Come hell or high water

I am planting my garden today.

After 5 days of rain, being sick and last night's frost, my garden is going into today...

maybe. I'll let you know if it actually happens.

Happy Birthday!

This morning for breakfast I had my birthday cake.

I was too sick yesterday.

Thanks to everyone who called. Sorry I missed you, to those who called during my various napping sessions.

Best gifts:

My husband keeping the kids quiet while I slept.

My girls making me cards

My son smiling at me.

Simple pleasures.

I'm going back to bed now.

Achoo!

I'm currently in bed and quite sick.

Not the way I want to spend my 30th birthday tomorrow.

I am hoping a marathon sleep will cure me.

That, and some tylenol.

Please vote for my friend Greg!

This is my friend Greg. He has a chance to win a Cube. He wrote this song. Please vote for him.

http://tinyurl.com/c3bu92

Growing Fairy Tales

As I was working in the garden, my eldest daughter announced, "I'm planting my bubble gum into the ground. I'm going to water it and watch it grow."

My three year old decided to follow suit. After handfuls of dirt were ceremoniously dumped on top of the bright blue well-chewed "seed" and a quick dash of water was sprinkled on top we awaited the growth of the bubble gum tree.

My three year old gleefully told us how it would all unfold. "First, the bubble gum will grow into a tree. Then we will pick the bubble gum, wash it off, dry it and then," with eyes growing big, "we will EAT the bubble gum."

We all trudged in for lunch and over soup and tuna sandwiches told Daddy about what we were busy planting. He just smiled and wished us well.

My oldest leaned over and whispered to us, "I know that planting bubble gum won't make a bubble gum tree. I just wanted to take Brie to the land of fairy tales."

Announcement

It has been too long since I got my hair cut.

I went through the agonizing stage of extra styling to hide the hideous shag, but I have an announcement...

I waited so long that...

my hair has turned a corner. It looks good again.

All it took was 4 weeks of hiding in the house and a whole lotta product to hide the shaggy parts.

I can keep this up for 4 more weeks I think.

Hello Beautiful Week!

Good morning beautiful week!

I am so excited to face another week of living and loving and laughing out loud.

The sun is shining, the birds are chirping and the forecast is calling for...snow?!?!

I am sticking my fingers in my ears and I am plugging them now.

lalalallalalalalallalalalallalala!

Why I detest faxing...

Seriously? Does there need to be a reason?

As we speak I am faxing off the same document 13 times to 13 businesses. I wish I had an employee to pay to do all of this!

How I wish that everyone wanted email copy of things.

Rant over.

10 more questions from Brambleberry Grace

1. What's your favorite day of the week? Everyday really, except Wednesday. I have never liked Wednesday. No particular reason. I just say, "hmmm...Wednesday. Well, tomorrow's Thursday! Yay!"
2. What's your favorite beverage? Vanilla-bean steamed milk or chamomile lemon tea or water
3. Biggest accomplishment? I don't think I have one...and I feel very good about that.
4. Person you'd most like to meet? When you say "meet", I think of sitting down and having a carte blanche conversation where I could ask anyone anything. My great-grandfather. He was the first person in our family who became a Christian. He was a sailor and a near-death experience made him believe on Christ to be saved. He then moved to Canada and became an evangelist and walked and prayed up and down the roads preaching the Gospel. He knew what it meant to take up his cross and follow Jesus. He was radical and passionate about Jesus in his own quiet Finnish way. I'd like to sit down and talk Jesus with him. I'd want to shut up and listen to everything he'd have to say.
5. Steak or shrimp? Steak.
6. Cat or Dog? Dog. In high school I belonged to HACK. A friendly group made up of my siblings and Tom K.

(Tammy's hubby)--Humans Against Cat and Kittens. We would give each other pop quizzes--Q. You see a cat in the road, what do you do? A. Step on the gas. Q. you are at a friend's house and their cat tries to give you attitude, what do you say? A. I'm not above kicking you. Haha. I jest. Maybe.
7. Favorite book in the Bible? James-the just do it book.
8. Favorite verse? Philippians 1:21 To live is Christ; to die is gain.
9. Capri's or skirts? both--together or alone!
10. Have you lived a "perfect" day? Yes. One day in Arkansas--the fleeting days of youth slipping by and the new life of adulthood just on the cusp of happening-- I spent the whole day on the water. I hadn't spent any time with my family (siblings and Mom)in two months as I was away all summer. We spent the whole day tubing on the water, waterskiing, jet-skiing. I faced so many fears that day it was awesome, and being with my mom, brother and sister after two months without them made it the best day. I remember sitting with my feet dangling in the water as the sun set, thanking Jesus for all the good, simple things that made life great. I knew one thing was missing from making it perfect and when I got back to the house we were at I picked up the phone and called Jeep. He answered and said,"hey baby." and I said, "Now this day is completely perfect."

