tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60975722792832732452024-03-19T16:38:18.823-04:00The Random DigressorsLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.comBlogger251125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-50714959138810627992011-01-03T17:56:00.000-05:002011-01-03T17:56:31.326-05:00New Year Again?Another year come and gone... Here are my previously unfinished New Year's "goals" from previous years.<br />
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Long-term Goals for the year 2009:<br />
Find some way of earning income. (I have 12 piano students now, which is providing enough for me to pay for my own piano lessons, voice lessons, and theatre and dance classes. But I would like to find something that I can do on my own time... I know, I'm too picky.)<br />
<br />
One-time projects:<br />
Get my bookcases organized and neat. (I got closer to done, but still not as thorough as I intended to.)<br />
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So, for 2010, my goals were:<br />
<br />
Long-term:<br />
<br />
Better sleep schedule (check!)<br />
Improve cooking (check!)<br />
Improve singing (check!)<br />
Improve general house cleanliness (Um... not so much. Although it's pretty clean right now!)<br />
<br />
One-time projects:<br />
Clean off bookcase (getting there)<br />
Make a layered cake (nope)<br />
Make Regency dress (I cut out... some of it...)<br />
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<br />
Now for 2011 goals:<br />
Long-term:<br />
Seriously begin cookbook recipe collection and rating.<br />
Improve my money-management and business skills.<br />
Keep working on helping keep the house more neat.<br />
Keep thinking and looking for other job possibilities. <br />
<br />
One-time projects:<br />
FINALLY FINISH the bookcase<br />
Finish the Regency dress<br />
<br />
Happy New Year!Lizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-8235544247438694642010-12-08T17:45:00.001-05:002010-12-08T17:50:11.401-05:00Libraries, and How They Work<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYD8qLOt3naNhM4buih73iSL9bDBqajZvLY_D-gA9od2ALcyWwF0qXHwxFzTqarmMmJPec8RJc9-gZljZbpj1ducw08nmgK4lISCb7Me1WiMEoXhRvf3DDiHh6ZVs3JngOycDY_Gmn20Y/s1600/librarian-cartoon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYD8qLOt3naNhM4buih73iSL9bDBqajZvLY_D-gA9od2ALcyWwF0qXHwxFzTqarmMmJPec8RJc9-gZljZbpj1ducw08nmgK4lISCb7Me1WiMEoXhRvf3DDiHh6ZVs3JngOycDY_Gmn20Y/s200/librarian-cartoon.jpg" width="200" /></a>For the average person: Library use is simple. Once a week, or maybe once every two weeks if you’re a remarkably slow reader, you go to the library and get the next poorly written, ½ inch thick novel of your chosen genre. Perhaps a slimy romance, action flick or sci-fi, it really doesn’t matter. You read it (amazingly enough, since an American who doesn’t watch TV in every spare moment is rare) and return it in a timely manner. No pesky announcements about how much money you currently owe to the poor library system when you try to check out your next cheap novel masquerading as literature. No sheepish feeling as you realize that you kept a copy of one of the most ridiculously over-used plot-lines past your allotted three weeks and probably deprived 2 other people of the mind-numbing blandness contained in those tortured pages. Lighthearted and carefree, you skip home to enjoy your next piece of cotton-candy reading.<br />
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<br />
For the serious reader: Library use is difficult. First of all, they don’t have half of the books you want to read at your branch, and you have to request them. Once your book of real literature written before the days of TV and dumbed down Americans arrives, you take it home and dive in. The only problem is, no matter how fast a reader you are, you really can’t finish an unabridged version of The Count of Monte Cristo in less than three weeks, unless you have absolutely nothing better to do than read all day long. So the appointed due date arrives, and you try to take advantage of this convenience called “renewal.”<br />
<br />
<br />
Can I side track for a moment? Why do they give you a due date and fines if you’re also allowed to just renew the book? Think about that as I proceed.<br />
<br />
<br />
So you’re trying to renew your book. Since you can do that from the comfort of your own home on the internet, you take a moment from reading your wonderful piece of intelligent literature to utilize the library website. But once you click the “renew” button, you get a little red sentence announcing that you can’t renew your book because someone else has requested it! Unlike the average reader of average intelligence might, you don’t sigh and resign yourself to going to the library to return the book before you finish reading it. You resolve to finish as soon as possible, but fines or no fines, you will finish the book. After all, you can’t give up what must be the only library copy of this great work of fiction before you’ve devoured every well-phrased sentence and breathed a sigh of contentment at the satisfactory ending. Somewhere around a dollar into your fine, you start wondering how much you’re going to have to pay. So you get back onto the library website and look up the book in the handy-dandy library catalog. When you check the number of requests, and how many copies of the book are available in the system, you see that there are actually 5 checked in copies of THE EXACT SAME BOOK available to be shipped anywhere that’s desired, and you call the library to complain. “Oh, yes,” the librarian calmly informs you, “the computer program does that for some reason. If you try to renew it now, it will work.” “Great,” you say, “then can you forgive my fine?” “No, I’m sorry,” the librarian says, “I can’t do that.” You bite your tongue, hang up politely and decide that it’s worth it to buy every single piece of literature that you ever want to read in the future. And when you finally finish The Count of Monte Cristo, you go buy a copy of it, because it was just that good.Lizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-19228946691329896702010-10-28T19:28:00.001-04:002010-10-28T19:29:35.859-04:00The EpilogueThe inspiration of a new vacuum was all I needed to motivate me to find the carpet in our room again, and now, with a mostly tidy room and newly vacuumed floors, I can say definitely that the new vacuum is nice. It's made a few finicky noises when I ran into pieces of furniture a little too forcefully, but it recovers quickly and apparently suffers no ill effects. The extension wand for attachments is a little complicated, but allows for good variety: a nice long extension wand for reaching ceiling fans and out-of-reach corners, or a short little wand for "dusting" type uses. Emptying the receptacle is easy, and so much nicer than having to replace bags! It's very quiet for a motorized machine, and it's amazing how much dust it's able to whip out of the carpet with the "wind tunnel" effect that Dyson employs. I think this will be a long and beautiful relationship... hopefully, a happily-ever-after! <br />
<br />
(Haha!)<br />
<br />
The End.Lizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-61056984538255138842010-10-16T23:34:00.001-04:002010-10-16T23:35:43.473-04:00A New BeginningSome very old, faithful readers who diligently read all of my lengthy posts from "way back when" may remember my difficulties with vacuums. There are actually three posts about it, which I will obligingly link to, under the delightful illusion that anyone might actually want to read these old posts from the "archives."<br />
<br />
<a href="http://therandomdigressors.blogspot.com/2008/05/grrrrr.html">Prologue</a><br />
<a href="http://therandomdigressors.blogspot.com/2008/08/vacuums.html">First chapter</a><br />
<a href="http://therandomdigressors.blogspot.com/2008/08/vacuums-part-2.html">Second chapter</a><br />
<br />
I am happy to announce in this Third chapter that The Vacuum of Sauron has officially been replaced. Finally. And Sarah will not be allowed to name it. Hopefully, it will remain blissfully nameless, and therefore have no "character" to be flawed, thus enabling it to clean sufficiently with no issues.<br />
<br />
