My Friday Fives

1. Do you apologize to your kids, if you're wrong? Since my son is still a toddler, we don't really have a chance for "arguing." But, if I overreact about something small, and it makes him cry, which in turn makes me feel guilty, I immediately apologize, get down on my knees at his level and give him hugs and kisses and make sure he knows I love him. (If he cries, as he is going to time out, because he did something wrong, that's a different story.) But, if I overreact, I definitely let him know, that Mommy is sorry.

2. Do you have a class ring, Letterman's jacket or similar obscenely priced high school "must have?" Uh... for sure! I was the first-born - so therefore was entitled to all of that, haha. Just kidding! Not about having the stuff - just about the entitlement part. (She says with that little first-born smirk. Somewhere, in Houston, my sister is saying right now, "Ugh, Marcia, Marcia, Marcia!") I also had a t-shirt for EVERY.SINGLE.CLUB I was involved in my junior and senior year - thank you very much!

3. If you could be one age for the rest of your life, what age would you choose? Oh, Lord, I don't even think I've reached one I would choose. My family isn't complete, yet. So, if my family was complete...we could have the financial security of...say...20 years from now (haha), but without the age...and I could have the looks I had from when I was...say...25 (woot woot!). I would pick 25, but with the money, family, wisdom and everything else from all the other parts of my life, haha. We can pick and choose, right?

4. What is your favorite (unused) baby name? Carolina Grace (Notice anything else named Carolina Grace around here?) - The name our sweet baby girl from Ethiopia will be given.

5. If you could make your child like something, what would it be? Vegetables, hands down!


1. I always feel like I'm 82 years old, but in reality, I'm 30. Haha, just kidding. I guess, I feel like my age? What does 30 feel like to you?

2. I wish my family could understand better when I tell them I miss them.

3. If you saw me when I got all gussied up, you'd think I was a total girly-girl, but if you saw me when I used to be in my Army ACU's, you'd think I was a tomboy through-and-through. *Lie* You would never think I was a tomboy. I carried a pink phone. I was a member of The Pink Army - we resided in Hawaii. :)

4. I feel like I'm in a totally different universe when I can't think of an answer to a question, so I just sit staring at my computer for a long time, and then begin to zone out...........

5. In honor of this being MFF #60... 60 months ago (exactly 5 years ago, so September 30, 2006), I lived in Hawaii (or rather was stationed there), and my life was totally different because I lived in the barracks (which was decorated bright pink with disco balls - take that barracks NCO's!); I was in a long-distance relationship with my then-boyfriend, now-husband, Eric, I wasn't a mommy, yet; life was a bit more carefree, but still strict under the Army's thumb; I can honestly say now, that I wasn't as happy then, as I am now sitting here in my cozy home, with my little family. Amen.

My Friday Fives

1. If you had a weekly newspaper column, what would you name it? Hmm...if it were just a column about my everyday thoughts, it would be something blase' like "Thoughts on Life, From a Mama & Wife." But, if it were a Q&A column, where people sent in their questions seeking out my advice, it would be something like, "Listen Up & Listen Good - And I Don't Want to Hear Any Backtalk," haha. Sometimes, I would just like to tell people what I think, you know!

2. Who is your mentor/inspiration? I don't have any one particular person. I look up to people who take a stand, who make things happen, who overcome, who fight for others, who do what's right.

3. What is your wake up beverage of choice? Coffee! But, if my little eye happens to spy a Dr. Pepper in the refrigerator, sometimes it wins out over that hot, little mug.

4. Would you wear your mom's clothes? My mom likes to wear dresses...every.single.day. So, that would be a "No." Love you Mom!

5. When you were a kid, did you put posters on your wall? If so, what were they of? Yes, of course, duh! Joey, from New Kids on the Block. And can I get a JTT, in tha' house? Jonathan Taylor Thomas, what what? Haha! I was such a teeny bopper, boy band lover - it even spilled over into NSYNC. Oy! I will not be ashamed, though, of the Billy Idol posters I had on my walls in my rock'n'roll themed, LP album covers turned wallpaper apartment in my early 20's. Billy Idol still rocks!

