One year ago today, I sat at my computer late one night and thought, what the heck, I’m going to start a blog. And for about 5 whole days, I kept it to myself because that way I would be under no pressure to do anything with it. I’ll just write whatever comes to mind, and if I decide to delete the whole thing, then no one will ever know the difference.

And I was cranking out some stellar, stellar material. Most of which had the same literary quality of most 5th grade essays, such as “I spent this summer at the pool. Then, I went to band camp. The pool was fun, but band camp was even more funner.”

It was riveting stuff.

Then, at the pool one afternoon, Gulley and I were talking and I confessed my blog secret, which at that time felt like I might as well say, “Hello. I am a big nerdy nerd who writes things ON THE COMPUTER and doesn’t even know if you say ‘html’ like it’s a word or if you just say the letters, which, technically, means I don’t even know enough to be a computer geek, so I’m just a plain old geek.”

But Gulley loves me, so she started reading, and I was bound and determined to keep her entertained with some average reading material. Then, I sent an email to about 5 of my friends from college, including Hite and Jen, letting them know I had started a blog and also, I had 852 slides from our latest vacation and we could all watch them during their next visit, right after we watched the video of Caroline’s birth.

Next, I made a few online friends (that term doesn’t sound creepy at all) like Barb, Diane, Jennifer, Melanie and Boomama, who read me when pretty much no one else knew that this level of writing quality was available on the internet. So, thank you ladies.

I had no idea that someday more than 15 people would read this, but I am so thankful that y’all do. Thanks for the laughs, the encouragement, the love and the commiseration. Y’all have made my life richer in the last year and I am grateful.

Many of you often email me and ask me what my favorite posts are, so in honor of one year on the computer, here are the links to a few of my favorite posts. And I’m totally kidding, no one has ever emailed to ask about my favorite posts, but here are the links anyway.

The Sopranos

Trials of Potty Training

Pregnancy and Bikinis

The Big Gulp

Adventures in Pedicures

I’ve seen this restaurant meme going around all over the place and I kind of filed it away as something I might do at some point, but I’ve been so busy, what with all the fish death and cake baking, that I forgot about it. But then, Tracey at More than a Minivan Mom actually tagged me, so here it is. I go back and forth on whether or not I like doing memes, but today? I like them.

Let me also state that I’m breaking all the rules and changing the meme to suit my own purposes, because I can’t be confined by the man and his rules. Since I live in a city that has, at last count 852 Mexican food restaurants, we eat a lot of Mexican food, and if I were to write about my 5 favorite local restaurants, it would look like this.

1. Taco Taco Cafe
2. Taco Garage
3. Patty’s Taco House
4. Taco Taco Cafe #2
5. Taco Taco Cafe #3

That would just be boring and, in spite of what y’all may think, I try to not be boring.

So, with apologies to Julio Iglesias, this is a post to all the restaurants I’ve loved before.

1. Casa Ole’ - There was a time in my life when my idea of great Mexican food was Casa Ole’. Back in high school, when I was in posession of a 16 year old metabolism, I would eat here at least three times a week. I always ordered the Dinner El Paso, which consisted of two cheese enchiladas covered in queso with a crispy beef taco on the side.

And they had green sauce. Love the green sauce. Pledge my undying love to the green sauce.

Throughout high school and college, Casa Ole’ was my answer to any of life’s events; heartaches, hangovers, girls’ night out. But sadly, now that I’ve experienced real Mexican food, the love affair is over.

2. The Grapevine - My sophomore year at Texas A&M, I discovered The Grapevine. College Station had about three restaurants at the time, Lubys, The Blackeyed Pea, and Fajita Ritas. Grapevine was an oasis in the desert of restaurants.

Gulley, Jen, Tiff and I ate at Grapevine multiple times a week. They made the best twice baked potatoes EVER and their salads were the best. They had these perfect cubes of cheese and tomato and served it with Parmesan Pepper dressing. And because I was so healthy, I would ask for a whole bottle of Parmesan Pepper dressing and dip Club Crackers in it.

My arteries are still feeling the effects.

Sadly, The Grapevine is no longer with us. It closed down sometime after I left A&M and this saddens me to no end. In fact, when the restaurant went up for sale, we talked about buying it but since the price was like $3 million dollars, it seemed like an excessive amount to spend just so I could keep eating Parmesan Pepper dressing. I still dream about the Parmesan Pepper dressing.

When Gulley and I were in College Station last month, we drove by in the hopes that maybe, just maybe, someone had resurrected Grapevine. But in an ironic twist, the property is now home to Lighthouse Christian Church, which makes sense given the religious experience that was Parmesan Pepper dressing.

3. Carrabbas - Once upon a time, Carrabbas was a family owned restaurant on Kirby Drive in Houston. Now, it’s a chain and that makes me sad. It’s not that chain restaurants can’t be good, but the chain factor sucks the soul out of a place.

Gulley and I used to drive to Houston to visit our dads during college and one of the big events was getting to go to Carrabbas. I always ordered the Pollo Rosa Maria with a side of fettucine alfredo, otherwise known as Heart Disease On A Plate.

And I don’t know why I feel the need to tell y’all this, but I once ate so much there one night that I had to change my pajama bottoms during the night because the elastic was too tight.

