Feelings Flashcards

I bought these at GaGa, one of my favorite baby boutiques in Austin, but you can buy them on Amazon, too, for a little cheaper.  I just love them.  The first night I had them I read each card to Vera like a book, pointing to the facial expressions and imitating them myself.  What I like about them is that they are hard and cannot be bent.  I also like that opposites share a card.  For example, 'calm' will be on one side and 'nervous' will be on the other.

There are 20 total cards, so 40 different feelings.  What a great way for kids to share and learn about their emotions.

Searching for Mrs. Right.

I have been trying to sort through some thoughts lately regarding friendships in my life.  Growing up, God answered I'm sure what were the many prayers of my parents and blessed me with amazing friends.  In college, I had wonderful friends again.  Though we rarely keep in touch, I know that I am just as special to them as they are to me.  Now in the phase of married life, I'm realizing that friendships as an adult look differently.  I'm not sure I can pinpoint the reason why, but for whatever reason, deep, close friendships are hard for me to find.  I will not discount at all the ones God has given me, but as ungrateful as this sounds, I feel like I am always looking for something more.

In my head, I tend to put people in categories.

* If  they are moving or will move or have ever mentioned the thought of wanting to move, I distance myself.  I think this is because I don't want to unload, get real, invest, share dirt, and then have that friendship be no different than so many others to where we lose contact.  I'm sure a lot of it is due to insecurities, but ultimately it hurts to share your life with someone and for it to go nowhere.

* If they already have a close community of friends in their life, I assume that I'm not needed.  I want to have a best friend and be someone's best friend.  Reciprocation is important to me.

* Then there are those people that I just don't click with.  It's frustrating because I see only good things in the other person, but whether it is due to different personalities, interests, etc., these relationships don't have deep roots and are short term.

For me, motherhood has felt very isolating.  I've mentioned that before.  I often find myself riding the roller coaster of depression, which can be exhausting.  I have so much to be grateful for, and I am.  Most of all, I am thankful for my God who continues to guide me and love me and show His power in my life.  I am also so grateful for a husband who will always be my BFF.  Where ever we go in life, it is comforting to know that I have both of them by my side.

Been listening to this a lot lately.

Room to Play

We finally finished the playroom.  What was once an office with huge furniture has become a space for kids and I'm so glad we did it.  I feel like we gained a whole room in our house.  We chose a new wall color, got new window treatments (using the old roman shades in the girls' new room), made an office closet, and bought 2 pieces of Ikea furniture.  Everything else we already owned.   Vera has really enjoyed having a playroom and I have really enjoyed the organization of her toys as well as this being pretty much the only room that gets messy during the day.  It is so much more manageable to pick up this room up every night rather than the whole house.  We also like that we can shut the door to the closet (the folding chair fits perfectly inside) and all things computer are hidden and out of reach.

We are hoping to sell the bookcases on Craig's List and the desk will go back into the attic of Chris's parents' house.  We've rearranged the other components (picture frame, wooden box, books, baskets, etc.) that were once in the office and found homes for them in other places in our house.

Before

After

Friday.

I'm so happy it's Friday because I get my husband all weekend, but knowing I have to cook dinner tonight makes me a little less excited because, well, it's Friday.  I'm not feeling very creative and want to do the minimum to feed mouths tonight.

See what I mean?

Step1: Color

We are changing things up a bit around here to transition the office into a playroom.  Seeing as we are budget keepers (4 weeks down!  This is a record for us!), we are trying to pull the funds out of our weekly allowance and from our "new baby" budget, which is not large by any means.  But it's still fun to save up, wait til we've got the mullah, then spend it.  Today we bought paint.  Meet Mac.

(Grand Hotel Mackinac Blue--Valspar)

Why are paint color names so poetic and long?

Project 70.

10 more weeks of Vera being an only child.  That's 70 days (give or take).  Hence the name, Project 70.

I stole a couple of ideas from people and started a little project.  Every day I'm writing a little note to my bug about what we did together.  Days go by and looking back, sometimes it seems like we do the same old, same old every day.  But even in the midst of the mundane, there's magic.  And lots of blessings.  And cute memories that I want to remember.  Hopefully it will be something meaningful to her someday to get a glimpse into what her life looked like before her sister arrived into the world.

The Chronicles of Carey: January 21st

1995

I need some music to listen to and something fun to do.  I will play with my doll house.  I actually think it is too babyish, but I still think it is fun.

