I believe

I believe...

in pink boxing gloves

in red lipstick

in dressing up because you like to



I believe...

I can go farther

I can be stronger

I can do anything I set my mind to


I believe...

in singing at the top of your lungs

in nooners

in the healing power of laughter


I believe...

in giving more

doing more

being more


I believe...

love isn't measured by PDA

pictures of kisses on facebook

other peoples perception of your relationship


I believe...

sometimes I am wrong

I'm not the smartest person in the world (heck, not even the room, most of the time)

I am never too old to learn something new


I believe...

Jesus loves me

Jesus heals me

Jesus is coming back for me

a letter

have you seen these? the letter to the 13 year old me or 16 year old me, etc? they are on blogs everywhere.

if i would write one to myself for anytime period between 13 and 24 it would go something like this:

dear younger me,

straighten up.

sincerely,

older me (who still gets it wrong a lot of times)


so here are some specific things i would write to young women now.

all women, all ages, invest in your friendships. your whole life. you will never be sorry you made time for friends and worked to keep them close and made new friendships at every period of your life.

13 year old girls...18 year old boys are not interested in you

16 year old girls...you are more beautiful then you know

18 year old girls...hold onto every moment, don't try to leave childhood too fast

21-28 year old women...
- have fun. these should feel like the best years of your life. (but please know they really aren't)
- read more, travel more, make friends, grow
- stop giving it away, save it for someone who loves you
- pictures of yourself in bikinis/boobs out of your shirt make you look cheap. guys will think you are.
- you should know better!!! and i'm serious, someday you will wish you hadn't. i know they say you only regret the things you don't do, but don't believe that. you will regret somethings that you do. your whole life. have fun, but MAKE GOOD DECISIONS.
- you are worth more
- you are worth more than the man who puts sports first
- you are worth more than dating a married man
- you are worth more than a booty call
- two dates does not mean he is planning forever with you
- don't pick up men on international vacations...seriously, always a bad idea.

35 year old women...life is just starting to get good, you are not old.
- get some good better wrinkle cream

40 year old women...find a hobby you love because you are about to have some serious time to do things you want to do.
- best years of your life...


i can't say anything beyond this, because i'm not there yet.

lessons from the trail 15 - the finish

i'm proud of these. my finisher's medals. i have even run a few that don't give medals. (it doesn't mean i didn't finish).

sometimes you get injured or too sick to finish. it does happen. i'm not knocking people who don't finish a race. i have heard that it's habit forming. quitting when it gets hard. i've also heard it hurts. that a dnf (did not finish) haunts you. there is a saying in the running world, dead last is better than dnf. i've had one dead last (or 11th place). and i prefer dead last to dnf. always.

i realized this week you can buy a race bib and a race tee shirt. you can register get the tee shirt, the race packet and all the swag without a lick of training or stepping to the starting line. and for this race, it was a really cool tech shirt.

but you can't buy the medal. you don't get the medal till you cross the finish line.

i wear my tee shirts, but i didn't earn them. and earned this medal.

my medals are in a drawer in my vanity. i don't wear them, no one sees them. yet they mean more to me than the tee shirts. i know how hard i worked, the training miles, the painful steps, the mental conversations in my head to earn these. i look at these medals and i remember the race and the stories that go with it.

finishing. finishing strong. that's always my goal

the growth physically, mentally and spiritually i've gotten from doing the hard things, from finishing is noticeable.

this was better than the medal at the finish line

2 timothy 4:7 i have fought the good fight, i have finished the race, i have kept the faith.


i like being a finisher.

i have learned

when you have a virus that is causing dizziness and nausea and you are driving behind a guy that runs over a skunk the force of that virus is intensified about 100 times.

when given the option regarding cookies “peanut butter or chocolate chip” the correct answer is always both.

if you are eating said cookie while walking through a construction zone (at work) focus more on the heavy machinery than the cookie.

dishes will not do themselves.

all the neighborhood cats know i’m an easy mark and come to my front door when they want milk. i don’t even like cats.

Lessons from the trail part 6 - I'm a snake magnet

I was told I was a snake magnet. I laughed. I seem to see a lot of snakes. But I'm not a snake magnet. I'm pretty sure I have the same amount of encounters as many other trail runners. Or less, because many spend more hours than me on trails. 

My theory? I'm very aware of snakes when I'm on the trail. And if I take my focus off, I end up with one wrapped around my ankles. Because I'm aware of snakes, overly aware, I think I see them more.

