I'm BAAAACK!

Okay...that was a fun weekend. I love long weekends with my hubby. We went down to Fish Lake and stayed in my sisters cabin. (we'll use the term 'cabin' loosely here). It was gorgeous weather and we were even able to sit out on the deck and enjoy the view. All too soon, Tuesday morning loomed and it was time to clean up after ourselves and pack up -- reality time. sigh.

Then we discovered that our youngest son had decided to flush the toilet that he'd just told us was clogged and my hubby had told him to leave alone. Sigh. Good thing they have stone floors and low water pressure. We would probably have been home a while sooner if we hadn't had to clean that up. Of course, I should say my hubby cleaned it up! I was working on the kitchen.

anyway, we actually got home before 9 pm, which is good for us. We have a hard time leaving, and have been known to wait until about 9 to leave.

Then, when we got home, we were greeted by this wonderful tree. I know I've posted photos of it before, but it's just so pretty.

So - love this time of year.  :)  Have a great one!

Did You Get the License of That Truck?

Last night I was involved in a hit and run. I think it was a huge truck, but I was laying on the ground, on my hands and knees, and wondering what in the world had happened.

In actuality, it wasn’t a truck, it was a small fuzzy yellow ball and a graphite tennis racquet. Ugh. I think I mentioned before how much I love tennis – well, my family is really big on playing tennis. We play it every week. In the winter, we rent a court for an hour and a half every Wednesday and play. The little kids get to come and hit against a ball machine my dad bought a couple of years ago, and then if there are adults, we finally play a game.

I’ve not played for quite a while. One – because I felt too out of shape. Well, that there was nothing more evident than that last night. Man oh man! My hubby came and hit balls with me before everyone else got there, and that was only 15 minutes, but we were both hot and sweaty. He couldn’t believe it. He shook his head at me and said “I’ve been swimming almost every day for the past year and this is the shape I’m in?”

We hate being in our 40's. Can I even begin to express the frustration we feel with our aging bodies? Sigh.

Anyway, we helped collect the balls as the grandkids hit against the machine, and then my brother announced we were going to play a game -- my nephew and I on one side, my hubby and he on the other. I warned my nephew, this was not going to be pretty.

That’s how I ended up on the ground. It’s kind of hard to chase after those balls when you’ve been out of shape for so long. I was determined to get that ball! I was going to show them that I could still play!

But I was going too fast for my own feet and stumbled and fell, knees and hands first. My hubby was afraid I’d hurt myself, which a year or so ago, that would have been the case. But, I was fine, I laid there for a minute and shook my head. It was pathetic.

I was just happy that most of my serves actually made it over the net. But I was still so out of shape that I was wheezing really bad and my side ached. I haven’t had a side ache in forever! I felt like I was back in junior high and running laps on Friday and not making the fourth lap...sigh.

I think Curves has done some good though...I hardly feel anything this morning. I was afraid my back was going to be out, and my arm wasn’t going to be of any use and – well, all the usual stuff when I would fall like that. Amazing. I guess at least I’m in some kind of shape.

I can hardly wait for next week.

I've Been Meme'd

Okay...I've heard this word floating around, but it's like kind of irritating. What is a Meme anyway? Well, I found a somewhat understandable answer here

Paul West is a writer friend who tagged me for this one...(a while ago, sorry Paul) so here we go.

Make a list of five strengths that you possess as a writer/artist. It's not really bragging, it's an honest assessment (forced upon you by this darn meme). Please resist the urge to enumerate your weaknesses, or even mention them in contrast to each strong point you list. Tag four other writers or artists whom you'd like to see share their strengths.

This is going to be interesting. Five strengths?

Imagination I can imagine something to go with just about anything. Anything around me can start a story line going in my head -- although I think most writers are like this. I have to admit, I wrote a short story once about a guy going to prison, describing his entrance and conditions inside. I had a comment from someone who had worked inside a prison that it was very realistic. Go figure -- I think I've watched too many movies with prisons in them...LOL

Speed While I type very fast, I am talking how fast I can get a story to paper. When the story line is going, I can get it down as fast as it comes. Typing on a keyboard is much better than writing by hand because I can pretty much keep up with my thoughts as they come. One year when I was doing Nano, I think the second year, I still needed 2000 words before midnight. I got them typed in before the deadline with time to spare, and it was after 10 pm.

