Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt, March 31

This week's theme is Water.

If you'd like to learn more or see more photohunters' takes on the theme, click the links!

The most amazing water I have seen is Niagara Falls.

This is the Maid of the Mist boat in front of the American Falls---Niagara Falls. My newlywed husband and I stayed on the Canadian side of the river in July 1991 for our honeymoon! We had a three week honeymoon in which we drove from Texas to Canada. We stayed in Dallas, Tulsa, St. Louis, Cincinatti, Niagara Falls, Toronto, Troy MI, Memphis, and Hot Springs Village, Arkansas. The first week we were totally on our own, driving up to Niagara Falls, and then Toronto, and on the way back we stayed with relatives. It was really one of our best trips ever.

Here we are, so young! I was 20 and Larry was 21 when we married. This year we will have been married 16 years. My, how time flies. ;-)

I hope you'll check out my photo blog, too---Project 363.

Next week's theme is Clean. I am not sure what I'll post for that!

Friday's Feast, March 30

Appetizer
What are you proud of?
I am proud of J. See my entry below. I'm not proud of me, taking credit for how my kids are turning out. I have to keep reminding myself that they are their own people, but I am proud of both of my kids for their sakes.

Soup
What is the best thing you’ve ever won as a prize?
The first thing that comes to mind is the gift basket I won from Dove products. I got several body washes, bars of soap, a pretty wire basket, and "The Very Best of Sheryl Crow" CD. It was great. I had entered an online contest and didn't know I had won until it was mailed to my house.

Salad
Name something you do that is a waste of time.
After another sleepless night (part of it anyway), I would say that worrying in the middle of the night is a waste of time. I am trying to turn it around to prayer time, turning my worries into prayers. But any time I spend worrying is a waste of time. However, I can never be doing only one thing at a time, so I am usually wasting my brain power worrying, but I am doing something else (like trying to go back to sleep?), so i am technically not wasting time, I think. :-)

Main Course
In what year of your life did you change the most?
I'm reading a book about teaching literacy to young children. Truly, everyone changes SO much in that first year, it's amazing.
But this probably isn't as interesting as thinking about my more adult life. I'd say my freshman year of college I changed the most. I was 18 and turned 19 that year. I came home at Christmas, and my high school friends (a year behind me) thought I had really changed a lot. I stopped being so scared of sticking out in a crowd, and I got more outgoing. I was learning a lot in classes, but I learned a lot more about being out on my own, managing my time, eating what I wanted, hanging out with people of my choice, and even more about being a part of an exciting, serving, worshipping Christian community. Lots happened that year---not the least of which, I started dating my husband!

Dessert
Where is a place you consider to be very tranquil?
A library---at least if I am not refereeing my children for some reason! I think a bookstore would also fit in this category. People still are quiet in bookstores and libraries.

Baptism---Mom's point of view

I wanted to blog about this yesterday. But I kept doing other stuff---laundry, eating lunch with Larry, updating the other blog, getting the kids after school, praying with my Moms in Touch group, looking for Larry's lost keys, getting my April lessonplans done for my job----lots of little stuff for my day off just added up to me not blogging about this most important event in our family's life!

This was the before. As someone said to me, the old man . . ."

" . . . and the new man."

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All of this is from God . . "

First, let me backtrack---give background, I mean. I figure some of my readers will not do baptisms quite this way at their church or not hold baptism as THE monumental turning point of life as we do in our church. We don't baptize babies, nor do we wait until a child is a certain age and baptize all the kids at church on one special Sunday. We don't sprinkle with water, we immerse the whole person in water. We hold to the New Testament examples such as Phillip and the Ethiopian (Acts 8:26-39), and the household of Lydia (Acts 16:13-15). As soon as you know you need Jesus as your Savior, you repent and be baptized. You stand before the church and confess to all that you also believe that Jesus was God's son. You do it right away!

So here's J, my oldest child, who's got a rebellious spirit, a "something" inside him that has always made him do what he wants to do, and resent it if you tell him to do what he doesn't want to. A strong will. To say the least. Ha!

But here he is on Saturday night, telling his Dad that he wants to be baptized, with tears in his eyes. I'm laughing and crying myself! So happy, adn so unsure that I have really taught him everything---which is crazy because I know I'm 24 years older than him, and I know I don't know all of it myself! Excited and scared all at the same time.