I have other days, but that one stands out as my first perfect day.

10 Things My Husband Has Taught Me

PART ONE

1. Love is a choice. I remember when I first learned this from him. We had been dating a month, and some drama had happened with my family and myself. I was reluctant to talk to him about it because I thought that he would think I was being overdramatic (which I was) and then he'd realize that he was crazy for ever originally liking me and he'd dump me. He just looked at me with those amazing green eyes and said, "Allie, I love you. It's a choice I've made. No matter what you say or do, I am choosing to love you."

Isn't he swell? (He is a direct man--one month in and saying the L word!)

2. Love is never on the negotiating table. My guy is quite the leader and when we started the Dance of Marriage, he set the tone in a very great way. He said to me that whenever we fought, whenever we had disagreements, our love was never on the negotiating table. Our disagreements would not lead to 'you don't love me'. We're committed to each other and our love is never on the negotiating table. We love each other. Period. Learning to live with each other peacably...definitely on the board room agenda and up for discussion!

3. There is a right way that the toilet paper goes on the roll.

4. Honor is the most important thing. When we were dating, I remember on our first day of "being a couple", we talked about the physical aspect of our relationship. I shared that it was very important to me that we put boundaries and accountability in place for our relationship because I wanted to honor God and remain pure and save myself for my wedding night. I will NEVER forget what he said tome. Ladies, are you ready for this? He picked up my hand, looked me in the eyes, and said, "Allie, I plan on marrying you. ( I told you he was direct!) When I do, I will make a vow to honour you and to cherish you. The day I make that vow isn't the day that I start to honour and cherish you. I chose to do that before I met you and I have kept myself pure for my future wife. And I want you to know on our wedding day that when I say those vows, you will know me to be a man of honour because I have cherished and valued your purity while we have taken the road to our wedding day."

And then I think I swooned.

5. When swooning, it's helpful to land on a big, strong man. Just sayin'.

6. Cheese is a food group all it's own.

7. It's rude to interrupt people when they are talking. I am not known for good manners. I kinda checked out when my Mom and Grandma were telling me to eat with my mouth closed and not lick my fingers and don't slam the door. My husband is a patient man who has sometimes had to remind me about the finer points of etiquette. God bless him!

8. Adventure is necessary to life. My husband gets me to do the most ridiculous things. Sometimes, often times, they are small things that are embarrassing to me, but no one else. For some reason I get embarrassed to test drive a car we have no intention of purchasing--don't ask me why. But I've learned that everything can be an adventure when we do it together.

9. Being with a left-handed man makes you mindful of how you sit side by side at a restaurant. If you sit the wrong way, you bump elbows the whole time. If you sit the right way, you can hold hands and eat your food with the other hand.

10. It's all about perspective. My husband learned this from a friend of ours, but he really carries this off well. When having to buy feminine hygiene products he has no embarrassment about it. He went with his buddy to pick some "essentials" for me, and he told him, "You know what this means, don't ya? (holding a box of tampons) This means...I got me a woman! Yep. I GOT me a WOMAN!"

Answers to Questions Holly asked

Holly asked, I answer.

What is the worst smell? After having kids, I'm not as sensitive to smells. This is a tough one. Probably burnt rubber.
How many hours were you in labour with your kid's?

Total time:10. 5 hours. The first was a beautiful, gradual natural birth of 5 hours--or maybe 7--I can't remember. The second was a way too fast induced natural birth of less than 2 hours. The third was a natural, surreal 3.5 hours. I pushed the longest with my third--12 minutes. The first was 10 minutes and my second was under 5 minutes. Only tore the first time. Thank you Jesus!!

How old were you when you got married? Twenty-two!
What are your top 5 passions?

All of them are inter-related.

Jesus, Scripture,my husband and kids, relationships with people, and being outside in nature by calm water.
What are you able to be the most compassionate about?
I don't know if this answer makes sense, but encouragement. I come across so many people each day who are hurting, or questioning themselves or life, or celerating a new milestone etc. I endeavour to show God's kindness to people through intentional encouragement. I will send thank you cards to our librarian for their consistent smiles and cheerfulness, I make meals for the single lady next door, I will tell someone they look great in that colour because I believe people need encouragement for wherever they are at in life. So, not sure that that answer makes any sense...but it is easy for me to be most compassionate about encouraging people in the midst of triumph or tragedy.
What is a struggle for you to be compassionate about?

Oh, tough one. People who complain about their lives but do nothing to change it. I find it hard to hear the same problems over and over again, and no desire to bring change or do what's required to bring change.
What is your favorite style of music?

Jazz.
What is your favorite flower?

Tiger lilies, daisies, and brown eyed Susan's.

Holly asked some tough ones! Thanks!