New year, New goals

So last year I made a blogging goal to post to this blog twice a month. I did REALLY GOOD! There were only a few months in the summer where I only posted once, but the point is I actually maintained this blog on a somewhat regular basis for a year! Trust me, this is a big deal for me. I alway start off strong and then completely fizzle out, but not this time. Sure there was a slump in the middle, but I blame that I being pregnant and CRAZY busy as well as just plain exhausted. Lets be realistic though, last year I set the goal super low so that I could actually make it happen. This year, I actually plan on making this blog more a part of my life. I love writing and miss it. So if that means the only writing I can do is seemingly meaningless life updates, observations and interesting facts. So be it. I mean, I just had a kid (who's adorable face will soon be all over this blog), and since I'm not doing a "baby book" this can serve to show some major life updates as well as keep some family in the loop of what is happening in my life.

Also, I don't just want this to become a "baby/mommy blog". Yes, I am in that life stage, so it can't be completely avoided, but I would like to still share some opinions and deeper thoughts as I get bolder this year.

Here are my blogging goals for this year:

• More PICTURES! I need to take more, and post more pictures on here!
• Blog at least ONCE a week! I think I can do this!
• Have several meaningful blogs where I share things of deeper meaning with my readers
• Share some of my own writing on here. (this one is really scare for me. I have been writing poems and short stories for years, but have never shared them w/ a soul).

So just a few bloggy goals. Matt and I still are working on our goals for the new year as a family, and I will post some of them when we finnish. Have a happy new year everyone!

Top movies of 2010

As I was casually flipping through the yahoo news updates, I saw something interesting and clicked it. It was the top movies of 2010, as I looked at them I was shocked. Almost ALL of them were family fun oriented. AMAZING! In a world where sex and violence is glorified, families spoke with their dollars this year. I just hope hollywood is listening!

The top 10 movies of 2010 are as follows:

#10 – The Karate Kid

#9 How To Train Your Dragon

#8 Shrek Forever After

#7 Despicable Me

#6 Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows

#5 Inception

#4 The Twilight Saga Eclipse Part 1

#3 Iron Man

#2 Alice in Wonderland

#1 Toy Story 3

Lets take a look at the break down of these films:

Number of animated films: 4

Number of films aimed at families (in my opinion): 6

Number of films rated R: 0

Number of movies rated PG-13:4

Number of movies rated PG: 5

Number of movies rated G: 1

The top grossing film of 2010 is an ANIMATED movie rated G! Also don't think that this was a small margin, Toy Story 3 beat out #2 by over 80 million! This is amazing, it goes to show that you don't have to put "crap" into movies for them to be entertaining or successful. Very encouraging news to me. I hope that they make more family friendly films in the future!

Blessed on the eve of the eve of a new year

This year I have been completely blessed.

I have the most amazing hubby in the world. (Sorry ladies he is all mine!)

I am a mommy to the sweetest boy in the world.

I have family and friends who love me.

I have a fabulous job that I love, even though I'm currently on leave.

I have a cozy apartment that is just what we need right now.

I have amazing parents who live close and allow us to do laundry each week (sometimes more days than one) at there place.

God has truly blessed me this year. I can't wait to see what he has in store for me next year.

I never post videos, but this is funny

Ok, this is hilarious, enjoy this!

Here is the link, because my formating may be off

Questions about me and Matt

What are your middle names?

Jordan and Nicole

How long have you been together?

five years come feb

How long did you know each other before you started dating?

We were friends for a year

Who asked who out?

We went to disneyland as friends, and totally fell for each other.

Whose siblings do/ did you see the most?

Well we see my brother recently more often because we go to his basketball games 1-2 times a week. We also see his sister a fair amount.

Do you have any children together?

Yes, we have a new son. Max!

What about pets?

We have a outdoor kitty.

Which situations are the hardest on you as a couple?

Finances

Did you go to the same school?

Yep, we met in college

Are you from the same home town?

nope, but we are both from southern california

Who is the smartest?

My hubby

Who is the most sensitive?

Me

Where do you eat out most as a couple?

Fast food

Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple?

Mexican Riviara

Who has the craziest exes?

Well considering I'm the only one who has any exes i would have to say me

Who has the worst temper?

Me.

Who does the cooking?

We both do. He cooks a fair amount because of my work schedule he makes lunch for me. But I love cooking.