Sunday morning, I'm all aflutter. I'm waiting for the Invitation Song offered after every sermon. And there he goes, up to the front with Larry. I'm shaking and I have the camera. Larry takes his confession down front, in front of the congregation, and then they get ready in the back. Larry goes into the baptismal at the front of our auditorium, and he made all the mommies cry, talking about how he had thought about this moment from the time he carried J to the nursery right after birth. (snapping the first picture) Then Larry lowers him into the water and raises him up (snapping the second picture).

The reason I'm so shocked is that he's 11. I alwas think people will do things the way I did. (I am crazy, I know!) I waited and angonized about being baptized until I was 16 almost. I knew what I needed to do when I was 12. I waited and waited because I am so shy I did not want to go down front and stand in front of everyone. I remember SO MANY Sunday nights the song leader would lead the song, "Oh, Why Not Tonight." Indeed!! The lyrics that come to mind go like this:

Our blessed Lord refuses none who would to Him their souls unite. Believe obey the work is done! Be saved, oh, tonight!

I chuckle about this now, but I was paralyzed for 4 years of Sunday nights! Finally, my sister thought she was ready to be baptized, so I went up to church on a Tuesday afternoon, in front of almost no one. I cried the whole time, from home to preacher's office, to underwater. I think I cried with relief, but also with sorrow I had waited for no good reason.

J. I'm so proud of him. It probably was no coincidence that this happened when he is preparing for LTC Bible Bowl, and what's the book of the Bible they're doing this year? Acts. The book about the beginnings fo the church. No coincidence that our preacher has been going over Luke on Sunday mornings, talking about how the Jews time after time rejected Jesus and didn't take him up on the offer of eternal life. In all things God works for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28). All these things working together.

It wasn't me. I didn't plan this out! But I was a part of it. So cool! So many people were a part of this. We're so interconnected, and it's all because of God sewing us together.

I thank you for reading all these things in my brain. I am overwhelmed with joy, and can't describe the feelings I have completely. But this was a start.

Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt, March 24th

The theme for this week is Empty.

You can learn more and join the hunt by going to TNChick.

To look at the blogroll, click here.

This is am empty Kyle Field, home of the fightin' Texas Aggies. This picture is from this summer when my husband and kids were there adding padded seat backs to the stands. The season ticket holders bought the padded seats, and the company paid different groups to put the seats in. This picture doesn't even show third deck on the opposite side. That's the student side over there. Padded seats are only for the old Ags! :-) The students all stand throughout the game.

Kyle Field can hold more than 82, 000 people on game days. This year, Larry worked the games as an usher, down on the track in the corner where the visiting band and fans would be sitting. Game Day is the opposite of empty!

Next week the theme is Water.

Please check out my photo blog---a picture a day in 2007---Project 363.

Today is B's half birthday! I took a Subway sandwich to her school lunch yesterday to celebrate. We always joke that we're going to make a half a cake for the half-birthday person, and give half the birthday spankings. Sometimes we'll sing half the birthday song---

Happy . . . to . . .

Happy . . . to . . .

Happy . . . dear . . .

Happy . . . to . . . !

Now B can proudly say she's 8 and a half!!

you know you grew up in the 80s if . . .

I just saw something on a blog called Blonde Chick Bloggin' that was so funny I had to share. You know you grew up in the 80s if . . . is the name of the post. If you did grow up in the 80s, it's a totally tubular trip down memory lane.

I blogged abou B being sick---and she was better shortly after the sickness. Missed the beach, but she didn't throw up in the car, either!

I posted a few new pictures on my photo blog, so check those out, too. I especially like Wednesday.

Friday's Feast, March 23

Appetizer
Who is your favorite news anchor/reporter? Why?
I really like Meredith Vieira, Steve Doocy, Harry Smith, and Lisa Ling. They all seem like people I could be friends with. :-) They all seem like genuine people with a good sense of humor and a family-type life like me.

Soup
Name 3 foods that are currently in your freezer.
(These are some I am happy to have in there.)
Blue Bell French Vanilla ice cream---best of the best!
chicken drumsticks
waffles

Salad
If you were to have the opportunity to name a new town or city, what would you call it?
I don't know about this! I guess I should name it after someone in the family. My daughter already has a town with her name (we passed through it two summers ago). After my son? We could name it after his online name: Ollie Ribbons. So how about Ollietown? Ribbonston? Ollieville? Ollie's Glen?

