43 Random Facts

It's my birthday!!!! I'm not one of those people who dread their birthdays because they're getting older. And, it's not because I'm not old. ha! I just embrace it. I know that's not the fashionable thing to do, but I guess I'm not that, either. :)
So - warning - this post is going to be long - because it's a list that depends on how old I am. I remember it was either Helga or maybe Laura Bignell (or both?) who had made a list for their birthday according to their age. I thought that was so cool. So, I'm going to attempt to give you 43 random facts that you may not know about me. And 43 is a lot longer than Helga's or Laura Bignell's, trust me. I figured I better do this post this year, before the years stack up and I end up having to do 45, 50, 55, 60 - can you imagine having to come up with that many facts about yourself? I'd hate to be responsible for putting that many of you to sleep at your computers! Yikes! I think I'd get fined for that or something!
Anyhow, 43 Random Facts You May Not Know About Me:
1. I have a collection of heart shaped rocks. They "find me." I truly believe God puts them in my path when I'm least expecting them. They're His "love notes" to me.
2. I didn't get my driver's license until I was 22.
3. I love pink and red toenail polish. love, love, love
4. When I go out to eat (my friends and family know this, but you probably don't - unless you're Cathy or Shelly or a face-to-face friend) I usually order an omelet...no matter what time of day it is. It is my default meal.
5. I had back surgery to remove an injured disk when I was 26.
6. My lucky number has been 8 since I was a little girl....and it really has been lucky for me!
7. My favorite drink is coffee.
8. My favorite ice cream flavor is Edy's Espresso Chip. Mmmmmmm....
9. I love to brush my teeth. I honestly brush too much. Ask my dentist.
10. I once started an oven on fire.
11. Last year, I had a monthly radio program. (Kris Ann from Mom's On Fire was on at least one of them, as was Shelly from I Like The Way You Do, was too.)
12. All I ever wanted to be since I was little was a mom....oh, that and a toothpaste commercial actress.
13. I am afraid to use my grill...for three years. I've managed not to use it for two years now. Some day I will have to face that fearsome thing, I know.
14. I usually do not sleep well when there is a full moon.
15. I love Jesus and I'm not ashamed to say it. I'm not afraid to say it, either.
16. I am loud and love to laugh. Some say I can be rowdy. I don't know if I'd go THAT far! The mixture of being a Christian/ministry leader and being loud (can I just say "fun"?) sometimes confuses people - as if I can't be both. That confuses ME! I guess I'm just a walking contradiction, then...
17. I LOVE a clean house. I really live for it. Honestly - I feel like I'm cleaning all the time. I LOVE a clean house.
18. I don't really love housework....except a few choice things. I like to hang clothes on the line, and to vacuum - love to vacuum. I also like ironing.
19. I iron about 2-5 hours a week. Yes - really.
20. I have never painted a room before. Although, my friend Trina (once she heard that I never painted a room before...) let me paint a wall purple once. She repainted it. I don't think that's my calling....
21. Gerbera daisies are my favorite flower.
22. I am full of super-quantities of static electricity. When I get out of my car, I touch the door and you can hear the shock I give myself and sometimes you see sparks! Sometimes it really hurts! I usually say "ow!" My kids say giving shocks is my super-power.
23. I want to be known for loving people extravagantly and spreading joy. If I am remembered for nothing else, I will be happy. When a person walks in the room, I want them to feel like they are the most important person in the room when they are with me.
24. I am a word nerd.
25. I love a good storm.
26. I do not love that our town blasts the sirens for severe thunderstorms. I woke up twice this week - once at 1:30am and this morning at 3:30am by a warning siren thinking there was a tornado! And, when I checked the t.v. - it was just a thunderstorm! And I couldn't go back to sleep for hours! Save the warning sirens for when we have to really go in the basement! It's just a stupid thunderstorm!
27. I love flowers.
28. I am not a gardener. I have tried. I hate to weed. Now, I can't because of the MS. If I ever become able to use my hands to pinch, I think I may fake that I can't - because I really hate to weed. :)