Who is more social?

We are both very social

Who is the neat-freak?

Neither of us.

Who is the more stubborn?

Not me. Ok fine its me.

Who hogs the bed?

He hogs the bed, and I hog the sheets/covers

Who wakes up earlier?

Me unless he is working. But I'm usually the last out of bed.

Where was your first date?

Disneyland

Who has the bigger family?

Me

Do you get flowers often?

Hardly ever

How do you spend the holidays?

We mix it up each year,

Who is more jealous?

Neither of us

How long did it take to get serious?

Well we "officially" became a couple about 3 weeks after our first date and we got engaged a year after that.

Who eats more?

Sometimes me, sometimes him.

Who does/ did the laundry?

We both do.

Who’s better with the computer?

We both are good

Who drives when you are together?

Most of the time its him.

Please be in prayer

My old college pastor's new born son and family need your prayers!

http://lothblogs.wordpress.com/

Please go here for more information and be in prayer for this family during this time!

Thanks!

A virgin birth

The Christmas season is here. The decorations are appearing on street corners, in the malls and filling the stores. Christmas music is starting to fill the air waves in cars, stores and homes. What is the big deal about Christmas? The big deal is that a small child was born, in a dirty stable, in a insignificant town, to common parents. Here is the big deal: Mary the mother of this child was a virgin.

As Larry King said in regards to what he would ask Jesus: "I would like to ask Him if He was indeed virgin born, because the answer to that question would define history."

The birth of the Savior has defined history. It has changed my life, and I love remembering that at Christmas time.

My sweet boys

So my husband is amazing! He is such a fabulous daddy to our son. Seriously, he is so wonderful with our little man. He helps me out so much, and takes great care of me and the baby. I love the two men in my life. They are both amazing :)

On another note, I am currently running a fever, so I'm camped out at my mom's and she is taking care of me and the baby. My mommy rocks my world! I promise I will return to a semi regular blogging schedule soonish, but with no interwebs at our apartment it means lugging a baby out of the house.

Maximus James

Maximus James

Born 11/15/2010

7lbs 15oz

20.5 inches

Apologies for my absence. I really thought I would have been able to get to a computer sooner, but considering we have no internet at home it was a bit more challenging than I thought it would be. He is here! I am so excited that I actually get to hold this amazing bundle of joy. He is perfect, even if he keeps me up at night when I'm trying to sleep. More on him and how he made his entry into the world a bit later.

What would you like to hear about?

So I have successfully made it 1/2 the month of posting 1 blog every day! It is exciting and challenging. I wont lie, I scheduled many of the posts ahead of time so that I know that they will get posted on the right day. The reason for this is two fold. Number one, I have no clue of knowing when I will/would (see this is where the scheduling is a bit tricky) go into labor. Therefore I wanted to make sure that I would still be able to have a post a day for all of you. Number two, I don't have internet at my home. I type the post at home, and then transfer them and schedule them to blogger while I'm at work. I especially have to do this for Friday's and Saturdays because I unless I go to starbucks or my parents, there is no way that I will have access to the internet.

I have several interesting blog post planed for the rest of the month. Ok, fine, so they are interesting to me, and hopefully you will enjoy/appreciate them as well. However, I would like to know if any of my readers have something they would like me to write about in particular. You can post a comment for this post, or if you are shy (since I don't a annoynomus llowcomments due to spam) you can use my formspring on the right hand side of my blog. I am not in any way saying that I WILL write about your suggestions, I am just curious to know what my few readers would like to hear about. So please, don't be shy and give me some writing ideas that YOU would find interesting!

There is something about having an honest exchange of ideas/beliefs

Is it possible to have an open and honest exchange of beliefs without judgment from either side?

I have had this burning to work some things out with what I believe and discuss it with others who disagree to see the differences. I really do enjoy honest conversations/debates about personal feelings. However I find that many times, feelings are hurt and friendships are either ended or strained by this exchange. That isn't something I want to do.

I have no idea how to not sound judgmental when I state my beliefs that I know others are going to feel judged by. For example, I don't agree with sex before marriage. I strongly feel that way, however I know many people who do believe that. SO WHAT? I honestly don't judged them, I feel like their lives could be better if they chose to live the way I believe is best, but most of them feel the same way about me. They feel that I have "missed out" because the only man I have slept with is my husband. I feel that they have "missed out" because they don't know how amazing it is to only share that with one person forever. There is no way to compare either. There is no way to determine which way is truly better for we can only know one of these two experiences therefore there is no way to truly know which is "better".

