Would you believe?

*living in the country has its disadvantages - my internet has been down for over 24 hours. UGH! I wanted to add a comment about the picture of my son in the last post. That picture has not been edited at all - I don't know how to edit yet. I had the camera out taking pics of the boys making a "bomb" - science, people, not the real redneck thing - and our neighbor's horse came to visit for her daily carrot feeding time (yes, an advantage of living in the country).

Without access to the internet, I had started this "random" tag, and am finally posting it...sadly, without some hilarious pictures.

TAG YOU'RE IT!
I always love to read the responses when someone gets “tagged.”

And I have been tagged….many times, and have been procrastinating!!

It started way back when Vern, my new blogging friend from Inspired Looks, first tagged me to post 7 random things, and then others tagged me about posting both spectacular and unspectacular things (New every morning, Lauren, Wilson Ramblings,Pages of our Life, and some other sweet friends who I can’t find in my comments right now…let me know. )

Since I feel much more comfortable staying in the random and unspectacular realm – here they are – broken into beauty and bedlam, of course. So stick with me.

(Please don’t stop tagging me…it makes me feel loved…I will be better….promise!)

1. Beauty - Before I got married at 24, I had traveled to over 25 different countries for school, vocal engagements, mission trips, and pleasure.

Bedlam – Since our honeymoon in Jamaica, I have not been out of the country…at all…not once.

2. Depending on who reads this, the beauty and bedlam is combined…you decide.

During our honeymoon in Jamaica, “Murphy’s Law,” who continually enters our life at many unsuspecting times, struck again. For the first time in a 30 year history, the Jamaican beaches were closed for nearly 5 days due to the “storm” of ’93. Anyone remember it?

Well, considering that I was the last of the “24 year old virgins,” my natural planning attempts didn’t quite calculate correctly with wedding stress and my cycle (how's that for too much information), so I got pregnant...on our honeymoon. The due date was exactly nine months to the day of our wedding. Try explaining that birds and bees fact to the high school youth group that you were working with full time! Hee hee…..

3. Our second son was 10lbs, 1 ounce, and I had him…naturally. What was I thinking? I can still feel it…vividly! This happened after taking a whole lot of castor oil to induce labor. Now that is a hilarious blog post all by itself, but one that you must hear told in real life.

4. Spending money on underwear is like having a root canal. Which means that I still wear granny underwear…and it comes up to my belly button... and I roll it down “to look cool.”
You think I am exaggerating? Just double dog dare me to show you the picture.
5. Growing up, my father was a Certified Financial Planner. That is how I honed my thrifty skills (and you haven't even heard half of them...I am trying to ease you into them.
For Christmas, my parents would give me $50 to spend on gifts for the family (6 of us, but that felt like gold that many years ago). Before purchasing a gift, I had to price out the item at 3 different stores, keep records of my comparison shopping, and then I could go ahead and buy the item. If I did my comparison shopping, my parents never second guessed me or tried to change my mind - even when I bought my older brother a disco globe light. I thought it was the coolest thing EVER!! (He stills teases me about it:)

Do you know the “gift” that my parents gave me through that experience? I remember feeling so grown up that they would entrust me with those money making decisions. I never fully understood the magnitude of those life lessons until that financial advise and mentoring bridged me through many a harried financial times.

6.My husband and I are attempting to pass on the same gift with our children - NOT the gift of money, but the gift of financial stewardship - stewardship through times of plenty, times of want, and keeping perspective on what is truly important.

7. Ok, how in the world did this turn serious…good grief, Jen, random things!! I was a competitive swimmer for 14 years…training for a very big event…that comes every 4 years (and virtually no one in my adult life knows that…except for you). I finally had to choose between “the arts” or sports. I choose the arts, and quit training. Bodies, who have worked out for 2-5 hours a day for many years, don’t like that, and I gained more than my share of the freshman 15…much more! But that's another whole post.

Oh my…I could go on forever with random things since I type fast….if you made it through all of these….bless your sweet heart. You are a faithful friend!