Earth Day

Happy Earth Day everyone! I know not everybody is into saving our planet and many people think the planet doesn't need saving. Think whatever you like. I'm very open-minded so I don't mind if people have different thoughts than I do. I do think the planet needs to be taken care of, but I will admit that I'm not very good at doing this. I recycle my water bottles at work and I started a compost pile, but I still throw things away that should be recycled and I drive a car that isn't very eco-friendly. I'm going to try to start doing more things to help this planet though. Maybe I'll adopt a stretch of highway or something. Pacen needs to be taught to respect the Earth too and the adopt-a-highway program would be a good way to do this. He'll probably want to keep most of the trash we pick up so he can build something, but hopefully he'll get the understanding that it's not good for people to litter. Yes, I think I will look into the adopt-a-highway program tomorrow.

"Save the Earth, it's the only planet with chocolate!" ~ Unknown

There's just something about Tulips

Tulips. I love them. I love everything about them. The main reason I love them is because they are like a new beginning. As soon as their green leaves start to sprout up from the dirt I feel a sense of peace. I know that the dreary days of winter will soon come to an end and that most everything will be bursting with life. Warmer days are on the way. Sunshine. Birds singing. Flowers blooming. Bees buzzing. The sound of children laughing as they ride their bikes up the street. I can't wait!


*sigh* I need blooms. I need them now. I planted many many bulbs the past couple years and I'm hoping this is the year that they all decide to bloom. Many are starting to sprout from the ground, but not as many as I'd hoped. In anticipation of the beautiful blooms to come, I drew some tulips on my sidewalk with chalk. I guess those "blooms" will have to do for now and hopefully they don't get washed away too soon.


"The tulip is, among flowers, what the peacock is among birds. A tulip lacks scent, a peacock has an unpleasant voice. The one takes pride in its garb, the other in its tail." ~ French Proverb (And even though a Tulip doesn't have a scent I still love it!)

Every woman should

I was perusing some of my favorite blogs the other day and I came across the following poem on The Lettered Cottage. I know I've heard it before, a long time ago in my past, and I remember thinking it was a great poem. I guess I kind of forgot about it. I think every woman should read this poem:

Every woman should have...

Enough money within her control to move out and rent a place of her own, even if she never wants to or needs to.

Something perfect to wear if the employer, or date of her dreams, wants to see her in an hour.

A youth she's content to leave behind.

A past juicy enough that she's looking forward to retelling it in her old age.

A set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra.

One friend who always makes her laugh and one who lets her cry.



A good piece of furniture, not previously owned by anyone else in her family.

Eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems, and a recipe for a meal that will make her guests feel honored.

A feeling of control over her destiny.

Every woman should know...

How to fall in love without losing herself.

How to quit a job, break up with a lover, and confront a friend without ruining the friendship.

When to try harder...and when to walk away.

That she can't change the length of her calves, the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents.

That her childhood may not have been perfect...but it's over.

What she would and wouldn't do for love.

How to live alone...even if she doesn't like it.

Whom she can trust, whom she can't, and why she shouldn't take it personally.

Where to go when her soul needs soothing; be it to her best friend's kitchen table or a charming Inn in the woods.



What she can and can't accomplish in a day...a month...a year.

~ Pamela Redmond Satran

Candy Pwease

Easter weekend I got to see my friend's little boy, J.T., whom I haven't seen since Halloween (he was Mr. Clean). He will be two in May and he is so adorable. I was taking his picture a lot while I was over at his Aunt Sunny's (my best friend) house and he loved it. He even said "cheese" for me before every picture. He is such a little "ham", much like Pacen was when he was that age. I miss having a "ham" around to photograph. Pacen outgrew that phase a long time ago and I'm sure J.T. will too, but until then I will photograph the little guy like crazy every time I see him. He is very photogenic too. I wish his cousin, Autumn, was as understanding of "Aunt Wook" and her camera as J.T. is. :)

One of my favorite pictures I got of J.T. also involves one of my favorite foods. Chocolate! I brought a small bag of chocolate to Autumn as an Easter treat and he saw it and said, "Candy pwease." How adorable! I love the way little kids talk! His mom gave him a piece of chocolate and the next thing we knew his little face was covered! So funny! Later I was holding him and he looked at me and his Aunt Sunny and again said, "Candy pwease." At first we weren't sure if we should give him another piece and then we decided there was no way we could say no to such a polite and adorable request. This time the chocolate ended up all over his face and all over my neck/chest. Just look at the picture. Would you ever be able to say no to those big green eyes staring up at you and the little voice saying, "Candy pwease."?! I don't think so!



