Monday, March 26, 2012

Toddler Bullying - Does It Really Start Already?

The other day I experienced my first moment of wanting to punch another person's child in the face.

Ok, bit of an exaggeration.  I did not want to punch him in the face.  But I definitely wanted to tell him a thing or two, yank a toy out of his hand, give the toy to my little boy, then scoop my boy away from him and into safety.

I also wanted to cry.

We were at a small local consignment shop that has a little blocked-in play area for young kids.  There were no other children in it, and the store was fairly empty, so I asked Krew if he wanted to play.  One glance at the trucks and he replied with a quick "Wes!!" (Yes.)  So I dropped him in.

He was happily playing with this one little green truck that caught his eye.  Vroom, vroom, driving it all around the truck table in the play area.

Then these other two kids approach the play area with their mom, begging to get in also.  I'd guess the girl was about 5, the boy was probably an older 2-year-old or even maybe 3.

I'm looking at some infant boys' clothes about 15 feet away, and all of a sudden I hear the little girl saying in a demanding tone, "You need to SHARE!"  I glance over, and my son is smooshed in the corner of the play area, behind the truck table, clutching his little green truck tightly to his chest.  The little girl and little boy are on the other side of the truck table, staring him down, the girl demanding that my son give her brother his little green truck.

I walked over and said, "I'm pretty sure he had that truck first, honey."

The little girl glanced at me, then back at Krew.  Their mom stood by, looking at store items, deciding to remain silent.  The little girl picked up another truck and handed it to her brother.  "Here, can you play with this instead?"

Satisfied, I walked back over to the infant boys' clothes, keeping one eye on the play area.  The girl and boy never backed up, and Krew remained smashed in the corner.  I couldn't hear if they were saying anything, but all seemed ok.  I knew I needed to let Krew stand on his own a little.

But now was apparently not the time to let him stand on his own.  Because the next thing I saw confirmed that the other two kids did not stop their bullying.  And it nearly broke my heart.  My little boy, with the saddest look on his face, eyes rimmed red and a quivering lip, let go of his little green truck and dropped it on the table for the other boy.

I about went through the roof.

I rushed back over and assessed the situation, with no idea what to do.  The childrens' mother was standing five feet away, ignoring the whole thing.  My little boy looked rejected, hurt, scared, and about to burst into tears.  I asked him if he wanted me to pick him up, and he said "No." I asked the kids to back up because at this point they had pushed the truck table toward Krew so much that it had him trapped against the wall.  They at least listened to me and backed up.

I felt so torn.  I wanted to run to my son's safety.  I wanted to yank the toy out of that other little boys' hands and tell him he should wait his turn and not bully his way into getting what he wants.  I wanted to tell the little girl she needed to learn some manners and shouldn't be picking on kids half her age and size.  I wanted to tell that mom that she should get over there and discipline her kids a bit.  I wanted to scoop Krew up into my arms and promise him he'd never be bullied or hurt like that again.

But I didn't do any of that.  I just stood there.  Tried to help Krew find something else to play with.  He had willingly given the toy to the boy, so I couldn't very much take it back.  Meanwhile my heart felt shattered for my son and I wanted to cry.  I think a history with being bullied mixed with strong parental attachment and raging pregnancy hormones made me far more emotional than the average mother in that moment.

Finally the two children left with their mother and Krew got his truck back.  My rush of mama adrenaline began to slow.  But the anger and hurt for my child never abated.  When I think about the situation now, it still makes me want to cry.  And it's been three days.

And it makes me wonder, WHAT am I going to do when Krew gets older and friends hurt his feelings?  Or when a girl breaks his heart?  Is it going to hurt me this badly every time?  What do I do with these raging protective mama hormones?  And above all, what does GOD want me to do in these situations?  I know He wants me to forgive (which I clearly need to work on since I'm still harboring anger), but what am I supposed to do in the moment?  What is the Christlike reaction??

Are there Christian books on how to deal with toddler bullies??

