Why I love the fair

I absolutely love our county fair. I look forward to it with great anticipation each and every year. I have to admit my favorite thing about the fair is most definitely the food. I love fair food, so much so, that I think one day I might open a restaurant of my own that sells this magnificent fatty food. Such as: fried vegetables, the fried cauliflower and zucchini are my favorite. Then there is corn on the cob, pizza by the slice, Mexican nachos, turkey drumsticks, lemon shakeups, caramel apples, cotton candy, cheesecake on a stick, chocolate dipped strawberries on a stick, frozen bananas on a stick, ice cream on a stick, corn dogs..obviously on a stick. Pretty much anything...on a stick. Oh, just the thought of food on a stick tempts me to go back to the fair one last time before it shuts down tomorrow....

Well, believe it or not I love the fair for more reasons than just the food, although that is the primary reason. I enjoy people watching. Watching the strange people dressed in strange attire. Such as this Tin man here: (Yes, that would be me...with the food)

I also enjoy watching the shows, even though the shows are pretty much the same year to year. Reptile Man still has the same jokes from when I was in elementary, nevertheless I still get a thrill out of watching him preform.

Last, I love the fair because it breaks up the monotony. And allows me to spend time with my favorite people in the world: Family.

The Miracle of Sisterhood

The Mystery: You got in her stuff. She got in your face. You shut her finger in the door (okay, accidentally). She kicked you off the couch. But now when you're together, you sometimes laugh so much you feel certain Mom is going to show up and tell you to keep it down. How it can be, nobody knows, but sisters all over the world understand that it is possible to love somebody who used to drive you nuts- and maybe sometimes still does.

The time you ate all the dough before you could make the cookies? That stays between the two of you!

Beware of sisters who have joined forces against a common enemy

You're not just sisters. You're two people bound by the fact that you know far too many embarrassing stories about each other.

No matter what the scheme, you can always count her in

Forget "how are you doing?" The real question is "who weighs more?"

Definition of Cooperation: Cramming a mountain of hair products, a ton of makeup, a hairdryer, a set of rollers, a radio, and a couple of sisters in to a small bathroom with a single outlet and one mirror.

Some days it's no surprise that sister rhymes with arm twister.

With a sister no background information is ever required when you're telling a story. How great is that?

If you're going to break a house rule, it's best to do it together.

With a sister you can ask which fork to use at a fancy dinner without being embarrassed.

Off come the shoes. Out come the contents of the fridge. On and on goes the talk well into the night.

If you don't feel like talking, your sister doesn't automatically assume you're mad at her

You are never, ever required to fake a laugh when you're with your sister.

Nicole and Lauren, I love you more than words could ever express- Brooke

Something isn't right II

Just yesterday I visited the local playground in my small town. I haven't visited the park for quit some time. And I most certainly have not found myself attempting to go down the slides, squeezing through the tunnels and climbing up the ladders for several years. However, on my "date" with my little girl I was practically forced to climb around on the playground. :) However, what I saw was quite disturbing, in fact it has been bothering me ever since.

I remember as a child playing at the playground. Graffiti on the playground has long been a characteristic of the bad children. I remember as I child seeing the markings on the playgrounds. Most of them read things such as:

I love Johnny! or I love Sue!

However, now things are different, different to say the least.

As I was taking Sarah though the tunnels and up the ladders, all I could think was how I glad I was that Sarah could not read. Today the markings on the playground no longer simply read of childhood romance. Rather, the playground was marked up with cuss words and obscenities. However, the the thing that bothered me most I saw next...

As I proceeded through the tunnels and up the ladders (quite uncomfortably) I noticed the wood marked with dates.

Dates that marked the first time a child/teen smoked a cigarette.

Dates that marked the first time an alcoholic beverage was drunk by a child/teen.

Dates that marked the first a child or teen got high...

It was disturbing to say the least. As I sat scrunched up in the tunnels I was filled with both anger and sadness. Where were the parents when all of this was going on? These children/teens are the future of our country. Where is are country going when our young people are hiding out having their first drinks and smokes... All I can say is something isn't right!