2002

I am dating both Trevor and Evan right now.  It's semi-serious with both, but weird having feelings for both of them.

2003

It's weird to think that I am actually of the age now to be in college.  The 18 years I lived at home sure went fast.  I seems like just yesterday that I was in elementary school or played volleyball in middle school or was in "Joseph" in high school.  Now I am a student at Purdue University and it's like I slid into this new life stage pretty quickly.

2004

Lord, I want to mention and lift up to You this guy named Chris Bonser.  If this is not Your plan, lead me away and I will follow.

2005

Last night I helped lead worship again and it went really well.  The Spirit was present!  I am so thankful for an outlet to sing.

2006

A week ago I had all four of my wisdom teeth taken out and I'm still not feeling great.  I haven't eaten anything solid yet..mostly eating peanut butter and oatmeal.  I miss using my teeth to chew.

2008

Chris will turn 28 tomorrow and how cool is it that we are in Thailand? We are planning to get a Thai massage, attend a cooking class at Bai Pai Cooking School, and have pizza and beer for dinner--his favorite thing.

Going Into the Closet

Our current office in our house is not working.  We've known for awhile now that we need to make some changes to make it more kid-friendly and less cable-accessible.  We would like to merge it into more of a playroom, but because Chris occasionally works from home, because I do non-cooking/paperwork/emailing work from home, and because we are computer-savvy people, we would still like to have a designated space as an office.  We've got a lot of books to store, too.  We actually don't have a ton of toys, but what we do have seems to be taking over the little room.  So we've begun brainstorming and have tossed around some ideas.  We are considering making the closet our office and using the rest of the room as a playroom, minus some floating shelves to store books.

What we like about this option is that we can close the door and make everything electronic and expensive inaccessible to little hands and curious minds.  However, the rest of the room would be free-reign.

Cooking on the Cheap

After your planned meals have been made and your leftovers eaten, what do you make for dinner?  I had thick sliced deli turkey, spinach, arugula, onion, feta, and Parmesan in my fridge.  And to make it easy, I thawed some phyllo and popped in a hodgepodge "pizza" into the oven for dinner.  Because that's what I do during nap times when I've got a 3 hour window to entertain myself and a whopping $5 left in our budget for the week.  Thankful my hubs is easily pleased.  Apples and oranges on the side.

P.S.  Have I mentioned that I've tossed around the idea of a blog called "Cooking on the Cheap" where the goal is to cook with a $5 budget in mind?  Not sacrificing quality, but embracing the challenge to create delicious, sometimes healthy, and affordable meals with pocket change.  The tag line would be something like..."professionally trained chef, domestically trying to stay in budget."

Predictable Days

I was thinking today how being a stay at home mom can be pretty isolating at times.  My daily routine revolves around Vera's schedule and this means that naturally we don't get out much.  Here's how my life looks every day:

7:30ish  Vera wakes up.  I roll out of bed, throw on a robe, and go into her room.  Diaper change, clothes change.

7:45ish  I put her in her high chair and get her set up with her cup of milk and breakfast; usually oatmeal, yogurt, and a banana.  Sometimes toast, eggs, or cooked apples.  Sometimes cereal.  Sometimes berries.

8:15ish  I've changed clothes and we are headed for the gym.  I drop her off at the day care and she plays for the hour to hour and half that I work out.  I am so thankful for this time.  I usually listen to a sermon podcast, sometimes music, or if nothing else, I watch the Ellen Show.  I pick her up and we go home.

10:00ish  Back home and I stick Vera in the bathroom with me as I take a shower.  She rummages through the bathroom cabinet underneath the sink and I pick up the combs, hair ties, make-up, and towels that she has gone through.  I dry off and get dressed as she plays in her room with books, toys, diapers, you name it.  Play time (walks in the backyard, wagon ride around the neighborhood, stories, toys, etc.).

11:30  Lunch.  I try to get her to eat as much as possible before her nap so she will sleep really well.

12:00  Diaper change and down for her nap.  (During this time, I usually prep dinner, clean, walk Marlow, and waste time on the Internet.)

3:00  I get her up and give her a snack.  I usually put music on at this point since I've been sitting in silence all day.  Playtime.

5:00  Dinner time for Vera.

6:00  Bath time, books.  Chris gets home.