Goodness I wasn't expecting to have to deal with this so soon.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Love - Breaking It Down

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. - 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

To many of us, this is a very familiar passage. We tend to read it quickly, our eyes glossing over because we know what it says. Love is patient, love is kind, yada yada. But really, this passage is SO FULL of challenges for us in EACH and ALL of our relationships. Really break it down and think about it.  Think about how each step of this passage looks in any given relationship:

In your marriage:
Love is patient - Are you being patient with your spouse, even when he/she does the same frustrating things over and over?
Love is kind - Are you being kind to your spouse?  Are you looking for opportunities to show kindness?
It does not envy - Are you jealous of your spouse?  Are you jealous of his/her job, schedule, friends, social life, popularity, achievements, etc.?
It does not boast, it is not proud. - Do you like to brag or talk highly of yourself in discussions or arguments with your spouse?
It does not dishonor others - Do you do or say things that dishonor your spouse, whether in front of him/her or behind his/her back?
It is not self-seeking - Are you seeking the best for yourself, or the best for your spouse?
It is not easily angered - Do you become angry quickly with your spouse?
It keeps no record of wrongs - In the back of your mind, do you keep a running list of all the things your spouse has done to frustrate or hurt you lately?
Love does not delight in evil - Do you rejoice when your spouse "gets what he/she had coming"?  Or do you share in his/her pain?
It rejoices with the truth - Do you always tell the truth and seek biblical wisdom in dealing with your relationship?
It always protects - Do you protect your spouse from others, whether it be their actions or their words?
It always trusts - Do you trust your spouse, and make it clear to him/her that you do?
It always hopes - Do you always hope for the best in your spouse's life?
It always perseveres - Do you always hang in there, staying by his/her side, no matter the situation?



In each of your friendships:
Love is patient - Are you being patient with your friend, even when he/she does things that bother you over and over?
Love is kind - Are you being kind to your friend?  Are you looking for opportunities to show kindness?
It does not envy - Are you jealous of your friend?  Are you jealous of his/her job, belongings, lifestyle, children, abilities, schedule, friends, social life, popularity, achievements, etc.?
It does not boast, it is not proud. - Do you like to brag or talk highly of yourself to your friend?
It does not dishonor others - Do you do or say things that dishonor your friend, whether in front of him/her or behind his/her back (aka gossip)?
It is not self-seeking - Are you seeking the best for yourself, or the best for your friend?
It is not easily angered - Do you become angry quickly with your friend?
It keeps no record of wrongs - In the back of your mind, do you keep a running list of all the things your friend has done to frustrate or hurt you lately?
Love does not delight in evil - Do you rejoice when your friend "gets what he/she had coming"?  Or do you share in his/her pain?
It rejoices with the truth - Do you always tell the truth and seek biblical wisdom in dealing with your relationship?
It always protects - Do you protect your friend from others, whether it be their actions or their words?
It always trusts - Do you trust your friend, and make it clear to him/her that you do?
It always hopes - Do you always hope for the best in your friend's life?
It always perseveres - Do you always hang in there, staying by his/her side, no matter the situation?


With each of your children:
Love is patient - Are you being patient with your child, even when he/she disobeys or frustrates you over and over?
Love is kind - Are you being kind to your child?  Are you looking for opportunities to show kindness?
It does not envy - Do you ever feel jealous of your child?
It does not boast, it is not proud. - Do you like to brag or talk highly of yourself when talking with your child?  Are you willing to admit that you are imperfect? Are you willing to admit the times that you are wrong?
It does not dishonor others - Do you do or say things that dishonor your child, whether in front of him/her or behind his/her back?
It is not self-seeking - Are you seeking the best for yourself, or the best for your child?
It is not easily angered - Do you become angry quickly with your child?
It keeps no record of wrongs - In the back of your mind, do you keep a running list of all the things your child has done to frustrate or disobey you lately?
Love does not delight in evil - Do you rejoice when your child "gets what he/she had coming" or "learns his/her lesson"?  Or do you share in his/her pain?
It rejoices with the truth - Do you always tell the truth and seek biblical wisdom in your parenting?
It always protects - Do you protect your child from others, whether it be their actions or their words?
It always trusts - Do you trust your child, and make it clear to him/her that you do?
It always hopes - Do you always hope for the best in your child's life?
It always perseveres - Do you always hang in there, staying by his/her side, no matter the situation?

You can go through this list with any of your relationships.  Think about your parents, your coworkers, your church family, your neighbors.  Are you truly showing love in each of these relationships?