Why is it that when I have higher standards for myself than others they feel judged? I don't judge them. I have chosen to live a certain way and honestly I LOVE it. I think it is the BEST way to live and I want to share that with you. Yet, many times people still feel as if I'm judging them or attempt to make me feel like my choices are less valid because of things I have not experienced and therefore can't have an informed opinion which means that their opinion is more valid than mine.

Do you feel judged when someone has higher standards than you?

Can you have an honest debate/exchange of ideas with someone who has vastly different views than you without feeling hurt?

Is it important or is there even a reason to exchange ideas with others?

How do you feel about this?

My Grandpa Schilling

Ryan, Grandpa, Jessica and Me

My grandpa was an amazing man. He cherished my grandmother (and you could tell). He loved his kids and grandkids unconditionally, regardless of what they got themselves into. He gave to those who needed it, he was there to support those who needed a shoulder to cry on. He was an elder in the church, a man of God. I have many wonderful memories of my grandfather. I remember when I was in 2nd or 3rd grade, he had a heart attack. I remember spending countless hours in the hospital visiting him. We snuck into the ICU so that we could spend time with him. The nurses didn't seem to mind as he was always in good spirits when we left, and we were quiet and didn't disturb the other patients. Then when I was a sophomore in high school, my grandfather decided to have an experimental surgery. He had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's, and didn't want to get to the point where he couldn't recognize his family. So he choose to take a chance on a surgery that studies showed would give him another 5+ lucid years. He was the 5th person to ever have this surgery, and the 1st to have it on both sides of his brain at the same time. They basically took stem cells that they grew from another part of his body and injected them in 5 parts of his brain on each side to stimulate new growth and slow down the process of Alzheimer's. They hit a web of weak blood vessels that caused bleeding on the brain. He was in a coma for 35 days before he went to be with the Lord. I miss him. He was a very special person in my life, and I am so thankful that we grew up near enough for him to be a big part in my life. I am also thankful that I have a dad who is going to be an amazing grandfather to my son.

A reflection on the last 9 months

Today is my "due date" so I am going to take time to reflect on the last 9 months of my life, as it is all about to change.

March: I found out I was pregnant, and started to experience "morning sickness" but mine was from about 2 or 3pm until 10 or 11pm. Which was great for getting to work on time but annoying for anything I had planned after work.

April: We started to tell people we were expecting. We told our parents at easter in person because they were all together. I told my bosses at work, and a few select friends. We announced the pregnancy "officially" after I was 12 weeks, just to make sure all was well. I also received a state disability refund and found out that I didn't qualify for state paid leave because we weren't supposed to be getting that with held from our pay checks and it was too late for me to get my own short term disability leave.

May: I started really feeling tired, and exhausted, but all in all it was a good month. I started gearing up for my big summer program at work, and people in the church started to realize that I was expecting. I found out that I would have up to 12 weeks off for maternity leave, and that it would be unpaid, minus my vacation time.

June: Was a complete blur with Summer Blast and trying to sleep. God blessed me by feeling good most of the time and we started to save like crazy! We also found out we were gonna have a boy! We also got to feel our baby kicking like CRAZY.

July: Matt got a job! It's only part time on Saturday and Sunday, BUT it means that 1) we have extra money coming in to save and pay for baby stuff and 2) Matt can stay home during the week with the baby so no paying for childcare.

August: I spent all of August preparing to be gone from work for 6-12 weeks. We also started to collect all of the baby stuff we needed as well as made the official decision to cloth diaper (more on that in another post).

September: I honestly have no idea what happened to this month. I know that we got our big baby items thanks to our amazing parents, as well as started to rearrange our 1 bedroom so that it could accommodate baby stuff. It went by so fast, it was almost as if it didn't exist.

October: Was such a full month, I don't even know where to begin. My amazing MIL threw me a shower in LA so that all of my college friends could come as well as some family. Then my aunt thought it was horrible for me to not have a shower in the town I grew up in and was currently living in so she threw me one completely last minute. Also, a few ministries from the church chose to take up a love offering for Matt and I. Such a blessing as it is helping us purchase the other things we need for baby!

