1. What was the worst costume you ever wore? What was the best?
I don't really remember too many Halloween costumes. I know that I was a princess one year, and I really liked that one, as I got to wear one of my grandmother's ballgowns. Perhaps that one was my best. My worst was probably the only other one I remember, which was Marie Osmond. I loved it, but everyone else thought I was a dork. As an adult, I dressed up as a cat with Mrs. Cheeseball, and as a 18th-century woman for a party at the Trade Winds.
2. Tell us about the scariest nightmare you’ve ever had.
I was probably in my early 20s at the time, as I was still living at Mom & Dad's house. I dreamed that there was a war going on, and there was an air raid taking place. I was screaming to my Dad. When I woke up, my Dad was standing in the doorway of my room. The next morning, he didn't remember being there. I'm guessing that when I was screaming for Dad in my dream, I was really screaming out loud for him, and in his sleep, he came to check on me.
3. Does your family have any Halloween traditions?
We went trick or treating as kids, but I don't recall any real traditions. Oh--I know--the tradition we always had (and sometimes still try to pull off) is to go to my Aunt Diana's house to get a caramel apple.
4. Have you ever seen/felt/heard something strange that you just couldn’t explain?
The TV in my bedroom sometimes acts weird. I will go to turn it off, and it will start to turn off, and then kind of get stuck halfway. It's half on, and half off. Really quite weird. My mom jokes that it sounds like a practical joke her Dad would play, so I always tell Papa to "knock it off" when it happens. (He died in 1994.)
5. What do you find scary?
Anything even remotely close to a tornado threat. In my 40 years of living in Knox County, Maine, we have only (to my knowledge) had a tornado watch one time, and that was in July of this past summer. I don't like bad thunderstorms and high winds, especially when Dwane is gone. I don't like the idea of snakes, but I don't find darkness or cemeteries too spooky. There was an Inn on Spruce Head Island that my friend Becky and I "explored" in high school, and that was kind of eerie. I had a nightmare about that place about 2 weeks ago. It burned down in the 1990s.
Bonus Question-Do you have any stories to share about your experiences with The Rocky Horror Picture Show?
I've seen bits and pieces of it on TV, but I found it kind of stupid.
1. My favorite food seasoning is cumin (although I also love chili powder and chives, too.) 2. The silence of bedtime is music to my ears. 3. Lucky is sometimes used when "blessed" would be the more appropriate word. 4. My faith is something I take very seriously. 5. Many people try to be good enough to get to Heaven. (It doesn't work that way.) 6. A box of 100-calorie 3 Musketeer Bars was the last thing I bought at the store. 7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to seeing my grandmother's new dog and pictures of my new cousin, Sean Brian, tomorrow my plans include hanging out with Mom and the boys and Sunday, I want to not gain too much weight (it's bound to happen this week I fear!).
1. Right now, I'm feeling hungry, so I'm eating whole grain oatnut toast with crunch peanut butter. 2. On a tropical beach, barefoot in the sand, is where I want to be. 3. How does one lose another 50 pounds? 4. Being healthy for my boys (all of them) keeps me on track. 5. Please don't forget to update your blogs!! 6. Hearing my boys giggle fills me with joy. 7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to an Ice Cream Social at Boston Financial, tomorrow my plans include maybe going for a picnic and Sunday, I want to watch Bobby winn Hot-Lanta!!
I'm not going to get very specific here, as I have not (at least as of yet) been asked to make this prayer request public. I have a friend whose relative fought cancer a couple of years ago. She is now fearful that the cancer may have returned. They are not sure yet, as she needs to undergo some more testing before they now for sure. Obviously, she's scared. And so is my friend. Please pray for them. And, friend, if you are reading this blog, remember this: "I'm praying for you and your relative everyday, and I love ya lots!"