This is sort of like naming a new town: in our town, we are building a new high school (in addition to the super-5A we already have) and a new junior high (it'll be jr. high #4). The tradition in our district is to name schools after notable Texans. The name of the high school that I picked---Rudder High School---was the one they picked. It was a good, obvious choice, not just my preference. They also picked the mascot name I wanted---the Rangers. But the school colors I wanted---yellow and black---were not picked. All the schools here from elementary to high school have blue in them (I didn't know that!), so they'll be blue and green. I was interested in this because I knew we'd be zoned for the new high school. James Earl Rudder was a WWII D-Day hero, and he led a division of men called "Rudder's Rangers," with an emblem they wore that was yellow and black.

Main Course
What will most likely be the next book you read?
On my nightstand, fresh from the library, is Building Literacy with Love: A Guide for Teachers and Caregivers of Children From Birth Through Age 5. This is work related read! I have a list in my wallet for the next library trip:
To Kill a Mockingbird
Angela's Ashes (McCourt)
Like Water for Chocolate (Esquivel)
It will depend on which ones are available in the library, I guess! Any suggestions?

Dessert
What's the first thing you notice about the opposite gender?
I guess how tall they are---I am not looking at the opposite gender for dates anymore, so I just notice the obvious! ;-)

Friday's Feast, March 17th

The theme for this week is Drink.
Check out more about the photo hunt at TNChick.

Check out more interpretations of the theme on the blogroll.

Breakfast of champions!

Coca-Cola and a Girl Scout Samoa

When I heard what this theme was, I first thought about my son, J. I have SO many pictures of him having a drink. Of what? If he's enjoying himself, it's probably a coke of some kind or Kool-aid or cran-grape juice.

So I would be remiss if I did not show you what I mean.

J on our couch with his favorite pants on.

J at Thanksgiving with cousins and friends.

J at a New Year's Eve Party---Cola product, undoubtedly. Ecclectic mix of people, huh? :-)

I guess he's just thirsty a lot!

I almost forgot to add this beautiful shot of B. It's the summer of 2004, and we are on the beach of Lake Michigan, Holland, MI. It's one of those I consider one of "best shots ever." And it was taken with a disposable Kodak camera.

Friday's Feast, March 16

Appetizer
Name two things that made you smile this week.
Ethan and Sabrina! My nephew and niece who visited this week. :-)

Soup
Fill in the blank: Don't you hate it when ________?
the toilet overflows? It really is the grossest thing ever.

Salad
When you can't go to sleep, what is your personal remedy to help yourself drift into Lullabyland?
I try to do some deep breathing exercises, from yoga. In through the nose, out throught the nose. And my mantra I have been developing is to breathe in the good Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), and breathe out the opposite badness I might be holding onto. Maybe that's kinda weird. I breathe in God's Love, and blow out my apathy, or bitterness. I breathe in Joy, and breathe out dissappointment. I breathe in Peace and breathe out discontent. I go on through all of the fruit---Love, joy, peace,patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control. This doesn't always work, but it's better than dwelling on my problems, which is what I do.

Main Course
What is something about which you've always wondered but have not yet found a good answer?
How can people be so selfish and neglect their children---over and over? I know of a situation where this is a cycle that never gets better (a friend of a friend kind of thing). With all the help people are giving, why can't this person just take the help and then make better choices?


Dessert
What is your favorite pasta dish?
Something I make----my famous "Sausage casserole"
Something I get when I'm out---lasagne. I also have a really good recipe for this myself.
B says I should say cheese tortellini or macaroni and cheese. Those are her favorites!

