Read it once before... but worth reading again

By Regina Brett The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio

To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught
me. It is the most-requested column I've ever written. My odometer
rolls over this week, so here's an update:
1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Life is too short for long pity parties. Get busy living, or get busy dying.
17. You can get through anything if you stay put in today.
18. A writer writes. If you want to be a writer, write.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple. [WITH RED]
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: "In five years, will this matter?"
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
36. Growing old beats the alternative - dYing young.
37. Your children get only one childhood. Make it memorable.
38. Read the Psalms. They cover every human emotion.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
42. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful, or joyful.
43. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
44. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
45. The best is yet to come.
46. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up, and show up.
47. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
48. If you don't ask, you don't get.
49. Yield.
50. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.
"Those who matter don't judge me....those who judge me don't matter." AMEN.

Growing Up Way too Fast

Hunter and Alaina before the Homecoming Dance 2010

It's the Great Pumpkin!

Today we went to Sanders Pumpkin Patch in Vinton, Iowa. What an awesome place it is! I love this time of year and what a beautiful day! They had so many varieties of pumpkins, gourds, squash, and crafts.



I loved the emu's and ostrich's!!



Ostrich egg.



OSTRICH FACT: Did you know that one ostrich egg weighs 3 pounds and is = to 2 dozen chicken eggs?



The goats were pretty cute too...



and I thought the swan gourds were pretty cool too! We will definately be making this a yearly visit every fall to buy our pumpkins!







LOVE, LOVE, LOVE THIS TIME OF YEAR!

Homecoming Week at North-Linn High School!

Robin (Aitor)


Batman & Captain America


Hunter


Batman



Monday - Famous Duo Day
Tuesday - Senior Citizen Day
Wednesday - Decade Day
Thursday - Super Hero Day
Friday - Burgundy and White Day

First Cross Country Meet at Oelwein

Mordecai Botchway, Tanner Helms, Aitor Rodriguez

Quick Trip to St Louis

Took a quick trip to St Louis last weekend with Mike, Hunter, Blake, Mordecai, and Alaina. It was a great weekend that was jam packed with all that we wanted to do in two short days. We left Saturday morning at 6am. First stop was the Delmar Loop area to do a little shopping and eat lunch at Fitz's Rootbeer.

Blake found another cool tshirt that he just had to have!


After we had lunch we continued our way downtown stopping at Union Station to hit the Cardinal stores and to watch the fudge makers at the Fudge Factory.






Next stop: the Gateway Arch.


•The Arch is the tallest national monument in the United States at 630 feet; it is the city's best known landmark and a popular tourist attraction.

•Construction began February 12, 1963 and the last section of the Arch was put into place on October 28, 1965.

•The Arch is a structure known as a catenary curve, the shape a free-hanging chain takes when held at both ends, and considered the most structurally-sound arch shape. The span of the Arch legs at ground level is 630 feet, the same as its height.

•Each year, approximately a million visitors ride the trams to the top of the Arch. The trams have been in operation for over 30 years, traveling a total of 250,000 miles and carrying over 25 million passengers.

•The Arch weighs 17,246 tons. Nine hundred tons of stainless steel was used to build the Arch, more than any other project in history.

•The Arch was built at a cost of $13 million. The transportation system was built at a cost of $3,500,000.

•In order to ensure that the constructed legs would meet, the margin of error for failure was 1/64th of an inch. All survey work was done at night to eliminate distortion caused by the sun's rays. Since the Arch was constructed before the advent of computer technology, relatively crude instruments were used for these measurements.

•The Arch sways a maximum of 18" (9" each way) in a 150 mph wind. The usual sway is 1/2".

Mordecai, Blake, and Alaina looking out the window.

Mordecai checking out the view from above.

After the arch we walked over to Busch Stadium and watched the Cardinals play the San Fransisco Giants. The cardinals won, and Mordecai saw his first homerun!





After the game we headed back to the hotel and we were all fast asleep by 10:30pm. The six of us were up and showered, had breakfast, and were out the door by 9:30am. We headed to the St Louis Zoo and spent the next six hours enjoying all that the zoo had to offer.

Blake enjoying a funnel cake!

Hunter & Alaina taking a break.

Mordecai and the ape!

Another wonderful weekend spent in St Louis!

Bummer :-(

I didn't win the I Pad but I did receive a $20 gift certificate to Brewed Awakenings!!!
Thanks Lisa for all of your hard work!