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Joy-Stealers

Certain things in life should be joyous. Period.

I hate it when things that should be joyous come with extra baggage to complicate matters. Some of the issues come from human idiocy. Other things, well, I just have to believe in God’s timing. Whether I understand and agree, or not.

Things that should be joyous are engagements and weddings, graduations, championships, pregnancies and birth, retirements, etc. You know the list.

Some joy-stealers that come to mind…
Being at a wedding where the bride should be marrying the best-man.
Finding out you’re pregnant – but you’re not married.
Graduating – 6 months after your class because you were a credit short.
Having a grandchild on the way when its parents already can’t pay the bills.
Retiring – but not by choice – health issues made that decision for you.

I don’t know anyone who hasn’t experienced joy-stealers. What I’ve listed are dramatic examples but not unusual today. I don’t even have the answers for dealing with joy-stealers without resentment. I know in my heart that God’s timing is always right. Knowing and understanding, well, not always the easiest.

Like Martina McBride sings…do it anyway. Be joyous anyway.

Bloggers Anonymous

I was reading a couple of my favorite blogs and I was struck by a couple of things. One touches on what I mentioned in a recent post. Bloggers want to be heard. Another thing I've noted is that blog readers tend to read and go. They don't like to leave comments. They remain...(insert creepy music here) ANONYMOUS! (creepy music fades out)

When you set up a blog they tell you to put a poll on your site to get participation. Ask questions in your blog and folks will answer in their comments. Well, it must not be working because I keep seeing bloggers asking people to comment and the readers rarely do. Well, as much as I'd like to hear from my readers, if they're more comfortable remaining anonymous, that's ok. After all, my kids generally read these posts because I hound them with "have you read the blog???" all the time. They know there's likely going to be a quiz... My husband - well, he will read occasionally - he knows I hate it that my blog isn't set as his homepage or something equally important and eye-catching.

I did have my first "non-family-member" comment last night. I was thrilled! Yes! "Somebody heard what I said..." Of course, my youngest son is still grieving that not a single stuffing recipe was left following my blog request. He wasn't overly thrilled by my creation and I think I heard him thank God for Stove Top that night before bed.

So hey, leave a comment, reply to a comment, or just read and go...it's all good. Bottom line...I'm glad you stop by here.

Any comments???

New Toys

Is there really anything quite like new toys? Just when I think I'm beyond getting excited over gadgets and such, somthing comes along and I feel just like a kid again. I've received a few such items in the last year...

The first was my TiVo receiver and service (thank you, Mother Wiren!). A year later and I'm still thrilled with it - actually even more thrilled with it. It's absolutely wonderful! Quite a recommendation coming from someone who used to think they were "just plain stupid."

Next came my "Smart Phone." This is a combination cell-phone and PDA (personal digital assistant). I have my phone, contacts, calendar, memo pad, bible, games, calculator, camera, video camera, memo-mate, etc. Definitely some "say-wow" stuff here. Again, since I have gadgets for music, pictures and such, I don't use all the features of my smart phone. The ones I do use, however, are terrific! It's rare you find the novel covers or cases for the smart-phones - mostly because of their size I would imagine. I did come across one, though. The case I have looks like a sneaker; black canvas and white rubber. At least it's not quite as manly looking now!

Side note here...Would you believe I found a purse with 3 outside pockets on the front just perfect for my digital camera, smart-phone, and IPod. Life is good.

The next one was my IPod. Yes, I truly love my IPod. This is another gadget that I thought was stupid and ridiculous - before I got one and realized what all they can do. I routinely carry around movies, television shows and series', my photographs, podcasts, audiobooks, and a TON of my favorite music. This is one gadget that's way too cool. I almost feel sorry for today's youngsters - they won't know to appreciate all these great things. My kids know that ITunes gift cards are always welcome here!