That’s just shameful.

Anyway, now Carrabbas is a chain and it’s lost its charm and appeal, but on the bright side, I don’t have to worry about my pajama bottoms anymore.

4. The Gristmill - We don’t eat here too often because it’s in Gruene, Texas, which is about 45 minutes away, but I love it. It’s right on the Guadalupe River and next to Gruene Hall, the oldest dancehall in Texas.

There is nothing better than spending a day floating on the river and then heading to The Gristmill to eat a chicken fried steak while listening to the sounds of Texas music coming from the dancehall. I haven’t done it in years, about 4 1/2 to be exact, but it’s a great way to spend the day.

Not to mention, eating chicken fried steak while wearing a swimsuit? Awesome.

5. Rosarios - It’s hard name just one favorite Mexican restaurant, so I’ll pick Rosarios. It’s located downtown and has some of the best Mexican food in the city, which is saying something in a city of 852 Mexican restaurants. It’s more upscale than your average taco house and the guacamole is unbelievably good.

P took me to Rosarios for our first night out after Caroline was born and when I took a sip of my first margarita in a year, I started crying. Granted, there could have been some hormones responsible for the tears along with “Raising Arizona” declarations of “I just looove that baby”, but I like to believe it was just the pure, top shelf goodness of the perfect margarita accompanied with chips and guacamole.

And there it is, the restaurants that have meant the most to me over the years. I have eaten at nicer places. I’ve eaten at gourmet restaurants where the food is perfectly presented and oh-so-arty and trendy, but these are the places that are close to my heart. When it comes down to it, I will always take a good chicken fried steak or chili con queso over slow roasted wild salmon on dilled cucumbers and avocado served with hydroponic baby lettuces.

I’m just sophisticated like that, not to mention, I think it’s cruel to eat the baby lettuces.

Chilihead is hosting a little 20 questions kind of thing today, except with, you know, about 9 questions instead of 20. I thought it would be fun to finally put to rest all of the questions surrounding the blog that is Big Mama. Plus, I really can’t wait to see what other people have to say because I am nosy, which is evidenced by the fact that I love to read about other people’s lives on a daily basis.

Anyway, here goes. Woo hoo.

How did you start blogging?

Umm, I signed up at blogger.com.

Oh, you want more?

My first introduction to the blog world was purely as a reader. During Caroline’s newborn stage, the computer became my steady companion. There was only so much Days Of Our Lives I could watch, seeing as how the plotlines were essentially the same plotlines I watched in college, so instead of being smart and sleeping when Caroline slept, I got on the world wide web.

I found a Mommy forum for August ‘03 mamas and started checking in just to reassure myself that I was normal and not, in fact, having some kind of breakdown. One of the girls on the forum mentioned a blog called Dooce. I started reading and was hooked, because although our beliefs couldn’t be more different, she is a phenomenal writer and made me laugh. Not to mention that our babies were about the same age and I related to many of her thoughts on new motherhood.

However, based on Dooce, I thought blogs were strictly for liberal, cool 20-somethings with alternative viewpoints on life. The idea of actually writing about my life ON THE INTERNET never even occurred to me.

Then, about a year later, I randomly stumbled onto In the Midst of It and then, Boomama. I related to everything about them. Their faith, their families, their friends. So, I thought what the heck? I’ve got some stories and I’ll write them, even if no one ever reads them.

I honestly figured the blog would last a week.

Did you intend to be a blog w/a following? If so, how did you go about it?

Honestly, when I started this blog I figured it would be something fun for Gulley and me to read. My daily goal was to either record a memory of Caroline or to make Gulley laugh. That’s about as ambitious as it got. Do y’all really think I would have called myself Big Mama if I had known more than 10 people would someday call me that?

What do you hope to achieve or accomplish with your blog?

I guess my main goal has always been to make myself a better writer and record memories, plus I thought it might help me get started on the book I’ve always said I’d like to write.

When I go back and read some of my earlier posts, I cringe a little. I think writing is one of those things that gets better with practice. I know that the more I write, the better I write. It makes me work harder to come up with new and creative ways to say, “Today, I cleaned up some poop.”

Have you been successful?

I think I’ve been fairly successful. However, I have my favorite blogs that I read and, honestly, covet their writing skills. There are some amazing writers out in the blog world. And when I read a well turned phrase or punch line, it makes me almost weep with joy…or envy. Or both.

Has the focus of your blog changed since you started blogging? How?

I don’t know that focus and Big Mama really go together.

What do you know now that you wish you’d known when you started?

I don’t know that there is anything I would do differently. At times I wonder if I shouldn’t use Caroline’s name or picture, but I think I do a pretty good job of keeping other aspects anonymous for safety reasons. I asked Gulley the other day if she wanted me to go back and change her name to G in all of my old posts, because I had no idea that anyone other than my friends would read this. Of course, it’s been kind of fun because anyone who knew us in college can figure out immediately who I am when they see Gulley’s name. And the Diamond Darling thing is a dead giveaway for sure.

Do you make money with your blog?

No. However, I have received a roll of paper towels and 2 boxes of cereal. I think these items will definitely help pay Caroline’s college tuition and more than compensate me for the embarrassing things I’ve confessed over the last 11 months.

Does your immediate or extended family know about your blog? If so, do they read it?

