baby we were born to run

heard the boss on the way home from the store. i really enjoyed hearing the songs that make you guys grin. i actually had to look up "sharks" by morphine. it was a really cool song, so i put it on my playlist. it is rare that i haven't heard of a song. this week has been busy, but very good. yesterday was my first Wednesday night supper at church entirely by myself. it went very well. we had about 50 or so there, and i had the girls home and in bed by 8:45. finch said that class went well, and he is really excited about what the future may bring. monkey is REALLY enjoying school. in fact she hasn't gotten in trouble at all so far. this is impressive because she is quite the talker. i know it is hard to believe, but it is true. I've been trying to put together a care box for a blogger friend for quite some time, but i am the world's biggest procrastinator. i finally have every thing together for it, and will be sending it this afternoon. well, with out further ado, my thankful list.

I AM THANKFUL FOR:

1. mail- i love getting mail, i love sending mail. as much as i love to get little surprises in the mail, i also love to send them. my MIL is really good about sending gifties at random times. in fact i have been known to go overboard during swaps.

2. swaps- i love the idea of getting something from someone you have never met. my first swap was over at princess mindy's. she has great swaps, and i hope that our falling out won't exempt me from them. i fear the opposite however.

3. birthdays- i have a big one coming up, 3 decades. my hubby isn't big on birthdays, so usually i get a hug and kiss and a cake that he and the girls make for me.

4. my washer and dryer- really they are awesome. they make my normal housewife chores much easier.

5. books- you should see my den. it is lined with books. this doesn't even include the cookbooks that i have, or the craft books. they have separate areas.

6. fabric.com- it is a new find for me, and it is AWESOME. i purchased the fabric for my flirty apron swap there.

7. my mom- she called yesterday to see how i was doing because she hadn't heard from me in several days.

8. my hubby- he is logical beyond logical. in fact if it can't be explained logically he looks at you like you're nuts. in spite of this, he loves more than i ever knew someone could.

9. blogger friends- i haven't met most of them, but the comments they leave generally make my day.

10. family- we are in discussion about moving closer to our families. my mom and aunt are the only remnants of my family that still live in this area. my hubbies family all live down south as does my family. well, other than leah who could very easily move back too, take a hint. we'll see what the future brings.

what are you grateful for? take a minute to think about it. i am putting together extra aprons for giveaways during the month leading up to my birthday. i'll keep you guys updated. thanks for reading.

i want to wake up where you are

well, yesterday was monkey's first day as a third grader. she had a great day, and is excited about the school year. she's not sure if the teacher will let her test on Harry Potter or not, but she hopes she will. monkey is starting the fifth of the series, and is really enjoying them. she read eragon and was really excited about reading eldest, the sequel. she stopped after the first few pages. she said it was too sad. now as promised a quick blog about a song and my apron escapades. i should have finished my apron this weekend, but i made a mistake and am now furious with myself and the apron. yeah i know, it isn't the aprons fault that i misread the pattern. now on to the song on my playlist: it is slide by the goo goo dolls.

Could you whisper in my ear
The things you wanna feel
I'd give you anythin'
To feel it comin'

Do you wake up on your own
And wonder where you are?
You live with all your faults

I wanna wake up where you are
I won't say anything at all
So why don't you slide

Yeah, I'm gonna let it slide

Don't you love the life you killed?
The priest is on the phone
Your father hit the wall
Your ma disowned you

Don't suppose I'll ever know
What it means to be a man
It's somethin' I can't change
I'll live around it

I wanna wake up where you are
I won't say anything at all
So why don't you slide
Ooh, slide

And I'll do anythin' you ever dreamed to be complete
Little pieces of the nothin' that fall
Oh, May
Put your arms around me
What you feel is what you are
And what you are is beautiful
Oh, May
Do you wanna get married Or run away?

And I'll do anythin' you ever dreamed to be complete
Little pieces of the nothin' that fall
Oh, May
Put your arms around me
What you feel is what you are
And what you are is beautiful
Oh, May
Do you wanna get married
Or run away?