I follow the "Confessions of a CF Husband" blog. (I don't know how to put links on my blog yet, so I'll have to ask my brother to add this one--as well as Amy's and Mr. Gundy's.) Anyway, this guy's wife has cystic fibrosis. (One of my best friends in school, Carol Ackley, died of CF.) While awaiting a double lung transplant, Trisha got pregnant. The baby was delivered way, way too early, but is now thriving. Trisha got her new lungs, but the anti-rejection drugs caused some sort of lymphoma in her new lungs. Treatment is not working, and things do not look good. This family needs prayer, too. (They are in North Carolina.)
The main reason I'm putting this on my blog, besides the obvious request for you all to pray, too, is to remind us all to pray for people when we say we are going to. When someone presents a prayer request to us, we need to not just tell them that we will, but we really need to do it. So, right now, why don't you take a minute and pray for that person that asked you to pray for them.
Dwane started his new job today as a PC Specialist at Boston Financial. He will be the only PC Specialist for 100 users. They hope to add another PC Specialist in January when they do some more hiring. He'll be located on the waterfront in Rockland, right in the same MBNA building that he used to work at. (Dwane always ends up with the cushy locations!) He won't really be making any more salary, but the salary he does make will be made between 8:00-4:30 M-F. No nights. No weekends. At his prior job, he would have to often work 60-70 hours per week to make the same amount of money. So this is good. The benefits are quite a bit better, too. He's decided to start driving taxi again too, and he'll be doing that Wednesday and Friday nights. It's ok with me that he does it on Friday nights, but I'm thinking that Wednesday nights are not going to be good. He'll work 8:00-5:00 Wednesday, drive taxi until about 2:00 Thursday morning, and then up again to be at work by 8:00. (The mother in me never would have agreed to that sort of arrangement, but of course, he didn't ask for my opinion first. Naughty Dwane!!)
I thought this was cute, so I thought I'd post it.
For whatever reason (I don't even remember), we didn't have a "normal" supper on Friday night. I was sitting at the computer, and Caleb was out in the kitchen. He hollared for me to come see what he was eating.
When I went out to the kitchen, he was beaming. He was sitting at the bar, eating what he called a "Salad Sandwich". It was two pieces of bread, with lettuce in the middle. That was all. He had pulled out the head of lettuce, pulled off the leaves and made himself a sandwich. He later dictated the recipe to me so that he could have it written down. (In case anybody else wanted the recipe.) We printed it out, and he drew a picture of his "Salad Sandwich".
Caleb is an incredibly picky eater. I am fortunate, however, that of the few foods he eats, he enjoys lettuce, cucumber, raw carrots, raw celery, grapes, apples, bananas, and tilapia. Go, Caleb!
On another note, Eben's soccer game lost on Saturday, so after the end-of-season party tonight, soccer will be done. I was really looking forward to a rest from all of the back and forth transportation, but alas, it is not meant to be. Basketball season starts in 2 weeks. Last year, it started right around Christmas time, and went through January/February. This year, it is supposed to be over for Christmas. It's good in that we won't have to do much traveling on snowy roads, but we all know how busy it is already for everyone in December. How I'm now supposed to fit in a game every Saturday and practices several times a week, I'm not so sure...
1) Johnny Quest meets his friend Hadji in India. Tell us about a friend you have/someone you met who is "far" away. (You determine what "far" is.)
My friend, Nicki, is married to a guy in the USCG. Shortly after my Dad died, she called me from Alaska (where her husband was stationed), to offer her condolences. That meant a whole lot to me. Last time I knew, they were in Connecticut or Rhode Island. Another friend, Ronda, lived on Okinawa for a time while her husband was in the Air Force. It was always cool to get letters from her, all the way from Japan. (She's just in South Thomaston now.) I don't know that I have any "friends" that originally from another country. I guess the friend that is furthest away now is Amy--all the way in California.
2) Scooby Doo and Shaggy are always hankerin' for a snack. What have you got a craving for recently?
Lately, it seems that all I am craving is the Italian Wedding Soup from Tim Horton's. Oh how I love that! Unfortunately, they don't serve it very often. At lunchtime today, though, I was hanking for a hot dog and onion rings. Mom & I went to Moody's for lunch, but instead of a hot dog, I had a cup of clam chowder and a 1/2slice of custard pie. It was amazing, and I'm so glad I didn't get the hot dog.
