1. I drive a black Chevy S10 pick-up-truck

2. I have a Bachelor's degree in Holistic Nutrition.

3. I almost majored in Public Relations and Journalism.

4. I like to cross country ski.

5. I want to go swimming really bad.

6. I had someone actually come to my window and wait for me by the light of the moon once.

7. I am going to learn how to play the guitar, like next month.

8. When put in the right situation, I will talk your ear off.

9. I want to have two girls.  No boys.

10. I'm a Pisces, but I don’t believe in it. 

11. I have gone on 3 hot air balloon rides.

12. I have driven all over this country

13. I have climbed numerous mountains
     
14. and camped in some of the oddest places

15. I have ridden my bike across Iowa 2 and a half times in the middle of July.

16. I've bathed in ponds before, and cow showers.

17. I used to write dance routines but never had the chance to choreograph for anyone.

18. Before getting this job, I used to think that flip flops were the only shoe.

19. I never waste my time regretting, I make myself know that they are live and learn moments.

20. I have witnessed, with my own eyes God dwell in the praises of His people and bring an entire crowd to their knees in a moment.

21. I've always wanted a turtle; because someone once told me they will learn their name and sleep for like 6 months a year.

22. Franklyn Covey is the best store

23. Well, second to Target

24. James makes me laugh all the time!

25. When I look directly to my right I see pine trees, trails, and stylish business people walking around.

26. When I don't drink enough water, I feel like my insides are going to dry out.

27. I used to collect rocks.  Mainly the ones from my old gravel road and they all looked the same.

28. I had my rent lowered at my old apartment because I kept it so clean.  ha ha.

29. I really do like to fish.  I just don't like to hook the worm, or take the fish off the hook and by the time I explain this people think I just don't like fishing.

30. James and I went to a Jewish Synagogue about a month ago.

31. I used to be a camp counselor.

32. If I had the chance, I would sail to Greece.

33. I was told that I cannot get my nose pierced unless the CEO got his pierced.

34. I hate the point of getting so used to something I don't like that I don't notice it anymore...it makes me think that I'll never address the problem and turn into some weird person someday with all sorts of weird problems.

35. I hate ketchup

36. In fact, I don't like the feel of condiments touching my tongue. 

37. I like Brookside.

38. I like New Longview

39. I loooove James.

40. I have a scar on my left ring finger from a soap dish when I was a kid.

41. Ebay makes me think of Missy

42. The LipShine from GAP is good stuff.
    
    
43. I really really do not like pickles and it bugs me when the pickle juice gets on my sandwich even a little bit, I won’t eat it.

44. I pray at the House of Hope and Healing every week.

45. I am part of the wardrobe team for The Steve and Kathy Show.

46. When I lived in Ames, I gave plasma to pay for my groceries.

47. One year, I camped every month of the year.
     
48. I think blogs are the best.

49. I go to church Thursday night, Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday morning.

50. I do not like Star Trek

51. I do like blueberries

52. I do not like sweet tea

53. My favorite is water with lemon

54.  I used to live above a coffee shop and my parking spot was across the street at the beer store.  Every morning I had to go in and tell the beer driver to move his semi so I could get out. 

55. I used to play gold and tennis.

56. I took dance lessons from the time I was 5 years old all the way until I was 20.

57. I like good wine

58. I get frustrated when I see people get casual about church.

59. My dreams are so real that sometimes I do not know if I've actually said certain things or not to people.   More so in the past than now. 

60. The banana cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory is the best.

61. I used to run track and cross country.

62. I used to be the golly for our soccer team.  If you want a good laugh, watch some old videos of that. 

63. I used to play the sax, violin, and French horn

64. I was in jazz band for two years.

65. I met James dancing.

66. I've noticed that most of the people who grew up with without having any privacy or passions or what I call culture are harsher, rudder and way more generic.  The ones who grew up with at least a little bit of privacy, passions and some life to their life have a whole different sense and respect for most things and actually know their neighbors.  Just an observation.

67. I will be a millionaire someday.

68. I have seen a man die right before my eyes.

69. I used to go TPing ...a lot.

70. I really don't like the holidays.

71. I've been to a nude beach.

72. I used to compete in archery. 

73. Sometimes I miss people.

74. I like to travel, but I'm such a homebody.

75. I love the morning sun.

76. If I had to pick one food to eat for the next 10 years - ignoring any nutritional value - I'd pick popcorn.

77. I like the idea of mistletoes

78. I wonder why Americans greet each other so coldly.

79. I want to paint and decorate, but I'm making myself wait a while longer, or maybe even just for our next house.

80. My dance partner in college traded me for another partner because she was blond...and I still remember it.

81. And my dance instructor exactly resembled Mr. Burns from The Simpsons...for real!

82. James was weird on our first date; I didn't know what to think!

83. I like Nine West shoes

84. There is nothing NOTHING like raising my hands to praise God at the end of a long day.

85. I only started to like sweets when I started going with James.

86. I am going to get rid of all my old clothes and swap them out for nice new ones soon.

87. I like the library a lot.

88. I've never had a cavity

89. I plan to give away more money this year than last, and still have more than last. 

90. My sister and I used to collect old cans along side our road for money and made quite a bit.

91. I like Amish country; it’s so pretty and peaceful.

92. The cleaning lady at work and I speak to each other with hand signals since we can’t speak each other’s language…and it works.