That idea that once you buy something you see it everywhere? Or pick a name for your kid that you don't know any others, and then there are 12 of them in the next month? It's that concept.

I thought of this verse, 1 Peter 5:8 "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour".


I'm not a snake magnet, I'm alert.

I have gotten over my deathly fear of snakes in the last couple years. I now feel like I have a healthy fear of snakes. I respect that they are harmful, (AND SCARE THE PEE OUT OF ME) but I won't let them keep me from something I enjoy. The trail.


As for the devil, I'd rather not run into him either.

Lessons from the Trail 5 - feelings can be deceiving

When I ran the Storm the Dam half marathon with Steve I felt great.  I had a good run.    We didn't have a garmin or a clock, we just ran.  I ran most of it, and was surprised at how fast the miles were ticking by.  This trail had mile markers every mile and 4 or 5 aid stations, which was awesome.  I would come across mile 1, mile 2, and so on and think how fast we had gotten there.  This rarely happens for me.

I had one bad mile, from 9-10 where we walked more of it (most of it) than I would have liked.  That mile 10 marker never seemed to materialize.  Eventually we passed it, and I got back on track and still felt pretty good.

I felt so good,  I was hoping for a better time than I had before.  I was quite disappointed to find out that I didn't have the time I wanted, it was actually slower than the last time I ran this trail when I felt like I was going to die and struggled and hated the whole race.

I was very discouraged by this.  How could I feel so good about the race and do so poorly?

I Corinthians 10:12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!

Sometimes I think I have it all figure out.  I'm on track, know what's going on, what I'm doing and out of nowhere I fall into my own pile of me.  I did this last week.  Handled a situation poorly.  Really, not too poorly, I just didn't need to say anything and I did.  I also let one negative comment about something from someone who shouldn't be allowed to speak into my life (and I shouldn't allow it to have any weight) bother me more than the 3 positive comments about the very same thing from women I admire and love.  How does that happen?

I read Jon Acuff's blog, Stuff Christians Like and he talked about Larry David, the creator of Seinfeld.  He was at aYankees game and they showed his picture on the screen and 50,000 people cheered.  On the way to his car someone drove by and yelled "You suck, Larry".  That was the comment that mattered.  He said it's because 1 insult + 1000 compliments = 1 insult. 

Me.  I get in my way.  I think I'm standing, and then I'm backside down on the pavement wondering how the heck that happened. 

So I get up and try again. 

And after a while, I decided that the fact that I wasn't running as fast as I thought I was shouldn't matter.  I would just take it as a success, because it felt like one.

Lessons from the trail part 4 - Life is lived in the valley

When I was running in Boulder, CO I climbed a small mountain. And when I got to the top of the ridge I was moved to tears. (I think I cry easy and too much, but Nate made the comment that weekend that his Aunt Michelle was like me. She didn't want people to see her cry or know that she did). I tell people I do, but I guess I cover it well. Big aviators are good for that.

Anyway, I worked really hard to get to the top of the ridge. I wanted to get to the top of the ridge. And when I got there, I was so proud of myself, and as I shed a few tears of exhaustion, pride, and awe of the sheer majesty and beauty of the mountain in front of me, I was hit with a thought.

I was on the mountain top. It was beautiful and moving and I was alone. No one to share it with. Just me. And I loved it. But all I could do was take a picture and share my story. I didn't share this picture with my training report, this is the actual view looking down over the valley.

Life was in the valley. Everyone I love was in the valley. I was alone (with God) on the mountain top.

See, I always want the mountain top exeprience. I don't like being in the valley. I clawed my way up from the valley. I was short of breath, dirty (even had dirt in my hair), sweaty, tired, my hands were scratched up because I had to use a stick to pull myself up, I held onto rocks to make my way. I wanted it that bad. And it was worth it. But I WAS ALONE.

I realize many towns are built on hills. But for the object lesson I got that day most of my life has been lived in the valley. I'm comfortable there. I know how to survive, even succeed. The mountaintop experience was probably all the more special because it's rare and it's hard work to get there.

I wished so much that Steve was up there with me.  Next time, we will stay together on the trail. Or go twice so we can go together one day and explore on our own the second. I tend to have bigger adventures, but that may be because he is more level and uses his common sense.