Excitement

I can hardly contain my excitement any longer....

In exactly four weeks from today I will be on my way to:

Tybee Island

Isn't is just gorgeous.

I can't wait to stop looking at pictures, and to be able to feel the sand beneath my toes, the cool wind gently blowing, see dolphins, and hopefully if I am lucky...I really really want to find a sand dollar!

I CAN'T WAIT!!!

Our second date

My little girl will be beginning kindergarten in about a month. We have been having little play dates together before we both go back to school. So today Sarah and I and had our second date together.

We started off baking Chocolate chip cookies. Well....I baked, she licked the beaters, licked the bowl, and made a mess!!!

Then, she ate the cookies

We then headed to the park

Then we went for ice cream, where I believe she got more ice cream on her face then in her mouth.

More than that

My big sister could not be with me in college... She was only with me my first semester, and then she graduated. I was left alone, something I was not used to. I had grown quite accustomed to leaning upon my big sister. Then she stepped in...my big sister's best friend. And she was there. I am sure she has no idea how much her words of kindness and encouragement meant to me. But she was there and that was all that I needed. She was simply my big sister's best friend but over the past two years in college, she has become more than that to me...she has become my confident, my companion and my friend too.

Last Friday Liz got married. I never cry in weddings, but this one I did. I could not help but have tears come to my eyes when I saw my big sister's best friend, my friend, walking down the aisle. She looked absolutely radiant; she seemed to have a glow about her.

My big sister has an amazing best friend, and I am so lucky and proud to call her my friend too.

Something isn't right

I live in the best country in all the world. I am truly proud to be an American. But some thing about this country isn't right. As most of my readers realize, I am studying to be a teacher, a history teacher. Perhaps that is why I got so frustrated this morning. Although I live in the best country in the world, our public schools are not educating our American children well enough in the area of the history of our great country, the USA. The history teachers should be so proud to tell their students that they have the awesome privilege of living in the greatest country in the world. A country that was founded upon the Bible, God's holy Word. Yet, the public school teachers are seriously lacking. Yet, I should not place all blame upon the teachers, for it is primarily the duty of the parents to educate their children...

In my 3rd-4th grade Sunday school class today, one of the teachers simply asked the children what holiday we were celebrating today. They all knew the obvious answer: The Fourth of July! He then proceeded to ask the children what exactly we are celebrating. Hands shot up across the classroom. However, I was filled with dismay when one by one the children exclaimed that we were celebrating fireworks. I stood there thinking... Fireworks??? Why would we celebrate fireworks? Do these kids think we celebrate presents on Christmas, or perhaps eggs on Easter? I stood there speechless. The other teacher went on to explain that we are celebrating our nation's independence. He then asked the children if they knew who America became independent from. The children looked at him dumbfounded, you mean America wasn't always independent? However what struck me the most occurred next. The pianist then began to play our country's beautiful national anthem. The song that once brought tears to people's eyes. That song that was once sung so proudly by children of all ages. Not one of the children knew what the pianist was playing. I thought, if the pianist was playing a song of Michael Jackson's, or some other famous singer, I guarantee you every child would have rose from their seat and proudly sung everyone of the words. But not our national anthem, they have never even heard of it.

I am proud to live in the best country in the world, yet I am so sad to see the children of America grow up not knowing that they live in the greatest country of all.

Memories from childhood days

Girls, do you remember those silly hand clapping games we used to play when we were young. Ahh...back in our childhood days...

This week at work, I observed my two five year old little girls: Grace and Sarah doing this little hand clapping song: Cherry Cherry Ding-Dong.

As I watch them sing and clap along, I thought back to the little songs I use to sing and clap to when I was young. The girls and I at work immediately began to the show the children some of our clapping songs such: Shame, Shame Shame I don't want to go to Mexico no more more more. Do you remember that one? Or how about Miss Sue, Miss Sue from Alabama, that was always always a favorite of mine.

Yes- some things never change- hand clapping must just be a little girl thing...