Christmas Past

The other day my mom and I went on a trip down memory lane. It was a nice little trip with plenty of good memories... So sit back and come with me down the road to Christmas past.....
My fondest Christmas memories are of Christmas Eve.......
One of my most memorable Christmas's was when I was around 6 or 7. I was just learning to read and I remember Grandpa T. placing his HUGE Bible into my lap (Hey, I was only 6 or 7 EVERYTHING was huge back then). I remember I couldn't read the big words, so grandma would quietly tell me what they were, and I'd say them out loud as though I really did know them all along.

Then of course the time that Aaron, Carrie, Jeremy, and I all took turns reading the Christmas story. One would read a verse or two and pass it on down the line. I don't know about other family members, but I found being picked to read the Christmas story to be a great honor. To see grandpa looking quickly around to see who he'd pick, and I'd always be hoping it would be me. Then again, it would be selfish if I read it every year. The honor should've and was passed equally around.

Then the presents..... Oh the presents. I could always count on Aunt Ida giving me a new dress. She always gave me such pretty dresses... Then there was the year of the "mixed up Christmas gift." Grandma T gave Carrie and I "My Little Pony's". HOWEVER she accidentally switched them, and I remember when we switched back Carrie said "But that's the one I really wanted." I felt HORRIBLE about that. Carrie, I would have traded you, but I was so afraid of hurting Grandma's feelings. Now that I'm grown, I realize she wouldn't have minded if we had switched back. At the time, I just didn't want to see her hurt. But I always had felt bad about that. Still do in a way.

Then there's the "missing baby Jesus" memory. Ashley was 20 months old. She had been sick with a fever her first Christmas, and so her first Christmas Eve was actually her second Christmas. She was an adorable girl who had a dreadful pacifier addiction. Anyway, Grandma and Grandpa T. had a good size, plastic, lit up nativity scene inside their house. It was just Mary, Joseph, and a "detachable" baby Jesus. Once Ashley realized that Baby Jesus could be taken out of the manager, she held onto it for dear life. When we would try to take it away, she'd cry and scream. If I'm not mistaken there's a picture in Grandma's hallway of Ashley sitting on someone's lap (Mine? mom's?) sucking on her pacifier, and holding baby Jesus. It was like pulling teeth to get it away from her.

Then there's a few memories that aren't Christmas Eve related.....
We moved when I was 10. We had just gotten our new house, and wasn't even moved in yet. The only thing in the house was our Christmas tree. On Christmas Eve. Mom, Dad, Aaron, and I all slept in sleeping bags on the dining room floor.

That was the same year that the cabbage patch dolls came out, and I wanted one. I remember seeing on TV people fighting over them. I remember clearly a man on TV holding two dolls saying "I got two of them, I got two of them." I turned to mom and said "That's kind of selfish don't you think? He should only take one, and give the other to another dad that wants one for his little girl."
I wanted one so badly, but I knew there was NO WAY I'd get one. My dad JUST got back to work after being laid off for four years, and money was still tight. We went over to Grandma and Grandpa M's for Christmas day. When it came time to open presents, there was a big gift for me from my Aunt Rebecca and Uncle Rick. It was a Cabbage Patch doll. I don't think I've EVER hugged anyone so much in my life. I was truly a very happy girl.

There are so many memories, but these are just the one's that stick out..... If you need something to warm your heart, or to put you in the Christmas mood, here you go..........

A couple years ago, my Aunt Rebecca took her granddaughter Chelsea (Who was about 7 or 8 at the time) to see Santa. Santa asked her what she wanted for Christmas.
Chelsea said "I want everyone in the world that doesn't have a good job to get a good job. And I want everybody in the world that doesn't have enough food, to get enough food."
Santa said: "That's nice but what do YOU want?"
She said: "I want everyone that has to live on the cold streets to have a nice warm bed and a warm house to live in."
Santa: That's wonderful, but what do YOU want?
Chelsea thought for a min, and said: There's a little girl in my class that's poor. Her clothes are old, and she doesn't have a coat. She shivers when she walks into our classroom. I want you to bring her a new coat and some warm clothes, so she won't be cold anymore.
She then climbed off his lap, and Santa called her back. He gave her a HUGE hug and said "God bless you Chelsea." She was so happy that she went running to Rebecca and said "Santa hugged me and said "God Bless you, isn't that the neatest?"

Putt putt, Chuck E Cheese, and one EXHAUSTED teacher OH MY!!!

I wanted to do something special for my Sunday school class for Christmas. Since I only have two kids ages 10 and 11, I thought they were old enough to enjoy a "field trip."
I had planned this trip a month ago, and kept my fingers crossed that I would not be forced to work the planned Sat. Since I knew the ladies of L.I.F.T. (Ladies In Fellowship Together) group from my church was planning a Christmas Party at a local resteraunt this evening, I thought it would just be easier to throw in a Sunday School party the morning of the party. I figured it would be easier to get one Sat off than to try to get two.....
So..... Rewind to yesterday (Friday). I worked a 12 hour shift, and halfway through my shift I was really craving homemade chili. (Chris gave me a great SPICY chili recipe. Can't wait to try it).. SO... After work (mind you I'd been up since 9 AM, which is extremely early for me and pulled a 12 hour shift to boot.) I headed to Walmart and bought the "fixins" to make chili. Amongst other things..... Didn't leave Walmart until a quarter after 1 AM, and FINALLY went to bed at 5 AM. (Forgot I had laundry to dry, and I don't sleep with a dryer on. I also had to wrap some gifts for my SS kids.)
I had told the kids we would leave the church at 10 AM. So, I dragged myself out of bed at 9 AM, left at 9:30 and both kids were waiting for me at the church.
We got to this indoor, glow in the dark putt putt at 10:30, was supposed to open at 10, but the employee didn't show up until 11. Not only that but this other family was already there, and had reservations for a birthday party at 10. To say they weren't very happy was a gross understatement.

She finally opened the doors to let us in, and I found out that this putt putt place is AMAZING!!!! If you have kids, do yourself a favor and take them. It's very reasonable.... $6 for kids 12 and under, and $8 for adults, and you can get glow in the dark necklaces for the whole group for only a buck. It's in the old Lazurus store in the Markland mall. When you walk in it looks VERY small, and I honestly thought that there were MAYBE 9 holes. However after about the fifth hole, you turn the corner, and go behind the wall, and you'll discover it seems to go on forever. There's 40 holes of endless golfing (we counted). Okay so there's no windmills, nor fountains, and there's not even any water, but hey, EVERYTHING glows in the dark. The only lights in this place are the black lights, so if you go wear white. It's awesome. It's really amazing....
We started playing at 11, and we didn't finish until noon. After "golfing" we headed over to Chuck E Cheese, which one of my kids had never been there before. We spent about 2 hours eating and playing games.. Well.... so they played games, I just carried on an interesting one sided conversation with Chuck the mouse.... Yeah, I was a little bored. LOL.

I got the kids home around 2:30, went home, grabbed a 40 min nap and went out to eat with the LIFT group and their spouses.
To say I'm about to drop is putting it lightly. I do know I AM going to bed early tonight. Might throw the ingrediants for chili in my crockpot before church in the morning....MIGHT be done by the time I get home...

My Christmas parties are finished for the year, and I can concentrate on family.

Christmas trees more the merrier?????

Growing up our tradition was that Christmas decorations didn't go up until the first weekend of December. Well, with the weather being so warm last weekend, I put up my outside lights. It's not much just 3 strands outlining my front porch. My tree will be put up this weekend sometime.

I USED to have a 6 and a half foot tree, but I found stringing the lights such a hassle that I downgraded to a 4 foot PRELIT tree last year. It only takes about 2 mins. to put it up. Just snap the two parts together and put it in the stand. I can have the whole tree up and decorated in less than 10 mins.


I went into work four hours early yesterday, and started talking to a lady about Christmas and Christmas trees. She goes all out for Christmas. When I asked her how many Christmas trees she had in her house, her answer about knocked me over..... She has 13.

She has a tree for each of her 13 grandkids. They come over one or two at a time and help put up and decorate their own tree. She told me that each tree matches the personality of that grandkid. For example one grandson is into race cars, so his tree is NASCAR covered, one granddaughter is into princesses, so her tree has a princess theme. Her youngest is into Sesame Street, so there's a SS tree for her. Her oldest grandkid is 21 and her youngest are 2 year old twins. She's done this every year since the oldest was born. When they are born they get a small 2 foot tree, as they get older and add more and more to their tree, they get to "Upgrade" to a bigger tree every 5 years.

Also in Dec. she has all the females in her family come over for a baking fest. They bake TONS of cookies, pies, and goodies. She said they ALL help.... From the youngest to the oldest.. She told me that she started that when her daughters were little, and now it's grown to include all the granddaughters..... Including her 2 year old granddaughter.

All I can think is, she must have a lot of patience to have the 2 year old to help, and to have that many people in her kitchen.

Helping the less fortunate.......

Please don't think I'm bragging, because that's not my intentions at all... I just had the opportunity to help a poor, extremely under employed young man that normally wouldn't have been able to afford Christmas for his family. I just HAD to help him out, since I always try to help the less fortunate. So .....I took Austin Christmas shopping this weekend....

It brought back so many happy memories of our Friday night shopping sprees... When he was little he would call my cell phone while I was at work, or mom would give me a letter he'd written BEGGING me to take him to Walmart or Meijer Friday night. Being the adorable kid he is, I'd always take him. He would wait up for me to get home from work, and we'd go shopping at midnight. We had a routine. He'd run to the milk section, grab a small container of eggnog (around Christmas) or banana milk,(Which by the way is just as gross as it sounds. This is the same kid that would go through a whole gallon of milk a day if mom would let him.) and he'd drink it while we were shopping. If he was hungry, he'd find something open it up and start eating. It was okay since he always asked, and of course I ALWAYS paid for them. It's funny the clerk would ring up empty things and ask "Do you want to keep these?" That always struck me funny. We normally just went grocery shopping, but more times than not, he'd walk out with a new toy.