Lessons from the trail part 2 - I am enough

The trail doesn’t know…

That I’m afraid.
Afraid I’m a failure. I’ve failed my God, my husband and my children.
Afraid that I’m the one person God didn’t get right. Created me inferior, defective, so broken I’m beyond repair and have no value. Unloveable.
Afraid that I’m not good enough. Not smart enough. Not talented enough. Not pretty enough. Not enough.


The trail doesn’t know…

The difference in the sweat dripping off my elbows and the tears dripping off my chin.


The trail doesn’t know…
That I’m closer to God running than anywhere else. Out there in his creation, unplugged from cell phone, ipod, and life in general. No cars. No teenagers honking and yelling. No one clapping and cheering. No men whistling. No young women calling me porky.

That while I’m not on my knees, head bowed, I am at my weakest and strongest while running; if only for a brief time, from the cares of my life. I’m alone with Jesus. Nowhere to hide. Vulnerable. Empty. Begging for a touch.
That surrounded by nature, the creation that comes straight from the hand of God, that I feel him. Leaving my pride. Man can’t create deer and snake and opossum. Man can’t create trees or grass or rocks. Man can’t turn the sky blue or make the river flow. It's all God.


The trail doesn’t know…

That I love its solitude. I love its beauty. I find God close enough to almost touch. And I have felt his touch.


The trail doesn’t know…

But God does.


And God knows…

I am enough.


I am defective and broken.
I am enough.
I am valuable.
I can be healed.
I am enough.
I am loved.

I have learned

My glass may be half full, it may be half empty, but either way it will have lipstick stains on it.

You can sunburn in 70 degree heat in March. Bad enough to blister and peel.

Diet soda does not make you crave sweets or gain weight. It’s not as good as
water is for you. This information about craving sweets came from a low tier nutritional study. I believe this, because I read it in the May issue of Runner’s World. And because I love diet coke.

I have no latino rhythm. Just when I think I have zumba figured out, (it’s been two months now) and I’m grooving along, feeling pretty good, the girl in front of me says “do you want up here where you can see?” Darn full wall mirror.

Being called porky, even by a hateful unknown person, will put a stagnant eating way of life back on the right track.

Asleep in the Storm

I love face book. Except for when I hate it. And I read a lot of blogs. And I find that the ones I like the most are honest portrayals of life. Like Carrie’s pictures after she runs. That’s real. Like Sheila’s guest post of her 10K where she passed the three women in tutu’s to finish in the bottom 25 feeling like she was going to throw up the whole time. That’s real.

I’m competitive. But in an odd way. The more blogs and face book posts about how great everyone’s life is, the more I want to tell you how awful mine is. Your kids rocked their parent teacher conferences? Cool. If I actually went to parent teacher conferences…(okay, I go, but only because they offer dinner). But after I talk to the friends from church (who are also teachers), the volleyball coach, his wife, Nate’s old teachers, and parents of friends who are there for conferences, I have spent an hour and half at the high school and still haven’t talked to Whitney’s teachers. (And have probably had two pieces of cake, but have gotten to catch up with Jolene and Meredith). I would hear a pretty even split of “she’s a great kid, hard worker, love having her in class” with “she has so much potential, if she would just apply herself. She’s too social. I worry about some of the friends she hangs around with” and so on. My two kids are both gifted. Brilliant minds. But they are the brilliance that is used for evil, not for good. Thought processes like this “MOM!!! This 100 questions in geometry is only worth 10 points. Why would I do 100 questions for 10 points? One extra credit question on the test is worth 10 points. Or a ream of copy paper or paper towels is extra credit. Do they think I’m stupid?” When Nate was in the 8th grade he volunteered to clean up after lunch. Because the lunch ladies gave him leftovers and he had gym right after lunch so he missed calisthenics and got to go out right at time for the fun stuff. My gifted, athletic children that carry 2.8 GPA’s (and get D’s in P.E.) but don’t worry about college scholarships because they know they will score well on the ACT’s and they’ll still get scholarship money.

The better your kids are at something, the more I will tell you what mine do wrong. And my kids made JV and Varsity teams in their sports at school early. Were coach (and other player) favorites, and yet, I can still point out where they are lame. And don’t even tell me how awesome you are, I’ll begin to tell you what I struggle with. If you were a bad girl, I’ll want to one up you on how bad I was back in the day. Or just last week. Go ahead, tell me how wonderful your family is and I’ll tell you how dysfunctional mine is. I could say it’s because I want to be real and transparent, but in actuality I can’t compete with how great you are, so I won’t. (But I really truly am happy for your great life and your perfect children and wonderful husband. I really am happy for you).

