10 years: Happy & Successful.

2004 was a pretty big year for me.  I met my husband, graduated high school & started college.  I can't even count the number of times I was asked where I wanted to be in 10 years, what I wanted to do with my life, or something of that sort.

I made up answers.  Every time I was asked I would give a slightly different answer.  Truthfully, I had no idea.  I highly admire the high schoolers that know what they want in life.  All I knew was that I wanted to be happy & successful, but I was too afraid to admit it.  I mean, c'mon, what successful person doesn't know what they want to do?  Part of being successful is beginning with the end in mind-- knowing where you want to go!

Looking back, I've met my goals.  I'm happy, and I like to think that I've had a successful 10 years.  Successful by my standards, anyway, and that's what counts here.

I've come much further than I thought.  I never planned to leave my hometown.  Move 30 minutes away?  No way!  So to live 8 hours away is quite comical to me.  Leaving there certainly didn't make me successful, but it became an important part of my story.

Never, ever in my wildest dreams did I imagine that I'd still have the same car!  8 years ago I started saving up to replace it when it broke down.  If that savings hadn't been robbed so much over the years then I'd be buying a pretty sweet car right now!

I also never thought that being debt free would be a big part of my story.  10 years ago I didn't have any debt.  It hadn't even crossed my mind.

I thought I would use math more.  I wish I used math more.

I hoped to be married & have a family by now.  I didn't have a plan for number of kids at this point in the game, but to have at least started having kids.  I always saw myself as a family person.  Check.

I assumed I'd have bought a house at this point.  What a silly assumption!  Houses are expensive!  But sure enough, I did end up buying a house mortgage before those 10 years were up.

I kind of thought I'd be working in an office setting, dressing professionally, and not owning my own business.  In fact, I decided at a young age that I never wanted to own a business.  I saw how hard my dad worked & just didn't want to go through all that.  I'm a lot more like my dad than I ever imagined I'd be.  And my husband is a lot more like my dad than I ever imagined he'd be.

If someone walked up to me in 2004 and told me I'd be a wedding photographer in 2014 I would have had a good laugh.  I would have thought it was awesome, but also something completely unattainable.  Seriously-- that is a ton of expensive equipment to buy, and a lot of skill to invest in.  Then again, I probably would have laughed at that even 5 years ago as I tried to figure out what PSAM meant on my camera.  ;)

Happy & successful.  So what if I'm not a lawyer or a figure skater... I'm right where I want to be.

What did you want to be?  How has life adjusted your dreams?

Love who you are.

Comparison is the thief of joy. -Theodore Roosevelt

There are a lot of contradicting messages out there to soak in.  Pinterest is full of amazing decorations, parties, lunches, etc.  There are countless blog posts from moms practically bragging that they don't have it all together... that their house is messy & their kids ate Doritos for dinner.  And don't even get me started on parenting tirades covering everything from infant sleep to breastfeeding to discipline.

Here's the thing.  I'm definitely not an 'everyone gets a trophy' type of person, but sometimes, that's just the way it is. This world needs all types, so please, find your type & go with it!

Love who you are.

And instead of cutting someone else down or making it seem uncool... appreciate it.  Appreciate them.  Celebrate whatever it is.

If you are great at decorating, awesome.  Please always take pictures & post them on Pinterest!  Yes, be a show off.  Be proud of yourself.  And the rest of us need to cheer you on.

Is you house constantly messy?  Are you okay with it?  If so, then embrace it.  Don't skip over posting a cute picture of your kid because the background is messy.  Your kid is cute, so celebrate it.  And the rest of us need to celebrate it, too.

Is your kid not sleeping?  Sure-- search the interwebs for some ideas!  But also, remember that every kid is different.  I found a method that worked absolutely wonderful for my kid and yes, I would highly suggest you use it for yours.  But you may choose another route & that's okay.  It's the beauty of having your own kid-- you get to craft him/her into a tiny human that you like.

I could go on & on.  Every mom could.  It's a constant barrage of messages we're met with each day. 

So I'm working to do my part & I hope you do, too!  What's your part, you ask?

Each time I feel myself thinking too much about something, I think of a way to celebrate it. 

Does someone's Facebook post bother you?  Find a way to celebrate.  See a friend who just had a baby & looks amazing?  (WAY more amazing than you ever did after having a baby?)  Celebrate it.  Share in her joy.  Really truly celebrate.

