20 things to do in 2012

1. Schedule things out with the knowledge that they probably won’t happen – just to test flexibility. ;)

2. Try out a new recipe at least once a month (just twelve; can’t be that bad, right?).

3. Completely restore the backyard to its former glory (assuming it had some).

4. Get a job. (Joanne Fabrics, a barn… Joanne Fabrics…)

5. Finish writing a book.

6. Sew a medieval dress.

7. Improve guitar skills.

8. Make impossible goals and be insanely surprised that they happen.

9. Train the dog to do something other than ‘sit’.

10. Sing in public without passing out or having a zombie-moment.

11. Become a more avid blogger.

12. Memorize a Bible passage at least once a month.

13. Read a book at least once a week.

14. Perfect an Irish accent.

15. Write/video at least four skits for Purple Ninjas.

16. Talk to people that I don’t normally.

17. Write a song that isn’t stupid.

18. Spend more time studying – and do well without guessing in school.

19. Keep my areas of the house clean… and maybe areas that aren’t technically ‘mine’.

20. And… maybewearskirtsmoreoften.

~Charli Rae |Job 39:19-25|

New Year's... Not!

Ug! I'm always so behind! I'll have to do my New Year's post tomorrow (which means I won't get to it until Wednesday, at least), and then it'll be on to 11th grade and who knows how often I'll manage to remember this blog?!

Sorry. I'll calm down now. I have someone I want you to meet.

Isn't she beautiful? She doesn't have the smooth lines of my mom's, or the fancy stitches that my gramma's has, but she's the first one I can call all my own. And she's fast. Really fast. 

Not to mention I won't have to worry about running out of bobbin thread in the middle of a project.

And, speaking of projects...

With my new sewing machine (who currently does not have a name) I am embarking on Project Bucket List 12: Sew a Medieval-Style Dress.

Prepared with yards and yards of gorgeous velvety-green fabric, intricate ribbon, and a pattern I have no clue how to read...

...I might finally be able to check something off my bucket list besides going places.

~Charli Rae 

|Job 39:19-25|

Usually I'm counting down the days 'till Christmas from 364, but, somehow, Christmas managed to sneak up on me this year. After singing carols and drinking hot cocoa with my friend on an 80+ degree night, it finally hit me around eleven thirty last night... "Omigosh, Katie! TOMORROW'S CHRISTMAS EVE!"

And that 'tomorrow' is today. It's Christmas Eve. We've been cooking all day, it seems, and in a few hours we'll head off to church for the Christmas Eve Service. Then we'll come back, watch Polar Express while normal people watch It's a Wonderful Life, then we'll open a gift or two and go to bed.

In our old house, where we lived for six-years-and-four-months, I hated sleeping on the night before Christmas. Not when my presents were taunting me just around the door! But now I like it. It might just be that I'm older. It could also very well be that, in this house, we have a fireplace, and from my bed I can see the fire. But it's probably just that I'm an insomniac and, for some reason, it's been easier the past few years to sleep on Christmas Eve. (Though last night I slept pretty good, too...)

Anyway, to end this babbling post (actually, only three paragraphs, now that I look), would you like to read a story that Alyx came up with and I wrote down years ago? If so, feel free to keep reading. If not, go ahead and ex-out of your browser - it is pretty goofy.

*Ahem*

Hello, my name is Sandy Livingston. My family and I moved to Orlando, Florida into a small neighborhood called Lake Bosse. While I was exploring the house, I tripped over a loose floorboard. A hidden staircase fell from the ceiling. I, being adventurous, climbed up slowly. There was nothing in the attic but a couple of boxes and some sort of machine in the corner. I walked over to the machine and saw a blue crystal. I picked up the crystal, realizing that it was a time machine.

“Where would you like to go?” the time machine asked.

After thinking for a moment, I answered, “The birth of Christ.”

“When you wish to come back, hold the crystal in your right hand and say ‘Take me home’.”

There was a bright flash of light and by the time I could see again, I was in the dessert. On my left there were two pal trees, and on my right was a small pool. In the distance I could see black specks. As they drew nearer, I made out a couple camels, and on them, three kings. Or they looked like kings.

They stopped in from on me. One of them said, “Who are you?”

“I’m… Sandy Livingston.”

“Where are you going?”

“Um… Bethlehem?”

“We are heading that way also. Would you like to join us?”

“Sure.”

I mounted a camel. After riding for about an hour, it had grown really dark, and the star we were following stopped above a barn.

“We are here,” the first king announced.