100 Things About Me

This is my 200th post!
So now for my 100 Things About Me

1. My birthday is April 16, 1971.
2. I'm an Aries, but have never identified with the firey god of War in any way.
3. My favorite number is #3!
4. I like the spring season best because I was born in spring!
5. I always think about my birthday and Easter together.
6. My birthday has been Easter twice in my life so far---last year (2006) and the year my son was born (1995).
7. I remember eating out for my birthday/Easter when I was pregnant--it was IHOP.
8. I am not a pancake fanatic or anything.
9. I was born in Memphis, TN.
10. I lived in Memphis until I was 10.
11. My Dad was a jr. high band director through my 4th grade year.
12. My Mom was a nurse---and still is.
13. We moved to Granbury Texas in 1982.
14. My dad's new job was Nuclear Reactor Operator (like Homer Simpson).
15. I was in 5th grade when we moved, and it was hard.
16. 16 is a special number to me, too.
17. I am a shy kind of person.
18. I am not athletic in any way.
19. Except for my being on the Flag Corps in high school.
20. I played oboe in high school band.
21. I also took 3 years of Art in high school.
22. I even took 2 semesters o Art in college.
23. I graduated form high school in 1989.
24. I am 5 foot 2 with eyes of blue.
25. I have brown hair that is thinning out some, and I have a few strands of gray in there.
26. I have 2 kids.
27. My son J is like me in that he has a fair complexion and is artistic.
28. My daughter is like me in that she's also artistic and likes to read.
29. I have been married since 1991.
30. I met my husband when we were both in college at Texas A&M University (Whoop!)
31. He and I are more and more alike.
32. I lived in the dorm for my first two years of college.
33. I went from my parents' home to dorm to parents home and finally to an apartment as a married woman.
34. I never did live alone.
35. I met a lifelong friend in college.
36. We were in the same church, same dorm, both played oboe in high school, both had Dads who had formerly been band directors, and both had grandmothers named Mildred.
37. People thought we were sisters when we were together.
38. I got married at 20, but she is still not married!
39. It just goes to show that even with lots of things in common, you don't always choose paths that stay parallel.
40. I have two other old friends I keep up with.
41. We were high school friends who were in Art and Band together.
42. Their paths are a lot more parallel to mine---married with kids.
43. I work in a preschool.
44. I am in a class with 4s and 5s.
45. I have been at this school 7 years now.
46. I taught at another school for 3 years before that.
47. I like my job.
48. I have a degree in English (emphasis in writing and composition), minor in Anthropology.
49. I got my degree from The University of North Texas in 1994.
50. It took me 5 years to get from high school to finishing college.
51. I graduated Cum Laude.
52. That is thanks to my grades I got at UNT, but not the grades I got at A&M.
53. A&M was a hard school.
54. Being married and poor helped me stay home and do the studying I needed to.
55. I worked at Taco Bueno while at UNT.
56. I worked at Kroger (non-food dept.) when I was home for summers before I got married.
57. I had one c-section, and one birth the more traditional way.
58. I thought recovery was equally hard for both situations.
59. I am the oldest child in my birth family.
60. I am even the oldest cousin on both sides of my family.
61. That's ironic, since I do not like to go do things first.
62. Since my maiden name and my married names both start with A, I have been at the front of many lines.
63. I'd prefer to go second at almost all times.
64. I started my blog May 24th, 2006.
65. I love to write.
66. I think I'll write a book someday.
67. I am Creative Memories consultant.
68. I have been selling scrapbooking supplies for 8 years now!
69. I am not an agressive person, and I am not pushing my business like I could.
70. I love CM, and I love to scrapbook with their products.
71. I have a really simple style for scrapbooking.
72. I have switched over completely to my digital camera.
73. I might eventually switch over to digital scrapbooks, or making them digitally, but not yet.
74. I love to create things with my hands!
75. I can do some calligraphy.
76. My handwriting can be very neat and pretty.
77. I can kind of see my handwriting unraveling a bit as I am older and my hands are a bit stiffer.
78. I just got re-taught to knit.
79. Now I will try to teach my daughter to do it.
80. I like being a Mom.
81. I tried for 15 months to get pregnant the first time.
82. I found out I was pregnant right after Lar lost his job!
83. I avoid confrontation whenever possible.
84. I was allergic to many foods when I was a kid---chocolate, tomatoes, soybeans, chicken, turkey, cucumbers, oranges, green beans, peas, pecans, rice, oats, and more!
85. I can eat these things now, but I have to make sure I don't eat to much of it in one sitting.
86. My house is messy most of the time.
87. I like watching The Amazing Race and Survivor.
88. I also like Little People, Big World and What Not to Wear.
89. I only dated 5 different guys in high school.
90. I attend a Church of Christ, and have gone to this kind of church all my life.
91. I love to drink a Coca-Cola at breakfast time.
92. I have one sister who's visiting me today!
93. I like thunderstorms.

94. I love to check the weather radar and see when something's going to hit my area.

95. I'm in a weekly prayer group Moms In Touch International.

96. My favorite color is red.

97. My motto for life is, "Variety is the Spice of Life."

98. My favorite set of verses in the Bible is Philippians 4:4-9.

99. I have three favorite flowers: irises and bluebonnets and daisies.

100. I really do love my family and can't imagine my life another way.

. . . 199 . . .

