called me to let me know that her boys were getting off work to pick up the horses and that it would probably be in 20 minutes. I told her that they were nearing the end of my driveway and are probably going to get on the road. She said that that was OK.
In the meantime, I took pictures of the pretty horses. What do you think?
Now let's fast forward to yesterday. Living out in the country, I rarely get visitors, or if I do, they usually call first. Anyway, it was in the late afternoon when I was in the middle of making a homemade birthday card for my brother-in-law, the children just woke up from their nap and the house was in chaos with toys strewn all over the place. That's when I heard a knock on the door. I looked out the window and there's a blond-haired woman whom I've never seen before. Someone was driving a shiny new blue minivan and doing a U-turn on our driveway. I opened the door and here was how our conversation went:
Me: "Hi!"
Her: "Hi, I've lost 2 sheep and was wondering if you've seen them." (She looked agitated, as if she wanted to be anywhere but where she was right now.)
Me: "Excuse me?"
(I wasn't sure if I heard her right and I resisted the urge to ask if she was Little Bo Peep.)
Her: "They're really small sheep. They kind of look like goats. The neighbors in the brick house down the road say they've seen the sheep 4 days ago and I was wondering if they passed by your place. I've been knocking on other houses to see if they've seen my sheep."
Me: "No, I haven't seen any sheep lately. All I've seen are horses, stray cats and dogs and an occasional herd of deer, but no sheep. But if I do see your sheep, do you have a phone number which I can contact?"
Her: "Yes." She checks her jacket for something to write.
Me: "Hold on."
I was carrying Gary in one arm as I scrambled to find a green Crayola magic marker and an old receipt on which to write. I handed her the 2 items and she wrote down 2 phone numbers. One was her home number, the other was her husband's cell phone number.
Her (as she's writing): "My husband's Mexican. If you get a hold of him, do you know someone who speaks Spanish?"
Me: "No. What's the Spanish word for 'sheep'?"
Her: "It's 'oveja.'"
I repeated the word over and over until she no longer corrected me. She handed me the phone information. Since I am quite ignorant of sheep, I casually asked her what do I need to do should I see them on my property. I mean, is there anything I should do to make them stay where they are until you get them?
Her (frustrated): "How should I know?!" I surmised that she's not really a people person and that her husband is making her knock on people's doors because she speaks better English than he does. Also, as I had Gary in one arm, he kept waving at her, saying "hi" and she didn't even acknowledge him. Clearly, she was a nervous individual.
She continued, "I need those sheep this weekend for my children's birthday party. I plan to barbecue them."
I couldn't help but feel sorry for the sheep. It's a ridiculous feeling, I know, since I enjoy eating meat (steak, chicken, beef), but I still felt sorry for them.
I wished her good luck in finding her sheep and she kept looking back at my enormous backyard - I guess she was wondering how our land connected to hers. I think she was also wondering if I was hiding her sheep there - oh, I don't know, it's all speculation. I found out from my MIL that that lady was actually my neighbor on the left. After their minivan drove off, I was reminded of that scene from "My Big, Fat Greek Wedding:"
Aunt Voula: "What do you mean he don't eat no meat?" [The entire room stops, in shock.] Aunt Voula: "Oh, that's okay. I make lamb."
I called Larry and told him about my incident. He thought that it was a prank door knocker. I told him that was not the case because the lady seemed too serious to be playing a joke and she would not be giving me her phone numbers if she wasn't so anxious about those sheep. We laughed about it. I told him that last week, it was horses. This week, it's sheep. What will next week bring, I wonder? Cows?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Storm Was Worse Than I Thought
What I thought was just heavy rains turned out to be serious as we were without electricity for about 9 hours on Friday, April 4th! It would've been helpful if the sun shone, but the clouds dominated so it still looked dark in the house despite opening the curtains. The children enjoyed shining flashlights on the ceiling. We sang songs, read books with the flashlight and fortunately, the dreary weather seemed to make them nap longer. We all applauded when the lights came on!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Visiting with the McCowns
On April 6th, we drove to Mt. Pleasant (about a 2-1/2-hour drive from Center) after church to meet with some old friend
s of ours, Frank and Becky McCown. We had attended church with them in Virginia Beach. They have an adorable one-year-old son named Ethan whom we've never seen before except in pictures. Becky was pregnant with Ethan when we moved to Texas in January 2007.