Comparison is the thief of joy because there is no comparison.  We're just not all the same.  You can't compare yourself to an 18 year old version of you, or a 34 year old version of anyone else.

Love who you are.

Celebrate others.

Pet Peeve.

I try to be level headed.  I try to look at things from all perspectives.  But the one thing that really makes me grind my teeth is when someone can't comprehend that there is another point of view.

You know what I'm talking about... that person that thinks s/he is totally right all the time & that everyone else around them must be stupid.

The person that can't see beyond what's right in front of them.

The one that can't understand why anyone would do something differently than them.  Would believe something differently than them.

"She doesn't let her kid have candy?  That's so dumb."  Is it?  Really?  Ever stop to consider that she might have a reason?

"I would never let my kid do _______.  That's irresponsible & bad parenting."  Woah... don't even get me started there!

...okay... clearly I hear it with parenting a lot!

It's okay to have opinions.  It's fine to voice those opinions.  But it's not okay to dismiss the idea that someone else has a different opinion.  A different viewpoint.  A different reason.  You don't have to agree with them, nor do you have to condone it.  But you do have to realize that maybe, just maybe, they are doing the best that they can.  Understand that everyone doesn't believe the same as you about everything.

I admit, it can be hard to live this out.  And I'm definitely not perfect.  But hey, what would life be if we did everything perfect all the time?

What are your thoughts?  Are there subjects that you find it very hard to accept that others believe differently?  How do you handle it?

Sigh of Relief & Independent Playtime

So last night while I lay awake from midnight - 4am, I did some reading.  When Hazelnut was a baby we followed Baby Wise, mostly, when it came to schedules & such & we loved it!  As with any child-rearing method, we read it, and then applied it with our own child's needs in mind.  Every child is different, and no single book can cover everyone.  But I hadn't read the toddler books in the series.  As Hazelnut is growing & testing limits, throwing fits, etc, we want to make sure that we're responding appropriately to guide her towards learning what is or isn't acceptable and everything that comes along with that.

At any rate, I went to a website of a woman who writes a ton of information on it & read up about Hazel's age group.

Most of the stuff we're actually already doing, which is cool.  I'd been feeling like this age is a transition more than anything, and that's pretty much what she wrote about.  Transitioning from foods prepared just for baby to eating what everyone else eats, starting to spoon feed herself, starting to say words.  She talked about expecting unpredictable behavior, expecting your child to test her limits, beginning to teach acceptable behaviors, picking & choosing your battles, and not freaking out if your child isn't hungry during a meal or doesn't like a certain food.

Honestly, it was a sigh of relief at 3am.  I've been a very worn out momma lately & felt like I wasn't doing a good job.  Sure, my kid is alive, fed, and generally happy, but there's a lot more to life that just getting through it.  We worked very hard when Hazelnut was a baby to figure out a schedule that worked best for her-- one where she would sleep well, eat well, and be happy during her awake time.  I loved knowing that she was getting enough rest & was enjoying her little life.  And as silly as it sounds, I was scared that we were throwing all of that out the window & were starting to raise a little hellion.  I mean, the girl can throw a fit if she wants to.  It's still pretty cute right now, but I know the cuteness factor in her fits is about to go away!  So it was nice to read that I wasn't throwing it all away-- that the things we had been doing because it seemed logical, were the same things that other parents had done & had worked well for them in the future.

The one thing I hadn't been specific about was what is called independent playtime.  It's a period of time each day that the child plays on her own.  For this age (16 months) they suggest setting it up in a baby-proofed room where the child can't see the parent.  I'm not particularly keen on that, but Hazel plays pretty well on her own, so we tried it in the living room while I got some work done in the same room.  They suggest working up to an hour of independent play per day.  With the exception of changing her dirty diaper & reading a book she brought to me, she's been playing for an hour by herself!  I'm sure a lot of it has to do with her being an only child, but it's so fun to watch her out of the corner of my eye.  She's testing her own limits, practicing balance (albeit, by standing on her rocking chair), and figuring out new ways to play with toys.

And?  I don't feel so guilty about getting things done.  I was starting to get into a cycle of guilt because I wasn't playing with her every waking hour.  Truth is, she does need me to play with her.  But she also enjoys playing by herself as well.  Exploring within her own limits.  She has a wonderful natural independence about her & I want to encourage that.  She definitely gets it from her daddy, and I love that about him!