I'm getting ready today for my sister and her family to come to our house. They are visiting for the first time since they have had children---and their oldest is four! We always before have met in the middle---our Mom's house. It's easier to go 3 and a half hours to the grandparents' than to go the 6 or 7 hours it will be to get from me---in Bryan, TX---to her---in OK City. I am really excited!!

My sister is also an Aggie, so we will be doing some Aggie-related things like visiting the Bonfire Memorial and eating at Laynes' chicken fingers (my sister's request) and The Chicken Oil Co. (burgers!). I planned on going to the Children's Museum on Friday with the kids. Since her husband is coming after all, maybe we can watch the kids and they can visit the George Bush Presidential Library. I think the men (and B?) may go to an Aggies Baseball game Friday night. We have som sketchy plans to go on down to Galveston on Saturday---to the beach!

My sister and I are more alike than we ever were. I thought we were so different when we were in high school together. But I guess since we grew up in the same house, we have some of the same genes, we both became mothers, we have to be very alike.

Many pictures will be taken this week, and I'll share them when I upload them!

Condiments Meme

I got this meme off a blog called Exceedingly Mundane. Some interesting things going on there! :-) Answer in the comments if you wish!

Condiments Meme
1. What do you like on a hot dog?
I love to have ketchup and cheese. I will do a chili cheese dog as well. They are at their best when grilled, I have to say!

2. What do you like on a hamburger?
I like ketchup, lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese on a regular hamburger. But I Love a mushroom burger with ketchup and swiss cheese, too.
As you can see I am not a mustard fan at all.

3. What do you like on a baked potato?
I had a DE-licious baked potato at the Potato Shack the other day that was called a Pollo Loco Potato: Rotel cheese dip and grilled chicken with sour cream. Yum! But at a reastaurant, I like butter, sour cream, salt and pepper, and bacon bits.

4. What do you like on a slice of toast?
Not a toast fan. But I like butter and strawberry preserves.

5. What do you like in a cup of coffee or tea?
I don't drink coffee at all, but I like sweet tea, hot or iced. I will use Sweet-n-Low if I am out and the tea is already cold. It dissolves much better and tastes fine to me.

So what do you think? I think another question ought to be about the salsa condiment that we have around here:

6. How hot do you like your hot sauce or salsa? or What do you like on a taco?
I like it medium. I like to be able to taste the food (very hot will take my taste buds away!), but I like to have a little spicy kick.

Another personality test result

J is an ENTP, which coincidentally is my perfect match (one of them) for a mate. I wonder what Larry is! This one kinda fits J, but he is still in development. I am "The Nurturer" and J is "The Visionary" which fits him.

The job choices for him were right on:
Lawyers
Psychologists
Entrepreneurs
Photographers
Consultants
Engineers
Scientists
Actors
Sales Representatives
Marketing Personnel
Computer Programmer, Systems Analyst, or Computer Specialist

Did you notice actor and lawyer? This personality likes to debate, and is very intuitive. If he's really this, he will have a hard time finishing what he starts because he'll be onto another topic that interests him. Here is a link about J's ENTP profile. Another link I found said that to love an ENTP, I ought to not nag about small things, and not fuss about his messiness. Ug. I have a lot to learn. My personality has a hard time expressing my feelings, so I let things go until I blow. I read this, and it is so true!

Here is the link to the test again---the quick version. The free version! I'd love to hear what any one of you come up as. :-)

Movie Review---Zodiac

Oooo! I saw an R-rated movie last night. I am always a little leery of those R-ratings, because it could mean a bunch of gore, a bunch of sexy scenes (they make me uncomfortable!), or a bunch of bad language. Fortunately for me, this movie didn't have the sexy scenes, but it did have a bit of the bad words. And killings---but I expected this in a movie about the Zodiac killer.

Larry and I dropped the kids at a Troupe lock-in. They were safe and sound and watching a troupe version of American Idol as we left. B brought her knitting and hoped she would not be the youngest one---but it looked like she was! I think the older girls take care of her, though.

This left the night to us---two grownups who were free to see R-rated movies and stay up as late as we thought we could---considering Lar had to go to work at 8 the next day.

There were not very many people in the theater, but every one was paired up as a couple. Just like us, I guess, out for the night. And the Aggies are out-of-town right now---it's spring break! So theaters, restaurants, and roads are much less busy. It was an 8:00 showing of Zodiac.