November: The baby is coming! I seriously have spent the entire month timing contractions, wondering when I will go into labor and hoping that it will come soon. I remember being anxious/excited for my wedding and it has been pretty much the same feeling except for the fact that I don't know WHEN. With the wedding, I had a solid count down, with this, the not knowing is killing my inner control freak.

Marriage

Marriage is one of the most challenging rewarding adventures I have embarked on in my life. To so many people marriage means so many different things. Here are somethings that it means to me:

1. Marriage is forever. Divorce is rising, people are entering into marriage without thinking or really even getting to know each other first. I personally believe that marriage is a life time commitment. There are very few loopholes in this, and even if a so called "loophole" presents itself that doesn't mean you should take it. I think that "irreconcilable differences" is a lame excuse to get out of a commitment.

2. Marriage is sacred. Marriage is something that is ordained by God. It is Biblical, and established by God. It is used as an example of love, and sacrifice. It, in it's pure form is supposed to help us understand God's relationship with us and Christ's relationship with the Church.

3. Marriage is important. Having one person to share your life with, someone who will love you unconditionally, someone who will tell you when you are wrong and support you when you fall. Someone who will check and balance you, and support you. Being in that relationship when you both know that no one is going anywhere no matter what happens. It is more than just a verbal commitment it is a spiritual becoming of one that no one can separate with a paper.

These are just some of my personal thoughts and opinions on marriage. I have more, but what are your thoughts? Comments? Questions?

Happy Veteran's Day!

To all of our Vet's, thank you for your service. To all who are currently serving, thank you for your sacrifice. We truly appreciate you and all you have done for us.

So tell me about you...

I have just spent the last few days giving you way too much personal and completely random information about myself. I hope that in a little way it helps you understand me as a person better. Now I want to know about you as my readers. Please tell my a few random things about yourself and introduce yourself to me if I don't know you. I know I have a few quiet lurkers and I would love to know who you are, so please say hi! Also to my friends, try and come up with random stuff that I don't already know about you. :D

Things about me #81-100

81. I love sleeping with the window open, fresh cool night air is amazing. However I could do without my noisy neighbors.

82. I am a flip flop girl. I love my reefs and wear them all the time. Thankfully I live in Southern Cali and can wear them year round.

83. I have severe allergies. If you give me something with almonds in it, I will need to be rushed to the ER before I can no longer breath.

84. Butterflies and rainbows make me smile.

85. I love classic movies. Roc Hudson, Doris day, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemon, Jimmy Stewart need I say more?

86. I speak French. I'm not fluent, but I still practice and read in it as much as possible.

87. Growing up I loved to babysit, I got to play with kids and make money.

89. I write poetry, but am not brave enough to share it with anyone.

90. I have found a new love of coupon cutting, it is amazing. I save $5-$15 per shopping trip just by spending 20ish minutes a week cutting and organizing. TOTALLY worth it!

91. My bible is one of the things I cherish the most, it has tons of markings in it from the last several years.

92. Technology (much like social networking) has made my life easier and more challenging. Sometimes I think the amish have the right idea

93. I have always had a fascination with secret passageways. Someday I want to design my own home and create hidden passages and rooms.

94. I love inspirational quotes. Well some of them, others annoy me greatly, and you never know which ones are going to be which.

95. My "little" brother is 6'10'' a full foot taller than me.

96. I think that the idea of community is wonderful, however living with people isn't always the easiest.

97. I love sports, but rarely participate any more.

98. I love internet communities, but often I participate as an onlooker.

99. My blog is called "There is something about..." because originally my plan was to make random observations from my mind.

100. I love my blog, and wonder who all reads it...

Randomness about me #61-80

61. I love chocolate. I mean REALLY love chocolate.

62. Children's Ministry is the most rewarding and challenging calling.

63. I'm so sick of being pregnant. Really, I totally am.

64. Being prego is one of the most amazing, frustrating miracles ever.

65. I have no idea how people can look at the beauty around them and think that it happened by accident. Seriously, I really don't understand it. It really makes no sense to me at all.

66. I love eating veggies and salads, but I don't do it very often. Mostly because I have the hardest time finding good produce as well as a husband who refuses to touch the stuff.