I'm also thinking that this extra time will be great to get into some more parenting books.  One friend who I admire for her parenting skills & well behaved children suggested "Growing Kids Gods Way" so I'm definitely going to check that out, too!

Any other books that you've felt were very helpful starting in the toddler years?

When a Parent is Sick.

I read this article yesterday about moms & being sick.  We totally dealt with this last week in our house!  

My husband was sick.  I was about to head to work.  So here were our choices:

A) Husband stays home, Hazelnut goes to the sitter, I go to work.

B) Husband stays home, Hazelnut stays home, I go to work.

Seems like not a big deal, but the thing is, if I were to be sick, it wouldn't be a question-- Hazelnut wouldn't go to the sitter.

You see, I work part time outside of the home, so she goes to the sitter during my work hours.  So it feels like we get a sitter "for while I'm at work."

When we realized the contradiction we were facing, my husband just decided to go to work.

Ha!

Seriously... going to work feeling awful was preferable to making that type of decision.

I have to say, I have quite the amazing husband.  He's not one of those wimpy guys that holes up when he has a cough.

And truthfully, I'm glad he decided to go to work-- I didn't want to make the decision either!

What do you do when a kid is sick?

Practicing Joy & Thankfulness.

For the past couple of years I've intentionally tried to find the joy in every day things, and especially in the negative or disappointing things.  At first it was a challenge, seeing as how we were in debt, made little money, and felt like there was no light at the end of that tunnel.  But as I did it more, it became very easy over time:

Atlanta:
Our only car broke down & was going to cost $1,500 to fix it.  Josh was 2 states away & we had no family around.  ----- The joy?  We had co-workers that cared enough to drive out of their way to help.  AND we had enough cash to fix the car.

Greenville:
Josh was out of town & our dog needed immediate vet attention (think: blood gushing from his head).  ---- The joy?  Again, we had friends who were able to to drive me to the vet.  And again, we had the cash to cover it.  It was something the vet was able to take care of, and that dog is still alive & well.

Those are extreme examples, but it's taught me to be thankful for everything, and that I have a billion things to be thankful for on any given day.

God has always blessed us immensely in our marriage.  But when we moved to Virginia, the blessings just multiplied.  For us, it was confirmation that we were doing what God wanted us to do.  Yeah, living 8 hours from our families really stinks.  We have awesome families!  But God has given us truly amazing friends here... friends that are family to us.

And since having Hazelnut... oh my.  The blessings just don't end.  The joy just doesn't end.  In November, when everyone started putting something they were thankful for each day on their Facebook status, I wanted to follow suit.  But then I realized... I already do that.  And I couldn't possibly make it just one post per day!

Now, I am in no way saying that you shouldn't write your thankfulness in an organized Facebook status.  In fact, I think you should!  Every day.  Or whenever you think of it.  Keep a happy heart.  Share your heart.  Share your joys.  Find the joy.  Just know that you don't have to be organized with it.  If that's too much pressure, then just do it anyway, without all the organization.  Just write what you're thankful for.  Or take a picture of something that you find joy in.  Don't hold back because you can't commit.  Do it anyway.

And one last thing.  The most important thing.  Where do you find your joy?  If I found my joy in finances, a clean house, a perfect child, a perfect job... anything here on earth... then I would be terribly let down.  All those things come & go, but God is always there.  He is where I need to find my joy... and the joy will always be there.

So go, be joyful!  Be thankful!  What do you have to be joyful for today?

"I just want my kids to be happy"

A friend of mine wrote this the other day:

 I don't really go by the motto "I just want my kids to be happy."  I want my kids to have good character, be hard workers, know the difference between right and wrong, care about others, never be afraid to stand up for what's right and not be self absorbed. Those things don't always make you happy. My kids happiness is not my ultimate goal as I raise them. Of course, I'm not trying to say that the things listed above are excluded from happiness. I just look at happiness secondary.

I couldn't agree more.  I do want Hazel to be happy in life, but the happiness doesn't need to stem from having everything her way all the time.  As a parent, it's my job to make sure she grows into an adult with integrity.

Thoughts?

