The Dirt...

I was recently tagged to post some random facts about myself...and forgot to.  So, I thought I would go ahead and start my list here tonight.  What better way to start the week right?  Here is the quirky dirt:
1.  I have made a lot of new goals for myself for the New Year.  I promise to post them soon so you can be sure to hold me accountible for getting them done.  I admit...sometimes I need a little push.
2.  I believe in doing kind things, but I do not believe in sharing what Ive done with others.  I think that if you tell to inspire others to do the same, then you are certainly okay, but if you tell just to say "look how nice I am"...you probably really are not all that nice of a person. 
3.  Honesty is so important.  I am too honest at times.  I am proud of this quality.
4.  Doritos sandwiches, cream cheese and pickles on ritz crackers, and cheese with hot sauce are some of my favorite feel good snacks. 
5.  I love to read books, magazines, blogs, articles everything.  I am so thirsty for knowledge lately.
6.  I love cleaning my van.  I am a really good car cleaner actually.  I detail, armorall-the whole nine yards.  I really do enjoy it. BUT {it seems like everytime I do one of these thorough cleanings, something breaks on the vehicle...it almost has me a bit gunshy lately}.  Did I mention that I am obsessive compulsive and paranoid?  Oh, okay then.
7.  Cleaning is therapeutic to me.  Organizing things makes me feel the same way.  Laundry too.  I'm funny like that.
8.  I recently discovered how much I like to cook.  I also discovered I am actually good at it.  Since I have like a million cookbooks...{that I have never used}, I think I will actually open them and use them once we get all moved into our new house in November.  I might even do some blog articles on them too! I'm steppin' out folks!
9.  I admire smart, genuine, kind, real, and funny people...they inspire me to be a better person. 
10.  I have surprised myself this year!  I have been through so many changes, and so many changes have been through me.  I feel I am better and stronger of a person for all of it.  Humility humbles the soul.  Embrace it-everyone goes through it at some point!
11.  I have the BEST family EVER!  Seriously.  I thank God everyday for them.  They are all so wonderful, strong, beautiful, giving, kind and selfless people.  We are close knit and friends with each other.  We are all so openly quirky and fantastically crazy in our own wonderful ways-but we all work so well together.  We are blessed.
12.  I am NOT a board game or card person.  I really have to be in the mood to play these sorts of games, and usually I am not.  Call me a party pooper-I get it alot.
13.  Fruity Pebbles are my favorite cereal.  I love IHOP breakfasts.  I love breakfast for dinner.  Banana Bread from Bob Evans is my FAV.  I love seafood more than I should.  I love Carraba's bread and dipping sauces-pure heaven, and I eat way too many Ho Ho's, way too often.
14.  If you were to open my closet, the dominent colors you would see are Corals, Oranges, Brown's and Pinks.  It's kind of my go-to colors I guess.
15.  I hate dirty shoes.  It is a HUGE pet peeve of mine.  I think you can tell a lot about someone by looking at thier shoes.
16.  I could write a book about my life and experiences-and you would never believe any of it!  That is how wonderfully bizarre, happy, blessed, sad, sick and strange it has been thus far.  "only you Shannon"  has become a Strong family catch phrase.  I would not change a thing though.  I really would not.  Good and bad-God has always been there for me, and I try to always find his lessons in everything.
17.  I write this blog for Brayden.  I want to do the whole Blog to Book publish each year so when he is older he will be able to read all about his life, my life, and the life of Daddy, our families and friends, passions and experiences. 
I'm done for now ladies.  I am not going to tag anyone now since I am already behind the 8 ball here...but feel free to say I tagged you if you feel compelled to share your quirky dirt with the rest of us.  Have a fan-tab-u-lous week!

Get Excited and Make Things...

Chrissie over at In His Grace found this idea:

Brave People Make Things so get excited and make things….The first five (5) people to respond to this post will get something made by me.This offer does have some restrictions and limitations so please read carefully:

1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make. Whatcha get is whatcha get.