It's a Dyson, although not a Dyson "Ball" vacuum (those are so expensive just for the convenience of more range of motion!) and I hope will be a vast improvement over my past Hoover vacuum. It doesn't use bags, so already it's better. An improvement would likely mean that there would be no more posts about vacuums, as I have a tendency to blog about exasperating things and enjoy all the convenient and happy parts of my life in bloggy silence... but should it turn about to be an amazing vacuum, I will probably write something in glowing praise, which will be a satisfying epilogue to this trilogy.Lizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-8533716224164609532010-09-18T22:04:00.003-04:002010-09-18T22:11:32.040-04:00Life in general...I haven't had much time for lengthy blog posts... it seems that short little things on Facebook get more response anyway. ;) But, even if it's just for myself, I like to keep some track of what's going on in my life. So, on my plate for this year:<br />
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<br />
-Teaching my 12 piano students<br />
-Taking piano and voice myself<br />
-Theatre and broadway dance<br />
-Swimming<br />
<br />
Some of my goals are to continue to improve my cooking, and thriftiness. To help with my money management and budgeting, I'm paying for all of my activities, buying my dad's car from him (and he's looking for a "new" car) and paying for my own personal spending from my own earnings. If I can't pay for it, I can't afford it.<br />
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I'm still trying to go to bed earlier, and get up earlier. I've also been trying to get up early enough to have a Bible study time in the morning. <a href="http://tweetytweetings.blogspot.com/">Abigail</a> wrote an inspiring post about the importance of starting the day just a few days after I'd been feeling that waiting until the evening wasn't a good idea for me, and that gave me the extra nudge I needed. I can't get up and instantly start reading though, so I give myself some time to wake up so I can devote my attention to reading and prayer.<br />
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It feels weird being in something of an in-between phase; since I've graduated from high school, but am not planning on going to college. I am apprenticing with my piano teacher, learning as much as I can about teaching, and teaching my own students, focusing on some home-making skills for the future if I get married and continuing my interest in theatre arts, plus widening my musical attempts into voice. And I'm even trying to include some higher level "school" type study in. I'm excited, but also a little intimidated, since this is the first time in my life that I haven't had an "end" in sight: like the end of high school. There is no longer any sort of time-line that I can see. Suddenly, life feels bigger and more adventuresome.<br />
<br />
~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-63805030946555515852010-08-04T00:20:00.000-04:002010-08-04T00:20:14.885-04:00This too, shall pass...So far this year that has been coming up a lot in my thoughts. As my senior year, and the senior year of many of my friends, I've been realizing that a lot of changes are coming. It's a feeling of dread and premonition, but also of excitement and mystery. It's sad, because I can never go back, but also happy, because I am moving forward into the future with hopeful prospects.<br />
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I've been trying to enjoy every "last" moment, like my last swim meet on a team with my siblings. Actually, swimming has mostly been my only "lasts" because other than aging out, my life isn't changing much. It just feels like it is. And that's what I think has called my notice to the thought: that this moment will eventually be gone. In the day to day, something as simple as laughing with my siblings over something funny or watching a beautiful sunset while taking a family stroll down our dirt road, I'll suddenly be struck with the thought that life will not always be like this. We're growing up, getting older and changing. Eventually, we will move out, get married, have kids ourselves and eventually die. And that, for us as Christians, is only the beginning, so I won't get all depressing here.<br />
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I guess what I'm trying to say is that this year has taught me to enjoy every second to the fullest. This moment will never be here again. If you knew that you had one chance to try the most decadent and delicious dessert ever; that you would get only one bite, and you'd have to live with that taste of it as your only experience of that dessert for the rest of your life, imagine how you would savor it. Now imagine every moment of your life is a new and delicious dessert, and you only get one taste. Enjoy.Lizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-36250591488090996292010-06-19T12:30:00.000-04:002010-06-19T12:30:08.974-04:00My View of AdulthoodAs a child, I thought there were three kinds of adults. The bad kind (the sort of bad grown-ups that went to prison for stealing and stuff like that), the good kind (like the Wal-Mart sticker greeters and other adults that I didn't know) and the really good kind (like my parents and their friends). I knew without a shadow of a doubt that the really good kind of adult never did wrong. If they were angry it was justly over someone else's wrong. They were completely selfless, always knew the right answer and never failed to punish me when I'd done something wrong.<br />
<br />
Imagine my shock when I grew older and realized that there were many more wrong things that could be done than the ones I knew. There were lots of things you could do even accidentally that would make other people hurt or angry with you. The subtleties of manipulation, insults and exclusion that I began to understand were mind-blowing; almost as much as the fact that "really good" adults actually committed these wrongs. Now, as a young teenager growing toward adulthood, my view of adults had changed. I was planning on becoming the "really good" kind of adult that never did anything wrong; now that kind of adult doesn't exist. Suddenly, adulthood wasn't an arrival where you instantaneously become the kind of adult you were raised to be, but merely an extension of childhood where you are bigger and more grown-up, but still struggle with doing wrong. Eventually, you are no longer under your parents authority and are responsible for making yourself do right... and if you should happen to do something really wrong, then the police would put you in jail.<br />
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Even at 19, some of my childhood ideals are still being crushed by the pettiness of most of the adults in this world; yes, even the ones that my childhood self would have considered "really good." But all this only serves to remind me that God is the fulfillment of all my ideals of the perfect "adult." In childhood, your parent serves as the "all-knowing" governing authority; in adulthood, God is the one who reminds you to apologize for your wrongs, and loves you as His child, even through all your disobedience and childish tantrums.Lizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-44065773246756559412010-06-03T10:26:00.000-04:002010-06-03T10:26:06.623-04:00NCHE Convention and Graduation... AND Sarah's birthday!Wow, what a weekend! We had a great time.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXZUbsvB7o8cu8Z-DGdebxS6AIKowu7ErXnIiSKjrVFNURCB0qyvUSOlgMCHXckovi_DiCmCDrXJIm3ETo48QLb3JPNq3lET4cI7lBZo8Q2Ld19PXpl6hIo0ck5OxFWuBQJ_UJcblkQ7I/s1600/5-27-2010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXZUbsvB7o8cu8Z-DGdebxS6AIKowu7ErXnIiSKjrVFNURCB0qyvUSOlgMCHXckovi_DiCmCDrXJIm3ETo48QLb3JPNq3lET4cI7lBZo8Q2Ld19PXpl6hIo0ck5OxFWuBQJ_UJcblkQ7I/s320/5-27-2010.jpg" /></a> </div><br />
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This is our lovely hotel room at the Brookstown Inn. It is a renovated cotton mill from the 1800's. Our room was very spacious, clean and homey, and really really comfortable. I love the wood beams in the ceiling and the old brick walls. Many people at the conference like to stay at the hotels right at the conference building. Those hotels are harder to get though, and we don't mind the 4-5 block walk to the convention center. And personally, I enjoy the rustic simplicity and cheerful southern comfort feel of our favorite hotel much better than the new, plastic, cookie-cutter large-corporation feel of most hotels.<br />
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Sarah and I experienced swing dancing for the first time at the Teen Cotillion the evening of the first conference day. It was a LOT of fun! None of the speaker sessions were mind-blowing fantastic, but they did give me some things to think about and some mild inspiration.<br />