Obviously, none of us can be perfect or fulfill this list with every relationship all the time.  We are imperfect and shouldn't expect ourselves to be perfect.  Nonetheless, we should be working to fulfill God's law that we love one another, and we should be depending on Him to give us strength, wisdom, guidance, and grace.  I know there are quite a few areas that I need to work on.  What about you?  How are you doing with this list?

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  - Romans 13:8-9



Thursday, March 15, 2012

I'll never understand His ways...

There have been a couple very sad occurrences this week which are weighing heavy on my heart.
First, on Tuesday I received news that my college church building was burning down. Seeing the pictures (sample below) absolutely broke my heart and brought tears to my eyes. It was a beautiful historic building, and I have a lot of fond memories tied to it. It makes me so sad to think of that poor congregation, with their church home in ruins.

{via}

Second, I found out yesterday that a high school friend, Ronnie, passed away (seemingly unexpectedly) on Monday.  This news is so devastating.  I don't know the cause of death.  Ronnie was an awesome, friendly, funny guy and liked by everyone.  He left a young daughter.  I hadn't talked to him much since high school, but the news hit me in the gut nonetheless.  My high school class was a small one where everyone knew everyone, and many of us have kept in touch through Facebook in the ten years since graduation.  It is just so crazy to see that he was posting on Facebook on Friday, then Monday he was gone.  I will never understand the Lord's ways.

Please keep Ronnie's family and friends and the congregation of my college church in your prayers this week.  There are a lot of people experiencing loss.  I'll never understand the Lord's ways, but I know He has a reason...

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Live Creatively


"Live creatively, friends.

If someone falls into sin, forgivingly restore him, saving your critical comments for yourself. You might be needing forgiveness before the day's out.

Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ's law. If you think you are too good for that, you are badly deceived.

Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don't be impressed with yourself. Don't compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life."


- Galations 6:1-4, The Message


I thought this was an awesome and challenging passage from the Bible. Read it, absorb it, and live it. :)

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Thoughts from a Working Mom

Sometimes I feel so stranded, so isolated.  So lacking in support.

Because I'm HER.

The WORKING mom.

Sometimes - a lot of times, honestly - I hate that I work away from home four days per week.  I would so much rather be at home, taking care of the house, couponing, preparing dinners, washing clothes, and most of all spending time my son.  But you know what?  That just isn't something that works out for our family right now.  I need to work.  We need the money.  We would have to make some crazy, crazy changes to our lives in order for me to stay at home.  And I realize that.  But gosh it is SO hard sometimes.

And then I read other bloggers' blogs.  So many of them - most of them, it seems - are stay at home moms.  They talk about doing crafts with their kids, taking their kids to the park, working on Scripture verses, cooking lunches and cookies together, going to library time.  Bonding, learning, growing together.  Making menu plans, cleaning closets during naps, and starting up Etsy shops for some extra cash and a creative outlet.  And I am jealous.  Very jealous.  So, so jealous.

A heart at peace gives life to the body, 
   but envy rots the bones.
 - Proverbs 14:30

It's true, this verse. So true. When I let my envy get the best of me, which has happened all too often lately, I get a stomach ache.  I feel awful.  I want to cry.

But I know envy is not the answer.  I need to listen to God's whisper, the direction He has chosen for my life.  I am where I am for a reason.  Most of all, I need to rethink my motives.  The primary question is, why do I want to be at home with my son?

Is it because I think he's getting inadequate care while I'm at work?  No.  Eileen (his daycare caretaker) is an INCREDIBLE blessing and loves him so, so much.  And he loves her back.  I know this and I see it in their interactions.  She takes care of him, plays with him, teaches him, and disciplines him like she would her own grandson.  I have never for a moment doubted that he is getting the care and love I want him to receive.

Do I think he would somehow be better off if he were with me all week instead of at daycare?  No.  I honestly probably think it's better for him to spend time with other kids, to learn to obey and trust other adults.  He is always happy to go to daycare, and always happy to come home.  He feels loved and happy in both places.  I am able to stay patient with him longer in the evenings because I have not been parenting all day long.  He has companionship, love, and contentment wherever he is.