Maybe she's born with it... No, I'm pretty sure it's 'Fotoshop'

So well done... I'll let this speak for itself.  :)

Fotoshop by Adobé from Jesse Rosten on Vimeo.

What's your take?

A message we can all support.

You've seen it, I've seen it... Girl Scout Cookie season is upon us!  I love genius marketing stuff... and this shirt just really made me smile!

Now that's a message I bet all my reader can get behind!

Also?  I have a question.  You know those people who buy a bunch of boxes & then freeze them so they'll have GS cookies all year long?  How do they actually last all year?  I get so jealous when I'm at someone's house and I see some Thin Mints in their freezer around Christmas time.  Really?  I'd need to buy an extra freezer to even attempt that because, let's face it... if I bought 10 boxes, it would last a good 2 weeks.

Newness.

There's something awesome about newness.  A clean slate, a fresh start.

Like on the first day of school when you have crisp, new notebooks, fresh pencils & pens, and a backpack without an applesauce spill in the bottom.  You just feel like you can take on the world at that moment.

We get a lot of chances at newness.  Every morning is a new day.  Every Monday is a new week.  And every year is like one big chance to change something, should you like.

I'm not one for New Years resolutions.  When I do make a resolution, I like to start a few days/weeks/months early.  I mean, if I make a decision to lose weight after the new year, why not start immediately & not have the extra weight to lose that I could potentially gain in the time leading up to the new year?

But this year is a bit different.  The new year doesn't have the freshness that it normally does for me.  Instead, I feel like I'm in the final stretch.  And, I am.  I have 3 weeks left until my due date & there are a million things to do.  In effect, my "newness" is starting in 3(ish) weeks.  And even then, everything is unpredictable.  I have no idea how I'll adjust to life with a newborn.  I want to be one of those moms who has the baby out, strolling around the mall after just a week (or less!).  But will I be?  Who knows?

So this year is all about taking it slow & learning.

What is the new year to you?

Wraps & such.

So this whole baby carrying thing is quite interesting to me.  As far as I can tell, it's kind of like a stroller.  In some ways, it's easier to transport a kid that way, and in some ways, it's harder.  So it just depends on the situation as to what you'd like to use.

One of my friends uses her carrier all the time when they're out and about.  Her husband mostly carries it, which is kind of my plan-- he's stronger anyway!

But for around the house?  I'm considering this one.  It's called a Sasha Wrap.  I don't know the woman who makes them, but my sister in law does, and she entered a contest to win one for free!

So this is a two-fold post.

1) I want to know your thoughts, experiences, etc on the whole wrap thing.

2) Please vote for my sister-in-law so she can win a free one!  It's really easy to vote-- just CLICK HERE & vote for 'ChristyBoydPressley.'  You don't have to sign up or anything.  Right now she has 4 votes... so... help a girl out!  And they're planning to do more of those giveaways-- maybe one a month?  So I'd check back to see if you can get in on that!

My biggest thing with the wraps was that they never looked sturdy enough to hold a kid.  Like, the kid could just fall out & onto the floor at any moment!  So if that's you, then watch one of the videos HERE to see a little more about how they are wrapped on, and it makes more sense as to how it actually holds a baby in there!

I'm not receiving anything cool off of this post, by the way.  My sister-in-law wanted some help with votes & hey... I didn't have anything else to write about today!  Also?  The whole wrap thing is pretty darn interesting, and I've watched this particular website grow over the past few months, so I'd love to know everyone else's experience with wraps.

Priceless.

Yesterday I decided to put on a little Pandora while getting ready for the day.  Looks like the last time I listened to it was Halloween so I went to look for a different channel.  This is what Pandora suggested:

Hmmm... we'll mark that under "things you never think you'd see."

At least I've got some variety?  Flo Rida confuses me, though... don't know any of his (his?) songs!

What would Pandora throw out for your musical taste?

Fascinating Friday: Wonderland. (You are really going to want to see this!)

I stayed up way too late last night looking over all these photos... truly in awe of a most beautiful story and amazing creativity.  All I could think of was, this is absolutely fascinating... a true wonderland!  So I had to share it with you.

Passion, creativity, and excellence are three words to describe this artist.

She began this project "Wonderland" after her mother died & it's been a way of coping for her.