1. Right now, our weather is slightly cool, but what I'd really like is for it to be really chilly and to have to wear a hoodie everywhere I go!

2. I like to let my hair down and spend the day relaxing with my husband and son and our dogs, with the windows down in the house, a cool breeze blowing through, music playing on the radio, reading books, doing laundry, taking a nap in the middle of the day, spending time with each other, working on projects and just plain ol' enjoying life.

3. Mommy Rambles made a post about heroes... my hero is my husband, Eric, because he had a rough life, growing up as a son of a member of the Special Forces. He joined the Army, choosing to go Airborne, which meant overcoming his fear of heights. We have been apart more than we have been together during our 5 years together and our 4 years of marriage. He has been through 2 deployments. The 1st was during my entire pregnancy, for which he thankfully got to come home for our son's birth, but had to return when he was 7 days old and came home 5 months later. His 2nd deployment was a year long, which is hard for a daddy to do; to leave his family, his little boy who changes so much in a year, but he does it for so much more than what we are. There is a lot of sacrifice that has been given up, so that is why he is our personal hero.

4. It's a weird combination, but I swear hoodies and flip flops are a perfect pair!

5. Some may see the glass half empty and others may see it half full, but I don't gauge my life by a glass. I keep a positive outlook on life and pray that God keeps me in His good graces, and that I can do His will to help others. Thinking positive and having a good outlook on life is what keeps me going; not looking at the ups and downs of every single day. Everyday won't be perfect, and that is okay by me.

My Friday Fives

1. My plans for Labor Day included a trip to the zoo, but what really happened was it got rained out, so we opted for an indoor fun place and some Mexican food! I'm not complaining!

2. Call me crazy, but sometimes I just need to lay on the couch with a good book and read for a few hours.

3. One of the funniest things I've seen lately is some of the pictures on my Pinterest "I literally LOL'ed" board.

4. It's strange, but my husband's occasional grandpa driving drives me crazy, while my occasional grandma driving is perfectly fine with me!

5. One, two, buckle my shoe... three, four "Get away from that brand-new storm door!"



1. What ringtone do you have on your cell phone? Love is a Drug by Jypsi - such a great song and band! They are on iTunes!

2. What is your favorite memory from this summer? Watching my husband and son reconnect after my husband returned home from a year-long deployment in Afghanistan. We had lots of fun adventures this summer, but watching them together was the best.

3. Paper books or ebooks? PAPER, or as I like to say...REAL BOOKS!!!

4. If you could have one home upgrade, what would it be and why? An extra room, because then we would have enough rooms for Lil' Miss Carolina Grace (plus an office/craft space) if we were able to adopt her, while we still lived in Tennessee.

5. When was your first serious boyfriend? When I was 23. Yuck. Thanks for the reminder.

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In

1. My plans for this weekend include grocery shopping, cooking, watching some Longhorn football, a trip to the zoo and a trip to Mammoth Cave, but what I'd really like to do is SCRAPBOOK all weekend long!



2. I consider the Labor Day holiday a nice break for all those hard-workin' folks out there.



3. My favorite meal for cookouts is hotdogs, but my burger-lovin' hubby wouldn't agree.



4. So far, my favorite part of summer has been air-conditioning, haha.



5. When it comes to deployments, my philosophy is "So, they say you'll be home when? Oh, alright; I'll plan on seeing you about three to four weeks after that. I know better than to get my hopes up in thinking that you might actually be home, when they say you will be home."

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In

1. The first thing I think of in the morning is I need coffee like, now.



2. Lately, I've been craving Mexican food, because, when you take a Mexican Texan out of Texas, what else can you expect, haha?



3. Whenever anyone says the word dress-up, it reminds me of my childhood, because that's what we played.



4. The happiest word I know is child, but I am saddened that some people abuse, take advantage of and don't help care for the abandoned and poverty-stricken in this world.



5. My spouse may hate it, but I absolutely love clicking my fingernails while I'm driving - I can't help it.