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Mainly I was blessed to have the theme of all the sessions serve to give me more confidence in my choice to pursue my interests at home, and outside the corporate realm of college. The speakers for teens emphasized living your life for God, and that the important thing isn't whether you make a lot of money or not, but that you do everything for the glory of God.<br />
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The graduation Saturday was nice. I was wavering on whether or not I wanted to do it, because it just seems so pointless, but I finally decided that the opportunity for regret was less if I just went ahead and did the graduation. If I hated it, I would get over it, but if I later began to regret not doing it, then I could possibly feel regret for the rest of my life. I'm very glad I decided to go through with it, because I really enjoyed it, and it was a decided end to high school. I'm finished!!<br />
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My graduation happened to be exactly on Sarah's birthday, so afterward, we went out to eat. Sarah and I both wanted to go to the Mellow Mushroom, and there was one right across the street. We walked down there, and discovered that there was a two HOUR wait for our party of 14. This was at 6pm. So we decided with the M's and B's, that since we were all packed up and checked out of our hotels already, that we would drive to Greensboro and eat at the Mellow Mushroom there, since it was on the way home. In Greensboro there was a 30 minute wait, but we lost the B's; they got a little lost and ended up at a Mellow Mushroom in Burlington. They called to tell us to go ahead and eat without them, and that they would just eat there and compare food with us, but we decided to drive on to Burlington and eat with them. So finally, we all ate. At 8:30pm. It was really fun, the perfect end to a great weekend.Lizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-24951717168911874302010-05-20T23:12:00.001-04:002010-05-20T23:25:34.973-04:00Mayhap the Randomness will resume...I stopped posting to The Random Digressors mostly because I felt like I was running out of things to share with any readers, and because it felt lonely without Sarah posting... I'm not going to change the name, but I will probably be the only one posting.<br />
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Anyway, this is just another short post to announce that my random thoughts will be here, but with a different theme. My new blog will be more focused, but I will continue randomness here. Mostly because I can tell a difference in my writing style without the regular practice at writing what I'm thinking...<br />
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So read if you want, but it will be the same random (probably boring) themes as before...<br />
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I was not looking forward to the lap-a-thon this year. As a super-senior, this is my last official year (meaning the last year that I "have" to swim the lap-a-thon) and I didn't think about that much until a few days prior to the lap-a-thon. Then I looked forward to it even less because I realized that I should have trained some and tried to achieve a particular number of laps (since this will probably be my most successful year of swimming...). But I was unprepared, and I only made 152. I swam on Wednesday, while my siblings all swam it on Tuesday (Tuesday was long course, and I hate swimming the lap-a-thon long course!) so I knew that Joel and David had both done 154, and I hoped to tie. Missing that by two laps was very disappointing. But I did improve by about 10 laps (I can't remember how many I did last year, and there appears to be no blog post on the subject...).<br />
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We're performing "The Wiz" two weeks from tomorrow. ACK!! I am NOT READY! Oh, why are we never prepared?? Thankfully, I don't have any lines. I didn't audition for a speaking role, for several reasons: they all had songs that I didn't like (and therefore didn't want to attempt to sing), I didn't want to memorize a lot of lines and I thought it would be less stressful to "just" do all the dances and chorus songs. Wrong. It's crazy. But I do think it will be more fun than trying to pull together a bigger role last minute. Which it seems that everything in theatre is always last minute.<br />
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Looking forward to summer swimming starting (except I'm NOT IN THE SHAPE I WANTED TO BE IN!) for my last summer season...<br />
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And we saw Wicked! BEST PLAY EVER.<br />
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And now you're caught up on my life.<br />
~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-62156679476566397902010-03-22T15:42:00.002-04:002010-04-04T11:32:34.582-04:00Announcing a New Blogging VentureI am striking out on my own with a new blog that focused more in the same direction as my life. My interest in being a Random Digressor has waned, as has Sarah's, apparently. If my interest in blogging is revived by posting on my new blog, I may still do some random posts here, but as it is, I don't know how often I will post on my new blog.<br />
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Anyway, and without further ado, introducing: the <a href="http://hopefulaspiringhomemaker.blogspot.com/">Hopeful Aspiring Homemaker</a>. I will be sharing projects, ideas, recipes and anything else I find interesting or inspiring in my journey towards my "hopeful" future of being a wife and mother. I hope any readers who still remember The Random Digressors will find it an acceptable substitute. ;-)<br />
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So long for now, and perhaps the Random Digressors will be back sometime in the future...Lizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-48157243653852966392009-12-27T19:40:00.002-05:002009-12-27T20:29:21.652-05:00The End of 2009It is usually the practice at the end of a year to reflect on the past year, see what you wish you could change and then come up with appropriate "New Year's Resolutions" to help you towards that goal of a "better you." Or something like that. I have given up on New Years Resolutions because anything associated with New Years Resolutions is inevitably given up before the end of January.<br /><br />I reflect on the past year, and look forward to the New Year. I also think of things that I hope to have accomplished by the END of the next year; rather than some repetitive task that I must do every day or fail, I come up with more long term goals, and strive to be as diligent as I can in completing or following them.<br /><br />Last year, my list was:<br /><br />Long-term Goals for the year:<br />Get on a better sleep schedule. (I kinda did... for a few months. It hasn't been successful since Thanksgiving, though. Something to continue in the next year!)<br /><br />Improve my cooking skills, especially in areas that I don't enjoy. (This was definitely successful, especially since the goal was to "improve" not "become a world-famous chef" but also something I will continue to focus on)<br /><br />Find some way of earning income. (I have 3 piano students, and it's earning me enough to cover some of my expenses. If I end up an old maid, I would likely make enough money to at least not be a burden to my parents, and hopefully enough to support them if necessary... still looking into other possibilities though.)<br /><br />Improve my singing ability. (Um, no. Not really. I feel closer to confident in my ability to harmonize... a little.)<br /><br />One-time projects:<br />Finish redecorating the bathroom. (No... not a good idea financially.)<br /><br />Finish setting up my sewing area. (Yes!)<br /><br />Finish sewing the shirts Kara, Jess and I began last year. (No... but that should be taken off, because it's not MY fault! I keep waiting for both of them to be available at the same time... I'm beginning to wonder how we found the time to start them in the first place! =P )<br /><br />Get my bookcases organized and neat. (I did clean off several disgusting "inspirational" romance novels that I picked up at the library booksale - $5 for a huge box. My goodness, the stuff that passes for "Christian" fiction nowadays... but not the thorough organization and elimination I was hoping for. That will be continued.)<br /><br />Begin the skirt I've been wanting to make. (No. I've made several other things with fabric that we already happened to have, so I think I'll wait on the skirt until I find just the right fabric on sale...)