 We walked in and the kings gave gold, frankincense, and myrrh to a baby in a feed box.

“Um… I don’t have a gift,” I whispered to the first king. The king touched the bandana that was tied around my neck.

“This will be your gift,” he said.

I untied it and laid it across Jesus. I looked up and Mary smiled at me. I hitched a ride with the kings back to the spot I came from and watched them disappear into the distance. Then I took out the blue crystal and whispered, “Take me home.”

Another bright flash and I was back in the attic. Not a second had passed. I returned the crystal just in time to hear my mom call, “Sandy, time for dinner!”

“Coming, Mom!”

I smiled as I climbed down the stairs, pulling out a piece of straw I had taken from the barn.

~Charli Rae 

|Job 39:19-25|

And Creative Juices Flow... sorta...

{random new idea... don't know if i'll continue it... your thoughts?}

“Liadyn, get out of the pantry!” said the cook.

“Liadyn, get out from beneath the stairs!” said the butler.

“Liadyn, get out of the barn!” said the groom.

“Liadyn, get out!” said her father.

So out she went. Not permanently, of course. In fact, she only went down the street to the blacksmith’s shop and returned just after nightfall. But Liadyn had always been a wild child, and her absence caused such an uproar in the house that the staff promised, if she ever came back, to treat her much more carefully. And Liadyn despised it. She was babied, given everything she wanted, spoken to as if she was an infant, everything was done for her, and worst of all, she was no longer permitted to leave the house without an escort. Sometimes it was the butler, sometimes it was the groom - on rare occasions it was the cook and rarer still it was her father or eldest brother. But if she was allowed her choice, she always chose the aged gardener, for he never wanted to walk far, and when she wanted to go to the blacksmith’s, he complied, for there were places to sit.

And so Liadyn grew up, with the ability to do nothing and the longing to do everything. She could never help with supper - no, the cook would make sure it arrived at the table on time. She could never help with the cleaning - the butler was far too meticulous and was afraid of anything breaking. She could never help get her horse ready - when the groom brought him out, he was already immaculately brushed and saddled. And she certainly never, ever helped her father with his work. The only thing she could do was stoke a fire and pound out rings on an anvil, but if the household knew she could do that, surely they would take that away, as well.

As she grew, Liadyn slowly underwent a transformation - she was no longer a wild child. She became more thoughtful, quiet. But she always wished she had fought harder to keep herself the way she was; interesting. She was not an only child, nor was she the eldest or youngest. She was the fifth of eight children, sharing light brown curls with six of them and pale green eyes with three, and in the area of other similarities, she was perhaps the most unremarkable. But by being upbeat and energetic, she stood out. And now, sixteen years old, she was by far the most boring.

That was why she was beyond surprised when her older sister, Haizea’s, friend convinced Haizea to bring Liadyn along to a tournament in the city. “What kind of tournament?” Liadyn asked, but all she got was a degrading look and a, “This is why I don’t take you to things. And by the way, if you tell Dad where we’re going, I’ll kill you.”

Liadyn did not feel the least bit frightened, but she kept quiet anyway. She rarely ever got to sneak out, and this time she had a sibling in on it. So she shrugged off the threat and on a light cloak and followed her sister out the window and down the street.

And then it jumps right into the story. What do you think? Is the description too long? Does the wording seem funky anywhere?

~Charli Rae 

|Job 39:19-25|

*Your Dreams...Come...True...*

Yesterday we spent the whole afternoon at Magic Kingdom and the evening at Epcot. Hence the matching shirts, Cinderella's castle in the background, and very messy hair (thank you, roller-coasters.)

We went on Thunder Mountain (of course), then tried something that I haven't done since... well, long before I could actually drive. Needless to say I did much better this time.

I got a picture of my dad, too - he had been looking around for me and his expression was fantastic when he found me... but the picture looks a lot less blurry on the camera screen.

We actually did the Haunted Mansion first (it was a bit of a letdown; it didn't make me jump once!). On this one, very strange, occasion, going through the line was actually more entertaining than the ride itself.

First there was a ghost horse...

Then there was a piano...

And though many of the tombstones were laugh-worthy, this one hit me hard. I never got the chance to apologize to the people behind us in line, though...

Then we went off to Epcot, where it was dark and, quite frankly, I forgot to take pictures. But it was fun. Now, thanks to the ride Soarin', I really want to go hang-gliding over a mountain. Or the ocean. Or the desert, it really doesn't matter.

Anyway, to conclude I'd just like to say that I enjoy random vacations so much more than vacations with reasons.