67. My husband is the most amazing person in the world.

68. Disneyland is one of my most favorite places ever. It is my happy place.

69. My engagement ring is the most expensive thing I have ever worn.

70. I love being crafty, but what I make NEVER matches what I want it to look like in my head or the picture I'm trying to copy.

71. I have a really bad habit of listening into others conversations while in public. I'm not sure why but I think people are interesting the way they act.

72. My favorite color is hot pink.

73. I have recently found a fun new hobby of playing online poker.

74. I have been in three car accidents. All as passengers. I still freak out if I see tons of break lights, as well as have occasional panic attacks.

75. It really bugs me when people break the rules or abuse the privileges they have, and totally get away with it.

76. I yell at other drivers who are being stupid. Sometimes out loud.

77. I don't bite my nails, I peel them. It is a horrible habit and the reason that unless I have acrylic nails they are super short and ridiculous.

78. 95% of the time I wear a dress or skirt to church. Not because I have to, but because it is how I grew up as well as something that inside i feel is "proper" for me.

79. I multitask way to much. Sometimes I do it so much that it is distracting. Other times I find the perfect combination to get tons done fast.

80. I hate spiders. I REALLY hate black widows. I don't like the idea that something that small can do so much damage.

Things about me #41-60

41. I totally have a slight form of OCD. But I am OCD about my OCD, and refuse to give into it, which means that I leave things messy on purpose sometimes just so that I have to deal with it. However, when I'm stressed out, I will realize that I have organized things in my OCD way without realizing it.

42. I went to counseling for 2 years while in college. I spent a lot of money on it (when else can you get counseling for $12 an hour), but it was totally worth it and changed my perspective on myself.

43. I love being outdoors. Parks, beaches, mountains, desert you name it. I find beauty in God's creation, and enjoy being in it.

44. I have a love hate relationship with shopping. When I need to find something I can't, and when I'm "just looking" I spend money I don't need to spend. Why is that?

45. Growing up I wanted to be just like Nancy Drew and solve crime.

46. I have a fascination with mysteries. I love watching any crime drama show/movie and many books about it. I don't know why.

47. My family is a little bit crazy, but I love them anyways!

48. I hate being asked what my favorite movie or book is. I don't have any one favorite, I love far to many to have just one.

49. I'm not a music person. I enjoy music, and know there are some things that I don't enjoy, however I could really take it or leave it.

50. I'm really trying to figure out if I can come up with 50 more random things. It's more challenging than it looks.

51. My extended family are in a feud on my mom's side. It really sucks. We used to have 20+ people over for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Now, everyone is refusing to come over and making other plans. It really sucks that my baby will not get to experience that.

52. One of the coolest trips I ever took was a 5,000+ car trip w/ my grandma. We drove from southern cali, to Seattle to Montana, to South Dakota, to Colorado and back in 3 weeks!

53. Growing up I always wanted a cat. When I finally got one in 8th grade, she didn't like me at all.

54. I have always wondered why people find gossip mags and celebrities lives so interesting.

55. Social networks make my life easier and harder at the same time

56. I totally am a total Mac geek now. I love my mac book pro and my iPhone. I would love an ipad, however they are expensive and it is something I can't justify.

57. Matt and I don't have internet or cable at our apartment.

58. I am a hopeless romantic.

59. I LOVE to go antique shopping. Even if I don't buy anything, I love looking at old stuff.

60. Someday I want to have really cool view from my home. Mountains, beach, desert doesn't matter, just something that I can look at God's creation every day.

100 things about me #21-40

21. I have lived in Southern California my entire life. Born in the OC, raised in the Palm Springs area, went to college in LA and now living back in the desert.

22. If you don't count layovers for international flights, I have never been to the east coast.

23. Growing up I had protective parents. I still to this day have not seen the movie Titanic, and pretty much most PG-13 movies that came out before I was 16.

24. Many Saturday mornings growing up, my parents would take us garage sale shoping. We usually got a dollar or two to spend. Let me tell you that dollar or two can go a long way when toys and books are $.10 0 $.25 a piece!

25. Some weekends we would ride our bikes to the local donut shop, less than a mile from our house. The only problem was this huge hill we live up. Going to the shop was easy, until I was 10 I had to get off my bike and walk it or have my dad help push me because I couldn't petal up the hill.

26. When I was in fist grade, my parents gave us an early Christmas present. The week before Thanksgiving, we got a Golden Retriever. Best gift ever!