6:30-9:30  Bed time for Vera.  Chris and I eat dinner, hang out, get in bed to read for a half hour.

10:00  Lights out.

-----

All this to say, I am certainly not complaining.  I am just realizing how little interaction I get with other humans throughout the day and often times I feel lonely and isolated from the world.  I have friends that don't live that far away, but because of our kids' conflicting nap schedules, work schedules, and whatnot, it is rare that we even see each other.

It's times like this when I miss my friend, Emily.  She's the chic who up and moved to Tahoe.  This was us at the end of our first pregnancies.

 

And here is us at 2010 Thanksgiving time holding our out-of-utero offspring and baking two other buns in our ovens.  She is a great friend and after having our 4-day-apart babies, we spent a lot of time on walks just to get outside because of our baby blues.

 

I know I'm not the only mom who feels isolated during the day, but sometimes I feel like it.

Just Because Cake

One of the ways my husband receives love is via food.  I know that sounds crazy, but after living with him for awhile now, I've come to realize that it's true.  He is so happy and thankful when dinner is ready when he gets home from work.  It could sound very 1950s, but there is no expectation for me to slave away in the kitchen all day.  He just appreciates that comfort of being able to sit down and eat together.  Lucky for him, I like to cook and bake in my spare time.  Today he came home for lunch and he told me that a "yellow cake with chocolate frosting" sounded good to him.  Of course to him, he thinks of a box cake mix because if he gets the hankering for that, he will occasionally go to the store to pick it up.  It's funny though because he is picky about his frostings and he has to make his own chocolate frosting from the norm:  butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, cocoa, and milk.  So after he went back to work today, I of course made him a cake because I had the time and because I love him.  But it was not from a cake mix, I assure you.  I feel like it's just as easy to whip up a from-scratch cake than it is to follow directions on a box.  But that's just me.  And I always have the ingredients in stock, so why not use them up?

This recipe was quick and I didn't even bother lugging the Kitchen Aid onto the counter.

Classic Buttery Yellow Cake  (adapted from "The America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book")

1/2 c. milk (room temp)
4 eggs (room temp)
1 T. vanilla extract
1 3/4 c. flour
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 t. baking powder
3/4 t. salt
2 sticks butter, softened

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease a cake pan. I made it simple and used a 9x13.  Whisk together 'wet' ingredients in a small bowl. In a large bowl, whisk together 'dry' ingredients.  Beat the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles crumbs.  Beat in half of the milk mixture and combine well.  Add the remaining of the milk mixture and continue beating until light and fluffy, about 1 minute.  Scrape batter into pan, evening out.  Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 40 minutes (for a 9x13 pan).  Let cool.

Simple Chocolate Frosting  (using items you probably already have in your pantry)

1 stick of butter, softened
2 1/4 c. powdered sugar, sifted
about 1/4 c. milk (I used half and half because we are short on milk)
vanilla extract
3/4 c. cocoa

Thoroughly combine with an electric mixture until light and fluffy.

Storage and Organization

One year after building cabinets in the laundry room, we have finally primed and painted and are now awaiting a time to make doors.  Yep, my life is pretty exciting.

Um, I Don't Know

I haven't had many thoughts lately to share with my blog stalkers (ahem, Dad).  So I will go to my trusty little box of questions that I so love.

Q:  "If you could master one instrument which would it be?"
A:  Easy.  Piano.  I think knowing how to play the piano would be helpful for knowing how to play other instruments.  I wish I would have learned growing up.

Q for you:  Growing up, did your parents make you take some type of music lesson and did you appreciate it?  Would you suggest it for your kids?

And now I will go eat a piece of pumpkin pie.  Because it's 2:42 in the afternoon and my baby is sleeping and I've gotten my "to do" list done for the day.