My newest toy that makes me go "ooh-aah" is my new GPS. It's an early Christmas present from my husband. It's a TomTom One XL-S (the model has only been out for about a month). It's very user friendly and comes "ready to go - right from the box." If you've been considering a GPS - go for it! This one has the voice that announces turns, street names, etc. You can choose from different voices but if you want to hear street names you have to stick with a computerized voice. the clarity is very good. I think the voice feature is a definite plus. The really high-end models also perform as MP3 players, photo storage, etc. Since I already have all that in my IPod, I hardly need it in my GPS. It's great to type in my destination and then see how far away it is, how long it will take to get there, what time it will be when I get there, which way I'm going to turn next, the name of the next road I need, the name of the next major road I need, etc. If you veer off track it advises you to turn around either "at the first opportunity" or at _________ and it will give you a street name. If there's more than one way to get to your destination and you choose a different one - no problem. The GPS will re-figure the route and pick up without skipping a beat. You can also choose alternate routes. All sorts of great stuff. Enough that it's even fun having it on when I travel my regular day-in, day-out roads. It's also interesting to see which route it chooses as the fastest. Sometimes it's the way I've always gone - and sometimes it isn't. With it being this much fun here at home I can't wait to see how useful it will be when we're on a trip!

I love new toys! Even at my age.

I hope you get lots of great toys for Christmas!

Thanksgiving Reflections...

Wow! I've got to say that our Thanksgiving has been very nice. I enjoyed cooking, our dinner turned out well, Ken's mom was with us, and we were all feeling blessed by all we have to be thankful for. Christopher and Abbey's excitement was definitely contagious.

Now, keeping with tradition, we did get out early Friday morning in search of goodies. We didn't find everything (still in stock) we were looking for but we did pretty well just the same. We went back out for a bit on Saturday and found an early birthday present for Ken as well as a Christmas present for me!

Sunday was more on the quiet side and time to start focusing on Monday and the week ahead. Ken and the kids got started on the derby cars for AWANA. The December 5th race will be here before we know it. So far they're looking good! Just between you and me, Abbey will be racing her pick-up-truck this time around and while I don't know the proper name, Christopher's car is looking way-cool! Elisa and Darrell are back home safe and sound and I talked to Matthew and Shannon on the phone. Seems Matthew made a pecan pie!

I started playing a bit with my new GPS and am really looking forward to using this new toy on a regular basis. We're all tired (in a very nice way) and as the leftovers get eaten and our thoughts turn to Christmas, I find that Thanksgiving 2007 is already fading into a fond memory.

I hope you can say the same... Have a wonderful week!

*******************************************************************************

Our Thanksgiving Menu

Breakfast
Homemade sticky buns
Swiss Scramble Breakfast Casserole

Midday Snack
Cocktail Smokies
Port Wine Cheese Log with Assorted Crackers
Eggnog and Apple Cider

Thanksgiving Dinner
Fried Turkey (Thank you, Sweetheart!)
Mashed Potatoes and gravy (turkey and beef/brown)
Stuffing (mediocre "made from scratch")

Cranberry Sauce
Pineapple Casserole

Sweet Potato Balls
Green Bean Casserole
Corn
Cran-Broccoli Salad

Crescent Rolls

Apple Pie
Vanilla Ice Cream
Coffee

Happy Thanksgiving!

This is probably my last post prior to Thanksgiving. With a long list of things to get done and a big meal to prepare and serious shopping to plan for - I don't know when I'd find the time!

Seriously, I'm going to try something new and attempt to get a lot of tasks knocked out tomorrow, Wednesday, instead of keeping everything for Thursday. I don't know what it would be like to have some pre-dinner free time on Thanksgiving day. I sure like the idea of finding out, though.

Our gathering will be a bit smaller this year with only my mother-in-law joining the 4 of us currently at home. Our family's to the point where we head in different directions and meet different obligations. I've been in touch with my father in Florida a good bit this week. His wife was hospitalized over a week ago with some complications from her recent bypass surgery. From what he told me this morning it appears she'll be heading home Wednesday. He said they'd head to Cracker Barrel for their Thanksgiving meal if she's up to it. Either way I know they'll be glad she's out of the hospital.

More from Florida... my sister-in-law, Carol, is our token turkey this year. Thanksgiving lands on her birthday and I'm really hoping she'll take the day off - but I bet she won't. After a couple days of shopping and a couple spent resting we blink and it's my niece's 14th birthday exactly one-week after her mother's. From what I understand we'll have their family here for a quick visit that week. We'll miss them and my mother-in-law at Christmastime, however.