I wanna wake up where you are
I won't say anything

And I'll do anythin' you ever dreamed to be complete
(Yeah, slide)
Little pieces of the nothin' that fall
(yeah slide)
And I'll do anythin' you ever dreamed to be complete
(Yeah slide)
Little pieces of the nothin' that fall
(Oh, oh slide)
Yeah, slide between the sheets of all them beds you never knew
(Yeah slide)
Why don't you slide into my room
Just slide into my room
Oh, we'll run away, run away, run away


yes, i know the song is written about something not very happy, but every time i hear it i grin. this song came out around the time i got married. my nick name is bei, pronounced bay, so when finch would hear this he would sing to me "bei do you wanna get married, or run away." when we were driving to vegas to get married slide played on every radio station all the way there. now i have a question for you. what songs bring a smile to your face? i'll post the full story of bei and finch on sept. 12. that is the 10 year anniversary of our first date. hope you guys are having a great week.

i'm your recent adaptation

well some of a kind has reached her 200th post, and she is willing to give away one of her awesome aprons. you need to head over and leave her a comment. she wants to know why you wear aprons, how many you have. also if you have a good bread recipe she'd like that too. show some love tell her good job. here is my foccacia recipe.

1 c. warm water(110 degress)
2 1/2 tsp (1 envelope) active dry yeast
3 Tbsp olive oil
5 c flour
2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp fresh herb (i love oregano or rosemary or basil)
1 c milk
garlic salt

put water in bowl, whisk in yeast and 3 Tbsp oil. measure flour, 2 tsp salt, and herb into mixing bowl, stir. add yeast mixture and milk to dry ingredients. mix until all flour is moist, then mix thoroughly for 1 minute. cover bowl let rise 1 hour or until doubled in size. oil a jelly roll pan, turn dough out onto pan. press into pan. dimple dough with fingertips then drizzle with olive oil. sprinkle with garlic salt and more herb if you would like. let rise an hour or until doubled in size. preheat oven to 450 degrees. bake 25 minutes, check 1/2 way through baking, if browning too quickly place another pan beneath. THIS IS MY ADAPTATION OF THE ROSEMARY FOCACCIA RECIPE FROM HOW TO BAKE BY NICK MALGIERI.

enjoy

as easy as A B C

i was tagged by vanilla frog to do an a-z meme, so here you go.



A. Attached or Single? Attached for almost 10 years now

B. Best Friend? fincher

C. Cake or Pie? yes please

D. Day of Choice? everyday has its own benefits. Friday because of pizza night

E. Essential Item? my family and friends, can't live with out them

F. Flavor of Ice Cream? how can one choose? mint chocolate chip or cherry chocolate chip or blood orange sherbet.

G. Gummy Bears or Worms? worms to go in dirt pudding, but bears to eat by themselves. did you know that if you put a gummy bear in a container of water it will swell up and look really gross?

H. Hometown? in the words of soul asylum "oh i am so homesick, yet it ain't that bad. cause I'm homesick for the home I've never had."

I. Indulgences? cookbooks and magazines

J. January or July? January, i don't do well in the heat

K. Kids? 2 for now.

L. Last Movie I Saw In A Theater? HAHAHA. i don't go to the theater i have a toddler

M. Middle Name? bonafacia

N. Number of Siblings? 2 half, one whole

O. Oranges or Apples? yes, please. i am really picky about apples

P. Phobia or Fear? spiders

Q. Quote? are we there yet? Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and it may be necessary from time to time to give a stupid or misinformed beholder a black eye." -miss piggy

R. Reason to Smile? my life

S. Season? winter or spring or autumn

T. Tag Four More? well, vanilla tagged my regular people, so i tag hot cup, ramfam, pattylicious, and sweetbutterflys3. not sure who else reads this, so if you want to join in i tag you too.

U. Unknown Fact About Me? i love stamps and stickers and fabric, really can't get enough.

V. Vegetarian or Oppressor of Animals? HUGE oppressor.

W. Worst Habit? coke zero

X. X-Rays or Ultra-Sounds? well, the only time I've had an ultra-sound is when i was preggers, so I'll take one of those please.