Genre I used to think I was limited to a certain type of genre in writing. I wrote Romance. Now I find that I can do several different kinds. I seem to write fantasy as well as modern romance, and that surprised me. It's amazing what you can do when you give it a try.

Flexible I can change my story mid-stride. I am currently working on something that I realized needed to change how it was being written -- from third person to first. No problem! lol Not that it always happens that easily...

Teachable Well, at least I hope I am teachable. I love going to writing conferences and taking scads of notes. I come away from them thinking all sorts of things that need to be done to my stories. Unfortunately, I don't think much else happens with those notes. Where did I put the last ones?...

Words Flow Like ... Mud

There are many times when I can't go to sleep because my mind won't let me. It whirls with thoughts of the day, stories I'm working on, or want to start, music that intertwines most of my waking day, and contemplations of what needs to be done tomorrow.

And then it's time to get up. I'm in a fog, and the thoughts don't want to jiggle out of my consciousness. It feels, most of the time, like pulling an Elephant through mud. It takes me a good hour to get my mind working in the morning. Fortunately, during that time, my kids are getting ready for school and I use that time to read emails and get stuff done while they are focused on dressing and eating and running out the door.

I was reading a book by Patrick McManus today on his writing. He says he sets aside two hours every day to write. Now, strange as this seems, I've heard that a time or two. A writer should budget time every day to write. I've tried to do this, generally in the mornings, but as I've just described to you, that time isn't working.

Apparently, I need to rethink my schedule. Now that I'm working, writing after 9 am isn't going to work. I get home after 1 pm, so I'm thinking I might have to use that time to write, but I want to eat lunch and read. sigh. Do I want to read or do I want to be a writer? I guess that is the question I have to ask myself. I could write from 2 to 4 -- but that's when my kids all come home. So...it's a challenge. But, I'm going to do it. My hubby will be shocked...but I've made myself change several habits during the past year, I can do this.

I'll let you know how it goes. lol

It Was a Dream?

Have you ever gone on a trip and within a day or so of getting home feel like you never went? I've been feeling that way about Hawaii. Possibly because I was so conflicted about going, and possibly because I missed my hubby so bad -- but whatever the reason, it's strange when I think about it.

I purchased some little bracelets while I was there (among the other little souvenirs). One of them has little shells mixed with the beads. I wear them to remind me that the trip actually took place and of the folly of the human (or carnal) mind and my mistakes. I figure that they are a physical reminder of the choices we make and the consequences.

Looking back on that crazy Sunday when I left and the emotional uproar, I would now choose to stay home. Although, upon some reflection, it seemed to be something my family needed to go through. sigh.

I have been blessed with so many things. So many gifts, physically or materially and spiritually. While my life is not perfect, it is good. It is rich with color and beauty, my children are blessings and my hubby is the best. There isn't much else I could ask or wish for.

I just wish I were doing more that qualified for all the many blessings I have. My writing, for example. Is it proceeding in the way the Lord would have it go? Am I making enough of an effort?

I don't think so. It will be nice to start Nano in November -- I'll be able to focus on that talent in the way it needs to be right now. And that reminds me...my posts will probably be short during November, but they will still be made. You'll be curious about Nano, right? lol

I Can Only Imagine!

This was posted over at Tristi's blog. I love the song -- it always brings me to tears. This morning at my house was yet another example of how my savior loves me and mine. I thought it an appropriate day to post this. I owe him everything.

Friends in Cyber Space

Well...I discovered a new blog that is giving an award away for reading her blog for her 105th blog. I guess we are all making headway on cyber space. Well, go check out her blog and get to know her better. Violetlady

I think it's wonderful how people latch onto various blogs. I feel flattered that I've got at least three people who like to read my meanderings. I hope that what they read is worth their time. I know I'm enriched by other's thoughts.

I decided one of the biggest reasons I would not want to live in Hawaii...: No seasons! I love fall. I simply adore the leaves! I guess you have to really like warm humid weather...LOL

Greatest Classical Novel?

Okay, a friend was commenting that she'd heard The Great Gatsby was listed as the all around greatest novel...and she didn't like it. I don't either. She then listed a 100 classics and noted which ones she had read. Here is the list, and the asterisk indicates which ones I have read. How many have you gotten to? Although, I have to say, I don't think that just because something was written ages ago qualifies it as a classic.

Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea by Jules Verne
* The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
Walden by Henry David Thoreau
Gulliver's Travels by Johnathan Swift
Moby Dick, or The Whale by Herman Melville
A Farewell To Arms by Ernest Hemingway
The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane
* The Jungle Books by Rudyard Kipling
The Odyssey by Homer
The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan
A Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Man by James Joyce
Paradise Lost by John Milton
Tales From The Arabian Nights by Richard Burton
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
Candide by Voltaire
Oedipus The King by Sophocles
* The Hunchback Of Notre Dame [Notre-Dame De Paris] by Victor Hugo
The Last Of The Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper
The Sea Wolf by Jack London
Cyrano De Bergerac by Edmund Rostand
The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer
Collected Poems by Robert Browning
The Essays Of Ralph Waldo Emerson by Ralph Waldo Emerson
The Portrait Of A Lady by Henry James (I've tried reading Henry James, but I don't think it was this one...ugh)
Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
* Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
* Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Collected Poems by John Keats
On The Origin Of Species by Charles Darwin
Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Collected Poems by Robert Frost
* The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories by Washington Irving
* Animal Farm by George Orwell
* Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
She Stoops To Conquer by Oliver Goldsmith
* Of Mice And Men by John Steinbeck
Pride And Prejudice by Jane Austen (I've read Sense and Sensibility...)
The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky
* Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
The Iliad by Homer
Lady Chatterly's Lover by D.H. Lawrence
The Count Of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (I feel like I've read this one, my kids have told me all about it.)
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
* Aesop's Fables by Aesop
Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad
The Autobiography Of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin
The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
Politics And The Poetics by Aristotle
The Aeneid by Virgil
Madam Bovary by Gustave Flaubert
The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli
* Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
Hamlet by William Shakespeare
Pygmalion And Candida by George Bernard Shaw
Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe
* Romeo And Juliet by William Shakespeare
The Cherry Orchard And The Three Sisters by Anton Chekhov
The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri
The Analects of Confucius by Confucius
A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare
Collected Poems by William Butler Yeats
The Picture Of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray
The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio
Beowulf
* Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
The Necklace And Other Tales by Guy de Maupassant
The Time Machine by H.G. Wells
Fathers And Sons by Ivan Turgenev
Heart Of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
War And Peace by Leo Tolstoy
The History of Early Rome by Livy
* Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
The Talisman by Sir Walter Scott
Tess Of The D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
* Alice's Adventure In Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Dracula by Bram Stoker
The Rubáiyát Of Omar Khayyám by Omar Khayyám
The Red And The Black by Stendhal
A Tale Of Two Cities by Charles Dickins
The Republic by Plato
Collected Poems by Emily Dickinson
Faust by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Tom Jones by Henry Fielding
The Federalist Papers by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay
Silas Marner by George Eliot
The Rights of Man by Thomas Paine
Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
Billy Budd by Herman Melville
The Confessions by St. Augustine
Tales of Mystery And Imagination by Edgar Allan Poe
Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott
The Way of All Flesh by Samuel Butler
The Sound And The Fury by William Faulkner
Crime And Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
* Grimm's Fairy Tales by Jacob Ludwig and Wilhelm Grimm
* Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley ( I feel like I've read it, my kids have had to for school and I've heard all about it)
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens

I guess some would say that I'm woefully lacking in my classical reading. And, perhaps I am. My english classes in high school did not require the classics for reading, so I started after I graduated from college. However, there are books I've read that were not listed that I think should be, and so I list them now.

Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm by Kate Douglas Wiggin
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (why wasn't that listed?)
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Unfortunately, these are the only ones that come to mind and as I look at them, I realize they are probably the feminine reader. Oh well...lol
How many of the great books have you read and encourage your children to read?

Greetings from Hawaii

Well...I've got other blogs ready to go, but I decided I'd better get the photos from Hawaii out for ya'all. grin.

On looking back, it seems like it was all a strange dream. I went to these places, but they weren't in my heart because my heart was still back here. Interesting. I did get info for a book, so at least I did get some work done. I watched a lot of TV at night because I didn't want to get out among that crowd of humanity when it was dark.