So why do I struggle so???  Jealousy.  It's all jealousy.  I want my son for myself.  I want to spend all the time with him, I don't want to share him.  I want him to like me, love me, have me be his favorite.  It's all about me, me, me.  God has really been revealing this to me lately, through my prayers and struggles with my emotions.  I am very, very jealous over my son.  And I only expect it to get worse when the next one comes along.  I'll have double the sons to be jealous over.

No lusting after your neighbor's house—or wife or servant or maid or ox or donkey. Don't set your heart on anything that is your neighbor's.
 - Exodus 20:17

So now I've realized this, and I must learn to move forward. I must learn to stop thinking about myself so much.  I must trust God that my sons will still love me whole-heartedly as their momma even if I'm not home with them every day.  But it's hard, oh so hard.  This parenting thing turns your heart upside down and inside out.  Everything changes.  Your view on all of life is altered.  Because you're a mom.

My mind has been jumping back to the story of baby Moses, whose mother gave him to Pharaoh's daughter to raise in order to let him live (Exodus 1 and 2).  Or to Hannah, who was barren, and prayed and prayed for a son.  She promised God that if He gave her a son, she would dedicate him to the Lord for his whole life.  And God answered her prayer, and she fulfilled her promise.  As soon as her son Samuel was weaned, she took him to the Lord's temple and left him there to be raised (1 Samuel 1).  That means he was still a toddler when she gave him up!

In both of these cases, these mothers made HUGE sacrifices for their children and for God - and as a result did not get to experience intimate relationships with their sons.  And this was God's will in both cases.  Why this was His fill is far beyond my understanding.  But I do know this.  My situation is nothing like this - nothing at ALL like this - so who I am to grumble?  I see my son every night and we all sit down together for dinner as a family.  I have time with my son all day long Friday through Sunday.  For Pete's sakes, I'm home with him three out of seven days.  And yet I still complain, I still feel jealous, I still grumble.  What a selfish person I can be.

For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?
 - 1 Corinthians 3:3

It's time for me to do some major heart work. Time for me to turn it over to God. Time for me pull myself out of my hole of jealousy and start seeing life in the light of reality and God's will for my life.  Time to start letting Him transform me into the mother He wants me to be.

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
 - Romans 12:2

And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
 - 2 Corinthians 3:18

Sunday, March 11, 2012

I'm a Bio-What?

Although most of my friends who know me outside of the blog world know my job title, I figure that most of you readers really have no idea what I do professionally.  And even though my "in person" friends know my job title, most of them still have absolutely no clue what I actually do.  Dave has a general idea (thanks to my love of running my mouth), and my fellow statistician friends have a better idea than most, especially those who work in the biopharmaceutical industry.  However, I thought it'd be nice to give a little run-down of my responsibilities for all you readers dying to know what I do for 8 hours a day, Monday through Thursday. (And for all you readers who really don't care, feel free to skip the rest of this post. :) )

Job title:  Biostatistician
Definition of biostatistician: A person making or doing research on biostatistics
Definition of biostatistics: The science of statistics applied to the analysis of biological or medical data

And since I know that those definitions made sense to less than 0.2% of you (I don't even like those definitions myself - that's just what Google offered), I'll give you the basics in layman's terms to the best of my ability:

Companies who are developing drugs and want to sell them must first get approval from the FDA (Food and Drug Administration, the division of the government responsible for allowing drugs on the market).  These companies hire my company (Cato Research) to help them with that approval process.  It's a very lengthy and bumpy road to get drug approval, consisting of many clinical trials (drug studies in humans) and crazy long reports sent to the FDA.  My company can help with nearly every step: development of the drug, running animal studies, planning human studies, implementing human studies, analyzing data from human studies, writing reports, and sending analyses and reports to the FDA.

My job is to do all things statistics-related in the midst of these processes.  I help to decide how many subjects should be enrolled in a study, I provide input on how clinical trials are designed, I review the forms that are used to collect patient data, I review how those forms will be checked for errors, I plan which patients will receive drug and which will receive placebo in a study, I pre-plan the analyses that we will perform when a human trial ends, and then I implement the analyses after the trial is over.