<br /><br />So, for 2010, my goals are:<br /><br />Long-term:<br /><br />Better sleep schedule<br />Improve cooking<br />Improve singing<br />Improve general house cleanliness<br /><br /><br />One-time projects:<br />Clean off bookcase<br />Make a layered cake<br />Make Regency dress<br /><br /><br />I've also been thinking about unavoidable things coming up in 2010... such as the approach of my 19th birthday. I'm terrified of 19. Turning 16 felt like a milestone, but it was still young. One of my friends was convinced that we were "old" when we turned 17 in June 2008. 18 should be scary, as legal adulthood, but for some reason 19 is the age that I've been dreading.<br /><br />I'll be graduating from highschool... FINALLY! And beginning my self-study "college" work. If I attend college, I will probably begin in the fall of 2011.<br /><br />Also, it will be my last summer competing in swimming. I'm hoping to achieve some times that will be a good "end" to my swimming, even though I will, of course, continue to swim. The times I get this summer will probably be the fastest times I will ever get in my life, so I want to make them good ones!<br /><br />Since turning 19 is definitely inescapable, I've decided to look forward to it, along with everything else the year will hold! I'm excited to see what God will do in the next year.Lizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-83009052987951420202009-11-26T23:15:00.001-05:002009-11-26T23:18:06.474-05:00Thoughts on ForgivenessAs a child, I was compelled by my parents to ask forgiveness for offenses committed against my siblings. I was very rebellious, and usually repeated the required phrase in as saucy and sarcastic a tone as I could get away with. The make-up hug and kiss were harder to skew, but I did my best. A sad comparison to me, all of my siblings were much better at asking forgiveness, and giving it when I was forced to ask for it. However, my parents' training paid off even on their most rebellious and defiant child, and now even I earnestly try to forgive and apologize for my own wrongs whenever the Spirit prompts me... and when I know good and well that I need to... (not that I'm perfect at that or anything...)<br /><br />Recently I've been pondering how important forgiveness and humble apologies are for any relationship. Christians can get angry, say hurtful things, hold onto grudges or nurse wounded feelings just like others, but if we allow ourselves to be humbled, sincerely apologize, and forgive the other person whether or not they apologize themselves, we could easily save a badly damaged relationship. I don't know about everyone else, but when someone hurts me, it is very hard for me to forgive them before they apologize... I do, and have, and will, but when they come to me and honestly apologize, it is as if the incident had never happened, and sometimes accepted apologies and renewed forgiveness create an even stronger bond than the one that was strained by the hurt.<br /><br />I used to think that this verse applied only to angelic people who were never angered, and who could keep peace before an argument even started. I wrote myself off as being incapable of being a peacemaker when I was very young. Now I think that being a peacemaker has nothing to do with whether or not you started the problem, but whether or not you are willing to do everything you can to make it right later.<br />"Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God." -Matthew 5:9<br /><br />Thoughts like this I store up my "mental" hope chest... every time I put it into practice in my current life, I am, of course, trying to heal my relationships with my family members, but I am also storing up experience for married life. I think I have no false delusions about how very often I will need these peace-making skills...<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-3541540543206107532009-11-05T10:01:00.003-05:002009-11-05T10:34:36.772-05:00Lessons through painWell, as any readers who read this blog last year will remember, one of our cats got really sick with kidney failure and almost died. The doctors didn't think she'd make it through the night, so we went to see her thinking we were saying goodbye. But we prayed for her, and the next morning the doctors were amazed at how well she was doing. We took her home, and she started acting like her normal self... chasing her tail around, scratching on mirrors and generally making a sweet nuisance of herself.<br /><br />But after a few months, she went back into a decline and died October 24. Not quite a year after getting out of the hospital.<br /><br />It's amazing how much pain and stress it put our whole family through for the past year. Personally, it was a very hard time for me. I know she was "only" a cat, but she was definitely the sweetest one of our three (although also capable of being the most annoying...) and this was my first up-close experience of having to see an innocent creature suffering. I can't imagine how horrible it would be to be that close to a person suffering that severely (or worse).<br /><br />It also put a good deal of strain on my relationship with God. I didn't and still don't understand why He "healed" her a year ago in the hospital just to let her suffer for another year and die of kidney failure anyway. Was it MY fault? Did I not have enough faith? Did we "undo" her healing by treating her with medication like the doctors told us to?<br /><br />Or, the worst thought of all: did He heal her just to teach me all the hard lessons I learned this year watching her die?<br /><br />Of the many lessons I've learned this year, the main two and the only ones I'm going to mention are these:<br />I've learned to trust God, no matter what. Even when it seems like there can be no possible good, I know that "all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose." I don't have to understand what He's doing to trust Him.<br />The other thing I've learned is to tell God exactly what I'm feeling. He can handle my doubts, my fears, my pain, my tears and even my anger. And through difficult circumstances like these I can either turn my back on God, or use it to grow closer to him. And this life will seem so short compared to eternity that all the pain I feel in my entire life will seem less than the pain of stubbing a toe.<br /><br />All these thoughts had been growing in the back of my mind, but the Jeremy Camp concert at the state fair was when it all came completely into focus and I had one of those mind-blowing moments of understanding. And that's when I finally let go of everything I'd been holding onto. Whatever else God may have done through one little cat for the rest of my family, I know He used the situation greatly in my heart, and I'm thankful. Even through the pain that I still feel, I can praise Him. He is good, and His mercy endures forever.<br /><br />And even though she was just a cat, I believe Shadow is in heaven now, and I will get to see her again, just like all the Christian people that have and will get to heaven before me.<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-73987813040189896332009-11-02T12:58:00.002-05:002009-11-02T19:41:10.918-05:00Over the weekend...We went Goodwilling! We were going to go yardsaling, but it rained. No loss! At Goodwill, we found two matching little corner shelves/bookcases, a large, rustic breadbox, a "Golden Pie" collection pie plate with a decorative recipe for peach pie on the bottom, a set of six lovely glass dessert plates (not good for company, but there are six people in our family to enjoy them) and an assortment of much-needed winter clothes for my little brothers. I also found two cute little heart-shaped wall-mount candle-holders that are going in my hope chest. I think that's where the "Golden Pie" plate is going too.<br /><br />The little corner bookshelves were assembled and placed into two parallel corners of our dining room, and instantly filled with pottery pieces from my mom's Seagrove pottery collection.<br /><br />The rustic breadbox is currently in use holding three loaves of bread and any opened chip bags, with plans for making it less rustic in the future... hopefully sometime this week, if the weather really is as nice as it's been forecast, I'll get outside and paint it white. And then Sarah has agreed to paint some sort of design and maybe a Bible verse on the lid.<br /><br />Then, on Sunday, Mom altered some curtains we got at a yard sale recently and I attempted to mount the curtain rod... I've done it before, but these windows were higher and I was at a bad angle for drilling and screwing AND I had the really heavy corded drill/screwdriver because our two battery operated ones are both dead (*sigh*). My Uncle Joel kindly finished it for me. And now we have some cute green and white checkered curtains hanging in our breakfast room! They give it a bright, airy side-walk-cafe feel.