My oldest brother will be the host for my middle daughter's Thanksgiving festivities this year. Ahhh...to watch the sun rise on the beach and celebrate all you're thankful for with friends and loved ones the same day! I sure didn't appreciate it when I had it. Things rarely change, though. Here I have access to the mountains (which I love!) and rarely make the drive to enjoy their majesty.

My oldest son is also visiting the Sunshine State. He caught a ride with his older sister but will continue on further south to Fort Lauderdale. He'll be catching up with family and playing a lot of video games. I'll bet he doesn't even see the beach!

Well, that's about it for now. I should probably get some sleep if I'm going to get a jump on that ol' early bird!

Stay safe!

Blessings to you and yours this Thanksgiving...

Books, Books and More Books

This is another one of those days that I have no idea what I'm going to write but wanted to write *something*

Books came to mind as I retrieved my latest Amazon.com order. Oh goodie! In this batch we have "Presidential Trivia" and Frommer's "Irreverent Guide to Washington D.C. " (always a good choice AFTER your trip!). There's so much about Washington I want to learn about and the quirky stuff was appealing as a starting place.

Anyway, leaving Washington, we come across Christopher's *NASB Study Bible for Boys. Now, I would probably qualify as a bible collector. Not old, rare, collector varieties - just the quantity variety. *NASB for Precepts Studies, *NIV for Beth Moore studies, *NLT for its easily understood text. *KJV for its poetic quality that I have trouble understandig, *NKJV, well, I guess because it's new. My most recent acquisition is a NCV - The "Women of Faith Amazing Freedom Bible." It's pretty, has a great magnetized closure flap that makes it good for travel and it's supposed to be an easily read and understood translation.

Now, it might be argued that Christopher is getting a respectable collection as well. His new curriculum offers *KJV or *NASB and he didn't have a *NASB Bible - but, he does now.

This order ends with "Love & Respect." Probably THE Best marriage book available today. If you're engaged, married a year or 30 - read this book. I'm so glad our Pastor told us about this book.

*NASB=New American Standard Bible, *NIV= New International Version, *NLT= New Living Translation, *KJV=King James Version, *NKJV=New King James Version, *NCV=New Century Version.

Now, you go on and read this post and I'll go look through my new books!

*********************************************************************************

Last week I had the pleasure of taking my two youngest kids and a 4-yr old we were babysitting to a new little place in our downtown area called Silver Chair. It's a used book store/coffee bar in a converted house that's lovely and quaint. From a friend's recommendation I knew they had an area for kids, so as a special treat I decided we'd stop. As luck would have it we arrived a short while before their scheduled story-time, complete with related crafts and coloring pages! The kids had a nice time, and I enjoyed browsing the large and impressive collection of books the owner had on hand. I did end up with a book about the history and tales of our American Flag. I'm still on my US History kick following D.C. The kids - not as interested in history, chose a video "The Little Toaster."

While waiting for the kids time to finish I sat in an overstuffed, comfy chair, enjoying my coffee, and casually looked over the titles on a shelf next to me. Well, my imagination started getting the best of me! Now remember, this is some "down" time for me while I wait for the kids. I'm not trying to solve the world's problems or anything - just fill some time with a little fun.

This game actually got its start from the first title that caught my eye..."Emotionally Weird." Well, this was an easy one to place myself in the middle of. Then again, there's not too many people I know who aren't emotionally weird in one way or the other. That's ok - it just added to my amusement; you know what they say about small minds...

Continuing on I came across Tara Road, Under a Sheltering Sky - Now, with tongue firmly in cheek , we have a new story right here. How about "Emotionally Weird on Tara Road Under a Sheltering Sky" Now there's some vivid imagery!

Side by side on the shelf were "Inheritance" and "Pay or Play." Now really, I don't make this stuff up - well, actually I do. But nevermind that. This story just gets more interesting with the addition of "Three Wishes" and "Man on the Mountain."















I get a sense of melancholy when I imagine "The Patriarch" as "The Forgotten Man" with "A False Sense of Well Being," I wonder at the images created from the "Tournament of Shadows" at "Hatrack River" as recorded in "The Cloud Atlas." Mostly, though, with "Time and Tide," I'll continue my games, "Holding Out" and avoiding "The Rescuer," and hearing my 6-yr old say "That's All Right, Mama."

