I've Been Tagged

I've seen these "tagging" circles going around in the blogosphere but have never participated in one. Heidi at Mt. Hope Chronicles tagged me last night and I am avoiding all my usual morning routine to sit down and start writing this. I know I should wait, but I promise to only write while I'm waiting for my coffee to perk...and maybe while I drink it...



1. I love the smell of hay. I had a bale of hay in my van two weeks ago and actually sat in the van for a few minutes just to sniff the air. Yankee Candle should invent a candle that smells like hay...I would buy it. If I could have brought the bale into my house, I would have except that the mess and scratchiness would have annoyed me to no end. Hay reminds me of my Grandpa and Grandma Givens and their farm...when I was younger, my cousins and I would ride along in the hay wagon "helping" to stack the hay after it flew out 0f the baler and popped over the side of the wagon.



2. I cut my boy's hair to save over $30 every two months or so. If I don't have much time, I do a buzz cut. Other times, I try to buzz the bottom and use scissors on the top. I've gotten much better over the years, but not much faster. To help me out, I sit them directly in front of the TV with a small cup of M & M's. Hairy M & M's...not up my alley, but it works! My boys will do circus tricks for chocolate!



3. Back to smells, I love bleach!!! I love bleach smells on my clothes (only whites), my hands, my house after cleaning, in the air. But I only love regular bleach smells, not flower scented or mountain fresh and not public pool bleach smells.



4. I wish we owned a farm...not to be large scale farmers, but I'd like to have a dog, some cats, chickens, a large garden, fruit trees and bushes, a pond or stream for playing in, a John Deere utility vehicle, a barn as the ultimate fort for my boys filled with hay, of course, for me. Anybody watch Little People, Big World??? Yeah, I want to own the Roloff Farm. I would love to run outside and not have my neighbor's houses be 1/4 acre away. I would love to have dirt driveway with grass growing everywhere but the tire tracks. I would definitely paint my barn red and hang a humongous wreath on it for wintertime and take lots of pictures of my quaint, perfect life.



5. Some days, I feel really inadequate...like everyone else is doing a much better job at mothering, being a wife, teaching her children and keeping her home. I throw myself a pity party. But, thankfully, the Lord is working on my heart making me realize and believe that as long as I am doing my best for Him, then that is all He asks. I have to try really hard not to compare my skills, abilities, desires and reality to others whom appear to have a "perfect" life. I am learning to embrace my reality and love it for what it is and who God is making me to be.



6. I took piano lessons for seven years and wish that I had known the value of hard work when I was younger. I realize that I wasted a lot of time and effort on my piano teachers part and my parent's money. I am very concerned about instilling the value and benefit of hard work in my boys especially when it is something they struggle with. What an accomplishment it will be when they work hard and succeed. It is harder to appreciate the result if it comes easier than not. I am working hard to gain back many of my piano skills, practicing scales, chords and sight reading. I'm hoping that my current interest will inspire my boys as they take piano lessons. I wonder, too, if I have enough skill to teach them beginning piano myself, but it is a relief to pass on some teaching to another person.



7. I cannot go to Sam's club without buying frozen mozzarella sticks...we're talking over 100 sticks of pure yumminess here, people. This is my naughty indulgence. Give me a plate of piping hot mozzarella sticks, Don Pepino pizza sauce and a Pepsi after the boys are in their rooms for rest time and mama is alone...ahhh! Throw in Newsies, The Princess Bride, Oklahoma or Guys & Dolls and I'm so gone! Atleast until one of my mancubs pokes his head around the corner to "ask" me a question...they're starting to catch on to my snacking scheme!



There you have it...seven random facts about myself. I'm tagging Tarah at Things I Wish I Had Known Before I Was Born, Jillian at Know Real Joy, Liana at All in a Small Town, Sarah at Embracing My Journey, Jenn at Sweet Bananas, Jenn at The Bullock Family, and Carole at Thoughts of Home. No pressure girls, but it might be fun!




By the way, I drank my coffee really slowly so I could finish this post! Now I have to scramble to get to piano lessons this morning!!! AAAHHHHHH!