Since Lindsay Doesn't Have A Digital Camera

She is doing this picture week with her camera phone.

And because her camera phone is far from being color & black/white compatible, she had to think outside the box.

Hence, this picture! (Does she get any points for creativity?)

Count Me In...

... on this photo week. (See Liane's blog) Sorry that I'm a day late.





Here's a corner of my house & my self portrait.

Thirty-Five Years Ago...

... two people whom I love and respect said two words that would change their lives.

"I do."

In a world where marriage is now often scorned, and commitment is something that many don't seem to comprehend, these two have weathered the storms that have come their way.

And if you ask them, it just gets better every day.

Thank you, Mom, for respecting and honoring Dad. Thank you for teaching me, by example, how to stay under authority without losing who you are as a person

Thank you, Dad, for cherishing Mom and loving her as Christ loves the church. Thank you for giving her wings to fly, and for supporting who she is.

Thank you both for showing me what a real partnership looks like - for making marriage seem like a desirable option, and not something to fear.

I love you both so much!
Happy Anniversary!

Basking in the Joy of Friendship

God has given me an incredible network of friends... and I'm grateful!
This is one of my favorite pictures of all time!

And Then There Was The Time...

... I woke up at 3:45 one Wednesday morning, and couldn't get back to sleep.

That was a good time.

Remember That I'm In The "Adult Education" Field

Each Monday I have my classes fill out goal setting forms. They are composed of four sections...

1) Last Week's Successes...

2) Last Week's Challenges...

3) My Goals for Next Week are...

4) Where I need help/support from the Trainer...

Tonight as I was going over them I read this under one participant's number four:

"Nothing yet. Just understand if I look bored and not paying attention it's not true, that's how I learn."

(This from the person who was in their email so much today, that even after I addressed it about six times this afternoon, there was no change. I resorted to my secret weapon. I sent him an email asking him to close his! He shrunk down in his seat with red ears, and practically ran from the room when I dismissed them several minutes later.)

Somehow I don't think that "Bored & Not Paying Attention" is going to make it big as the fifth adult learning style!

More Fun In Target

Cute us!!!

We were trying to strike a pose, but instead the pose struck me... as incredibly funny!!

Tiny Morsels

My new class is really smart and a lot of fun... with the exception of one dear soul.

On the second day of training (this past Tuesday) she said, "Um, could you please use smaller words, because it's the afternoon and I'm tired."

The End.

Spring Has Spru... NO It Hasn't!! This is NH!

Yesterday was so beautiful... for a few hours! I opened my door to see the sun shining and the air all Spring-ish. I walked to my car to retrieve some items and said aloud to myself, "It smells so good out here," and made very many I'm-happy-it's-almost-Spring noises.

Then, my feet found a patch of ice, and my happy chantings changed instantly to an enraged Lindsay, sprawled on all fours howling about how much I HATE Winter!

I am now sporting bruises, scrapes & bumps on BOTH KNEES & BOTH HANDS!

PS - I was telling Mom & Dad about this over the phone, hung up, and promptly shut my finger in a kitchen drawer. Good GRIEF!

RSV-less Jacksteroo!

Courtesy of Aunt Lindsay's cell phone, hence the non-stellar quality picture. At least the smile is stellar!

Somehow I Think...

... that clicking these shoes together wouldn't take me to a place like Kansas!

(Oh the fun that can be had in Target!)

If I Weren't Me...

... I'd be annoyed at my lack of postings lately!

HOWEVER, because I am me, and know the reasons* for the lack of postings, I'm too tired to even care!

(*reasons)

1)Jacksteroo in the hospital for five days
2)Playing Aunt Lindsay while #1 was happening
3)Getting over a very nasty cold
4)Working almost 50 hours both last week and this
5)Hosting a game night (which was SO much fun!)
6)Whining about how tired I am :)

And yet, also realizing that there is a lot to be thankful* for...

(*thankful)

1)Continued answers to prayer for strength
2)A good new hire class that started last week
3)A few warm (ish) days
4)Beautiful sunrise today
5)Friends who pray
6)Jack home from the hospital
7)Friends who still love me even when I don't blog faithfully :)

A Regular Old Whodunnit

I got home from work to a beautifully cleared walkway...

After dinner Evan said, "I didn't shovel your walkway. It must have been Amy."

("Oh yeah," I said to him. "I was going to thank you for that!")

So I called Amy and started leaving a message for her, thanking her for being a snow-shovelling goddess. She picked up in the middle of the message, and asked me why I was saying that... no, she had not shovelled my walkway.