Truth is I have a good life. We are healthy. We are employed. We have a roof over our heads. I’ve been praying for a friend whose husband has esophageal cancer which spread to his stomach and prognosis is not good. They are young. Young children. I have a co-worker whose son lives in Joplin. They are fine, but they know so many that died and lost everything in the tornado. Steve is going with work or church, not sure which group yet, to help with clean up. I have a friend who is living totally dependent on God for everything. E-V-E-R-Y-THING! Day to day. God is providing, but man what a way to live and what a faith. I have a friend with severe marriage problems, and no desire to fix them. I have a friend with an autistic child. These are problems with my friends that I know about. I can’t imagine the pain some are living with that they have no one to talk to about.
God has been so good to us. Sometimes in the middle of the storm it doesn’t seem that way. But when it all settles and you look around and everything is still standing, you get to think we are way stronger than we thought. At our house, storms water the grass and the orchard and the trail and everything is prettier and fresher and greener after the storm. The storm is the time Steve goes up on the roof and cleans out the gutters. The storm is the time we find out where leaks are that we need to repair. The storm is where we find out how deep our roots go. I found out mine go deep and they are bound to the right stuff and they hold under pressure. Jesus is in the storm with us. (I think sometimes he sleeps through mine, but he is there).

Sure we mess up. We fail. Each other and God. But we weather our storms. We help others through their storms. We celebrate victories. And we get stronger.

Thanks for stopping by today, and know that I prayed for everyone who reads this today. Whatever your storm, or if you are in a season of peace, Praise God for that, I prayed for you.

It's a new day

His mercies are new every morning...

Holiday Eating Tips

1. Avoid carrot sticks. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Christmas spirit. In fact if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door where they're serving rum balls.
2. Drink as much eggnog as you can and quickly. It's rare, you cannot find it any other time of year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has10,000 calories in every sip? It's a treat. Enjoy it, have one for me. Have two. It's later than you think. It's Christmas!
3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That's the whole point of gravy. Gravy does not stand alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy. Eat the volcano. Repeat.
4. As for mashed potatoes, always ask if they're made with skim milk or whole milk. If it's skim, pass. Why bother? It's like buying a sports car with an automatic transmission.
5. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a Christmas party is to eat other people's food for free. Lots of it.
6. Under no circumstances should you exercise between now and New Year's. You can do that in January when you have nothing else to do. This is the time for long naps, which you'll need after circling the buffet table while carrying a 10-pound plate of food and that vat of eggnog.
7. If you come across something really good at a buffet table, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa, position yourself near them and don't budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They're like a beautiful pair of shoes. If you leave them behind, you're never going to see them again.
8. Same for pies. Apple, Pumpkin, Pecan, Chocolate, Lemon... Have a slice of each. Or if you don't like Pecan, have two apples and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one dessert? Labor Day?
9. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it's loaded with the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it at all cost. Have some standards.
10. One final tip: If you don't feel terrible when you leave the party or get up from the table, you haven't been paying attention. Re-read these tips; start over, but hurry, January is just around the corner.

I have learned

1. At home microderm abrasion feels like you are rubbing ground glass into your face.
2. There is a serious disconnect in what a woman says and what a man hears. A woman can say “will you help me with the dishes” and a man will hear “there is a baseball game on, why don’t you go watch it while I do the dishes”.
3. Digging through dumpsters looking for your drivers license is better than going to the drivers license bureau to get a new one.
4. 42 is twice as good as 21.
5. I am scared of snakes and frogs. My behavior coming upon snake and frogs pales in comparison to the behavior of Steve when we ran by a bee farm.
6. A 17 year old boy will be very upset the first time he runs over (and kills) an animal. Bunny suicide. He actually has a bunny suicides calendar.

I have learned...

Never take exlax and benadryl together.
Egg salad is not good pre running food.
You can sunburn in 62 degree weather wearing capris, flip flops and a hoodie.

I have learned...