That Wasn't Hard

I thought I'd count the number of items today that I had piled in the guest room to get rid of, thinking maybe I'd be about half way there.  I happened to be right at 100 items, if not a little over.  They include:

1 body pillow (came free with the purchase of our mattress 4 years ago and I've never really used it)
4 placemats
1 runner
12 linen napkins
1 plastic container
3 pieces of wall decor
8 black picture frames
1 umbrella
4 maps (Texas, Indiana, Indianapolis, Austin)
1 unopened pkg. of photo paper
2 postcards (that I never sent; 1 from St. Joe, Michigan and 1 from Bangkok)
1 watch
2 ziplock bags of old jewelry; earrings, pendants, necklaces, etc.
1 bag of buttons
13 red taper candles (that are not worth my time standing in the return line at Wal-Mart)
1 small decorative chair (that I had hopes of painting and using somewhere)
8 books
2 cleaning gloves
2 (cute) purses (that I don't need)
1 travel Scrabble (never used)
1 Cribbage set (never used)
1 car sunshield
1 duvet cover (that I'm attempting to sell)
2 matching shams
2 soap containers
1 ceramic toothbrush holder (slightly damaged, but usable)
3 porcelain heart-shaped ramekins
1 cozy
1 apron
6 pillow cases
2 guitar tuners (extras)
1 wine opener
7 pieces of clothing

Cleaning Out

I was inspired to get rid of 100 things that are in my house.  A pile has formed and looking at the items, I can say that it will not break my heart to part with any of them.  I'm not counting things that I would throw away.  I'm only counting items that I can give away.  It feels good to clean out.  When I've reached 100 items, I'll post a list, in case you're curious.

Some Goals for 2011

* Log the miles that I run
* Learn Photoshop
* Finish the laundry room
* Walk Marlow more often

Stash Cozy

Um, yes please.  I've got some extra felt, thread, and buttons around.  Might be making a few of these.  Afterall, who doesn't enjoy a humorous stash staring back at them from their coffee/hot chocolate cup?  Rhetorical question, people.

Day 30: A Picture

Day 29: Wishes

I wish the concept of obligatory thank you notes didn't exist.  I'm a cynic, I guess, but I don't like writing them out of expectation and I don't like receiving them either.  A gift should be given simply to bless someone else not to receive a proclamation on cute stationary about why you love it, how you're going to use it, and how thoughtful it was.

Day 28: Something That Stresses You Out

Finding child care!  I actually woke up at 5:30am this morning and couldn't go back to sleep because I worry about my list of dates that I need a sitter for.  I have a few friends that I can depend on to watch Vera, but I really don't want to take advantage of them, so I try to ask them only if it is really necessary.  This month is super busy for me for work and I'm just having a hard time finding people to fill in when I need it.  I know I need to find a consistent babysitter and one that is not necessarily a friend.  We have been very fortunate so far that we've only paid for a sitter a handful of times, but I think it's time for me to suck it up and budget for it out of my business expenses.

Day 27: Pets

Marlow is my fur-child.  He is the first dog I have ever had and from the moment we picked him out from his litter, my heart was smitten.  I cannot imagine the day he is not around.  He has brought so much joy into my life that none other could do.  Some of my all time favorite moments in life so far have been with him.  In particular, I remember going to the Greenbelt every day I had off from work and we would hike for hours.  Just me and him.  That is my ideal day.  We'd climb up on cliffs and just sit there.  We'd tramp through the water or jump off boulders into deep water.  Where ever I jumped, Marlow would come right on top of me.  I'd lay out in the sun with my eyes closed, listening to the currents rush while Marlow tromped around in the woods, staying near enough where he could still see me.  I loved those times.  And now he lays at my feet, climbs into bed with me, lets me spoon him, loves to play hide n seek, and waits for every drop of food at the foot of Vera's high chair.  He's pretty much the best.

Day 26: Picture of Your Family

+

=

my family

Day 25: Put Your iPod on Shuffle, First 10 Songs

My iPod is currently dead, so I did it with iTunes.

Auld Lang Syne--Harry Connick Jr.

No Turning Back--Out of Eden

Good Luck, Bad Luck--Lynard Skynard

Signe--Eric Clapton

Silent Prayer--David Wilcox

Listen To Her Heart--Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Be the Change--Kat Edmonson

The Electric Co.--U2

Peace Beneath the City--Iron and Wine

Artificial Winter--Rusted Root

Day 24: Something You've Learned

Chris and I really try to spend within our weekly allotted budget.  We take out cash every week for groceries and $30 each for personal spending.  If and when we go over budget, it's usually because of me.  I've learned that when I get in a shopping mood or when I'm tempted to use the credit card, I make sure I'm filled up with gas in the car, then I leave my credit card at home in a drawer.  Getting used to not having it in my wallet for a couple weeks usually does the trick and I get comfortable saying no to things again.  It's always the thing that works for me when I get a little too familiar with the plastic.