The two of us decided that maybe it was Cherilyn, so I put in a call to that household. She answered, and mistook my question. She thought I was asking her to shovel my walkway. After I got done laughing so hard my stomach hurt, I explained the issue... She too was among the "didn't shovel Lindsay's walkway" crew.

We brainstormed and thought maybe it was Alden... when I called him, he stated it wasn't him, but suggested perhaps a guardian angel or my knight in shining armor had done it. Riiight. I have my doubts about that one!

So then I called the F-----s and spoke with the Dad. He said no, they hadn't done it, but with these phone calls I'd now have 15 people who would automatically shovel my walkway at the next snowfall.

And I called Wes, but he was in school.

And I called DJ, but he was still at Fernwood.

And I called Aaron, but he said their family hadn't done it either.

Here I was, trying so very hard to thank the person who did this, but instead just instilling guilt in all the people I asked who hadn't done it.

If you have any ideas of who I should call next, please let me know! Or if you are the do-gooder of a shoveller, THANKS! This has made my evening!

Screeeeeeeech!

That's my life, coming to a screeching halt, as I just got my hands on the fifth season of 24!

Adchay, a person who's identity has been changed to protect him, brought me the first three DVDs of the season on Wednesday. Of course, I had to watch one episode that night... and then a couple more on Thursday night... and more on Friday night... and then on Saturday I woke up really early, and of course, I couldn't be bored on a Saturday morning, so I watched more.

And then a favorite character was killed, and that was the last episode of the DVDs from Adchay. So, I called the local Blockbuster and scuttled over there for the last three DVDs.

I watched a very large number of episodes yesterday, and finished the season this afternoon. And I'm EXHAUSTED! For heaven's sake... the way I get into it, you'd think that Jack couldn't save the world without me! On Friday night, I was tensely curled up in my chair, watching it on my laptop when E & J's cats started howling outside my window. I about leapt out of my skin!

And then I thought of this list:

Signs That You Are WAY Too Into 24!

* You don't care if you're in jammies in Blockbuster

* You're grateful every time you start the car and it doesn't explode

* All of your dreams have to do with computer programming, schematics of buildings & people falling off things (sorry, Mom - you did fall off a v-e-r-y tall structure, but thankfully only sprained your ankle!)

* You start your phone conversations with "Is this a secure line?"

* You cry when a favorite character is killed & start yelling instructions to the other characters on the screen

* Every action that you take in real life (answering the phone, typing on a laptop, putting keys in your pocket) is followed by the thought, "Oh - they do that in 24!"

Good grief, I need to go take a nap before I file my taxes... "hmmm - I wonder if they file taxes in 24!"

Things That Make Me Give Happy Sighs!

A 45 min phone call with my west coast friend...

An affirming, I'm-still-here-for-you-when-the-world-stinks email from my favorite Navy guy

All the funny responses to Jerkopolis!

Seeing my friend's twins today - they've almost tripled their birth weight in 10 weeks and are looking mighty healthy!

Restarting our Bible Study this evening after a long hiatus

Knowing that God has my best interest at heart

Happy Sigh!!

Word of the Day

"Jerkopolis"

Noun - The imaginary city of residence of people that we're not too fond of.

Creator of word - Amy

Whole-hearted supporter of word - Lindsay

Phone Calls That Make You Say, "Count Me In!!"

On Thursday I got a message on my phone from DJ... "call me when you get a chance. I have a question for you about Saturday."

Now, Thursday was a v-e-r-y bad day in Lindsay-land, so I texted back, "Bad day - I'm grouchy - will call tomorrow."

Friday comes, I am officially un-grouchy, and I call the cousin. "How about Wes and I come over on Saturday and make you pancakes."

OKAY!!

So, this morning I had two blonde cousins come make me food. (Well, one made the pancakes, I fried the bacon, and the other one did the dishes later on... in fact the pancake-maker even pulled double duty by drying the dishes!)

Evan came in and said, "How much did this cost you? Breakfast and clean-up??"

Just cost a package of bacon!

Another Chloe Quote

She was showing me the shoes she chose to wear, advising me that they came to her from her cousin Addie.

"They came in a package that the CPV truck brought."

"Oh," said Aunt Lindsay, "UPS?"

"Yup."

"May You Please Honk!"

... heard tonight from my backseat, as my three year old niece decided we had been waiting too long at a red light.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness, that frightens us most.
We ask ourselves,
'Who am I to be brilliant,
gorgeous,
talented,
and famous?'
Actually, who are you not to be? 
You are a child of God. 
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking
so that people won't feel insecure around you.
We were born to make manifest 
the glory of God that is within us. 
It's not just in some of us;
it's in all of us. 
And when we let our own light shine,
we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear,
our presence automatically liberates others."

- Maryann Williamson