<br /><br />And since I know all my readers hang on my every word and live for my day-to-day life stories, I've decided to create suspense and not post pictures until I get satisfactorily clamorous pleadings.<br /><br />~Lizzie<br /><br />(Actually, I just don't have time to take the pictures yet... although I won't bother to post them without requests... =P )Lizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-81692221299294551132009-10-27T23:00:00.000-04:002009-10-27T23:53:04.763-04:00Fair day #2We went back to the fair with several friends to see the 10th Avenue North and Jeremy Camp concert. We got to the fair about 2, got some food, then the guys wanted to check out a crumpled SUV. We all admired Sarah's art entry. Then we went to the bike show. Unfortunately, the schedule was printed wrong, so we killed an hour going to the Village of Yesteryear, and then went back to the bike show. After the bike show, we went over to the expo building for the Dazzling Mills Family show. It wasn't quite time for the show, so we walked around and looked at the exhibits in the Expo center.<br /><br />The show was great!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4KxZbXW9g35KQcVpvstQxWEzjZcw0xMj2xVl7eCppPYJlLch2ofE0suv3GM5e3QAhTY3NZ6_4ifFtej7tXJYNycxHzDfg4thMw9e0GOGe0Tz0ofCU012znmT0NJHnIexJJWJjjaeJ-SA/s1600-h/PA230034.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4KxZbXW9g35KQcVpvstQxWEzjZcw0xMj2xVl7eCppPYJlLch2ofE0suv3GM5e3QAhTY3NZ6_4ifFtej7tXJYNycxHzDfg4thMw9e0GOGe0Tz0ofCU012znmT0NJHnIexJJWJjjaeJ-SA/s320/PA230034.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397484459592386434" border="0" /></a>Vic eating a fried pickle.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheAnGi7tRY-ZTQXrMVmj-_o6LIfw-bcB71QFO2V6NRdmhk3aFdl3HYRWc2IEsnTA6tFLmRZvvLC8byd8nBqK-mgXQmKjdUIruZ8O4jVgbBp-zR6B4qaxavs3xWiSKazTFD4p5kZprM9wg/s1600-h/PA230042.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheAnGi7tRY-ZTQXrMVmj-_o6LIfw-bcB71QFO2V6NRdmhk3aFdl3HYRWc2IEsnTA6tFLmRZvvLC8byd8nBqK-mgXQmKjdUIruZ8O4jVgbBp-zR6B4qaxavs3xWiSKazTFD4p5kZprM9wg/s320/PA230042.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397484460685445426" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-KKl0Ag9pUZflUlD1RIMsaVyR-jJBN45uIm9tb4VNDBLMsp2A2us6Y9TGmut14CGR9BNUz7rqMfnMcKdVenxiwx7XDxt0tlNaMkku__rXDKotgxA1R7OzEkSfTPwASPL2sxg0lYavRqY/s1600-h/PA230046+1.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-KKl0Ag9pUZflUlD1RIMsaVyR-jJBN45uIm9tb4VNDBLMsp2A2us6Y9TGmut14CGR9BNUz7rqMfnMcKdVenxiwx7XDxt0tlNaMkku__rXDKotgxA1R7OzEkSfTPwASPL2sxg0lYavRqY/s320/PA230046+1.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397484467128534498" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQJ7_5yAkfK3-sNQktH_qCYvKQgJM2pRfvJjuRpVwRJJIA_oYOVzfMs-8jhYlhcQhNwIbNzicmc9TORGZ9-4Rdt1zKmuxyqPX_6jCVp8Wnn-eWGjDuo196n3QInmqLlsZQoiNR4l3JGa0/s1600-h/PA230048.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQJ7_5yAkfK3-sNQktH_qCYvKQgJM2pRfvJjuRpVwRJJIA_oYOVzfMs-8jhYlhcQhNwIbNzicmc9TORGZ9-4Rdt1zKmuxyqPX_6jCVp8Wnn-eWGjDuo196n3QInmqLlsZQoiNR4l3JGa0/s320/PA230048.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397484473818682530" border="0" /></a>They're homeschoolers! Our entirely homeschooled group screamed and cheered when this was announced, drawing the comment from Mr. Mills that "Well, THAT'S not obvious!"<br /><br />After the Dazzling Mills Family, we went to ride some rides. About half the group wanted to ride Fireball, so we all got in line, and then they closed the ride. A few people rode the only real roller coaster. And then we had to split. Because of a very important Hawks baseball game, half of our group had to leave. The rest of us went to the concert.<br /><br />The concert was AWESOME! The end.<br /><br />After the concert we rode the ferris wheel...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhheSk7GGs3IGiScz9KxwNzDFVO7z06x48V06eDUWkcTYOVMp05-7ngKMQ-HXwEFa1DB3H-mhyphenhyphenQ7wLImmsuGYVofAkRPBQ8F6uczEBDkXV-cxKofn9AigyF4BjPcg1NA9p8IzGAqfQDRQ/s1600-h/PA230054.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhheSk7GGs3IGiScz9KxwNzDFVO7z06x48V06eDUWkcTYOVMp05-7ngKMQ-HXwEFa1DB3H-mhyphenhyphenQ7wLImmsuGYVofAkRPBQ8F6uczEBDkXV-cxKofn9AigyF4BjPcg1NA9p8IzGAqfQDRQ/s320/PA230054.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397491772179558866" border="0" /></a>From the top!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1S0f7lVgtRE9gDR3XO7fCvMRye-AE4fr3T-OVaI_QwH6GALv0qc31xajmsNfbX4AAcqplAF1M9Xtf8YloA_GsdjsTOaJha5w79Os0NauvCSgdj9509yry4xpLV32TtQhLytL8Ge0mp3o/s1600-h/PA230058.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1S0f7lVgtRE9gDR3XO7fCvMRye-AE4fr3T-OVaI_QwH6GALv0qc31xajmsNfbX4AAcqplAF1M9Xtf8YloA_GsdjsTOaJha5w79Os0NauvCSgdj9509yry4xpLV32TtQhLytL8Ge0mp3o/s320/PA230058.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397491777319760994" border="0" /></a>From the ferris wheel, I took a picture of the ride next on our list: the swings!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYDRhNezelBKk-gbr51aN1z6kpJIKik4os1dc6sDZ58zKFuRV8IzKu7_soKiUFaYFrQM6-R4GztlrKNUguccF_bBkp8LTFymoXaULopfJm4G7ao_H7YWRV3KLrpkTd18qGuqHQzxEeG6A/s1600-h/PA230074.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYDRhNezelBKk-gbr51aN1z6kpJIKik4os1dc6sDZ58zKFuRV8IzKu7_soKiUFaYFrQM6-R4GztlrKNUguccF_bBkp8LTFymoXaULopfJm4G7ao_H7YWRV3KLrpkTd18qGuqHQzxEeG6A/s320/PA230074.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397491779029856418" border="0" /></a>Sarah and Jessica, in their seats...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3NjQ4M2ixJqmhQ7YAWw4pPaE0wOTNf92D5y0kIM4evwfELtyuj4uUef1s_Hvk5gw7fSW9P-72e_9nQBzcS-1pgO5bdmsBiWZsVjtwbOM5QTCzG6Lm7ccC3S5uizQYhjCNUCvF0ur5Bz8/s1600-h/PA230080.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3NjQ4M2ixJqmhQ7YAWw4pPaE0wOTNf92D5y0kIM4evwfELtyuj4uUef1s_Hvk5gw7fSW9P-72e_9nQBzcS-1pgO5bdmsBiWZsVjtwbOM5QTCzG6Lm7ccC3S5uizQYhjCNUCvF0ur5Bz8/s320/PA230080.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397491786259849586" border="0" /></a>Yep, I took my camera! I like this shot, too...<br /><br />Then we headed home, exhausted. So much fun! I love the fair.<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-69965541016051614092009-10-26T12:10:00.003-04:002009-10-26T12:39:19.170-04:00Introducing!Two nameless models. If you remember the sewing business that my friend Kara and I tried to start last year, this is the booster attempt with a focus on: doll clothes.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7lW1PrahPA8gd-aSPTuleeZsDP1u7uwgzNNnH7yZ06HKTrizjAl2G24BY_Ebbkas6lwML6kFqU46JLwe5LVD2yUA_ZwHohVPVTtFfBdkukyNj2J7G0da2MkLr8iheswW3HQS4EAIiqp4/s1600-h/PA260003.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7lW1PrahPA8gd-aSPTuleeZsDP1u7uwgzNNnH7yZ06HKTrizjAl2G24BY_Ebbkas6lwML6kFqU46JLwe5LVD2yUA_ZwHohVPVTtFfBdkukyNj2J7G0da2MkLr8iheswW3HQS4EAIiqp4/s320/PA260003.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396943397735196882" border="0" /></a>They are pictured here with our first two attempts. Kara's is the peach dress, and mine is the maroon. They won 3rd and 2nd place in the state fair, respectively.<br /><br />The red head came with a name already (I hate that) and it is NOT staying. "Stacey" is so "Barbie" when it comes to dolls.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-c2UXO-3dhyphenhyphenhZ7d5IMxfr3UTGyKsQfxHUBfKthu0bMAB-6q1dmU_3fCBTblo1K7xHKsPGbCC_j6h7TkYjEfqzcF4CfgOz2ok-BYyXPt7bDppb1p8nwsYmJVFcbRnkpx_dAUvrY6P76Pc/s1600-h/PA260015.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-c2UXO-3dhyphenhyphenhZ7d5IMxfr3UTGyKsQfxHUBfKthu0bMAB-6q1dmU_3fCBTblo1K7xHKsPGbCC_j6h7TkYjEfqzcF4CfgOz2ok-BYyXPt7bDppb1p8nwsYmJVFcbRnkpx_dAUvrY6P76Pc/s320/PA260015.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396943407120663218" border="0" /></a>I love her red hair, and green eyes, but her face is plain (she reminds me of an early American Girl doll, and for all their popularity I've never thought that they were very nice dolls) and her coloring unfortunately unrealistic for a red head. The pricing for this doll was MUCH better than American Girl prices (very cheap with the coupon), though, so I am happy with her.<br /><br />The Madame Alexander dolls I found while researching on the internet. Her vinyl upper body is nice for lower neckline and thin-strap tops, as seen in the picture.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHe_Tb0dC0XT1LqY-GPBr7879AxDR0pUz3q_LbDC4ICp8NIK3gMxnCtKgu2tMvUwDdxBeePu4AybCH0qBY4ppM2SPBep3omRUpC3z8Vy6cv46JR4eC9u_dzGtlbJssXsPaYkhD1pJKWsw/s1600-h/PA260011.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHe_Tb0dC0XT1LqY-GPBr7879AxDR0pUz3q_LbDC4ICp8NIK3gMxnCtKgu2tMvUwDdxBeePu4AybCH0qBY4ppM2SPBep3omRUpC3z8Vy6cv46JR4eC9u_dzGtlbJssXsPaYkhD1pJKWsw/s320/PA260011.