It is a long movie (with the previews, almost 3 hours), and it's a thinking movie. I was having a hard time keeping some of the lesser characters straight. I LOVE Anthony Edwards because I love that era of E.R. that he was on TV, so I liked that character. I liked the main character, but I was annoyed he got married and then left his wife to the kids and made her feel unsafe. I even liked the Robert Downey, Jr. character---as he slipped into a stupor. Larry and I were trying to figure out how we knew the Police detective Toschi-----he's Mark Ruffalo. I've seen lots of things he's been in.

I loved the music in the background that was period-specific. I was creeped out considerably by the end, but as in real life, so many questions are still out there. I wondered how close to real life it was. Is there really a book about this like the main character was writing? It wasn't super-gory, too. There were murders, but not all kinds of blood-spurting or anything. Whew! I was able to make it! I was intrigued and entertained! I didn't want to leave until I knew who the Zodiac was. I'd give it 4 out of 5 stars. :-)

Pinata Party

This is post #195---I'm getting closer . . . and I'm up to 85 things on my 100Things post.


Here is the post with many pictures about the Dual Language Birthday Party. We were celebrating the Dual Language Program with pinatas, birthday cake and entertainment. The lady in the green sweater is the one who made the pretty cakes--one in English, one in Spanish. She was J's 4th grade teacher.

That's me in the red T-shirt holding a cake. Ug I wish I had looked cuter, but I was going for comfort and it was about 80 degrees that day. But we had fun.

This backlit picture is Dr. MacArthur, who's responsibe for getting the program here in Bryan.



These kids were from J's school, and they did a great job.

And this is B hitting the pinata. I helped stuff the pinatas. They were loaded down with candy.

We were very encouraged by our big turnout on the last day before spring break!

DL Pinata Party

ISFJ

I just took a really quick test about the kind of person I am. I've done a really long test that hones in on this personality of mine with a long list of questions, but this one you only pick four sets of traits from 8. Maybe it won't be as specific as those other tests---which I've forgotten all about. But here is what I got:

My Bloginality is ISFJ!!!

What does that mean? Introverted, Sensing, Feeling, Judging.
Maybe that's right. Especially since at the end of this page (Career), my current career is listed! Ha!

If you know me, read the first few paragraphs of this page (Portrait of ISFJ) and tell me if this is me. ;-)

One reason I'm interested in this is that I think we are at a crossroads. Or Larry is. And I want to figure it out for him. :-) So give me a book or a website to categorize him. I want Larry to be able to figure out a rewarding career, to find something that completely satisfies him. So the cross roads choices are these: go back to school? Hold steady at work? And if it is go back to school, what are we going to do? What's available with schools nearby, and what's needed in the market that suits his personality and talents?

Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt, March 10th

Today's Photo Hunt theme is Architecture.

If you'd like to join in, click here.

If you'd like to see other hunters' take on the theme,

click here or on the new link on the sidebar.

The first two pictures are of my hometown (where I lived from ages 10 to 20), Granbury Texas. As I lived there, our town square was getting itself back to "historical" and spiffing itself up as a tourist attraction. Maybe this is what has attracted me to courthouses all over Texas, and I have a goal of photographing every single on myself. There are 256? counties in Texas, so I have a ways to go! I have more than 60 taken already. I have yet to explore West Texas or the Panhandle.

This one is a fairly recent photo.

And this one was taken back in 1982. Look at the top of the tower---compared to the more recent picture, it's ugly!! The colors have all changed also. For the better! Granbury hosts big celebrations for the Fourth of July, Harvest Moon Festival (October), and General Granberry's birthday (March). Yes, the town is spelled one way, and the actual Civil War general spelled it another way. Chalk that up to bad handwriting in the 1800s.

Here are a few more of my favorites from my collection. I took all these on a regular film camera, so I'd have to wait until I got home and developed them to see if they were any good.

This is the Bexar Co. courthouse in San Antonio.

This is the Caldwell County courthouse in Lockhart.

This is the Comal Co. courthouse in New Braunfels.

This is the DeWitt Co. courthouse.

This is the Fort Bend County courthouse in Richmond.

This is the LaVaca County courthouse in Hallettsville.
This is the Parker County courthouse in Weatherford.

This last one is the Tarrant County courthouse in Fort Worth.

I'd like to make an album of these photos someday---it's always someday! But I want to be able to sort them out in some logical way. I bet I'll have to make a few albums, even if it's only one or two pictures per county.