Day 23: Favorite Vacation

Chris and I have traveled quite a bit together, but our favorite place we've gone has been a two-week stint in Singapore/Bangkok.  For a whopping $100 we both flew over and got one week's worth of hotels paid for.  He used to travel to Singapore for business a few times a year.  We saved up all his air miles and cashed them in for a free ticket for me.  With less than a week before I flew out to meet him, I realized that my passport was still in my maiden name, so I paid the rush fee ($100) to get it changed and back in my possession.  Otherwise, it would have been free!  I stayed with Chris, obviously, while in Singapore and his company paid for his expenses there.  He got per diem for food, so we would eat lightly throughout the day and spend the rest at night, sharing a meal together.

It was so fun flying across the world on my own and really fun to explore Singapore on my own while Chris worked during the day.  I walked everywhere since it's such a small country and got to experience some pretty cool things.  I ate a lot of good food, too.  In the evening, I'd come back to the hotel, clean up, and get ready to explore the rest of the city with Chris.  We had a super nice hotel room and it was all in all a great trip.

After our week in Singapore, we flew to Thailand for another week.  Flights from Singapore to the near islands and countries are super cheap, so again, we got some great experiences not having spent a lot of money.  Once in Bangkok, we did spend money on food, touring ruins of temples, visiting the Grand Palace, taking a boat trip around the island of Atayata, and on a few souvenirs.  We have learned that when we travel together, we do our research on where we want to eat, then see the touristy things that are close-by instead of the opposite.  

Mostly it was such a fun trip, looking back, because we didn't shell out that much cash and because we had so much fun together living on our own agenda.  I hope to do it again soon.  From business and personal air miles that we've saved, we now have two flights to a European destination.  Our long-term plan has been to go to Italy for our 10th anniversary, but it is going to be hard not to go before then.  We want to save up a good amount of vacation time and some money to spend, so that is the perk of waiting, I guess.

Day 22: Favorite City

This goes without being said--Austin!

Day 21: Picture of Yourself

with my annual turkey cookie

Day 20: Nicknames

I never had one.

Day 19: Something You Miss

This is fitting.  I am currently in Indiana and just spent some time going through my old closet, looking through papers and pictures and projects from elementary school through high school.  I came across a letter that I wrote (circa 1994) to my deceased pet, Snickerdoodle, my gerbil, whom I accidentally killed.  It was very traumatic for me at the age of 10, but somehow I got over it and am functioning normally in life once again.

Background story:  When cleaning out her cage, I would transfer the beloved rodent to one of those clear balls that they could roll around on the floor in.  This particular time, she managed to get loose from my hands and was running around the house.  In an attempt to catch her and put her safely in the ball, I was frantically chasing her down.  Little 4th grade me accidentally kicked her in the head and I remember seeing her go into convulsions until she lay still with no movement.  I tried to awaken her with a drop of water on my fingertip, but that was the end for Snickerdoodle.  We put her in a plastic Cool Whip container on the back porch.  I checked on her for a few days before realizing that she wasn't coming to and it was time to bury her in the backyard.

I can now say that I no longer miss Snickerdoodle, but she will always be remembered.  :)

Day 18: Something You Regret

Eating one too many oatmeal-craisin cookies last night at 10pm.  When I eat too late at night, my stomach wakes up grouchy the next day.

Day 17: Something You're Looking Forward To

Thanksgiving!
Yummy food!
Seeing family!
Seeing friends!
Sleeping in!
Christmas caroling!
Our Christmas party!
Hubs being on vacation!
Our annual Christmas Eve morning breakfast date!

Day 16: Dream House

I feel completely blessed and know that all my needs are taken care of by the Lord.  He gives me shelter, a place to lay my head, warmth, and quiet.  We own a home now and it's perfect.  We may not always have a home and still, I know that God will take care of us and provide for us.  Whether we live in this abode or in a shack, I resolve to be thankful.

Day 15: Bible Verse

There are so many, but a couple that have come to define my life are:

My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you.  - Job 42:5

For I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.  I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.  I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.  I can do everything through him who gives me strength.  -Philippians 4:11-13

 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved.  --Ephesians 2:4

Day 14: A Picture You Love

 Waiting for my baby to come.

With Luba in Ukraine.

 Marlow as a puppy, after a nice long hike and swim in the Greenbelt.

 My Grandma. Doesn't she look heavenly here?

