Day 30 - A Picture Of Someone You Miss

Last day of the challenge!

Unfortunately, I can't pick just one. There are too many people I miss. So I'm putting them in the order that I started missing them.


Uncle Charlie who passed away June 20, 2006
(he was a Cal Ripken fan if you can't tell)



My Gram (here with my Mom) who passed away August 2, 2009

 


My Mom who passed away May 21, 2010

 

My Dad who passed away February 12, 2011

Day 29 - A Picture That Can Always Make You Smile

* Insert any picture of Grant here*

Actually, I took a picture just for this post (ok, two pictures).

BABY BUTT! Baby butts make me smile. Well, specifically Grant's baby butt.

P.S. He peed on the carpet about two seconds after I snapped that second picture.

Day 28 - A Picture Of Something You're Afraid Of

Snakes! I'm super afraid of snakes. I don't even like being near their glass container at museums or zoos. Yuck! I can't stand it when people say "Oh you don't have to be scared of those little grass snakes!" Shut up. I don't care if they're a tiny grass snake or giant anaconda out in the jungle, they are all the same to me. I don't want them anywhere near me. I believe that people who own those giant snakes as pets should be committed. "Hey look at me! I'm sitting here with a giant snake wrapped around my neck like a scarf. Sure, this thing can unhinge it's jaw and devour a toddler whole...but I'm sure he wouldn't do that to me." Idiots. Just get a dog like normal people!

Day 27 - A Picture Of Yourself And A Family Member

Today's topic doesn't seem to want me to elaborate so that's what I'm going with. That's me and my Aunt Bonnie in 2009. We call her Boner :)

Day 26 - A Picture Of Something That Means A Lot To You

I think the person who created this challenge was running out of topics. But anyway, something that means a lot to me:

 

My engagement and/or wedding ring. It's not a great pic of them but it's only Tuesday and I'm exhausted. I had no energy or desire to take a new picture of them. But I love them...and they, obviously, mean a lot to me.

Day 25 - A Picture Of Your Day

This is what my day looks like. I spend 8 hours a day right there in that cubicle (at least it's roomy) - not counting potty breaks and lunch. 

And I stare at that picture (which is changed a couple times a week because I have so many cute ones to choose from) on my computer monitor that is roughly the size of the screen at a drive-in movie theater. And I try not to think about how I'd much rather be home with him than sitting there with my poop/pee/blood covered paperwork that smells like the livestock barn at the fair. 

Day 24 - A Picture of Something You Wsh You Could Change

Hmmm...doesn't this kind of go along with Day 18? I wasn't really sure what I'd change when I saw this title. I usually just don't think about what I can't change. It's not worth worrying about or complaining about because it's not going to change. But it didn't take too much thought really, if I could change one thing...

I'd have my parents back. Even if it was only for a day. So they could meet their grandson. And I could hug them.

Day 23 - A Picture of Your Favorite Book

If I have to pick, my favorite books are by Elizabeth George. I found her by accident years ago and I am completely hooked on her Inspector Lynley series. I absolutely love all the characters. When I finish a book and begin the long wait for the next one...I kinda miss them.


All of my Elizabeth George paperbacks plus the new one I'm reading now.



And the hardcover ones I have that I forgot when I took the picture above.


Also the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon should go on the list. This series was recommended to me quite a while ago and I was reluctant to try them because they're classified as "romance novels". Just not the kind that have Fabio on the cover. I have no other romance novel experience to compare these books to but I can see why they'd classify them that way. They are quite...umm...shall we say, grown up? But aside from the steamy love scenes they really do have a very interesting, slightly sci-fi, story to them. And if you can get past the first 100 pages or so of the first book they get really good.



I have all of them. For a while I was getting them from the library until I decided they
 were books that I will probably read again. The green one is her most recent and even
though I bought it in August I haven't read it yet. It's also quite a large book with a
cheap Kindle edition...so I'm probably gonna buy that.

 Honorable mention:


After I fell in love with The Phantom of the Opera musical I decided to read the book and I loved it.
 Very sad but I do love the story. The other book, Phantom (by Susan Kay), my Aunt picked up at
a garage sale thinking I might like it. I loved it too and have read it several times.

Also I should mention that I rebelled against the popularity of the Harry Potter books until I finally gave in about two years ago just to see what all the hype was about. Loved those too!

Day 22 - A Picture Of Something You Wish You Were Better At

I wish I could be better at:

Sewing

Crocheting

And I'd like to give that whole knitting thing a try

How very Martha Stewart of me, eh? I did state in an earlier post that I'm a closet Martha fan. Now, when I say that I'd like to be better at sewing I don't mean just sewing in general. I can sew a button back on and I can fix a hole in some pants. When I say that I'd like to be better at sewing I mean that I want to get a sewing machine and actually learn how to use it. And then sew some of those really cute crafts that Martha sends me because - and I'm asking you not to judge me here - I subscribe to her Craft of the Day e-mails. And I've deleted a lot of them because they definitely require a sewing machine and certain level of sewing skill. Neither of which I possess.

