Stolen from Facebook

Just because it's fun:

25 Random Things About Me

Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about yourself.

1. I say I want to live somewhere with all 4 seasons, but I think I might be miserable if it was less than 50* for any significant amount of time. (But I still harbor dreams of living in Boise.)

2. I love going out to eat; it's just so much EASIER. But it's usually more fun if the kids are elsewhere!

3. I am due with our last baby in mid-April, but hope the baby is slightly early, because I don't really like being pregnant.

4. I have never been more than a few thousand dollars in debt (besides a mortgage). The thought of owing money totally freaks me out.

5. I am supposed to run a half-marathon in December. I am anxious and excited about it.

6. I used to race sailboats when I lived in Seattle, and also in North Carolina. Thistle class. LOTS of fun.

7. We are getting a new car next week! This will be my first new car ever.

8. One of the sad things about this is that I will no longer have my 5-speed Subaru. I love my 5-speed.

9. I met my husband at an AFROTC conference when I was 19, but we didn't officially start dating (the first time) until I was about 25 and he was living in Idaho. I was living in Seattle at the time, and I felt that the distance wasn't so great that we couldn't date. Also, I found out how much fun dating him was, and I was hooked.

10. Until he went to pilot training in Texas and we stopped seeing each other, because I refused to move from Seattle to Texas, or date long-distance through pilot training. Once he moved to Arizona, we began dating again. Wow, was I an opportunistic dater or what?

11. We got engaged 6 months later, and moved to North Carolina. I was 27 when we got married.

12. I got stung by a bark scorpion when we lived in Arizona. It hurt like blazes, literally, for 36 hours.

13. I climbed Mt. Adams in Washington state in the late 1990s. It is 12,281', and it was one of the hardest things I have ever done. I carried my ski gear up the mountain and skied down.

14. I took tap, ballet and jazz dance lessons for years as a child/teenager. After college, I took years of swing dancing lessons, with some salsa lessons thrown in. I love to dance.

15. I miss being able to drink red wine with dinner.

16. I have lived in South Korea (with the military) and London (without), and I hope to live in Europe someday.

17. I am a closet (okay, I guess it's not that secret) sci-fi fan.

18. I love it when my daughters cuddle up with me. I especially love their hugs.

19. I used to love to ski and snowboard, but I don't know if I do anymore: it's so damn cold. I hope to try it again when the kids are a little older.

20. I got my private pilot's license when I was 6 months pregnant with Kate. I have not been able to fly much since, although I would like to. I love it, and the weather here is perfect for it. Much better than Korea, where I began flying. I had enough hours to test in Korea, but after my "practice test session" with Mr. Cho, the only FAA examiner on the peninsula, I was in tears and thought I would never get my license. After we moved to Arizona, I had a few refresher lessons (including a repeat long cross-country since my one in Korea didn't count) and passed the FAA exam with flying colors. Take that, Mr. Cho!

21. Two of my favorite places in the world are Queenstown, New Zealand, and Hong Kong.

22. I have no idea what I am going to do for work when the kids go to school. This sort of stresses me out, but I'm trying to enjoy my time home with the kids as much as possible.

23. I have worked in finance for most of my adult life, although my degree is in International Studies.

24. I am pretty sure the word "no" comes out of my mouth a bazillion times a day.

25. I love to cook, although I don't have much time for it these days. I would like to become a better chef, and would love to take cake decorating classes.

Now, show me some love, and tell me a little about your 25 random things.

Current obsessions

Me: this website is addictive. You will be shocked and disgusted, and may never recover your desire for another bloomin' onion. I've never had one, and now I never will.

Tim: anything house-related. Especially if it involves Home Depot, chlorine, power tools, or looking up stuff on the internet.

Kate: Barbie. Agh. And Dora, of course.

Claire: Goldfish crackers. "Feesheeeees! Feesheeees! Mas! Pees, mas!" Also, stairs.

Things I Love

Idea stolen borrowed from Elizabeth:

getting hugs from my girls; driving with the sunroof open and music on; Tim wearing cologne; watching funny movies; mexican food; cheese; falling asleep; watching my kids sleep; cooking; watching a movie while sprawled on the sofa with Tim; thunderstorms; Rush Limbaugh; sushi; rocking Claire to sleep; swing dancing; salsa dancing; raspberries; decorating cakes; eating cake with buttercream frosting; Hong Kong; running in a light mist; running in warm fall sun; autumn; sailing; having all the laundry done; sitting outside on a warm Tucson night drinking a margarita; Ronald Reagan; flying; Boise; fresh snow; hot showers; John Cusack; Jennifer Aniston; Battlestar Galactica; Europe; red; my sister; going wine tasting; visiting friends; laughing so hard I cry; small towns in France; leather car seats; reading a great book; the south island of New Zealand; comments on my blog; reading friends' blogs; when Claire grabs onto me tight, and pats my back; when Kate says cute things like "Mommy, I'll be right back", and "Maybe watch Max & Ruby?"; going new places; crepes; coffee; being home alone; gardening; the smell of lilies; Halloween; looking at new houses; Seattle in the summer; a comfortable bed; making breakfast in the spring or fall with the windows open and a cool breeze mixing with the smell of coffee and melting butter; strawberries; London; ice cream; chasing Kate and Claire; my girl friends; vacations.