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396943401896791522" border="0" /></a>I was very excited to find that they are sometimes available at Costco beginning in October for the holiday season. However, over the phone, Costco informed us that they would not be carrying them this year. The next week, Mom surprised me with her after a trip to Costco! The employee was apparently mistaken.<br /><br />Her skin is beautifully creamy, her eyes a rich chocolate and her hair is unbelievably silky. She also has the ability to tilt her head, as well as looking up and down (like my Elsie doll). American Girl and the Springfield collection dolls (my red head) can only turn their heads from side to side. Amazingly enough, she was also fairly inexpensive (much, much less than American Girl!)<br /><br />Suggestions for names are quite welcome! I'm thinking of Flanna for the red head and Rowena for the brunette...<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-250288629689853782009-10-18T20:32:00.003-04:002009-10-18T21:07:00.733-04:00Fair day #1!My family went to the fair this past Friday. We're usually the type who arrive at the fair at 9:30 or 10am, and stay all day. This time, we didn't make it there until 2, but we still stayed for the fireworks. And I took a grand total of 4 very blurry pictures while we were waiting to ride the ferris wheel.<br /><br />First we checked out all our family entries... various 2nds, 3rds, 4ths, 5ths and Honorable Mentions were awarded to some. In between checking entries, we got some corn on the cob... it's tradition. Anyway, the last entry we got to was my doll dress ... it got 2nd... even though it was the only one in the catagory... apparently the judges didn't think it was good enough for a first, even if it was the only one... I found that pretty funny! And kinda sad...<br /><br />After we checked all the entries we went to take our traditional picture on the invisible bench. Then we went and rode rides, ate our traditional gyros at John the Greek, and rode more rides... David got me to go on Freak Out (I think that's what it's called...) with him this year, and it was actually pretty fun! There's also a new swings ride! Instead of the swings just going in a circle, you went around AND up really high (I'm not explaining it very well). It was pretty neat.<br /><br />Then we walked around the Expo center... mostly because it was so COLD outside, but Sarah and I enjoyed seeing all the animals... I especially enjoyed seeing the calves, chicks, ducklings and I think they were baby miniature donkeys... they were all cute, anyway. After that, we rode the ferris wheel and froze... it was so cold up high, whenever the ferris wheel got to the bottom it felt warm.<br /><br />Then we got some hot cider and hung around the "Heritage Circle" watching the blacksmith and sitting by the tobacco barn fires while we waited for the fire works. About 15 minutes before the fireworks went off, we went through gate 8 before they closed it for the fireworks and settled into our traditional fireworks watching spot. We watch from the parking lot just out side the gate, and then try and get to our car and get out before the crowd of "after fireworks" leavers start leaving.<br /><br />It was so much fun. I always enjoy going to the fair. The bad part is Sarah picked up a cold, and I've got a little bit of something too... I'm not coughing as much as she is though, I just don't feel very energetic, and I have a scratchy feeling in my throat.<br /><br />Hopefully we will recover quickly, because we're supposed to be going back to the fair this Friday to see the 10th Avenue North and Jeremy Camp concert with some of our friends...<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-78928178149256082012009-10-14T16:53:00.000-04:002009-10-14T16:53:31.439-04:00Please don't bring your issues to my pity party...Many times, when I am frustrated with something, I will try to comfort myself with the thought that someday, *I* will do it differently! My children will always be obedient, my kitchen always clean and organized and my household will flow like a merry fairy-tale...<br /><br />Hahaha.<br /><br />If I can't be patient now, having my own kids won't make it easier. Maybe my future home won't have the same irritations that I face now, but there will still be things to test my character. If I am not content now, there is no reason I will be content later. I will always be looking toward the future, waiting for that moment when every piece in my world falls into place...<br /><br />And it finally sank into my head. Years of hearing that you must be content in all things, and it took 18 years for me to get it. But I think that I can truthfully say that I got it now! That does NOT mean that I am always content, but now, rather than wallowing in my pity party and wistfully dreaming of that "perfect" future, I remind myself that where I am now is a part of His plan, and I am meant to learn from my current circumstances.<br /><br />And really, what do I have to not be content about? It's not as if my circumstances are very difficult! God has taken care of my family. We are all together, we have a house with running water, food to eat, clothes to wear, two cars, a grand piano and several Bibles. When I remember all that I have, and what some in this world do not have, I am ashamed that I could ever be discontent.<br /><br />"Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content." Philippians 4:11<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-56949308547507402092009-10-10T15:49:00.004-04:002009-10-10T16:00:04.383-04:00Successful cinnamon rolls!Or, at least, I think they are. =P<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTA0XNhMrHgDgHajieKGVQcyliHw6F5HmJ3JNOYYvi5iXTBDzJMsgrzOmE1i9pUmc4_yNKnCbm-Ek5vft54ib-lpzEh6JlaUIUbySm06QFW13b_M-cYr_wgR5hTA4AuSRJQZvw8bX2yeI/s1600-h/PA100001_01.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTA0XNhMrHgDgHajieKGVQcyliHw6F5HmJ3JNOYYvi5iXTBDzJMsgrzOmE1i9pUmc4_yNKnCbm-Ek5vft54ib-lpzEh6JlaUIUbySm06QFW13b_M-cYr_wgR5hTA4AuSRJQZvw8bX2yeI/s320/PA100001_01.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391062329732440130" border="0" /></a><br />They still don't look like an advertisement, but I'm just happy that somehow, they turned nice and fluffy this time, and I made the icing a little runnier so it spread and soaked better. I also piled on the sugar, butter and cinnamon... so much that there is a gooey layer of syrupy sugar-cinnamon-butter in the bottom of the pan...<br /><br />I'm satisfied. =D<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-39497085974832050952009-10-09T20:20:00.005-04:002009-10-09T20:30:57.471-04:00Doll dressMy friend Kara and I made doll dresses to enter in the state fair. This is mine, on my doll, Elsie.<br /><br />I couldn't get the lighting right... so I have two versions.<br />The washed out version:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpCes4bqw4spKx4yReBYtx9a3msT83LlmLa_kyDPQMsGfmVTE8wHl6SCWCg7XM_k82f71h3q-WN7N8NeZHjDg8f1yN9Ckzv4Knd0bW42BkL7ek4BHLVsRnfJV_bzmthhwzSLErwz1K4Ks/s1600-h/PA090007.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpCes4bqw4spKx4yReBYtx9a3msT83LlmLa_kyDPQMsGfmVTE8wHl6SCWCg7XM_k82f71h3q-WN7N8NeZHjDg8f1yN9Ckzv4Knd0bW42BkL7ek4BHLVsRnfJV_bzmthhwzSLErwz1K4Ks/s320/PA090007.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390760875986903330" border="0" /></a>The fuzzy, yellow version:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghAX3v37doKK9xgucmW38TvRhuOiB8KQ6yVuDRA1Od1Y71aOpAwtHY_yMxpA4ZLRH3WKECE7zbzCBwjaYnC-OJQNWTZPjLtHObjH0gR-VFQS_uMYWxWEK1nDSi_aviuEW9uSA_8BZIRCc/s1600-h/PA090010.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghAX3v37doKK9xgucmW38TvRhuOiB8KQ6yVuDRA1Od1Y71aOpAwtHY_yMxpA4ZLRH3WKECE7zbzCBwjaYnC-OJQNWTZPjLtHObjH0gR-VFQS_uMYWxWEK1nDSi_aviuEW9uSA_8BZIRCc/s320/PA090010.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390760885638763042" border="0" /></a>Maybe between the two you can get an idea what it really looks like. =P<br /><br />Details:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFPq-GdYHT5a186ris8V7Tvnapdu_pncz7jQinrY7qJz0bdMpOPWjvEDp-yU08l4ApZ1c8zNdiJt4lJIbl4Bwn30ztSxj-FQMiw1XTEXNLlOAug3OlfXvIckDb-p1R9b3f1-KSmKnr3xg/s1600-h/PA090012.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFPq-GdYHT5a186ris8V7Tvnapdu_pncz7jQinrY7qJz0bdMpOPWjvEDp-yU08l4ApZ1c8zNdiJt4lJIbl4Bwn30ztSxj-FQMiw1XTEXNLlOAug3OlfXvIckDb-p1R9b3f1-KSmKnr3xg/s320/PA090012.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390760894225735778" border="0" /></a>Full length shot:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1xCc9YtS8NS3pyPDVOFTV94KcpLtiRnuRf0ut35yBSNQhAwQGkN4qm6t-JjeXXlCyY5o-bI6lZ6stT1flxduHDOkrbhB_WlIY2ITVVKkWAVUJEu1LrQAv4TA6auYXGUys23QDEMuKiaM/s1600-h/PA090015.