~Charli Rae 

|Job 39:19-25|

PS{and better yet, i beat ben to this post! ;)}

*Great* Music

So, this post was going to be about food, wasn't it? Oh, well. I'm very fickle - and I have changed my mind once again. We all know what good food is, don't we? It's a big subject, with lots of opinions, tastes, and varieties. Wanna know something similar? Music. I figure it's an appropriate topic as we enter the Christmas season. :)

Bad music makes you want to squeeze your ears until your head explodes, and, in my opinion (which doesn't have to be shared), is anything that makes your body vibrate with the bass. Good music can influence your emotions - make you happy or sad - and your actions - make you want to dance or cry, or sometimes, better music can make you do both. But great music... well, that's different for everyone.

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

Influences:

Star of Munster, an Irish reel

For me, great music, the best music, makes my heart physically hurt when I listen to it. It fills me with indescribable joy and sadness in the same instant.

(Just to clarify, we're talking the actual music here, not the lyrics. Great songs can have wonderful lyrics and still be bad music. The opposite is also true.)

Hark the Herald Angels Sing

Influences:

"Greengrass" - Irish/bluegrass

The instruments that make up great music for me are fiddle (sometimes violin; yes, I am aware they're technically the same instrument), guitar, bagpipes, and flute. I'm sure there are probably more, and, of course, my opinions about music changes as I grow. But my current favorites fit the criteria for great music. I find myself holding my breath as each song starts. All three are by the same people, Keith & Kristyn Getty, an Irish couple who have amazing hearts for God and use their musical talents for His ministry. Their Christmas songs combine their homeland's most famous reels with traditional lyrics. I absolutely love them - I hope you will, too. :)

Two of them are up; the last won't work. :( It's What Child is This? and has Spanish influences throughout the song. Well, they're the first three songs on the Joy: An Irish Christmas CD; if you want to give someone an amazing Christmas present, there it is. :) What's great music to you?

~Charli Rae 

|Job 39:19-25|

Happy Thanksgiving!

"What if you woke up tomorrow...

...with only the things you thanked God for today?"

~Unknown

I am thankful for~

{jesus}

Especially entering the season in which we celebrate His birth. If He hadn't have been born, He wouldn't have died, and my sin would still be mine. Because of Him I can be truly thankful!

{family}

Oh, they have to deal with so much. My dad has a job outside of the house for the first time in nearly a year (which none of us like, but are thankful for) so that we can celebrate this Thanksgiving. Mom has two more weeks of hard studying left before she's ALL OURS for Christmas break (mua-ha-ha-ha). Ben started writing a new story idea yesterday (which I am very thankful for because now he's too busy to pester me about Cheruthedra, the book that we're writing together). And Alyx... well, she has to deal with my snoring all night long. :P

{friends}

Each one of 'em has a funny story that starts off the friendship. Danielle (16 in 24 days!) has been one of my best friends since we were 5yrs, when I came as close to spraining my ankle as a 5year-old can and she helped me back to our campsite. Breanna (16) I met a few days after I was born - her family came up to visit ours in Georgia - and I don't actually remember meeting Noah (13). Ellie (15) and I corresponded through over 5000 emails (yes, we counted) and exactly one letter over three years before I finally met her this past June. Katie (14) used to be so quiet before we moved into the neighborhood... now she's just as crazy as we are. :) Ashley (17) is probably the sweetest girl on the planet, and I have no idea how we started hanging out, but she's been a great role model and manages to (sometimes) keep me out of trouble. Kennedy (15) was a chance meeting - my mom embarrassed me in front of her on a cruise, then we kept bumping into each other, and now we started a habit of visiting each other every so often (they live in PA). And Josh (16) had to undergo three long years of verbal and physical abuse before I finally accepted him as a friend.

There. That was probably more than you wanted to know.

{food}

Always a good one! In fact, I'm sure the next post will be one completely devoted to it!

{travel}

I am so blessed in this area - our family has traveled more in the past five years than most people get to travel in their entire lives! We've been across the country up to Seattle, WA several times by plane, twice by car, and once up the east coast. I love road trips. Planes are okay - good if you wanna get there fast, but you don't see much. Boats... no.

I'm also thankful for a lot more - horses, books, tea, mechanical pencils, scented candles, clean kitchens, sewing machines, music, bandannas - but I could go on forever. And I will, but not on this blog. Instead, I want to hear from you. What things are you most thankful for?

~Charli Rae 

|Job 39:19-25|

*Sigh*...