"Even when freshly washed and relieved of all obvious confections, children tend to be sticky." ~ Fran Lebowitz

My Little Knight in Shining Armor

This morning I was getting ready to take a shower and when I got to my nasty shower (more on that later) I discovered something that I don't ever want to find in my shower or, for that fact, anywhere in my home! Something I have been deathly afraid of pretty much my whole life! A spider! A huge, nasty, big-butted (I sometimes create words) spider! Luckily it was already dead. Many thoughts started running through my head. "Where did he come from?! Is my shower so nasty that it kills spiders the instant they crawl into it?! What am I going to do?!"

After sitting there for a bit I decided I would just wash the spider down the drain. I don't have a normal shower drain. You see, my shower is homemade. Constructed by someone who didn't put much thought into what they were doing, I might add. Someone who didn't want a nice, spa-like shower. The drain is a normal basement over-flow drain. It has pretty big holes. I figured the spider would easily wash down the drain. I was wrong.

Plan A was a failure so it was time for me to move on to Plan B. First I had to come up with a Plan B. I was so sure Plan A would work! Dang it! Okay, slowly Plan B is started coming together in my head. Aha! I decided it would be best to wake Pacen a whole half-hour before he normally wakes up so he could take care of the spider for me. Perfect! So I run back upstairs to get my knight in shining armor, knowing he is not going to be happy about this whole ordeal.

"Baby, I need you to do me a favor.", I say in my sweetest, most loving voice. :)

He stretches, yawns, and says, "What is it Mama?" (Yes, he calls me Mama and I love, love, love it!)

"There's a spider in the shower. Can you please get it for me?"

*Big Sigh* "Give me a minute."

So I wait...but not for very long cause I don't want the spider to miraculously come back to life and get me (it could happen...anything is possible). As we're walking downstairs I look at Pacen just as he runs his fingers through his hair in a rather frustrated manner with a rather frustrated look on his face. I knew he wouldn't be happy, but what else was I suppose to do?!

"Where is it Mama?"

I point towards the shower and after he finally focuses in on it he says in a very matter-of-fact tone, "I'm NOT picking that thing up!"

"Well what are we going to do?! I can't pick it up either!"

After a little thought he says, "We could vacuum it up. Go get the vacuum."

My son is so smart! Why didn't I think of the vacuum? So now we're on Plan C. I get the vacuum and hand him the hose (I can't touch anything that is touching a spider...it's a thing).

"Okay, turn it on!"

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR (my very loud vacuum sound)

After just a second or two he screams, "TURN IT OFF!"

"NO! WHAT IF IT'S NOT IN THE BAG YET?!"

"IT'S IN THE BAG MOM!" Oh my, he called me "Mom", he must be serious.

I turn off the vacuum, he complains about how loud it is, and then goes back upstairs. He just left me! With the vacuum that has a large spider in it! How could he do that to me?! Just to make sure the spider actually did make it to the bad I turn the vacuum back on for 30 seconds or so. Okay, I think it's safe now. I take a very fast shower...the whole time looking up, down, side-to-side, and everywhere for more spiders. *Shudder* I HATE spiders!

I do have to say, though, that I am much better about dealing with spiders than I used to be. When I lived in Harrison I had to face spiders a lot as I lived in a trailer house and trailer houses are so easy for mice and spiders to break in to. I would call my friend, Norm, who lived in Crawford. He would answer the phone to someone crying and hyper-ventilating. He always knew it was me and he always knew what was wrong.

"Brooke, it's not going to get you."

Between gasps for air and sobs, "Yes...it...is! It's...so...BIG...Norm!"

"Breathe Brooke. You'll be okay."

"No...I...won't!"

"Brooke, get a shoe and throw it at the spider."

"I...can't! If...I...go...get...a...shoe...it'll...crawl...away...and...I...won't...know...where...it...is...and...it'll...get...me...while...I...sleep!"

"No it won't, Brooke. Now go get a shoe."

"Okay."

"You got a shoe now?"

"Yes."

"Throw it at the spider."

"I...can't...Norm!"

"Yes you can, Brooke."

It usually took Norm about a half-hour or so to get me to the point where I would actually throw the shoe at the spider. More times than not I missed and the spider took off like a flash. I would then start freaking out again, jumping around the room I was in, and looking all around me like the spider was going to jump from some dark corner and attack me. It would then take Norm another half-hour or so to calm me down enough that we could both go on with our lives. I'm so glad Norm was always there for me in my time of need...even if it was just on the phone. Other people were not as patient as he was. My dad once told me I need psychiatric help for my arachnophobia. Wow Dad. Kind of harsh.