All of my family and P’s family know about the blog. I never had any intention of keeping it a secret, but I didn’t tell them when I started it because I didn’t really know that I’d blog for more than a week. Also, I still feel awkward and weird telling people, “Umm, I have this, like website type thing and umm, people read about my life ON THE INTERNET.”

However, everyone has found out about it one way or the other and I think most of them read it sometimes. Even my 89 year old grandmother who has her own laptop and wireless internet. How cool is that? Hi Nanny.

Plus, P has occasionally forwarded out links to posts, primarily the ones about elk hunting or hunting for hogs out of helicopters, to his group of friends. I am proud to say that I may be one of the only mommy blogs to ever be read by members of the U.S. special forces, and assorted other guys in their 20’s and 30’s. I reach all demographics really.

What two pieces of advice would you give to a new blogger?

The best advice was something I read one time that I think was actually from Dooce. Whenever you write something, imagine the last person in the world who you’d want to read it and then assume that some day they will find it. If that’s okay, post away. If not, rethink what you wrote and save yourself the heartache. I have been amazed at the random people from my life that have found me through this blog, which reminds me that you never know who will be reading.

Also, the best way to get traffic is to leave comments on other blogs. Back before I had my own blog, I always wondered if bloggers liked comments or if they got to a point where they didn’t care. I don’t know about everyone else, but I will reveal my inner dork once again, to say that I adore comments. I never get tired of them and let’s be honest, they are sometimes the funniest part of this blog.

Plus, I’ve gotten to the point where I have my list of blogs that I read faithfully and many times the only way I find a new blog is through my comments. If someone leaves a good comment and if P and Caroline will quit telling me they need to eat or need clean clothes or whatever, then I love to go visit my commenters. And if I’m reading someone else’s blog and see a funny comment, I’ll click on it to see who wrote it. So, don’t be afraid to give a shout out.

I hope now that I’ve answered these questions, you will be able to sleep better at night knowing how Big Mama came to be. I will say that it’s been more fun than I ever imagined, and that’s because of y’all. Big love from Big Mama.

Now head on over to Chilihead’s because inquiring minds want to know.

I have to share with y’all, today is a momentous occasion that must be documented. I am composing this post on my brand new MacBook. Oh yes, I have joined the world of Apple and all its loveliness.

P and I (well actually just me, because P really couldn’t care less about computers other than going online occasionally to purchase ammo and camoflauge backpacks) were on the verge of making this life changing purchase about three weeks ago and then I got the call from my manager letting me know that I might be getting fired and since we are discerning and wise, we realized it might not be the best time to make such a purchase.

However, we were living in dire, desperate computing circumstances here, with our old Windows system and a CPU that sounded like it might explode at any time due to sheer exhaustion from running a completely antiquated system. Y’all may think I’m exaggerating, but let me tell you there were some mornings that we turned on the computer (we always turned it off at night because we seriously believed it could be a fire hazard) and an alarm would start beeping to let us know that it was HOT! and the FAN! WASN’T! WORKING! and we always did what any really tech savvy person would do and just hit a bunch of keys on the keyboard until the noise stopped, because P and I both knew that if I couldn’t get on the computer, my eye would start to twitch and it would just be a matter of time before I was in full blown withdrawal.

We were living in computer denial.

But now, we have seen the light, repented of our computer processing sins, and laid our checkbook on the altar of Apple.

I thought long and hard about what my first post would be on my fancy new computer, but between watching and worrying about Meredith Grey possibly being dead and then finding out who got voted off American Idol, I just couldn’t come up with anything of great blogging substance.

However, earlier this week I saw this meme that DeeDee over at It Coulda’ Been Worse made up and knew it would just be a matter of time before it called to me. If nothing else, it will make me think about songs I’d like to upload to my iPod, which now looks so perfect sitting next to my MacBook.

And the fact that I just said that means that literally, I have technically turned into a geek. My music choices will just confirm my membership into the less than cool club.

Favorite Song From Childhood: Seriously, if there were a soundtrack of my childhood I feel like there are two voices I would hear: Jimmy Swaggart and Willie Nelson. The polar opposites of the musical spectrum.

It seems like I was either listening to “The Old Rugged Cross” or “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain”. That being said, the song that always takes me back to childhood is hearing Willie sing “Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys”.

Favorite High School Dance Song: Get out your banana clip, tease those bangs, throw on your Guess jeans and prepare to get your groove on to “It Takes Two” by Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock . WHOO! YEAH!

Senior Class Song: It pains me to say that it was the schmaltz that is Whitney Houston singing “One Moment In Time”. When I think back to my senior class, the only moment in time we needed was a sober one. Everyone just step away from the Boones Farm Strawberry Hill.

Favorite Rock & Roll Song: I know that Van Halen has had their issues with David Lee Roth and then no David Lee and then Sammy Hagar and then David Lee Roth again, but I unashamedly love me some Van Halen. “Why Can’t this Be Love?” will have me singing at the top of my lungs every time. That’s right, I said it.

And just so I don’t lose all credibility and embarass P to no end, I also love The Rolling Stones, especially “Brown Sugar”.

Favorite Disco Song: I’m not sure it qualifies as disco but I love “Sing a Song” by Earth, Wind and Fire.