What a beautiful, magnificent tribute to her mother.  She describes it as 


"a very personal tribute to the memory of my mother, and the stories she read to me as a child. The plan was to create a storybook without words – an unexplained collection of strange and magical characters, set in the woodlands and landscapes that surrounded my home."

And let me tell you, Alice in Wonderland-- as great as the recent movie was-- needs to be checking out these pictures for inspiration!

You can also see the behind the scenes pictures (which were way awesome) here!

There's no way to share part of a picture and do it justice-- you're just going to have to go check them out and truly soak it in!  Let me know what you think!  Were you sucked in to the magical world like I was?

Barbie gets Tatted Up!

Barbie's got some tattoos these days & everyone has an opinion.  I figure I'm on quite a roll with the opinion posts lately, so why not go for it?

I think the tattoos are the most realistic thing about Barbie.  And I'd much rather my little girl aspire to get one of the big honkin' ugly tattoos that this Barbie has across her entire back than to try to imitate anything else on Barbie.

Why?  Because if she chooses to get a big ugly tattoo, it's a lot less dangerous than her developing an eating disorder or getting plastic surgery.

And while we're at it, I'd even rather her dye her hair pink & wear those leopard print leggings & dress her dog up as a cactus.

In reading up on this new Barbie & everyone's opinions, my thoughts were confirmed:

One blogger describes Barbie as "the pretty girl I've always wanted to aspire to be... simply because she always got her man."

 

Before it's asked, no, I don't want my daughter to get a tattoo of a tiger up the side of her neck.  I can't stand large tattoos, especially on women.

But I do maintain that if it came between that & having an eating disorder or a drug problem or getting plastic surgery, sure...

And I say that from experience... not my own, as I don't have any tattoos... but I've seen people I love go through really rough times in life & get tattoos as a way of coping with it.  Is it classy?  Not really.  But is it worlds better than turning to drugs or alcohol or something even worse?  Absolutely.

I guess my point is, there are a million things wrong with Barbie... her obnoxious new tattoos being the least of them.

My Kids Won't Have a College Fund

This is sort of a continuation from Friday's obnoxiously long post.  Enjoy!

-------------

The other day Josh & I started talking about college funds for our kids.  It's an interesting thing, and truthfully, I hadn't given it much thought before.  I mean, you want your kids to go to college, and you want them to be successful, so the responsible thing to do as a parent is to plan for that and make that happen, right?

I'm not so sure.

Let me start with this disclaimer: I'm not saying one way is right or wrong.  We haven't fully decided what we will do.  And I am not talking about any certain type of account or savings plan.

When I was in kindergarten I knew that I had to make good grades so I could go to college on a scholarship.  And I had to go to college.  As much as I've tried to figure out how I knew that, I just don't know.  But I think my oldest brother was graduating high school around that time, so maybe that led to it?

At any rate, my parents were definitely not the type to push us into going to a particular school or choosing a certain career path.  Unless you consider my dad's construction business which all three of my brothers worked at.  But me?  Let's just say it was clear from an early age that I would not be a good fit for the family business.

So, I worked at school.  I made excellent grades.  I missed exactly 10 days of school from kindergarten to senior year... and 5 of those were in kindergarten because I went to my grandpa's funeral in Florida & then I got chicken pox.   I got to 11th grade & learned that colleges don't look back any further than 11th grade grades.  What a bummer!  But I knew I was fine... with my weighted grade point average, I'd be well above a 4.0.  And sure enough, I graduated in the top 5% of my class.

Admittedly, I was a scaredy cat when I came to moving away, so I went to the closest university, which happened to be a state school.  Compared to the other schools, it was pretty inexpensive.  I got several merit based scholarships which covered everything but my room & board.

Who picked up the rest of the tab?  My parents.  I can't explain how mega-cool that was!  I didn't really fully understand or appreciate it at that point in time, but that saved me from having loans to pay back after I graduated.  Loans I would have blindly walked into without a second thought.

My parents didn't have an official "well pay for this much of college" stance.  It was an unspoken thing that I was expected to do my very best.  I didn't know that once I did my best, they'd cover the rest, but it was wonderful that they were careful enough with their finances to do so.

So do I plan to have a dedicated college fund for our little kiddo?  I don't actually.  I'm not against saving to help them out in life.  But it could be for college, or for their first house, or for when they call me to bail them out of jail.

I really hope it's not the last one, though.