I got some photos of the eastern side of the island, or as they call it, the windward side. It was the most green, and far less crowded.



I went to the Polynesian Cultural Center twice. You get a second visit for free if you go within three days...I highly recommend it. It was definitely the highlight of my visit. I went to the luau and the show afterward, all of which was great, but the different villages and learning about their cultures was the best.

They had a canoe parade during the afternoon, and as my guide was from Samoa, I took a photo of his group. He then proceeded to fall in. (he was the pusher with the pole behind everyone, the canoe wobbled with the dancers, his pole snapped and he fell in. It wasn't deep...but it was funny. Got us all wet who were sitting on the shore watching though...lol)



I also went back a couple of days later and visited the temple and the BYU Hawaii campus. It was great fun, although a little strange to be there without my hubby.


I might be willing to go back and visit some of the other islands, I'm told that Kuai is a good one, and that Hilo on the big island is nice too. It just all seems like a strange dream and I'm glad I'm home.

I also started a new job, and so that was a bit of exciting to come back to. Today was my second day, and I think I'm really going to like it.

Well...I'd better end and get some work done. Have a good one!

I'm Baack!

Well... I have loads to say, did some fun stuff and have pictures to upload, but I won't be able to do them now. I also started a new job today, and that makes my time a lot tighter.

Thanks for all your kind support and comments! You guys are the best.

What am I doing here????

Well, I'm here. What most of the world will call paradise. While last week I spent the whole time wanting to be here, the whole flight yesterday I thought...What am I doing? What is wrong with me? Wrong thing to say to my hubby when I spoke to him after getting here and getting settled in. (Ugh...taxi cost $35 just to get to my condo from the airport...memo to me, print more info before leaving home!)

I was so tired, and I wasn't happy because my family wasn't with me. I kept getting odd looks because I was by myself going to Hawaii...Hello! Doesn't anyone else in the world travel by themselves?

Anyway...it's gorgeous, really! But it just feels...empty. My family isn't here. I didn't realize how much I would miss even the kids...usually I don't. My hubby is a forgone conclusion -- that's an ache that won't go away until I get home, but I'm determined to make their gift to me worth while. I will enjoy myself if it's the last thing I do!! LOL Shopping this morning made a big difference. I knew that getting out and getting to know the location would help.

I don't have a way to hook up my camera, so photos will have to wait until I get home. It feels so much like Mexico, it makes me laugh. I haven't been in the water yet...that's coming. I'm even going to go snorkelling.

I read an article on the plane yesterday about blogging. It said that everyone should blog. Blogging was like another way for people to converse -- especially if they are far apart. People might think that it's a silly thing, and that a lot of the stuff was stupid that gets posted, but that it's an important thing. I thought that was cool. I am part of a movement that's important! And so are all of you that read them.

I had to laugh...the article pointed out that there might be some that don't get more than 10 readers a day. When have I ever had 10 readers a day??? what a hoot.

Well...I'm off for to find the bus route info. My goal is to go all the way around the island and see the whole view of the ocean. I'm hoping to get to Pearl Harbor tomorrow.

Everyone have a good one! Aloha!!

I'm Going!

Wow...what a birthday present, huh? My bday wasn't that exciting, though I did have lunch with my sister and a wonderful dinner with my hubby...sigh. Did I mention how much I love him?

Anyway, we discovered if I left on Sunday, it was way cheaper than if I'd gone today, and we decided I was going. I know it's one of those mixed feeling things -- I would definitely rather go with my hubby than go alone, but since he can't come, and reviewing the next couple of years (like ugh, we are going to have missionaries!) The chances of our going while we are young enough to appreciate it is pretty thin.

This is much like the time I went to San Diego by myself for a mommy's weekend. It's much the same, and about the same cost. (isn't that bizarre...) If anyone wants to see me, I'm going to try and find the Duke statue where they have a live camera every day to say hi to my family. I'll wave at anyone!

I'll be doing lots of writing, walking, taking pictures and painting. It's going to be amazing. I'm going to miss my family soo much I don't even want to think about it. I keep hoping I'm doing the right thing, but I'm so excited!!

On a side note...conference has been wonderful so far, especially Elder Worthlin's talk and seeing the support from the other brethren, it brought tears to my eyes.

If I have access to a computer, I'll try and write some on my blog. If I don't, then you'll know why.