Favorite Country Western Song: “Marina Del Rey” or just about anything by George Strait because he is the best there has ever been.

Favorite Pop Song: At the moment I love “Suddenly I See” by KT Tunstall. It’s a happy springtime song that almost makes me okay with the fact that it’s 80 degrees outside in February.

Favorite All Time Love Song: “The Way You Look Tonight” sung by Tony Bennett. If it’s not Tony singing, then there just isn’t as much love.

Favorite Break Up Song: “Nothing Compares 2 U” by Sinead O’Connor. If the interior of my car that I drove in high school (a sweet, sweet Honda CRX) could talk, I would be shamed for anyone to know how many times I cried over various ex-boyfriends to this song.

Favorite Make Out Song: I’m sorry, but when I see the words make out song, all that comes to mind is Richie Cunningham on Happy Days singing “I found my thrills on blueberry hill…”

Song That Always Makes You Cry: “Lullaby” by The Dixie Chicks because it is one of the sweetest songs ever and captures a mama’s heart.

Songs About Your Kid/s: “Sweet Caroline” is the obvious choice and I do adore the song. The other song is “Fly Me to the Moon” because it was the song that I sang more than any other as I rocked her in the middle of the night.

And one more that will always make me think of Caroline is a worship song called “You Are So Good to Me” because the chorus says “You are beautiful, my sweet, sweet song…” and the first night we were home from the hospital, P and I were eating dinner that someone had brought over and Caroline was this sweet, pink bundle in her bassinet and that song was playing and when it got to the chorus, I put my head down in my meatloaf and cried because I felt so blessed. And yes, I was probably also slightly hormonal.

Song That Reminds You Of Your Husband: P and I have never been the kind of couple that has a song. We just aren’t really like that. We also call each other by our last name instead of honey or baby or whatever. We’re not a schmoopy kind of couple, NOT that there is anything wrong with that.

So, all of that to say that the song that will always remind me of P is “Cowboy Take Me Away” by the Dixie Chicks, not because he is a cowboy (although there is a nasty rumor going around that before I met him he used to wear Wranglers and perhaps a belt with his name on the back) but because it just makes me remember all the things I love about him.

Favorite Gospel/Praise Song: This is a hard one to narrow down, but I’ll just name two. “Unashamed Love” by Ten Shekel Shirt and lately, “How Can I Keep from Singing” by Chris Tomlin.

Favorite Ringtone on Cellphone: Honestly, I’m not a fan of the song ringtone because then I end up hating the song. I’m a plain old Cingular ringtone kind of girl.

I’m not going to tag anyone, but if it looks like fun, then hit me with your best shot a la Pat Benatar.

Hope y’all have a great weekend!

The first order of business today is to thank y’all for your sweet comments regarding my funk. Nothing like feeling loved to make a girl feel a little less funky. Seriously.

Secondly, Jennifer over at Snapshot tagged me for a meme that involves divulging six weird pieces of information about myself. Come on. You’ve got to give me a challenge. Finding six weird things is like taking candy from a baby.

1. I am absolutely, completely compulsive when it comes to all things involving going to bed at night. P and I have slept under separate covers since about the second week of our marriage because for some reason he didn’t want to sleep under a down comforter every night. I am now unable to share covers with anyone, even my child. If Caroline gets in bed with us at night, I bring her own quilt for her to cover up with because everyone in this family has to pull their own weight…or blanket as the case may be.

In addition to the no cover sharing, I must have a totally wrinkle free bottom sheet and all three of the pillows that I sleep with must be plumped down to the end of the pillowcase. I don’t need any extraneous pillow case hanging off the pillow, it’s just messy. And if there are any crumbs in the bed, then my night is just completely shot.

After I get all of this done (and I know y’all can’t imagine there is more), I have to go to the bathroom three times in a ten minute period. It goes like this: go to the bathroom, brush teeth, go to the bathroom, turn on bedside lamp and take down ponytail, go to the bathroom. It doesn’t matter that I may not have to even go, I’m just doing everything I can to prevent a 2 a.m. trip to the bathroom. My hatred of middle of the night bathroom visits made me a complete joy to be around throughout my pregnancy.

2. I know just about every song that has ever been written. I could be on Name that Tune…well, if it still existed. You give me a song and most of the time I can give you the artist and at least some of the lyrics.

3. I have mentioned before that I am OCD. I can’t stand clutter. Things pile up and I must get them out of my sight. However, what I may have failed to mention is that I often just put them somewhere else where they don’t necessarily belong, but where I don’t have to look at them. This may explain why a drawer in my kitchen holds takeout menus, batteries, a thank you note from Caroline’s teacher, playdough, some decorative garland from Christmas and other assorted oddities.

In fact earlier, P pulled out a little ziploc baggie containing a door stop, multiple picture hangers, and two double AA batteries and commented how handy it was to have all those items in one convenient baggie since they obviously all go together.

I would like to be more organized, really I would, but not enough to actually do something about it.

4. I know more trivial information than should be allowed. I am truly the Cliff Claven of my group of friends and PROUD of it. There is nothing I like more than throwing out a random fact about something or someone. I can’t always cite my source because I have stored information in recesses of my brain about things I’ve read years before, but oh yes ma’am do I know some stuff.