The McCowns moved to Searcy, AR where Frank is an assistant professor of Computer Science at Harding University. They were attending a wedding in Dallas for Frank's brother and we met them off I-30 as they made their way back to Arkansas. It's always good to visit with dear friends!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Married for 8 Years Now!
Larry and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary on Tuesday, April 8th. We drove to Nacogdoches and toured the Arboretum at Stephen F. Austin University. It was a pleasant stroll and the weather was splendid. Then we ate at a restaurant and went to a few stores. It wasn't anything exciting, but just being together as a family is just the best feeling to have. Larry is usually working a lot, whether it's building our house or working some overtime, that we don't see him as much, so I cherish the times that he is with us.
Well, I think that's it for now. We are looking forward to our trip to Virginia in late May/early June. My parents are eagerly awaiting our arrival. I'm sure it's going to look like another toystore at their house, but that's what grandparents are for, yes?
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Shopping in Canton, Texas
This past Thursday I attended the "world's largest flea market" in Canton, Texas. It is a monthly event that starts the weekend of the first Monday of the month...did you get that? Friday would've been the preferred day to go (not as crowded and all the vendors are there as opposed to Thursday when not all the vendors are there), but my M-I-L had to work on Friday night (she's a geriatric nurse, 3rd shift), so Thursday, it was.
We pulled the children around in their red wagon (see previous post of the wagon pictures) so they could take breaks from walking. There were still many vendors to check out and we did lots of walking. The children looked like royalty, seated in their wagon filled with pillows. Jerry bought Gary a toy bell which he rang constantly. It looked like he was announcing our arrival by ringing that bell.
I found some great bargain buys. There were a bunch of tables that had items for only $1.00, but when I went to pay the vendor, he told me that they've been reduced to 50 cents each! Wow! I've discovered that my children love corn dogs. Please, no remarks on what's in a hot dog, thanks. Anyway, they only ate a small portion.
Canton is about a 2.5-hour drive from where we live. By evening, we drove to Gladewater to dine with Larry. Gladewater was about an hour away from Canton. Needless to say, we were all tired by the time we came home. Tired, but happy!
I just want to take a moment to share what's on my mind and heart. Kristi, one of my brother's dear friends, has an almost 2-year-old daughter named Eva who just had a tumor the size of a baseball removed from her chest (behind her heart, close to her spine). Eva underwent surgery in the form of a thorocotomy (incision on the right side of her lower chest) yesterday morning and based on the blog reports, all went well. Here is her blog if you wish to find out more details. Please drop a note of encouragement/support; I'm sure she would appreciate it. No parent should have to go through this.
I'm too choked up to write anymore. Will continue this later.
We pulled the children around in their red wagon (see previous post of the wagon pictures) so they could take breaks from walking. There were still many vendors to check out and we did lots of walking. The children looked like royalty, seated in their wagon filled with pillows. Jerry bought Gary a toy bell which he rang constantly. It looked like he was announcing our arrival by ringing that bell.
I found some great bargain buys. There were a bunch of tables that had items for only $1.00, but when I went to pay the vendor, he told me that they've been reduced to 50 cents each! Wow! I've discovered that my children love corn dogs. Please, no remarks on what's in a hot dog, thanks. Anyway, they only ate a small portion.
Canton is about a 2.5-hour drive from where we live. By evening, we drove to Gladewater to dine with Larry. Gladewater was about an hour away from Canton. Needless to say, we were all tired by the time we came home. Tired, but happy!
I just want to take a moment to share what's on my mind and heart. Kristi, one of my brother's dear friends, has an almost 2-year-old daughter named Eva who just had a tumor the size of a baseball removed from her chest (behind her heart, close to her spine). Eva underwent surgery in the form of a thorocotomy (incision on the right side of her lower chest) yesterday morning and based on the blog reports, all went well. Here is her blog if you wish to find out more details. Please drop a note of encouragement/support; I'm sure she would appreciate it. No parent should have to go through this.
