Inside Job

**Yes, I know it isn't Saturday, but Tuesday works for me

1. When you were young, what did you want to be when you grew up? I went through a stage of wanting to be a veterinarian when I was very young. Then I decided I didn't really love animals that much. Mostly, I wanted to be a mom. I always thought that I would be a foreign missionary if the whole marriage/children dream did not pan out. Around 13, I strongly considered becoming a midwife. Finally landed on a teaching degree as my fall back career. I'm good with kids, creative, excellent classroom manager, and no needles are required (generally speaking).

2. Did you ever pursue that career? No, on veterinarian. YES, on being a mom! Trouble is, it doesn't pay much. And to become a midwife, you must first become a RN, and I thought I did not have the stomach for that. Wish now I had bucked up and gotten over it. I've taught off and on since graduating.

3. If you are not in that field, what changed? Six kids.

4. What is your current job? Substitute teacher...very soon, daycare owner/director.

5. What's the best part of what you do? Telling little children about Jesus.

6. Do you have plans to do something else down the road? Ultimately would like to sell business at enormous profit or keep it for Marina to run one day. Since she is only in kindergarten that is some long range planning. ;0) The master and I are always coming up with one scheme or another. We both would love to travel--perhaps realization of the old foreign missionary dream lies ahead. Of course, I'll never retire from being a mommy, but look forward to being promoted to Grandma eventually.

7. How did you get your present job? God gave us a building. Since I am qualified to direct a daycare center, it just made sense to open a business.

8. Did your parents influence your choices of jobs over the years? No. Mom and Dad did not allow us to get jobs in high school. They said making good grades for scholarships was a better return on investment than any minimum wage job we could get as teens. Now my sister-in-law (not college educated) makes three times what I would make teaching as an officer in a bank. She started as a teller when she was 15. So, I have to wonder? But, I never felt pressure from my parents to enter any certain field, only to follow my interests.

9. What advice would you give your children on careers? Pursue any of your interests, but make sure you acquire a degree in something that will pay the bills.

Saturday Nine-Let's Go To Bed

1. Has a relationship been effected by how one of you slept? No, not really, but we have had some pretty heated discussion regarding the whole fan/no fan issue. Once, early in our marriage, I talked in my sleep (which I do from time to time), stating, "I want a divorce." Unfortunately, he was awake at the time, and heard me--very clearly. I honestly don't remember what I was dreaming about and was shocked when he repeated it to me. I most certainly did not want a divorce, but as you might imagine, he was quite upset for some time over the incident.

2. What side of the bed do you sleep on? right.

3. Do you sleep on your back, side, or stomach? I start out on my side or stomach, but usually awake on my back.

4. Describe the bedding on your bed right now. How does it change with the seasons? Are you particular about your pillows or linens? When we moved last year, I refused to move with the comforter because it was old (five years or more) and not in good condition. I figured that if we didn't take it with us, we would be "forced" to buy another one. Guess what? We still don't have one. We sleep with a sheet, and on cold nights, we throw on a quilt. Poor folk have poor ways. Our linen closet is in such bad shape, my mom is embarrased for me when she comes to visit.

5. When sleeping with someone, do you hog the bed, steal covers, or snore? The master says "no," "yes!" and "sometimes."

6. What do you wear to bed? If it varies, explain. Night gowns or T-shirts in fall, spring, and summer. In the dead of winter, I'll wear flannel pj's. Oh, and my bra.

7. No matter how much you love someone, would you rather sleep alone? No, I've never minded sleeping with someone. Unlike the master, who cannot rest without me, I don't have to have a partner to sleep soundly.

8. Tell us about a time when you awoke in bed, saw the person next to you and thought, "Oh, no..." I had to giggle, becuase this actually happens to me all the time! ;0) Any night I don't remember to put the baby gate up in the boy's doorway, Ian or Randy will come curl up next to me, and it gets really crowded and uncomfortable. I wake up in the middle of the night, stiff and cramped, and look over to see their sweet little faces.

9. Tell us about a time when you awoke thinking it was a different day than it was. In college, I hated waking up on a Tuesday and thinking it was a Wednesday. It's a bummer to get ready for an 8:00 class when you don't have one until 9:30.

What Have I Done?