Drive through lanes with a sore (useless) left hand are not a good idea. I dropped a large iced tea, but the kind lady at Mcdonalds made a second one for me at no cost.
I could not open a bag of cereal, a bag of cheese, or a bottle of diet coke. I switched to cans (of diet coke, not cereal) just for this week.
It took me 3 times as long to load the dishwasher. This may have been because I was one handed, or it may have been because by the time I was ready to wash them there were 3 times as many dishes.
I can type faster one handed than the majority of people I work with. I already regret the fact that they know that.
Adults can have the same reaction of fever and crankiness to a tetanus shot that a baby can. Twelve days later my arm is still tender where I got the shot.
Sixteen days later my hand is still sore and twitchy.
Self inflicted Injury does not illicit sympathy from a 13 year old and a 17 year old. (Or my 19 year old nephew.)
This did qualify as a dumb dumb wound. “Dumb dumb wound – an injury sustained while doing something dumb or doing something dumbly.”

I have learned...

My entier list of "I have learned's" from 2009.

1. The heater in my car does not double as a hair dryer. No matter how hot and how high I run the fan, it does not dry my hair by the time I get to work.
2. Wet hair freezes on the ¼ mile walk to my office building. Crunchy frozen hair is really cool. Closest I will ever get to dreads.
3. A squirrel cannot run and carry a full piece of bread in his mouth. He trips over the bread. We have a “pet” squirrel. He eats from our hands. He will try to climb your leg to get food. He also likes peanuts, rice cakes, and ritz crackers.
4. My twelve year old daughter’s friends idolizing my son and flirting with him and him picking on them doesn’t bother me. My twelve year old girl idolizing my son’s eighteen year old friend who picks on her and pays attention to her, really bothers me. If that’s a double standard, I’m okay with it.
5. I have never been a fan of grounding my kids, but I’m starting to think it may be the only way to get my teenagers to spend time with me. I have recently even volunteered to help with homework, just for some face time.
6. Pick up lines and the whole act of hitting on someone is hilarious when you are watching it from the next treadmill. I witnessed this at the Y the other night when some old geezer (translated, my age) hit on the 21 (translated, looked about 16) year old girl on the treadmill next to me. She was adorable, he was pitiful, and I somehow managed to hold my laughter.
7. My high school friends can still make me laugh till I snort pop out my nose, twenty-five years later.
8. Not everyone thinks I’m funny. I was somehow shocked and saddened by this, because I think I’m hilarious. My future is looking like “crazy old lady” will be me.
9. Ice cream sandwiches cure depression. It may take 5 or 6, depending on your level of depression, but just keep eating. You will obtain euphoria. Euphoria - a feeling of happiness, confidence, or well-being sometimes exaggerated in pathological states as mania. I think Kansas is a pathological state.
10. The cleaner my bathroom, the dirtier my family. When I scrub my shower, Steve will come home from the gym after running 10 miles and bench pressing 275 lbs. Nate will come home from baseball practice and they will have practiced base running and sliding. In the mud. Ashley will have dyed her hair. Black. Which makes it brittle and fall out. There will be little black hairs, mud and stink in my newly clean bathroom. And, a clean toilet works the digestive system better than fiber. Nuff said.
11. Never lick a paring knife.
12. I learned this from my friend Wendi, not from my own personal experience, (but she did really do this, and it worked) you can close a four inch gash on your leg with super glue. Just stick the muscle that is hanging out back in and fill it up. I’m filing this info for future reference. Not sure if I’m filing it under first aid or never try this.
13. In the absence of a knife, you can cut birthday cake with a cookie. You can then use the cookie as a fork to eat the birthday cake.
14. A 12 year old should not be left in charge of cooking over an open flame grill.
15. Starbucks is not a food group. Mary Kate Olsen, put down the latte, pick up a burger already for crying out loud.
16. Some stains will not come out of the carpet. If you finally get them out, they leave a stain of their own, as the only truly clean spot on the carpet now is the stain.
17. Cell phones should not be washed in the washing machine.
18. I can have ice cream for lunch (Dairy Queen Fudge Brownie Hot Fudge Sundae) and dinner (Cold Stone Sweet Cream with strawberries {notice I said FOR not with}) and stay within my allotted daily calories. If I add exercise, I can even have a Fudgsicle for breakfast. I should add that ice cream is not a food group either.
19. A group of teenage girls will sit in 35 degree weather with 22 mph winds wearing jeans and sweatshirts to watch a group of teenage boys hit a leather bound cork ball with an aluminum bat and run in circles.
20. Arguing with a teenager is useless. If the first sentences out of their mouth do not include “I’m sorry. I was wrong. I won’t do it again”, just tell them they are grounded and be done. It’s like asking “how old are you” and getting the answer “yellow”.
