Seven Random Things

First of all, to those of you who have e-mailed or commented, I will be sure to post some notes detailing the Minnesota conference. It may take me a few posts, and a day or two. So...just be patient. I am in the middle of several little projects, and blogging is not top priority. I am SO EXCITED to eventually share with you all, though.

For now, I've been tagged by my friend, Kim, to list seven random facts about myself. Since the instructions were to list things that were random, I figured now is the time to come out with things that most people would never ever know about me. These things are just....random.

Here's how it goes:
Each player starts with 7 random facts/habits about themselves. People who are tagged need to write on their own blog about their seven things, as well as these rules. You need to choose 7 people to get tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them that they have been tagged and to read your blog!

Here goes....

1) I love to play the piano. Perhaps one of my favorite things to do is to sit down at my keyboard and play hymns. Whenever I'm in an ugly mood, I find it helpful to play hymns and sing loudly. I hope to teach my kids a love for hymns/music too. We love to sit at the keyboard and sing together. To me, the best sound on earth is the sound of little voices praising God. This sound brings such joy to my heart.

2) When I was a little girl, I had extremely long hair (think Cousin It). It was parted down the middle and hung down to my hiney. It was ridiculous! Once, when I was in elementary school, I was at a birthday party and was playing "Who can hold your breath the longest?" in a hot tub. I submerged myself under the water until I could hold my breath no longer. When I tried to reemerge, I found that my ridiculously long hair was caught in the bottom of the hot tub. I yanked and yanked until my hair was ripped from my head. Thankfully I lived, but not without consequence. My head was very sore from where the hair had been pulled out. In a couple of years, my lovely hairstyle was made even better with the emerging trend of stick up bangs. For a few years, I had long, straight hair that hung down to my hiney with stick up, curly-permed bangs that were loaded with hairspray. Definitely not a natural look.... One that I do not plan to repeat...

3) I don't like to go with the flow. I don't really like to do things the way that they've always been done. I like to reinvent the wheel. (I know that there must be a better way to make a wheel than the way that it has already been made!!! :) This has been a source of stress for me, especially when I am working with a group. It would be so much easier if I were a person who didn't really care how things were done, and could just relax and be agreeable and easygoing. After all, the wheel works just fine, doesn't it? I struggle with being way too high strung about things. Thankfully, God paired me up with Josh, who is so very calm and agreeable, but not laid-back. So when I come in ranting about the newest "problem" that I have to solve, I can always count on Josh to bring me back to reality.

4) I think spit is extremely gross. It makes me ill to hear someone slurp or watch someone spit. I can handle being around blood, vomit, dirty diapers, but if I ever catch the sight of someone else brushing their teeth, toothpaste coming out of the corners of their mouth, it is enough to send me running! I once had this roommate who would slurp the spit out of her toothbrush each morning. Oh, the self-control it took for me not to cover my ears and eyes and run screaming out the door! If I think about it too much, I can gross myself out while brushing my own teeth, or the teeth of my children. And, please don't swish your mouthwash around me. I simply cannot handle it. Slosh, spit, slurp, UGH!!! Yucky!

5) I LOVE to eat food, all kinds of food. I like to eat just about anything, and can think of fewer than ten things that I just don't like to eat. It is very important to me that I not put my kids at a disadvantage by failing to expose them to the many wonderful foods that are out there. Just because I don't really care for radishes, doesn't mean that I won't buy them and try them with a big smile on my face, just so that Mary Alice and Major have the chance to decide whether or not they like them. If you invite me over for a meal, please DO NOT serve: sugar cookies, pretzels, liver, radishes, corned beef, fried vegetables (like okra), yams with marshmallows, coleslaw, or bologna. If you fix anything else, though, you're safe. BUT.....Even if you do fix bologna sandwiches with fried okra and sugar cookies for dessert, I will eat it all up with a pretend smile on my face.

6) I rarely follow a recipe. If I do use a recipe, I usually substitute my own "a little of this and a little of that" to make it "just right." Josh jokes with me all the time about this. Just last week, I made some pork chops. They had soy sauce, onions, wine, cream, a little of this, a little of that. When we sat down to eat and he first took a bite, he said, "These are really good! Too bad we'll never eat them again!" He said this because I rarely make a recipe the same way twice. It brings me joy to do reinvent the wheel....sometimes.

7) I am not an animal person. I am severely allergic to cats, and generally not fond of dogs. There are a few dogs that I think are moderately cute, but never want one of my own. Part of this may be due to the fact that I was bitten on the lip by a poodle at age three. My mother saw the whole thing unfold. She said that I was petting the poodle gently when it snapped out and bit me in the lip. I remember this traumatic experience vividly. My second experience with dogs was when my parents brought home a cocker spaniel, which Adam and I named T.J. I was in the second grade. T.J.'s endearing qualities and talents were few. The dog, for example, was able to bark almost continuously. (Our neighbors must have loved good ole T.J.) He would also jump up on every person who came near him. He had energy, I'll give him that much. My sister, Taylor, would not even go out into the back yard for at least a year or two, because she was so afraid of getting pounced by that crazy dog. Since T.J. was my dog, I was expected to feed him (which I enjoyed) and clean up his doggy droppings (which I did not enjoy). After about two years at our house, dear old T.J. hit the road and found a home with a man who could appreciate his unique talents. I feel like now one of the reasons that I do not really like dogs is because of my experience with T.J. Maybe one day, I will eat my words, but for now, I will just say no to getting a family pet.


Okay, so now you know 7 random things about me that you probably never wanted to know. I am tagging:

Miranda- (I am doing this as a favor to give her the topic that she's been needing to help her update her blog. :)

Holly G.
Mindy H.
and
Anne.