The only commonality is that most of it isn’t useful.

5. I briefly mentioned this in a previous post, but back when I used to go hunting and P would put me in a blind by myself, I would get bored and start talking to the deer. I’d get louder and louder until I was basically yelling “Hey YOU!” at them. Amazingly, some of them still stuck around which completely proved P’s theory that you have to be quiet while hunting totally wrong.

Either that or they just figured that any idiot yelling at them out of a blind was certainly not planning on shooting them, so they might as well keep eating.

6. I tend to obsess over things (see #1). I would like to say that I lose sleep at night over things like world peace or the budget deficit, but that would be a lie. I will wake up in the middle of the night to worry about things like if I should have bought the sweater that I saw earlier that day at Gap and if I go back tomorrow will they still have one in my size.

I also lay awake and compose letters in my head that I am going to write to the head of whoever is in charge of trains, regarding how many times a train conductor should be allowed to blow their whistle at 2 a.m. and wake people out of a perfectly good sleep, people who need their sleep because they have a child who rarely sleeps through the night and if this happens to be one of those rare nights, then they certainly do not need to be awakened by some train conductor blowing his whistle 146 times because he is bitter that he is working the night train shift.

I don’t limit my imaginary letter writing to the bigwigs at the train department. It’s just an example of one of my most common compositions. Anyone is fair game to end up on my pretend letter exercise, the only problem is that they usually make much more sense in the wee hours of the morning than they do in the light of day, which I’m sure is the ONLY reason that I don’t actually write out my thoughts and send them in.

And on the subject of writing out thoughts, I think I’m done. I’m supposed to tag six people, but I am fairly certain that everyone in the blogging universe has already done this. If you haven’t, then consider yourself tagged. If any of y’all don’t have a blog, feel free to live something weird about yourself in the comments. It’s always comforting to know you’re not alone.

I have been so excited about Boomama’s Christmas Tour of Homes because back in July during the original tour of homes, I was new to this whole blogging world, so I felt more like perhaps an uninvited stalker than a warm, friendly neighbor dropping by to see if any of y’all might have some sugar cookies. Now that I actually know some folks and some folks know me, it’s much more fun to invite y’all into my home and getting to see where you live and how you deck your halls.

So, welcome to the holiday house of Big Mama.

This is our front door which no one really uses because I believe I have mentioned that it has a tendency to get stuck and make an unholy amount of noise when you open it, probably due to the fact that it’s eighty-three years old. However, it is the original door, it’s cute as a button and I love it with my Christmas wreath hanging on it.

Here is our Christmas tree. First things first, yes those are deer mounts hanging on either side and yes, I have to fight the tendency this time of year to put a red nose on one of them and call him Rudolph. Anyway, it’s a real tree and it smells like a little piece of heaven or you know, a little piece of pine forest. The picture doesn’t really show it well, but it has a ton of lights on it. I have a mix of ornaments on it ranging from a few Waterford ones that were gifts, to some that belonged to my Mema that bring back tons of memories just looking at them, to a stuffed Santa that P’s best friend brought us when he was living in Norway.

And yes, I do still need to wrap presents which explains why it looks so barren. I am nothing if not behind on everything this year.

This is the view from our living room into our dining room. P actually came up with the idea of wrapping the columns like candy canes a few years ago. That P is just a little bit crafty.

Here is a close up of the kitchen. I bought those wreaths at Michael’s for .99 a piece and love how they look hanging in the windows. There is also a platter next to the window that my friend Meredith made using Caroline’s footprint and turning it into a Santa Claus. It’s the plate that holds our milk and cookies for Santa on Christmas Eve.

Next up (if you’re still here) is the mantle. It has your standard garland, stocking hangers and stockings. Y’all may notice that our stockings have our names on them. I tried to be really cute and put Big Mama and P on ours, but it doesn’t really show up. So I’m telling you about it so that my efforts aren’t in vain. I also have a few framed pictures of Caroline from Christmases past.

The big Santa Claus was a wedding gift and I just love him. At some point in the past, some squirrels got into our attic (yes, I prefer to believe they were squirrels) and chewed some of Santa’s packages, but he still looks good and his beard covers the damage.

I’ll leave you with the symbol of why we celebrate Christmas. Let me first explain that our grown up nativity has mysteriously disappeared. I’m waiting for a star in the east to lead me to its whereabouts, but if that doesn’t happen I have my eye on a new one that I’m hoping will be on sale after Christmas. So, this is our nativity this year, which to me is appropriate, because it is a symbol of the stage of life we are in. Caroline loves to play with all the figures and I find them in a new arrangement every day. This is what I discovered yesterday.

I’m going to go back and check for clarification, but I’m almost positive that it wasn’t a donkey of the Lord that appeared.

Merry Christmas, y’all. Thanks for stopping by.

This meme has been all over the place, but most recently I saw it at Barb’s and then over at Bev’s and I decided it was festive. I am also feeling the pressure because what could be better than P and his elk? It’s really more than the mind can comprehend. Well, at least more than my mind can comprehend.