He would always fall asleep on the way home, and we'd finally arrive home around 3 am.

I love that kid.... Yes Ashley, I love you too.

Flu Shots and other yucky things....

I had been trying to find cheap flu shots. They were giving them away at work for free, but when I went to get one, they had already packed up and left. So, I found out that some community center was giving them away for $25 each, which is cheaper than the $30-35 I have been seeing. My mom had already gotten hers the day before, and she asked if I wanted her to go with me. Since I didn't know where it was, I agreed.

So, I filled out the paper work, rolled up my sleeve, and turned my head away. If I look, I pass out. I was feeling dizzy and lightheaded, but passed it off as "just in my head". Since this was my first flu shot EVER, the nurse wanted me to stick around for 15 mins, to make sure there wasn't any allergic reactions.

I realized something about myself today...... When it comes to shots/needles, I discovered that I hold my breath. Which would explain the lightheaded, dizziness I was feeling. My mom was a lifesaver though, she pulled out a notebook and we played SEVERAL games of tic tac toe. (By the way she's a wiz at it.) Which got my mind off my feeling "faint", and in no time I was feeling like my old self.

We did stop at McDonalds afterwards. I laughed and said I felt like a little kid being rewarded for being a "big girl".

Then another thought hit me.... I just paid $25 dollars to let them poke me with a needle.... I'm sure I have siblings that would be willing to do that for FREE! Then again, if one of my sibs gave me a shot it would hurt more than just that little poke. It would feel more like a stab. Maybe paying isn't so bad after all.

Copyright police....... They are watching...

Last Feb. I one of my blog posts was about my favorite picture.... "The Touch". In my blog I mentioned that due to copyright laws I couldn't post a copy of the picture on my blog....
So, imagine my surprise when I received the following email recently.............

Subject: Your Feb 2006 blog post
Angela,

Recently I stumbled on a post on your blog: http://angelaslifeorthelackofone.blogspot.com/2006/02/old-answer-to-prayer.html .

In it you mentioned your inability to find a website that would let you display Ron DiCianni's The Touch. First, we appreciation your restraint and your respect of the artist's copyright for this image. The good news is that we here at Tapestry are Ron's agents and would be pleased to give you permission to include the image in your post if you are still interested.

Please let me know and I will get you the appropriate links and permissions. -gjd


Grant DiCianniVice President


This person had also included a phone number and email address, which due to personal information, I didn't post on here.

So, word to the wise... Watch your copyrighted material, you never know who's reading... Infringing copyright laws can be very costly..... So, be careful what pictures you are using.

Christmas Season Has Officially Started..

Even though I have ALMOST all my shopping finished (only 4 people to go), the Christmas season didn't officially start until Today (Thursday).
Every year the local radio station has a "trim a tree" auction... Different businesses, churches, and schools decorate Christmas trees.. There are close to 50 trees with 50 different themes. The trees and wreathes are displayed in the local mall for 2 weeks. On November 11? 12? All the trees and wreathes will be auctioned off. the winners not only win the trees, but also whatever is under the tree. For example "Texas Roadhouse" has a tree this year, you not only win the tree, but also all the gift certificates that are under the tree...

The money goes to several nonprofit charities... I know the Salvation Army and the Rescue Mission are only 2 of the charities that the money goes to..

Every year my mom and I go look at the trees. We always go during the week before I go to work. We always admire each tree and pick something that's really neat or really unusual. (The chains of glued peanuts on the Texas Roadhouse tree did make an unsual, but very fitting garland.) There were a few trees that brought tears to my eyes. One was a red, white, and blue tree with pictures of every Indiana soldier that has lost their lives in Iraq.

After looking at the trees, we went to the radio station store in the mall (which is only open until the tree auction) we bought some Doo Dahs (Which are chocolate covered carmel corn) and a couple Christmas cds. The artists are all local people and churches. Really neat.

After leaving the mall, we popped in the cd and listened to it all the way home. I am now in the Christmas mood. :)

A Flattering but Overwhelming Offer.......

Last night as I was leaving work my friend Dave stopped me. Dave is our fill-in Union steward. When our normal one isn't there Dave steps in, and he's really good. I told him that he needs to run sometime for a full time stewardship. Anyway, he was telling me that a lot of people on second shift has been complaining that we don't have a second shift chaplin. There's one on the two other shifts but ours. Dave, being the person he is, brought up my name. He then asked me if I'd be interested. I know IF I do this, I would be an "intern" until they think I can handle it on my own, and I'd be on the chaplin commitee. I told him that I have to pray about it, and he said "See? You just proved that you'd be perfect for it." I am still overwhelmed by this idea. I'm not a preacher, nor am I Bible College graduate.I'm just a quite, partly shy, backward, 32 year old 4,5, and 6th grade Sunday school teacher. I'm praying for guidence and wisdom in this situation...

Scared little girls turn into Brave Women...

My friend Lois and I realized the other day that we had some of the same fears as kids. The only difference is she was the youngest and her older brother and sisters were always scaring her.
She said that every night she'd go to her room and her brother would say "Watch out for the green eye." Even though she had NO idea what that was, it always scared her.

Even though I didn't have that fear,I did discover that we both were the champs at long jumps. I found out that she (like myself) would turn off the light and jump as far as she could to the bed. Why you ask? Because we KNEW there was something under our beds that would grab our ankles and drag us under the bed if we were caught. Once I did miss the bed and fell straight to the floor beside my bed. I thought for sure I was a goner, but I guess the under-the-bed-monster was off duty that night.

She was also scared of skeletons. She was so scared, that her parents bought her a little, tiny, plastic movable one that she slept with every night. She even named it, I THINK she said it's name was Scaley. But something sad happened to poor "scaley?" She thought he was cold one night, so she put him on top of her lamp. In the morning it was just a melted plastic pile.

It's so hard to believe that this person that was terrified of skeletons, green eyes, and things under the bed..... Grew up, joined the Air Force, and served in Desert Storm. Her job was to identify body parts after battles. She would go to the field, and when she found a body part, she'd put a flag by it, then someone else coming behind would know where the pieces were and put each piece in individual body bags. She told me that you NEVER stand there and try to figure out what body part it was. "You don't stand there and think 'that's an arm, or that's a leg' You just stick your flag in the ground, and move on to the next part. You don't waste time thinking about what you're really doing. If you did, you'd need counseling."

Her 7 (now 8) year old son, Philip, asked "Mommy why are you retarded?" She said "What do you mean?" "Why are you retarded from the Air Force?" Last April, Lois retired from the Air Force. So, now we refer to her as being retarded. Lois, you're my hero, and I salute you!!!!!!!!!


With Veterans day coming up, do me a favor and thank a veteran.

Great friends....

I have a friend, Lois ('Ello Captain!)who I work with and is my best friend.

We text each other ALL the time at work. One day I had over 80 text mess. from her and vice versa... Thankfully we both have the same service provider so all texts are FREE!!!!! Lately we've been on this pirate kick. We be textin' tryin' ta sound like pirates all day.. AARR matey. (By the way I can type/write piratey better than I can speak it.) I gave her the nickname Captain, and she gave me the nickname Poppet. (Okay family keep that in mind when we play Curses.... I am getting pretty good at piratey talk. ;)

Talking about pirates...One day I was trying to text Lois, and my mind was on pirate talk... My boss walks up and asks if skilled trades was working on my machine. Keep in mind that my brain was in pirate mode... I look up and said "Aye Captain.... AAAARRR." He looked at me VERY strangely and walked away. I was laughing so hard that of course I had to text Lois and tell her what I did, which she found funny as well.

A couple weeks ago we went plunderin' Starbucks after work, and didn't leave until close to 3AM. Gotta love 24 hour Starbucks. We were the only ones in there and the guy working there gave us free drinks.. That's how I got hooked on the Spiced Pumpkin Lattes.

She's always been there for me. After Grandpa T died, she called me to make sure I was ok.... I was at work when Grandpa M died, and she was right there letting me cry on her shoulder... Wonderful friend to have around.....By the way her birthday is.......... July 7.... So every year we do something to CELEBRATE...

Now skip to my other friend, Dave. He's Lois's boyfriend.... When my ex boyfriend, whom I don't speak of....(Aunt Carol knows who I'm talking about.)backed out of taking me to my 10 year class reunion, Dave is the one that spoke up and said "I'll go." Lois said "There you go. Go with Dave." I was shocked. I kept asking her if she was sure, and she said "Of course." Later when Dave wasn't around, I asked "Are you positive that you're okay with me going with Dave? If you're the least bit upset about it I won't go." She said "If you were anyone else, I'd be mad, but I know what kind of person you are and I know you're not out to "steal" Dave." So, I went to my reunion with Dave.

Okay so fast forward to last week...... The Monday after my birthday, Lois took me out for lunch before work (She gave me a book about pirates I thought I was very funny.) On the way to work I got to a stop sign and heard a loud Thud and then grinding noise. It sounded like the whole back end of my jeep fell off.

I made it to work, and told Lois about it. She told Dave, who in turn told me about this guy that fixes brakes at a really cheap price. Here's the problem, I wasn't going to have the money until the next (this) week. So, Lois took me to this guy's house, dropped off my jeep, drove me ALL the way home, and was willing to pick me up for work the next day. (I borrowed my mom's car. No reason for her to pick me up for work then take me home. That was too much.)

