100 posts!

For my 100th post I decided to do 50 random things about me...so enjoy! (planned to do 100...but I was having a hard time coming up w/things and didn't want to keep postponing other blog topics)

1. I was born in Johnson City, Tennessee, but I have lived in Bowling Green, Kentucky since I was about 2 years old.

2. I was born with a perforated intestine and had to have multiple surgeries during the first few weeks and months of my life. I became septic and almost died. Even though I had all the surgeries, the doctors were not able to locate the perforation, but it miraculously healed itself! The doctor said it was a "medical miracle"

3. I still have a huge scar across my stomach from the surgeries. It creates an indentation in the middle of my stomach...and in the center of it you can still see the needle holes from where I was stitched up. When I was younger I used to stick earrings through the holes to freak my friends out.

4. I ADORE Christmas :) I am so happy and filled with Christmas spirit this year that I almost cry with joy when I hear the Christmas songs in stores :)

5. When I was little I was VERY bad at naming our pets...I had cats named Blackey, Whitey, and Pretty. original right?

6. I have always wanted to be a mom, but now that I'm in a place where it is a possibility, the thought of having children scares me to death!

7. I have compulsive tendencies which manifest mostly when it comes to shopping...I buy things in multiples when I get interested in them and therefore have stuffed my house to the brim!

8. I love children's books. my favorite authors are Rosemary Wells, and (of course) Beatrix Potter (i recently got all the peter rabbit series for 1.99 per book!)

9. I grew up shopping only at consignment shops and discount stores like TJ Maxx so I don't really know how to shop at retail stores where everything is organized and displayed nicely--it doesn't seem as fun unless I have to dig!

10. Shopping in these types of stores is bad for me b/c since the inventory is always changing, I feel like I have to buy it right then or I might lose it! so I often buy things I don't really need or have use for...

11. I love using my hands and being crafty...I knit, sew, scrapbook, make clay ornaments, and of course, bake. I love trying new hobbies and dabbling in a bit of everything.

12. I adore reading and buying books. I have at least 6 bookshelves in my house with everything from religious studies and philosophy books to cookbooks, craft books and chick lit--not to mention the magazines!

13. I have crazy wild dreams and nightmares. Most of them are located at my childhood home, a big hotel (where we used to go for campus crusade winter conferences), daytona beach, or my church. I regularly have dreams about being chased and running through stairwells and also trying to fly.

14. My husband refuses to listen to my dream stories anymore. He thinks I'm crazy.

15. I love old movies (especially musicals). When I was little we would check them out from the library. One time I cried because we had to give the Ten Commandments (Charlton Heston version of course) back and the librarian extended our check out time.

16. I don't really like current movies, and I pretty much refuse to watch dramas or anything that will stress me out or make me cry.

17. I have very eclectic taste in music, but lately have been gravitating towards more indie bands. In general, I like music that has a sleepy dream-like quality.

18. I still have almost all my childhood toys--I wanted to keep every one for my future children to play with. They are all still in my parent's attic.

19. The only toy I ever got rid of was my "brightly" doll--I little pink bean-shaped plastic thing that would glow when you squeezed it. I gave it away at a children's toy drive, and I wished I had it back for years and years. **i just tried googling it and apparently it was one of the "snugglebums" dolls**

20. My favorite food as a child was my granny's biscuits and gravy and she would make them for me any time we would visit. I liked them so much that my dad called me "biscuit"

21. I went to a very strict Fundamentalist Baptist school called Anchored Christian School. There were only 2 other girls in my class, and I had the same teacher for 1st, & 4th-7th grade.

22. I have worked at my office for 9 years--it is the same pediatric office that I went to as a child (and was still officially a patient until 3 years ago when they made me get a "grown-up" doctor for my chronic health issues). I got my job there b/c I was in the office 2x a week for allergy shots, so I figured it would be a good after school job! I asked if they hired people under 18...persevered through years of filing and copying after school...and now I'm the Office Manager!

23. I started dating my hubs during our senior year of high school. We stayed together all through college and have been happily married for 3 years!

24. The house that hubs and I bought was the home of my childhood pastor and I used to come here and play with his daughter when I was little. We bought the house from a family who was also in ministry and one of my former Bible study girls had her first kiss here when the old owners lived here! lots of fun history...

25. I have never purchased a new car--I bought "my" car from my parents when hubs and I got married for a few hundred dollars...it is a 1989 camry, almost as old as I am! We've tossed around the idea of getting a "new" car (aka...something made in the past decade) but I just can't justify it when all I do is drive to and from work!