Have a great week and most of all, "Happy Thanksgiving!" I hope you're surrounded by loved ones. I really believe that no matter how good or bad we think we've got it - we can always find plenty to be thankful for. What a tremendous blessing!

P.S. My daughter specifically told me not to go with the Book Title entry - thought I was too strange on this one, AND, my husband just came downstairs complaining about all my books in the bathroom! I told you...Books, Books, and More Books!

Toast: "To Family...Cheers"

"Somebody Heard What I Said"

Tonight's blog is an easy one for me. A little cutting, pasting, and formatting, but I think it sums up why many people blog: to be heard.

Joshua Kadison is one of my favorite recording artists. After attempting tonight's entry multiple times with multiple titles it struck me that his song "Invisible Man" came pretty close to describing how I've been feeling. So, since my words aren't flowing at all tonight, I'll turn it over to Mr. Kadison.

Woke up this morning with a funny feeling,
wasn't really sure what it was all about.
But it felt like I was dissapearing,
so I ran to the mirrow to check it out.
I said, "Here I am, here I am, here I am...but why do I feel like the invisible man?"

I stumbled back into the bedroom,and stared up at the rising sun.
Then I heard my self shout out the window,
not really talking to anyone,I yelled,
"Here I am, here I am, here I am...but why do I feel like the invisivle man?"

Lights went on, people started yelling, "Will the crazy man go back to bed."
And there I was, laughing out my window,
feeling much better now, somebody heard what I said.

Well it's no big thing, no revelation,
no answer to all these lives we lead.
But I think I do know one thing:
Sometimes I think we all need to say,
"Here I am, here I am, here I am."
when life makes us feel like the invisible man?


K - Sorry I've been difficult
E - I'm proud of you - always
My crew: I love you all dearly!

Chocolate Cake

It's a "chocolate cake day."

I'll bet that statement makes perfect sense to many of you. A few will be clueless, and others will only be "in-the-know" because they share life with someone who does know about "chocolate cake days."

It's not that there's anything particularly wrong. I'm not sick; not even a headache. The weather, while cool, has been mostly sunny and not the least bit depressing (unless the job of leaf-clearing falls to you).

That's exactly what makes a "chocolate cake day." No rhyme or reason, no catastrophes or anything. It just "is."

We had a few CCDs during the last few months my oldest son was living at home. It was his job, usually between 9:00-10:00 p.m. to get in his car, drive the 3 or so miles to the grocery store, find the "right" chocolate cake, check out, and then drive back home. He hated this particular job but knew it was far better to go fetch the cake than to argue and get on Mom's bad side on a Chocolate Cake Day! After all, she swears it's medicinal!

Now don't laugh. Teamed with a large glass of cold skim-milk or a cup of hot coffee, the combinations are practically magical. It's not just the sugar rush - I've usually tested that out a time or two on a typical CCD and it didn't help. You may even be surprised to know that the "right" chocolate cake isn't even my favorite cake. I really just love cake but if forced to choose it would have to be my homemade chocolate cake with vanilla frosting. Traditional white bakery birthday cake is pretty wonderful, too, as long as it has buttercream frosting and not whipped cream. But the "right" chocolate cake is a chocolate fudge layer cake with chocolate fudge frosting. It's really surprising that Bi-Lo's chocolate cake is "the" cake. It's pretty and prissy looking and has cake crumbs pressed into the sides and even a cherry on top. I really didn't think I would like it at all. Boy was I surprised! Pretty or not - this was the real thing.

So, the hour is nearing 9, the outside temp is dropping, the wind is howling, the leaves are blowing and Darrell is 60 miles away at school (he did seem to appreciate the request, though!).

Knowing from experience that the night wouldn't get better on its own, I packed up the kids, we ran to the car and off to the store we went. Besides, the kids needed Eggo Waffles and I needed more yogurt (for my diet, of course!).

Boy was that piece of cake good! The milk was good and cold. And yes, I'm feeling much better now, thank you!

Yep, medicinal!

Stay warm, friends, or...warm your friends.


for KW - miss you...

Quirky Pet Peeve or Vanity Insanity?

Earlier this month I posted an entry on quirks. Well, today’s writing deals with a quirk of mine I recently discovered. Oh wait, maybe it’s a pet-peeve. Hmmm…be right back.