{What she knows her blog to be:}

Unimaginative. Irregular. Dull. Stand-offish.


{What she wishes her blog could be:}

Inspirational. Original. Creative. Easy to relate to.


{Problems going from 'is' to 'will be':}

She's lazy. She's unadventurous. She rarely tries new things. She's hesitant to share things for fear that they will be scorned.

{Boy, does she have a lot to work on...}

~Charli Rae 

|Job 39:19-25|

What a picture's worth

Randomness.

Oh, good golly. It's been a week. Sorry, my faithful {few} followers. I still have nothing important to say.

What's gone on since my last post? Well...

Sometime early in the week, my sewing machine broke down. 

:(

Saturday I made cinnamon rolls from scratch for a fall festival, won the cake walk and brought five of the fifteen back home. They were good. 

:) 

Saturday evening, I remembered that I was going to go to a Bryan Davis book signing and was too late.

:(

Sunday morning, Mom and I missed out on church to help out at a Freedom Ride dressage show. Lots more fun than I thought it would be - even though I was one of three volunteers than showed up. I got to dress up two horses, run around in front of a ton of people, watch people ride horses and got extremely jealous...

:) / :(

Monday in guitar lesson we started on Christmas songs. I'm one of those crazy people who never stop listening to Christmas music, even in the middle of July.

:)

And that's pretty much it. Everything else is normal and boring. Still no brilliant ideas for Pepper Grey. 

~Charli Rae

|Job 39:19-25|

(Oh, PS - poll is coming on Monday. Please answer!!)

Pepper Grey

So it isn't the 'new idea' I pitched it to be two posts ago, but I have been  'dreaming it up'. I had part of the story before; now I have most of the first act. (For those of you who don't have English majors for fathers, all stories have three acts.) I was going to try and get as much of those three acts as planned out as possible. Here's how that went...

{I actually do have more than that, but I'm too lazy to update the video.}

Anyway, I'm getting itchy. Now that I'm not writing RO - or anything else, for that matter - I'm going Cr@zY! I have to write something! And that something is Pepper Grey. Even though I'm not as prepared as I want to be. Even though there's a huge blank spot between the catalyst and the break-into-two (you saw that, didn't you?). 

The problem is... (oh, yes, there's another problem)... I have no idea how to start it.

That first sticky note wasn't the first scene. It's the list of things I need to include in the first couple scenes. Now, normally it's not a problem for me to start a story (it's finishing that I obviously struggle with). A good action sequence, clever dialogue, a crazy dream; all good starters, but none fit. This story is a type that I have never written before. The action isn't sword-fist-bow-POW! kind of action. The dialogue belongs to an every-day family in modern day Wyoming. And all crazy dreams that the main character could have simply don't further the story.

Any ideas?

~Charli Rae

|Job 39:19-25|

All Hallows Eve

[Alyx in her witch's costume]

Halloween. An annual holiday celebrated on October 31st. Activities of the day include carving faces into pumpkins, donning creative and elaborate costumes, wandering from house to house in search of candy, hanging out with friends, pulling pranks, telling frightening stories, watching horror films, lighting huge bonfires….

Many Christians get the willies come the 31st. Maybe it’s because, even if it’s not known, the history of Halloween is, in fact, a horrifying story.

All Hallows Eve. An annual holiday signifying the end of the harvest, the start of winter, the season of death. It also came just before All Saints Day, the day when souls worthy of heaven would ascend... therefore All Hallows Eve was their last chance to reap revenge on those who harmed them during life. Ghoulish faces were originally carved into turnips or potatoes (us lazy Americans found pumpkins much easier to carve). Costumes were not for fun - they were to disguise yourself from the spirits haunting you. The 'trick-or-treat' tradition was, rather than children, the poor begging for bread in return for praying for the giver's dead relatives (spirits with more prayers found easier passage into heaven). 'Sacred' bonfires were lit and embers were carried in the carved vegetables to light sacred fires of their own, which, of course, scared the spirits away. 

Yeah, all that said, Halloween kinda scares me. But I still dressed up. But didn't get any pictures. I plan on wearing the costume again, though, so...

Ramblings

So, what's been happening? Thanks for asking. I haven't posted for a while because... *bumbadadum*...