I'm too choked up to write anymore. Will continue this later.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
A Valentine Experience
We enjoyed the lovely 70-degree weather on Valentine's Day. I took the children out on a wagon ride (good exercise for mommy, too). I thought my parents might enjoy some photos of the children, so I grabbed my camera. Here's what I had to go through to get a good shot:
Gary shows he is not in the mood for picture-taking. Kari wants to know when he will stop crying.
Gary drinks his milk eagerly and looks as if he's saying, "Don't rush me." Kari looks to say, "Mommy, how long do I have to pose in this wagon?"
Finally! Here is a great Valentine picture of the children which I used to make a homemade Valentine card for Larry. I just got a glimpse of how a professional children's photographer feels. My hat's off to you!
The children enjoyed their wagon ride. We stopped by their Uncle Lee's place and walked by their pond. It was breezy, but very sunny; a wonderful day to be alive. Through proflowers.com, I sent Larry a bouquet of flowers to his workplace yesterday. He received them and said they brightened up his area.
I made a nice Valentine's Dinner: stir-fry garlic shrimp, garlic bread, orange-glazed pork loin chops and chocolate chip ice cream pie with a chocolate rice-krispie crust. I was trying a new recipe with the pork chops. Larry said that they were tender and juicy. He ate every last bite. Then he lovingly told me not to use that recipe again on him. I guess he doesn't care for the citrus flavor on his meat. I'm glad he tells me things like that because if he hadn't, I probably would've made it again and again. He enjoyed everything else on the menu. His favorite, of course, was the ice cream pie.
Side note: I was a bit peeved with UPS; although I paid for 2-day shipping and Larry's Valentine present was supposed to arrive on Wednesday, Feb. 13th, it didn't arrive until Friday, Feb. 15th. I already wrote UPS an intense letter of my disappointment in their service. Instead of delivering the package to my address, they delivered it to a business establishment. I am mystified by this.
After dinner, we presented our Valentine cards to each other. The children enjoyed ripping up their envelopes. They are also fascinated by the heart-shaped mylar balloons around the table. Then Larry presented me with a beautiful diamond heart necklace! The man is spoiling me!
It's not just the jewelry; it's the thought behind giving me the jewelry. He works hard to provide for our family, loves our children to death and is sensitive to our needs. He's building a house for us and he does that after he's finished working for his company for the day. He's not perfect, but he shows our love to us in so many ways and I feel very blessed by that. This paragraph sounds like something I should write for Father's Day, but like so many other days, moments of appreciation shouldn't be devoted to just one day out of the year.
It has been a good week altogether. I don't celebrate my birthDAY. I celebrate my birthMONTH. Looking forward to more celebrating!!
Gary shows he is not in the mood for picture-taking. Kari wants to know when he will stop crying.
Gary drinks his milk eagerly and looks as if he's saying, "Don't rush me." Kari looks to say, "Mommy, how long do I have to pose in this wagon?"
Finally! Here is a great Valentine picture of the children which I used to make a homemade Valentine card for Larry. I just got a glimpse of how a professional children's photographer feels. My hat's off to you!The children enjoyed their wagon ride. We stopped by their Uncle Lee's place and walked by their pond. It was breezy, but very sunny; a wonderful day to be alive. Through proflowers.com, I sent Larry a bouquet of flowers to his workplace yesterday. He received them and said they brightened up his area.
I made a nice Valentine's Dinner: stir-fry garlic shrimp, garlic bread, orange-glazed pork loin chops and chocolate chip ice cream pie with a chocolate rice-krispie crust. I was trying a new recipe with the pork chops. Larry said that they were tender and juicy. He ate every last bite. Then he lovingly told me not to use that recipe again on him. I guess he doesn't care for the citrus flavor on his meat. I'm glad he tells me things like that because if he hadn't, I probably would've made it again and again. He enjoyed everything else on the menu. His favorite, of course, was the ice cream pie.
Side note: I was a bit peeved with UPS; although I paid for 2-day shipping and Larry's Valentine present was supposed to arrive on Wednesday, Feb. 13th, it didn't arrive until Friday, Feb. 15th. I already wrote UPS an intense letter of my disappointment in their service. Instead of delivering the package to my address, they delivered it to a business establishment. I am mystified by this.
After dinner, we presented our Valentine cards to each other. The children enjoyed ripping up their envelopes. They are also fascinated by the heart-shaped mylar balloons around the table. Then Larry presented me with a beautiful diamond heart necklace! The man is spoiling me!