Ok, sorry ‘bout that. I had to grab the dictionary. Now, this appears to be less of a quirk and more of a pet peeve according to http://www.dictionary.com/. Oops…sorry. I started veering off course. Let’s see, quirk, pet-peeve, either way, it’s all good. Seriously.

Now, vanity plates – you know, the ones that go on the front of your car. Yet another way to express our personalities, our uniqueness, or, conversely, maybe, a way of showing support, membership.

For quite a while my ever-so-hip mini-van sported a HIS Radio FM 89.3 plate on the front. Then, when you would see other cars with the plate you felt a certain kinship; a common thread. But, in the speed of life, it wasn’t long before HIS Radio was replaced with something much more personal. A more elite group; the few, the proud, the financially depleted BAND PARENTS! Ok, so I’m only half-joking. The local high-school marching band, which our family was involved with for 8 years, had vanity plates made up for sale to those wishing to show support for the band (read: Band Parents). So, in essence, when you saw another plate like yours you knew it was someone truly “with the band.” A comrade! Ah…kinship!

Fast-forward five years or so. The flutist has graduated, the trumpet player has graduated, the band has redesigned the vanity plate and you feel it’s time for a change. Now, South Carolina has a pretty cool-looking state flag and in recent years the design has become quite popular. You find it on flip-flops, belts, shirts, tote bags, purses golf balls, and, yes, even Vanity Plates.

Ok, so this works. I like the design, I like the state, I like that it makes me feel SC is really “home.” Check the box, time to move on to more important things…But wait! In the space of a few weeks it seems that about 43% of cars in the upstate ALSO have MY vanity plate. Hey! There’s no kinship here. My plate is just like everyone else’s! Where did they all come from? I know there weren’t that many before I got mine. After all, Wal-Mart had tons of them! Since I got mine I now find that the plates come in metals, in Clemson colors, USC colors, colors to match your car, Carolina clay, Kudzu, Charleston’s “Rainbow Row,” etc. You’ll find more of these vanity plates than love-bugs on the front of cars.

Now, the loving family that I have, led by my dear husband, find it necessary (and immensely pleasurable) to point out each and every plate they see that’s like mine. These pronouncements, of course, are followed by giggles and snickering from the little palm-tree-detectives in the back seat. This is humiliating.

So…is it any wonder that my Christmas list has “Vanity Plate” listed near the top? I’m thinking maybe an Erskine College tag (only 600 students and 60 miles away) or our church, Freedom Fellowship. I kind of like the idea of getting back to the “kinship” and away from the masses!

Smile! Only 42 shopping days left ‘til Christmas!

Sunday Night Randomness

There must be something about Sunday nights. Some reason I'm juggling odd, random thoughts. Regular postings should resume in the next day or two.

• THANKSGIVING THOUGHTS...
• Turkeys take a long time to thaw. For years I underestimated the time needed to thaw the bird.
• I'm still searching for just the right stuffing recipe (even though my family says it's Stove Top!) Feel free to share your stuffing recipes with me!
• Thanksgiving won't be quite the same this year. Elisa, Rob, and Darrell won't be with us.
• MISCELLANEOUS...
• I got my hair cut Saturday. Have you read my blog about haircuts? Let's just say we might have material for "The Haircut Part-2"
• I'm so thankful to our military; past, present, and future. America's true heroes! Bless all of you this Veteran's Day as well as every day!
• Our nation's capital is truly awe-inspiring. I'm still at a loss for words. Ok, no jokes!
• I bought a new diet book yesterday. Husband says it will work if I put it in a backpack, add all my other diet books and tote them around on my back all day... See next bullet...
• Relationships require hard work to remain healthy. To quote Cliff, our Pastor, "To thrive...not just survive."