Quote time! The quote for this blog comes from the movie Arachnophobia, which my cousin forced me to watch when I was 10 or 11. He seriously made me sit on my hands and he held my eyelids open. Mean! Very mean! Maybe that was his way of helping me get over my fear. It didn't work.

Dr. Ross Jennings: Chris, I'm scared to death.
Collins: Yeah, we all are, but our brains secrete a neurotransmitter that enables us to deal with them.
Dr. Ross Jennings: I don't think I have that particular neurotransmitter.

I'm with you Dr. Jennings! I too do not have that particular neurotransmitter!

29 and feelin' fine

I turned 29-years-old on March 2nd. I can't believe I'll be 30 in a year! Where has the time gone?! It seems like just yesterday I was at the age where I had no worries and no responsibilities. Just living a carefree life. Running around in jelly shoes, my hair a mess, dirt smeared across my face, scrapes and bruises on my knees from wrecking my bike. Ahhhh, what a life! Now I have tons of worries and responsibilities. Mortgage, car payment, student loans, a job, and my biggest worry and responsibility of them all...my son! Growing up sucks! I guess it's now Pacen's turn to live the carefree life (for a while anyway) and I'm going to try my hardest to make it very enjoyable for him.

The first thing Pacen asked me on my birthday was if I had cried when I woke up. I cried when I turned 25 cause I thought of it as being a quarter of a century old. I cried last year cause, well, I don't know why. Possibly because I knew in two short years I would hit 30. This year I actually didn't cry. I'm surprised I didn't, but I think I know why I didn't. Recently my mom told me 40 is supposedly the new 30 so in my head, 30 is the new 20. So I won't be 30 next year, I'll be 20 again! Yay!! Thanks mom!

I had a really good birthday, especially considering I was worried about some family health issues going on at the same time. The Friday before my birthday I got to spend the evening with my long-time best friend, Sunny. It was a night of great food, a good movie, good coffee, some needed laughs, and absolutely wonderful company! On my birthday I worked, but I got to enjoy dinner at The Pizza Place with Raine, Pacen, and my dad. (Mom was on her way to Missouri to be with my family as my Grandpa had a small stroke on the 1st.) After dinner we went to my house for cake that Nan (my Grandma) had made and then I lifted weights with Raine and Amanda while Pacen was at wrestling practice. Tonight I am joining some great friends and my wonderful sisters for a late birthday celebration. I feel extremely lucky to have so many great people in my life and I don't know what I would do without them!

On a side note, as you may know I compare my life to a bubble. I'm just trying to float through life without 'popping" and over the years there have been some "sharp objects" thrown in my path that have threatened just that, and I must say this past year consisted of one of the biggest obstacles I've had to deal with. I have made it through the worst part, but not without some "scars". I realize, though, that all the obstacles I've overcome have only made me stronger. They have caused me to have realizations about what I want out of life and, therefore, have somewhat caused me to become a new person. I'm stronger, full of even more determination, wiser, and "harder". I'm not completely changed...I still have compassion, I'm still a "softy", I still tend to wear my emotions on my sleeve, I still have a hard time being mean (unless it's called for)...but I am done sitting around and taking crap off people and I am going to start living life the way I want. I am going to follow my dreams and I'm not going to let anyone get in my way (except for Pacen). That is kind of a birthday present to myself...giving myself permission to do what I want without feeling selfish.

Self-portrait of a 29-year-old! :)

"What could be more beautiful than a dear old lady growing wise with age? Every age can be enchanting, provided you live within it." ~ Brigitte Bardot

Photography

As some of you may know I really enjoy photography. I'm not the best photographer by any means, but I try to do my best. I still have a long way to go! :) A small percentage of what I've learned about photography was by experimentation, but a majority of the things I've learned came from various blogs and Flickr. The same can be said about what I've learned when it comes to photo editing (using Photoshop or Photoshop Elements), but most of what I've learned about photo editing came from the Pioneer Woman. The tutorials on her site (not all posted by her) are absolutely wonderful! Sometimes I still stumble upon something new when working with Photoshop and part of the time I have no idea how I managed to make a picture look the way it turned out. About 56% of the time that happens, I like what I see. This was the case last night. About two years ago I took a picture of my favorite candelabra. The lighting seemed perfect and I loved the way it's shadow fell across my great-grandparent's dining room table (handed down to me). Last night I re-discovered that image in one of the MANY picture folders on my computer and I decided to play with it in Photoshop Elements. I ended up with three different versions that I really like. The third picture happens to be one of the types of pictures I mentioned above...the kind that I have no idea what I did to get the result, but I like it!





"There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer." ~ Ansel Adams