27. I was in some sort of choir from Kindergarten until 5th grade. Then nothing, I think I realized that I can't really sing.

28. In elementary school I had a ton of extra curricular activities. I played tennis 2-3 days a week, I took piano lessons, played volleyball, did Awana's and participated in school plays. I was one busy kid.

29. Growing up, I thought that my house was the coolest. I still do.

30. When I was in 1st grade, I got the coolest fish bed spread. It was Hawaiian and had amazing colors in it. My dad painted my baseboards a hot pink color and matched it to my blinds. It was pretty awesome.

31. I always thought I was going to die before high school. I don't know why, but I really had that feeling growing up. It was really weird, and totally morbid. I even mentioned it multiple times in diaries.

32. I loved my birthday parties growing up. My parents always did amazing themes, games and cakes. It was totally AWESOME.

33. When I was in 5th grade, my elementary school got uniforms.

34. In middle school, one of my favorite teachers was the teacher everyone hated. She could be mean, but that was only if you didn't do your work and gave her attitude. I will totally admit to being teacher pet and always going above and beyond in her class. I also learned a lot doing that.

35. I wanted to be a teacher for almost as long as I can remember.

36. I was a total fish growing up. I spent the entire summer in the pool swimming, and loved it.

37. I will admit that I collected American Girl dolls until I was well into high school. I am so sad that they are retiring my favorites, but thankful I have them so that someday any daughters I have can play with them.

38. Vacations for us growing up were car trips to far away places, and involved many hours in the car cramped next to my brother. I loved it, and all of the many memories we have because of it.

39. My brother and I spend endless hours building empires out of blankets, furniture, books and sheets. I only wish we had pictures of the epic forts that we constructed in our living room and backyard.

40. Growing up I wanted to be a missionary and live in a far away country. No this does not conflict with #35, it was part of it.

100 Things about me #1-20

Since my 100 blog post is coming up, which I feel is a shame considering I have been writing on this thing for 5 years now (oops!), I am going to be sharing with you all 100 random things about me. Some are silly others are serious and most likely more than you would like to know. But I feel that this will help any of the readers who do read this, connect with me better. I will post #100 as my 100th blog post. Here is #1-20:

1. I love reading but hardly get or even make the time to do so. One of my favorite ways to read is to have my wonderful hubby read out loud to me. It is the best!

2. I love cooking and baking, but hate doing the dishes and feeling "trapped" in the kitchen.

3. I love desserts. I mean LOVE them. Way more than any girl should

4. I love traveling. If I had a ton of spendable money, I would use it to see the world and experience new cultures and ways of life.

5. I love my alma matter Biola University. I am so thankful for the time I spent there, the things I learned and the relationships I made

6. I hate that I am lazy about things. No really, I'm super lazy about things I shouldn't be and it bugs me, but I'm too lazy to do anything about it.

7. I hate that I am so far away from many of my dearest friends. It is hard to have heart to hearts over the phone.

8. I hate that I suck at finishing things. I'm really good at starting projects, or having awesome ideas but the follow through is something that I need major improvement on.

9. I hate that I am not challenging myself enough. This is mostly due to numbers 6 & 8 above. But it is so true. I need to be challenged by others its like if I don't have some big motivation I don't care.

10. I hate that I have dumb addictions to things. They are seemingly little things, but I really can't seem to stop doing them. They aren't bad either, so I have practically no motivation to do so, but still it bugs me.

11. I am generally a happy person.

12. I tend to look at all of the problems and reasons things can't be, before I see solutions or ways around them.

13. I have the privilege of having one of the most amazing jobs on the planet.

14. I am excited to start my new journey of being a mommy, but mostly scared. Not because I don't feel qualified or like I'm going to fail. It is just the weight of realizing that a little one is going to be dependent on me for EVERYTHING. It is a sobering and slightly horrifying but wonderful though.

15. I have a horrible habit of telling white lies. Stupid things that don't matter at all, but I do it and I'm really not sure why, I really am trying to stop myself.

16. I am living in my home town. The place I swore that when I grew up, I would NEVER live. Life is funny like that.

17. I have an inner-monologue going on in my head pretty much at all times. Occasionally I will catch myself saying it out loud, typically at the grocery store, where I get many funny looks then realize I am saying it out loud.