• FAMILY...
• I miss my uncle who passed away last week. I didn't know him well. That's sad. I'm disconnected from my extended family and know it won't change. Hindsight often comes too late.
• More on disconnect... We found out Wednesday that my great-aunt passed away...last April.
• Closer to home...we had a nice family weekend...Our oldest son was home for the weekend and even joined us for church this morning. It's a pleasure having him home. Seems he has a new girlfriend at school...Elisa wasn't free this weekend but did call to see if I had spaghetti sauce. I didn't - guess I will later in the week...Oldest daughter's been sick and trying to recover from sinus and/or allergy issues. We did see her Friday and then again Sunday evening... Matthew, our 2-yr old grandson spent the day with us today. He's such a sweetheart and I'm a happy Grandma when he's around...After taking Darrell back to school we were able to visit with my mother-in-law today. What a nice way to wind down the weekend... Abbey's counting the days until her next ballet class... Christopher is anxious to start his new curriculum this week. I sure hope it goes well...I spoke with my father today and found out that his wife went in the hospital last Friday. Something about fluid pressing on her lungs (or something like that.) She recently had a quad-bypass. Prayers appreciated.
• A house divided... "The Next Iron Chef" winner has been chosen. Ken and I wanted Michael Symon, Abbey and Christopher wanted John Besh. Symon won!!! Yes! To his credit, John Besh was no slouch. He would have made a wonderful "iron chef" as well. This was a fun competition to follow.

I sure hope you have a wonderful week! Please feel free to leave me a comment - I'd love to hear from you.

D.C. Update

I am so sorry for the lapse in blogging during our trip. Let me just say that I was completely awed and overwhelmed. I Love Washington D.C.!

Quick Synopsis...
Sunday - Conference check-in and such for K. Hotel shuttle and subway to Smithsonian area. Trolley tours of DC, trip to Arlington National Cemetery (incredible!), back to subway and hotel shuttle in time for Ken's 5:00 meetings. Had Papa John's deliver dinner. Realized we didn't have the Food Network and would miss tonight's "Next Iron Chef" competition.

Monday - Walked to the underground shopping area of Crystal City for breakfast at McDonald's (this was mostly for the kids). From there we caught the subway for the Spy Museum. Incredible but overwhelming. Great gift shop. Decent cafe where we grabbed "killer" sandwiches and hot dogs! Next was a pretty good walk to the Capitol for our tour (Incredible!). Ice cream treat at Union Station before heading back to the hotel. Conference stuff for K. Dinner a few blocks away at Chili's. Bad news - received call from my brother that our uncle had died on Sunday. Services on Wednesday. We'll detour off 95 to 40 in NC and get to Mocksville.

Tuesday - Early appointment at Bureau of Engraving and Printing to see money being made. We really enjoyed the tour and the gift shop. Their motto is "The buck starts here." With a little help from security police we finally made our way to an office building with cafe's for breakfast. Following breakfast the boys went to the Museum of Natural History while the girls went back to the hotel for shopping and lunch. The boys got their street-vendor hot dogs they'd been looking forward to while the girls ate at the hotel. Afternoon at hotel for business. Metro to Union Station (eventually) for quick bite at deli in food-court and "Monuments by Moonlight" trolley tour. Views of everything and stops at FDR memorial, Lincoln/Korean/Vietnam/WWII, Iwo Jima statue. Back to hotel - leaving in the morning.

Wednesday - Hotel gift shop for C on our way out. Hit the road early and grabbed Waffle House for breakfast outside Richmond. Chick-fil-A lunch before getting to Mocksville. Back to Greer and Wendy's for a quick bite of dinner before heading home. Long day. Great few days in DC. Lots of things still on the list to see/do but we're whittling it down trip-by-trip. Can't wait to go back again! Now I have lots I want to study.

If you go...
Definitely use a tour company for DC - the walking is excessive. Our tickets were a little cheaper online and we didn't have to choose the date at time of purchase. You will still do a LOT of walking.

Arlington National Cemetery - spend the $7 pp for the tour bus thing inside. The walking is mostly uphill. The cemetery is 200 acres with over 300,000 residents. You'll still walk plenty - even with the transportation.

The subway/train Metro stations are kept clean. This is the most efficient method of getting around the city. Stay to the right on the (many) escalators for those who run past you. Just like driving - passing is on the left. If you park at a metro station you HAVE to have a metro card (with money on it) to pay for your parking. They don't accept any other form of payment.

Enjoy!

Greetings!