When I say that I'd like to be better at crocheting I mean that I'd like to actually learn. I tried once and that lasted about 10 minutes. But my mother-in-law has offered to teach me and I think I'm going to take her up on it. I'm not going to have such high expectations that I think I'll be making a blanket anytime soon. But I'd at least like to make a purdy scarf or two by the time they are necessary. As far as knitting goes, well...I've never tried. So I can't say that I'd like to be better at it. But I'd like to try! Maybe if I can get the hang of crocheting then I can try my hand at knitting. We shall see.





Day 21 - A Picture of Something You Wish You Could Forget

Hmmm...this is kind of a tough one. In all seriousness, there isn't a picture of what I would like to forget. I'd like to forget some things that have happened or been said in the past year. Things that have happened that I'm not allowed to mention. Or things that have been said to me and about me that I've heard about that I'm not allowed to confront people about. I keep my mouth shut to keep the peace and because it would cause a relationship problem for someone I care about. But these things are causing a relationship problem anyway so I wish I could either forget it or get past it - neither of which will happen (at least not any time soon). It would be easier if the selfish, childish person(s) would just grow up and talk to me about what their problem is and that way we could both have our say...but I'm not seeing that on the horizon either.

So, if I'm lacking a picture of that. Then I wish I could forget this:

It's the musical episode of Grey's Anatomy. I want that hour of my life back. I hated it. The only parts I didn't mind were the parts when they weren't singing. I wanted to watch Grey's not Grease! It's not that they can't sing, some weren't bad (although I think the whole episode was aimed at jump starting a singing career for the chick who plays Callie). But the whole thing was so ridiculous that I felt a little embarrassed for them. When I heard they were doing a musical episode and that the cast was singing I thought the songs would be played in the background. I didn't think they'd be breaking into song in the operating room like a hospital version of Fame!

Day 20 - A Picture of Somewhere You'd Love to Travel

I want to go on an Alaskan cruise! Pretty lame, I'm sure, that I picked a place that's still in the U.S. but since I am married to a man who has zero desire to travel outside the U.S. I'm trying to be realistic. However, I use to watch the Food Network religiously and I have watched enough Barefoot Contessa to know I want to eat my way through Paris and enough Everyday Italian to know that I'd be perfectly content to travel to just about anywhere in Italy!

Day 19 - A Picture and a Letter

I sort of don't get the picture and a letter thing. Am I supposed to post a picture of someone and write a letter to them? If I'm supposed to post any letter then I totally have one...but it's probably not appropriate (in case you're wondering, it's hate mail from a "family member"). But I'm going to go in a different direction with this one.

How freakin cute is that?

Instead of the letter, I'm going with a poem. And I hope I don't get in trouble for this. I was cleaning out some e-mails and I found an old one from my friend Elizabeth. She wrote me an apology poem back when we worked together. For the life of me I can't remember what she did that warranted such an apology. But judging from the poem she must have made fun of me for something. Which I have become incredibly accustomed to. That could explain why I've only ever received one apology poem. She always says that her life is a musical and she makes up songs a lot. For everything. She says she "has a way with lyrics" and I think this just reinforces that :) I copy and pasted this exactly as it read in the e-mail (by the way, the subject said: really important!!!).

Ode to Regrets

by elizabeth

your attention please, to a poem of regrets

now open your ears and pet down your pets

im sorry i laughed at the cost of your feeling,

if you want me to, I will hang from the ceiling

until you forgive me or my face turns blue

as punishment for what ive done to you.

all I want in this life again is to see you smile

and hang out at the mall and spend a lil while

holding hands on the beach, in the park or the snow

please do not forget you will always be my hoe!

The end

Ha! It makes me smile every time I read it. The "pet down your pets" part makes me chuckle.

Day 18 - A Picture of Your Biggest Insecurity

Anyone who knows me well enough probably guessed it just from the title. But for anyone who doesn't know, here it is:

What? You don't see it? It's not glaringly obvious in that picture? Perhaps you're distracted by the adorable tiny human with me. Let's really focus:

There we go! My incredibly disporportioned front teeth! Good God, those are enormous. How are they that much bigger than all the others? I've been self-conscious about them for years. I didn't even want to smile in my senior pictures. I ruined them by refusing to smile and my mom made me have them retaken. I wasn't allowed to leave until I smiled. I've been trying very hard since Grant was born not to hate them. I don't ever want him to hear me making fun of them because there is a chance that he could have teeth just like mine and I wouldn't want him to feel bad about them. But I try to have a sense of humor about it. I could be insecure about the spare tire around my middle - but I can lose weight or about the stretch marks on my stomach - but I prefer to think of those as my pregnancy battle scars. Plus those things can be masked and covered...not my teeth. Nothing I can really do about those. Do you think companies would pay me to advertise on them like they do on those race cars?

Ha!


(I do know they're not as bad as I'm making them sound. It could be far worse. But, damn, those are some big front teeth.)

Day 17 - A Picture of Something That Has Made A Huge Impact On Your Life Recently

Having a mobile baby!

It changes everything!

Day 16 - A Picture of Someone Who Inspires You

That's my mom. I picked this picture of her because I think it's so cute. I have
 no idea when it was taken but if I had to guess it's pre-wife, pre-mommy days.