1. Egg nog or hot chocolate? I can say that I make a fabulous eggnog from a recipe that was given to me by P’s mama (only I add a little more alcohol to keep us all in a festive frame of mind, and really since she only adds a teaspoon of rum per gallon…there’s nowhere to go but up). In fact, P gets completely addicted to the eggnog and has been known to put on 10 pounds in a single Christmas season. That’s the year that he conducted a self intervention and dumped the rest of the eggnog down the drain because while I make a great eggnog, I personally don’t care for it so he ends up drinking it all by himself. Give me hot chocolate any day of the week. And half coffee with half hot chocolate? They’ll be serving that in heaven, I guarantee.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? Santa just sets the presents under the tree. I can still remember running into the living room on Christmas morning and seeing what looked like a toy store gone wild. I can’t wait to see Caroline’s face when she walks into our living room this year. She is going to lose her mind.

3. Colored lights or white? White lights for sure. The colored lights are back and a little retro chic, but I think if you’re going to use colored lights they need to be those big old fashioned ones, not just some flashing little red ones that make your house look like a dance club.

No offense if that’s what some of y’all have on your house…I’m sure they look lovely.

4. Do you hang mistletoe? There’s enough kissing in this house without mistletoe.

5. When do you decorate for Christmas? I like to decorate the weekend after Thanksgiving because then the decorations get to stay up long enough to make me feel like it was worth it to get everything down out of the attic. Plus, I think our house never looks prettier than it does at Christmas.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish, excluding dessert? When I was growing up my favorite dish without a doubt was my Aunt Sandra’s broccoli rice casserole. I have her recipe but no matter what I do, it never tastes as good as hers did. She even started making a whole extra pan for me so that I could eat it leftover for days.

Now one of my favorites is P’s mama’s cornbread dressing. She makes it in a big dutch oven on the stove so it’s not the kind of dressing that you cut in squares, it’s a moist, delicious slice of heaven. I have the recipe but I’ve never even attempted to make it because first of all, I’d eat the whole pot by myself and secondly, I know it wouldn’t be as good.

7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? I have so many great holiday memories. I remember the Christmas when I got my blue bike with a banana seat with daisies all over it. That was also the year that I got some stylish gauchos with a shirt that said “Jeans, jeans, jeans”. I also remember getting my Donny and Marie dolls complete with sound stage. Oh I did love me some Donny Osmond.

But mostly, my best memories are of family and laughter. I loved getting to stay up late, eat candy, and the anticipation of seeing what Santa brought the next morning.

8. When and how, did you learn the truth about Santa? I was at a Brownie meeting in second grade and Sheila Barker broke the bad news. I was so mad I think I might have kicked her.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? If I can find some cute Christmas pajamas for Caroline, I’ll wrap them and let her open them Christmas eve, but so far my search for cute jammies has been fruitless. Well…unless I want to spend $50.00, which I don’t.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? Lots of white lights with red ribbon and silver beads for garland. I have lots of different ornaments and try to add a least a few new ones every year. My favorite ornament is a glittery red nest with a little red bird that belonged to my Mema.

11. Snow. Love it or hate it? Love it because I haven’t seen it since I went to Colorado five years ago. In a cruel twist of fate, it actually snowed in South Texas two Christmases ago and we didn’t get any of it where I live. I keep my fingers crossed every year that maybe this will be the year.

12. Can you ice skate? Yes, I am ranked in the world in ice skating. My rank would be somewhere in the bottom billion.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? I think I already mentioned the Donny and Marie dolls. Does it get any better than that?

14. What is the most important thing about the holidays to you? Making Christmas a magical time for Caroline. I want her to appreciate why we celebrate Christmas and all the fun things that the holiday season brings.

15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? Gulley’s homemade iced sugar cookies. In fact, I just asked her yesterday when she was going to start baking them. Last year, you’d have thought I was a crack addict and she was my supplier. I am embarrassed to say that I hounded her daily about my cookie supply.

I am not kidding when I say that they have some ingredient that is completely addictive and will make you lose any resolve to not consume 26 cookies in one sitting and beg for more.

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? I’m still working on establishing some family traditions, but one thing that P and I do every year is walk around our local outdoor shopping center right before Christmas. We wait for a cold night, go out to dinner, get some hot chocolate and walk around and window shop. It’s one of my favorite things we do.

17. What tops your tree? A silver star.

18. Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? Giving. It’s a great feeling to pick out something for someone that you know they’ll like. And seeing Caroline’s excitement is the best present I could get.

Of course, I wouldn’t turn down a diamond ring.

19. What is your favorite Christmas song? O Holy Night is my favorite religious song, but I do love Jingle Bell Rock for just plain fun. I remember my mama putting our Christmas albums on the console stereo while we decorated the tree and I always loved when Jingle Bell Rock came on.

Oh, and Blue Christmas because it’s Elvis. What else do you need to know?

20. Candy canes. Yuck or yum? I’m not a fan.

Y’all have a nice weekend!

I was tagged by Linda at 2nd Cup of Coffee for the word association meme that’s been going around. And by the way, if y’all haven’t visited Linda you should…she’s funny and smart.

I can say with all certainty that it will be hard for me to be brief because my mind tends to go on a tangent when faced with thinking about all the things one word can bring to mind.