Have a good one!

Happy Bday to Me...

Well...I can't believe it. The day is here already. It was really cute, my hubby got all the kids up for prayer and had them come and sing to me before I got out of bed. They weren't quite awake yet, so it sounded kind of like zombies singing, but it was cute. I was laughing pretty hard. You see, my family has this tradition of singing Happy Birthday as badly as possible. We are a family of singers, so we could make it sound like a choir, but instead, everyone sings as off key as possible. It makes a few people wince...not the least of which the person they are singing to.

I also got offered a job!! I'm kind of torn with the idea of going back to work, but it is only part time, and it should help with our finances a little. Right?? sigh.

And, how many of you when offered the chance to go to Hawaii, would go by themselves? I've mentioned before that we had a week of time in Hawaii with our time share, and now we've found I can fly there for a reasonable price. The catch is I'd have to go by myself. And I'd have to leave before dawn tomorrow. And...have any of you tried flying standby? groan. I just don't know.

Well...at least I've got a great bday!!

Just Some Fun

Well, with the marathon entries of the past couple of days, I figured some light heartedness was in order. (is that a word?)
I thought this was was a little ominous...

You Are Changing Leaves

Pretty, but soon dead.

What Part of Fall Are You?

And this one was kind of fun...

You Are Not Scary

Everyone loves you. Isn't that sweet?

How Scary Are You?

And just to keep things light...or silly LOL

Your Movie Buff Quotient: 54%

You are well on your way to becoming a movie buff. You've seen many of the great films, and you have even probably developed an expertise in a few genres.

Are You a Movie Buff?

Anyone like Hawaii?

Sigh. We have a sort of chance to go to Hawaii next weekend, but it's not going to happen. We have a time share and we picked Hawaii this year (it's a long story)but we can't afford to fly! Have you looked at the prices of airlines to there??? UGH! So, I saw this one someone else's blog, and figured it was at least a thought in the right direction. If anyone wants to go and can afford the airfare, we'll rent the week for cheap!! Honest!

76. I love my mother-in-law. She can drive me crazy sometimes, but she's a sweetie. Just today I was telling her about this week in Hawaii, and she was like, well, if you had told me earlier, we could have used it! Oh well.

77. I got to have lunch with my daughters today. It was way fun, but don't ever eat at Winger's if you're in a hurry.

78. I never thought I'd struggle to talk about myself, (just ask my hubby, I can be chatty) but this has been hard. I love to go on cruises!

79. I've been on two cruises. One to the Bahamas, and one to Alaska. I'd take the one in the Bahama's any time, just because we liked to be able to swim in warm water, and we loved Snorkeling.

80. I've never really been east of Denver. I've flown through Cincinatti, and went out from Fort Lauderdale and sat in the airport in Atlanta...but I don't think that counts -- I didn't get to see anything.

81. I've not been back to my mission since I've been home. It's really sad. My hubby hasn't either, and we might actually get to next year...it's still up for debate.

82. I hadn't seen most of Utah until our family took a trip several years ago and basically went from one end to the other.

83. I love Lake Powell. If you want to read a good book about it, read Wet Desert

84. I almost got to go to Hawaii this weekend...but it was not to be. My mother-in -law was even going to pay for it!

85. My mom is on the bird committee.

86. I'm going to join our wards volleyball team this Thursday. I'm way excited!! My hubby recommends that I wrap my wrist so that I don't get a big bruise on it again.

87. There's nothing like a sweet kiss from my 12 year old when he gets home from school.

88. There's nothing quite like forcing your 17 year old to do his homework when he doesn't want to...sigh.

89. Does anyone else celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving? I am way excited...I look at it as an opportunity to have roasted turkey twice!

90. There is simply not enough hours in the day to do all the canning you need to do before apples go bad! I'm thinking I need a bigger steamer...

91. An autistic teenager is twice as fun as a normal one...NOT! Man I was dreading these years, and now I know why.

92. ADHD is not an acronym for Actually Doing Heavy Dishes or Aaron Didn't Help David.

93. I was told that I was the perfect size at age 16. Now if I could just go back to then...

94. My kids tell me I look way younger than I am. When I was younger, I was told I looked way older. When did that happen and how do I keep it up? Maybe I'll get to 16 again after all...