It's not just the jewelry; it's the thought behind giving me the jewelry. He works hard to provide for our family, loves our children to death and is sensitive to our needs. He's building a house for us and he does that after he's finished working for his company for the day. He's not perfect, but he shows our love to us in so many ways and I feel very blessed by that. This paragraph sounds like something I should write for Father's Day, but like so many other days, moments of appreciation shouldn't be devoted to just one day out of the year.
It has been a good week altogether. I don't celebrate my birthDAY. I celebrate my birthMONTH. Looking forward to more celebrating!!
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Happy Birthday to Me!
This past Tuesday, I celebrated my birthday. We need not go into how OLD I am, OK? I married late, had children late, and I just feel ancient sometimes. I think children have a way of zapping the energy out of you, which causes you to feel old. Does that ever happen to you?
OK, where was I? Oh yes, birthday. Everyone was at work, so I didn't have any babysitters and Larry was coming home that night after work. It was raining buckets that morning and early afternoon. I decided I still wanted to go out and celebrate by myself, so I got the children and myself ready and we headed off to the larger town of Nacogdoches, about a 45-minute drive from my house.
As we approached the town, the sun started shining through the gray clouds. There was a new shopping center I wanted to check out there, but first, I had to satisfy a growling stomach. We went to this Szechuan restaurant. Since Larry's not a big fan of Chinese food, I thought this was the right time for me to go. It was nearly 3 p.m., it wasn't crowded, and the lunch meals are usually cheaper than the dinner meals. Perfect.
There were a few people in the bar section watching a soap opera, but there was no one in the dining area. Kari and Gary had ample room to walk around and stretch their legs. Kari liked the fried wontons and the coconut drink. Gary enjoyed the wonton soup and fried rice. Their General Tso's Chicken was very good. It was worth coming here again and checking out the other entrees.
I enjoyed celebrating my birthday with my children. I only wished Larry was here, although I don't know what he would order in this Chinese restaurant. He is such a finicky eater.
Thought you might want to know what my fortune cookie message said.
Hmmm...ever had a fortune cookie message that really did come true or was it it so generic that it SEEMED like it came true? Just food for thought. No pun intended...hahahaha.
After checking out a few shops, I wanted to beat the afternoon traffic and make it in time for Larry's arrival. Since Larry didn't have time to cook, he brought home a delicious pizza from a local pizzeria. Lately, we've been checking out pizzerias and rating them. So far we like the one in Longview called Pietro's. Yummy!
Larry presented me with a beautiful amethyst necklace. I was so touched by his thoughtfulness. Amethyst is my birthstone. Last year, Larry didn't have a job, and he felt bad that he couldn't give me anything. Money is still tight with our house-building and switching from a two-income family to one-income, but the Lord has been good to us. So have our families.
Perhaps I've reached an age where I don't really want much...just good health, being surrounded by family and friends and building a better relationship with God (praying more, reading more, exercising the spiritual self) so I can be a good example to those around me, especially to my children.
Larry's mother plans to throw a small luncheon party for me this Sunday after church. It'll be family only, a small intimate affair. Knowing what a great cook she is, I look forward to sampling what's on the menu.
I'll continue this later and let you know how my Valentine's Day went. I need sleep!
OK, where was I? Oh yes, birthday. Everyone was at work, so I didn't have any babysitters and Larry was coming home that night after work. It was raining buckets that morning and early afternoon. I decided I still wanted to go out and celebrate by myself, so I got the children and myself ready and we headed off to the larger town of Nacogdoches, about a 45-minute drive from my house.
As we approached the town, the sun started shining through the gray clouds. There was a new shopping center I wanted to check out there, but first, I had to satisfy a growling stomach. We went to this Szechuan restaurant. Since Larry's not a big fan of Chinese food, I thought this was the right time for me to go. It was nearly 3 p.m., it wasn't crowded, and the lunch meals are usually cheaper than the dinner meals. Perfect.
There were a few people in the bar section watching a soap opera, but there was no one in the dining area. Kari and Gary had ample room to walk around and stretch their legs. Kari liked the fried wontons and the coconut drink. Gary enjoyed the wonton soup and fried rice. Their General Tso's Chicken was very good. It was worth coming here again and checking out the other entrees.
