Cool Meme (for my birthday)

I saw this meme on Claire's blog and I thought it was interesting. In light of my birthday today I thought I would participate in this meme and take a look-back on my life...if you want to participate, make sure you leave me a comment letting me know you have done it so I can check it out on your blog.

Bold the things you’ve done and will admit to:

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo (does a trio count? LOL)
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Gotten flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby (4)
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

I've Been Awarded!

Wow, I received an award!! My super-funny bloggy friend Rebekah from Diagonally Parked in a Parallel Universe blessed me with this award.

The steps of this award are to list 6 things we love, then pass it on to 6 lovely bloggers. Okay, so here goes....I love -

1. The sound of YaYa from my grandchildren when they learn to start calling my name. It sounds so precious coming from them.

2. How Dakota (my 12-yr-old) still comes in every night to give me a hug and a kiss before bedtime and he tells me he loves me and I know he means it.

3. My alone time in the morning after Greg has left for work and before Dakota has gotten up...I listen to praise & worship music, read my Bible and then get online. It's my favorite time of the day.

4. thunderstorms, hurricanes and weather phenomena - I am fascinated by the weather and love watching the patterns, jet streams, etc

5. spending time with my best friend, CJ. We don't get to spend as much time together these days because she has been so sick from chemo but I love our time we do get to sit and talk. She is an amazing woman I love dearly.

6. when my husband treats me like I'm the center of his world and a priority in his life.

Okay, now passing this on to 6 lovely bloggers...
Jennifer F. from Conversion Diary - she used to be an atheist and has converted to Christianity...her tales of faithfully serving God whilst raising very young children are encouraging, uplifting and sometimes humorous.

Hunny Bee at It's A Honey of A Life - she is pregnant with baby #2 and dealing with a precocious almost 3-yr-old...her blog will keep you in stitches!

Hinsley at The Oxygen Chronicles - her refreshingly honest account of her struggles and trials she is going through helps you "see" things from another point of view.

Monica at Shine Again - this homeschooling mom of 7 children is amazing and encouraging to read about!

Claire at Two Kids, A GearHead and Me - I tagged her last year, but she needs a jumpstart on her blogging again, so I am going to TAG her again! She is a lovely gal who is so humorous WHEN SHE WRITES! LOL

Alyssa at Keeping the Kingdom First - she is a fellow bargain hunter, frugal shopping queen who puts God first in everything she does. I love following along with her blog!

I've been Tagged (again!) LOL

ClaireBoe tagged me for this meme. This should be fun!

Here are the rules:

1. You must post the rules before you give your answers.
2. List one fact about yourself beginning with each letter of your middle name. (If you don't have a middle name, use your maiden name).
3. At the end of your blog post, you need to tag one person for each letter of your middle name. (Be sure to leave them a comment telling them they've been tagged and that they need to read your blog for details).

E - enjoys riding motorcycles through the country
L - loves hanging out with my girlfriends!
I - I am not a worrier and it drives my husband crazy...lol
S - seashells, shoreline, seaspray, sunshine, seaweed, salty smell of the ocean - my favorite SUMMER sights and smells
A - always seeking to glorify God in everything I do and hopefully let the light of Christ shine through me.

Okay, I tag:
Sniz (I know you get tagged all the time but I only have so many people to choose from! LOL)
Monica
Binx (this is an easy one for ya!)
Sandy (maybe this will jumpstart your blog again!!

Well, I'll have to leave it at that because the other people I would choose have already been tagged or for sure wouldn't do it anyway so why bother ya know what I mean? LOL
Have fun ya'll!

7 Weird Things About Me

My blog friend, Miss Sniz, tagged me for this WEIRD meme.

The rules are as follows: Simply link to the person who tagged you. SHARE SEVEN WEIRD things about yourself. Tag SEVEN bloggers to do the same AND include a link to their blog. Let each person know that they have been tagged and finally post the rules on your blog.

1. I love it when Dakota brushes my hair and pulls my (few) gray hairs out for me. It's so relaxing to me and I'm sure he gets a thrill at yanking, umm, I mean gently pulling my hair out.
   
2. My favorite "sinful" sandwich is white chocolate peanut butter and marshmallow creme on wheat. Add a banana to the mix and I'm in Heaven!!
   
3. I detest the smell of raw meat and I don't want to look at it in the grocery store. If the family wants it for dinner they have to buy it. I'll cook it IF they buy it.
4. I have no problem standing on a stage and speaking in front of large groups of people and being the center of attention IF I'm in charge of an event or organizing something...but if I am just supposed to show up and make idle small talk with a large crowd of people it is extremely hard to do and 9 times out of 10 I'll talk myself out of going (or I'll make myself physically ill! LOL)
5. I have slept with a "little pillow" since I was a little girl...when my little pillow starts looking too bad I replace it with a new one because I HAVE to hug a little pillow to my chest while I sleep. I carried 2 of them with me to Brazil this last year! :-)
6. For some people this may seem weird - and I am having a problem thinking of 2 more "weird" items so here's #6 - I LOVE being at church anytime the doors are open - no matter what's going on. Dakota and I are always there!
7. I rarely drink anything but water, occasionally a glass of unsweet tea or orange juice, but mostly just water all day.

Okay, guess that's it! Now, let's hear from some other people out there. I'm only tagging 6 instead of 7 though....Binx, Monica, Erin, Sandy, Becky, and last but certainly not least (and because I can't wait to see what INTERESTINGLY WEIRD things HE'LL come up with!) I am tagging Miss Sniz's hubby Big Doofus.

Tagged!

My friend, Miss Sniz, tagged me last week for this fun meme so here goes...

Devise a list of 5-10 courses you would take to fix your life. It’s more fun to be in classes with friends, so include one class from the person who tagged you that you’d also like to take. Tag five.

Here's the class you and I are taking together Miss Sniz -

Price Checking 101 - this class will teach us how to spot the "sale" signs, read the fine print and haggle with the gum-smacking employees to get the prices we want to pay...AND we'll learn how to get this done in a timely manner so as not to hold up the line behind us.

How to ENJOY cooking for your Family - since I would rather be anywhere than in the kitchen cooking, this class will instill the "love" of cooking into my genes. I'll complete this class and want to dazzle my family with my newfound love of cooking them dinner every night - they'll be so amazed at my skills and they'll love everything I place in front of them.

Internet Marketing for Dummies - after completing this class I won't have to muddle through all the annoying forums and sales pages; I'll be techno savvy and in tune with the IM world and raking in enough money to allow dear husband to decide what he wants to do with his life.

How-to fit 24 hours worth of work in a 12-hr day - Hmmm, I'll just have to show up at this class and see it to believe it. Perhaps the phrase "miracles do exist" would apply here?

Alrighty, I can only think of these 4 classes and as for the ladies I am tagging....there's only 3 I keep up with that I think would do this, so here's the 3 I'm tagging.

Sandy at Relaxed Homeschool

ClaireBoe at Two Kids, a Gear Head and Me

Toni at In the Midst of This Season