She drove me home (By the way does anyone know the words to the Silly songs with Larry about the caribou? We've tried our best to think of the tune. If I had the words I would know the tune.)

The next day I called the brake guy up (Dave gave me the number) and asked how much it was going to cost....... ALL 4 of my brakes were down to the metal and the brake cable in the back broke off... Was told that was the thud I heard, and it's a wonder I had any type of braking at all. So, I'm thinking ok this is going to cost a lot of money..... The guy said "Dave took care of it."

So, I picked my jeep up with a heartfelt gratitude for having such great friends..... So, I told Dave that I needed to know how much it was so I could pay him back.... He said it was $175. So, I was thinking $175 a brake, but no that's for the whole thing.... (I called the guy and asked. I don't want to cheat my friends.)

So now I have great brakes and WONDERFUL friends.....

A Day of nice surprises......

Friday night as I was driving home from work my cell rang, which in itself is quite surprising since hardly anyone calls my cell. So, I answered and it was no other than my wonderful, charming, and delightful little sister. No, I'm not sucking up either... I really mean that.

We talked for a few mins when I asked "Where are you?" (She's usually on her way somewhere when she calls me...Baskin Robbins, the mall, Walmart... You get the picture) Imagine my surprise when she said "Home". So I thought ok, she's at her dorm. "No, at home...in my room. I came home for the weekend".... So we talked for what an hour? She told me that Aaron and Chris invited the family over for dinner Sat. night....

Okay, here's the thing about that...... I VOLUNTEERED to work Sat.... Ashley, my dear sweet sister (being sarcastic now) decided to tell NO ONE but Aaron and Chris that she was coming home this weekend....

Now, skip to Sat. around noon.... Ashley and I decided to go out for lunch, and we were on our way when my cell phone rings.... It was Aaron, who by the way NEVER calls me, it's always Chris that calls.... He invited me over for dinner HIMSELF.... I told him that I had to work, and he told me to "get out of it" and that I "NEED to be there." Then he hung up and called Ashley asking if she thought he convinced me...

So, I was caught in a dilemma...... Go to work like a "loyal" employee or forget work and spend time with Ashley and the rest of the family...... I normally leave for work at 2:12, and there it was 2:10 and I was still trying to decide.... Finally I said "Ashley would you like to take a small walk with me?" We sat out in my jeep, and I called in and told them I couldn't make it in..... Yes, I, Angela Dawn M., played hooky from work.....

After I hung up, my wonderful (not being sarcastic here) sister and I went to the mall.. Which was fun.... Okay, waiting for Ashley to try on a million things at Old Navy, (well maybe it was more like 10)wasn't too fun, but spending time with her was.... Afterwards we went over to Aaron and Chris's.....

We got there the same time mom and dad showed up.... We went in and Chris said "We have surprises for you..... Her dining room looked like it was ready for a kid's Birthday party.... Each seat had a balloon tied to it, and each setting had birthday plates, cups, and party favors.... Also at each place was a gift.... Aaron and Chris bought gifts for the whole family. They said that since they can never remember anyone's birthday they decided to have a big party for everyone.... There was a birthday cake and ice cream..... I've never seen so many names on a cake in my life..... Everyone's name was on it.... It was great...

After mom and dad left, Chris cut mine and Ashley's hair and waxed our eyebrows.... The waxing wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it'd be, and I LOVE my haircut....

Let's just say I don't regret not going to work.

Katrina Rescue Story for Animal lovers...

I stumbled across this website and had to share it.. It's really something...

http://www.classicalliance.net/katrinastory/katrinastory.html

My Christmas "wishlist"......

Okay, so I was asked for my list. I was thinking why send this list to several people when I can put it one place and let EVERYONE see it..... So here it is.............
My Christmas List.....(just in case you care)

Books I want......................
Facing Your Giants by Max Lucado (Has a really neat cover I think)

slow cooker/crockpot cookbook(s)

By Wanda E Brunstetter
( I have the first book in the Brides of Lancaster County series.)
Looking for a Miracle, Brides of Lancaster County Series #2
Plain & Fancy, Brides of Lancaster County Series #3
The Hope Chest, Brides of Lancaster County Series #4.
Allison's Journey
Holiday Hope written with DiAnn Mills
Patchwork Holiday written with Renee DeMarco and DiAnn Mills
Kelly's Chance

DVDs I want

Love's Abiding Joy (will be released on 12/19)
ANY of the Victor Borge dvds.

Also, feel free to browse my Amazon wishlist.
Now, if you're thinking on gift cards.........
I also am a frequent Starbucks drinker, Walmart, Simon Mall AND now Meijer shopper, and a Steak N Shake milkshake sundae eater. LOL.


Word to the wise...... Since I'm giving this same list to EVERYONE (M. side of the family don't exchange gifts anymore) you might want to keep the lines of communication open and "discuss" it with each other.... Don't want the "embarrassment" of two people giving the same thing... Right?

Something to make you smile or even laugh....

I read this and found it very funny. Enjoy........

Things to do in an elevator
1. Make race car noises when anyone gets on or off.
2. Blow your nose and offer to show the contents of your kleenex to other passengers.
3. Grimace painfully while smacking your forehead and muttering, "Shut up, all of you just shut UP!"
4. Whistle the first seven notes of It's a Small World incessantly.
5. Sell Girl Scout cookies.
6. On a long ride, sway side to side at the natural frequency of the elevator.
7. Shave.
8. Crack open your briefcase or purse and, while peering inside, ask, "Got enough air in there?"
9. Offer name tags to everyone getting on the elevator. Wear yours upside-down.
10. Stand silent and motionless in the corner, facing the wall, without getting off.
11. When arriving at your floor, grunt and strain to yank the doors open, then act embarrassed when they open by themselves.
12. Lean over to another passenger and whisper, "Noogie patrol coming!"
13. Greet everyone getting on the elevator with a warm handshake and ask them to call you 'Admiral'.
14. One word: Flatulence!
15. On the highest floor, hold the door open and demand that it stay open until you hear the penny you dropped down the shaft go 'plink' at the bottom.
16. Do Tai Chi exercises.
17. Stare, grinning, at another passenger for a while and then announce, "I've got new socks on!"
18. When at least eight people have boarded, moan from the back, "Oh, not now - motion sickness!"
19. Give religious tracts to each passenger.
20. Meow occasionally.
21. Bet the other passengers you can fit a quarter in your nose.
22. Frown and mutter, "gotta go, gotta go." Then, sigh and say, "oops!"
23. Show other passengers a wound and ask if it looks infected.
24. Sing Mary Had a Little Lamb while continually pushing buttons.
25. Holler "Chutes away!" whenever the elevator descends.
26. Walk on with a cooler that says 'human head' on the side.
27. Stare at another passenger for a while, then announce "You're one of THEM!" and move to the far corner of the elevator.
28. Burp and then say, "mmmm... tasty!"
29. Leave a box between the doors.
30. Ask each passenger getting on if you can push the button for them.
31. Wear a puppet on your hand and talk to other passengers 'through' it.
32. Start a sing-along.
33. When the elevator is silent, look around and ask, "Is that your beeper?"
34. Play the harmonica.
35. Shadow box.
36. Say "Ding!" at each floor.
37. Lean against the button panel.
38. Say "I wonder what all these do" and push the red buttons.
39. Listen to the elevator walls with a stethoscope.
40. Draw a little square on the floor with chalk and announce to the other passengers that this is your 'personal space'.
41. Bring a chair along.
42. Take a bite of a sandwich and ask another passenger, "Wanna see wha in muh mouf?"
43. Blow spit bubbles.
44. Pull your gum out of your mouth in long strings.
45. Carry a blanket and clutch it protectively.
46. Make explosion noises when anyone presses a button.
47. Stare at your thumb and say, "I think it's getting larger."
48. If anyone brushes against you, recoil and holler, "Bad Touch!"

I feel like the America's Funniest Video Host!!!!!!!

Do you have a picture of a family member picking their nose? How about taking a bite out of a sandwich? If you do,or have similar strange photos I want them........

I'm asking my family to search their family photos and find those funny, unique, and hilarious family photos of the T. side of the family.

I need mostly the adults. I have Marlina's kids, and Carrie's boys. However, if you have funny photos of the kids that you want to send my way that's fine too. It will give me more variety. Oh, yes, and this also includes me....... I know Ashley you must have some funny photos of me. Right?

This also includes pictures of Grandpa T, and Aunt Ida.... These two don't have to be funny, but I'm trying to stay away from the traditional, smile-as-nicely-as-you-can-because-this-is-costing-me-money type photos.
It don't have to be pictures of your immediate family.... Cousins, aunts, and uncle photos count too. Just make sure it's the T. side of the family...

There's a couple ways to send them to me...........

1. My computer printer prints HORRIBLE photos. So, if you have a printer that prints good quality photos you can print them out. (I'll reimburse you for the ink.)

2. You can scan/email pictures you do have, let me pick,and then you make a copy....(I will pay you back for the printing.)

OR

3. Give me the original copy. I promise you will get the picture(s) back.

You can either mail the picture(s) to me,(I will pay for postage... Add a piece of cardboard in the envelope. It will keep the pictures from being bent.),

or if you're going to be in the area, give them to Aunt Carol (sorry to be drafting you) and she'll give them to my mom.......If you choose this "method", and you want the pictures back, put your name on the envelope, and I'll MAKE sure you get them back.


I can't go into detail WHY I need these, let's just say it's very important that I do get pictures.... You have two choices.....Hand over the pictures now or I get your picture MY way.... The choice is yours. Ha ha ha ha.....