It's been an interesting job with an incredibly steep learning curve.  Sometimes I feel like I only use my statistics degree about 5-10% of the time.  The rest of the time, I'm using my mind in the analytic ways you learn in grad school, applying information I've learned on the job.  (But maybe that is the way most jobs are?)  It can be very frustrating and overwhelming at times - and other times it's more relaxed, when I don't have many urgent deadlines.  It totally depends on the day.  And I'm constantly learning.  I feel like I'll never know all there is to know for my job.  Thank goodness I have an incredibly kind boss who is always willing to spend time with me, helping me learn.  He is awesome. :)

So that's the gist of it.  What about you readers?  Any random, weird professions out there?

Monday, March 5, 2012

It's a...

Our gender ultrasound was today!!

I was sooooo much less anxious this time around than I was when we were finding out the gender of Krew. I'm not sure if it was because it's the second child or if it was because I had reached a point where I knew I'd be happy no matter what we were having. Initially when we first found out we were pregnant, I wanted a boy. Then, because this pregnancy felt so different from the last, I thought it was a girl. So I adjusted to the idea of a girl. Walking into the appointment today, I found myself feeling eager to find out the gender but not necessarily wanting it to be either. Which was a great place to be. :)

Despite not caring either way, I still found my heart pounding as I laid on the chair. The tech went through and checked over the baby's whole body, making sure everything was where it should be. She said all looked good (thank you Lord!). And then it came to the big moment. She looked a couple times to make sure, then told us that our baby is a...

BOY!!!

Yaaaaay!!!!! I'm pretty sure a grin broke across my face. Dave leaned over and gave my leg a little tickle because he was so excited. Even if the tech hadn't told us, I would have known. The view the baby gave us made it pretty obvious. :)


full body view


his heartbeat - 167 bpm


frontal view of his face - a crazy eyeball picture haha


his little feet :)


his lip - I'm assuming they check for cleft lip?


getting a good view of his spine


and finally, how we know he's a boy :)


Yay for Krew having a little brother! I'm so excited for him to have a buddy to grow up with! :)

To My Witto Boy on Your 2nd Birthday

Dear Witto Boy,

Today you turn two years old.  I find my heart filled with joy and yet I feel a bit sentimental and find myself choking up a bit.  Your daddy and I love you so, so much.  More than we can ever explain.  To realize how quickly you are growing up into a little boy is sometimes hard to accept.  You are no longer a baby, but instead a running, jabbering, strong-willed, independent, and oh-so-lovable child.



How quickly these two years have gone by.  And all along, you've brought so much joy to our lives.  There is not a day that goes by that you don't lighten our hearts and bring laughter into our home.  Oh, we have our tough days, but even at the end of those I want to kiss your little face and hug your little body and thank God over and over for giving you to us as our son.



And not only have you brought joy into our lives, but having you as a child has taught me SO much about what it means to be a child of God.  I have learned over and over how much I need His saving grace, how much I need to lean on Him.  Because, dear Krew, I screw up.   I get impatient.  I get selfish.  I make mistakes.  I don't always - or even half of the time - really know what I'm doing.  But I'm trying, oh how I'm trying...I read books, I talk to friends and other parents, I pray, I read the Bible...but when it comes down to it, I am imperfect like the rest, and I do not and cannot ever know the way to be a perfect parent to you.

So then I must leave it to God.  I must ask Him to guide me.  I must ask Him to fill in where I fall short.  I know He chose me for your mommy for a purpose, and so I'm trusting Him to be by my side and help me to be the best mommy I can be.




Krew, I am so excited to watch you grow in the years to come and to be a part of your life through it all. You have such a gentle heart, and such a sweet shy side.  In a room full of rowdy kids, you are always the one standing to the side, observing or playing quietly with a puzzle.  Yet at home you break out of your shell and let your crazy side emerge, running laps around our house and yelling at the top of your lungs. I love that you hate messes and yet think the sandbox is the best outdoor toy ever invented. You are so full of contradictions. Yet it is these contradictions wrapped up with all your other little quirks that make you the lovable little boy you are.

So on this birthday, I just want you to know that your daddy and I know how incredibly blessed we are to have you as our son, that we think you are so fun, that we love you so SO much, and that we absolutely cannot wait to continue being your daddy and mommy for the rest of our lives.

We love you little Crouton.