95. I had a job interview today. I'm not holding my breath. I've applied for no less than 10 jobs with the school district through the past year, and haven't been offered any of them. At least I had an interview with this one...

96. I have 5 completed novels. They just haven't been published yet...

97. I have 10 more that I'm working on. My hubby says that I probably have twice that many, I just don't have them all at the same location, so who knows where they all are. My daughter says she has a whole file full of story ideas...good grief!

98. Keeping track of 4 boys and their school papers and grades is a full time job. anyone want it??

99. I wish my daughter would drop her boyfriend and find a life of her own for a while. I'm sure all of you have similar experiences, but she's driving us crazy because her whole life revolves around the guy. and, usually, nothing she does is ever good enough for him. We'd like to choke him sometimes...personally.

100. Well! I finally reached it! The goal! This feels like my nano writing moment...I finally reached 50,000! Well..I finally got to the end of this...sorry if I've bored anyone. ;-) I collect Tea pots! Really. I just started a couple of years ago because we found some at a yard sale, and I thought they were darling. Now I have almost 7, and one is brand new from China. My sister just got back from adopting her little girl, and picked one up for me. It's gorgeous.

September is gone??

I know I've said how much I love fall, and I've been very excited that summer is finally ending with it's never ending 100 degree days, but September was a blip on the screen!! sigh.

We celebrated my hubbies bday yesterday, and it was good and bad. Good in that I think he enjoyed the day and we pretty much relaxed, but bad in that the cake turned out somewhat not done...in the middle. Ugh!! I was being good and cooked it on Saturday, just before going to the Women's Conference. My son was testing it, figured it was done and took it out. It's like ...runny in the middle!! I got home and it was all concaved and I had no idea why. Now I know. sigh. My hubby still liked the edges. He's a very good sport about things. At least dinner turned out good. Today he suggested that I try microwaving the middle and see how it turns out -- frosting and all. I tried it and it was yummmy!

I think he's glad the day is over.

Well...onto the next 25 things...I'm running out of things!

51. I love my children. I think I mentioned how I never thought I'd have any -- maybe one? But I wouldn't trade any of them for anything in the world. They enrich my life in a way I never would have though possible. Just because I want to string them up sometimes...like yesterday...sigh.

52. I love where I live. I think Utah is amazing. I love the Wasatch front, and I love mountains. Does that count as three?? lol

53. I like listening to the wind blow through the trees. It makes me think of the ocean crashing against the shore. Perhaps that's one reason I love the mountains so much...the trees.

54. I love my hubby. I know I've said this before, but it bears repeating. He is the greatest. He loves me back -- and that's the most precious gift I've ever had. I'll never forget the first time I realized how much he did love me. I still tear up over it.

55. I mentioned I love my children, well, right now I love my daughters the most. They are out in our backyard right now picking our apples that have fallen off the trees. It was all their plan. They amaze me sometimes.

56. Carrot cake is my second favorite in the world. We have a recipe that makes just the best kind... (the one my hubby likes and that I talked about above) and it's supposed to be a three layer. Anyone know how to make them sit right?

57. Sunday comics make my whole week. I look forward to them. We used to get the weekly paper, and gave it up as too expensive. Now we just get the Sunday ones, and we get both papers so the kids don't fight over the comics. They do it anyway...I think it's in the genes.

58. I am a mystery shopper. I love it. It hasn't been a great money making venture, but it's been fun and cheap dates for my hubby and I. We get to see lots of movies this way, and sometimes a free meal. (of course it's all reimbursement on meals, so we have to be able to afford the wait...)

59. I wish I could afford a new living room set. We have never had new furniture. We've never been able to afford it. Our bed is the same frame my hubby had for his water bed before his mission. It's solid, it's got drawers, and it's still in one piece. sigh. We're ready for a change.

60. I'm a hopeless romantic. I like the ending of my stories to be happy, I like people to fall in love and stay that way, I like for kids to find happiness in life and make good choices. I love movies like While You Were Sleeping, Sleepless in Seatle, The Mirror Has Two Faces, Fools rush In, Nottinhill, (although we've bought it and gotten rid of it twice...just too much of a bad thing.) Lake House, Runaway Bride and Wedding Planner...sigh.