Greetings from Washington DC! We had a lovely drive today with beautiful (but cool) weather, a breathtaking show of color from the fall foliage, and surprisingly light traffic. I enjoyed Cracker Barrel's blueberry pancakes with maple syrup, a scrambled egg and a much-needed dose or two of coffee! You see, we're in the habit of traveling in the wee hours; particularly with little ones in tow. We hit the road at 3:00 a.m. and stopped in Durham, NC for breakfast. We had a quick sandwich from Subway here in the Crystal City/Pentagon/Arlington area prior to getting checked in and enjoying a bit of rest (I didn't sleep last night and it was beginning to catch up)! It was wonderful having our dinner and shopping fix at IKEA tonight. We go to the Atlanta location a couple times a year so imagine our excitement at being able to reach our choice from 3-separate locations in just 30-45 minutes!

Kenneth was wonderful getting all 3 laptops functioning with high speed Internet. Abbey's was left at home due to lack of space in the TrailBlazer (and probably in our room), as well as lack of time for online school work. We were unable to go wireless but if you could see the view from the sofa in our 10th floor room you'd know why we aren't complaining. We're watching jets on their approach for landing over the Potomac en route to Reagan International Airport.

This is a business trip for Kenneth and field trip for me and the kids. We'll be doing the tour trolley stuff some of Sunday while working around Kenneth's conference schedule. Monday evening we're scheduled for a moonlight tour of the mall area with the monuments and buildings beautifully lit and on display. Other scheduled tours inclde the Capitol, Bureau of Printing and Engraving, and the Spy Museum. We have a list of other sites we want to see, schedules permitting. No repeat visits to the White House, Zoo, or Air & Space Museum. With limited time we try to hit a few highlights each trip until we've covered about everything.

Don't forget to turn your clocks back Sunday, and enjoy the remainder of the weekend. We're all pretty tired and not complaining a bit about getting our lost hour back from last spring.

I'll be back with more Washington updates...uh, hello? Are you still there? Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to wake you. After all, travel blogs are probably even less interesting than watching someone else's vacation slides! Thanks for sticking with me, though.

Sonya

PS: Prayer Requests for Pamela's full recovery following recent surgery, and for healing for Christin S' hand from an acid burn.

"Missing You" note to my crew in Greenville and Due West. Also for Matthew, and Vera.

Quirks (1)

I'm smiling thinking of today's title. Notice the (1)? Well, if I'm writing about my quirks, we could have a LOT of posts with that title so I thought the numbering might be wise.

I love finding out about people, and quirks are great entertainment. It's a safe type of voyeurism. I say "safe" because I get nervous looking in other people's grocery carts! My mother taught me a great sense of privacy and boundaries. It's almost extreme. See what you're learning? And these aren't even the quirks I'm going to focus on tonight.

Life is funny, sometimes, and it's easy to see that God must have a sense of humor. Those of you who know me well will know that I'm not a good housekeeper. I'm also constantly behind with the laundry and have an incredible distaste for repetitive tasks. My hard-wired temperment likes to tackle a job and then be done with it. Kind of difficult when we look at housework, laundry, etc. See, in my mind I "finish" cleaning the room. "Cook dinner? Didn't I just do that last night?" "Dusting? I dusted there once. You mean I have to do it again?"

And then there's the laundry. We all know that the laundry is never finished. I'm so bad that if I didn't know NOT to do it, I could imagine having my family run around naked for the sake of getting ALL the laundry FINISHED. But then the cycle just repeats (ouch).Now you'd think after being a grown-up all these years that I would have overcome this quirk - at least learn to deal with it responsibly. Right? Nope.

I love bedding. New sheets, comforters, pillows, and more pillows. It's all good.
Now, my husband, Mr. Logical (yes, opposites apparently do attract), challenges me occasionally to actually make the bed EVERY day for a month. Particularly if I want to get more new things for our room.

Ok...a challenge. I like challenges...but...I hate making the bed EVERY day (see above - same concept). So, I take him up on these challenges because, well, because, oh...I don't know. It sounds easy enough at the time. At least it might be for the type of person who understands the reasoning behind making a bed every day. Ok, so I missed out on the last white sale at the mall. There will be others. And who knows - maybe I can get him to challenge me a week at a time. That I might be able to do. Maybe.

Hope you're having a great week!

Signed,
Lather, and rinse


For Shannon: Sweetheart, I meant to leave out "repeat." Love, Mom