What are you waiting for? Find those funny, and embarrassing (ok, maybe not TOO embarrassing) photos.

Christmas!!!!!!!

For some the thought of Christmas puts them in a panic. They don't know what to buy people, or what kids like, ext.... My mom falls into that category..... Then there are others that the mere thought brings the warm, fuzzy feeling, and aren't too concerned about gifts..... I fall in the last category........ I have over half of my gifts bought so far...... However, I need help.......... So, what I'm asking is................

Ashley could you email me a list?

AND

Carrie what are your boys into? What do they like? What do they want?
Feel free to email me privately.
Thank you!!!!!!!!!

Imaginary Friends

I don't know what got my mom and I on the subject of imaginary friends, but she was telling me that she always had imaginary brothers and sisters. I thought it strange that she'd imagine having sisters, since as we know, she had 3 She said her "sisters" were usually a twin, and would agree with her on EVERYTHING....

I know all four of us kids had/have very active imaginations, and I got to thinking.

I NEVER had imaginary friends... I had imaginary PETS...... I had a pet grizzly bear, polar bear, lion, elephant, killer whale, horses, LARGE dogs (Great Danes, Mastiffs, St. Benards-which are still my dog of choice. Please forgive my spelling.) and dolphins.

I remember all of those EXCEPT the elephant. My mom told me I came home from school (1st grade?) and told her that I rode an elephant to school and at recess gave all the kids rides on it. I told her that everyone liked me. So, I was SUPPOSEDLY "popular" for the day.....

If you haven't noticed, most of my "pets" are wild and dangerous animals. The bears would "sleep" at the foot of my bed, and if anyone came into my room during the night, it would stand with me between it's front and back legs. In a "protective" stance. I am thinking that perhaps I felt I "needed" protection from something or someone. Then again, it could be that these are animals that wouldn't make good pets and I really wanted them as pets.

Then again, I could've been just a weird kid... After all, I was a kid that actually believed my dolls came to life when I wasn't in the room.

They paid me how much to play with Legos??????

I have tried to update this SEVERAL times, but for some reason the site won't let me. I will be amazed if this goes through, but I thought I'd try it again....

This week I had to go to WOM training....

I was PAID my regular 40 hour shift (3PM - 11) to..........

1 Go to a class everyday and make paper boats, help my "team" to get across an alligator "Invested" river, use our bodies to make rope shapes with my team members with our eyes CLOSED, assemble and reassemble ink pens (over 500 all together), and make 298 Lego robots.

2. Listen to lectures off and on during the week, between "fun" activities.

3. Had 2, 15 min breaks and 1 hour lunch on Mon, Tues, & Fri. Left at 11 on Mon & Tues. Had 2 half hour breaks with 1 hour, 20 min lunch breaks and left at 9:40 on Wens & Thursday, and on Friday we left at 8:30.

4. spent my hour/ hour 20 min. dinner breaks roaming the mall,Browsing in Books-A-Million, Target, and Best Buy, reading in my Jeep, and drinking Starbucks (The Spiced Pumpkin Lattes are EXCELLENT by the way.)

All of that just to learn to work together as a team.... I walked into that classroom not knowing ANYONE walked out with friends. Everyone else was from Aaron's plant, and they all knew each other. I was the "outsider", but that changed VERY quickly.

Now,to keep in mind that next week, I go back to the factory and get back to the rut of only 18 min. dinner breaks. (Boo boo, hiss hiss)

Joke.......

My best friend, Lois, told me this joke tonight. I found it so funny tears were ROLLING down my cheeks.... Whether it was from the Starbucks at 2 AM,lack of sleep, or the joke is really that funny, I'll leave it up to you to decide..........

A young man joined the army. Well, they ran out of weapons, so they gave this young man a stick and told him to hold it like a gun and shout "Bang, Bang" whenever he fired it......

The young man asked, "okay so what if the enemy is close enough for hand to hand combat?" He was told to tie leaves at the end, and yell "Stab, Stab."

So this young man goes to war.. He picks up his stick, points, and yells "Bang, Bang." A guy falls down. The man thought "Wow, this really works."
So he was shouting "Bang, Bang, stab, stab." And the enemy was falling left and right. Well, he saw a guy, yelled Bang, Bang, stab stab, but the guy kept coming closer. He yelled a little louder "Bang Bang, Stab Stab." The guy walked a little closer. So, he yelled again "Bang, Bang, Stab, Stab." The enemy was now right in front of him..... The enemy then yelled "TANK, TANK"

Scary situation.........

I had a scary thing happen last Sat, and I just wanted to know if anyone's ever experienced this........

I wasn't feeling well, so I went to bed and took a 2 hour nap. Which is quite normal for me.... However when I woke up. I put my glasses on, and my vision was just as blurry with my glasses on than it was off. In other words there was no difference. I managed to get up, make it to the living room, and crashed on the couch. I just figured that I wasn't awake yet. So, I sat down and my nose started bleeding. Not "gushing" but a light nose bleed. When I got up to get some tissues, I was dizzy and almost fell. I was also burning up hot. The vision, nosebleed, and "hot" spell wore off within 2 hours, and the dizziness was gone the next morning. However, on Sunday I felt wore out and weak. It was weird.

And I did it my way!!!!!

As I have mentioned in my last post, my phone line wasn't working. So, last night after work, I went to Walmart (I'm still timid when it comes to Meijer) and I bought a new phone line and jack. My dad offered to help me (AKA do it for me) but I wanted to prove to myself that I can do it without help. I helped my dad install this line to begin with, so I knew HOW to do it. This is the first time I've been able to do a home repair/improvement without my dad doing it for me. Ok, so it would've been faster letting my dad do it, but that would've defeated the purpose. Oh, and it took me 4 hours and 3 additional feet of wire to complete. I kept cutting the little inside wires off when I was trying to strip the coating off them. I can now say that I have the hang of stripping the wires. Let's just say it's a good thing I bought the 100 feet roll. Ha ha Well, with all that said I now have a WORKING phone line which I installed MYSELF.

Psycho boy was arrested!!!!!!!!!!!

My parents left to get a part for Austin's car, I have time to post this bit of news.

Almost 2 years ago, this guy that worked at Meijer took my phone number off my check and was calling me every morning around 3AM, and again at around 7. I haven't stepped foot into that store since then.

Last night my coworker, Lois, text'd me "You won't believe who was arrested and why."

She told me that my Meijer "stalker" was arrested in another county close to the Ohio border. I remember seeing it in the paper, but I didn't put 2 and 2 together. He tried to meet a 13 year old girl he met online, but instead met some Federal people posing as 13 year old girls. 24 men were arrested in 3 counties that day. Oh, and his name and picture is going to be posted at the watchdog site since he's now a predator. Let's just say, it's now safe to shop at Meijer again..

My phone lines are still down

My phone lines have been messed up for about 3 weeks now, which isn't too bad except the fact that I'm having "computer withdraws." I use my parents computer every 4 or 5 days for only a couple mins. Just long enough to check emails, so I haven't had time to sit down and read people's blogs.

The problem is the inside phone line, but since I'm working 12 hour days every other day(I'm getting my Christmas shopping finished!!!) I just haven't had the time to replace my lines. I'm off work tomorrow, so I plan to rewire my phone lines, YES, I can do that myself. I know how!!!!! I'm hoping to have my phone up and running tomorrow morning.

Amazing bosses!!!!!!!!!

My sister, mom, and I took Fysh (the family dog) on a walk today. I was told that this weekend is Ashley's last weekend before going back to Johnson. Mom asked me to find out if I could get a PA day for Sat.

I thought, sure why not? So I went to work, and normally you have to put up a pretty good fight to get a PA day. In case you don't know what PA days are.... You can get 40 hours off work with pay. Most people take them a day at a time, but you can use 4 hours at a time. So, let's say you have a kids ballgame you want to go to, you can go to work for 4 hours and get paid for the last 4 or vice versa.

Okay, back to my story, which isn't too hard to find.... I went up to my "new" boss and here is our conversation:
Me: Is it 100% (A.K.A. HAVE to be there or it counts against you.) for Sat.?
Scott (my boss):I'm not sure, I haven't heard anything yet.
Me: If it is, could I please have a PA day for Sat.?
Scott: You'll have to look in the book. We can only let 2 people have PA days at a time.
Me (so sweetly I'm sure he needed an insulin shot.): This is my situation... My sister is going back to college next week, and this is her last weekend at home. My parents, brothers, sister, and my sister in law are all going out to eat Sat. evening, and I want to go with them.
Scott: I'll tell you what... I'll take care of it. If you don't want to waste a PA day on a Sat, I'll cover you, and you can keep your PA day. However, if you want to waste your PA days that's up to you.

I've discovered that it's bosses like that in which everyone wants to bend over backwards for. He has earned my respect.

I owe, I owe, so off to work I go......

A week ago this Past Friday, I was informed that the lady that does my job on day shift was bumping me off my job. To me that made no sense because she HATES second shift and she doesn't get along with that supervisor. She has a year more senority, so she bumped. That gave me two options...... Do that same job on day shift (getting up at 4 AM isn't my cup of tea), OR bump the lowest senority person on second shift, and do that job. Well.... I bumped the lowest senority, and before I went on vacation, I bidded on a welder... So, I go on vacation not know what my job is going to be or who I'll be working for. My vacation was a bummer since I was so stressed out about this. I went to work yesterday and one of the supervisors walked up to me and said "Do you want that welder?" I was very happy to get that job. It's 0ne of the easier jobs.... Put two different parts on the machine, push a button, gage the part, make sure it was welded right, and send it down the line. Not much to it.... Oh, and I have time to read on this job. The lady that was showing me the job told me that once I get used to it, I can hold a book with one hand, and work with the other. We'll see. The supervisor is easy to get along with also. He came up to me said "9 hours tonight.... Oh, and welcome. If you're half the worker your dad is, then I'm lucky to have you on the job." He was my dad's supervisor YEARS ago and they got along great.