3) There are so many trains in "Thomas and Friends" I can't keep track of them all! Is there a group of folks you're involved in, and yet you don't know everyone's name (e.g. chruch group, business group, support group, etc.)? Can you tell us about it?
I know this is kind of a "spin" on the question, but what comes to mind are all of my clients. I know all of them as names on paper. However, I have only met about 3 of them. Since I work from home, I don't get the opportunity to see them in person. I often wonder how many people I meet at the grocery store or Wal-Mart might actually be my clients. I know how much debt they have, what their marital problems are, but I don't even know their faces!
4) Bill Cosby was only a regular on "The Electric Company" for one season before he left. What job have you held for the shortest period of time?
I was an "assistant tax clerk" type of thing at the South Thomaston Town Office for about a week. That was all the job lasted--it was temporary. I don't even remember for sure what I did, but it centered around getting out everyone's real estate tax bill. It was the summer between my junior and senior years of high school.
5) Speaking of Bill Cosby, "The Junkyard Gang" from Fat Albert made instruments out of old junk. Do you have something in your house that's old junk that you've turned into something useful? If not, tell us about something that's junky, but that you just can't get rid of.
My house is loaded with junk. I can't seem to get rid of any of it. Mostly because I can't seem to find the time to get the job done. My teddy bear would look very much like junk to someone other than me, but I'll never get rid of him. I don't think I've ever turned any of it into something useful.
1. Follow the YELLOW BRICK ROAD (WOW! IS THAT ORIGINAL OR WHAT?). 2. MY TEDDY BEAR is something I always take with me on vacation. 3. To achieve your goals, you must WORK HARD. 4. THE FACT THAT I HAVE TWO REALLY AWESOME SISTERS-IN-LAW is something I'd like you to know about me. 5. I have a BAGEL WITH PEANUT BUTTER IN MY HAND. 6. IVORY SOAP floats (WOW! ANOTHER ORIGINAL). 7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to CATCHING UP WITH THIS WEEKS HEROES (DWANE AND EBEN WILL BE CAMPING OUT TONIGHT), tomorrow my plans include A SOCCER GAME AND A SCRAPBOOK CROP and Sunday, I want to GO TO A FAMILY HARVEST PARTY AT THE SPRUCE HEAD CHURCH!
1. Other than the usual “crunch”, what one word best describes the sound when you walk in snow? Tell us about a time you had with/in snow.
How about "thud"? Sometimes you don't even crunch through the snow, but step with a "thud". I am not much of a snow person, at least as far as outdoor activities go, so I don't know that I have tons of great memories. I used to like to my tunnels with my brothers in the "snowplow piles". And, when I know that we are going to get a "bad" snowstorm, I like to make a boiled dinner on the stove. That way, if the power goes out, at least I'll have supper ready. I like to make yeast rolls on those days, too.
2. What one word best describes the sound of leaves as you walk through them. Try not to use the word “rustle, rustling”. Share a story having to do with you and leaves.
I guess I'm thinking "laughter". The boys and I have had so much fun this fall with the leaves--not necessarily walking through them, but trying to catch them as they fall from the trees. Yesterday, I asked God to send a breeze while we were waiting for the bus, so that we could catch some more. Just as the bus was coming over the horizon, we had a huge breeze, and the leaves were falling everywhere! Thank you, God, for answering even the little prayers.
3. Choosing another word besides the word “slosh”, give us your best (one) word for walking through rain and puddles. We’d love to read a story about you and the rain and/or puddles.
"Splash" is probably the obvious choice. "There's one!" would be another one (two) that come to mind. We had a huge puddle in our driveway for most of the summer, and frogs absolutely loved it. The boys were always looking in that puddle and saying "there's another one!" Eben would catch them and add them to an aquarium on the doorstep. It was like living on a frog farm for a while.
4. Yes, there’s sweltering. But pick one other word to describe the humid summer heat. If you’re able, tell us a funny story related to you and the summer heat. If nothing comes to mind, tell us what you do to beat the heat.