Friday, March 2, 2012

11 Randomness

About a month ago, the awesome Callie over at Through Clouded Glass tagged me in a "random" post where I'm supposed to provide a picture of myself, post 11 random things about myself, answer her 11 random questions, and then ask 11 more random questions of other bloggers.  Sound confusing?  Yeah, a little.  But I've seen several bloggers doing these posts online lately, so I think I'm getting the hang of it. :)

Step 1: A picture of me...



I don't take many pictures of myself these days, and this is actually one of the most recent I could find.  
This is me with my Grandma Nicodemus (Grandma Millie) when we visited her
in Florida last fall for Dave's national frisbee tournament.
Love her to pieces. :)


Step 2: 11 random things about myself...

1) For some reason lately, I have found that nearly every outfit I wear involves the color gray. In 80% of my outfits, gray is actually a dominating color. Not sure what's going on with that.

2) I bite my nails. Disgusting, yes, I know. Trust me, I've heard.

3) I absolutely cannot watch scary movies. Not even slightly scary movies. In fact, not even suspenseful movies that involve zero blood or killing whatsoever. Can't watch them. I start hearing things in the dark and get crazy nightmares.

4) I love to mow the grass, prune plants, and trim bushes. The neighbors apparently think that I just have a horrible husband who makes me do all the yardwork, but I really do truly enjoy it. It's just so satisfying to see something crazy and out of control become orderly and beautiful.  And I love being outside.  :)

5) In years past (aka 4 years ago), I had a diagnosed anxiety disorder. Today I'm medication- and counselor-free, but I'm not sure what that means. Not sure if you ever get un-diagnosed from a disorder like that.

6) I am a lover of coffee. I brew a pot every morning (decaf right now!), drink a cup with my morning quiet time, then take the rest to work in a carafe to sip throughout the day.

7) I HATE HATE HATE the phone. I have no idea what it is. Ya know that generalized anxiety disorder I talked about in #5? Yeah, maybe it's not completely gone. Because holy cow do I get anxious about talking on the phone. It doesn't matter if I'm calling someone or someone's calling me, if it's a close friend or family member or a stranger, none of it matters - I always have a minor panic attack inside just prior to the start of conversation. Once the convo is flowing, I'm good to go...but gosh I have a hard time picking up the phone in the first place.  I'm definitely more of a texter.

8) I am a recovering tanaholic. (Meaning: I'm addicted to tanning.) This doesn't mean I'm currently tan, or that I'm currently tanning (I'm not), or even that I tan a ton in the summer (I don't, since having a child - no time and I'm scared of skin cancer). But gosh it's always tempting. Because it makes me feel SOOOOOOOOO good. Yes, yes, I've heard all the lectures. Trust me, you don't need to give them to me. I've had three moles removed (all benign), my mom has had basal cell carcinoma (non-malignant skin cancer) removed, and my dear grandfather died from skin cancer. (If anything, I should be giving OTHER people the lectures.) But that doesn't take away the feel-good feeling I get when I'm out in the sun. Fortunately, the addiction has seemed to wane since getting married (no temptation to try to impress guys by having tan skin anymore - especially not my hubby, who's VERY against getting a tan) and since having a child (don't want to take any risks plus I'm too busy to care about it). So no worries, friends. Like I said, I'm recovering. :)

9) I don't like sports. Like really, I don't like them. I don't like watching them, playing them, talking about them, or hearing about them. I find them to be super duper boring. UNLESS, of course, my husband happens to be one of the players. Then I get super involved and will learn the rules and will follow every point of every game. Ah, the crazy things love does to us.

10)  I am allergic to latex and avocados.  And the allergies are actually related somehow.  Look it up on Google.  It's true.

11)  I have a tendency to not finish books.  I guess this primarily pertains to non-fiction books, but it's often tempting even with fiction books.  I just kinda get tired of reading about the same thing for a million pages, and I'm ready to move on to something new.  There are a LOT of books on my shelves that have been 80% read.

Step 3: Answer the 11 questions from Callie...

1. If you could only listen to one album for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Oh gosh. This is hard. Definitely some type of praise and worship CD. Probably Michael W. Smith Worship. Hearing all those people singing and praising God together in such beautiful harmony always moves my heart in indescribable ways.

2. If you were a teacher, what subject would you teach?
Statistics (my field).  I taught a class in grad school, and I really enjoyed it.