THANKS CARRIE!!!!!!!

After reading the book "House" which is cowritten by Frank Peretti, Carrie loaned me book "The Oath". After reading it, I found it very scary, but AWESOME. Oh, and Carrie, I gave your mom that book and I gave her "House" to loan to you. Sorry it took me so long to get it to you.

I am now hooked on this author. I went to yard sales with my Aunt Carol and my sister, wish you'd been there Carrie. While there I found "The Prophet", by Frank Peretti. I did notice that he has a whole series that I'm just going to have to read. LOL.

Thanks Carrie for giving me another favorite author.

Wonderful mood

As my sister could tell you, the climate knob on my Jeep broke. So, it was stuck on Air, which isn't bad for the summer, but I cringed to think about this winter driving around with AC blowing.

Anyway the dealership is a rip off. Yes, I remember when they wanted to charge me $3000 just to LOOK at my Jeep. Parts and labor would be more of course. Oh, and did I mention that there wasn't anything seriously wrong with it? I just wanted my 4 wheel drive checked out and make sure it was working properly. So, I wouldn't send my worst enemy there. Okay, so I don't have a worst enemy, but if I did, I wouldn't send them to that dealership.

Sorry for babbling, on to the story....... So I needed a new knob. I found out that these knobs run about $20. I was desperate enough to consider going to this dealership, and then I thought..... Hum...... I wonder if I could buy one on eBay.

I searched on ebay, found a knob for a 1999 Jeep Wrangler and there it was. So, I bid, won, paid, and it arrived today. Put it on my Jeep, and now it works PERFECTLY. Not bad for only $8.

Then my cell phone's been acting up lately. I can only talk for about 3 min, if that even before the battery dies, and that's with a complete charge. Then when I turn it back on, it says I have a full charge. Strange..... So, I went to the cell phone store and asked for a new battery. They looked me up, and my phone was still under warranty. They replaced my battery free of charge.
I'm a very happy camper.

vacations and losing weight

In a way I'm disappointed that I'm not staying at camp this week...... However on the other hand the thought of staying in a tent in this heat isn't my cup of tea. I'm still planning on coming up for a couple services anyhow.

So, I went to the doctor a couple weeks ago, and found out that I have gained 8 pounds this past year. I'm trying to lose around 20. Notice the word TRYING.

I've decided that I need to walk more, so I walk to the store. You may think that is funny, but here a walk to the store is about a 6 to 8 min walk if you walk the "straight" line. I on the other hand take the Loooooong way around, which takes exactly 14 mins one way. (I know, I timed it) So it takes 28 mins round trip to walk to the store and back. While I'm at the store I buy something to drink either water or diet Mt. Dew.
Math problem: If I can walk 3 miles in an hour, how far can I walk in 28 mins? LOL

Maybe I should just be a mall walker until this weather cools down a little. Grandma M lives next to a park that has an AMAZING walking trail. That would be a wonderful place to walk, since my grandma's patio faces this park, and I could always stop in there to cool off, water, or maybe even a shower afterwards.

It's too bad I can't get a group of friends/family to walk with. Everything seems more fun when you have someone to share it with.

Funny dream........

My cousin loaned me a book, "The Oath"by Frank Peretti. I've been reading some every night before going to bed. Whether that's a good idea or not, I haven't really decided yet.

I do have a tendency of sleep walking and talking in my sleep. I've been known to walk around my house locking my screen doors because I thought someone was trying to get in. I've even woke up the next morning to find that I locked my bedroom door and I don't have a need to lock that. Oh, and once I sat up in bed and yelled at a coworker? family member? for trying to take over my bed.

So skip to last night...........
Last night I kept having this wild dream about somebody trying to steal my pillows. Yes, you heard me right, my PILLOWS. At one point, I sat up in bed and yelled
"Now you stop taking my pillows. Leave my pillows alone." I awoke the next morning with BOTH of my pillows under my head,(I usually only use one) and I had a death grip on them.

Now whether that has anything to do with this book or not, I really don't know. but I did have a good laugh once I woke up and realized what I did and said. Oh, and of course I HAD to share that with my mom and sister. Mom thought it was hilarious.

Are there any other family members that sleep walk/talk? I'm just curious.

A MAJOR answer to prayer

My Jeep was scheduled to be at the shop Tuesday morning by 9. My dad was nice enough to take it in Monday night after he got home from w0rk. He figured it would be easier on me, and I could sleep in a little.

Well, I was up pretty much most the night worrying about how much this would cost me. Transmission problems run pretty high. Also, since I'm on vacation next week, I have to prepare myself for not getting a check the week I come back. So, to say I was concerned about my finance situation would've been a gross understatement.

Finally before I fell asleep I prayed "Lord, you know how much I can afford, please work everything out."

About 3 PM on Tuesday my dad called me up. He told me that my Jeep was done, and he said "Do you want to know how much you owe?" I braced myself before answering. He said "Nothing." NOTHING!!!!!! They took the bottom pan off the transmission, replaced the seals, and realigned the shifting and didn't charge me ANYTHING!!!!! If that's not God, I don't know what is.
I try to be a fair person and when I feel like I'm being undercharged for something I make it up by giving a "bonus" for finishing quickly. So, I couldn't let them do the work without paying something, so I gave my parents some money to give to them.
When I was leaving for work, my parents were leaving to get my Jeep.

This is the second time I've dealt with this transmission shop, and they are so honest, I don't know how they stay in business. Last time they told me that the problem was one thing, they said it would cost $250. When they fixed it, they said that wasn't the problem and that it would be $100 to fix. So, I was thinking I'll be paying $350. WRONG, they only charged the 100. They said they can't charge for something that didn't fix the problem.

They can have my business anytime. So, if anyone ever needs transmission work, let me know I'll give you the address and phone number.

Why oh why did God create little brothers???

I got home from work tonight and was opening my screen door when I heard footsteps running in my driveway. I gave a weak and wimpy "Hello?" Hoping whoever it was would say something. Next thing I knew Austin came running out from behind my Jeep and scared the daylights out of me. Of course my heart stopped for a few seconds, and he thought it was hilarious when I put both my hands over my chest. Then he ran home laughing, and told the story to my mom.

Then we started talking about things he did to me when he was younger. When he was little, he'd wake me up on Sat mornings to watch cartoons. He would shake me, and when I'd tell him to leave me alone, he'd shake me again. Once he realized the shaking wasn't working, he'd lean over and LICK my face. Yes, I would get up with his saliva on my cheek.

And who can forget the time we went camping, and dad having an upset stomach, sent Austin and I to the camp store. We got to the checkout, had it rung up, and Austin as calmly as could be said: "That's for her." I wanted to crawl away. He's always had a way of embarrassing me.

I'm now "immune" to being embarrassed now by Austin. Perhaps having a brother like Austin has prepared me for kids. LOL. Either way, I love him anyway.

This N That

Our church has a women's group that meets on the third Sat. of each month. Well, this group, L.I.F.T. (Ladies In Fellowship Together) meets at the fellowship hall and everyone brings a sack lunch (usually a "drive thru" sack lunch). We "share concerns" aka Gossip and have devotions.

Well, I guess the district is wanting each church to put together a basket to auction off the Sat of camp. The Missionary group at church is putting together an Avon basket, and LIFT is putting together a kitchen/food basket. It's going to be interesting to see what other baskets the other churches are putting together.

Oh, and in Sept. LIFT is going to some chocolate factory. YUM.... Chocolate.

The main thing is...... The last Sunday of camp, the pastor is going to cut services short, go over for camp, and have a picnic lunch. I was thinking that Grandma could probably go if she feels up to it.

Next Tues. my Jeep goes into the shop. It's leaking Transmission fluid.

It's hard to believe that in less than a month, school will be starting again. Austin will be off to school, and Ashley will be getting ready to leave. Where has the summer gone?

Common sense

After reading Carrie's blog about the 5 year old that was killed I find myself pondering this thought.........

Where are the parents common sense?

Why was a 5 year old on a MOTORIZED scooter to begin with? I can see a 10 MAYBE a 9 year old on one, but a 5 year old? Where were the parents? Weren't they supervising this child? That's just asking for trouble.

This reminds me of a family about 10 miles away. This couple took their 2 children 5 and 3 sledding on a hill in their subdivision. The parents pushed these children down the hill and across the icy road. They had been doing this for a hour or so. The thing is, an old man was driving down the street, the parents pushed the kids, the man slams on his brakes, starts sliding, runs over the kids, kills one kid and injures? kills? the other. Then the parents had enough nerve to sue this old man. Thankfully the jury found the parents negligent and awarded them NOTHING.

All these parents had to do was drive about 8 miles to a park that has a "safe" hill just for sledding. Matter of fact, the town close to us has just made an AWESOME man-made hill PERFECT for sledding.

When I hear of parents buying a chopper (mini motorcycle) or a go cart for a three year old I cringe. I know a man that bought his 2 year old twin daughters both brand new snowmobiles.

Okay motorized things are ok for OLDER kids, not a kid under the age of 10. Maybe even 13.

Kids this age should be into toy trucks and dolls. NOT Motorized toys.