My Mom was the hardest working person I've ever met. She was a janitor at a state college. And she was damn good at it. And you know what? She never complained about her job. Ever. She complained about some of the people she worked with (especially the ones that ate her jelly beans) but never about her job. I remember getting home after work when I waited tables at the local diner and I'd complain about a customer or a co-worker or just about how unhappy I was working there and Mom said to me "Tara, I clean toilets for a living". That usually shut me up. And that was the closest she ever came to a complaint.

Everybody Mom worked with loved her. The last building she worked in was the sports complex but she had worked in a bunch of other buildings on campus too. When she passed away we got condolence cards from so many offices on that campus and everybody from her co-workers to teachers to coaches came to her visitation. I even heard that the college flew the flags on campus at half staff and sent out a memo letting people out of work at 4:00 if they wanted to go to the visitation.

Mom worked hard and she got along with everybody. She could almost always find the positive in a situation. She was a good person. Her memory makes me want to work hard, be a better person, try not to be negative, and get along with everyone even when it would be very easy just to speak my mind.

Day 15 - A Picture of Something You Want To Do Before You Die

Easy one! I want to go parasailing! I've wanted to do it for years but it hasn't been possible yet. Part of me wants to make a trip to the beach specifically to go parasailing. The other part of me doesn't want to because I have visions of a shark jumping out of the water and taking my legs off. Or a stingray jumping out of the water and poking me with his poker thing. And Husband would be standing on the shore going "Ain't that that thang? Ain't that that thang kilt that man?" (Hehe...inside joke.)

Day 14 - A Picture of Someone You Could Never Imagine Your Life Without

Probably on my top 10 list of my favorite pictures of Grant.
(Picture taken by my friend Elizabeth)

So I know I've only known Grant for 7 months (and two and a half weeks) but I definitely can't imagine my life without him. It's pretty amazing how I instantly fell in love with this little person the second I saw him. And how I feel like I couldn't be happier when I see him smile or hear him laugh or how my heart hurts when I hear him really cry. And, this may sound selfish, but he gives me such a sense of accomplishment when he does something new.

You hear everyone say that everything changes when you have a baby and one person even told me that you don't have to let everything change. But changes happened. And I love it. Grant sort of makes me feel like a different person. A happier, but far more tired, person :) I love being a mommy!

Day 13 - A Picture of Your Favorite Band or Artist

I have no doubt that I will get picked on for this one. Nate and Elizabeth love to pick on me for listening to Josh Groban. Elizabeth does it because she thinks he looks like a hobbit. Nate does it because he thinks I'm going to leave him and embark on a life of stalking Josh Groban. But I just really love his music. When I'm tired of every CD in my car and every song on my ipod I can always listen to his music. I like every song on every CD that I have which is pretty rare.

Day 12 - A Picture of Something You Love

Ahhh...coffee.

In my two favorite mugs. I personally feel that coffee tastes even better if you're drinking it out of something fun. The mug in the top picture was a gift from a friend and the mug in the bottom picture is my new handwarmer mug that was a gift from myself :) I only use them on weekends because during the week I drink my coffe at work. I honestly look forward to my weekend coffee because I get to drink it out of these mugs. I used to think coffee was nasty and I only drank it if it was one of those fozen coffee milkshake things at Starbucks...but I am a changed woman. One good cup of coffee and I was hooked!

Day 11 - A Picture of Something You Hate

Who didn't see this coming?

I can not stand jello. It doesn't matter what flavor, I hate it. All of it. There is never room for jello. Nastiness! Just watching it jiggle makes me gag and if it actually goes in my mouth, I promise you I will vomit. I do not know how people eat it. And those congealed salads that are made from jello? Ugh. Just saying the word "congealed" makes my stomach tighten. Could that seriously sound any less appetizing? No congealed salad for me, thanks. I remember when my Mom figured out how to make jello jigglers. Does anyone remember those? Ugh. She thought they were so cute. Jello jigglers. I'm picturing it and I'm gagging. Nope, I can't do it. People keep telling me that someday I'll have to eat it. Or I'll have to make it for Grant and watch him eat it. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that that day never comes.

FYI: Runner up for this post?

I hate Walmart. I dread going in there and generally it is only out of desperation. I don't hate it for the same reasons that you hear other people say they hate it. I've heard people say they don't shop there because of how the company treats it's employees and so on. Perhaps it sounds heartless, but I don't care about that. It can't be all that bad since they're taking over the world, right? No, my reason is simple. People transform when they enter Walmart. They lose every ounce of politeness in there. It's like they shed their manners at the door. You walk through those automated doors, past the 107 year old greeter, and into a world of shopping cart drag racing, tug-o-wars over the last remaining Tickle Me Elmo, and a meat section that scares the crap out of you because you wonder if that package of chicken you're looking at was in someone's cart and then they decided they couldn't afford that AND pork rinds so they left that chicken somewhere in the automotive section. I don't like Walmart and I try very hard to stay away. The problem with Walmart? Sometimes I don't want to go to three different stores to get what I need. So I go there...and ruin my day.