Y. Your Favorite Food? food, in general. i didn't get looking like this because I'm a picky eater.

Z. Zodiac? as in the killer, you know they never caught him right. oh you wanted to know my sign sorry, Libra.

what a great way to start the weekend. enjoy, and hey no surprises in my inbox this weekend please.

you're no good, you're no good, you're no good, baby you're no good

this has been a tough week for me. instead of concentrating on the AWESOME aprons i am making, i have been in serious self doubt and quandary. if those responsible for that are reading, thank you. it has been a week of reflection. well, i know everyone has been waiting anxiously for my thankful list this week. here it is:
I AM THANKFUL FOR-

1. revelations- not the book in the bible mind you, it just confuses me. you know in movies and tv shows the moment you realize that the one you think is a good guy turns out to be the homicidal clown, well Monday and Tuesday were something like that for me.

2. those who shine- not shiny foreheads. you know those people who are genuinely good, and their goodness and kindness just seems to radiate from them. i know it isn't "proper" to use real names on here, but rosemond this ones for you, thanks.

3. cell phones- yes, they can be annoying, but the ability to get in touch with someone is amazing. last night we had an incident at the church. it turned out to be nothing serious, but it was very concerning at the time. the ability to call the person we needed and get the problem resolved, well that's good stuff.

4. freedom- some times we dwell on all the problems that our country is having, and we don't remember all of the wonderful freedoms we enjoy.

5. second chances- we had a fellow living in our apartment a while back who's soon to be bride dumped him for someone else. now this fellow had his problems, but i do believe everyone deserves happiness. he is now married to a lovely, wonderful, kind woman. glad he got another chance.

6. crafting- this is a great release for tension, anger, frustration, sadness, and all the other junk that clouds the mind.

7. Wednesdays- yes, they are the busiest day of my week, but the kindness of the people at church is so helpful. it helps me to realize that i am not a bad person, or pretending to be someone I'm not. thanks for all the kind words when i needed them.

8. rain- we had our 6th day in a row of not even hitting 80. along with the wonderful cool weather has been a nice steady rain. mmmm. love days like that.

9. music- i have always enjoyed music. in fact i can often find a song to express how i feel when words escape me.

10. the future- and all the possibilities that it holds.

shelly, thank you for the kind comments and wise words. take some time to think about what you're thankful for. don't worry about the haters, they need drama to make them feel important. victimization and martyrdom complex are necessary tools for them to feel worth and importance. take care dear reader and have an AWESOME weekend.

don't bring me down, bruce

the computer is up and running again, woo hoo. i had intended on having this warm, wonderful, sweet post about what a great weekend i had. instead i awoke yesterday to insanity in the blogosphere. i am pretty sure that i know all who read this little piece of internet worthlessness, so to you i apologize. i hope that i have not allowed or helped spread anger and backbiting through my blog. i thought that i had been particularly kind by not airing my dirty panties/laundry on my blog. or raging on it either. there was a slight war of words in my comment area this past weekend. strangely they had little to do with my blog, other than both are readers of my blog and i thought friends, but i deleted them at the request of one of the people involved. it is also not my intention for this post to be particularly down/depressing, but i need to get a few things off my chest. i was asked to think on/ponder a discussion that i had on monday. i did. in fact i spent the majority of the day dwelling on the conversation. trying to figure out what the hell was going on. the longer i thought the more pissed i became. to those of you who have only known me since having children this doesn't happen often. to those of you who knew me before, well i was almost the person you once knew. i began to mull over several conversations that i have had in the last two weeks or so. the more i thought the more questions i came up with. this is what i have decided. I AM TIRED. TIRED OF THE CRAP. TIRED OF THE WHINE, TIRED OF THE DRAMA, TIRED OF THE POOR ME THAT THIS WORLD INSISTS ON SHOVING DOWN MY THROAT. we're not all going to get along, but stop looking for things to be angry about. believe it or not it can't always be about you. again, i apologize, but if i store this any longer i am going to EXPLODE. also, if you don't like it don't read it. it is that easy. i just don't want any drama, unless it is on stage. i will be 30 in october and i am too old for this crap. if you want to fight do it with out me, and don't use the guise of friendship to attack. if you are my friend then be one, otherwise bug off.
on to the post i had intended. we went to pattylicious' house and ate pizza, played chicken foot, laughed and generally had a great time. we spent saturday morning at a birthday party enjoying the company of friends and their children. saturday afternoon and evening were spent with the cowden clan. it is hard to believe how quickly all the wee ones grow. the party was for a darling little girl who attends church with us and is friends with her heiness. she is already 2. in attendance were the youth minister and his family. i can't believe his youngest will be 1 in about a month. it seems like just yesterday she was born. well, the children beckon. i hope to have a more upbeat attitude in time for thursday, otherwise thankful thursday could be very difficult.