18. I feel like a failure most of the time. I know that I am not, but still sometimes I can't shake the feeling that somethings or someone would be better with out me.

19. I want to actually succeed in some of my goals this year for once.

20. I am a sports fan. I enjoy watching baseball and basketball. I can't stand football (either version). My favorite sport to watch though is beach volleyball.

Warning, TMI - Pregnancy story

So last night I felt a "gush". I knew my water hadn't broken, but I felt like it may be leaking. I thought it a fluke and moved on. I went home, laid down for 30 min and then stood up again, I felt a little fluid. So I tried it again, and then we ended up deciding to go get checked out just incase my water was leaking. We went to the L&D (labor and delivery) department of the hospital and they hooked me up on some monitors. I was contracting every 2-4 minutes. Which I had been feeling but they weren't very strong. Then they did the exam and I found out I was 3 cm. At 4cm they keep you. They tested the fluid and it wasn't amitotic fluid which is a good thing, meaning I don't have a leak. I was given the option to stay, but I chose to go home. The contractions weren't strong enough. Basically, I have been contracting every 4-7 minutes for the last day. However they are not strong, which means I'm not really in labor, but I kind am. It is really frustrating. I want them to go away, or I want to go into labor. PICK ONE! I am so not a fan of these stupid contractions, but I know that I have to have them, so it would be really nice if they were productive. Matt is convinced I'm going into labor this weekend, but I'm not to sure. It would be really nice to, but at the same time, I really don't want to get my hopes up but at the same time it would be nice. Who knows when it is gonna happen maybe this weekend, maybe next but for sure by the one after.

It's day 3!

Well so far it has appeared that I have made it to day 3, still very pregnant but alive and well enough to blog about something that has bothered me for a few weeks. A few weeks ago, I was skimming my google reader, and stumbled across a picture that broke my heart and wreaked me in more ways than one. I couldn't believe it, so I tested it out for myself and sure enough it is true. Here is the picture:

Test it out for your self. (or go to the link the here to see more). Go to google, and start typing in the phrase, "why are Christians..." See what you come up with. This KILLS ME.

Why doesn't it say Christians are happy? We have the most reason to be!

Why doesn't it say Christians are loving? Aren't we called to show love to others in radical ways?

Why doesn't it say Christians are different? Shouldn't we be living in a way that makes others ask that question?

As Christians we have been labeled; "stupid", "judgmental", "mean", "hateful" etc. THIS SHOULD NOT BE. It breaks my heart that this is the popular opinion of us. For the non-Christians out there who have formed this opinion of us, I am truly sorry from the bottom of my heart, this is not what my faith is about. For all of my brothers and sisters in Christ, I challenge you to shine your light in a different way, and I leave you with this scripture:

"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." Matthew 5:13-16 (NIV)

In honor of today's election

I found this article very interesting. Here is the actual article below from the National Journal by Lindsey Boerma, with my own commentary at the end.

"What recession?

The lousy economy may be hurting most Americans but the politicians and consultants hoping to win your votes are enjoying a boom economy.

Candidates for Congress have spent more than $3.6 billion on this election so far, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, and they're still burning through the cash. (American Crossroads makes final $6M ad blitz) (DCCC purchases $21.6 million worth of air time)

Since all of them insist they're for helping average American families, the National Journal staff was curious to know how else they might have spent all that money on our behalf. How would Americans feel if, instead of attack ads, slick mailers and robocalls, our politicians lavished us with:

1. Tuition for 62,548 students at America's most expensive university

Forbes recently listed Sarah Lawrence College as the nation's priciest school, with a tuition rate of $57,556, including room and board. That's a lot of higher education.

2. 3,973,510 monthly mortgage payments

The average monthly mortgage payment, according to analysts at Freddie Mac, is $906 in principal and interest. $3.6 billion would buy one month's reprieve from the repo man for almost 4 million Americans.

3. 48 million bleacher tickets for a World Series game

Hey, the San Francisco Giants and Texas Rangers kick off the annual baseball classic tonight. Cheap seats cost $75. Wouldn't we all like to be there?

4. Annual salaries for 83,116 high school teachers

Payscale.com pegs the median high school teacher salary at $43,313. Don't we need more math and science experts in the classroom?