 This one makes me laugh.  My mom (far right) and her sisters.

 My besties praying over me before my wedding.

 And

 this

one

would fall in the category of a picture I do not love.

6th grade.  Enough said.

Day 13: Goals

I looked back to see what my resolutions were for this year.  Here's what I wrote down.

* eat at uchi

* start composting

* buy new make-up

* write more cards

* have a weekly date night

* learn photoshop

With the exception of date nights, I didn't do any of them.  As the norm goes with my New Year's resolutions.  However, I did accomplish some things that I didn't set out to do.  Such as, become an active person, build more clientele for Taste and See, go on a fun vacation to celebrate our anniversary, and get pregnant.

Some short term goals we have in the Bonser household include finishing the laundry room cabinets, spend within our weekly budget, take walks together at night, and give Marlow park time at least once a week.

Long term goals for us are to adopt at least one child, pay off all debt and stay out of debt, travel more, give more, and start a business together.  Some are rather vague, but we've got an idea how they ought to look.

Day 12: What You Believe

I believe that regardless of one's skin color, sexual orientation, social standing or religion that all should be treated with respect and compassion.

I believe in treating animals with respect.  I don't like the idea of testing products on them, using them for science, or abusing them for entertainment's sake.  I'm okay with using them for food, but let's kill them in a humane way.  Quick and as painless as possible.  There should be a reverence about it when killing them because we are creatures created by the same God.

I believe that I am no better than someone on death row sentenced for murder.  I believe that I am no different than a drug addict living on the streets.  I believe that without the intervention and saving grace of Jesus that I would be no different than Hitler, Stalin, or a torturer.  I believe this because it's not just the actions that make us who we are, but it's what goes on in our hearts that determines who we are.

1 Timothy 1:15  Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners--of whom I am the worst.

I believe that regardless of what happens in life to my husband, children, family, friends, or material possessions, that God is sovereign, knows what is to come, and has my best in mind.  It may not seem like the best in the moment, but I trust in the Lord and He is my strength to bring me through any trial.

Job 1:22  The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.

Day 11: Favorite TV Shows

Rarely do I sit and watch TV, but when I do, Chris and I pick something off our instant queue on Netflix.  We like House, Glee, 30 Rock, The Office, Better Off Ted, and Arrested Development.

Day 10: Something You're Afraid Of

of all shapes and sizes

Day 9: A Picture of Your Friends

 This one is of my high school besties taken June 2009 when I was pregnant with Vera.

 This one was taken in August 2010 with my Austin friends.  Coincidentally, pregnant again, we decided to take a picture holding our due dates.

Day 8: A Place You've Traveled To

In preparing for our honeymoon adventures in Spain, I did a lot of research of places I wanted to visit.  I asked friends who had gone and read lots of travel books.  My friend, Susan, had recently gone and told me about this little convent in the middle of Madrid where she had bought some great pastries from some nuns.  She gave me chicken scratch directions of how to find this place, told me what the street looked like, what landmarks would be around it, and what the entrance looked like.  It was really fun to seek it out, knowing that we didn't have directions with names of streets or anything.  We followed her instructions and it took us right there!  We bought pastries and paid money through a lazy-Susan (ironic...Susan, get it?) and never saw the nuns.

Day 7: Favorite Movies

I tend to really enjoy movies that have a strong theme of redemption, grace, and forgiveness.  A few include:

To End All Wars
Les Miserables
The Kite Runner
The Shawshank Redemption
Mr. Holland's Opus

Day 6: A Picture of Something that Makes You Happy

I promise more things in life make me happy, but the first thing that popped into my head was coffee and dessert.  It's probably one of my favorite things to do by myself or with a friend.  It feels comforting and celebratory and slow-paced and I like it.  But other things make me happy, too, which I could have pictured above...my husband, my child, my dog, rain, a clean house, a good night's sleep, hiking, phone conversations with old friends, a good book, working in the yard, a road trip by myself, and watching old home movies.  What's your something happy?

Day 5: Your Siblings

I have two brothers and they are awesome.  They have entirely different personalities and that's okay by me.  Growing up, Andy was the quiet kid that taught himself computer languages and German and piano and chess.  He's pretty multi-talented.  Aaron is good at anything athletic the first time he ever tries it, can contort his body into weird positions and made his prom tux out of duct tape to try to win a contest.  It's sad that it's not but once a year that we are all together in the same place at the same time, but I guess that's part of the package when we all live in different locations.