2 Days off.

Today was my friend, Lois's, birthday. Before all my coworkers got shipped around, we used to have a pitch in dinner for the birthday person. Since it's just Lois and I now, I told her I'd take her out for lunch. Since her son was there, she picked Chuckie Cheese. I told her to pick what she wanted, and that's what she wanted. It was nice to be able to talk with her while her son was busy playing games. It was fun, even though she told me that she almost (Literally) drowned on the 4th. Thank the Lord there was someone close by to help her to shore.

Oh, I did give her the book "Big Girls Don't Whine." I told her not to take the title personally, and that I only gave it to her because it's an AMAZING book
that EVERY woman should read.


After I left it was 2 PM. I didn't have time to drive all the way home, so I went to the mall instead. BIG mistake. I spent over an hour at the bookstore. I bought 4 books.......

"Night" by Elie Wiesel.
Yes, the Oprah Book Club book. I normally don't get into her "chosen" books, but I have been wanting to read this one for a loooong time, and it was on sale at that.

"They Were Single Too; 8 Biblical Role Models" by David M. Hoffeditz.

I love the names of the chapters.. 1 Paul:The "Gift" of Singleness 2. Anna: Left at the Altar 3. Martha: Living Life In The Fast Lane 4: Jeremiah: All Alone In a Couple's World. 5: Ruth: Encountering Shattered Dreams. 6. Joseph: Purity in the Midst of Temptation. 7: Nehemiah: Not Going "A-Wall" (AWOL) 8. John the Baptist: Always a Groomsman, Never a Groom.

"The Preacher's Daughter" by Beverly Lewis...
which is the first book in the "Annie's People" series. I LOVE her books.

And finally...

"The House" by Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker.
I have to admit, I saw it on Carrie's blog and it looked interesting. After reading the summary it intrigued me. I bought it only 15 minutes before going to work, and I've read approx. 150 pages so far.... And that was ONLY at work. It's a hard one to put down.

Some of my friends started a "52 club". 52 books in 52 weeks. I've lost count on how many I've read so far this year. I know my mom always writes down the title, how many pages, start date, and end date. She does this to see how many books she reads in a year. She's done this for as long as I can remember. Maybe someday I'll do the same.

Anyway, I get a two day weekend this weekend, which doesn't happen too often. I'll give you three guesses what I'll be doing, and the first two guess don't count.

Funny or embarrassing? You decide

I went to the Taco Bell/KFC not far from my house. I like every other time, I went through the drive thru.
I ordered, pulled around, paid, got my drink and took off..... WITHOUT my food. I got halfway home before it dawned on me that I didn't get my food, so I turned around and went back for it. I walked in, and they had it sitting there waiting for me. Yeah, I bet the employees had a good laugh about that one.

Things that make you wonder??

There's a guy that works a good 300 feet from me. To get to where he works, you'd have to walk about 100 feet, turn right, and walk another 200 feet, turn right again and walk another 10/20 feet. I have to walk past his line to go to the cafeteria. Okay, now about 100 feet in the opposite direction of where I work is a break room (vending machines/pop machines) and bathrooms.

To explain my work area; the hallway is a L shape. My area is where the two lines meet. so I see everyone that comes down the halls. This guy instead of walking to the bathrooms close to the cafeteria (which would be closer for him), he walks past me to the bathrooms in the opposite direction. At first I didn't think much about it, but one day last week he smiled as he walked past and said HI. No biggie there, people say HI all the time. However, before he turned he looked back. The next night he again walked past me and said hi. Only this time on the way back, he stopped to talk to me for a couple minutes.

He seems to be the backward/shy type. So.... I'm wondering if he's trying to get his nerve up to speak to me, or is he just out to get some exercise. I don't know...

Puzzling Puzzle

This test does not measure intelligence, fluency with words nor
mathematical ability. It will, however, give you some gauge of your
mental flexibility and creativity. In the years since this test was
developed, it has been found that few people could solve more than
half on the first day. Many reported getting answers long after the
test had been set aside, at unexpected moments when their minds were
relaxed.

This is an example:
16 = O in a P
Answer: 16 = ounces in a pound

1. 26 = L of the A
2. 7 = D of the W
3. 1001 = A N
4. 12 = S of the Z
5. 54 = C in a D
6. 9 = P in the S S
7. 88 = P K
8. 13 = S on the A F
9. 32 = D F at which W F
10. 18 = H on a G C
11. 90 = D in a R A
12. 200 = D for P G in M
13. 8 = S on a S S
14. 3 = B M (S H T R)
15. 4 = Q in a G
16. 24 = H in a D
17. 1 = W on a U
18. 5 = D in a Z C
19. 57 = H V
20. 11 = P on a F T B
21. 1000 = W that a P is W
22. 29 = D in F in a L Y
23. 64 = S on a C B
24. 40 = D and N of the G F
25. 76 = T in the B P
26. 50 = W to L Y L
27. 99 = B of B on the W
28. 60 = S in a M
29. 1 = H on a U
30. 9 = J on the S C
31. 7 = B for S B
32. 21 = D on a D
33. 7 = W of the A W
34. 15 = M on a D M C

I will post the answers at a later date, or you can ask me to email you the answers.

I've been robbed.

Sometime between 12:30 AM and 11:30 AM SOMEONE got into my jeep, opened my console and STOLE my checkbook. So, after spending an hour searching my jeep for it (and having my mom give another eye over.) I went to the bank to have the checks stopped. I'm ANGRY, but I hope whoever took my checkbook gets caught, so I can press charges..... Oh, YES, I WILL press charges if he/she/they are caught.

THIS IS WAR!!!!!!!!!!

Back in July 2004 I had my garage fixed. When the roof was tore off a HUGE nest of carpenter ants were discovered. They were sprayed and I was told that the problem had been taken care of. I fought those little boogers for a few weeks afterwards. It seemed as though some strays found their way into my house, but they went away after awhile.. Well...... They've invaded my house again. As I'm typing this, I'm watching these bugs climb up my wall, and the bottom of my shoes are a very good weapon for hand to hand combat. I've killed 10 of those stupid bugs in less than 5 minutes, and the bottom of my shoe is looking like a gruesome battleground. Does ANYONE know how to get rid of these stupid things for good? I kill them as I see them, but I'm afraid my house will fall apart if I'm not careful. If I put siding up, will that take care of them? Someone...Anyone...... HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am declaring war against these invaders and I need HELP.....

Books, books, and more books.....

My cousin, Carrie, asked on her blog what everyone's favorite books are. Since I didn't want to "clog" her comments, I'll post mine here.

Favorite children's books:
The Ramona series by Beverly Cleary
Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans
The Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith (A MUST for children and adults alike. I reread this whenever I need a chuckle)
The Boxcar Children by Gertude Chandler Warner
The Babysitter's Club series By Anne Martin (I do have the whole series... Yes, ALL 200+ of them)
The Shel silverstein books (A Light In The Attic and Where the Sidewalk Ends)
The Dear America series by various authors
The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
The Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Tales of the Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume (Have to love a kid that swallows a turtle whole.)
Superfudge by Judy Blume
Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder

Favorite "Childrens" books that aren't for children..
Grimmes Fairy Tales (Very dark and morbid.)
The Mary Poppins series by P.L. Travers (NOT kid friendly)

Favorite fiction

The Daughters Of Lancaster County (The Storekeeper's Daughter, The Quilter's Daughter, and the Bishop's Daughter. All Amish by the way) by Wanda E Brunstetter
The Love Comes Softly series by Jannette Oke
A Woman Named Damarus by Jannette Oke
The Princess Bride by William Goldman (The movie is based on this book)
The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leneox
The Touch by Patricia Hickman (Story is inspired by the painting.)

Favorite nonfiction
Not Without My Daughter by Betty Mahmoody (movie is based on this book.)
Please Stop Laughing At Me: One Woman's Inspirational Story by Jodee Blanco
Big Girls Don't Whine by Jan Silvious
Alex:The Life of a Child by Frank Deford (The author is the head of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, and he wrote about his 9 year old daughter who died of the disease. Have tissues handy if you read this one.)

Favorite Holocaust books
Diary of Anne Frank
When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, The Other Way Round, A Small Person Far Away by Judith Kerr
My Friend Anne Frank by Jacqueline Van Maarsen
Edith's Story by Edith Velmans
Tell No One Who You Are" The Hidden Childhood of Regine Miller by Walter Buchignani and Regine Miller

There are MANY, MANY more, but these are the ones from the top of my head. Might add more as I think of them.... Oh, and by the way I own ALL of these books. ;)

Only 5 days to go........

This past Saturday wasn't 100% (which means it wasn't manitory.) I KNOW they're going to do what they did Memorial Day weekend..... They didn't force anyone in the Sat. before Memorial day weekend, so they forced everyone to work the Sat. OF MDW. Since I had a feeling they're going to do that this weekend, I made sure to work this past Sat. Since I worked the last two Saturdays in a row , they can't force me this weekend..... OH, but I have a feeling there going to be forcing a LOT of people in. None of the assemblies worked, so I have a feeling that I'm going to hear a lot of heated complaints. So, while everyone else will be complaining, I'll be looking forward to my FOUR day weekend... Come on FRIDAY!!!!! Okay, female family members...... Any ideas for Sat, Mon, or Tues?

The simple thing called work........

As you may or may not know, I work in the ATA room as a material handler. Which means I load parts on the line. My boss wanted me to learn the machines, and since that's a jobsetter job (.74 cents more an hour) I took the lockout training, and I now get the jobsetter pay.

Allen and Melissa are the jobsetters that run the four automatic machines in the room. I get along great with Melissa, but not so much with Allen. He's too "friendly" with upper management for my taste.