face down in the dirt she says this doesn't hurt

a jim croce song comes to mind this morning as i ponder life. here is the chorus:
'Cause tables are meant for turnin'
And people are bound to change
And bridges are meant for burnin'
When the people and mem'ries they join aren't the same

i'm personally not a big fan of burning bridges, but sometimes they need to be. anywho i know you guys are just begging to see more pics . this will be the last one for DC because well, i have some other things that need to be attended to. like the aprons i am making.


this picture is for princess mindy. i thought she might like seeing that there was a street named for her. we saw this on our way to Mount Vernon.


this was George Washington's house. this is the back view. it was probably the coolest thing we saw on the trip. we had an absolute blast visiting his farm.

a view of the Lincoln and WWII memorials. i took this from the Washington memorial.


this is the front view of the Lincoln memorial. the girls wanted to walk up the steps, so i took them up the steps into the memorial. with 2 strollers we usually took the ramps into the memorials.

isn't he stately. to the left the Gettysburg address. on the right is another of his speeches.

monkey and adeline in front of the memorial. aren't they sweet.

the WWII memorial. there are 2 sides the Atlantic and Pacific.
these were along the walls leading to the memorial.
the crew. in the back you can see the Washington memorial. we were all tired from the massive amount of walking we had been doing.

we were all exhausted from the wonderful trip. we saw lots of amazing things. while at the Smithsonian we got to see the hope diamond. i recommend that everyone make it to the DC area at least once. i hope everyone has a great weekend. we're having pizza night as usual. then tomorrow we have a birthday party to attend.

scars are souvenirs you never lose

WORD OF THE DAY- LACKADAISICAL: Lacking spirit or liveliness; showing lack of interest; languid; listless.

a wee break from all the fun we had on vacation for a thought on thankfulness. as school approaches i begin to think of lunches to pack, supplies to label and purchase, and the general business that accompanies school. it is easy for me to get caught up in the rush and forget to pause and be thankful, so things i am thankful for:

1. honesty- even when difficult it is the best idea. sometimes the truth is hard to hear and even harder to speak. the risk of friendship and love are reasons that it is often not spoken.

2. tact/diplomacy- so that when the truth is spoken it can be with love. i've learned brutal honesty isn't always the best policy.

3. coming home- not just to the home i dwell in, but the person i am. realizing that just because i was lost doesn't mean i need to remain so.

4. change- i once had a teacher that said "change is the only constant in the world." i look forward to the changes that are coming. changes in family, friends, home, location?. we'll see what time brings.

5. beauty- it is in the eye of the beholder. i am thankful for the beauty in the sunrise and sunset, a child's laughter, and the many other simple yet beautiful things in this world.

6. hugs- when i saw nat after 10 years it felt so good to hug her.

7. wisdom- you know the kind that is gained from really screwing something up. i realize that friendship is something that should be fought for not discarded at the first sign of trouble. thanks nat.

8. disclosure- on the drive down to austin, while the girls slept, i had a wonderful discussion with the dear hubby. things that i have told very few people. the weight that was lifted off my chest let me breathe for the first time in years. things that i now realize were not my fault, but that had caused me to rage against myself for almost 17 years.

9. peace- that comes from disclosure and forgiveness.