2. What I create will be just for you, with love.

3. It'll be done this year (2009).

4. I will not give you any clue what it's going to be. It will be something made in the real world and not something cyber. It may be weird or beautiful. Or it may be monstrous and annoying. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!

5. I reserve the right to do something strange.

6. In return, all you need to do is post this text on your blog and make 5 things for the first 5 to respond to blog.

7. Send your mailing address - after I contact you.

IMPORTANT:

This offer is null and void if I do not see you post your own blog to pay this forward.This is going around blog-land.

Chrissie over at at In His Grace found it here:

http://2ifbysea-cristi.blogspot.com/

25 Random Facts

A few weeks ago, I was tagged on Facebook to list 25 Random Facts about myself. I have just been able to get around to it now, so I thought I would post it here-and it will feed over to my FB page...makes it much easier this way.

1. I can move my ears.
2. Gladiolas are my favorite flowers.
3. I am a professional vocalist-but cannot sight read music-never could.
4. I hardly ever wear socks, my feet get too hot-drives me crazy.
5. Chocolate Peanut butter ice cream is my FAV.
6. Fruity Pebbles ROCK!
7. Dill pickles and birthday cake were my two major cravings while pregnant with Brayden.
8. I have blue eyes-with a brown spec in my right eye.
9. I collect wine and all things that go along with it-My mom teases me because I don't even drink-but I have a real wine fridge-it's all about the decor right?
10. I can't eat food prepared by someone else unless I have seen their kitchen.
11. I LOVE vegetables-any kinds and all kinds-I could LIVE on just veggies.
12. Carraba's is my FAV restaurant...next to Red Lobster of course.
13. I once lived in a haunted house.
14. Ticks totally FREAK me out!
15. Palmetto bugs are just EVIL. I once sprayed one with bleach thinking I could kill it-it just turned HOT PINK-and lived. Did you know they fly too? I found out that night-'nuff said.
16. My MIL and I share the same birthday.
17. I LOVE my calendar and address books-they ground me ;-)
18. I am PETRIFIED of sleeping alone in the house.
19. I hardly ever wear makeup, and when I do I stick to Neutrogena because my skin is very sensitive-it's the only brand I can use.
20. I love long drives in the car on a sunny day with the windows down while playing some really great music.
21. Every time I hear Billy Joel it reminds me of my oldest brother Todd. When I was little, him and I would sit in his car and he would play the beat of the music on the steering wheel and I on the dash board. I loved that!
22. I am very close to my family. I love that they are my support system and I love that we all have a great relationship with each other. I am very very blessed.
23. I love being a mother, I have never done anything more fulfilling or important in my entire life.
24. I am in the middle of writing a book...that I have been working on for 5 years now ;-)
25. My favorite season is Fall, and I LOVE maple leaves.

4th in the 4th

Kacey over at Chronicles of a Mommy tagged me for the 4th in the 4th! Thank you Kacey! If you have not checked out her blog, or her beautiful babies-pop on over there, she is a total sweetheart, and her blog will surely bring a smile to your face :-)

Here are the rules:
1- Choose the 4th file on my computer with the 4th picture.
2-Explain the 4th picture that is in that folder
3-Tag 4 people to do the same 4-no cheating (cropping, editing, etc.)

Here is my 4th file/4th picture:

This is Brayden on his first Halloween 2007. He was just shy of 2 months old in this photo. Ron and I were trying to find a costume for his first Halloween but were having trouble finding something we both loved...so Ron came up with the idea (being the big baseball coach and fan that he is)...of making Brayden a baseball Glove-with his head coming out of it (as the ball in the glove). YAY! So-the night before Halloween, we bought the fabric and I stayed up almost all night with Rons baseball glove on the dining room table staring at it-while trying to cut out and sew something that remotely looked like a baseball glove-and then trying to figure out how Brayden would fit in it, get in it, and how we would carry him around in it! By the next day-I was done...and Brayden ended up winning the "Most Imaginative Costume" award at the Theater Halloween night event. He was so comfy inside that glove-he fell asleep as we pushed him around in the stroller. Too fun!