29. I own a snuggly zip up blanky - NOT a snuggie! I love it during the winter. My kids made fun of me, until they tried it. This particular brand was a $60+ item. My kids begged for one themselves! When they went on sale, I got them their own, so I could have mine to myself. :)
30. I am not competitive at all.
31. I love long car rides - especially with Mike. It's a great chance to sit in one place and talk. And, we travel very well together!
32. My very favorite time is spending time with my family! I feel really blessed to have them.
33. I used to be a cheerleader.
34. I still have a flip phone.
35. I have texted twice in my life, I think - once because of Cathy and once because of Michelle. I had to answer them back, and somehow I figured it out.
36. I'm extremely technically challenged. Retarded, even. I don't say that disrespectfully, either - I really am when it comes to anything technical. It's amazing I've even figured out blogger. Seriously.
37. I love massages.
38. I love the colors red, orange and hot pink....also brown, grey, dirty white and black. Isn't that weird?
39. I love small, little animals with personality. And, not just my papillon Angel - wildlife, too - like the little spider monkeys at the zoo and little squirrels and other wild animals. The little ones just get me! I just WANT them!
40. I love surprises. It's really hard to surprise me, though. I've never really had a surprise party. I had a "surprise baby shower" in which I ACTED surprised, but I knew what was going on. I guess I'm suspicious, by nature. That's what happens when you grow up in Milwaukee. And your mom works for the police department. If you were my friend - male or female - ESPECIALLY when I was a teenager - it's probably a guarantee my mom ran you through the police teletype machine to see if you had a record. I guess I was taught to be suspicious... In her defense, it probably saved me more than once... and not being suspicious when I SHOULD have been bit me more than I'd like to admit...
But, I love surprises! Want to know what I'm getting for my birthday? Mike got me a Montana Saphire ring while we were at Glacier. I'll blog about it tomorrow. :) (I was with him when he bought it, so he knows I know...)
41. I only went to college for one year. That's one of my biggest regrets. (Well, maybe not BIGGEST...I have quite a few that rank up there...) I have an 8th and 9th grader this year, and as far as things look, they are both going to at least 4 year universities, and as much as Mike and I can help it - that will happen. I know I can go back to college now, but I don't have any great career plans at this point in my life, and I'm happy leading SAMmy's like I'm doing. I don't want to get a degree just to get one. And, to be paying for 3 people in college at the same time (read: bankruptcy) doesn't sound too smart.
42. When I was little, I thought my mom was SO MEAN because she wouldn't even CONSIDER letting me have a pet monkey!
43. I am a really good bluegill fisherwoman. I love it, too!

Well, there you have it. 43 years old! Wowza! I remember when I was little and I thought 30 was over the hill! Ha! That's funny! Yesterday I was having a birthday lunch with my girls Bonnie and Robbin and Robbin asked me how old I was going to be. I told her. You know what she said. She looked me in the eye and said, "You're just a baby."
I love Robbin.

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This is an addition to the above post. I wrote the above post this morning.
It is now 2:40pm.
I've just come back from my birthday lunch with Shelly.
Well, what I thought was my birthday lunch with Shelly. We were meeting at noon and driving together to a new restaurant in town - Urban Olive and Vine. Very quaint!
Anyhow, when I got there, I found out three of my other friends were there in a back room for a small birthday party lunch - mine!!!! How fun!!!!
I told them that I just posted a list on my blog of random facts, and one of them was that I loved surprises - and that I'm rarely surprised! And there they go surprising me!
My birthdays are so much fun with the group of friends I have, let me tell you!
Last night, at my board meeting, Cathy made sure the restaurant served up birthday pie and sang a song.
And then there were birthday cards, and Cathy had presents!
Who cares about the age!!!! It IS just a number!!!!
I love birthdays!