21. My last “things I have learned” post also included ice cream. I’m learning I have a problem.
22. My Spiritual Gift may very well be sarcasm.
23. Solomon knew what he was talking about. Read Proverbs, in the Message version or New Contemporary Version. Wise man. And funny.
24. My love language is cupcakes. I read this in the Gary Smalley book. I read it between the lines, but I’m sure it’s cupcakes.
25. Wearing your hairpins too tight will give you a headache. I would rather my hair look bad than have a headache. This is surprising, because I always considered myself a fairly vain person with a high tolerance for pain in the name of beauty. (If you have never plucked, waxed, had your hair highlighted or cut yourself shaving, you don’t know what I’m talking about). Imagine my shock to learn that my tolerance of pain for beauty translated to beauty treatments, high heeled footwear and set in waist bands, but not hairstyles.
26. Popcorn is not a dessert. It cannot replace a dessert. Unless you pour a bag of M&M’s into the bowl of popcorn.
27. My husband killing a snake in my backyard did not make me get all gooey thinking about how he was protecting his family. It freaked me out that there was a snake 20 feet from my patio door. Even lying in bed last night next to my mighty warrior, I was petrified that a snake might somehow make it into my house. I will probably die of a snake induced heart attack.
28. Bologna sandwiches are not good pre-workout food.
29. Crying at Sonic will freak the carhop out to point that she will offer to pay for your drink, just to get away from the crazy lady. (They were happy tears).
30. That if “God is not the author of confusion” (KJV) or “God is not a God of disorder, but of peace”, (NIV) I Corinthians 14 where did teenagers come from?
31. Shaking your hair and running your fingers through it is sexy. Squeezing a pimple or plucking a stray eyebrow ruins the sexy picture.
32. Raising children is not a roller coaster ride. It’s that ride that you sit down, strap in, and it shoots you straight up and then it drops you straight back down. Over and over and over. And you can’t get off. And it costs $400,000 to ride.
33. If you wear your nastiest work out clothes to the gym and decide to stop for something from the grocery store on your way home, you will run into at least 5 people you know. If you smell really bad, it will be 7.
34. Whitney pointed out all my annoying habits the other day. I learned I have a lot of them.
35. My pet squirrel “Lerriuqs” (pronounced Lareeks, it’s French, okay, not really, it’s squirrel spelled backward, thank Whitney for the name), will now come to the front door and put his paws on the door and peer inside, (and will try to knock) waiting for his dinner. Bread makes squirrels fat. One thing I haven’t learned yet is how to tell if a squirrel is male or female.
36. My whole family probably needs tetanus boosters.
37. You can mark ugly shoes down 80% off and they still won’t sell.
38. Throwing the noodles in the sink before you put the colander in there pretty much ruins the noodles, at least if it’s the side with the garbage disposal, you haven’t cleaned your sink that day or there are dirty dishes piled in it.
39. An 11 mile run on a 90 degree day with 70% humidity is a tough workout. If you stop to use the ladies room after 8 miles, pulling your spandex pants back up over your sweaty body is a tougher work out than the 11 mile run.
40. If there is a personality trait (flaw) that you don’t like about yourself, one of children will have it. If there is a personality trait (flaw) your siblings have that you didn’t like or found especially annoying, ALL of your children will have it.
41. Getting hit on scares the living daylights out of me. It doesn’t happen often. (Twice this year, and once was via Facebook so it doesn’t really count). Last Saturday in the library a guy followed me around for 30 minutes and then finally approached me when I sat down to tell me that I was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. I had a “radiant beauty”. (Pretty sure it was suntan glow and endorphins from my 19 mile run that morning). I was scared to go to my car. You can forget how to deal after many years of marriage and parenting. You feel invisible so much that when someone actually sees you it’s frightening.
42. Green beans do not make a good snack. Unless they are deep fried and dipped in ranch.
43. People that make the doors and walls of public bathrooms have a sense of humor. I was in one the other day and they were manufactured by “Hiny Hiders”.
44. Age 41 is better than age 21, even with wrinkles, gray hair and the effects of gravity. I’ve lived through both, so I’m an expert.
45. Being able to eat 2 donuts for breakfast, 2 cupcakes for lunch and a Braum’s banana split for dinner (this is what happens when I’m left on my own for a day) and still have a 2 pound weight loss at weight watcher’s the next day can set a very bad precedent.
46. I can walk 50 feet on a 3 inch wide concrete rail in 4 inch platform oxfords without falling. I did this to keep from getting mud on my light colored leather/linen oxfords. I wonder if that would have been as important had I fallen off and broke my ankle? Hindsight, anyone?
47. Four teenage boys cannot sneak through your living room, office and kitchen behind your back without being noticed.
48. You cannot text in mittens.