Anyway, I enjoy this kind of architecture, and look for it on any driving trips I take. I do take pictures of state capitol buildings, too. There is great variety in the courthouses---but you can see I prefer these of a certain era! The one in the town I now live in, the county seat, is a big gray cube of a building, and not very interesting, in my opinion. I don't know what to expect when I do go west since some of those counties have such a small population. They may not be as impressive as some of these.

Next week's theme is Drink. Interesting!

Take a look at my 363 blog, link on the sidebar. I'll be updating this one today, for pictures of this week. I got some good ones yesterday at the kids' Dual Language Birthday Party. We celebrated with cake and Pinatas. Maybe worth it's own post later in the day. :-)

Friday's Feast March 9th

Appetizer

What is your usual bedtime? Do you like that, or would you rather it be different?

I usually go to bed around 10:00. But if I get still after about 9, I have been falling asleep this week! That's about right for me----if I get up at 6, like I do on schooldays, from 10 to 6 is 8 hours of sleep, and it seems about right. I probably don't really get a full 8 hours, but I just heard sometime recently that people who live a long time get about 7 hours of sleep a night----not 6, and not 8! Something to think about.

Soup

When it comes to advice, do you give more or receive more?

I think I give more than receive. But I am not sure about that. Maybe I don't listen a lot, and I think I know what to do better than others! I hope as I am getting older, I am more qualified to give advice.

Salad

Describe a memorable meal you've had.

Recently in my memory, I think about our Sticky Chin's Day meal---we look forward to the ice cream for dinner! I also thought about my meal by the sea---at South Padre Island. I don't remember much about the food, but I remember being in a group of ladies at the beginning of a week of training, but FUN, too. If I had to think about an all-time memorable meal? It's too hard to pick! I remember the setting more than the meal itself. Or the occasion it represented. Burger King on a boat on the Mississippi river on our honeymoon . . . McDonald's in Toronto on that same trip . . . a dinner out the night we got engaged . . . my Mom's graduation dinner (Memphis-style BBQ with slaw on the chopped pork BBQ sandwich---in Fort Worth!) . . . fancy and delicious wedding dinner in downtown Forth Worth for my sister's high school friend (they had a mashed potato bar) . . . there are some really interesting dinners! Sorry I just couldn't go with one.

Main Course

Name a work of fiction that affected the way you think about something.

Memoirs of a Geisha is the first one that pops into my head. I read it last summer, and it has stuck with me a while. I would like to be more well-read, so I am sure there are books that would really affect me in a more profound way. This one helped me think differently about the Geisha system. It really was another world with a completely different set of rules.

Dessert

What is your favorite type of fruit juice?

I really like cranberry juice, and my son is crazy about cran-grape juice. But orange juice is a close second. :-)

odds and ends

I just tried to fix it so that I can be on the Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt Blogroll. Try clicking the link on the sidebar and see if it works for you. It should take you to a page that has a big long list of hunt participants.

Okay, all this posting this afternoon is getting me closer to the 200th post---and my "All About Me" 100 Things.

Today was mentally exhausting as I went to a meeting with J's principal, sub teacher, vice principal, Larry!, two other parents, a science fellow working with J's class, and his 4th grade teacher he had for the 5th and 6th six weeks last year. As you can imagine, it took a while to get everyone their chance to say their part, so we were there a l-o-n-g time. It was just exhausting. At least this time J was not the one hitting! But he's not an innocent either. Huh! Didn't he read my last post about him? Doesn't he know I have great expectations for him? A little disappointing, but I think we are on the right track to get the situation under control. He had already agreed to a truce before we grown-ups met! Enough said about that.

He's Growing Up!

This past week I got new baby products from Creative Memories. It was my auto-ship box of brand-new products released in March. It's exciting to get those boxes! There are soft options and bright options, and they're all pretty cute. The first picture is the boys' products, the second picture, the girls'.

My kids' books are done. I don't have J's in a CM book, but his is mostly cards and stuff like that anyway. His pictures are all in our family album from that time. He was our life, and so it's all about him. B got a CM book from the start because I was already into CM at that time. I love hers. It's so cute and soft and full of my words to her. J's book was done a lot before he was even born.