A couple weeks ago Allen bid on a new job,and got it...... For those of you who don't know how this goes..... If a job opens up, they put it on the board for a week....... (Wens. - Wens.) Whoever signs and has the most seniority, gets the job. So, with Allen gone, his job was open. I signed for it, and I got it...... However, I found out that Chad signed for it as well. Chad has been filling in for Allen, and the three of us gets along WONDERFULLY. I found out that he was the second highest in seniority. Which meant if I turned down the job, he'd get it. Since he knows so much more than I do about these machines, I declined the job, and let Chad have it.... It not only made Chad happy, but me as well. The three of us really work together as a team. No back biting, lying, or "tattling" on each other. There's no more tension in the air. This is really going to work out great. I couldn't think of a greater coworker..... Except Sheila, Lois, Michelle, Tammy, or Christie.....

With Allen out of that room, I don't dread going to work. Oh, and I no longer have to smoke half of Allen's cigarettes. He smokes one every 8 mins. (Melissa and I counted one night.) I now work in a smoke free environment. That's the best part.

Who's the teacher here??

I have a "routine" I do during Sunday school.

If I only have Jake, (which is 99.99% of the time)he isn't a very good reader, so I have him "practice" by reading the lesson out of his book out loud. Even then, I always ask him if he wants to read the lesson. He only says no when he's not feeling well. If we have visitors, I don't want to put him on the spot, so I just take volunteers. If no one volunteers, then I read the lesson out of their book, and afterwards I read the lesson out of mine. I remember vividly being self conscious about reading outloud when I was younger, so I NEVER force anyone.

So, yesterday during Sunday school, I asked Jake; "Do you feel like reading today?", He said "Yes." then he paused and said, "I'll read the first paragraph, then you can read the second, and I'll read the last." I said "Who's the teacher here you or me?" Of course I was laughing when I said that, which made him laugh.

So, I agreed to his terms, and when it was my turn to read, I realized why he had me to read that paragraph........ Let's just say, some of those Bible names are hard enough for adults, I can't imagine kids trying to pronouce them. Jake really is a bright boy......

Anyway, our lesson was on Daniel and the three Hebrew boys that were being trained by King N. (I'm not even going to try to spell his name. LOL), and how they refused the food and wine..... As an illustration I used.......

Imagine the president asked your whole class at school to live at the white house for a year, and all he would feed you is candy and ice cream. Now, that's not very healthy is it? Your body needs vegetables, meat, and fruits. If you only had ice cream and candy, it would make you sick. It would be hard to refuse when all your classmates are eating the junk food now wouldn't it? It's not always easy to do what's right. Sometimes it can be very hard, but if you ask Jesus to help you, He will.

AMEN!!!!!!!!

Sheila emailed this too me, and I agree with it wholeheartedly..........

The Old Paths

I liked the old paths,
when Moms were at home.
Dads were at work.
Brothers went into the army.
And sisters got married
BEFORE having children!

Crime did not pay;
Hard work did;
And people knew the difference

Moms could cook;
Dads would work;
Children would behave.

Husbands were loving;
Wives were supportive;
And children were polite.

Women wore the jewelry;
And Men wore the pants.
Women looked like ladies;
Men looked like gentlemen;
And children looked decent.

People loved the truth,
And hated a lie;
They came to church to get IN,
Not to get OUT!

Hymns sounded Godly;
Sermons sounded helpful;
Rejoicing sounded normal;
And crying sounded sincere.

Cursing was wicked;
Drinking was evil;
and divorce was unthinkable.

The flag was honored;
America was beautiful;
And God was welcome!

We read the Bible in public;
Prayed in school;
And preached from house to house.

To be called an American was worth dying for;
To be called a Christian was worth living for;
To be called a traitor was a shame!

Sex was a personal word.
Homosexual was an unheard of word,
And abortion was an illegal word.

Preachers preached because they had a message;
And Christians rejoiced because they had the VICTORY!
Preachers preached from the Bible;
Singers sang from the heart;
And sinners turned to the Lord to be SAVED!

A new birth meant a new life;
Salvation meant a changed life;
Following Christ led to eternal life.

Being a preacher meant you proclaimed the word of God;
Being a deacon meant you would serve the Lord;
Being a Christian meant you would live for Jesus;
And being a sinner meant someone was praying for you!

Laws were based on the Bible;
Homes read the Bible;
And churches taught the Bible.

Preachers were more interested in new converts,
Than new clothes and new cars.
God was worshiped;
Christ was exalted;
and the Holy Spirit was respected.

Church was where you found Christians on the Lord's day,
rather than in the garden,
on the creek bank,
on the golf course,
or being entertained somewhere else.

I still like the old paths the best.

Special prayer request

I have a dear friend, Sheila who used to be one of my coworkers. She emailed me today to tell me that her mom has been diagnosed with breast cancer. It's in the early stages, and she goes to the cancer doc on Monday. Since our family understands what this is like, I'm asking you to PLEASE keep her, Sheila, and Sheila's husband, Tim in your prayers. Oh, and Sheila, if you're reading this, If you ever need me, I'm here for you ANYTIME. I love you friend.

Strange way of saying it........

After YEARS of working in a hot department, I now work in a nice air conditioned room. This room has 4 automatic machines, which makes the rear carriers. (If any coworkers are reading this, you will know that I work in the ATA room. To everyone else: you're probably lost, and I apologize.) Well, this room has a dry erase board to leave notes for the other shifts. We use it to let each other know what needs fixed, what's been fixed, etc.... Today we go in and there's the following note...... "Pete has left us for that big factory in the sky, in which other coworkers have gone before, and has welcomed him with open arms. We'll miss you."............ Yes, one of our coworkers, which I didn't know, passed away yesterday. I found that note very disturbing. If Heaven is just a big factory, do I really want to go? I would think that if you died and went to a factory, you sure didn't make it to Heaven. After all there's a million and one places I'd rather be than in a factory. Okay, maybe a million is too many, but a hundred at least. It's like I told one of my other Christian friends..... I hope when the rapture takes place, I'm at work. That way, I'll be going from the worst place possible to the best. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate my job. After all, it puts a roof over my head, food on my table, clothes on my back, and pays the bills. It's just that working in a factory sure isn't where I thought I'd be 12 years ago.

What a weekend. Is it over yet?

This weekend hasn't been a very good one. Ashley and I were going to go to the city wide yard sales, but got rained out. Very disappointing. But the worst part was.... I guess it starts on Thursday. I noticed that my water pressure was way down, but that's city water for you. The city likes to flush out the hydrants once in a while, and that does some weird things to our water which sometimes includes changing the water smell and/or color, and sometimes the pressure for a day or two. So, I thought nothing about it.......... UNTIL today......... After church, I heard water running under my house by the outdoor spigot. Well after having my mom help investigate, we discovered that yes, I do have a water leak. So, I took my flashlight down to my cobweb invested basement (I hate going down there by the way.), and followed the pipe to the valve. So, I shut it off, and thankfully it only shut the water off outside, not inside. I still have hot/cold water inside my house, which is a VERY important thing. The other bad thing is, my basement is only a PARTIAL basement, so we'll (aka my dad) will have to cut the pipe, pull it through, and splice it with another. I think I may just wait a little while for that.... Or should I say, work a couple Saturdays to be able to buy the materials. It's days like this I feel like selling my house and just renting. Aww..... The joys of owning your own home.

The good and bad of dress codes.

After twelve years of working in the same factory, management has finally decided that maybe we should have a dress code. Usually, people just wear pretty much what they want to wear. I've seen woman wearing shorts so short and tight I always wonder how they can walk, not to mention sit. LOL. So they passed out papers with our new dress code. I'll let you read it for yourself. This gives you an idea how people dress now. : Clothing shall be of a durable material and not loose fitting. (So I guess I have to buy some tight fitting clothes then. Man, I love my XL size t shirts.) Long pants are highly recommended. Shorts or skirts, if worn, must be knee length, and not have slits and/or holes. Shirts must cover the torso completely. This does not allow tank tops, halters, or sports bras worn by themselves. Necklaces and earrings (hanging below the earlobe) are not to be worn while performing work on machining, material handling, or assembly processes. Shoes: Proper footwear consisting of durable leather upper construction with hard, oil resistant soles, and low heels shall be worn while on the plant floor; this includes travel to/from doors and work areas.... (Most people keep their work shoes inside toolboxes, and wear regular shoes into the plant. Then change into their work shoes once they get to their toolboxes. Who wants to mess up their vehicles with those nasty oily shoes?) Athletic/street shoes, open toed shoes, open heeled shoes, slippers, flip flops, sandals, or any type of high heeled shoes will be prohibited. Company approved prescription or company approved non prescription safety glasses with permanently attached side shields shall be worn thoughout the plant floor at all times; this includes travel to/from doors and work areas..... (This too is something most people leave in toolboxes. This is the only thing I see as being a hassle. Most people that wear glasses anyway, might forget their safety glasses at home or in vehicle. This is the only thing I'm concerned about.) ENFORCEMENT: Employees found in violation of this policy and/or the standards of conduct may be subject to disciplinary action up to and including discharge. I do think I have the shoes thing worked out... Payless shoes used to carry black shoes that were oil resistant for about $15 or so. I think I'll see if they still have those. I know we have a contract coming up fall of 2007. I just wonder if they're trying to fire people, so they have something to barter the union with. Makes me wonder.

One of those days.

Am I the only one who has days like this? Days where for no apparent reason you just feel like crying all day? That's the kind of day I've had. Nothing out of the ordinary has happened, just really depressed.
My cold? Allergies? have cleared up, and it's not a woman thing either, so it's not like I'm not feeling well. I'm just really, really, really depressed. It's one of those depressing days, that you just need to get out, and away from everyone except maybe your sister, sister in law, aunt, or cousin. What I need is a good pick me up...... Any suggestions??