The point is, I want our kid(s) to work hard.  To expect great things of themselves.  Whether that's going to Harvard, a state school, community college, or not going to college at all.  Admittedly, it would be hard to watch the last one in this day & age, but I know a few people who are wildly driven & are successful in life without a college degree.

I don't want to pay for their college... I want them to work hard & earn it themselves.  And because I'm not sure if it's even possible to get the entire amount of college paid (books, at least, usually aren't covered), we hope to be there to pick up the tab & congratulate them on their hard work.

I'm still working on the plan of what to do if we have a kid who plans to party in college.  :/  I'll let you know when I figure the whole world out perfectly!  lol  *sarcasm, people, calm down*

Your thoughts?

Entitlement, Hard Work, and AFAB

Admittedly, I haven't kept up with the whole Wall Street protest thing.  As I researched to find out what it was all about, it seems to me that the actual movement may have something to it, but 99% of the people involved probably aren't smart enough to understand the intricacies of it.  I know I'm not.

So this post isn't really about the whole Occupy Wall Street thing because I can't really make an informed statement about it.

This post is more about entitlement.  My generation is often called 'the generation of entitlement' and that is not in a good context.  I admit, I have a sense of entitlement that I have to keep in check.  I feel that I've worked hard, made good grades, done the right things, made wise choices, and therefore I should be able to afford to buy a house instead of live in this tiny apartment.  I mean, I have a lot of friends that didn't work as hard or make as good of grades.  They partied through college & they already have houses...

But the thing is, we can't afford a house right now.  We're saving up, and although we feel like we should be at a point where we can buy a house, we just aren't yet.  The end.

Whose fault is it?  Well, it's not anyone's fault... it's just a fact.  It's not the government's fault, and it's not the bank's fault.  It's just not in the cards yet.  Big whoop.  I still have a roof over my head & money to pay the rent every month, so life really isn't all that bad!  Yes, I want better than what I have right now, but I'm very grateful for what I have.

I've seen this flying around Facebook & it really struck me:

I could have written this myself.  Other than a few minor details, this is my story.  I still can't figure it out, but somehow I knew from kindergarten that I needed to make good grades to get a scholarship to go to college.  There were 5 kids in my family & I was expected to go to college ('cause Lord knows I wasn't going to cut it in the family construction business!).  In order to go to college, I had to get scholarships.  I was terrible at sports, so everything was riding on my good grades.  Luckily, I was good in school, formed good study habits, and graduated in the top 5% of my senior class.

All but my room & board were covered in scholarships at the modest state school I went to.  It was a university & provided a fine (although quite liberal) education.  My parents were able to (& gladly) covered my room & board.  I maintained a 3.8 throughout college & graduated a semester early.  I also got married after my sophomore year, so my parents no longer paid room & board because Josh & I were paying rent instead.

By the time I graduated I was making much better than minimum wage.  I started at a counseling center filing paperwork & worked my way up until they trained me to actually work with clients to reach their therapy goals.  We did have debt, so Josh & I both took to working nights at Domino's delivering pizzas.

Then?  Then God called us to move to Atlanta & we both pretty much started over job-wise.  And did you know that between delivering pizza's & working as a nanny for 20 hours a week, you can live in Alpharetta, GA?  You can.  We barely made ends meet, but we made it happen.

My point is, there's no replacement for hard work.  You can be given all the money in the world, but unless you're responsible, it won't last for long.

Did we 'make it' on our own?  Absolutely not.  As my dad always says, "No one makes it in this world on their own."  Remember how my parents covered my room & board those first two years?  And that job at the counseling center?  My boss hired me & put a lot of faith into me.  And when we moved to Atlanta, the church we were leaving totally rallied around us & many members gave us money & gift cards out of the goodness of their hearts.

And that's not even giving any credit to God, which really... He gets all the credit for anything we're able to accomplish.

So yes, no one makes it on their own, but at the same time, you can't expect things to be handed to you.  Nothing replaces hard work.

The President Comes to Visit!

After moving away from my hometown 3 years ago, I've learned that:

A) It's a very small town

B) I grew up on a farm

I truly didn't know either of these until others told me, and I began comparing things.  I assumed that since my town had 10+ stop lights, then it wasn't a small town at all.  I also assumed that since my parents didn't name 'our farm' and we didn't make money off of it, then it wasn't a farm.  Turns out, when you say your parents have goats, donkeys, a pig, a garden, and 3 small barns, people say, "Yes, Susan, that's a farm."