What do you love?

Referrals

I get some weird hits from Google. My favorites:

• *lots* of warthog stuff (warthog ice (?), warthog suit, cute warthog (again, ?), baby warthog)
• no slugs fighter pilot
• how to get your toddler to clean up her toys
• secret mommy crush
• something to do with belgian waffles
• JC Penny's kids photos in Tucson
• same for the Picture People
• osan ab pool swim lessons 2007
• Dora cake (query from someone in Turkey, no less!)
• phan thiet plane landing
• and, perhaps my favorite, is Giada deLaurentis pregnant?

I got so many hits for this last one several months ago, that I was certain she was indeed with child. I should have broke the news on my own blog. Just kidding, Giada; your secret was safe with me.

Random stuff, and stealing from other bloggers

I had a nice pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks this morning, and am feeling on top of the world. It's amazing how a nice cup of joe can do that for you, isn't it?

So apparently today is National De-Lurking Day (thank you, Katie, for letting us know about this important day of tribute! No lurking on this blog! If you visit, leave a comment!). The things people come up with... But she got some fun comments as a result of her post, so I'm going to steal borrow her idea, in hopes that if you are visiting you will leave a comment. She asked her readers where they would live, if they could choose just one place. Money was no factor, of course! I couldn't answer her question without listing several places I would find ideal, but I s'pose I could narrow it down to 3:

1. Boise, Idaho
2. Seattle, Washington
3. Queenstown, New Zealand
   

I love all three places, and hope that some day we will be so lucky as to live in one! I am pretty sure that Tim feels the same way about these cities, so at least I have that going for me. I especially would like 4 distinct seasons, mountains, and water close by. Good weather would be nice, but as you can see by numbers 2 and 3 above, that is not necessarily a deciding factor.

Now, on to my own question. What is your great love of the moment? What thing have you just now discovered and you can't live without it, or what thing is on your TRULUV4EVA list even though it's so last year? As usual, I cannot come up with just one thing. Damn. So here's my list:

• Johnson & Johnson's Vapor Bath for Babies (thank you, Carrie!)
  

• my loaner car for the day: an Acura MDX, brand new. The steering wheel moves away from me when I turn the engine off, to allow me more room to get out. There is even one of those cameras that allow you to see behind you when you're in reverse. And it has that new car smell, which is So Different from that 2 carseats in the back/stale cheerios/is there spilt milk somewhere in here? smell. All I want to do is zip around town with the music turned up and the sunroof open. But I have no carseats, so I will be staying home, glancing forlornly at my vehicle that will turn back into a pumpkin tonight at 5pm.

• Pumpkin Spice Lattes from Starbucks!


• Flat Earth chips:

• Razzberry M&Ms


• Naps. I never get them, but I am so in love with them.


• Syrah. Love.
  

What will you be watching?

Last spring there were nail-biting cliffhangers, wild surprises, and edge-of-your-seat finales. Now it's fall, and television is back. There are new shows and old, remakes and revivals. Here's what's got me ready and waiting at 7pm:

• Heroes
• CSI:
• Bionic Woman
• Battlestar Galactica (gah - its last season!)
• 24 (loved this show in its first 5 seasons; I'll give it a shot this year, just to see)
• Eureka (will they continue this show into the fall?)
• The Unit

I might also check out:

• Chuck
• Journeyman
• Life
• House (loved this show until 'The Unit' came on in its time slot)

What's on your list?

The Drive

As I mentioned a couple of posts ago, we made it. Actually, we made it here about a week ago already. Time flies. The trip up was...interesting. We drove through Phoenix to LA where we picked up I-5 and headed north for what seemed like Forever. And we, of course, learned some things along the way.

Like:

• It's probably better to not leave for vacation after your husband has worked a half-day. It is very unlikely that you will be able to leave within, say, a few hours of when you thought you would.



• Also, make sure your doctor tells CVS that you would like your prescription ready sooner rather than later when she calls them to order it for you. That way hopefully it will be ready in less than 4 hours.