I enjoyed celebrating my birthday with my children. I only wished Larry was here, although I don't know what he would order in this Chinese restaurant. He is such a finicky eater.
Thought you might want to know what my fortune cookie message said.
Hmmm...ever had a fortune cookie message that really did come true or was it it so generic that it SEEMED like it came true? Just food for thought. No pun intended...hahahaha.
After checking out a few shops, I wanted to beat the afternoon traffic and make it in time for Larry's arrival. Since Larry didn't have time to cook, he brought home a delicious pizza from a local pizzeria. Lately, we've been checking out pizzerias and rating them. So far we like the one in Longview called Pietro's. Yummy!
Larry presented me with a beautiful amethyst necklace. I was so touched by his thoughtfulness. Amethyst is my birthstone. Last year, Larry didn't have a job, and he felt bad that he couldn't give me anything. Money is still tight with our house-building and switching from a two-income family to one-income, but the Lord has been good to us. So have our families.
Perhaps I've reached an age where I don't really want much...just good health, being surrounded by family and friends and building a better relationship with God (praying more, reading more, exercising the spiritual self) so I can be a good example to those around me, especially to my children.
Larry's mother plans to throw a small luncheon party for me this Sunday after church. It'll be family only, a small intimate affair. Knowing what a great cook she is, I look forward to sampling what's on the menu.
I'll continue this later and let you know how my Valentine's Day went. I need sleep!
Friday, January 18, 2008
Reflection Time: Beauty Is in the Eye of the Beholder - Ha!
Excerpts from "If You Wanna Be Happy" by Jimmy Soul
If you wanna be happy for the rest of your life
Never make a pretty woman your wife
So for my personal point of view
Get an ugly girl to marry you
A pretty woman makes her husband look small
And very often causes his downfall
As soon as he married her and then she starts
To do the things that will break his heart
But if you make an ugly woman your wife
You'll be happy for the rest of your life
An ug-a-ly woman cooks meals on time
And she'll always give you peace of mind
If you wanna be happy for the rest of your life
Never make a pretty woman your wife
So for my personal point of view
Get an ugly girl to marry you
(Sax solo)
Don't let your friends say you have no taste
Go ahead and marry anyway
Though her face is ugly, her eyes don't match
Take it from me, she's a better catch
Spoken:
Say man!
Hey baby!
I saw your wife the other day!
Yeah?
Yeah, an' she's ug-leeee!
Yeah, she's ugly, but she sure can cook, baby!
Yeah, alright!
If you wanna be happy for the rest of your life
Never make a pretty woman your wife
So for my personal point of view
Get an ugly girl to marry you
Sometimes when I look in the mirror, that song comes to mind. When I sing it to my husband and tell him that he's going to be happy for the rest of his life, he just shakes his head and rolls his eyes.
I have this terrible habit of getting the children ready first and then getting myself ready last. This is not good if I am under a time crunch (i.e., going to church) because I end up looking like a well-dressed person who just woke up. I do have everyone's clothes laid out the night before, but for some reason I feel the need to try on several outfits until I'm finally happy with one or run out of time - whichever comes first.
I used to have this friend (I don't know where she is now) who looked beautiful in anything. She could wear sackcloth and still looked sexy because of her cute little figure. She never styled her hair, wore just lip gloss and she could make heads turn. Did I mention that she never exercised, could eat like a pig and still have a small figure? How we became friends is beyond me.
When I was single, I used to go to the ladies' gym twice a week after work, had my haircut every 2-3 months, and bought a lot of nice clothes. To quote an old friend of mine, "I used to be quite a dish." Ah, what happened to that lovely lady?
I think she's paid too much attention to the children and to the house that she's stopped taking care of herself. Now, before you overreact, I'm not talking about good hygiene habits going down the drain. I'm talking about eating better. Exercising more. Being more organized. Doing better with my housecleaning. What's that word? Oh yes...I need to be more DISCIPLINED.
As I work to improve my children's minds and help build their character, I need to work on taking care of myself. I'm not getting any younger and this is the only body I have to work on. I suppose you could say that this entry is about trying to improve myself - physically, mentally and spiritually. Speaking of spiritual, I haven't been praying as much as I should because I always chalk it up to being busy, but praying brings so much peace to my soul. I need that. I miss that.