10. love- i don't understand how or why, but i am so grateful for it. the many forms of it. the love of my Father, the love of my friends, my husband, my children. as wonderful as it feels to be loved it truly is more wonderful to give than to receive. thank you to those of you who have allowed me to love you and have loved me in return.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT- FROM THE MOVIE MOULIN ROUGE "Above all things I believe in love. Love is like oxygen. Love is a many-splendored thing. Love lifts us up where we belong. All you need is love!"

maybe together we can get somewhere

some drama for you my loyal reader. i got a call from the scouts, apparently the troop leader is moving, and will not be able to lead the troop this year. well, i would love to lead it, but my plate is already way over full currently. the hubby is going back to school. between us we currently hold 3 jobs, not counting my full time housewifeness. we are also in the process of another wee finch. the way the coming semester looks i'm busy monday-wednesday. i believe football is thursdays. nobody wants to do it fridays. what to do? then this morning i look out to the TCEQ in my front yard. they have been testing our water for a little over a year. apparently there is the possibility of some really nasty things in our water. we received a letter in november that said our water was safe to drink, so can you imagine the shock of seeing them in my yard. turns out they have found some of the bad stuff, but not enough to make the water "dangerous". can we say PANIC, not really. well on to more pictures of our trip to DC.

this is one of the many marines at the sunset parade. they were so nice to us. we had just walked over from Arlington cemetery, and we were VERY THIRSTY. they had giant containers of water for everyone.
we saw the commandant's band. they were really impressive. i got some video of them on my phone camera, but i'm not sure how to get it off the phone and onto the computer.

this is sweet philip. he just chilled the whole time. doesn't it look like he's having fun.


the pappy and Isaac they sat and watched the parade together.


the above picture was the last picture of the evening. after watching the band and the drill guard they began to file of the parade grounds. they were both so amazing and impressive. you can see the lone band member standing on the memorial. i kept wondering what he was doing there. after the national anthem, this lone marine played taps. i can't describe the feelings that i had. hearing the song for our fallen at the memorial in our capital. I'm getting teary eyed just writing about it. i leave you with a thankful note. I AM THANKFUL FOR OUR MILITARY. all they do for people who tend to be ungrateful at best. THANK YOU to their families. GOD BLESS

she gathers rain, to rinse away all the guilt and pain

i had intended on doing a blog friday and yesterday, but i had a visitor on friday. yesterday friends and family gathered to celebrate the all to short life of "Happy Jack". he and his wife are the reason we joined the church in happy. he was an amazing man who spread love and the joy of Christ to everyone who met him. the visitor i had this past weekend was a dear friend from high school part 2. nat and i knew each other in a different time and place, yet we chatted as though we have never been apart. it interesting how time and distant can change a person. we chatted of the girlswe were and the women we had become. she is in school studying to be a counselor. she spent thursday, friday, and saturday catching up and meeting the clan. she hung at the cowden's house on thursday, and xxx marked her as his own. this is where a sense of humor comes in real handy. i was glad to hear that she and her brother are becoming closer. she was sad to hear that my brother and i hardly speak. what a change situation. anywho, it was a great time and hope we can get together more often. on with the vacation pics here are a few more


the Jefferson memorial. it was breathtaking. all of the memorials were absolutely amazing. the Lincoln was stark and somber. the WWII was awe inspiring. the iwo jima was the background for the sunset parade for the marines. this made it even more impressive. below you can see Jefferson peeking out.


here is the inside picture. this was taken with my phone, so it isn't the best, but not to bad. if you want to know what the wall says i have cropped it in the final picture. enjoy.


all of the memorials have the awesome quotes on the walls. the quotes really made the memorials for me. the Gettysburg address at the Lincoln. this one at Jefferson. there were several at the WWII memorial. i hope to post on it later. it truly deserves a post just to it. plus i have way more pics of it. i hope this week is good. when i am finished with the DC posts i will be doing a few blogs on my playlist choices. just a quick note her heiness has gone potty twice today in the potty. woo hoo.

i'm happy. i'm feeling glad, i've got sunshine in a bag

WORD OF THE DAY- spoony: 1. Foolish; silly; excessively sentimental. 2. Foolishly or sentimentally in love.