So here are my words:

1. Chicken: Me. I am a big chicken and nothing reminds me of it more than Halloween season. I am terrified of any scary movie or movie preview or book or ghost story. It doesn’t matter how many times P reassures me that the odds of an already deceased serial killer wearing a hockey mask is a highly unlikely scenario…I can NOT watch anything remotely scary. When I was a senior in high school, I made the mistake of going to see Pet Semetary with some friends, and I had to sleep with my mom until I left for college. I am not kidding.

Also, one night in college I was studying at my boyfriend’s house and had left one of my books in the car. I was scared to go get it by myself because I had been at a friend’s house earlier where people were telling scary stories and begged him to go get it for me, but he wouldn’t. So I ran out to my car and in the meantime, he went out his back door, came around and jumped out and scared me in the driveway. I jumped a mile in the air and may have tee-teed in my pants. I can’t imagine why we broke up.

2. Tranquility: the smell of lavender and soaking in a bubble bath in complete and total silence.
It also makes me think of the sound of the ocean.

3. Permanent: teeth. I am a little obsessed with Caroline’s future permanent teeth, so I tend to worry about too much juice or candy ruining her permanent teeth before they ever make an appearance in her mouth. Our pediatrician instills a lot of fear about bad habits of today affecting the permanent teeth later. We can’t take these baby teeth lightly because apparently if something happens to them it will affect everything from future orthodontia bills to SAT scores and someday your child could grow up to be a toothless, unproductive member of society.

4. Adjusting: this makes me think of change. As in, I am not good at adjusting to change. I try, honestly I do, but the closet control freak in me is not a fan of adjusting.

I’m pretty sure everyone in the blogging universe has been tagged already, but if you want to play or play again, here are the words.

cowboy
lemon
peace
change

Have a good Sunday!

Barb at A Chelsea Morning tagged me for this meme and I really like it. It’s hard to come up with the memories because there are so many, so these are the moments that came to mind. I’m sure I’ll think of other things later and wish I’d mentioned them. But for now, here they are.

1. Favorite Memory of your Mother?
One thing I’ve always loved about my mama is that she can be spontaneous. I remember going to visit her one weekend while I was in college and a big ice storm was blowing in. The newscasters were warning everyone to stay off the roads and just stay home if you could avoid going out. Well, always being wise and cautious, we decided that if we were going to be stuck inside the rest of the weekend, we better get to Walmart and stock up on some things while we still could. We walked up and down the aisles for at least an hour and a half loading up our cart with essentials like new makeup and bunny rabbit houseshoes. It’s just a fun memory of the two of us laughing together.

I remember when we got home there were about a million messages on the answering machine from my Nanny who was worried to death about us and we had to call her back and explain that we weren’t in peril, but had just been at the Walmart. I think she wanted to kill us both which made us laugh even more.

Another thing I’ll always remember about my mama is how well she took care of us when we were sick. She’d make me a comfy little spot on the couch and fix me some cinnamon toast or anything else I wanted. This probably caused me to be more than a little bit of a hypochondriac because I loved all the back scratches and pampering I got when I wasn’t feeling well.

2. Favorite Memory of your Father?
I have great memories of going to stay at my dad’s house when I was younger and he would let us play Colecovision or Blind Man’s Bluff (in the house, which tells y’all he didn’t have a lot of breakable stuff) until late at night and then sometimes we’d all camp out in the living room to sleep.

I will also never forget how irritated he was with the baby nurses at the hospital the night Caroline was born. He watched them clean her up through the window and was so annoyed at how rough he thought they were. It was just the beginning of his love for Caroline and a small glimpse of what a wonderful grandfather he is.

3. Favorite Memory of your Siblings?
I have one younger sister and she is almost 4 years younger than me. When I was little, I was scared of the dark so we shared a room. Some of my favorite memories are of the two of us staying up late talking as I shared my 5th grade wisdom with her and told her about the dog eat dog world of junior high. We’d scratch each other’s backs, play games and pretend to be asleep if my mom came in the room.

I’ll also never forget that she and her husband came over when I was in labor with Caroline and took my car to get vacuumed out. It was a true act of love because it was hotter than blue blazes outside. I can be a little OCD (see post below) and in spite of my labor pains was obsessed with the fact that I could not bring my new baby home from the hospital in an unvacummed car.

4. What one skill would you like to wake up tomorrow and be able to do (though you’d never learned it)?
I wish I could sew. I would love to be able to make cute outfits for Caroline. I adore looking at fabrics and imagining all the possibilities, but I can barely sew a button on.

5. Which one of your dreams has come true?
I always dreamed of being happily married and having a family of my own. God has done more than I asked or imagined and I’m grateful.

This was a fun one. If you decide to do it, leave me a comment so I can come visit!

Have a great day!

In blog tradition, this is my 100th post so here are 100 things about me otherwise known as maybe a great way to put yourself to sleep.