• It is probably better to have all car maintenance performed on your vehicle before you leave for your trip.



• If google maps says it will take you 4 hours to drive from Tucson to Blythe, and you have 2 children under the age of 2, and you are leaving at rush hour on a Friday, it will take you far longer than what google says it will.
  
  
• In 'N Out Burgers near the freeway cause traffic jams for miles.



• Booking your hotels online prior to leaving on your vacation does not allow for much flexibility.



• Almost-2-year-olds get a little giddy when they miss their nap every day for 4 days and also go to bed at 10pm every night.



• 5-month olds just get crabby with above schedule.



• Sitting in a car for 8-10 hours a day is no fun for anyone. Especially for the driver who is sitting in front of a toddler who can kick the seat.



• California traffic is horrible. It's probably a good idea to plan for an extra 1-2 hours each day for that alone. If you don't plan for traffic, it is highly frustrating when you realize how very wrong google maps is on drive time.



• Potty breaks with 2 children under the age of 2 do not take 5 minutes. Especially when the Patton museum is right next door and the toddler's daddy wants to show her the cool 'targets'.

We did learn some good things on the trip. It's great to spend so much time with your kids; you learn a lot about their habits, their preferences and what they know. For instance, Kate can now count from 1 to 10, and is speaking in 3-4 word sentences. She is also able to say the alphabet from a-g, and will sometimes say more with help. She loves to sing, and often tries to sing Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star and Black Horse by KT Tunstall. Who knew.

We are pretty sure we saw a McLaren pass us on I-5 in California. It was going too fast for me to get a picture.

And you never know what you will see on your drive through Cali. For a moment, we thought we were back in Korea.

Slow on the Uptake

That's me. Or maybe I'm just a positive, well-intentioned girl who always wants to think bigger than is truly possible.

Every morning I wake up full of ambition, thinking of all that I am going to accomplish that day. Let's see, I need to clean the bathroom. Maybe I'll put away all the toys in the living room today. The 2 loads of clean laundry stuffed into an undersized basket need to be put into drawers. Perhaps I'll go grocery shopping, probably ought to mop because Kate's little feet are so Black every night, I should call my sister and see how she's doing, Kate has swim lessons at 9, then I need to play with McLaren, read a book to Kate, update the blog, send some photos to friends...and the list goes on and on. You would think that just the randomness of these thoughts should tell me something: that there is No Way I am going to accomplish half of them. Yet every morning, I wake up thinking of all that is going to get done That Day. Does anyone else do this? Maybe it's just me.

Just thinking about it exhausts me.

So, Father's Day. Plans? What are you doing for the big day? My dad is headed out for the weekend, so we'll spend it swimming, relaxing (yeah, right) and hanging out with my sister and her family.

Love and Hate

I know some women who love being pregnant. I am not one of them. I don't hate it (for the most part), but I certainly don't love it. I don't really get into the whole "I'm pregnant so I can eat whatever I want for 9 months" thing, so that takes some of the fun out of it. It also takes some of the pounds off my hips that would otherwise be larger than they should be. I gain enough weight as it is; if I ate the way some pregnant women eat, I would be gigantic.

I'm trying to keep a positive attitude through this 3rd trimester, so I'm compiling lists. Love and Hate.

Love

• my thick, shiny hair
• feeling the baby kick
• the nest I feel justified in building in bed every night
• the thought of another amazing life that I'll be bringing into the world soon
• ultrasounds
• the 2nd trimester
• my new long-sleeved maternity shirts and my brown cords
• changing the kitty litter: Tim's job
• people who lend a hand opening doors, carrying things, etc.
• the nesting phase that has lasted probably a whole trimester this pregnancy (man am I getting a lot done!)

Hate

• pants that fall down
• not fitting in spaces that I think I can fit in
• low back pain when waking up in the morning
• not being able to put socks or shoes on without huffing and puffing
• the nighttime stuffy nose that won't go away
• the 1st and 3rd trimesters
• having trouble rough-housing with Kate, picking her up, putting her in her crib, giving her a bath, cleaning up after her
• not being able to exercise like a normal person
• not being able to drink wine (last year was perfect: Kate was born before the holidays)
• heartburn
• support hose
• my limited wardrobe, and especially the stupid black pants I bought at Motherhood that fall down ALL THE TIME. Hate.
• people who ignore the fact that you are hugely pregnant and have a toddler and won't lend a helping hand opening doors, carrying things, etc.
• getting cranky for no reason, knowing you are being totally unreasonable and not being able to control your outbursts (unless it is at the dumb credit card company that calls me every other night to offer a "new service". Then I love it.)
• water retention in my face near the end of pregnancy
• not being able to work in the yard or go hiking during this fabulous time of year