The things I've done are bold. Commentary in parenthesis

1. Started your own blog (obviously)
2. Slept under the stars (In a tent under the stars, but without covering? Nope.)
3. Played in a band (as long as school bands count)
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland /world
8. Climbed a mountain (I've climbed on a mountain, but not any backpack and pickax action)
9. Held a praying mantis (and I don't plan to)
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child (X 2)
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France ( I'm 98% certain I saw the Mona Lisa in Italy. I thought that is where it is kept? Maybe she was just visiting?)
20. Slept on an overnight train (I've ridden an overnight train, but I didn't sleep)
21. Had a pillow fight (O.K., who hasn't?)
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping (the master says we will this weekend. ;0) )
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (how ancestral are we talking here?)
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo's David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa (but I want to)
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance (when Ian ate rat poisoning...not a fun memory)
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud (favorite childhood pastime)
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China (again, want to, want to, want to)
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check (but not written one that I knew was going to bounce. They were written in good--albeit misplaced--faith)
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guard in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle (The master drove a motorcycle when we were dating, but he always observed the speed limit)
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car (but ne'er again thanks to Dave Ramsey)
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating (killin' the varmints is men's work)
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone's life (I think I have played a significant part in saving Marina's life. I feel strongly that continued exposure to institutional life would have been devastating for her. I am so thankful God let us bring her home when we did.)
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous (I ate dinner with Senator Phil Graham once. Does that count?)
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one (This is a tough one. My grandparents were all gone by the time I was 17. I did love them, but I don't remember grieving much for their passing. I only recall feeling relief for them. I don't think I've ever directly experienced raw grief connected with death.)
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person (like any other red-blooded Texan)
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit (We settled out of court, but did bring a case against the man who defaulted on his loan to buy our vending machine business.)
98. Owned a cell phone (If the pre-paid phones from WallM*rt count.)
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day (more times than I can count)

So how about you? What have you done?

Tagged

Mamaporuski, a new blog friend, has tagged me for seven random things. I've done one before--"eight random things"--and I'm not confident that I can come up with 15 things total about me. I parent six children. Am I really an individual at all? I guess this is a good opportunity to get re-acquainted....

1. O.K. I've got a shocker....I actually (occasionally) get annoyed with my husband's righteousness. I do! Honestly, what does that say about me??!! How much more perverse could I be? That, not only do I fall short of holiness, I gotta begrudge someone else's? It happened just today: The master has been working nights at P*p* John's delivering pizza (we're attempting to make up the two house payments shortfall--whole different post). We haven't enjoyed a family meal all week. Yesterday, I prepared one of his favorite meals, chicken and dumplings and a special dessert he LOVES for Sunday lunch. I didn't get to go to church (Randy has a mean case of stomach bug--yuck!). But when he arrived home, I had the table all prepared, like the dutiful, submissive wife I am, waiting expectantly for his compliments. His response to my dinner call? "I'm fasting until after Tuesday's election. But I will drink some iced tea." So, I am aggravated by his act of spiritual devotion, and even more angry at myself for being aggravated. Am I not a hopeless case?
2. Lullabies and bedtime songs I sing: "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star"; "Before I Knew Your Name"; "Come Ye Sinners"; "It Is Well With My Soul"; "Softly and Tenderly"; "Snuggle Puppy"; "Bring Back Marina" my adaptation of "Bring Back My Bonnie" it goes like this, "Marina lies over the ocean, Marina lies over the sea, Marina lies over in Russia, Bring back Marina to me." Don't worry, in the last verse she "flies home with me." Which, as you know, she did! ; a Cajun-French song my nanny sang to me when I was a baby. Don't know the title, it is only written in my heart. Mama says that it is about a drunkard and his nagging wife. In the song he is telling her that when he dies, he wants to be buried under the sweet potato vine...strange lyrics for a lullaby, but in French it sounds lovely.

3. I have fat sausage toes. But, I think they are kind of cute.
4. I have chin hairs. Gross, dark, disgusting chin hairs. I remind myself that I need to be nice to my children, if for no other reason than I'm going to be dependent on these people to come to the nursing home and pluck my chin hairs.
5. Pet peeves: little girls with ragamuffin hair, repeating words and phrases, someone writing with a dull pencil, incessant sniffling (get a tissue!!)...
6. I was coming up dry for the last two, so I asked the kids to tell me something about me. I begged them to be kind. K said, "You're a great mom, who knows what she is doing." Abby said, "You're loving." Aww, shucks....
7. I asked the master to name something random about me to finish off the post. He offered the CAMP SHOES. I have a pair of once white Keds which I keep at the lake that I have owned and worn since I was 15. WOW! That is exactly half of my life. They started out as my twirling shoes and over time came to reside at the lake house. I wear them at all times while there, because they can be worn in and out of the lake. They are a dingy, non-descript color, with several holes, and after that first dip in the reservoir, they don't smell too great. Throughout the years, my family has tried to persuade me to replace them with a new, old pair of sneakers, but I refuse. They are just getting broke in. The master says that this is random information because, "you are not normally a nasty person....and those are some NASTY shoes."

I tag: all readers of this blog, which according to my comments numbers, is only 6-7 people.
Cari, Tami, Carla, Christine, Suzi, Allison, and Kathy F. (you can do your random things in pictures. That will be interesting.)