during my vacation i realized that there a so many things that i am thankful for. some really little and silly, and some that are huge. strangely i find myself drawn to a lot of the little ones. i hope to post another vacation post tomorrow. i would like to post a few prayer requests, you know how thankful i am for prayer. i have some friends that are going through breakups that are necessary, but heartbreaking. i almost wonder if the necessity is part of what makes them so much worse. no names, just keep them in your prayers, i am. i also have a friend whose mother is facing the loss of a dear friend. the friend and her family have been through a lot in the past, as has her mother. this same friend has an aunt who begins chemo soon. i know that prayer works. sometime the results aren't what we want them to be, but they are answered in God's time and with His plan in mind. things that i am thankful for:

1. prayer-always thankful for it. it is the most powerful thing that we as humans have. the power to talk to God should not be taken lightly.

2. church family- we will be losing a wonderful member of our church soon to his battle with cancer. the loss brings the importance of this group to the top of my thoughts.

3. diversity- I'm a big fan of "if we were all alike wouldn't the world be boring." i appreciate the different cultures that we often come into contact with that so often we never notice.

4. computers- i really don't know how i would function with out one.

5. a sense of humor- mine may be twisted, but at least i have one. many people apparently got really short changed on this one.

6. school- it starts soon, monkey does better with familiar structure.

7. Kleenex (the good ones)- my allergies are in overload, so i am very grateful for the ones that don't kill your nose.

8. angel food ministries- we order tomorrow. if you haven't looked them up you really should.

9. screaming children- if you can still hear them, then they're not dead. i really only worry when they get really quiet.

10. getting older- for some reason the older you get people think that your answers are more valid. not sure why.

and since i missed last week a bonus ten:

1. face book- what a wonderful complete waste of time.

2. sewing- I'm plotting/planning my apron. i will actually be making more than one so i am way excited.

3. sushi- so tasty and way better for me than some of the other things i like to eat.

4. my mom- we've been having some really awesome talks and i am really glad that we have a good relationship.

5. idiots- with out them i wouldn't realize how nice my life really is.

6. new paths- we may be embarking on a new path in the relatively near future. kind of excited kind of scared, but grateful that we are open to new things.

7. babies- there just seem to be so many of them.

8. coffee mugs- found some gorgeous ones while we were in dc. now when i drink my coffee i think about how much fun we had.

9. dependability- people who say they will and they do. too few people have this quality.

10. realizing that alcohol doesn't change the person you are. it releases your inhibitions, and you have not fear of acting like who you really are. still not sure why people give the excuse "i didn't mean it i was drunk".


FOOD FOR THOUGHT- IN THE WORDS OF Cicero "A thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue, but the parent of all other virtues."

i'm a yankee doodle dandy

not sure is that how you spell dandy? well we're back from our vacation. we arrived in mcdade at 3:30 am. then drove to the airport in austin and got on board our plane and headed to baltimore. thom picked up our crew, fed us, and drove us to their house. we spent 5 days in the DC area, so i will spread the pics out some. we enjoyed the lovely company of the ramfam and their awesome hospitality while we were there. pappy went with us, and he felt the need to pick up the tab for most of the eat out and tourist type stuff. a HUGE THANK YOU to him. he is an AWESOME pappy. the girls had a blast playing with the ramfam kiddos. monkey hadn't seen the adeline in about a year, so they were WAY happy to get to play together again. wyatt and her highness are only 6 months apart, so they had a lot of fun too. not to neglect sweet isaac or philip, both the girls showered attention on them as well. here is a picture of the girls waiting patiently for thom to pick us up. apparently the traffic was terrible on the way to get us in Baltimore.
yes, monkey is pouting. she spent a good deal of time like that. in her defense she had been at camp for a week before we went on vacation. she was really tired.
this is sweet Isaac and Adeline. we had a picnic for dinner at this really cool park in DC. it is right off the Potomac river and right next to the airport. we got to watch the planes land while we had dinner. it was way better than can be explained.
a view from our picnic table. yes that is the capital you see through the goal posts.
the girls running and having fun. that is the Potomac in the background.
yes, that is another awesome view from our picnic table. the wahington monument.

more to come later, i need to go make supper for the people at church.