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1xCc9YtS8NS3pyPDVOFTV94KcpLtiRnuRf0ut35yBSNQhAwQGkN4qm6t-JjeXXlCyY5o-bI6lZ6stT1flxduHDOkrbhB_WlIY2ITVVKkWAVUJEu1LrQAv4TA6auYXGUys23QDEMuKiaM/s320/PA090015.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390760900911265426" border="0" /></a>I had a lot of fun sewing this dress! We threw them together pretty last minute, so now I'm eager to do another doll dress with more planning and more care.<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-53714149755564356972009-10-08T17:41:00.002-04:002009-10-08T17:46:40.506-04:00Shocking and Malicious Distortion of Classic Literature #2<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sense-Sensibility-Monsters-Jane-Austen/dp/1594744424/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1255030804&sr=8-1">Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters</a>. Oh, creatures of the deep, slay me before I read the first word and save me from my misery.<br /><br />Oh, wait. I don't have to read it! Never mind.<br /><br />There should be a law against tacking Jane Austen's name onto any contortion of her writing.<br /><br />All that is needed now is a very elaborate eye-roll and a disgusted sigh.<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-61358520649570001032009-10-05T18:48:00.006-04:002009-10-05T19:42:31.156-04:00Romans 15:30-33Mr. Henderson's sermon in church yesterday was on Romans 15:30-33:<br />"<sup class="versenum" id="en-NKJV-28330">30</sup> Now I beg you, brethren, through the Lord Jesus Christ, and through the love of the Spirit, that you strive together with me in prayers to God for me, <sup class="versenum" id="en-NKJV-28331">31</sup> that I may be delivered from those in Judea who do not believe, and that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, <sup class="versenum" id="en-NKJV-28332">32</sup> that I may come to you with joy by the will of God, and may be refreshed together with you. <sup class="versenum" id="en-NKJV-28333">33</sup> Now the God of peace <i>be</i> with you all. Amen."<br /><br />And one of the points Mr. Henderson made that stuck out to me was that Paul was <span style="font-style: italic;">begging</span> his fellow believers to pray for him, and these were people that he didn't even know.<br /><br />I don't know that I've ever begged someone to pray for me... I didn't need to beg though, because so far in my life, all I've had to do was ask. =P But I guess maybe Paul was begging because he was communicating through writing instead of in person, and since you can't see the person's responding in letter writing you want to impress your point more emphatically...?<br /><br />Well, I have decided to beg for prayer for myself. If you've been reading my blog for at least a year then you've probably seen some of my posts where I rant, moan and whine about how confused I am and how I have no idea what I'm supposed to be doing with myself. It seems like every time I come up with a plan, I find a flaw, or I get scared, or I change my mind. The number of plans I have adopted for a mere day or two are too numerous to count.<br /><br />The problem, I think, is that my main goal is to eventually get married. I don't know when that will be (if ever), so I'm trying to find some way of making money so that I can support myself if need be. Since I took piano lessons for 9 years, and devoted a good deal of time and work into becoming a proficient pianist, the most obvious option is something involving piano. I really enjoy teaching... I have a few beginner students that I am teaching out of my home.<br /><br />So, assuming that I will do something with teaching piano, the next obvious step would normally be going to college for piano pedagogy. My problems with college are that I have no desire to learn all the extra required things (like math, science, psychology or other things that colleges may require for degrees) or to spend 4 years of my life learning all of that when I could be teaching for those 4 years. Nor do I wish to leave my family.<br /><br />However, I know that I lack the ability to teach students any more advanced than beginners, and I wouldn't want to have such a limitation on myself forever. As of yet, all my students have left me before they got close to intermediate level (and maybe that says something about my teaching skills...) and right now I am restricting my advertising to beginners.<br /><br />My plan for this year (as I've mentioned recently) is taking up lessons again myself (I stopped for a year) and "apprenticing" with my new piano teacher to learn from her how to teach better. Today was the first day that I did the apprenticing, so I'm not sure how it will continue to work out, but today I taught two early intermediate students without her supervision, and I was hoping that she would be supervising and more of teaching me to teach than just giving me a student and saying, "Okay, go." So I'll see how that goes...<br /><br />But as to future plans, I have begun reconsidering college. Meredith is a good option because it's so close that I could commute, but I don't want to have to do all the non-piano/music things that Meredith requires for a degree. Campbell (as far as I can tell from their websites) requires less non-music classes for a degree, but is just far enough that I would need to live on campus (but could come home on weekends).<br /><br />The thing is, I think of teaching piano as a temporary option. I am hoping and praying that God's will is to fulfill my deepest desire of being a wife and mother, and if I teach piano after I get married, it probably won't be much. So if it is God's will for me to get married, should I spend 4 years going to school for piano? What if I end up getting married right out of college and don't use my expensive education for anything besides teaching my own children? But then, what if I never get married and my only support is teaching piano lessons for the rest of my life? Wouldn't it be better to go to college and be a skilled teacher so that I can support myself more easily if I'm a confirmed old maid?<br /><br />So, to condense all that, my prayer requests are:<br />For God's continued guidance<br />For Him to give me wisdom<br />For me to have joy and contentment no matter where I am<br />For His will to be worked in my life (hopefully including a husband and family ;) )<br />And through wherever my life path takes me, that He will shape my character and use me to His glory.<br /><br />Thank you for praying for me!<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-45878671862304109122009-10-02T13:53:00.004-04:002009-10-02T14:36:47.422-04:00Oh, beautiful weather!I love every season, but I always feel most excited about the season that is just beginning! I think God planned them perfectly so that when fall is here, I'm exactly ready for it... summer is neither too long nor too short. And then fall with its cool breezes, warm sun, falling leaves smoothly segues into winter, with freezing weather making the perfect condition to sit inside under a warm afghan by the fire with a book and a cup of hot chocolate or hot tea. About the time you're tired of being stuck inside, spring brings cheerful birds and fresh, cool mornings, with lovely flowers and new life. And then summer is back: gardens, summer flowers, swimming, cold lemonade and breezy moonlit walks...<br /><br />I think I would be perfectly happy in a cozy little house in the middle of lots of land, with my own garden, and no reason to leave every day. My life is so crazy, sometimes I wonder if maybe I should be enjoying home life more... taking care of a garden, hanging clothes out on a clothesline, baking all the things it seems I never have time for, cleaning, sewing, playing piano just for fun, reading... but with my previously mentioned schedule, I hardly have time to get all the other work done.<br /><br />On Monday, I have to go to my lesson, and help teach. That takes all afternoon. In the morning, I have to eat breakfast, do schoolwork, eat lunch and leave. And I don't have enough time to finish my schoolwork. I leave from my lesson, pick up Sarah at band, go home, help fix supper, eat, try to finish schoolwork and go to bed.<br /><br />On Tuesday, I have to get up, eat breakfast, do school ("school" includes practice piano) and leave for swimming. We eat "lunch" at about 4 in the afternoon when we get home (starving!) and then Sarah and I leave for dance and theatre. We get home around 8 and eat supper. This past Tuesday, our director decided to spring auditions on us, so I have 4 days left now to prepare a song and monologue for audition. And I don't even know what character I would like to try out for!