26. I never have enough clean spatulas, whisks, or mixing bowls.

27. I am a pack rat, as is my husband. Our little house is full to bursting already!

28. I am obsessive about recycling. I keep a box under my desk at work to recycle junk mail, boxes, and cans and bottles and then take it home to recycle. It literally hurts me to throw things away that could be reused! I HATE WASTE!!!

29. I compost food scraps even though I don't garden...(see #28)

30. I like to dress my pets in clothes. I did this when I was a kid too, but thankfully Butch is okay with it. Kitty...not so much.

31. I have too many magazines to read.

32. I love TV on DVD and will watch an entire series over a weekend or two (and will watch them over and over)

33. I hate hand-washing dishes.

34. The sweetest present that hubs ever gave me was 3 months into our relationship, he bought me a new copy of my favorite childhood book "Why Do You Love Me" about a little bear cub and it's momma. In one part of the book the bear sees other naughty bear cubs who have run away from their mothers b/c they didn't want to have the burrs combed out of their fur. One night when I was little I ran away from my mom after bathtime saying "I don't want you to comb the burrs out of my furs!!"

35. I was a Religious Studies major in college, and needed to choose a minor in order to have enough credits to graduate. I was really interested in psycholgy, but my campus was located on a huge hill. The Religious Studies building was at the very top of the hill, and the psychology building was at the very bottom...so I chose philosophy because it was on the same floor of the same building as Religious studies. No other reason. And I HATED philosophy by the end!

36. I got an "A" in my college Metaphysics and Epistemology class (required for the Philosophy degree)...but I never actually learned what either of those terms mean, and still could not define them for you!

37. I cry when I watch the Little Mermaid when she says bye to her daddy in the end.

38. My dad performed hubs' and my wedding ceremony, and we got married on my parent's front porch. It was lovely and so so sweet. (they have an old plantation-type house built in 1848)

39. We went on our honeymoon to Bar Harbor, Maine, and it was perfect!!

40. I became a Christian at a very young age and was baptized by my daddy. I remember that I wore my new sparkly bathing suit under the baptism robes and I thought that there would be sparkles in the water because of it.

41. I cannot sleep without hearing the sound of a fan. Hubs is the same, and one of the first conversations that we ever had was in English class our senior year--the power had gone off in the middle of the night and our fans had gone off so we both woke up so we were both really tired.

42. Before we started dating we had gone on a trip to Texas for a robot competition for our physics class. During the trip we played a game called "murder in the dark" and we were "secret partners" and anytime that I was supposed to be the "killer" I would squeeze his hand and he would do it instead. We both liked different people during the trip, but it was the start of our friendship.

43. After my sophomore year of college I went on a 6 week mission trip to Russia. We traveled all over and went to Perm, Ekaterinburg, Moscow, and some other city that I can't remember the name of...It was absolutely amazing though. I'm so thankful to have had that experience.

44. My parents are ministers with Campus Crusade for Christ--a college based ministry. Because of this I have been able to travel all over the country, spend summers in the mountains and on the beach, and meet some amazing people, all while learning more about God!

45. I discovered blogging last year through some Bible study girls and have quickly gotten hooked! I love having an outlet for my thoughts, a place to share my baking adventures and general experiences, and connecting and reconnecting with amazing people!

46. When I was little my mom always encouraged us to get in the kitchen. We had mini baking pans and she would let us experiment with recipes. The worst I think was the "coke cake". I know that some really good cake recipes include cola, but we did not do it right!!

47. I used to love getting my mom's kitchen utensils out and playing with the pots & pans and colanders and whisks...One time I was banging on the pots and she came in to tell me to stop b/c she had a headache. I replied with "But I'm making a joyful noise unto the Lord!!"(psalm 100:1) Now how could a mother say no to that??

48. I am extremely close to both my parents. Of course, I went through the rockey phases of adolescence (compounded by bad boyfriends) but now we have wonderful relationships. My dad and I have a special bond and get very emotional about one another (this can lead to lots of crying). My mom and I are less emotional but are wonderful friends. We are so similar--if you go to both of our houses you will see a lot of the same dishes and furniture, our walls are the same colors...it's really funny! I think I'm a good mix of both of them.

49. A few years ago I caught mono and then developed Chronic Fatigue Syndrome & Fibromyalgia. It caused me to change a lot of my habits and has definitely been hard, but I have learned the joy of resting!!

50. The most important thing to me is glorifying God through my relationships with other people. Whether that means being a good wife and (eventually) mother, a friend to listen and encourage, a leader, or a follower, I strive for that above all.