I have learned

1. Green beans do not make a good snack. Unless they are deep fried and dipped in ranch.
2. People that make the doors and walls of public bathrooms have a sense of humor. I was in one the other day and they were manufactured by “Hiny Hiders”.
3. Age 41 is better than age 21, even with wrinkles, gray hair and the effects of gravity. I’ve lived through both, so I’m an expert.
4. Being able to eat 2 donuts for breakfast, 2 cupcakes for lunch and a Braum’s banana split for dinner (this is what happens when I’m left on my own for a day) and still have a 2 pound weight loss at weight watcher’s the next day can set a very bad precedent.
5. I can walk 50 feet on a 3 inch wide concrete rail in 4 inch platform oxfords without falling. I did this to keep from getting mud on my light colored leather/linen oxfords. I wonder if that would have been as important had I fallen off and broke my ankle? Hindsight, anyone?
6. Four teenage boys cannot sneak through your living room, office and kitchen behind your back without being noticed.

Things I've learned

Not a list, just one long one - Getting hit on scares the living daylights out of me. It doesn’t happen often. (Twice this year, and once was via Facebook so it doesn’t really count). Last Saturday in the library a guy followed me around (stalker!) for 30 minutes and then finally approached me when I sat down with my books. He told me that I was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. I had a “radiant beauty”. (Pretty sure it was suntan glow and endorphins from my 19 mile run that morning). I tried to keep my left hand extremely prominent, waving my rings around like I was newly engaged, but I realize that being married does not mean what it used, unfortunately. He did say he thought this probably wouldn't go any further but he wanted to meet me. I told him it wouldn't go any further and gave him a fake name - sorry Peggy, couldn't think very fast. I suppose maybe I should have been flattered, but I wasn't. Considering the source and all, it was not a flattering experience and if you had been there, you would understand this is not a scenario to brag about, in fact had you been there you would wonder why I'm sharing. I was scared to go to my car. You can forget how to deal with this kind of stuff after many years of marriage and parenting. You feel invisible so much that when someone actually sees you it’s frightening. Does this scare anyone else? Or does it happen to you guys often enough that you know how to deal with it?

I have learned

1. You can mark ugly shoes 80% off and they still won’t sell.
2. Throwing the noodles in the sink before you put the colander in there pretty much ruins the noodles, at least if it’s the side with the garbage disposal, you haven’t cleaned your sink that day or there are dirty dishes piled in it.
3. An 11 mile run on a 94 degree day with 70% humidity is a tough workout. If you stop to use the ladies room after 8 miles, pulling your spandex pants back up over your sweaty body is a tougher work out than the 11 mile run.
4. If there is a personality trait (flaw) that you don’t like about yourself, one of your children will have it. If there is a personality trait (flaw) your siblings have that you didn’t like or found especially annoying, ALL of your children will have it.

I have learned

1. My Spiritual gift may be sarcasm.
2. Solomon knew what he was talking about.  Read Proverbs, in the Message version or New Contemporary Version.  Wise man.  And funny.
3. My love language is cupcakes.  I read this in the Gary Smalley book.  I read it between the lines, but I’m sure it’s cupcakes.
4. Wearing your hairpins too tight will give you a headache.  I would rather my hair look bad than have a headache.  This is surprising, because I always considered myself a fairly vain person with a high tolerance for pain in the name of beauty.  (If you have never plucked, waxed, had your hair highlighted or cut yourself shaving, you don’t know what I’m talking about).  Imagine my shock to learn that this tolerance for pain in the quest for beauty translates to beauty treatments, high heeled footwear and set in waist bands, but not hairstyles. 
5. Popcorn is not a dessert.  It cannot replace a dessert.  Unless you pour a bag of M&M’s into the bowl of popcorn.
6. My husband killing a snake in my backyard did not make me get all gooey thinking about how he was protecting his family.  It freaked me out that there was a snake 20 feet from my patio door.  Even lying in bed last night next to my mighty warrior (okay, he ran over it with the riding lawn mower), I was petrified that a snake might somehow make it into my house.  I will probably die of a snake induced heart attack.