Now-I am tagging 4 people that will also post something awesome...so here you go!
1. Jennifer @ So this is my life
2. Katy @ Fun with the Baker 5
3. Tiffany @ The Shaw Family
4. Scott @ Bailey Blog

Can't wait to see what everyone posts! Have a great end of week :-)

I've been tagged...

Okay Tiff-since you tagged me on the "7 random things about me"....I thought I would comply :-) I now have to tag 7 people? I don't have 7 bloggers to tag...but I am tagging the ones I do....Jennifer, Scott, Katy over at the Baker 5, and Kacey at Chronicles of a Mommy. Here Goes:

1. I am a milk-a-holic. I drink tons and tons of milk. I run a close second to Brayden's milk consumption. Maybe first actually. I literally crave it, in the middle of the night I wake up and usually make a trip downstairs for a quick glass before heading back to bed...it's completely insane and out of hand :-)
2. I LOVE LOVE LOVE garage sales and auctions and side of the road finds. If I find something old and can think of a way to make it new again...I have to buy it, or put it in the back of the Uplander :-) I have actually furnished most of our home from auctions, garage sale, and side of the road items,(yes I know...it's a bad thing, but so much fun...I have no shame when it comes to this). Well...we were also privy to 80% discounts during Ron's Haverty's furniture days...so that helped as well...but now I can't pay full price for anything for the house. You would never know though-that's what makes it so much fun :-)
3. I always listen to Josh Groban when I'm stressed out. He makes my world a happier place! I have every CD he has ever made...I would die to see him in concert live (and/or Rascal Flatts) of course.
4. I ran out of school in second grade and ran all the way home (twice) because my teacher yelled at me and scared me to death! I got teased about it through most of my school years and to this day people I knew back then still remember me crying in class then hauling tush out the door running home as fast I could ;-)
5. Ron and I have made several road trips from Florida to NY over the last 14 years. Almost every time we travel through Beckley WV-we experience car trouble...no joke! Once the key broke off in the ignition and we were stuck there for 24 hours...we blew two tires there in his parents motor home on one trip, and when the AAA tow truck came-he ripped the front bumper off of his parents motor home because he did not bring the right size tow truck! In the Mazda we blew a tire there, and had to wait (yes another) 24 hours there to special order the MX-3 type of tire. In the camaro, we blew two tires (two separate trips), I hit a buck in the middle of the night going through Beckley on another trip and smashed up the GEO pretty badly! Seriously...we are gun shy now to even go through Beckley at all! It's very odd. Don't mention Beckley to us!
6. Our car caught on fire on our honeymoon and was deemed a total loss. I sat on a bench nearby with my glove box in my hand laughing hysterically, then crying hysterically because I was in shock! Something sparked by the battery and poof! While we were in the store shopping I saw smoke and said to Ron "wow something is really on fire out there"...to which he peeked over the shelves we were behind and said "yeah, and it's our car". Okay-laugh all you want...it's actually funny now! I made a two page scrapbook spread page out of it with pictures titled "Goodness, Gracious, great balls of fire" -in our wedding scrapbook ;-)
7. I truly believe everything happens for a reason. I believe God is involved in everything we do everyday and every experience brings with it a lesson we much look inside ourselves to find. I believe in Karma, and that what goes around DOES and WILL come back around. I believe God gives us everything we need to make decisions, and I try very hard to live my life making the decisions he would want me to make. I am no saint, by any means...but I know I am here for a reason, and it's not for myself, or self gain. When I see a street light that goes on/off automatically while I am either driving or walking underneath it-I tell myself that is God's way of telling me I am in the right place at that moment-where I should be. It actually happens quite frequently to me! I know, it's a little crazy sounding, but it always makes me smile...so I'm just going to keep going with it :-)