the back door

i have been blessed with great friends over the years. i've always had that one friend that you just can't live with out. over time, they have changed of course. some have moved away and others have been for just a season. there is of course a great friend of mine that, for a brief time i decided i didn't like, and am thankful for forgiveness in that friendship. most of those friendships have stood the test of time and are still dear friends today, however, they live all over the place. some in california, some in michigan, some in ohio, some in georgia, wyoming,illinois, texas...the list goes on. it was because of always having to say good bye to those friends that for a brief time (although my husband i'm sure thinks it was a long time) i more or less refused to make friends. then i decided to try again, and well, that friend is currently in wyoming. so i once again went on a friend ban. about that time, a man in our church married this girl. she seemed to have it all...

this morning we were getting breakfast finished and shoes on. hubby came down stairs and started playing on the computer. princess was putting on her shoes...i commented that hubby was wearing something studly - (pajama pants and a tank top) not that i looked much better - not showered in old clothes. anyways... princess states, "now daddy can go to work in his pajamas!" hmm.....well, yes, he can.

isn't he cute????? let me tell you about this guy... his name is chubs and i got him in the 7th grade. i loved this bear. i like to cuddle so i started sleeping with him. i took him everywhere i went. he went to college with me. he was greatly loved there. then i took him to camp. he loved camp life. he loved the teepees, the wagons, the fort. he loved the kids that would be nice to him. he even really started to like the sweet friend i made there. until she kidnapped him! yes, chubs was the victim of a horrible crime...horrible. for several days he was held hostage by the oklahoma wagon girls! i was beside myself. thankfully, they were merciful, and my wagon load was helpful, and he was rescued and safe in my bed. then came my trip to europe. well, since he wouldn't fit in my bag with everything else he needed to stay home. i was worried about him. my hubby, fiance at the time, took great care of him. chubs resided on his bed for 3 months. i was eager t...

so week 1 has come to an end. i have done my 3 days and put in a mile and half each day on a combo of run walk. mostly walking this week. i'm tired today. we also walked the green ways trail as a family. what i have learned...i have a long ways to go. it really does feel good. i'm much more hungry all of a sudden. i enjoy the solitude. did i mention it really does feel good? did any of you join me???? it sure is fun!

i despise politics. i never liked it, but i married a man fascinated with it. a man who wanted to be part of it all...and was, briefly. boy were our eyes opened... anyways...it seems like this election has several hot button topics. one of which is universal healthcare. my cousin started a blog called politics for mom and there have been several heated debates going on. i was reading several comments on healthcare. and frankly i was bothered! now, i don't know that a strict universal healthcare is the answer, but i do know that we have now doesn't work for the average person. here is our story.... hubby worked in a small business - 3 employees at the most that i can remember. we paid 1/2 our insurance..until it came to the point where our half each month was twice what we would pay if we were on our own. but for the owner it saved him money. so he agreed to cover ours in full. we were very grateful. i also know at times, that because of the healthcare cost, it was a struggle f...

i'm just a little competitive. hubby might disagree with that, but i am! so several years ago in an effort to lose my baby weight after princess and get healthy i started running. our pastor gave me a training program and i did it! the whole thing...loved it. but then winter came and out went my running. while i have still continued to exercise fairly regular, okay, from time to time i don't, but for the most part i stay active - i usually need a boost of competition to keep me going. so hubby took up running when he quit his job. so of course i couldn't be outdone and started back in. then a friend of mine was talked into running a local fun run with her family. she decided she liked it and maybe we could do a 5k together. i said sure!! then she told me she picked up info and the date is nov. 1! yikes!!! then i watched tons of people i know run the 5k this weekend. soo.....i came home and printed off a training schedule! over the next 9 weeks i am in training to run a 5k o...

it was once again blueberry festival time this past weekend! there is always much anticipation in our small town when half a million people make their way here. by about mid-week the carnies roll in and the tents start to go up. it really kind of baffles me - this blueberry craze!! now it is always fun. i go and have a blast. hubby prefers to stay home so i leave him here. this year, mapboy and princess were very eager. i'm not sure why. i think it has to do with the pep-rally the mayor hosted at their school. oh yes, we have pep rallies for the blueberry! weird? definitely! this year blue went green so we were all about recycling the billions of coke cups, water bottles, food containers, etc... hubby had to work at a youth event on friday so the kids and i ventured in for county only night. we went with my parents. princess and i had ice cream made by local dairy farmers (bought off my cousin this year!). mapboy had a taco from a local latino church and we listened ...