When the box came with all these goodies in it, B wanted to see J's baby book. B was very interested in the genealogy pages I had placed in there, tracking back ancestors for 12 generations. We enjoyed looking through the book, but the thing that struck me most was something I had written to "baby Adams" before I even knew J was a boy. (See, Larry strongly wanted to NOT know what the sex of either of our children were before birth.) I had written in the section titled "Hopes for the Baby":

We hope most of all you grow up to be a Christian who knows God and loves Him. I hope that you grow into a well-behaved child who is kind to others and plays fairly. I hope you grow into a beautiful teenager, on the outside and on the inside. (I hope that you'll want to be in Band, like Mom and Dad, and that you'll want to go to our college alma mater, Texas A&M!) I hope you find a wonderful life partner to build a family with.

I wrote that not knowing anything about J, but I still desire all those things. I was surprised to see that one aspect of this "hope" had already passed me by. J's childhood is slipping into memory. B and I laughed about J being a "well-behaved" child because he really was such a challenge to parent! He is very strong-willed, and daily meltdowns were the norm. But we've survived! He's knocking on the door to that teenage era now.

I saw a blog about this sort of topic this weekend, too. Picture This author Tracey was musing over her not remembering the sweet goodness of babyhood. It's all memory now, and something is sad about that.

But the good news is, I feel really good about the future with J. We had 6th Grade Parent Orientation on Thursday night at J's school for next year. A committee of parents, teachers and administrators has been working on getting a plan going for our Dual Language kids who are going to Jr. High. We have the option of having 4 period out of 8 in Spanish: one of the language arts periods (the other in Engl.), Social Studies, P.E. and band. This strengthens my resolve for J to take band! I think he'll have a good time in there. He'll have Math and Science (we're signing up for the pre-AP classes), lunch and one period of language arts in English. I am glad we have this option, since I know J will totally lose his Spanish if he's not using it daily. The staff there was excited to see us. I got to talk to one of the band directors and we talked to one of the Science teachers as well. We got info about lunch---there are so many choices! The counselor over J's grade talked to us about changes we'll see---more time on the phone, new peer groups forming, more friend-relationship issues. J will have to organize better his school stuff. The Vice Principal went over the dress code. It was all exciting! I think J is ready.

So, I'm looking J eye to eye lately. Literally and figuratively. He and I got to spend a lot of time together this weekend, just us, as the B and Larry went to softball games. I am enjoying my boy more and more. We'll never get along like friends---we're a Mom-child pair, so I never aim to be his "friend." I have told people this weekend that I feel like I am going up the first hill of a roller coaster. You know that "tick-tick-tick-tick" you hear as you're being dragged up the first hill? I can faintly hear it now. I am scared what's over the hill, but excited at the same time.

I do look forward to this new phase, where we have conversation and actually appreciate each other. I just pray I can let go of the reigns the right amount!

Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt, March 3rd

This week's theme is Salty.

If you'd like to join in the weekly hunts click here.

If you'd like to see more photo hunters' salty pictures, click here.

Here's a salty snack we have around here probably 3 times a week. I can eat the whole bag myself, but I am sharing with the kids :-) We often come home from school and pop a bag of microwave popcorn for our afternoon snack.

Next week's theme will be Architecture. Hmmm . . . I will have to ponder this one and come up with something interesting around town.

Also, check out my Project 363 Blog! A picture a day in 2007.

Friday Feast, March 2nd

Appetizer
What does the color pink make you think of?
I think of pink carnations, my sister's dolls (I always got blue, she got pink), and girly, girly stuff that my daughter still loves even though her favorite colors are now green and blue.

Soup
Name something you thought you had lost, but later found.
When I was in college, dating my husband, I thought I had lost my whole creative self. I didn't have time to draw, create, cook (I was in a dorm, so this was just impossible, not even a microwave was allowed then), anything creative! I was depressed about this, lost-feeling. I had lost this side of myself, but got it back. I realized after this period, I don't ever need to put this side of me on the complete back burner, because it is something that I enjoy, and it's so me. :-) I have to do something creative, or life is too boring and meaningless to me.

Salad
In 3 words, describe this past week.
Prayerful. Rashy. Beautiful.

Main Course
What are you obsessed with?
checking my e-mail ond blogging!

Dessert
What kind of perfume or cologne do you like to wear?
I don't wear anything anymore, but I love Bath and Body Works---new Honeysuckle, Pink Grapefruit, and Mango Mandarin. I'll put on the body splash, but I often don't.

This is number 186 for me, and I am still thinking of post 200---my 100 Things!