30 Days of Blogging... Day Thirteen

Your five favorite books and why.

Easy...

1. The Horse and His Boy. I like every part of this book. But what I love most is the symbolism between Aslan and God: ""I was the lion who forced you to join with Aravis. I was the cat who comforted you among the tombs. I was the lion who drove the jackals from you while you slept. I was the lion who gave the horses the new strength of fear for the last mile so that you should reach King Lune in time. And I was the lion you do not remember who pushed the boat in which you lay, a child near death, so that it came to shore where a man sat, wakeful at night, to receive you."

2. The Book of James (in the Bible). Specifically Chapter 2: Act on what you say, and take care of others, and love your neighbor as yourself (in a nutshell)

3. Fahrenheit 451. Loved the outlook on the future. Challenged me to think about what I stand for.

4. The Giving Tree. Makes me cry every time.

5. The Hiding Place. After learning about my own Grandma's story of growing up in Austria and fleeing to "America," I guess I related with this book a bit more than others even though I am not directly connected with the people.

A Cheesy Rhyme for my Valentine

The patience when I have little
The wisdom when I'm upset
The dishes when I'm exhausted
The hug I'll never forget.

The grace when I'm wrong
The smile when I feel blue
The days I feel completely lost, I know
I'll always have you.

30 Days of Blogging... Day Eleven

Write a bucket list of things you want to do before you die.

1. Write at least ONE song that makes its way onto a famous singer's CD.
2. Do a backflip.
3. Win a Karaoke contest.
4. Surf.
5. Play in a string quartet.
6. Buy good hiking shoes.

I'm sure there's lots more but let's be real here. :)

30 Days of Blogging... Day Ten.

Songs you listen to when you are happy, sad, bored, hyped, mad.

HAPPY:
Banana Pancakes - Jack Johnson
You Raise Me Up - Josh Groban
American Honey - Lady Antebellum
Somewhere Over the Rainbow - Israel Kamawakawakamolewokapooey

SAD:
Umm... I write when I'm sad. Hence the whole "songwriter" side of me none of you ever see.

BORED: (and in front of mirror)
Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen
The Lonely Goatherd - Sound of Music
I Keep on Falling - Alicia Keys
At Last - Ella Fitzgerald
Stay - Sugarland
Fat Guy in a Little Coat - everyone who's anyone knows where that's from

HYPED:
Who Let the Dogs Out?! - Thank you Gonzaga soccer days
Its My Life - Bon Jovi
Bring Me to Life - Evanescence
B.Y.O.B. - System of a Down

MAD:
No music, I just clean and take deep breaths. :)

THEATRE-ISH:
What is Love? - SNL
Whenever, Wherever - Shakira
Istanbul - The Four Lads
Aaaand anything disco.

Bread.

Its really amazing to me that I can spend every day with my husband Aaron, then when he happens to take off for a weekend retreat, I fall apart. Well, not really. But goodness life doesn't change much and I just don't feel like myself!

So I do things that are SOOoooo not like me. I baked three loaves of bread, from scratch, without a mixer. Which means my forearms are going to be freaking huge due to my genetic inheritance of easily developed muscle.


Abnormal activity #2: fed kids pizza for dinner and almost forgot to feed my kids vegetables. And when we ran out of pizza, my thought was to either a) make more pizza dough (from scratch), or b) give them cookies. Strange. Ultimately, the carrots emerged, and the kids devoured them with the promise of cookies.

Hmm... what to bake next.

30 Days of Blogging... Day Eight

Short term goals for this month.

Play more, blog less. :)

30 Days of Blogging... Day Seven

A picture of someone/something that has had the biggest influence on you.We own a thriving cafe in a small town. I can't say that has always been an accurate statement, as we have spent the past five and a half years kicking and struggling to stay above water. Despite knowledge that success may take a while, we all jumped into this business without knowing how hard it would really hit us. Once it hit, we were knee deep in way too many issues to manage. What's more, we fought hard to stay close in our marriage and with our kids, which I seriously never thought would be affected.

But five years later, and only God knows how this happened, our business is finally thriving, and we are finally getting "there." Everything that once plagued us and bound us down is now fading, and we are working on how to make it all work together.

I have always had a heart for suffering people, but never thought I'd be there.

Now, looking back on the past five years, here are some thoughts on how I've changed:

- I don't need a large house. Yes, honestly.
- I know how to budget, and how to penny pinch.
- I am more aware of others in my life when they need help.
- I respect my husband for how much he works, knowing its because he loves us.
- When I tithe in church, its from my heart.
- I can cook and bake now (yep, couldn't before).

So... that's about it. :)

30 Days of Blogging... Day Six

Your favorite superhero and why.

My favorite superhero is Christian Bale.
Because he played Batman, and he's dreamy.
(aka, not much of a superhero person!)