3. What is your favorite verse and/or quote?
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7

4. Why did you start blogging?
When I started turning my life over to God, I wanted an outlet for what I was learning and wanted to share with others.  Back then it was just called The KSS Blog.  I changed it to Just 1 Step maybe a little over a year ago.

5. What is one book you think everyone should read (besides the Bible, because that's a given)?
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis

6. Favorite drink to get at Starbucks?
grande nonfat decaf raspberry latte - and if the place isn't busy, I prefer it extra hot :)

7. Would you rather it snow or rain?
How cold is it outside? If it's below 40 degrees, I'd rather it snow. I don't like chilled wet feet. Otherwise, I choose rain.

8. Advice that your mom gave you that you never forgot?
That there is not "the one" for every person to marry - that marriage is a choice, a decision, to love another person whatever comes your way.

9. Most read website or blog (besides mine, of course . . . *wink, wink*)?
Hmmm...probably the blog In a Frame by my friend Erinne. But her blog is private, so I can't send you that way. :)

10. One thing you would tell your 13 year old self?
Boys are going to crush your heart over and over, and it hurts terribly...but NONE of it matters in the end. Hurry up and learn to know Jesus, then your life will be oh-so-much better no matter what all those crazy guys do or say. Jesus will fix your heart, and then He'll send the right man along to love you when you're much older and the time is right. :)  (I was a bit boy crazy at age 13, in case you can't tell.)

11. What do you hope people will say about you after you die?
That I loved Jesus, loved my husband, loved my children, loved my family members, and loved all those around me with a love that was clearly not my own. (I might need to work a little harder on that "loved all those around me" part.)

And finally, Step 4: 11 Random Questions for You!

1. If there is a color scheme in your living room, what is it?
2. What sports do you like?
3. How many rings do you wear on your fingers?
4. How many times per week do you eat dessert after dinner?
5. How much sleep do you get each night?
6. If you could change one thing about the town/city where you live, what would it be?
7. If you could look ahead into the future, would you?
8. What size is your bed?
9. Where do you throw your dirty clothes when you take them off(floor, hamper, laundry room, etc.)?
10. Do you open your shades or blinds during the day to let sunlight in?
11. What temperatures do you keep your thermostat at during the summer and winter?

And here are the bloggers I've selected to tag:

Kristin at the art of being silly
Katie at Thrifty Finds and Redesigns
Erinne at In a Frame (blog kept private)
Erica at to the humming meadow
Joyce at Keeping up with the Moys
Debbie at B&D Lowther
Kim at Kimarie says...
Vanessa at Blue Ridge Babies
Kathryn at Kat Chat

I realize you may not all answer (or maybe none of you will!), but wanted to at least make an attempt to continue the tagging. So girls, if you're up for it, do what I did above! A photo of you, 11 random things about yourself, answer my 11 random questions, then ask 11 random questions of some more bloggers. Enjoy and pass it on!

Thursday, March 1, 2012

#febphotoaday...sort of...

About halfway through February, I started participating in the February photo a day challenge from Fat Mum Slim.

And then about halfway through that second half of the month, I fell off the bandwagon.  Whoops.

Basically, the idea is this:  Every day there is a prompt, and you are supposed to provide your interpretation of that prompt through a photograph.  A lot of photographers do this using Instagram (myself included), and then it's awesome because you can follow the tag #febphotoaday and see how everyone else interpreted that day's prompt.  It also challenges you to think outside the box and learn to take different types of pictures with your phone.

I know you're all dying to see my pictures from February, so here they are...



Day 13: blue, Day 14: heart


Day 15: phone, Day 16: something new


Day 17: time, Day 18: drink


Day 19: something you hate to do, Day 20: handwriting


Day 21: a fave photo of you


That's right. I did 9 of them.  A total of 9 out of 29.  31%.  Definitely not a passing grade in school, but hey, I'm learning to cut myself some slack in this life before eternity.  So I didn't take a picture every day.  At least I did a few days, had fun, and learned in the process.  Something is better than nothing.  And I know the point is to have fun and challenge myself...and that's what I did.

Nevertheless, March is a new month.  So #marchphotoaday, watch out. :)

Anyone else participating or have an Instagram account?  Kim - I know you're in with me!!