I've been camping. With my youth group. Well, not for as long as I haven't been posting. But I was feeling lazy. Now I'm extremely sore and bored and am finally willing to get on my blog and participate. Anyway, it was supposed to rain the night before last - hence, many families stayed home - but the only rain came while most people were still sleeping and briefly sprinkled after breakfast. Which, for some, was rather a disappointment, as it was supposed to bring cooler weather. Or maybe it was cooler than normal and we couldn't tell because we ran around too much. Back to the context, I didn't get many pictures of people, but there was this particularly friendly peacock who posed for me. I believe he was relieved to get away from the flock of peahens chasing him around. Poor boy....

To change the subject, I would like to say that *ahem* I'm going to take a *cough* break from Riding Orion. The poor thing has been drowned in so many scattered ideas that it can hardly breathe. In fact, I'm wondering if it stopped breathing. And, though it sounds horrible, I don't think I'm even going to try to resuscitate it for a long while. Instead, again, I have dreamed up a new story.

I was considering entering NaNoWriMo (National November Writing Month, for those of you who do not write), but remembered that lack of structure was the reason I failed to write RO in nearly a year, let alone the three months it was supposed to be done in. A story is only as good as its plot, just as a house is only as stable as its foundation. The LORD didn't create the space between the sky and the ocean before He decided what to put between it. Of course, to be fair, He is perfect, and He had all eternity beforehand to plan out His story.

Anyway, back to the point. I am determined *cough* to finish this story, and to have a pretty good idea of where it's going before I start the first sentence (more on that later).

Ellie, I will need plenty of support for this.

And Bethanie, if you're reading this... please don't be upset with me. The book I'm planning out *coughcoughcough* isn't Pages of Myondelf.

~Charli Rae

|Job 39:19-25|

The Puppies!

So, I was going to do a post about them, anyway, but as I returned from the days activities (church, picnic, running around with multiple soccer balls and proving that I am not in any way athletic), I was reminded how much pets are indeed apart of the family. I walked in, set my slurpee down on the table, and Thunder immediately reached as high up my leg as his little paws would go, as if to say, "ME FIRST!" then darted to the back of the couch in our "YOU'RE FINALLY HOME!" ritual. He sat there, quivering, until I made my way over to the couch and crouched down.

He's such a sweet heart. =)

But, first up is Grizzly. He's almost four(?) and thinks he's the king of the world - at least, our block. He's our evil chihuahua that everyone thinks is absolutely adorable until they actually get to know him. The only one who can keep a handle on his pure evilness is Mom, who happens to be his idol. Here's his questionare - he filled it out very begrudgingly.

Books:_ I don’t know. Definitely not anything involving dogs and tricks. The blonde female human gets all sorts of crazy ideas…

  

Movies:_ Ug. It's too much of a hassle to go all the way to the living room, unless, of course, Mom does.

Food:_ Hm… I would prefer anything brought to me on a silver platter, but since no one ever thinks of it… I guess human flesh.

Music:_ Music. Blech.

Hobbies:_ Sleeping, chewing on the younger male human, staring at Mom… the list goes on.

Animal:_ Hello? I am an animal. Favorite, right there.

Best Friend:_ Mom.

See what I mean? Evil... Thunder, on the other hand is the stupidest genius I have ever seen. I can't really prove the genius part... but he sure is adorable, in my opinion. He's grown a lot since the first picture way up there^ - he's nearly three now - but he's still cute. And very much a puppy.

Books:_ You mean those things that Charli’s obsessed with?

Movies:_ Hm… I dunno. I like the ones where Daddy laughs a lot.

Food:_ Anything that comes off the table!!!

Music:_ Britt Nicole! Alyx dances funny!

Hobbies:_ Playing outside – oh, oh! And chasing the little red light!

Animal:_ Humans!!!

Best Friend:_ Grizzly! (Grizzly says 'dream on, bud...')

And there they are! The pets of the family!

Alyxandra Lyn

She's kinda the star, the main attraction, the center of attention, in everything us Swansons do. She's the energy, drama, friction, glue, baby-of-the-family. In fact, she's already been mentioned several times on this thing. She's my baby sister. =P

 Books:_ Life of Faith: Millie Keith

Movies:_ Ever After, Chronicles of Narnia, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

Food:_ Anything Chocolate!

Music:_ Country; Zac Brown, Rascal Flatts, and Lady Antebellum in particular

Quote:_ “Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. Prepare to die.”

Hobbies:_ Acting, playing violin =)

Animal:_ All kinds of birds

Best Friend:_ Charli! =D (Aw, I feel so loved. =D)

Job/Future Job:_ Air force Pilot!