"Nasty" is what I think of. I hate it when my nose and neck sweat. Gross! I think nothing helps beat the heat beter than an iced tea.
5. Halloween is fast approaching. Other than the word “spooky”, choose one word that describes the Halloween atmosphere. Share with us a favorite Halloween costume you wore. If you’ve never participated by wearing a costume, let us know the wildest costume you’ve ever seen.
Ok. I know I'm in the minority here, but I hate Halloween. I just don't get into all the macabre stuff. How 'bout the word "freaky"? The whole Halloween scene just freaks me out a bit. I guess my favorite Halloween costume was when I went as Marie Osmond. I must have been around 4th grade or so. As an adult, I dressed as a cat with Mrs. Cheeseball (probably in the early 1990s), and I went one time as a woman from the Revolutionary War (probably in the late 1980s).
1. One of the best concerts/plays/movies I ever saw that I really didn't think I'd like was THE WATER HORSE.
2. HOT MULLED CIDER is a recipe I recently made (or meal I recently ordered) that was delicious!
3. It's time for RETIREMENT (AT LEAST IT FEELS THAT WAY TODAY).
4. DRIVING A CONVERTIBLE is quite refreshing.
5. If I never hear the words "THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS..." again, it'll be too soon.
6. To one side of the curving road was a BABBLING BROOK, and on the other was a BEAUTIFULLY COLORED MOUNTAINSIDE.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to MAYBE SCRAPBOOKING?, tomorrow my plans include A SOCCER GAME AND THE NASCAR RACE and Sunday, I want to NOT GAIN TOO MUCH WEIGHT (I'VE HAD A BAD WEEK)!
My husband got home early today. And he brought me a present. A BIG present! A convertible!!!! Can you believe it??? It's used, of course, but oh my goodness--what fun it is to drive!!! It's a 1996 Saab, teal green in color, with a black soft top. It's a five-speed, and it's got only 101,000 miles on it. I say ONLY because for us, that's really low miles. It gets about 31 miles to the gallon, and it had only one owner. When Dwane brought it home, he already had it insured and registered, and he told me that he's already got a buyer for our Subaru. Dwane is so much like my wheelin'-dealin' grandfather that it's not even funny. I'll be keeping the van still, for a while anyway. The Saab only sits 4, and tonight the 4 of us are taking Mom & Bailee to the soccer game, so we still need the van. I can't wait to drive it again, though! It's a hoot!
1. Name something a friend or loved one did for you in the last month that made you feel good.
Mrs. Cheeseball always comes through for me. She once again made a cheeseball for my Close to My Heart gathering. She won't let me pay her. She considers it "her contribution". Even though this has become a routine thing for her, it's not just routine for me. I truly appreciate her efforts, and I love how she likes to be "part" of my business, even though it doesn't help her out at all.
2. Name something you did for a friend or loved one in the last month and how did it make them feel?
Oh, man. I can't think of anything. That's bad. Oh, please let me think of SOMETHING I did that was nice! The only thing I can think of is that now that both boys are in school, I can go get groceries all by myself. When I am in town, I stop at the Samoset and go to lunch with Dwane--just the two of us. I'm quite sure he likes that, and I know that I certainly enjoy it too--we can go someplace besides MickeyD's or BK. This question is a wake-up call. I need to intentionally start doing nice things!
3. Tell us about the first childhood family vacation that you remember. If you don’t have a memory of that then tell us the first family event memory you have. Don’t forget to include details about that experience that stick out in your mind.
We didn't really do "family vacations" until I was older. The first one I remember was going to New Hampshire to Storyland. I think I might have been in high scool at that point. We used to do quite a few "day trips". My favorite was going to see Uncle Wilbur and Aunt Evelyn at the Dairy Queen in Bangor. Oh, but wait a minute. We used to go camping quite a bit. I think that we went camping with Uncle Ashley at Mt. Blue State Park when I was only around 2 years old. I don't remember much, if any, if that. But we did go camping pretty regularly. I guess I was thinking of vacation as "hotel" instead of "camping".