93. I know with everything in me that our God provides…just like how God provided a ram when Abraham was willing to go all the way to give Isaac.  He even had him tied to the wood! So willing to give it all to God.

94. I’ve been scuba diving and swam with giant sea turtles. 

95. I’ve cliff jumped numerous times and burst the blood vessels in my arms doing so.

96. Sometimes the wind gets knocked out of me when I hear weird things.

97. I have the cutest dog in the world.

98. I like my job so much, that sometimes…like this week…when I am so busy every second of the day, coming into work is a break. 

99. I took a 48 hour train ride out to California once and it was so beautiful.

100. I really am the kind of person who can step up to anything and do it.  When I put my heart to something, it’s there. 

Nashville Star

NASHVILLE STAR SEASON 5 PREMIERES THURSDAY JANUARY 11 10/9C

Why should we care?

Because Joshua Stevens is one of 10 contestants competing to become Nashville's next new star. 

Who is Joshua Stevens? click here to hear is one of a kind music and read is bio.


Josh is a friend of ours who I've known since the good ol' days of Indianola High.

I'm cheering for you Josh!!!

It's January 4th Already

How did that happen?

Pittsburgh was, as always, wonderful.  I love that city.  I know it's old and dirty, but it also happens to be so beautiful! 

Saturday morning started out in a rush.  We got to the airport only to find out we couldn't land in Milwaukee due to fog so we were going to miss our connecting flight.  The airline switched us over to another airline where we were going to have a layover in Washington D.C. (big smile).  James and I were randomly pat-searched and had to hand over our carry on's for a complete emptying out search of my new, highly organized bag, which was thrown back together as I ran to catch our flight in which we were the culprits holding it up.  We got to D.C. and couldn't land due to the fog once again.  We were re-routed to Philadelphia. (smaller smile).  We finally got to Pittsburgh, and low and behold our luggage arrived about 10 hours after us.  I actually like it when luggage comes later, there is absolutely no hassle with lugging it around town because it's delivered directly to our hotel room.  Can't beat that!  None-the-less, we had no clue when we'd get it so, with the wedding less than 24 hours away we made a pit stop at Wal-Mart to pick up our essentials.  Mum + Liz + me + Wal-Mart at midnight = craziness! Throw in there being exhausted and hyper all at once.  We've got good, patient husbands who don't mind a giggle fest when they see one.

The wedding was wonderful and I absolutely LOVED spending time with my relatives, they are truly a one of a kind bunch and I love them so much.  I met my second cousin, Mark for the first time as well as my new cousin, Matt. 

We spent New Year's Day flying home to KC.  I actually love the entire hassle of waiting in lines, handing all I have on me over to perfect strangers who are trying to keep this country safer, and flying.  I love the way our everyday world looks like ants from the sky.  I love how at night, it looks like I'm looking down on the stars as I fly over the cities. 

Then came our anniversary on January 3rd.  3 years.  This modified and censored paragraph will not due what's on my heart justice but I do want to acknowledge that it's been 3 years, and that I would not change anything of this journey for the world.  I love you, James.  I can honestly say that it's been the best 3 years of my life.  

i'm sorta back...

I would have never guessed that 2006 ... 

started out with me working in a job I liked, but was getting more stressful everyday. 

The first weekend of 2006 was spent in a great training session in southern MO, followed by another seminar in Orlando, FL in February.

Our plan to be out of debt, finish school, and make some updates seemed years away. 

I was used to being asked when we were ever going to have kids, but for the first time I was asked if I was pregnant.  Supposedly I have a glow. 

I was certified in adult and child CPR

In April, I said good bye to my job and James and I were down to one income for the first time since we were married. 

We had a roommate from February to May.

I was pretty restless without any good job prospects in the horizon by the time May rolled around.  Although I've witnessed the impossible turn possible, the situation still seemed ... impossible-  ha! Little did I know.

During this time I found out that I can pick up the pace with my school work.  So I set a goal of being finished with my degree by August 2006. 

Part of me thought I was nuts, the other part didn't care.  I locked myself in my room, day and night studying.  I only saw the sun when I took my books out in the yard with me...James, 110%, supported me and took over a lot of the household chores. 