Anywho... in our small town we have a store called Mast General Store.  It's set up like an old General Store, and there are several of them in the mountains of North Carolina.

And well, who should visit the other day than the President of the US... Barack Obama.

No really... he's picking up some candy at the general store.  Not the one in my hometown, but not too far away.

So I'm dying to know the reactions of my friends & family back home.  President Obama has visited this area once or twice before... it's apparently one of his favorite areas.  I know why-- it's a pretty awesome area!  And what better time to visit it than in October when the leaves are falling?

And I have to admit... fan or not, if I saw the President getting some candy, I'd be gawking like all these other people!

Mac or PC?

I feel like there's a M(a)cDonalds joke in here somewhere...

This is awesome.  Although not really true, because both Windows (from what I hear) and Mac are pretty easy to get online these days, I find it hilarious that this is the McDonald's brochure.

I'm pretty sure that somewhere,  Mac user is laughing because s/he created this monstrosity of a brochure & they decided to actually print it!

Truthfully, this reflects how I feel about PCs vs. Macs.  My days of using a PC were so much more complicated, but since getting a Mac, things have mostly been smooth sailing.  They're not for everyone, but they are for me!

So, are you a Mac or a PC?  Or do you give a care?

What Really Changed?

For the sake of blog writing/reading ease, I'm referring to the attacks on the World Trade Center & The Pentagon & all the other stuff that happened on 9/11/2001 as '9/11' in today's post.

In my attempt to watch to the news more often (I was missing major global events like earthquakes & tsunamis & space aliens), I've started turning it on in the evenings while I clean.  Earlier this week the question was posed, "How much has your life changed since 9/11/2001?"

The response was about like mine... quiet... thinking.  I mean, I know things have changed, but so much in my life would have changed anyway... what is a result of 9/11?  I was in 10th grade when it happened. I now drive a car, am married, have a kid on the way, have a college degree, live in another state... but I'm pretty sure those aren't a direct result of 9/11.

So what changed?  The news definitely helped remind me of just how much has changed... and reading my blog post from last year reminded me even more.

Airport security.  Seeing someone of middle eastern descent.  Military.  Jobs.  Presidents.

For me, a complete paradigm shift.

No, every time I see someone of middle eastern descent I don't automatically think of 9/11.  But something deep inside of me does feel different than when I see anyone else on the street.  Before 9/11, I'm not even sure I knew anyone of middle eastern descent.  I would almost go as far as to say that I'd never seen anyone in that category, but I'm sure I did somewhere along the way.  I just didn't live in an area where that was prevalent.

But I think for many it was a complete paradigm shift.  In last year's blog post about 9/11, I wrote that we assumed it was a horrific accident until the 2nd tower was hit.  At that point we were confused, and then quickly, a bigger story unravelled.

Today, if there is an accident, one of our first thoughts is an attack or potential attack.  A pilot on a plane is asleep and overshoots his landing... and we freak out because we assume it's an attack.  Why wouldn't we?

I wonder what my daughter will read about 9/11 in her history books.  Will she ask me about it?  Wonder how crazy it was that I was alive back then?  How old will she be when she learns about it?

As I babysat a 4 year old last week a commercial came on TV about remembering 9/11.  I wondered if she would ask about it, but she didn't.  It seemed to be just another commercial to her.  Might as well have been a commercial about Pearl Harbor or Independence Day (the 4th or July, not the movie).  It's inevitable.  As time goes on, we will forget the sting, that feeling.  And our kids will never fully understand it like the ones of us who lived through it.

So for you... what has changed?  What has stayed the same?

Revisit 2005 with Katie Holmes & Tom Cruise!

Can we revisit something for a moment?  Remember when Katie Holmes & Tom Cruise started dating?

I do.

Many I wondered what on earth was going on... was it just a publicity stunt?  Surely it was a publicity stunt...

And now, 6 years later, they're still together.

And we were all waiting for an announcement that she was off her rocker & going into rehab or something.

On a side note... Katie supposedly used to have posters of Tom hanging on her wall, dreaming of marrying him someday.  Talk about making your dreams come true!

Did you have posters on your wall growing up?  Who were they of?  Who was your celebrity crush growing up?