<br /><br />On Wednesday, I get up, eat breakfast, do school and leave for swimming and water polo. Again, we eat "lunch" after swimming when we get home around 4. Then I have a few hours to do school, help fix supper and eat before we leave for our Wednesday night prayer meeting (Radical Wednesday). We leave at 7, and don't usually get home until 10... sometimes 11.<br /><br />On Thursday, I get up, eat breakfast (is this redundant yet?), do school and leave for swimming. We eat when we get home at 4. Sometimes I take Sarah to band and we don't get home until 6. Then we help fix supper, eat and I usually waste the rest of the evening because by Thursday, I'm so exhausted that I don't even want to think about doing something productive (sad to say...).<br /><br />On Friday, I get up, clean my room, eat breakfast, and clean the living room and foyer in preparation for my piano students. I have a student that comes at 10:30am. Then I practice piano, help fix lunch, work on school or cleaning my room (or the monologue, song and character analysis that I STILL HAVEN'T DONE!!! Ahhhhhhh!!) and on the first Friday of every month I have my "once-a-month" students at 3 and 3:30. (That's today, so right now I'm home by myself, because Mom took the boys to basketball practice, and Sarah went with them. Daddy's at work.) On the days when I don't have afternoon students, I usually take the boys to basketball practice. They get home around 4. (Hmm... we seem to get home at 4 a lot...) Then I have the rest of the afternoon to clean, work on school, practice or whatever I need to do. Fix supper, eat, usually watch some TV, and go to bed.<br /><br />Saturdays don't really have a schedule, but there's usually something that we have to do around the house, or maybe shopping that needs to be done. I like to sew or do some fun baking or "deep" cleaning where I clean out junk that I somehow collect like a magnet.<br /><br />On Sundays we usually stay home and do the bare minimum of work and relax. If we don't, the next week is even more stressful and hectic than the last week. You can only go, go, go for so long before you explode, crash and burn.<br /><br />So if you noticed, I have a lot that I should be doing right now instead of writing this blog post. It's sometimes so overwhelming that I just shove it all aside and do something useless, like writing this post... it actually helps, because it organizes my thoughts and gives me a break so that I don't go completely insane.<br /><br />And then I take a few minutes to wish that I could have a homey life ("wash day," "baking day," "cleaning day"...) sigh, and then go do SOMETHING that I need to do. I'm trying to keep ahead, and I think I'm doomed to be behind... behind in <span style="font-style: italic;">what</span> is the variable. =\<br /><br />Let the usefulness now resume...<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-81073931146422132772009-09-29T12:17:00.004-04:002009-09-29T13:19:29.829-04:00Have you ever been hungry and nauseous at the same time?I'm sitting here wrapped in a quilt, feeling hot and cold by turns. I've been in bed almost all morning, and I'm tired of laying there when it doesn't make me feel any better. I have decided to push aside polite rules and my own embarrassment to share with you something that I think everyone should know about. I won't make it as much of a TMI post as it could be, but it will definitely be more TMI than I usually am. So there's your warning.<br /><br />Some girls need to know that all girls don't have their "time" as easily as they do, so that they can sympathize. Other girls need to know that they are not alone in their suffering. I used to try to suffer through, and push myself to live a normal day. I feel horribly lazy to have a "sick" day for something that healthy women are SUPPOSED to have for around 30 years of their life, but the truth is that this pain is real and it shouldn't be ignored. (Although it is also not natural, and it should be treated.)<br /><br />Guys should know what this feminine "sickness" is like for girls... your mom, sister or wife will appreciate your sympathy even if she has it "easy." And if you're grossed out or don't want to hear about it, I recommend that you either never get married, or just get over it.<br /><br />The medical term for it is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dysmenorrhea">Dysmenorrhea</a>. Their description, however, comes nowhere near close to the excruciating pain I feel. It feels like there is a monster hand twisting and knotting my insides, and slowing pulling my insides inside-out. The slightest movement of something as remote as my toes gives causes a deepening in the pain. Breathing hurts. Lying down doesn't help much. There aren't words to describe this unique torture, so I won't try.<br /><br />My whole body aches, and even without the horrific cramps, the ache would keep me from resting comfortably. My muscles feel heavy and slack. I'm shaking, and if I try to stand up, or move my head to fast, I'll get dizzy.<br /><br />I'm nauseous, and I have stabbing hunger pains. From previous experience, I know that it's better to be nauseous and hungry than to eat something and then fight throwing it up. Eventually the hunger pains fade anyway... if you're hungry long enough, the hunger goes away.<br /><br />If I stay active, I will eventually get a hot flash immediately followed by a cold sweat. Then the blood will drain from my face, and if I don't sit down, I will faint. I've only fainted once, fortunately.<br /><br />From that point, my symptoms usually start fading. It usually only lasts a day for me, but for some it can last as long as a week.<br /><br />Doctors will usually prescribe the Pill. The pill actually causes normal female fertility to temporarily cease, including menstruation. The placebo week is fake, to make users feel comfortable that they aren't completely interfering with their body's natural processes. When in actuality, they are. (Bad idea.)<br /><br />Red Raspberry leaf is a natural hormone balancing herb. I've been taking it religiously for about 2 months, and it has helped a lot. It hasn't helped as much this time, but I still feel better than I usually feel. I hope that Red Raspberry is the answer, and eventually this pain will be a vague memory for me, which is why I decided to write this post while I still know what it feels like.<br /><br />I hope I didn't disturb you too much, and that this was helpful for someone.<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6097572279283273245.post-9400262525367419912009-09-20T23:15:00.004-04:002009-09-20T23:29:44.049-04:00*glare* Did YOU steal my diary?I marched into my brothers' bedroom and gave them my most intimidating stare, silently, until I had their full attention. Joel lowered his thick novel and David asked, "What?" I pursed my lips. "Did you guys take my diary?"<br /><br />They looked at me and started laughing. I wasn't sure if they were guilty, or if they thought that was the most ridiculous idea they'd ever heard. However stereotypical diary-stealing brothers may be, my brothers, first and foremost, would probably be bored out of their minds if they could even read my cursive, and secondly, wouldn't invade my privacy even if it would be interesting. Still, they were more likely than my sister and parents, and I'd already checked everywhere that I could have left it.<br /><br />Joel and David were still rolling on their beds laughing, Joel gasping, "I... can't... breathe!!!" when Sarah walked in. "What's so funny?"By this time, I was trying to stifle my own laughter. "Did YOU take my diary?" Sarah instantly started laughing. If I didn't know better, I would think they were all in on it, but they know enough about my thoughts to know that my diary would be redundant to them.<br /><br />Sarah followed me when I went to check if Mom had seen it. After Mom affirmed that she hadn't taken it, Sarah asked, "Did you even know she HAS a diary?" To which Mom admitted that she didn't.<br /><br />Daddy is already asleep, so he's the only un-investigated suspect... I just can't figure out what happened to it! It must have been me... but I only write in it in one place, and I only keep it in one place, and I looked both, and in between isn't a very far distance either... quite frustrating.<br /><br />And I just wanted to copy down an interesting passage I just read.<br /><br />~LizzieLizziehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11187051722510749149noreply@blogger.com3