I had odd jobs here and there; cleaning houses, getting hung up on for 8 hours strait while doing surveys, etc.  Nothing that I liked and nothing permanent.  As each job came and went, the more my heart sank just a little wondering why I left a perfectly good job at the clinic for a lack of over-the-top stress.

This was also the time when we decided to up our giving to 15% ... talk about a bad time to start that up! But we did.  And it has made all the difference...I wouldn't have done it differently for anything.   Things were tight, but looking back, they weren't really...we always had what we needed....and wanted.  We lived within our means. 

Then I had some people want to buy some of my cleaning products, that James and I had been making for our own home. 

So, in a round about way, I started a profitable business producing my own line of chemical free cleaning products....

I was rehired at my job with James, the one I had before I ventured out....and was able to pick up right where I left off.

I was thrilled, my boss was thrilled, and I still smile about it.  It doesn't even feel like it has been 7 months...

I watched The Steve and Kathy Show on TV for the first time and witnessed the first ever call that came in. 

Summer was a blur

TV shoots, wardrobe shopping, school, school, school, HHH, running the first business of my career, working full time, church, and sadly enough not very much time with friends.  But the time that was spent with them was marvelous!

Then came that infamous last weekend in August.  I graduated with my Bachelor of Science degree in Holistic Nutrition.

And went to San Diego that very week....what a trip!

I got a tan, a haircut, and a break all in one.   We drove down Mexico's Baja coast and had some very fresh and cheap lobster with some of my grandma's native friends.  James was the best man in Craig and Catherine's wedding.  After spending several loaded days with my relatives James and I ventured on up to LA, where we went to the most fabulous spa ever!

September brought about a shift in the TV shoots for me, no longer was I doing the shopping.  I had new hours for greeting and for the HHH.  Plus to top it all off, James and I stopped "Clean".  It wasn't the right time...we needed to rewrite the biz plan. But out of it all came close to 20 one-of-a-kind recipes for chemical free products.  After all, they are the only products our house have ever seen, and I had awesome reviews from my customers...believe me, it's not the end of that yet!

I also had a falling out with a good friend of mine.  My heart was ripped out, I wasn't the same but, the sun came up the next morning...why doesn't it stop on the account of me?, and I had to keep going on.

My week's worth of a tan was fading, I was still a little in shock that I had no school work, that my schedule was cut in half and that it was October already. 

October was wonderful.  Simple and slow.  My family threw me an awesome graduation party.

Meanwhile, James and I kept pushing and pushing towards are big goal of getting out of debt.  You heard the phrase "when we're out of debt…" a lot around our house and among our friends! ...we had a plan, we had the drive, we were responsible and nothing was going to change that....well, except for a divine interference. 

James was promoted and given a huge bonus that (in a little while here) will completely pay off everything we owe, except for our mortgage! (Thank you lord!!).  I don't believe this would have turned out the way it did had we not shown God how trustworthy we are.  Last year we predetermined how much we would give to God when money came in, like birthday money, Christmas money, and other incomes, etc....and we were faithful to our word.  We didn't cheat God out of one penny! Every bit of grad money that I promised to God was given to him, and so on...and just a little FYI: The amount we're getting is larger that what we gave into the kingdom this entire year...and that's a lot.  It sorta makes my head spin.  If it weren't for what we are learning at WRC...I don't know where we'd be!! Probably just like everyone else who struggles and depends on every hour to pay them....not us, man!! The lord is our provider and because we are faithful to him, he HAS BEEN faithful to us!! We invest in the blessed!

This month I booked tickets to attend my cousin's wedding in Pittsburgh, PA. 

James and I fly out this Saturday morning – bright and early.  The kind of early where I'll need to wear my sun glasses on the plane because of the morning sun glare.

Besides reaching the lowest financial point and our highest financial point all in one year, I was also amazed at the amount of work I can actually get done....and it paid off.  I was stretched, I cried, and kept on....and well, I lived. It's simple.

My friend and I reunited and cleared the air with everything.  Why did we wait 3 months? I hope that type of thing never happens to me again as long as I live. 

The water business seems more promising than ever.  I hope to have a hand in some of the details.  And we learned we have some shares in the business.

Thankseasmas, lots of weddings, lots of engagements, and my favorite part...lots of friends.  This year I've gotten closer to some great people and I wouldn't change it for the world. 

I've learned to fast from worry. 

I've learned that I need to be so debt free that no one even owes me a thank you.... 

I've learned to communicate certain things and not communicate others.

I've learned that I don't like split level homes

and that James is still amazing.

This year was a whirl wind, next year …. Will probably be like no other!

Oh, and I learned that I LOVE LOVE LOVE my friends, my family, and my husband.  I didn't just learn it this year, but when I think back...it's the people that have made this year all it was.  It's the place where I spend my time and the laughs and moments I spend with the ones I love.