Allergies? Cold? Can't figure this out!!!

I've had colds in the past, but this is really weird.

I've had a scratchy, not necessarily sore, just mostly feels "dry" throat for about 5 or 6 straight days now. I've also had a headache for the same amount of time. By the way, aspirins don't really work on this.

So, at first I was thinking.... Okay, I'm coming down with a cold, no real biggie. In a day, I'll start the sneezing, and then the next day the coughing... I'll be over it in about a week. But it's been about 6 days, and there's no other symptoms besides the throat/head thing. No sneezing nor coughing. This is just too weird.

(insert twilight zone theme song here)

Find me a deserted island..... NOW!!!!!!!

I'm sure everyone has moments they just want to disappear from the face of the earth for a while. Sometimes it's due to an embarrassing moment, kids/husband demanding attention, bills piling up, or it's because you want to get away from everything.........

Well.... I fall into the last category. I've decided that I would LOVE to live peacefully in my own unpopulated island.

I'd have my own private plane and pilot, which would deliver things I need on a weekly basis. Also it would be a quick way to get back to family if the need arose.

I would only have my books, cell phone,tv, dvds, and my computer....... Okay so my island has electricity. So what? This is my island.. Not yours so there.
There wouldn't be any need of cars, but I'd have a solar powered 4 wheeler to get around the island. My island would be free of mosquitoes, snakes, and poisonous spiders.. Any dangerous animals would be banned.
<---- These cuties would be allowed as long as they stayed that way. LOL.

Not to fear...I am realistic..... I KNOW there isn't a deserted island, I can't live there, and cute cuddly animals turn into dangerous beasts. So, I guess the next best thing would be to lock myself in my home with my own beast (my cat) and stay away from people when the need arises. Oh well.... So much for wishful thinking.

Happy Birthday MOM

Yesterday was my mom's birthday. Ashley and Austin had decided to take her out to eat, and they asked if I wanted to go with them. I declined since I had a lot to do before going to work. Mom said "Okay, don't go with us. Who knows how many more birthdays I'll have. So if I die before my next one make sure to go to Fazolis, buy a baked spagetti, and eat it at my grave."

Talk about a guilt trip. Oh, and by the way it worked.

Memorial day weekend

Carrie, my cousin, has reminded me that I haven't blogged in a while. So here goes. LOL.....

This weekend we (as in Mom, dad, Ashley, and her friend Jenna) went to Kings Island.

Aaron and Chris was SUPPOSED to have gone with us, but Aaron had a week of dental work ahead of him, and Chris can't ride rides due to her heart. After realizing that mom and I don't ride rides either, she was disappointed due to the fact that she could've hung out with us while everyone else rode rides.

Then Austin and Shawn was supposed to have gone too, but Austin woke up not feeling well. My parents told Shawn that he could come with us anyway, but I guess he didn't feel comfortable with that.

So we went to Kings Island. Mom and I spent the time walking around and looking. Oh, and we sat A LOT. I was mostly concerned about her leg and her blood clot. Oh, we did ride the train, the scrambler, and the Scooby Doo ride. LOL That's about my speed. However, the scrambler made me feel a little queasy when I got off.

It's so ironic. When I was younger I could ride all the spinning rides. Now, they make me sick just looking at them. I guess I'm old.

Mom and I spent a lot of time watching people. Mom, dad, and I was sitting at a table, and this woman was sitting not far from us... She was about 200 pounds overweight, and was wearing a bikini top that was about 5 sizes too small. She spent the whole time trying to keep everything in. I guess my dad couldn't take it anymore, so we left. My dad turns to me and says; "Do we ever embarrass you by the way we look?" I said "Dad, if you embarrass me, do you think I'd walk around with you guys? If you did, I'd be disappearing."

We did have fun though, and I'm glad I went. The only thing was....... I didn't appreciate the fact that they had to go through my purse as I entered the park. I understand why, but I don't like strangers looking through my purse. >:(

I just have to let this out..... Part 2

I was telling one of my coworkers about the "greedy pizza hogs."

She told me that I should've walked over and said;

"There's some homeless people a couple miles down the road that would LOVE to have the rest of your pizza. Do you mind if I give them all of your leftovers? I bet it would feed their families for a month."

If memory serves me correctly, I believe it was Ashley that mentioned that all you can eat restaurants need to have pictures of starving children hanging on the walls.

Better yet...... Every time you go in the restaurant, each table has a starving kid to follow you around and sit with you. LOL. Just joking.

Great Idea

Carrie mentioned the "World's Largest Garage sale". I decided to do a search on it.

Here's some facts I found on it:

The World's Longest Yard Sale is a 4-day event. The dates will be determined each year by the First Thursday of the month of August. The event will officially take place that Thursday to the following Sunday for 4 days of yard sale heaven! It begins at Covington, KY, and runs South to Chattanooga, TN, then switches to the Lookout Mountain Parkway (new), continuing to Gadsden, AL.
The four day sale of Bargain Hunting Spans 4 States and covers 450 miles.
Items for sale includes antiques, clothes, crafts, furniture, tools, toys, and just about anything else you can imagine. Some vendors will sell food and refreshments along the way.


This year it's being held august 3 -6.

You can read more about it:
http://www.tourdekalb.com/yardsale.htm
http://www.danville-ky.com/BoyleCounty/127Sale.htm


By the way........ I'm on vacation that week. So....... What do you think? ;)

I KNOW there's no way we'll be able to see it all, but we could see a big portion of it. LOL.

Hum........ Maybe bribe my dad into letting me take the full size van, or better yet....... Rent a small UHAUL trailer. LOL.

That really sounds like fun.

I have to let this out.......

On one of the days.... (Tues?) we ate at Mr. Gati's. It's the all you can eat pasta and pizza place...

This couple came in and went to get their food. They came back with at least 10 plates FULL of food. My parents mentioned something about how greedy that was. I spoke up and told them not to judge, because you don't know the situation. Perhaps their legs were tired, and they only wanted to go up only one time........ HOWEVER after watching this couple I was not only embarrassed that I defended them, but also disgusted and annoyed.

This couple was eating the toppings off the pizza and throwing the rest away.... They ended up with close to 30 plates of topless pizzas.

If you took all the slices they didn't eat, you would've had I would say 10 large pizzas. It literally annoyed me.

I understand it's an all you can eat place, but come on....have some common sense....... That was just plain greedy and wasteful.

I think all you can eat places need a rule............ You can have all you want AS LONG AS you eat MAJORITY of the food on your plate. Sure, granted I understand taking a little something to "Try" , and not liking it is one thing, but to throw 7/8 of the food away, and go up for more? I can see 5 and 7 year olds doing that.... NOT adults.... We're supposed to be "big" and know how to eat in public.


ARRGH!!!!!!!!! I just discovered another pet peeve....... Greedy and wasteful people.

The Miracle

We left for TN at 4:30 Tuesday morning. (Dad's the morning person... NOT me.)

On Tues. evening, we got tickets for "Miracle." It's about $42.00 a person, unless you can prove you live around there, then it's only $9.00. We didn't know about the discount, so we paid full price. However.... The show is WELL worth the money.

It starts with The creation. The ceiling is rigged up with TONS of little lights to look like stars.

Then it goes the the battle (pretty cool sword fight) in which the angels ban Satan out of Heaven.... Yes, the "angels" are rigged up to fly. The Angels were really impressive.... The wings actually move as though they're real throughout the whole play.

Then it goes on to Adam and Eve......Then it skips to the New Testament.

The water into wine scene was impressive as well... There's a fountain on stage pouring water.... Within minutes, the water turns into a darker color.

Oh yes, and the demon possessed woman was very convincing.

The crucifixion scene was well done also. Whenever the soldiers hit "Jesus" with the clubs, blood would be left behind on his chest.

Then it ends with Jesus's resurrection and ascention. (That sure doesn't look like it's spelled right.)

The whole show is a musical and there's not very many speaking parts.



Before the show, they had a "Roman soldier" on horseback standing by the road "advertising". Also, they had 3 lambs and a HUGE camel outside to pet.

We were in the second row, center section. Really good seats. I was afraid at first that we'd have to be trying to look up and over the stage, but it worked out great. Most of the actors are right in front of the stage. The only bad thing was....... We were directly in front of the speakers, and I had a small problem with the fog from the fog machine. Being that close to the front, that fog was "right in our laps." I thought I was going to have to grab my asthma inhaler.

I can see how it could get better and better each year.

They also have an AMAZING gift shop, which is open all day.... Not JUST during the show.

They also have popcorn and drinks (popcorn $3.00 a bag, drinks $2.00 each). Oh, and when you walk in, it's like Dixie Stampede.... You get a picture taken in front of a green sheet. During intermission you can buy the picture.. For $19.00 you get a "Miracle" postcard, magnet, the picture in a nice frame, and your choice of either a T shirt or a mug. I thought the price wasn't that bad for all you get for it.

Oh, and the souvenir shirts are $12.99 a shirt, and available in several colors. Very reasonable for a shirt I thought.

Okay, I'm finished advertising.....

Another thing we discovered.... If you're in Pigeon Forge and you want to see a show....... Buy your tickets at "Black Bear Jamboree." You can buy discount tickets for all the shows except Black Bear Jamboree... We only paid $41.25 for each ticket... If you bought them at Miracle theater, it would've been $48 a person. I know it's only $6.75, but that's still $6.75.

So, what you do is go up there, and ask Ashley to get your tickets. LOL.