If you wanna be happy for the rest of your life
Never make a pretty woman your wife
So for my personal point of view
Get an ugly girl to marry you
A pretty woman makes her husband look small
And very often causes his downfall
As soon as he married her and then she starts
To do the things that will break his heart
But if you make an ugly woman your wife
You'll be happy for the rest of your life
An ug-a-ly woman cooks meals on time
And she'll always give you peace of mind
If you wanna be happy for the rest of your life
Never make a pretty woman your wife
So for my personal point of view
Get an ugly girl to marry you
(Sax solo)
Don't let your friends say you have no taste
Go ahead and marry anyway
Though her face is ugly, her eyes don't match
Take it from me, she's a better catch
Spoken:
Say man!
Hey baby!
I saw your wife the other day!
Yeah?
Yeah, an' she's ug-leeee!
Yeah, she's ugly, but she sure can cook, baby!
Yeah, alright!
If you wanna be happy for the rest of your life
Never make a pretty woman your wife
So for my personal point of view
Get an ugly girl to marry you
Sometimes when I look in the mirror, that song comes to mind. When I sing it to my husband and tell him that he's going to be happy for the rest of his life, he just shakes his head and rolls his eyes.
I have this terrible habit of getting the children ready first and then getting myself ready last. This is not good if I am under a time crunch (i.e., going to church) because I end up looking like a well-dressed person who just woke up. I do have everyone's clothes laid out the night before, but for some reason I feel the need to try on several outfits until I'm finally happy with one or run out of time - whichever comes first.
I used to have this friend (I don't know where she is now) who looked beautiful in anything. She could wear sackcloth and still looked sexy because of her cute little figure. She never styled her hair, wore just lip gloss and she could make heads turn. Did I mention that she never exercised, could eat like a pig and still have a small figure? How we became friends is beyond me.
When I was single, I used to go to the ladies' gym twice a week after work, had my haircut every 2-3 months, and bought a lot of nice clothes. To quote an old friend of mine, "I used to be quite a dish." Ah, what happened to that lovely lady?
I think she's paid too much attention to the children and to the house that she's stopped taking care of herself. Now, before you overreact, I'm not talking about good hygiene habits going down the drain. I'm talking about eating better. Exercising more. Being more organized. Doing better with my housecleaning. What's that word? Oh yes...I need to be more DISCIPLINED.
As I work to improve my children's minds and help build their character, I need to work on taking care of myself. I'm not getting any younger and this is the only body I have to work on. I suppose you could say that this entry is about trying to improve myself - physically, mentally and spiritually. Speaking of spiritual, I haven't been praying as much as I should because I always chalk it up to being busy, but praying brings so much peace to my soul. I need that. I miss that.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Still a Hopeless Romantic
After the children are asleep and I finish straightening up the kitchen and living room, I look forward to my mommy time. This time it included watching a movie. We never seem to find the time to go to a movie theater nowadays so we usually wait for the DVD. Larry was in Gladewater tonight so I had my alone time.
I watched "The Lake House" starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock and knew I had to watch it again. Talk about chemistry, talk about not settling for less, talk about waiting for the right one...ah, the sheer romance of it all. The trick is not to over-analyze the time/space continuum, but to sit back and enjoy the fantasy love story created through correspondence, though the correspondents are living 2 years apart from each other.
Interestingly enough, it had a reference to Jane Austen's book, "Persuasion," of which I saw its movie version. It is a story about waiting for each other. I enjoyed that movie, too.
It was just nice to be lazy for awhile and enjoy a good chick flick. *sigh*
I watched "The Lake House" starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock and knew I had to watch it again. Talk about chemistry, talk about not settling for less, talk about waiting for the right one...ah, the sheer romance of it all. The trick is not to over-analyze the time/space continuum, but to sit back and enjoy the fantasy love story created through correspondence, though the correspondents are living 2 years apart from each other.
Interestingly enough, it had a reference to Jane Austen's book, "Persuasion," of which I saw its movie version. It is a story about waiting for each other. I enjoyed that movie, too.
It was just nice to be lazy for awhile and enjoy a good chick flick. *sigh*
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Funny Demotivators(R) Sample - DESTINY
You were meant for me. Perhaps as a punishment.