61. I love wind chimes! We finally got my hubby a larger set for Father's Day, and I love leaving the window open just a bit and getting the sound of them through the house.

62. I confess -- I'm a carnivore. I tell myself over and over that I could get by without eating meat, but I just love the taste. Sometimes I want a piece of roast so bad that I can just taste it in my mouth! I try to fix meals that don't depend on meat at least twice during the week, but that's about as good as it gets. At least I can cut down on the amounts of it most the time. Like when we have tacos, we use refried beans as well as the beef so that you don't need as much meat for filler. And a couple of large chicken breasts go a long way in pasta... But I tell ya, a thick grilled cheese burger with mushrooms, onions and pineapple is my idea of heaven.

63. I hate helping my kids with homework. Most of it I don't understand anyway, so it's like huh?? You're teacher wants you to do what?? I'm soo not helpful.

64. Sometimes I dream of moving somewhere where we generate our own electricity, have fireplaces for heat, and don't have to pay utility bills. I hate paying bills. Anyone else?

65. I love the temple. We went to the Bountiful Temple on Saturday, and it's such a wonderful feeling just to be in the Celestial room and see the beauty and feel the peace of the spirit. It was totally bizarre to come out and find it snowing...lol

66. I can't act. It doesn't matter how hard I try and fool someone, I still know deep down that I'm not what I'm saying I am, and I feel like it's lying. It's the only hard part about doing mystery shops. If I go to an apartment and pretend I'm looking for an apartment, it's soooo hard! I don't like to lie. Can you tell? lol

67. We have 11 cats. Serious! Don't call the humane society on us, we do have an acre of ground and there aren't any fences. It's also not our fault. 8 of them belong to our daughter. (her mommy cat got pregnant just after she moved back home - ugh!) She claims she's going to take two of them when she gets moved into her new house. That still leaves us with too many. One of them is probably going to the pound. Mommy cat is such a pain! She attacks everyone.

68. Our cats are not normal. Of course, my hubby says that no cats are normal anyway, but our cats like to lie on their backs and have you rub their tummies. I thought that was a dog thing! These cats just crack us up.
This one is called Paws...for the obvious reason. He is the oddest of them all. He sleeps like this most of the time. I was doing laundry and he came and plopped right in front of the washer where I'd have to be careful not to step on him. When they want attention, they want it NOW.

69. I used to wonder why some people had big monitors. What was the big deal? Well, I have to say I like my new big monitor. It's great for seeing all the stuff on a site. And...it's good for my poor eyes. sigh.

70. I don't like laundry. If I miss just two or three days it becomes a mountain that takes me forever to get to the bottom of. It's taken like forever to get to the tops of the baskets that I'm down to probably three loads total. Yeah!! I'm dreading when my sons decide to finally clean up their room...and hey, I found I have a huge drawer of dish cloths and towels! I thought I was going to have to buy some more!

71. I don't iron. Well...not if I can help it. It drives my mother-in-law crazy. I love cotton, which is a pain, because you usually need it iron cotton. Part of the problem is my dad is a lawyer, and part of the girls jobs was to iron his white shirts. I swear my dad has about 30 white shirts. Seemed like it would take hours to get all his shirts ironed. As a result...I don't iron unless it's really going to kill me to have my sons seen in church in that shirt! ugh.

72. I love the library. I can't afford to buy books, so checking them out is the next best thing. The only problem is that some of the books have stuff I'd love to keep...like the killer food series. I can't remember the authors name, but one of her books is called the Lemon Meringue Pie Murder. It has the recipes in the book, and I've mentioned how I collect recipes!!

73. I used to get big library fines. I'd forget that I hadn't gone to the library in a while, and it was so embarrassing to check out a book and have them tell you that you're over the limit to check out until you pay some of the fine. I'm so proud of myself now...I only have like 60 cents in fines!

74. I like dried apples in my oatmeal. We are drying apples in our dehydrator, and I love freezing them and then using them in the winter in my oatmeal. Sooo tasty. They are also good in muffins.

75. Well...finally the last one for today! I don't know how I'm going to come up with 25 more for tomorrow!! You'd think I would have no problem, since I'm a writer, but hello...who said my life was full of inspiration? LOL. I have 7 children, as I mentioned before, and 6 of them are ADHD. It's enough to drive any self respecting parent loony.

Have a good one!!