1. I was born in Houston, TX

2. The year was 1971

3. My hair was so thick and long that it was down to the middle of my back at 2 years old

4. I wish it was still that thick and long

5. Sadly, pregnancy did some irreversible damage

6. Talk about big hair, you should’ve seen me in the 80’s

7. My first real memory is the day we brought my little sister home from the hospital

8. She is 3 years and 9 months younger than me

9. My parents divorced when I was 9

10. My sister and I lived with my mom

11. We moved to Beaumont when I was 12

12. My dad drove to see us every other weekend

13. Sometimes we rode a Greyhound bus to Houston to see him

14. My Mema and Papa would take us to the bus station to catch the bus

15. Mema always packed my sister and me a sack lunch

16. There was always a can of Coke and some Nutter Butters in the lunch

17. I loved going to the bus station because they had a Ms. Pacman game and Papa had an unlimited supply of quarters.

18. I didn’t really like riding the bus

19. One time I caused my little sister to wet her pants because I made her finish her Coke so that I wouldn’t have to hold it for her

20. My dad called me on the phone every night of my life

21. He still does

22. I didn’t realize when I was younger what a rare man he is

23. I do now

24. After we moved to Beaumont we lived down the street from my grandparents

25. When I was 11 my sister got the chicken pox and I purposely tried to get them too so that I could stay home from school

26. It worked

27. I was sorry about one day into my pox affliction

28. My favorite subject in school was English

29. I was in honors classes

30. Except for any subject related to math

31. I failed Algebra II my junior year in high school

32. My senior year I had to take Geometry and Algebra II at the same time so that I could get into Texas A&M

33. I still have nightmares about it

34. I brought my teacher apple fritters every morning and I’m pretty sure that’s the only reason I passed the class.

35. I chose my major based on what would require the least amount of math

36. I took Business Math 141 and made a D

37. I was thrilled to make a D

38. I took two semesters of Japaneses in college

39. The only thing I remember is “Hajimimoshte” which means how do you do?

40. It took me 5 years to graduate from school

41. Mainly because I wanted to stay for one more football season

42. My last semester I only took 4 hours

43. I had a lot of free time

44. My dad bought me a briefcase for graduation which was his way of saying “I’m so proud of you but you have to go get a job”

45. I got a job selling financial products and helping people invest for retirement

46. Which was kind of ironic considering I’m not good at math and can’t really balance my checkbook (I didn’t mention that in my interview)

47. I had that job for 2 years

48. I wasn’t sad when it was over

49. P and I got married August 16, 1997

50. It was a noon wedding on the hottest day of the year

51. I loved, loved, loved my wedding dress

52. P and I waited 5 years to have a baby

53. I love being a mom more than I can express

54. It’s my favorite thing I’ve ever done

55. It’s also the hardest thing I’ve ever done

56. The first year after I had Caroline I self medicated with plain M&M’s

57. I spent many nights praying she would sleep and bargaining with God

58. I hold no nostalgia for those days

59. Although I’d pay a million dollars to smell her little baby sweetness one more time

60. My favorite movie ever is Gone with the Wind

61. I’ve seen it more times than I can count

62. I’ve probably got a little more Scarlett in me than Melanie

63. If I love a book I’ll read it over again at least once a year

64. I’ve read Lonesome Dove and Gone with the Wind several times

65. I’ll also watch Lonesome Dove on DVD about once a year

66. I may have a small crush on Robert Duvall as Gus McRae

67. My favorite food is Mexican food

68. I love chips, salsa and queso and could eat it everyday

69. I also have a major weakness for chocolate chip cookies, especially the dough

70. I’m not really a candy person but when I crave candy it’s always Sour Patch Kids

71. I obviously have a very sophisticated palate

72. I love getting pedicures but not necessarily manicures

73. I have a stomach like cast iron and can truly have a stomach bug one day and eat a Frito pie later that night.

74. I love watching sports

75. Watching a team win a championship will make me cry 4 out of 5 times

76. I myself am not an athlete

77. I did play soccer in high school, but just because my best friend talked me into it.

78. I was more of a cheerleader/dance team kind of girl

79. It takes alot to make me mad

80. I get my feelings hurt easier than most people would think because I tend to act a little thicker skinned than I am

81. I’m usually quick to forgive because I don’t like feeling angry at someone

82. I hate making decisions and would usually rather someone else make them

83. I don’t have a large group of friends but the ones I have are friends for life

84. I tend to seem a little quiet in groups of people I don’t know

85. I am anything but quiet around my friends

86. In fact, one time P came running into the house because I was cutting up and talking so loud to Gulley on the phone that he thought I was hurt

87. My first car was a Honda CRX

88. I drove it for 8 years and by the end it had duct tape on the front fender and you couldn’t open the doors from the inside, so you had to roll down (manually) the window from the inside and reach out to open the door.

89. My dad never understood how I could run up a $100.00 a month gas bill with a Honda in a small town like College Station

90. I admit I sometimes may have bought adult beverages for myself and my friends at the gas station

91. One of the best experiences of my life was going to Sicily four years ago and getting to see the towns where my great grandparents were born

92. It gave me a whole new appreciation for my family history and I didn’t understand the meaning of ancient until I saw the ruins of Greek temples

93. We went to the Vatican and I started crying when I walked in St. Peter’s because my mind couldn’t wrap around the beauty

94. Our camera got stolen the last night of the trip and it still makes me sick to think of the pictures that we’ll never have

95. The memories of that trip will stay with me forever

96. The thing I worry about the most is am I being the best mom I can be to Caroline

97. Some days the answer is yes, but others it’s no

98. The most important thing in the world to me is being a good wife and mother

99. I want to live the life that God has intended for me to live

100. I feel more blessed than I ever imagined and even during the struggles I know that I have been given much, and in return hope to give back just as much