Day 4: Your Parents

Meet Tom and Debbie.  Mid-westerners born and raised.  Married 35 years.  They started seeing each other when my mom was 17 years old and continued dating until she graduated college from Indiana University.  In the meantime, my dad traveled with an a capella Christian singing group around the country.  They were called The Horizons.  My parents are fun people.  They like to go out to eat, geo-cache, hike, and go to their local watering hole to fill up on natural spring water.  My dad plays guitar and my mom sews.  They have a pretty nice garden and counted out cash on the living room floor to pay for a second story addition to their home when I was in 3rd grade.  I remember counting out the hundred dollar bills.  They are frugal, simple people and are enjoyable to be around.  I've never seen my dad without a beard and my mom won't allow him to shave it.  They still go on vacations together and love Blue Bell ice cream.  My dad has a quirky sense of humor that is sometimes funny and sometimes embarrassing.  My mom is a good sport, laughs with him, and loves him for it.  My dad is a deacon at their church and my mom serves people well by cooking for them.  She's also a good party planner and thinks of the details.  They make decisions together and communicate well.  They raised 3 kids and now have an empty nest.  My dad is a mail carrier and has been for 30-something years.  My mom is a Teacher's Assistant and has mostly worked with Special Ed students, ranging from pre-school to adult GED classes.  They are both upon retirement in the next handful of years and it will be fun to see what their lives look like once that season comes.  They are wonderful grandparents and spoil their granddaugthers.  They have taught me much in life and for that, I love them.

Day 3: Your First Love

Well, I'm not quite sure how to classify "love."  Do I count my first crush?  Boyfriend?  Kiss?  Or do I go for my first serious relationship?  My first love...hmm.  That would be Jesus.  Okay, but alive today?  Let's go with my first serious crush and whom I thought "love" for the first time.  (But you have to know that even as a little girl, I was quite the romantic, so I "loved" a lot of people.)

Let's call him Jack.  I liked him for 6 years but he dated my best friend.  Eek!  Of course I never said anything about my unrequited love because my friendship with her was much more important, but I do remember feeling hurt a lot just seeing them happy together.  One of the first memories I have of Jack was couple-skating with him at the local Rollerina (that's right!) in my hometown.  I was in 6th grade, I think.  That was pre-date-my-best-friend era.  The song we skated to, I believe, was Michael Jackson's "When You Were Not Alone."

We went to my sophomore Homecoming dance together and dressed in matching outfits, khaki pants, blue top, and brown leather shoes.  We held hands a few times and I leaned my head on his shoulder once during a car ride, but that was the extent of our affection.

Once best friend and Jack started dating, I found other interests and fun people to hang out with, but I think I always had a certain place in my heart for Jack.

Fast forward 15+ years.  I saw Jack recently while home visiting my parents.  It was great to see him, but having been joyfully married to the love of my life for 5 years, it was evident to see that it was never God's plan for us to be together anyway.  Those kind of confirmations are always nice.  I do wish Jack all the best though.  :)

Day 2: Meaning Behind Your Blog Name

There's no deep meaning.  I used to read this blog and stole the name essentially.  For a long time, I've wanted to switch everything over to www.accordingtocarey.blogspot.com, for consistency's sake.  But I've just been lazy.

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day 1

Day 1: Introduce yourself, recent picture, 15 interesting facts.

Hi, I'm Carey and I don't know if I want to blog anymore but I'm going to give this a try.

1. My love runs deep for my pooch, Marlow.
2. I'm a little obsessive with using up every item in my fridge before buying more.
3. I started running for the first time 11 months ago and have found that I really love it.
4. I would marry my husband all over again.
5. I'm pretty blessed to have great sister-in-laws.
6. It took us almost a year and a half to get pregnant the first time and it was not intentional the second time.
7. I miss cold weather and feel like that may be the thing that makes us move more north someday.
8. I would pick up every stray dog I found and take them home with me, if my husband let me.
9. I have sleep issues.
10. I hate malls, crowds, and shopping without a purpose.
11. If I wasn't a chef, I'd be a nurse.
12. I lost 50 pounds this year.
13. In general, I prefer sweet to salty.
14. I feel lonely often for deep friendships.
15. I wish we were invited to dinner more often at other people's houses.