4. Kids get hurt. Tell us a time you recall as a kid when you injured yourself.
My brothers were both accident-prone. Maybe because they were boys. (Although, knock on wood, neither of my boys have been injured to the point of needing a doctor...yet.) Anyway, I was injured only once growing up. I was in 5th grade. I was going from my grandmother's house to our house (we lived next door), and I decided to pretend to gallop like a horse. In my path, was a large red plastic block. It wasn't that big--maybe 1 foot x 2 feet, and only about 6 inches high. I decided to jump it, like a horse. I didn't clear it. It was small enough that it shouldn't have been any problem. I guess I started my jump too early or something. I came down on my ankle and it swelled up like a grapefruit. My dad carried me to the back of the station wagon and took my to the ER. (My Mom had to play the organ at a wedding, so she couldn't go. She still says she feels awful about that, but Dad did just fine.) I broke my epithysis. It's cartilege in the ankle that becomes bone as you grow older. I remember throwing up in the ER, and never disclosing the "pretending I was a horse" part of my story until I was an adult. I had a cast on for 6 weeks or so, and everyone at school was absolutely amazed that I participated in the disco dancing/square dancing part of gym with my cast on. I was almost a hero.
5. Tell us something you want to do before the snow flies. If you live in an area that might not get snow then before Christmas will do.
I have got to clean out my closet. It's a mess, and I need to find some "smaller" clothes that I hope may be buried in there somewhere. I know this doesn't really have to do with snow, but I've got to get it done. (I even invested in some Joy Mangano Huggable Hangers for the occasion!)
1. October MEANS I'D BETTER START CHRISTMAS SHOPPING! EEK! 2. ROLLER COASTERS scare me! (BUT I STILL TRY TO LOVE THEM.) 3. Leaves are falling all around, it's FUN TO TRY TO CATCH THEM BEFORE THEY HIT THE GROUND (A NEW GAME I'VE BEEN PLAYING WITH THE BOYS). 4. My favorite horror movie is DRACULA because I THINK IT WAS THE LAST ONE I SAW (I DON'T LIKE HORROR MOVIES.) 5. THE 1980'S = good memories (CHEERLEADING, HIGH SCHOOL, FIRST JOB) 6. It was a dark and stormy night AND LISA WAS REALLY WISHING THAT DWANE WOULD FIX THE SCANNER SO SHE COULD LISTEN TO ALL THE ACTIVITY. 7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to EBEN'S SOCCER GAME, tomorrow my plans include EBEN'S SOCCER GAME and Sunday, I want to TAKE CALEB TO A SOCCER CLINIC! (AND WATCH TALLADEGA, OF COURSE!)
I think I mentioned that I now have the Wii Fit, and I am so loving that! One of things I do with that game is hula-hoop. In fact, I hula-hoop for 10 minutes straight! That's a lot of hula-hooping! If you don't believe me, try it. Anyway, while I'm standing there hula-hooping, I have lots of time to think about different things. I didn't do much thinking today. Well, except for about how my hips were moving. I know, weird. Then I got singing Matt Nathanson's song "Come On Get Higher":
"So come on, get higher, loosen my lips Faith and desire and the swing of your hips Just pull me down hard And drown me in love"
I guess the hula-hooping of my hips made me think of the "swing of your hips" of the song. So anyway, I then tried to sing it to the same rhythm that my hips were moving. I couldn't do it. I was laughing in spite of myself. The song is quite slow, so I had to really put it into fast-forward.
I saw Matt Nathanson perform on the CBS Saturday Morning Show about a year ago, and he performed this song and one called "Car Crash". I was really excited to find "Come On Get Higher" on Sugarland's new CD--they sing a live version of it, and I think their version is quite good, too. Has anyone heard of Matt Nathanson? Are any of his other songs "mainstream hits"?
SAH mom of two boys. Work part-time from home as a paralegal for General Practice Attorney (mostly family law). Independent Consultant for Scrapbooking/Rubber Stamping Company. Pianist at Southern Baptist Church.