Alyx. Oh, my little Alybobwa. The one who babbled before she could talk, the one who wandered around the house calling, "Bun! Girl! Aaaare you?!" when she finally did talk. My partner in crime for many evil schemes. My roommate who absolutely refuses to take my blame for the mess. My artistic, expressive, often annoying, always amazing sister. =)

[I totally love this picture. =)]

Benjamin Lee

first, i have a few things to say. i'm not going to use caps at all in this post. you know, except for the part where ben comes and shares his life story. it's in his own words - right out of the email he sent me. second, i have some more things to say. diary of a wimpy kid scares me. now, that said...

bum-ba-da-dum!

i have the coolest brother in the world. be jealous. =)

[aww, he's so cute there! he's like, twelve or something.]

that said, here's some info that absolutely no one wants to know about him, yet i shall share them anyway.

Books:_ Chronicles of Narnia, Redwall Series, Percy Jackson Series

Movies:_ National Treasures, Captain America, Thor, Princess Bride, Lord Of The Rings, How To Train Your Dragon…

Food:_ Um… food?

Music:_ Christian, such as Phillips, Craig and Dean; Chris and Conrad; Fireflight; and Caedmon’s Call and in between.

Quote:_ “I love it when a plan comes together,” – Colonel John ‘Hannibal’ Smith

[no, this is not ben. but one day, he will drive this car.]

Hobbies:_ Writing and Sword fighting

Animal:_ Wolves, other types of wild dogs, Killer Whales (really whales in general), birds of prey, and red pandas

Best Friend:_ Josh Yandell

Job/Future Job:_ Writer/restaurant worker or owner/Marine Biologist/something of the sorts/or whatever I find myself in.

now, my thoughts... 

1) we share very similar book interests - only he likes action, and i like interaction. go figure. 2) as obviously shown above, his movie interests are very versatile. 3) he was really supposed to state what kind of music he liked to listen to, not list on and on and on, but so far i think i'm going on a lot more than he is.... 4) *sigh* you've gotta love that quote. or maybe not. you don't have to. like it if you want to. 5) is killer whale supposed to be capitalized? beats me. doesn't really matter, i guess, since i'm lowercase-ing a whole lot of supposed-to-be-capitalized words - and if i can do that, he can capitalize words that aren't supposed to be. 6) maybe josh should get his own blog post... hehehe.... 7) ben really needs to decide on what to do. maybe i should do a poll....

[ben and alyx <3]

anyhoo, i'm bored now. love ya, ben!

(ooooh, you have no idea how much i wanted to use your despised childhood nickname...)

Meet my Family!

It's about time for a post, and since I couldn't think of anything else, I decided to get a jumpstart on the suggestion offered by Kendra over at Imagine; a post about my family.

Well, my family, with only seven members, is not one that people might assume 'too big' to fit into a post. But I think it is. I like short, to-the-point posts. So why am I going on and on about this? Beats me.

So, anyways - first is Dad. He's not very photogenic, so this is the only good picture I could find of him. =P

   Books:_ Mysteries, Suspense, almost anything really.

   Movies:_ Very little.  They don’t make good movies anymore...

   Food:_ Yes, please.

   Music:_ Country, Classic Rock

   Quote:_ “Honk if you hate noise pollution!”

   Hobbies:_ Reading, writing, eating

   Animal:_ Rhino (2 tons, run 35 miles an hour, can only see a few inches in front of them; they are a reminder to be humble and gracious)

   Best Friend:_ Your mother

   Job/Future Job:_ Writer

(Note - perhaps the 'only good picture' was a tad harsh. I've got a 
bajillion picture folders on my computer that I'm too lazy to go through right now. So I guess that says more about me than Dad, huh?)

\

Mom, on the other hand, I could find as the costar of several pictures. She doesn't particularly like them either, but hey, I had to get it from somewhere, right? ...in fact, we're all kind of wondering where Alyx got her love of the camera.... Anyway, rambling again! 

Books:_ Pride and Prejudice, Zion Chronicles

Movies:_ Pride and Prejudice, The Princess Bride, The Man From Snowy River

Food:_ Pizza 

Music:_ Man From Snowy River, Dances With Wolves, Rocketeer

Quote:_ God does not call the Qualified, He qualifies the called. (than you Judy Jones)

Hobbies:_ calligraphy, piano, hiking

Animal:_ panda

Best Friend:_ Rob Swanson

Job/Future Job:_ Nurse, Pediatric Intensive Care

(Note - Rob Swanson is my dad, just in case you were worried.)

So, yep! Those are my parents! Couldn't ask for better ones!