5. 1,323,529,412 school lunches

The U.S. Department of Agriculture pays $2.72 for every free lunch provided through the National School Lunch Program. For $3.6 billion, a lot more kids could eat — or the ones who already get free lunches might be able to eat better.

6. 360 million bags of Halloween candy

Forget the health food; it's Halloween. Why not buy a two-pound bag of Wonka Assorted Candy for $9.99 for every man, woman, and child in the USA — plus about 50,000 extras?

7. 12,286,689 unemployment checks

Unemployment benefits vary widely by state but the national average is about $293 a week. Aren't all those politicians saying they want to help the jobless?

8. 1,440 Super Bowl commercials

Does anyone think we don't have enough already? The most coveted advertising event of the year averages $2.5 million per commercial, meaning this year's campaign spending numbers could pay for 1,440 spots.

9. Annual salaries for 75,263 police officers

The average law enforcement officer's salary is $47,832 says Payscale.com; what candidate doesn't want to put more cops on the beat?

10. A 248-season contract for LeBron James

Yeah, he gets paid $14.5 million a year, but we could afford him. Eat your hearts out, Miami Heat.

11. 7.2 million iPads

The lowest-end iPad offering 16 GB and Wi-Fi runs at Apple.com for $499, which means that $3.6 million would afford the product to 7,200,000 people.

12. Priuses for 526 Oprah audiences

At $22,800 apiece, "You get a car! You get a car! Everybody gets a car!""

End of Article (incase you didn't notice the quotations)

Wow, this just blows me away. I seriously would have chosen ANY of these options over having to deal with stupid mailers, and advertisements that don't actually inform voters of the important facts about each candidate or propositions. What if a candidate actually chose to forgo advertising and campaigning in the "usual" sense and spent their money helping their already/soon to be constituents? Would they be elected? Would people notice?

Don't vote based off of what you have seen and heard in the media, do research, be informed and VOTE TODAY!

November is here!

I can hardly believe that November is already here! It is a complete dream, the time has gone by so fast yet so slow at the same time. September and October flew by as a whole, but each day seems to creep by so slowly. I can't believe that this month I will become a mom. I don't know when, just that it will be anytime before thanksgiving. I'm currently 38 weeks, and starting to show signs of "starting the process" but for first timers it could still be another 2-3 weeks. I am so excited to start this new journey in my life!

On a completely separate note, for three or four years now, I have wanted to participate in National Novel Writing Month, where a person is challenged to write 50,000 words of a story from midnight on November 1st until 11:59pm on November 30th. However, with me having a baby some point this month, I just don't think that is realistic. Something else I have been wanting to do, is drum up my blogging. I want to actually write about the things I'm thinking about or things I find interesting and want to share with others, as well as have a place to publicly share what is going on in my personal life in a meaningful way. So, even though I will most likely not succeed due to being in the hospital for a few days to give birth I am going to attempt another writing event that starts today. NaBloPoMo (now that is a mouthful to say!), basically the goal is to post a blog each day during the month of November. Again due to going into labor at some unknown point this month I can't guarantee that I will be able to complete this challenge, but I figure at least it will get me posting a bit more this month. So join me as I attempt to post a blog each day, we will see how far I get!

Date Night!

Matt and I had a great date night on Saturday. It was actually unintentional. On his way home from work, I suggested making pot roast for dinner, with some side dish, and he agreed. We attempted to go to the movies two weekends ago but it was a total flop, I was really sore from a dr.'s appointment and last weekend I full on fell asleep from about 2pm until 4 or so and woke up groggy and cranky. When Matt had come home and taken his shower (he works at a paintball field and gets SUPER dirty at work), he suggested we go to the movies with some movie passes we had. I agreed and we had enough time to get in there at the 4 something showing. We saw RED. SOOOOO good. I loved it. It was the perfect combination of action and comedy. The reason I normally am not the biggest fan of action is because its all shoot'em up gore type stuff, and the story is weak. However RED had some great wit and humor about it that made the movie really fun and enjoyable. After the movie it was almost 7, and the baby inside of me was screaming for food. We ended up at the Red Robin, and just had a really nice casual dinner. My hubby sucks at planning dates (this is something he will willingly admit), however just spending time together spontaneously was nice. My hubby is currently working a temp job for his uncle 2 hours away from me M-Th and then working at his regular job Sat and Sun. So the time with him is nice. I sure miss him when he is gone.