A Few Funny Conversations

Today, I told Brennan to hold still at lunch because he had something on his mouth.  He was very upset with me for messing with him, and I said, "Brennan, there was a hair on your lip!"  He said, "I felt it and I liked it there!"  Yeah, right.  This from my OCD child.

On Friday night we went to see Cars 2.  All of Brennan's play the next day was about secret agents and super spies.  At one point he asked, "Why is a super spy called a super spy?"  My response was, "Hmmm... I don't know."  Jim's response of course was "Well, I'm not sure they were ever actually called super spies in the movie"  Any wonder why Brennan is the way he is?

On Saturday morning, Cora decided she wanted to get dressed and took off her jammies.  I had to iron her shirt (we were going to a birthday party), and while I was ironing, I heard her scream from Brennan's room.  Brennan came running and said, "Mommy, the reason you heard a scream is because I do NOT want a naked girl in my room, and I was trying to get her out!"  Boy, will he regret saying that some day.

Me, From A to Z

My friend Katie posted this questionnaire on her blog, and I thought it was a lot of fun to learn some new things about her.  I hope you enjoy reading mine just as much!  (And if you know what letter R is supposed to be, leave me a comment and I'll add it.)

A. Age: 32 (for 7 more weeks, anyway).  I LOVE being in my early thirties, and I'd be really happy to sit here for several more years.  Jim and I were married at 22, and it was so hard to find other young, settled couples in their twenties at that time.  It was a lonely time of transition.  In my late twenties I had to adjust to motherhood, and that was another enormous change.  Here in my early thirties I feel like I'm finally comfortable, settled, and in the zone.  I love this stage of my life!

B. Bed size:  King.  I don't love touching anyone when I'm sleeping.  :-)

C. Chore you dislike:  Ironing.  I would rather rewash something and dry it again just to pull it right out and hang it than have to iron it.

D. Dogs:  Annie, our nearly decade-old, blind, diabetic, medicated, ever-sleeping sweetheart.

E. Essential start to your day: coffee and a shower.  I can survive if the shower has to wait, but I can't do without a cup of coffee.

F. Favorite color: That's an impossible question.  Pink, aqua, teal, purple, red, chocolate brown, blue, sage green... Okay, yeah.  Impossible question.

G. Gold or silver: yes.  :-)  Usually silver for anything classic and gold for costume stuff, but I love playful silver too.

H. Height: 5'7" (?)

I. Instruments you play(ed): flute and piccolo... Music was a huge part of my school years.  I won a concerto competition when I was 18, I was the drum major for our marching band for three years, and I was first chair of our concert band for three years.  Oh, and I met Jim through marching band.  I hope our kids love music and learn to play instruments too.  (I can't imagine that they won't... They have music coursing through their veins.)

J. Job title: Mommy

K. Kids: Brennan, 5; Cora, 18 months

L. Live for ______: God.

M. Most embarrassing moment: After I graduated from high school and went off to work as a counselor at summer camp, my 11th grade English teacher offered to take me, Jim, and his best friend out for lunch at a new restaurant.  (She had recently retired and wanted to stay connected to her students.)  When we got there, we had to wait for a table and they handed us a new, crazy device I had never seen: one of the buzzers used in a restaurant paging system.  (This was the summer of '96, and I lived in a small town.)  When it went off, I asked to hold it and see what it was like.  In front of my sweet, uber-conservative retired teacher, my boyfriend, and his best friend I made the dumbest word blunder ever.  I meant to say, "Oh... It vibrates just like a buzzer!"  But instead I inverted that statement.  (You can figure it out...)  I was mortified.  And Jim's friend Mike just said, "So that's what they teach you at that Christian camp."

Ugh.

N. Nicknames: Lissa

O. Overnight hospital stays: I had my tonsils and adenoids removed as a young child and I delivered both of my children via c-section.

P. Pet peeves: I hate it when people are disingenuous, unreliable, or flaky.  I also hate a cluttered, messy house (but have to live with one often, given my stage of life), and it drives me totally crazy when I strip my bed to wash my sheets and get too busy to remake it so I am forced to put on sheets right before I go to sleep.

Q. Quote from a movie: I couldn't come up with one if I tried.  We aren't big movie watchers.

S. Siblings: One younger sister, Jenny.

T. Time you wake up: Between 5:30 and 5:45 on weekdays, and 7:00 on weekends.  I used to wake up every day when Brennan would come into my room to get me, but this year I have been convicted about waking up before my children to have some "me time."   I do not love getting up early, but I am a better mom when I can take care of myself before I take care of my kids.  I take a shower, read my email, make coffee, and do my Bible reading, and when Brennan comes downstairs at 7:00 AM, I am ready to meet his needs and face my day.  On the days when I sleep in, I feel it all day long.  I may be more rested, but I am still somehow more grumpy and "off."

U. University attended: Grove City College, a small Christian, liberal arts college in Western Pennsylvania.

V. Vegetables: I like most vegetables, but I am funny about how they're prepared.  I usually like them either raw or cooked, but not always both ways.  For example, I like raw spinach and hate it cooked (unless it's in a dip and the flavored is masked).  I love cooked broccoli and don't love it raw.  I like steamed or boiled corn but don't like it grilled.  You get the idea.

W. What makes you run late: Dashing back into the house to retrieve sippy cups, snacks, extra diapers, or to run the dog out one last time.

X. X-rays you’ve had: Besides the annual x-rays for my teeth (I'm an every-six-months-to-the-dentist kind of girl), I can remember having x-rays for two broken feet, a sprained knee, and pleurisy (while I was pregnant, no less).  I was a figure skater for nine years, and I had all kinds of accidents, so I'm sure I've had other x-rays that I just can't remember.

Y. Yummy food you make: It depends on who you ask.  Jim would probably say baked spaghetti, my mom and mother-in-law would sweetly tell you that everything I make is good, and Brennan would probably say he likes any kind of chicken or dessert that I prepare.  Cora thinks I toast up a mean frozen waffle.  :-)

Z. Zoo animal favorites: I love monkeys and underwater turtles.  But I don't love the zoo.  We have a membership and go a lot, but I go for my kids.

P.S. Feel free to “steal” this post and make it your own.  Just make sure to leave a comment so I can come read yours!